The IDF zones that the army’s engineers have created within the Gaza Strip over the last year show that it’s serious about maintaining security control of the enemy territory for at least the medium-term, the Swiss Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) reported Friday. By examining satellite imagery, the daily drew a clear picture of the new roads and infrastructure Israel has built in order to help the army’s efforts against the Hamas terrorists, as well as ensure security for Israeli citizens after the war is over. Only a few weeks into the ground incursion into Gaza, which began in late October, 2023, troops started blowing up the buildings within a kilometer of the border to create a buffer zone for the kibbutzim and moshavim whose fields and home came within meters sometimes of the original fence. By now, reported NZZ, approximately 90% of a north-south, kilometer-wide strip has been razed to the ground. The Philadelphi Corridor on the Egyptian-Gazan border that had been the main smuggling route for Hamas weaponry, both over and under the ground, has been turned into a constantly patrolled, two-lane, paved road, enabling the IDF to shut down this “oxygen pipeline,” as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dubbed it. The biggest project has been the Netzarim Corridor, which cuts completely through the Strip about a third of the way down from its northern tip, through the outer parts of Gaza City. The seven-kilometer-long road is wide, well-paved, and protected by earthen embankments in certain sections on either side. There are also watchtowers and at least two army bases dotting its flanks. Buildings have been steadily demolished all around the road to a form a secure zone five to six kilometers wide. The corridor started as the answer to a tactical need but is now “a strategic element,” Mitvim think-tank president Nimrod Goren told the paper. “It also serves to divide the territory, to control the movement of the Palestinian population, to enable ongoing action against Hamas infrastructure and to show that Israel will not be leaving any time soon.” Some 53% of Jewish Israelis support the reestablishment of Israeli communities in the Gaza Strip, according to the “Peace Index” survey released by Tel Aviv University in January. https://worldisraelnews.com/idf-laying-groundwork-for-long-term-control-of-gaza-strip-report/ [One minute] In this update: Syrian and Russian forces launch joint raids on residential neighborhoods in Idlib, Syria. Two U.S. Navy destroyers fought back this weekend against missile attacks aimed at American ships in the Red Sea. “U.S. Navy destroyers USS Stockdale (DDG 106) and the USS O’Kane (DDG 77) successfully defeated a range of Houthi-launched weapons while transiting the Gulf of Aden, Nov. 30 — Dec. 1,” U.S. Central Command reported in a news release on its website. “The destroyers were escorting three U.S. owned, operated, flagged merchant vessels, and the reckless attacks resulted in no injuries and no damage to any vessels, civilian or U.S. Naval,” the release said. The earliest known Chinese inscription in Israel from about 500 years ago has been uncovered in Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Tuesday. The rare 16th century CE Chinese inscription, unearthed in a dig on Mount Zion and discovered on a porcelain bowl fragment, reads: “Forever we will guard the eternal spring,” the state-archaeological body said. Ancient Chinese porcelain vessels were previously found in Israel, but this is the first to bear an inscription. The bowl was subsequently dated to 1520-1570, and originated in the Ming Dynasty, the IAA said. The 16th century saw close trade relations between the Chinese Empire and the Ottoman Empire which ruled the Holy Land at the time explaining how a dish from China ended up in Jerusalem. During that period, there were colonies of Chinese merchants in Beirut and Tripoli who likely had trade interests in Jerusalem, Cairo and Aleppo. Israel Antiquities Authority Director Eli Escusido said, “But it is fascinating to meet evidence of these relations also in the form of an actual inscription, written in the Chinese language, and in an unexpected place – on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.” https://www.jns.org/earliest-known-chinese-inscription-discovered-in-jerusalem/ [One minute] In this update: South Korea's Political Turmoil: The Democratic Party of South Korea calls for President Yoon Suk Yeol to step down after his martial law declaration and a failed military coup against parliament. Syrian Conflict: Syria's UN representative, Qusay Dahhak, blames regional and international actors, including Turkey, for backing terrorist attacks in northern Syria to destabilize the Syrian state. Lebanese Army Deployment: The Lebanese army moves into areas previously vacated by the IDF, marking a significant shift in the region. Assad's Abandoned Military Equipment: The Assad regime soldiers left behind an insane amount of armored vehicles and tanks while fleeing from Syrian rebels. Hostage Murders: An IDF investigation reveals that six hostages, whose bodies were recovered in a special operation from Khan Yunis, were murdered by their captors, not by IDF air strikes as claimed by Gaza terrorists. Hezbollah Threats: The IDF continues to act against Hezbollah's actions that violate understandings between Israel and Lebanon. Donald Trump's Appointment: President-elect Trump announces Adam Seth Boehler as Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs. Assad's Secret Tunnels: Rebels expose the Assad regime's underground tunnels in Tall Rifaat, featuring meeting rooms, operations centers, hospitals, and more. Shin Bet Operation: The IDF and Shin Bet successfully recovered the body of abductee Itay Svirsky from the Gaza Strip for burial in Israel after his kidnapping by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
IDF laying groundwork for long-term control of Gaza Strip – report:
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