 Breaking News Edition, I'm Penise Levine, coming to you live from Tel Aviv. Developments on several fronts on this day rocket alert sirens sounding in northern Israel in recent hours in the town of Kiryat Shmona, close to the border with Lebanon. And also in northern Israel, a terror attack in Haifa, a soldier critically injured in a ramming attack near an IDF base. The army, saying the driver then got out of his vehicle and tried to stab soldiers with an axe. The soldiers opened fire, the terrorist was neutralized. Further afield in Syria, reports of explosions in Damascus. Israel is being blamed, locations targeted are linked to Iran's revolutionary guards. The sites are in the Shia district of Sayyeda Zainab in the southern part of the Syrian capital. And in the Gaza Strip, residents near Al Amal Hospital in Hanyunas are being urged to evacuate and head to the Al Mawasi safe zone as fighting in the area intensifies. The IDF saying earlier it had killed four Hamas gunmen who tried to ambush troops near that hospital. Israel says it is taking steps to keep hospitals there operating and minimize civilian casualties as it works to eliminate Hamas terrorists. Meanwhile, Israeli protesters are taking a stand at the Kerim Shalom crossing, asking how humanitarian aid can be entering the Strip when 136 hostages remain in captivity inside Gaza held by Hamas for 115 days. Correspondent Pierre Klossschendler was at that Kerim Shalom crossing earlier and filed this report. There's a face off going on for about four hours now between Israeli protesters, concerned citizens that are trying to block for a six consecutive day humanitarian aid delivery to the Gaza Strip. But this time, if they came, hundreds of them, they're met with hundreds of police security forces protecting the humanitarian aid delivery. Right now, you see people, most of them religious Zionists that are praying the midday prayer. Not necessarily for the success of their demonstration because to their tent amount for the first time today, aid is going through. We've seen earlier caravans of trucks coming from the Egyptian border to the Kerim Shalom border crossing on Israeli territory. These trucks are being inspected by security officers in the Kerim Shalom compound and the cargo is dismounted for security inspection and then transferred on the trucks 300 meters away to Hamas officials in the Palestinian side of the Kerim Shalom crossing and mounted on Palestinian trucks to be delivered inside the Gaza Strip. And this man is saying something. What are you saying? No, Palestine is something for free. It's not going to exist. The people of Israel is living. The people of Israel is strong and united. And this is more or less the spirit of the demonstrators here. They believe that aid is hijacked by Hamas and we've seen such videos of Hamas operatives hijacking the heads and the Shin Bet General Security Services head Ronan Bar was attributed by the Israeli media saying that 60 to 80 percent of this aid is being given to Hamas for its own purposes. Therefore, these protests, even if they do not succeed, might go on in the near future. This is Pierre Closch and Lair, I-24 News at the Kerim Shalom border crossing. So for more insight, it's a pleasure to welcome to studio Martin Hemmel, political analyst and international security analyst. Martin, thank you so much. As always, several developments on several fronts at the same time. Let's start with Kerim Shalom, six days of protests. People from across the political spectrum say first release the hostages, then let the aid in. Talk to us about the dynamics at play right now. Well, I fully understand why the family members of hostages would say something like that. Their family members are not getting proper food, proper medicine, proper care. Some are very old, some are very sick. And they want to see them benefiting from humanitarian aid. Palestinians are going to benefit from it. That's on the personal ethical point of view, but the world runs on interests and on a community of interests. And Israel needs the United States very much for weaponry, political support, military support, etc. And the United States has made it extremely clear that its condition for really top support for Israel is much more humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. And so Prime Minister Netanyahu in the government has to live with that reality. It can't ignore it. And therefore, that's one of the major reasons you see that aid going in so significantly. The family is also waiting for word because there was a summit in Paris overnight. It wrapped up with discussions around more meetings set to take place later on in the week. But time is of the essence for 136 hostages. Not all of them are alive, but we wait for confirmation. We wait for proof of life as well. Talk to us about the fact that more meetings are being pushed out. It's taking longer and longer and still no concrete outcome. Well, we have to look at it from a Hamas point of view to really understand the complexity of the situation. Israel has said its major goal in the war is the release of the hostages and the destruction of Hamas. Well, Hamas is not interested, and especially its leader, Sinwar, is not interested in committing suicide. They have no plans to disappear from this world or to be removed from power. So therefore, what do they have as leverage and what they have as leverage are the hostages. He sees clearly how Israel is feeling extremely anxious about this problem, how the hostage members are putting tremendous pressure on the government. These protests also, Karam Shalom. And he feels he's got some leverage and he wants to survive. So he's doing everything possible to trade those hostages for some sort of a guarantee that him and Hamas will survive. Meanwhile, earlier on in the day, in Haifa, a soldier critically wounded, he's in hospital right now after being attacked with an axe after a ramming attack as well. We hear about so-called lone wolf attacks, developments on this particular story still unfolding, information still unfolding. But what do you make of that kind of incident in a city inside Israel right now, close to an IDF army base? Well, Hamas's other tactic is to try to inflame the situation in the West Bank, try to get people to go out and kill Israelis any way possible through cars, knives, anything possible to encourage lone wolf attacks through social media. And this is to really open up another front to keep Israel preoccupied in the West Bank because if it's more preoccupied in the West Bank, it might be less preoccupied in Gaza. It's not working out that way for Hamas, but that's the goal. And this is a byproduct of what happened in Haifa as a byproduct of that goal, somebody who came rammed a car trying to kill soldiers, took an axe trying to kill people, and he was shot and killed. Certainly a concern around potential copycat attacks as well. Well, that's what the power of social media is. There are many, there are already copycat attacks. There have been several lone wolf attacks of this type of nature, somebody who feels they're going to have become heroic, glory, lead this world with accolades, and it does create copycats. That's precisely what Hamas would like to do. I want to turn to another development further afield in Syria. Just a short while ago, Iranian state media reporting to people were killed in a strike. It's being attributed to Israel. Of course, there's a policy of ambiguity on the Israeli front when it comes to operations inside Syria. Talk to us, though, about what it means when the Iranian Revolution regards sites are being targeted right now. It's a clear message to Iran that Israel will not tolerate its efforts to equip Syria, the pro-Iranian militias, Hamas, Isballah, in an effort to destabilize any peace efforts in this region, any efforts to have quiet with Israel right now. Israel wants to keep the area inflamed, because by keeping it inflamed, there's no progress on any normalization between Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States, et cetera, with Israel. That is an anathema for them. That is worse than death for them. That contradicts their whole ideology. So they're putting tremendous efforts on that front. And what's happening with Israel is that they are trying to stop it with all force possible. So probably, while we can't prove it's Israel, but it's likely, this is another targeted hit against Iranian military personnel or quasi-military personnel to make sure that Iran gets the message that they're not going to just walk away as being secondary actors in this. They are a prime actor in this. Well, talking about messages being sent, al-Ariabi al-Jadid is reporting that Egypt says the Houthis must focus their attacks on Israeli ships. Now, we're talking about several France unfolding at the same time. What do you make of a message like that? These attacks by the Houthis have been ongoing for a while now. Efforts to deter them have not been successful. A message like that out of Cairo right now, your thoughts? I don't think it's an official message. I think official Cairo is very mindful of how everybody feels. It might be a deeply unofficial message because the Houthi attacks is a major headache for Egypt. Egypt gets major revenue from trade through the Suez Canal, where 20% of the world trade goes through the Suez Canal. And that's very, very important for them. So somebody probably said, look, the Houthis want to keep fighting. Let them to direct it in Israel, not at us and the Chinese and others who have to live with trade through the Suez Canal. And it just goes to show how much of an international dimension this fight has and it all boils back to Iran again. Iran is behind the Houthi escapade. Iran is trying to destabilize efforts between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Gulf states to normalize with Israel and strengthen with Israel. This is part of the same game. The difference though with the Houthis though is the fact that it's almost a global concern now because the impact on shipping across that part of the world is impacting people around the globe. Not only on this continent, but in several parts of the world. And yet those efforts to deter them haven't come to any kind of fruition just yet. I'm not so sure about that. I think the United States and the world's commerce is not going to make a big statement about all their ships going through the Suez Canal. They want to keep it very quiet because they don't want to basically humiliate quote unquote the Houthis into being shown that they are not capable of hitting those ships now because of the large coalition naval presence in that area. But if they are still succeeding in preventing ships from going through the Suez Canal on a significant level, the United States in this country will take significant action because that affects world trade, world economies. Even the Chinese are probably talking to the Iranians to cool it because they depend on the Suez Canal to trade with Europe. And that's very, very important for them. Certainly we'll be fascinating to see how it all unfolds. Martin, stay with us. There's much more to discuss because we were talking about developments in this part of the world and a new controversy following a right-wing conference in Jerusalem. The message after the war, Jewish communities will resettle in the Gaza Strip. Senior Defence Correspondent Jonathan Regev reports. 11 cabinet ministers along with another 15 parliament members, almost half the coalition making up the Israeli government, chose, in the middle of a war, to attend a very controversial conference calling to resettle an area Israel already withdrew from. Part of correcting the mistake, the recognition of the mistaken conception that brought upon us the October 7 massacre and the deportation, is returning home to Gush Katif and northern Samaria. Gush Katif was a settlement bloc in the southern Gaza Strip, which Israel dismantled in 2005 when it left the Gaza Strip. Those who oppose the plan at the time and are now senior ministers believe this is the time to resettle Gaza again. We are settling our land from width to length, controlling and fighting terror always, and bringing with God's help security to all of Israel. We know that without settlement, there is no security. The conference and the high-profile people in attendance drew strong criticism even from within the cabinet. Minister Gadhi Eisencourt saying those attending have learned nothing from the events of the past year and are once again raising divisive issues instead of looking for the uniting ones. His party leader had a similar message. The participation of ministers and coalition members in the conference yesterday hurt the Israeli society in times of war. They hurt the global legitimacy for our war and they hurt the effort we are making to create a framework, to bring back our hostages. As nearly half of his coalition was there dancing and celebrating, where is the man heading that coalition? What is his view on the issue? For now, he's nowhere to be seen. What we don't see is any kind of plan, any kind of vision on behalf of the Israeli government. We just don't see it. I mean, we are looking for it. We need it. We need it for us. We need it for the international community. But we don't see anything of that kind, unfortunately. And this is why extreme right-wingers can gather and say, okay, we have the solution. Solution, we are going to resettle in the Gaza Strip. If the prime minister is quiet on the issue, those supporting the resettlement of Gaza also raise other ideas. The Arabs will not remain in Gaza. They lost their right to stay where they were up until October 7. They will go to Egypt, to Turkey, to Scotland, to Canada, to New Zealand, wherever. The war in Gaza may have brought the very divided Israeli people together, but this conference proves the differences have not gone anywhere and they will not even wait until the end of the war to resurface. Still in the studio, Martin Himmel. And the issue of future settlement in Gaza is a controversial one, an emotional one, as we saw in that report. What do you make of the fact that Benjamin Netanyahu is silent on that issue right now? Well, there's something else he's silent about. He's silent about the day after, which is critical to the United States and the world. And the Arab states who want to help bring some sort of alternative Palestinian rule into the Gaza Strip that isn't tainted with terror. On that he's silent, but his actions, his silence here speaks volumes because if there's not going to be any day after that way, the only thing that's on the table is Israeli military rule in the Gaza Strip. Israel taking the responsibility for 2.2 million Palestinians, tremendous costs, tremendous problems, military rule, which has no legitimacy whatsoever in the entire world. Israel will be totally isolated from it. And his ministers, being there, speak volumes. They're not speaking about the day after in a constructive sense with some sort of local rule. They're speaking day after of some big occupation and resettlement of Jews to that area. And that is very damaging to Israel's foreign policy at this stage. And it is certainly speaking volumes when you see the kind of rhetoric that is coming out of a conference like that. And then, as you say, the Prime Minister himself not saying anything at this juncture, something we will take a deeper look at in a short while. Stay with us because we have another major developing story. A school counselor accused of being a hostage-taker, a social worker accused of distributing ammunition. New details are emerging about employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA. Evidence emerging that 12 people from the UN agency took part in the October 7 massacre. And new intelligence reports say around 10% of the Palestinian aid agency's 12,000 staff in Gaza have links to militants. In recent hours, Austria becoming the latest country to pull funding. And a short while ago, the European Union saying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank will continue and abated through partner organizations adding the European Commission will determine upcoming funding decisions for UNRWA in light of the very serious allegations insisting that UNRWA agree to carrying out an audit of the agency to be conducted by EU-appointed independent external experts. Correspondent Pierre Stegelbach has more in this report. The accusations are serious. The consequences severe. 12 UNRWA staffers are accused of having participated in the October 7 massacre in southern Israel. New details in the New York Times reveal that Israel considers 10 of them to be Hamas members and seven of them teach in UNRWA schools. A school counselor allegedly helped to abduct an Israeli woman into Gaza. A social worker allegedly kidnapped the body of an Israeli soldier and distributed ammunition. It is new that at least now things are on table and the international community understands pretty well how dangerous is disorganization and why disorganization should be dismantled. And I hope that one of the outcomes of war in Gaza will be the end of UNRWA. On Friday, UNRWA announced that it sacked nine employees and will launch an investigation into their involvement on October the 7th. In Gaza alone, the UN body has about 13,000 employees. Any employee of UNRWA who is involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution. More and more countries are freezing their funding for the organization, the latest of France, Japan, and Austria. The prime minister of the Palestinian authority, Mohammad Jadaye, has called the suspensions an extremely dangerous move. And Palestinians in Gaza too fear that their situation might become even worse. We were displaced for the second time from Gaza and we didn't see the aid reaching us from the European countries. What is my fault as a Palestinian child not to receive it? Why do I have to live in this terror or in these tents where we don't know how to eat or drink? We're starving. With the new details merging about the conduct of some UNRWA staffers, in Israel concern is growing. For now, Israel's education ministry is said to look into the option of limiting UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem. It is not the first time Israel has accused the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees of misconduct and having links with Hamas. But this time, the allegations are a lot more consequential and appalling. Still, the agency is the most important lifeline for civilians in Gaza and an alternative is not on the horizon. Martin Hemel, these reports are staggering, is the end of UNRWA near. Possibly. It's, you know, this isn't sort of a causes belly, an excuse to some degree. It's a very serious charge. It's a very serious problem. But to have all these countries who are very sympathetic to the Palestinian cause to cut their funding while Israel is launching a major war and Palestinians are suffering extremely bad at this particular time, shows that there's something bigger going on here. And I think that what's bigger is that the United States is calling in some debt and saying we've got to change the Palestinian leadership in Gaza. We've got to bring something different and UNRWA is riddled with Hamas. And this comes at the same time as these meetings in Jerusalem calling for a total military occupation. Now, how sad that is because there's some real opportunity here to make a very different change in leadership that would really remove Hamas from power. If Israel comes in as a military occupier, Hamas has every reason to try to challenge it. If it's other Palestinians, then Hamas' legitimacy is eroded even further. Martin Hemel, thank you so much. Always appreciate your insights on all these developing situations. Thank you for being here in studio. And as Israeli troops continue battling Hamas' terrorists on the ground, Israel's Defense Ministry is taking advantage of its country's vibrant, high-tech scene to create an artificial intelligence-driven information platform that will help keep track of the increasingly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Fox News Digital is reporting, the system was commissioned by Defense Minister Joav Galant. The system reportedly resembles chat, GPT, and other AI platforms and relies on open-source information materials such as reports from international aid organizations, satellite imagery, news stories, and social media posts coming out of Gaza to create a real-time picture of living conditions for some 2 million Palestinian civilians. So for more insight, it's a pleasure to welcome Shiran Mlamdowski-Somer, the founder of Generative AI for Good, joining us from Tel Aviv. Thank you so much for your time. So the creation of an artificial intelligence platform to monitor the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Fascinating. How exactly would this work? I think it's very smart and very strategic move from the Defense Minister office. I think that what they did, first of all, they built a consortium, a consortium of AI experts and health professionals, together with the resources of the Defense Ministry. So first of all, to create this kind of consortium, it's created synergy for this kind of project. And by doing so, they can enjoy from the resources and the knowledge of each of the parties in this consortium. This is how they can create very strong tool. So what they did here is they created a shared GPT-style tool where they can have a real-time data, a real-time data from the satellite imagery from social media of influencers and also from individual, also gain information from reports from the international organization. And this is how they can create objective and accurate understanding of the situation of the population in Gaza. This concept of AI is quite overwhelming and even intimidating for many. There's so much to understand. So help talk us through the concept of AI for good. What kinds of initiatives and projects are underway? And what more light can you shed on the way AI is being used right now? So first of all, what I'm doing, I started from a campaign named Listen to My Voice where for the first time we use Generative AI for doing good in scale. And this is how I learned about the superpower of those technology. We brought back to life five diverse Israeli women, each of them from different backgrounds that have been murdered from the intimate partner. And by using this Generative AI, we can let each of them to tell their own story from their own mouth. And this creates a very wide impact in Israel. The engagement rate was very high, awareness and also we saved lives while the campaign was won. And from that day, I understand I really want to leverage this technology for doing good in scale by a cross-sectors collaboration. And from that day, I also launched a project together with an organization named March of the Living that's combating anti-Semitism. And we allow heroes from the Holocaust to tell their own stories from their own mouth set and we presented to world leaders around the world and teenagers. And this was very powerful project. Also after the October 7th, it took a lot of efforts from our end, but we thought it could be very powerful to do a awareness campaign from the hostages. And what we did, we animated two amazing children that have been kidnapped by Hamas. One's them three years old and the other eight years old. They already returned safely home. However, their father is still in captivity and we let them to tell their own stories to people all around the world. And we gained a million views. We have this video in English and also in German. And it's very important to say that this project was very, very sensitive. And because the AI is very powerful it's easily can be misused. And also it's very easy to have a cringy experience and a not professional result. And this is something that we were really afraid of. However, if you are using this powerful technology in creating and responsible way, together with a relevant organization, usually the social organization and also the governmental organization, you can create a project that can assist people and give their lives all over the world. Well, we certainly wish you all the very best with your initiatives. Thank you so much for sharing your insight. As you say, important that this kind of tool is used for good. Whether it's to get stories out, get the truth out, help with defense, help with security. It is all fascinating and developing. Shiran Mlamdowski-Somer, the founder of Generative AI for Good, speaking to us from Tel Aviv. Thank you so much. And that is a wrap for now. I'm Benita Levine, back in a bit. Stay tuned. This is I-24 News. Breaking news edition, I'm Benita Levine coming to you live from Tel Aviv. Developments on several fronts on this day, rocket alert sirens sounding in northern Israel in recent hours in the town of Kiryat Shmoner, close to the border with Lebanon. And also in northern Israel, a terror attack in Haifa, a soldier critically injured in a ramming attack near an IDF base. The army saying the driver then got out of his vehicle and tried to stab soldiers with an axe. The soldiers opened fire. The terrorist was neutralized. Further afield in Syria, reports of explosions in Damascus, Israel is being blamed. Locations targeted are linked to Iran's revolutionary guards. The sites are in the Shia district of Syeda Zainab in the southern part of the Syrian capital. And in the Gaza Strip, residents near Al Amal Hospital in Khanunas are being urged to evacuate and head to the Al-Mawasi safe zone as fighting in the area intensifies. The IDF saying earlier it had killed four Hamas gunmen who tried to ambush troops near that hospital. Israel says it is taking steps to keep hospitals there operating and minimize civilian casualties as it works to eliminate Hamas terrorists. Meanwhile, Israeli protesters are taking a stand at the Kerim Shalom crossing, asking how humanitarian aid can be entering the Strip when 136 hostages remain in captivity inside Gaza held by Hamas for 115 days. Correspondent Pierre-Claude Schindler was at that Kerim Shalom crossing earlier and filed this report. There's a face-off going on for about four hours now between Israeli protesters, concerned citizens that are trying to block for a six consecutive day humanitarian aid delivery to the Gaza Strip. But this time, if they came, hundreds of them, they're met with hundreds of police security forces protecting the humanitarian aid delivery. Right now, you see people, most of them, religious Zionists that are praying the midday prayer, not necessarily for the success of their demonstration because to their tent amount for the first time today, aid is going through. We've seen earlier caravans of trucks coming from the Egyptian border to the Kerim Shalom border crossing on Israeli territory. These trucks are being inspected by security officers in the Kerim Shalom compound and the cargo is dismounted for security inspection and then transferred on the trucks 300 meters away to Hamas officials in the Palestinian side of the Kerim Shalom crossing and mounted on Palestinian trucks to be delivered inside the Gaza Strip. And this man is saying something. What are you saying? No, Palestine. I'm Israel Chai. We're the security forces. We're the security forces. Free Palestine is something for free. It's not going to exist. The people of Israel is living. The people of Israel is strong and united. And this is more or less the spirit of the demonstrators here. They believe that aid is hijacked by Hamas. And we've seen such videos of Hamas operatives hijacking the heads. And the Shin Bet, General Security Services head Ronan Bar was attributed by the Israeli media saying that 60% to 80% of this aid is being given to Hamas for its own purposes. Therefore, these protests, even if they do not succeed, might go on in the near future. This is Pierre Klosschendler, I-24 News at the Kerim Shalom border crossing. So for more insight, it's a pleasure to welcome to studio Martin Hemmel, political analyst and international security analyst. Martin, thank you so much. As always, several developments on several fronts at the same time. Let's start with Kerim Shalom, six days of protests. People from across the political spectrum say first release the hostages, then let the aid in. Talk to us about the dynamics at play right now. Well, I fully understand why the family members of hostages would say something like that. Their family members are not getting proper food, proper medicine, proper care. Some are very old, some are very sick. And they want to see them benefiting from humanitarian aid if Palestinians are going to benefit from it. That's on the personal ethical point of view. But the world runs on interests and on a community of interests. Israel needs the United States very much for weaponry, political support, military support, et cetera. And the United States has made it extremely clear that its condition for really top support for Israel is much more humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. And so Prime Minister Netanyahu and the government has to live with that reality. It can't ignore it. And therefore, that's one of the major reasons you see that aid going in so significantly. The family is also waiting for word because there was a summit in Paris overnight. It wrapped up with discussions around more meetings set to take place later on in the week. But time is of the essence for 136 hostages. Not all of them are alive, but we wait for confirmation. We wait for proof of life as well. Talk to us about the fact that more meetings are being pushed out. It's taking longer and longer and still no concrete outcome. Well, we have to look at it from a Hamas point of view to really understand the complexity of the situation. Israel has said its major goal in the war is the release of the hostages and the destruction of Hamas. Well, Hamas is not interested, and especially its leader, Sinwar, is not interested in committing suicide. They have no plans to disappear from this world or to be removed from power. So therefore, what do they have as leverage? And what they have as leverage are the hostages. He sees clearly how Israel is feeling extremely anxious about this problem, how the hostage members are putting tremendous pressure on the government, these protests also at Kerem Shalom. And he feels he's got some leverage and he wants to survive. So he's doing everything possible to trade those hostages for some sort of a guarantee that him and Hamas will survive. Meanwhile, earlier on in the day, in Haifa, a soldier critically wounded, he's in hospital right now after being attacked with an axe after a ramming attack as well. We hear about so-called lone wolf attacks, developments on this particular story still unfolding, information still unfolding. But what do you make of that kind of incident in a city inside Israel right now close to an IDF army base? Well, Hamas's other tactic is to try to inflame the situation in the West Bank, try to get people to go out and kill Israelis any way possible through cars, knives, anything possible to encourage lone wolf attacks through social media. And this is to really open up another front to keep Israel preoccupied in the West Bank because if it's more preoccupied in the West Bank, it might be less preoccupied in Gaza. It's not working out that way for Hamas, but that's the goal. And this is a byproduct of what happened in Haifa. It's a byproduct of that goal. Somebody who came rammed the car trying to kill soldiers, took an axe trying to kill people, and he was shot and killed. Certainly a concern around potential copycat attacks as well. Well, that's what the power of social media is. There are already copycat attacks. There have been several lone wolf attacks of this type of nature. Somebody who feels they're going to have become heroic, glory, leave this world with accolades. And it does create copycats. That's precisely what Hamas would like to do. I want to turn to another development further afield. In Syria, just a short while ago, Iranian state media reporting two people were killed in a strike. It's being attributed to Israel. Of course, there's a policy of ambiguity on the Israeli front when it comes to operations inside Syria. Talk to us, though, about what it means when the Iranian Revolution regards sites are being targeted right now. It's a clear message to Iran that Israel will not tolerate its efforts to equip Syria, pro-Iranian militias, Hamas, Isballah, in an effort to destabilize any peace efforts in this region, any efforts to have quiet with Israel right now. It wants to keep the area inflamed. Because by keeping it inflamed, there's no progress on any normalization between Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, et cetera, with Israel. That isn't an ethno for them. That is worse than death for them. That contradicts their whole ideology. So they're putting tremendous efforts on that front. And what's happening with Israel is that they are trying to stop it with all force possible. So probably, while we can't prove it's Israel, but it's likely, this is another targeted hit against Iranian military personnel or quasi-military personnel, to make sure that Iran gets the message that they're not going to just walk away as being secondary actors in this. They are a prime actor in this. While talking about messages being sent, al-Ariabi al-Jadid is reporting that Egypt says the Houthis must focus their attacks on Israeli ships. Now, we're talking about several fronts unfolding at the same time. What do you make of a message like that? These attacks by the Houthis have been ongoing for a while now. Efforts to deter them have not been successful. A message like that out of Cairo right now, your thoughts? I don't think it's an official message. Official Cairo is very mindful of how everybody feels. It might be a deeply unofficial message because the Houthi attacks is a major headache for Egypt. Egypt gets major revenue from trade through the Suez Canal, where 20% of the world trade goes through the Suez Canal. And that's very, very important for them. So somebody probably said, look, if the Houthis want to keep fighting, let them direct it in Israel, not at us and the Chinese and others who have to live with trade through the Suez Canal. And it just goes to show how much of an international dimension this fight has. And it all boils back to Iran again. Iran is behind the Houthi escapade. Iran is trying to destabilize efforts between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Gulf States to normalize with Israel and strengthen with Israel. This is part of the same game. The difference, though, with the Houthis, though, is the fact that it's almost a global concern now because the impact on shipping across that part of the world is impacting people around the globe, not only on this continent, but in several parts of the world. And yet, those efforts to deter them haven't come to any kind of fruition just yet. I'm not so sure about that. I think the United States and the world's commerce is not going to make a big statement about all their ships going through the Suez Canal. They want to keep it very quiet because they don't want to basically humiliate, quote-unquote, the Houthis into being shown that they are not capable of hitting those ships now because of the large coalition naval presence in that area. But if they are still succeeding in preventing ships from going through the Suez Canal on a significant level, the United States and this country will take significant action because that affects world trade, world economies. Even the Chinese are probably talking to the Iranians to cool it because they depend on the Suez Canal to trade with Europe and that's very, very important for them. Certainly we'll be fascinating to see how it all unfolds. Martin, stay with us. There's much more to discuss because we were talking about developments in this part of the world and a new controversy following a right-wing conference in Jerusalem, the message, after the war, Jewish communities will resettle in the Gaza Strip. Senior Defense Correspondent Jonathan Regev reports. 11 cabinet ministers, along with another 15 parliament members, almost half the coalition making up the Israeli government chose, in the middle of a war, to attend a very controversial conference calling to resettle an area Israel already withdrew from. Part of correcting the mistake, the recognition of the mistaken conception that brought upon us the October 7 massacre and the deportation, is returning home to Gush Katif and northern Samaria. Gush Katif was a settlement bloc in the southern Gaza Strip, which Israel dismantled in 2005 when it left the Gaza Strip. Those who opposed the plan at the time and are now senior ministers believe this is the time to resettle Gaza again. We are settling our land from width to length, controlling and fighting terror always and bringing with God's help security to all of Israel. We know that without settlement, there is no security. The conference and the high-profile people in attendance drew strong criticism even from within the cabinet. Minister Gadi Eisencourt saying those attending have learned nothing from the events of the past year and are once again raising divisive issues instead of looking for the uniting ones. His party leader had a similar message. The participation of ministers and coalition members in the conference yesterday hurt the Israeli society in times of war. They hurt the global legitimacy for our war and they hurt the effort we are making to create a framework to bring back our hostages. As nearly half of his coalition was there dancing and celebrating, where is the man heading that coalition? What is his view on the issue? For now, he's nowhere to be seen. What we don't see is any kind of plan, any kind of vision on behalf of the Israeli government. We just don't see it. I mean, we are looking for it. We need it. We need it for us. We need it for the international community. But we don't see anything of that kind, unfortunately. And this is why extreme right-wingers can gather and say, okay, we have the solution. Solution, we are going to resettle in the Gaza Strip. If the prime minister is quite on the issue, those supporting the resettlement of Gaza also raise other ideas. The Arabs will not remain in Gaza. They lost their right to stay where they were up until October 7th. They will go to Egypt, to Turkey, to Scotland, to Canada, to New Zealand, wherever. The war in Gaza may have brought the very divided Israeli people together, but this conference proves the differences have not gone anywhere. They will not even wait until the end of the war to resurface. Still in studio, Martin Himmel, and the issue of future settlement in Gaza is a controversial one, an emotional one, as we saw in that report. What do you make of the fact that Benjamin Netanyahu is silent on that issue right now? Well, there's something else he's silent about. He's silent about the day after, which is critical to the United States and the world, and the Arab states who want to help bring some sort of alternative Palestinian rule into the Gaza Strip that isn't tainted with terror. On that he's silent, but his actions, his silence here speaks volumes because if there's not going to be any day after that way, the only thing that's on the table is Israeli military rule in the Gaza Strip. Israel taking the responsibility of a 2.2 million Palestinians, tremendous costs, tremendous problems, military rule, which has no legitimacy whatsoever in the entire world. Israel will be totally isolated from it. And his ministers, being there, speak volumes. They're not speaking about the day after in a constructive sense with some sort of local rule. They're speaking day after of some big occupation and resettlement of Jews to that area. And that is very damaging to Israel's foreign policy at this stage. And it is certainly speaking volumes when you see the kind of rhetoric that is coming out of a conference like that. And then as you say, the Prime Minister himself not saying anything at this juncture, something we will take a deeper look at in a short while. Stay with us because we have another major developing story. A school counselor accused of being a hostage taker, a social worker accused of distributing ammunition. New details are emerging about employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA. Evidence emerging that 12 people from the UN agency took part in the October 7th massacre. And new intelligence reports say around 10% of the Palestinian aid agencies, 12,000 staff in Gaza, have links to militants. In recent hours, Austria becoming the latest country to pull funding. And a short while ago, the European Union saying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank will continue and abated through partner organizations adding the European Commission will determine upcoming funding decisions for UNRWA in light of the very serious allegations insisting that UNRWA agree to carrying out an audit of the agency to be conducted by EU appointed independent external experts. Correspondent P.S. Dekalbach has more in this report. The accusations are serious. The consequences severe. 12 UNRWA staffers are accused of having participated in the October 7th massacre in southern Israel. New details in the New York Times reveal that Israel considers 10 of them to be Hamas members and seven of them teach in UNRWA schools. A school counselor allegedly helped to abduct an Israeli woman into Gaza. A social worker allegedly kidnapped the body of an Israeli soldier and distributed ammunition. It is good that at least now things are on the table and the international community understands pretty well how dangerous is disorganization and why disorganization should be dismantled. And I hope that one of the outcomes of war in Gaza will be the end of UNRWA. On Friday, UNRWA announced it had sacked nine employees and will launch an investigation into their involvement on October 7th. In Gaza alone, the UN body has about 13,000 employees. Any employee of UNRWA who is involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution. More and more countries are freezing their funding for the organization, the latest of France, Japan and Austria. The prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohammad Shdiye, has called the suspensions an extremely dangerous move. And Palestinians in Gaza too fear that their situation might become even worse. We're displaced for the second time from Gaza and we didn't see the aid reaching us from the European countries. What is my fault as a Palestinian child not to receive it? Why do I have to live in this terror or in these tents where we don't know how to eat or drink? We're starving. With the new details merging about the conduct of some UNRWA staffers, an Israel concern is growing. For now, Israel's education ministry is said to look into the option of limiting UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem. It is not the first time Israel has accused the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees of misconduct and having links with Hamas. But this time, the allegations are a lot more consequential and appalling. Still, the agency is the most important lifeline for civilians in Gaza. And an alternative is not on the horizon. Martin Hemmel, these reports are staggering. Is the end of UNRWA near? Possibly. This isn't sort of a causes belly, an excuse to some degree. It's a very serious charge. It's a very serious problem. But to have all these countries who are very sympathetic to the Palestinian cause to cut their funding while Israel is launching a major war and Palestinians are suffering extremely bad at this particular time shows that there's something bigger going on here. And I think that what's bigger is that the United States is calling in some debt and saying we've got to change the Palestinian leadership in Gaza. We've got to bring something different. And UNRWA is riddled with Hamas. And this comes at the same time as these meetings in Jerusalem calling for a total military occupation. Now, how sad that is because there's some real opportunity here to make a very different change in leadership that would really remove Hamas from power. If Israel comes in as a military occupier, Hamas has every reason to try to challenge it. If it's other Palestinians, then Hamas's legitimacy is eroded even further. Martin Himmel, thank you so much. Always appreciate your insights on all these developing situations. Thank you for being here in studio. And as Israeli troops continue battling Hamas terrorists on the ground, Israel's Defense Ministry is taking advantage of its country's vibrant high-tech scene to create an artificial intelligence-driven information platform that will help keep track of the increasingly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Fox News Digital is reporting the system was commissioned by Defense Minister Joav Galant. The system reportedly resembles chat, GPT, and other AI platforms and relies on open-source information materials such as reports from international aid organizations, satellite imagery, news stories, and social media posts coming out of Gaza to create a real-time picture of living conditions for some 2 million Palestinian civilians. So for more insight, it's a pleasure to welcome Shiran Mlamdowski-Somach, the founder of Generative AI for Good, joining us from Tel Aviv. Thank you so much for your time. So the creation of an artificial intelligence platform to monitor the humanitarian situation in Gaza, fascinating, how exactly would this work? I think it's very smart and very strategic move from the Defense Ministry office. I think that what they did, first of all, they built a consortium, a consortium of AI experts and health professionals together with the resources of the Defense Ministry. So first of all, to create this kind of consortium, it's create a synergy for this kind of project. And by doing so, they can enjoy from the resources and the knowledge of each of the parties in this consortium. This is how they can create very strong tool. So what they did here is they created a chat GPT-style tool where they can have a real-time data, a real-time data from the satellite imagery, from social media of influencers and also from the individual. Also gain information from reports from the international organization. And this is how they can create objective and accurate understanding of the situation of the population in Gaza. This concept of AI is quite overwhelming and even intimidating for many. There's so much to understand. So help talk us through the concept of AI for good. What kinds of initiatives and projects are underway? What more light can you shed on the way AI is being used right now? So first of all, what I'm doing, I started from a campaign name Listen to My Voice where for the first time we use Generative AI for doing good in scale. And this is how I learned about the superpower of those technology. We brought back to life five diverse Israeli women, each of them from different backgrounds that have been murdered from the intimate partner. And by using this Generative AI, we can let each of them to tell their own story from their own mouth. And this creates a very wide impact in Israel. The engagement rate was very high, awareness and also we saved lives while the campaign was won. And from that day, I understand that I really want to leverage this technology for doing good in scale by a core sectors collaboration. And from that day, I also launched a project together with an organization named March of the Living that's combating anti-Semitism. And we allow heroes from the Holocaust to tell their own stories from their own mouth set and we presented to world leaders around the world and teenagers. And this was very powerful project. Also after the October 7th, it took a lot of efforts from our end, but we thought it could be very powerful to do a awareness campaign from the hostages. And what we did, we animated two amazing children that have been kidnapped by Hamas, one of them three years old and the other eight years old. They already returned safely home. However, the father is still in captivity and we let them to tell their own stories to people all around the world. And we gained million of views. We have this video in English and also in German. And it's very important to say that this project was very, very sensitive and because the AI is very powerful tool, it's easily can be misused. And also it's very easy to have a cringy experience and a not professional result. And this is something that we were really afraid of. However, if you are using this powerful technology in creating a responsible way, together with a relevant organization, usually the social organization and also the governmental organization, you can create a project that can assist people in their lives all over the world. Well, we certainly wish you all the very best with your initiatives. Thank you so much for sharing your insight as you say, important that this kind of tool is used for good, whether it's to get stories out, get the truth out, help with defense, help with security. It is all fascinating and developing. Shiran Mlamdowski-Sommech, the founder of Generative AI for Good. Speaking just from Tel Aviv, thank you so much. And that is a wrap for now. I'm Benita Levine, back in a bit. Stay tuned. This is I24 News. In news edition, I'm Benita Levine, coming to you live from Tel Aviv. Developments on several fronts on this day, rocket alert sirens sounding in northern Israel in recent hours, in the town of Kiryat Shmoner, close to the border with Lebanon, and also in northern Israel, a terror attack in Haifa, a soldier critically injured in a ramming attack near an IDF base, the army saying the driver got out of his vehicle and tried to stab soldiers with an axe. The soldiers opened fire. The terrorist was neutralized. Further afield in Syria, reports of explosions in Damascus. Israel is being blamed. Locations targeted are linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards. These sites are in the Shia district of Syeda Zainab in the southern part of the Syrian capital and in the Gaza Strip, residents near Al Amal Hospital in Hanyunas are being urged to evacuate and head to the Al Mawasi safe zone as fighting in the area intensifies. The IDF saying earlier, it had killed four Hamas gunmen who tried to ambush troops near the hospital. Israel says it is taking steps to keep hospitals there operating and minimize civilian casualties as it works to eliminate Hamas terrorists. So for the latest, let's go to our team on the ground. We start with correspondent Nicole Zedek. She's in northern Israel. So an Israeli soldier critically wounded at this hour. That's after the earlier ramming attack class stabbing with an axe. The latest there, what can you tell us? Yes, so this car ramming attack happened in Haifa, nearby a naval base actually. And so the soldier that was injured was outside that base when this Israeli citizen, we now know the police released some information about the suspect is an Israeli citizen from the northern Israeli town of Tamra. And he actually has a previous criminal record for illegally transporting people inside of Israel. The police didn't exactly say who, but it's believed that he was illegally transporting possibly Palestinians throughout Israel. So he does have a previous criminal record and this is being treated as a terror attack as this man from Tamra ramped his car outside, injuring that soldier who is now being treated, as you said, moderate to serious condition at the hospital. Now, after he ramped his car into there, the suspect tried to get out of his car, wielding an axe, trying to injure other people as well. Now finally, the IDF was able to eliminate the threat, neutralize the suspect. We don't know exactly the condition. The police did not say what condition the suspect was in. All they said at this point was that he was neutralized. So that's exactly what's happening on the ground in Haifa right now. As I said, that one soldier still being treated we're waiting for an update on his condition as well. And investigations continue into that attack, as you say. Meanwhile, rocket alert siren sounding in the town of Kiryat Shmoner earlier in the day, yet again, what is the latest on that front? Yet again, we continue to see Hezbollah firing rockets towards northern Israel. And Hezbollah claiming responsibility for firing rockets. They said they were targeting troops near Margaliot, near the Lebanon border. And so we did see some sirens, no reports of any injuries or damage in the area at this time. But earlier in the day, we continue to see different Red Alerts siren in the area. And two soldiers were injured earlier in a different day and they're saying it was from some rockets fired from Lebanon. Thank you so much, correspondent Nicole Zedek, live from Northern Israel. More to come from Nicole in the coming hours. Thank you. And now for more insight, we welcome to studio Major General in the Reserves, Eitan Dangot, former military secretary to three ministers of defense and former coordinator of government activities in the Palestinian territories in the IDF and our senior editor, Guy Israel. Gentlemen, thank you both so much for being here. In studio, Eitan, I'm going to start with you. This terror attack in Haifa, the suspect in this ramming and stabbing attack with an axe, is an Israeli citizen, according to the latest reports. First of all, we have to be aware that among, and especially under the circumstances of the war that Israel is now facing, the threat of internal terror activities has been from the beginning. And we have to mention that the absolute majority of the Arab civilians in Israel are not taking any part, not in the war, not in demonstrations, et cetera, as some were expected there to do. So it's really something that really individual that has made it in the north. But on the other hand, is emphasized the fact that we have all the time to keep high alert and high preparations and response immediately all over any kind of terror activities that can be done by internal group or can be done by outside terrorists that come from, for example, West Bank or other places. And I think that the meaning by keeping such way of preparations, for example, many pistols or rifles are during the industry and the reaction immediately by the guy who stood nearby the entrance to the base shows us the importance of immediate reaction in order to cut such activities as it's from the beginning. Now, we have to cut all kind of options that the murderer brings the murderer. The impact of such activities can convince the others. And it also shows us that we have to pay attention to such extremist people are in some villages or areas. What are they listening every Friday in the mosque? Or what's going there? And the internal security and the police should be also all the time in a high alert in order to prevent it. Specifically to what happened in Haifa, it shows you that such individual girl that went in a soldier in the street was attacked with the hex and also later on the reaction on the gate to the Navy and a base was immediately cut by an officer that stood there and shot it immediately. I think that it's very important to make quick investigation, close the circle to arrest those who are involved or can be a part of it. And we have to be in a high alert. This is the main message. No doubt about that at all. Gentlemen, stay with us much more to unpack. But right now, let's go to our correspondent, Mary McCullough. She joins us now from Southern Israel. And Mary, we know fighting is intensifying in the Gaza Strip specifically in Ghan Yunus and residents near that al-Amau Hospital have been urged to evacuate and head to that safe zone of al-Mawasi. What is the latest out of the Gaza Strip? What can you tell us? That's right, Benita. So residents once again also receiving a warning in parts of Ghan Yunus being told to evacuate. This is as fights are ongoing in the area. The IDF says that is actively involved in fights there within the past hour, announcing that they had located and destroyed a terror tunnel that they found under a cemetery in Ghan Yunus, saying that when forces went down into this tunnel and were investigating, they encountered explosives as well as blastproof doors and also encountered some terrorists who they said were inside the tunnel and who were eliminated in the course of that fight. They did not specify exactly who they were that was eliminated, but they were, the IDF did say that they did think that was the headquarters of the Ghan Yunus Brigade Battalion. They said that the senior leader of that battalion was responsible for one of the major attacks on October 7th, directing his forces in that attack, that they say this is the command room where that was carried out. They said they also found an operations room, a command center, and also living quarters of senior officials who they said had been living at a time in that tunnel, but they did not specify if any senior officials were among those who were killed. A tunnel underneath a cemetery. Mary, tell us more about the fighting that continues while the nation waits for word on the fate of the 136 hostages still being held captive inside the Gaza Strip. We know not all of the hostages are alive. We also know they could be hidden in the tunnels you are describing right now. What is the latest on that front? That's absolutely right, and that's exactly why IDF forces are actually going inside these tunnels when they are finding them. They are not just destroying them from above, which we have seen happen numerous times throughout the course of this warfare, but now with Israeli forces actively involved in these operations on the ground, it is absolutely part of their command to try and see if they can find any of the hostages or evidence of any of hostages found in tunnels. In recent weeks, we have seen the IDF publishing what it says is evidence that hostages have been found in some of these tunnels. So that is the challenge for these IDF forces on the ground to try and root out these tunnels, look for hostages while also encountering these Hamas gunmen at the same time. And of course, also common knowledge that these hostages are being used as an insurance policy for some of the terror leaders hiding in those tunnels as we speak. Correspondent Mary McCullough, live from Southern Israel. Thank you for the update. More to come from Mary in the coming hours. Thank you. A school counselor accused of abducting hostages, a social worker accused of distributing ammunition, new details emerging about employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, evidence emerging that 12 people from the UN agency took part in the October 7th massacre. New intelligence reports say around 10% of the Palestinian aid agency's 12,000 staff in Gaza have links to militants in recent hours, Austria becoming the latest country to pull funding. And a short while ago, the European Union saying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank will continue and abated through partner organizations, adding that the European Commission will determine upcoming funding decisions for UNRWA in light of the very serious allegations. Correspondent Pierre Stegelbach has more in this report. The accusations are serious, the consequences severe. 12 UNRWA staffers are accused of having participated in the October 7th massacre in Southern Israel. New details in the New York Times reveal that Israel considers 10 of them to be Hamas members and seven of them teach in UNRWA schools. A school counselor allegedly helped to abduct an Israeli woman into Gaza. A social worker allegedly kidnapped the body of an Israeli soldier and distributed ammunition. It is new that at least now things are on the table and the international community understands pretty well how dangerous is disorganization and why disorganization should be dismantled. And I hope that one of the outcomes of war in Gaza will be the end of UNRWA. On Friday, UNRWA announced it had sacked nine employees and will launch an investigation into their involvement on October the 7th. In Gaza alone, the UN body has about 13,000 employees. Any employee of UNRWA who is involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution. More and more countries are freezing their funding for the organization, the latest of France, Japan and Austria. The prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohammad Jadaye, has called the suspensions an extremely dangerous move. And Palestinians in Gaza, too, fear that their situation might become even worse. We're displaced for the second time from Gaza and we didn't see the aid reaching us from the European countries. What is my fault as a Palestinian child not to receive it? Why do I have to live in this terror or in these tents where we don't know how to eat or drink? We're starving. With the new details merging about the conduct of some UNRWA staffers in Israel, concern is growing. For now, Israel's education ministry is set to look into the option of limiting UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem. It is not the first time Israel has accused the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees of misconduct and having links with Hamas. But this time, the allegations are a lot more consequential and appalling. Still, the agency is the most important lifeline for civilians in Gaza. And an alternative is not on the horizon. Still in the studio, Major General in the Reserves, Etan Tangot and our senior editor, Guy Israel and Guy, I'm going to come to you because Israel is not going to be surprised by the staggering intelligence information that has come out about UNRWA. But now it seems that the evidence is almost irrefutable. Not only Israel is not going to be surprised. Israel is the one that is supplying that information. And to add to that, and we'll put that aside for now, we hear for some Israeli officials that the information about UNRWA has existed in the hands of Israel for a long time now, before Tribes 7. And Israel, for its reasons, for its considerations, has decided not to reveal the information about UNRWA for such a long time because it believed that UNRWA was still vital for some sort of arrangements that are needed in Gaza when it comes to providing aid, et cetera. A lot of the conceptions that Israel had prior to October 7 obviously proved to be very miserable. And when you allow an organization like UNRWA to continue and operate when Israel knows, and now it knows a lot more, how well connected its employees are to terror organizations, that is a big problem. According to the information that Israel supplied, about 10% of all UNRWA employees are related to either Hamas or other terror organizations in Gaza. That is a staggering number, 1,200 of their employees that is 10% of the entire number of their workers. And obviously as a result, so many countries around the world have suspended their funding for UNRWA, but there are greater questions that will rise now. First of all, will the heads of this organization will be fired? And what comes next? UNRWA has been accused by Israel for such a long time for also supporting the incitement against Israel. We see a lot of the activity in UNRWA schools, the fact that this organization did not educate Palestinians in Gaza or in the West Bank to live peacefully side by side next to Israel. But also, but instead rather, has taught them that the ultimate goal is to return to their homes and to destroy the state of Israel. Obviously that is something that Israel and the world cannot live with if they want one day to live in peace with the Palestinians if this is what they are being taught in their schools funded by Western countries, then what do you expect to happen next? So obviously the funding has been suspended, but whatever UNRWA does do in Gaza will have to be provided, whether it's the humanitarian aid, the education and schools, the UN or some other body will have to provide that aid to the people of Gaza, perhaps with new organizations, with new groups, hopefully that will not be associated with terror groups like we saw in the case of UNRWA. A-10. We are not surprised. Not should be surprised from what is going outside now about UNRWA's belonging, or for me it doesn't matter whether it's 10% or 20% or 30%. The fact is that UNRWA has become a part. As an arm of the Hamas during the years, you can identify it from the fact that lunches were eaten and were lunched from UNRWA schools, UNRWA social buildings, et cetera. So it means that UNRWA was used. Secondly, the tunnels that are found now shows you a lot of activities under the UNRWA infrastructure that are located in Gaza. And in my opinion, I don't want now that will be point about 10% or 12 people or 16. The head of UNRWA in the area, which was before the head of the Red Cross, should be the first to be called to the United Nation and there has to show him the way to where it's written exit. Outside was thrown from the United Nation. It's a shame for the United Nation. Where is the responsibility for having such a big movement, which is responsible for humanitarian, and that become an arm of Hamas. And about to eat, I start, I learned, and I was educated in the military, that first of all, the heads has to take the responsibility, what was under their responsibility in the task of being a manager of UNRWA. Secondly, while they visit Gaza, they didn't see what's going inside the schools or the other institutes with they didn't listen. They didn't investigate their director generals, their insight, what's going, who are the people. They're not checking themselves. You have to pay UNRWA and to send it outside of the United Nation to bring another organization, which is not ideological, which is not a part of Hamas. But for Israel, it's one remark. The fact that till now, the Israeli government has not discussed the day after bringing UNRWA to stay on the ground, because there is no another kind of option for Israel. So you cannot direct to a point about something and not getting a solution. But one thing is clear, UNRWA should be disappeared from being called a United Nation organization. To be replaced a ton by what? What kind of entity can replace UNRWA, given the fact that the funding is being pulled by so many countries as we speak? Melita, I supported it, and I was a part of a mistake that was in the past that recommend not to move UNRWA from Gaza as an arm. United UNRWA is only something that was built as a tailor made to the Middle East, to the Palestinian issue from 1948-1949. All over the world, you have such activities by the United Nation, by people who have not involvement in the political issue, bring them, built it on a way that really are coming people who are like or wants to help those who are suffering and bring them for some countries, build a new organization. It's all over the world. United Nation is giving support to such organization. We don't need the historic. We are not at 48 now. We are not at 49. We are in 2023, after what happened on the 7th of October. And there is nothing to do. The head of the United Nation, instead of coming and making statement against Israel, against what's going as to make cleaning his home and his kind of responsibility. And just to emphasize how closely connected Israel is to UNRWA, even to this day, well, only now Israeli Foreign Minister Issa al-Qaq has instructed foreign ministry officials not to meet with UNRWA heads a meeting that was planned for this Wednesday. Obviously, completely surreal situation in which Israeli officials are meeting on a regular basis and coordinating their actions together with a group that employs so many terrorists and other people that are affiliated with Hamas and other terror groups. UNRWA is active in Gaza, West Bank, Lebanon, Damascus, and Jordan. So who is the, what's going in Lebanon, for example? We will have a copy from Gaza, but it's an arm of Hezbollah. We are going to Damascus. It's a copy of Gaza, but under Iranian influence. In Jordan, can be Jordanian control. But it's not the time we have to make something new that will really help the people that need help and not be involved in terrorism. There is much criticism, Guy, of the fact that there isn't a clear plan for the day after in terms of announcements, discussions out of the Israeli leadership. Why is that? Are they focused on the war at hand? Why are they choosing to stay quiet on exactly what Eitan is discussing the day after and what it looks like specifically in Gaza? Well, we spoke here yesterday on the fact that Egyptian President Abou Thathassisi and also Israel's new partners in the Gulf have expressed what they say is frustration over the fact that there is no diplomatic solution to the problem of Gaza after the war. Israel understands that things will have to be done when it comes to Gaza after the war. But having said that, at least Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for now wants to accomplish the goals of the war, he believes, at least, that speaking about the day after, right now, while this war is so far from being over, we just mentioned a few days ago that Israel has only eliminated some 30% of the Hamas tunnels. There's still a lot of work to be done. So speaking about the day after is perhaps a bit too early for the Israeli government, obviously, with the fact that there are also many political meanings to that solution, something that will not necessarily be easy for this government to pass the fact that Palestinians, Israel, have to choose which sort of Palestinians will be in charge of Gaza. How do you elect Palestinians who are not affiliated with Hamas or with the ruling Fatah movement? The Palestinian Authority is another issue that Israel doesn't want to see in ruling Gaza. So these are things that Israel wants to deal with later. But speaking about what's happening right now, well, the Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Ghver, has expressed his discontent with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the rules of engagement of the IDF in recent days when it comes to the buffer zone that Israel is trying to create between the Israeli communities and Gaza. Obviously, for such a long time now, for many months and years, Gaza's protesters were able to reach the fence and hurt the fence, took down cameras and other security facilities as part of their October 7th attack. Israel says, no more of that. At least that's what we thought would happen. Some Israeli reservists that are in service right now claim that the rules of engagement have changed again, and they are not allowed to fire at Palestinians who approach defense. The Israeli Defense Forces coming out with a statement a short while ago saying there is no change in the rules of engagement, and no one or no Palestinians are allowed to approach the fence. I think that this is something that will be difficult to hide. So if we will see more Palestinian protesters or terrorists approaching the fence without encountering IDF fire, this is not something that Israel, the IDF, will be able to hide. And for now, this is what some reservists are saying. Gentlemen, thank you both so much for your input. Stay with us right now, though. We want to go to correspondent Bacha Leventhal. She's joining us from Hostage Square in Tel Aviv. And we know that the families are waiting for answers. What is the latest there? What are people saying? Benita, there's still the giant clock that keeps ticking in terms of the amount of time that so many of these hostages have still been in captivity without any solution to bring them home. Since the latest hostage deal being in November to release some of the captives, and a fortune of their despair is turning into disappointment and rage. But it's also turning into something of motivation. Many of the hostage families will be meeting just outside the carry-on, outside the military headquarters. Later this evening and around 6 PM local time, as the war cabinet is set to meet, to put through more guidelines and more discussions as to exactly what they want to achieve with the next round of negotiations. We know that there are so many parties involved between the United States, Qatar, Egypt, as well as many Israeli officials to try and secure a deal that works in Israel's favor, not necessarily just to bring the hostages home, but to make sure that it doesn't allow Hamas to regroup, rearm, and have any kind of threat on the state of Israel, obviously. That is one of Israel's main goals is not only to dismantle Hamas, but to also make sure that the threat on its borders doesn't continue to persist. But it turns out that a lot of families here, come rain or shine, are still standing here, still standing strong, saying that they demand answers, whether or not they'll get them sooner rather than later, is the big question of the hour. Thank you so much. Bachar Leventhal, live from Tel Aviv. More to come from Bachar in the coming hours. And thank you once again to Etan Dungott and Guy Azrael for being here in studio. And that is a wrap for this edition of our breaking news coverage. I'm Benita Levine. Our rolling coverage continues shortly. Stay tuned. Thank you for watching. Esta semana, News 24, Israel Bajo Ataque. News 24 en español trae el análisis y la información de los acontecimientos de la guerra, espadas de hierro. Entrevistas exclusivas reportes desde la zona de guerra. La reacción de los países hispano parlantes. News 24, el único medio en español que te mantiene informado y conectado con la comunidad latina en Israel. News 24, únicamente en I24 News. News edition. I'm Benita Levine, coming to you live from Tel Aviv. Developments on several fronts on this day. Rocket alert sirens sounding in northern Israel in recent hours in the town of Kiryat Shmona close to the border with Lebanon. And also in northern Israel. A terror attack in Haifa, a soldier critically injured in a ramming attack near an IDF base. The army saying the driver got out of his vehicle and tried to stab soldiers with an axe. The soldiers opened fire. The terrorist was neutralized. Further afield in Syria. Reports of explosions in Damascus. Israel is being blamed. Locations targeted are linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards. These sites are in the Shia district of Sayyeda Zainab in the southern part of the Syrian capital. And in the Gaza Strip, residents near Al Amal Hospital in Hanyunas are being urged to evacuate and head to the Al Mawasi safe zone as fighting in the area intensifies the IDF saying earlier it had killed four Hamas gunmen who tried to ambush troops near the hospital. Israel says it is taking steps to keep hospitals there operating and minimize civilian casualties as it works to eliminate Hamas terrorists. So for the latest, let's go to our team on the ground. We start with correspondent Nicole Zedek. She's in northern Israel. So an Israeli soldier critically wounded at this hour. That's after the earlier ramming attack plus stabbing with an axe. The latest there, what can you tell us? Yes, so this car ramming attack happened in Haifa, nearby a naval base, actually. And so the soldier that was injured was outside that base when this Israeli citizen, we now know the police released some information about the suspect is an Israeli citizen from the northern Israeli town of Tamra. And he actually has a previous criminal record for illegally transporting people inside of Israel. The police didn't exactly say who, but it's believed that he was illegally transporting possibly Palestinians throughout Israel. So he does have a previous criminal record and this is being treated as a terror attack as this man from Tamra rammed his car outside injuring that soldier who is now being treated, as you said, moderate to serious condition at the hospital. Now, after he rammed his car into there, the suspect tried to get out of his car wielding an axe, trying to injure other people as well. Now, finally, the IDF was able to eliminate the threat, neutralize the suspect. We don't know exactly the condition. The police did not say what condition the suspect was in. All they said at this point was that he was neutralized. So that's exactly what's happening on the ground in Haifa right now. As I said, that one soldier still being treated were waiting for an update on his condition as well. And investigations continue into that attack, as you say. Meanwhile, rocket alert siren sounding in the town of Kiryat Shmona earlier in the day, yet again. What is the latest on that front? Yet again, we continue to see Hezbollah firing rockets towards northern Israel, and Hezbollah claiming responsibility for firing rockets. They said they were targeting troops near Margaliot, near the Lebanon border. And so we did see some sirens, no reports of any injuries or damage in the area at this time. But earlier in the day, we continue to see different red alert siren in the area, and two soldiers were injured earlier in a different day. And they're saying it was from some rockets fired from Lebanon. Thank you so much. Correspondent Nicole Zedek, live from Northern Israel. More to come from Nicole in the coming hours. Thank you. And now for more insight, we welcome to studio Major General in the Reserves, Etan Dangot, former military secretary to three ministers of defense and former coordinator of government activities in the Palestinian territories in the IDF and our senior editor, Guy Israel, gentlemen. Thank you both so much for being here in studio. Etan, I'm going to start with you. This terror attack in Haifa, the suspect in this ramming and stabbing attack with an axe is an Israeli citizen according to the latest reports. First of all, we have to be aware that among and especially under the circumstances of the war that Israel is now facing, the threat of internal terror activities has been from the beginning. And we have to mention that the absolute majority of the Arab civilization in Israel are not taking any part, not in the war, not in demonstrations, etc. as some were expected there to do. So it's really something that really individual that has made it in the north. But on the other hand is emphasized the fact that we have all the time to keep high alert and high preparations and respond immediately all over any kind of terror activities that can be done by an internal group or can be done by outside terrorists that can form, for example, West Bank or other places. And I think that the meaning by keeping such way of preparations, for example, many pistols or rifles are during the industry and the reaction immediately by the guy who stood nearby the entries to the base shows us the importance of immediate reaction in order to cut such activities from the beginning. Now, we have to cut all kind of options that the murderer brings the murderer. The impact of such activities can convince the others and it also shows us that we have to pay attention to such extremist people are in some villages or areas what are they listening every Friday in the mosque or what's going there and the entire security and the police should be also all the time in a high alert in order to prevent it. Specifically to what happened in Haifa, it shows you that such individual guard that went in a soldier in the street was attacked with the hex and also later on the reaction on the gate to the Navy base was immediately cut by an officer that stood there and shoot it immediately. I think that it's very important to make quick investigation close the circle to arrest those who are involved or can't be a part of it and we have to be in a high alert. This is the main message. No doubt about that at all gentlemen. Stay with us much more to unpack but right now let's go to our correspondent Mary McAuliffe, she joins us now from southern Israel and Mary. We know fighting is intensifying in the Gaza Strip specifically in Khan Yunus and residents near that Amal hospital have been urged to evacuate and head to that safe zone of Al Mawasi. What is the latest out of the Gaza Strip? What can you tell us? That's right, Benita. So residents once again also receiving a warning in parts of Khan Yunus is being told to evacuate. This is as fights are ongoing in the area. The IDF says that is actively involved in fights there within the past hour announcing that they had located and destroyed a tear tunnel that they found under a cemetery in Khan Yunus saying that when forces went down into this tunnel and were investigating they encountered explosives as well as last proof doors and also encountered some terrorists who they said were inside the tunnel and who were eliminated in the course of that fight. And that's exactly who they were that was eliminated but they were the IDF did say that they did think that was the headquarters of the Khan Yunus Brigade Battalion. They said that the senior leader of that battalion who was responsible for one of the major attacks on October 7th directing his forces in that attack that they say this is the command room where that was carried out. They said they also found an operations room a command center and also living quarters of senior officials who they said were in the tunnel but they did not specify if any senior officials were among those who were killed. A tunnel underneath a cemetery. Mary tell us more about the fighting that continues while the nation waits for word on the fate of the 136 hostages still being held captive inside the Gaza Strip. We know not all of the hostages are alive. We also know they could be hidden in the tunnels you are describing right now with the IDF. That's absolutely right and that's exactly why IDF forces are actually going inside these tunnels when they are finding them they are not just destroying them from above which we have seen happen numerous times throughout the course of this warfare but now with Israeli forces actively involved in these operations on the ground it is absolutely part of their command to try and see if they can find any of the hostages or evidence of any of hostages found in tunnels in recent weeks or even in some of these tunnels. So that is the challenge for these IDF forces on the ground to try and root out these tunnels look for hostages while also encountering these Hamas gunmen at the same time. And of course also common knowledge that these hostages are being used as an insurance policy for some of the terror leaders hiding in those tunnels as we speak. Correspondent Mary McAuliffe live from southern Israel thank you for the update more to come from Mary in the coming days. The school councillor accused of abducting hostages a social worker accused of distributing ammunition new details emerging about employees of the United Nations relief and works agency UNRA. Evidence emerging that 12 people from the UN agency took part in the October 7th massacre. New intelligence reports say around 12,000 staff in Gaza have links to militants in recent hours Austria becoming the latest country to pull funding and a short while ago the European Union saying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank will continue unabated through partner organizations adding that the European Commission will determine upcoming funding decisions for UNRA in light of the very serious allegations corresponding P.S. Dagobach has more in this report. The accusations are serious the consequences severe. 12 UNRA staffers are accused of having participated in the October 7th massacre in southern Israel. New details in the New York Times reveal that Israel considers 10 of them to be Hamas members and 7 of them teach in UNRA schools. A school councillor allegedly helped to abduct an Israeli woman into Gaza while the worker allegedly kidnapped the body of an Israeli soldier and distributed ammunition. It is due that at least now things are on the table and the international community understands pretty well how dangerous is disorganization and why disorganization should be dismantled and I hope that one of the outcomes of the war in Gaza will be the end of UNRA. On Friday UNRWA announced that UNRA will launch an investigation into their involvement on October 7th. In Gaza alone the UN body has about 13,000 employees. Any employee of UNRWA who is involved in acts of terror will be held accountable including through criminal prosecution. More and more countries are freezing their funding for the organization the latest of France, Japan and Austria. The Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority Mohammed Shdiye has called the suspensions an extremely dangerous situation in Gaza. And Palestinians in Gaza too fear that their situation might become even worse. We're displaced for the second time from Gaza and we didn't see the aid reaching us from the European countries. What is my fault as a Palestinian child not to receive it? Why do I have to live in this terror or in these tents where we don't know how to eat or drink? We're starving. With the new details merging about the conduct of some UNRWA staffers Israel concern is growing. For now Israel's education ministry is said to look into the option of limiting UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem. It is not the first time Israel has accused the UN agency for Palestinian refugees of misconduct and having links with Hamas. But this time the allegations are a lot more consequential and appalling. Still the agency is the most important lifeline for civilians in Gaza and an alternative is not on the horizon. Still in studio General in the Reserves Eitan Dangot and our senior editor Guy Azrael and Guy, I'm going to come to you because Israel is not going to be surprised by the staggering intelligence information that has come out about UNRWA but now it seems that the evidence is almost irrefutable. Not only Israel is not going to be surprised Israel is the one that is supplying that information and to add to that and we'll put that aside for now we hear for some Israeli officials that the information about UNRWA has existed in the hands of Israel for a long time now before October 7 and Israel for its reasons for its considerations has decided not to reveal the information about UNRWA for such a long time because it believed that UNRWA was still vital for some sort of arrangements that are needed in Gaza when it comes to providing aid etc. A lot of the conceptions that Israel had prior to October 7 obviously proved to be very miserable and when you allow an organization like UNRWA to continue and operate when Israel knows and now it knows a lot more how well connected its employees are to terror organizations that that is a big problem according to the information that Israel supplied about 10% of all UNRWA employees are related to either Hamas or other terror organizations in Gaza that is a staggering number 1,200 of their employees that is 10% of the entire number of their workers and obviously as a result so many countries around the world have suspended their funding for UNRWA but there are greater questions that will rise now first of all will the heads of this organization will be fired and what comes next UNRWA has been accused by Israel for such a long time for also supporting the incitement against Israel we see a lot of the activity in UNRWA schools the fact that the this organization did not educate Palestinians in Gaza or in the West Bank to live peacefully side by side next to Israel but instead has taught them that the ultimate goal is to return to their homes and to destroy the state of Israel obviously that is something that Israel and the world cannot live with if they want one day to live in peace with the Palestinians if this is what they are being taught in their schools funded by Western countries then what do you expect to happen next so obviously the funding has been suspended but whatever UNRWA does do in Gaza will have to be provided whether it's the humanitarian aid, the education and schools the UN or some other body will have to provide that aid to the people of Gaza perhaps with new organizations, with new groups hopefully that will not be associated with terror groups like we saw in the case of UNRWA we are not surprised not should be surprised from what is going now about UNRWA's belonging or for me it doesn't matter whether it's 10% or 20% or 30% the fact is that UNRWA has become a part as an arm of the Hamas during the years you can identify it from the fact that lunches were eaten and were lunched from UNRWA schools UNRWA social buildings etc so it means that UNRWA was used secondly the tunnels that are found now shows you a lot of activities under the UNRWA infrastructure that are located in Gaza and in my opinion I don't want now that will be point about 10% or 12 people or 16 the head of UNRWA in the area which was before the head of the Red Cross should be the first to be called to the United Nations which has to show him the way to the where it's written exit outside was thrown from the United Nations it's a shame for the United Nations where is the responsibility for having such a big movement which is responsible for humanitarian and that become a arm of Hamas and about to it I start I learned and I was educated in the military that first of all the heads the responsibility what was under their responsibility in the task of being a manager of UNRWA secondly while they visit Gaza they didn't see what going inside the schools or the other institutes with they didn't listen they didn't investigate their director generals their inside what's going where the people they're not checking themselves you have to pay UNRWA and to send it outside to the United Nations to bring another organization which is not ideological which is not a part of Hamas but for Israel it's one remark the fact that till now the Israeli government has not discussed the day after bringing UNRWA to stay on the ground because there is no another kind of option for Israel so you cannot direct to a point about something and not getting a solution but one thing is clear UNRWA should be disappeared from being called a United Nations organization to be replaced a ton by what what kind of entity can replace UNRWA given the fact that the funding is being pulled by so many countries as we speak I support it and I was a part of a mistake that was in the past that recommend not to move UNRWA from Gaza United Nations is only something that was built as a tailor made to the Middle East to the Palestinian issue from 1948-1949 all over the world you have such activities by the United Nations by people who have not involvement in the political issue bring them built it on a way that really are coming people who are like or wants to help those who are suffering and bring them for some countries build a new organization it's all over the world United Nations is giving support to such organization we don't need the historic we are not at 48 now we are not at 49 we are in 2023 after what happened on the 7th of October and there is nothing to do the head of the United Nations instead of coming against Israel against what's going as to make clean in his home and his kind of responsibility just to emphasize how closely connected Israel is to UNRWA even to this day well only now Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz has instructed foreign ministry officials not to meet with UNRWA heads a meeting that was planned for this Wednesday obviously completely surreal situation in which Israeli officials are working on a regular basis and coordinating their actions together with a group that employs so many terrorists and other people that are affiliated with Hamas and other terror groups UNRWA is active in Gaza, West Bank, Lebanon Damascus and Jordan so who is the what's going in Lebanon for example we will have a copy from Gaza but it's an arm of