The following is an English translation of the daily press briefing conducted by the IDF Spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, on October 29th, 2023.
“Throughout the night, we expanded the entry of IDF troops into the Gaza Strip. They joined the forces already fighting there.
The ground operations in the northern Gaza Strip continue. We are progressing through the stages of the war according to plan. We are gradually expanding the ground activity and the scope of our forces in the Gaza Strip.
The operations on the ground are complex and include risks to our forces. We will do everything we can from the air, sea and land to ensure the safety of our forces and achieve the goals of the war.
North
In response to the fire from Lebanon toward the northern border, during the night we struck military targets, infrastructure and posts belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization. The Hezbollah terrorist organization continues to operate against us in the north and we are striking all those who are acting against us. Any Hezbollah terrorist cell that comes near the fence will be struck.
Homefront
We are conducting an ongoing situational assessment, in order to succeed in establishing routine in the shadow of war.
I urge you to continue looking at the website (of the Home Front Command) and to stay updated. We will, of course, post any changes and updates and continue to improve and fix any bugs we may have in the application. We must stay vigilant. So far, the conduct of Israel’s civilians has been exemplary and saves lives. Keep it up.
Hostages and Missing Persons
So far, we have notified the families of 311 fallen IDF soldiers, as well as the families of 230 hostages.
We are embracing the families. We will continue to accompany them at all times.
We are doing everything we can to return the hostages home – this is our ultimate goal. IDF soldiers are fighting in the field at this very time in order to achieve this goal.
Enlistment of Field Observers
Today, a new course of field observers drafted into the IDF. We witnessed the bravery of field obesrvers during the surprise attack on October 7th.
Observation soldiers play a very significant and important role in maintaining the security of Israeli civilians. They are deployed in defending all the country’s borders.
In the coming month, we intend to continue the November enlistment as usual, including the enlistment of combat soldiers. We will make the necessary adjustments so that all enlistments take place as planned, and that the building of the IDF’s strength will continue even in the shadow of the war.
Q&A
The Prime Minister wrote during the night that not a single warning was given of Hamas’ intent for war. Both from the IDF Intelligence Directorate and the ISA. What do you think of the fact that the Prime Minister in the middle of the night, in the middle of conducting the fighting, while our soldiers are there, chooses to blame the IDF? What did the letters sent during the summer from the heads of the security forces that warned against the division in the nation include and was there a specific reference to Hamas?
I will not answer this question. We are in the middle of a war, and are focused on the war.
And yet – what did those documents contain? The Prime Minister insisted on blaming the IDF and shirking responsibility. Did these letters contain concrete warnings that he ignored?
We in the IDF and the ISA will conduct a thorough investigation ourselves and present everything to the public, because we are built on public trust and therefore we will present everything. Now we are fighting, focused on the war. That is my answer.
