By MELANIE LIDMAN and AREF TUFAHA
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s top general resigned on Tuesday, citing the security and intelligence failures related to Hamas’ surprise attack that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip. Israel meanwhile launched a large operation in the occupied West Bank, killing at least eight people, according to Palestinian officials.
Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi is the most senior Israeli figure to resign over the security breakdown on Oct. 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists carried out a land, sea and air assault into southern Israel, rampaging through army bases and nearby communities. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.
The attack killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and the terrorists abducted another 250. More than 90 captives are still held in Gaza, around a third are believed to be dead.
Halevi’s resignation came just days into a fragile ceasefire with Hamas that could lead to an end to the 15-month war and the return of remaining captives. Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, head of Israel’s Southern Command, which oversees operations in Gaza, also tendered his resignation.
The resignations will likely add to calls for a public inquiry into the Oct. 7 failures, something Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — whose leadership could be implicated — has said must wait until the war is over.
Halevi had appeared to be at odds with Israel’s new defense minister, Israel Katz, over the direction of the war, saying Israel had accomplished most of its goals while Katz echoed Netanyahu’s vow to keep fighting until “total victory” over Hamas.
Halevi’s resignation letter said the military, under his command, had “failed in its mission to defend the State of Israel” when Hamas attacked but made “significant achievements” in the war that has rippled across the Middle East. He said his resignation would go into effect March 6.
Another major operation in the West Bank
The ceasefire that started Sunday does not apply to the West Bank, where Israel announced a “significant and broad military operation” against Palestinian fighters in Jenin, without details. The city has seen repeated Israeli incursions and gunbattles with fighters in recent years, even before the outbreak of the Gaza war.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said at least eight people were killed and 35 wounded. It does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its tally.
Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek an independent state encompassing all three territories.
The West Bank has seen a surge of violence since the start of the war in Gaza. Israeli troops have carried out near-daily raids that often ignite gunbattles. There has also been a rise in attacks on Palestinians by Jewish extremists — including a rampage in two Palestinian villages overnight Monday — as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
Hamas condemned the Israeli operation in Jenin, calling on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to step up their attacks.
The smaller and more radical Islamic Jihad militant group also condemned the operation, saying it reflected Israel’s “failure to achieve its goals in Gaza.” It said it was also a “desperate attempt” by Netanyahu to save his governing coalition.
Netanyahu faces domestic criticism over ceasefire
Netanyahu has faced criticism from far-right allies over the ceasefire, which requires Israeli troops to pull back from populated areas in Gaza and envisions the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including fighters convicted of involvement in deadly attacks on Israelis.
The ceasefire is supposed to last for six weeks and see 33 hostages gradually released in return for hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Three hostages and 90 prisoners were released on Sunday, when it took effect. The next release is Saturday.
The truce has already seen Hamas return to the streets, showing that it remains in control of the territory despite the war killing tens of thousands of Palestinians — including some Hamas leaders — and causing widespread devastation.
One of Netanyahu’s erstwhile partners, Itamar Ben-Gvir, quit the government the day the ceasefire went into effect, weakening the coalition but still leaving Netanyahu with a parliamentary majority. Another, far-right leader, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, has threatened to leave if Israel does not resume the war after the ceasefire’s first phase.
Israel’s military campaign has killed over 47,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to local health authorities, who say women and children make up more than half of the fatalities but do not say how many of the dead were fighters. Israel says it killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said 72 bodies had been taken to hospitals in the past 24 hours, almost all of them recovered from attacks before the ceasefire. An unknown number of bodies remain unreachable because they are in northern Gaza, where access remains restricted, or in buffer zones where Israeli forces are.
Over 900 trucks of aid entered Gaza on the second day of the ceasefire Monday, the United Nations said — significantly higher than the 600 trucks called for in the deal — in a rush to supply food, medicines and other needs it has described as “staggering” for the population of over 2 million people.
“Most importantly, we want things that will warm us in winter,” one of the many displaced Palestinians, Mounir Abu Seiam, said Tuesday as people gathered in the southern city of Khan Younis to receive food.
Tufaha reported from Jenin, West Bank. Associated Press writer Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel, contributed to this report.
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