A summary of Operation Shield and Arrow so far

If you woke up this morning and said “there’s a war between Israel and Gaza again?!” you’re not the only one. Even Israeli Security Cabinet ministers were kept out of the loop.

Here’s a quick summary of what you need to know about Operation Shield and Arrow, as of Tuesday night in Israel:

• Last week, Palestinian Islamic Jihad launched 102 rockets at Israel, and the government seemed to do nothing.

• At least part of the government thought that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu really was doing nothing. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was furious and his party started to boycott votes and committee meetings in the Knesset, as well as cabinet meetings, and to talk about how weak the prime minister and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are. There was talk about the coalition falling apart.

• Early this morning, Israel assassinated three leading Islamic Jihad terrorists. You can read more about them here. Israel further attacked Gaza in the afternoon. Gallant said in the evening that the operation’s objectives were met.

• 10 civilians were also killed in the attack. Netanyahu said that Israel is sorry for the loss of life and tries to avoid striking civilians, while pointing out that Islamic Jihad intentionally targets civilians.

• School was called off in towns near the Gaza border and bomb shelters were unlocked in areas within rocket range. Foreign Minister Eli Cohen cut short his trip to India. These are generally signs that war is coming. Israeli businesses opened their doors to residents of the south for free.

• The operation was launched without a vote in the Security Cabinet. The attorney-general authorized the move. This was done to avoid ruining the element of surprise. Subtext: Netanyahu and Gallant were worried Ben-Gvir and others would run their mouths.

• As of now, Islamic Jihad has not attacked Israel again. This could mean that they are trying to get Hamas involved. It could also mean they’re licking their wounds after leading members were killed, and they’re waiting for a time that is more opportune for them.

• Israel is making active efforts to keep Hamas out, sending messages via Egypt that if the terrorist group that runs Gaza does get involved, their leaders will be targets, as well.

• Some other indications Israel wants to keep this operation limited: Public messaging has conspicuously been missing a message one often sees at times like this, which is that Israel holds Hamas responsible for anything happening in Gaza. In addition, a cable to Israeli diplomats around the world told them to say, among other things, that this is meant to be a pinpoint operation and Israel seeks to avoid escalation.

• The previous three points lead me to think that this will be a short operation and not a war - but you never know.

• The Iran factor: Netanyahu said in a speech this afternoon that Iran wants to attack Israel on multiple fronts, and Israel is prepared for that possibility. Palestinian Islamic Jihad is funded by Iran.

• The US said that “Israel has the right to protect itself and its people from indiscriminate rocket attacks,” but cited the 10 civilians who were killed and called to deescalate. Sources close to Netanyahu said that he “hinted” at the operation in his meeting with senior Biden advisers Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein yesterday, but an American source said that, if that is the case, they did not get the hint.

• The EU and the UN expressed concern and alarm, respectively, about the Gaza operation without saying Israel has a right to defend itself or fight terrorists, etc. Both condemned the killing of civilians. Three of the civilians were Russian, and Russia accused Israel of “disproportionate use of force.”

There are more details on my area of coverage, the political/diplomatic front, in the news article I wrote today.

Tired of war and want a palette cleanser? Here’s some positive news (in my opinion) about Kenya’s president visiting the Western Wall.