copied from email jan27

The LAF has deployed to Deir Mimas in southern Lebanon following IDF withdrawal. The IDF reportedly detonated explosives in Kfar Kila and Mays al Jabal and have encroached on Ain el-Arab.

Lebanese head of military intelligence in southern Lebanon Suhil Bahij Gharb reportedly leaked classified information to Hezbollah from a US-France-UNIFIL intelligence room.

The US has announced the extension of the ceasefire in Lebanon, allowing the IDF more time before they must withdraw. PM Netanyahu claimed the reason for the extended occupation of southern Lebanon was that the “agreement has not yet been fully enforced by the Lebanese state.” Beirut has accepted the extension but Hezbollah has rejected it. Hezbollah Secretary General Qassem asserted, “Israel has to withdraw because the 60 days are over. We won’t accept any excuses to extend one second or one day,” further claiming that their refusal to withdraw “highlights Lebanon's need for the resistance.” President Macron called Netanyahu to demand that he “withdraw his forces still present in Lebanon.” Many residents decided to return to their home villages despite the extension and warnings from the IDF not to return to certain areas. The IDF opened fire against many of those trying to return, killing 22 overnight including 6 women and an LAF soldier. 124 others were wounded, including another soldier. Additionally, Israeli soldiers fired on protestors reportedly encroaching on IDF positions, killing two.

Israeli DM Katz has vowed to “firmly enforce” the ceasefire agreement in southern Lebanon and that “Anyone who breaks the rules or threatens IDF troops — will bear the full price.”

NUP leader Gantz claimed that Israel should be considering “expand[ing] ground and air activity” in southern Lebanon instead of “talking about withdrawal.” He further added, “We can bring back our hostages, replace Hamas rule, strike Iran and promote normalization with the countries of the region. We must not miss the opportunity.”

In response to the violence last night, LF leader Geagea claimed, “The current government has once again proved that it is nonexistent and the Axis of Resistance has demonstrated that it does not value people’s lives. For the sake of deceitful media presence, the Axis of Resistance does not hesitate to fabricate daily incidents aimed at covering up for what it has caused of tragedies and losses in lives and properties.”

The Shin Bet announced the arrest of Yuri Eliaspov and Georgi Andreev in northern Israel, both reservists in the IDF. They have been accused of espionage on behalf of Tehran regarding information on the Iron Dome that Eliaspov gained during his time as an officer in the Air Defense Command.

SNA and Turkish forces continue to engage the SDF along the Euphrates and the northern border.

Al Jazeera claimed that the SDF was offered by the interim Damascus government that would include their disarmament and integration into the Ministry of Defense in return for  “recognition of Kurdish cultural rights” in the national constitution, allowing for “Kurds to join the security and military institutions,” and a greater degree of self-governance at the local level. However, the SDF reportedly reportedly refused the offer, demanding their integration into the Defense Ministry as a pre-existing entity, their retained presence in northeast Syria, and a share of state oil revenues, giving them privileges similar to the Peshmerga in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The EU has agreed on a roadmap to lift sanctions on Syria for one year so long as the HTS-led government continues to progress an “inclusive political transition.”

During HTS’ efforts to stamp out remnants of Assadist forces in Homs, SOHR reported that the HTS-aligned fighters had killed 35 individuals in summary executions over the last three days, mostly including former regime officers, adding that “members of religious minorities” had suffered “humiliations.”

The Turkish Armed Forces executed two strikes against the PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan following the killing of two Iraqi security forces a few days ago.

The IDF has withdrawn from the western portion of the Netzarim Corridor under the ceasefire agreement to allow for the movement of Gazans northward. The EU has announced that it will deploy a civilian monitoring mission to Rafah along the Philadelphi Corridor to monitor the enforcement of the terms of the ceasefire.

After Hamas claimed that the partial withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from central Gaza was a victory, Ben Gvir stated, “The opening of the Nitsarim highway this morning and the entry of tens of thousands of Gazans to northern Gaza Strip are images of Hamas’ victory and another humiliating part of the reckless deal.” He has called on renewed hostilities in efforts to “destroy” Hamas.

After the Egyptian Parliament convened an emergency session due to his statements, officials have asserted Trump’s plan to remove and resettle Gazans is an “implicit endorsement of forced displacement,” and further that displacing so many Palestinians would be a threat to regional and national security. The Jordanian FM reasserted his country’s “firm and unwavering” support for the Palestinian cause, flatly rejecting Trump’s suggestion. The director for Israel and Palestine at Human Rights Watch has warned that the plan “would amount to an alarming escalation in the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people and exponentially increase their suffering.”

Despite international concern and rejection of Trump’s plan to relocate Palestinians to reconstruct Gaza, Trump has insisted on his plan: “I’d like to get them living in an area where they can live without disruption and revolution and violence.” Countering resistance from Egypt and Jordan specifically on accepting these refugees, Trump claimed that, “I wish [Sissi] would take some. We helped them a lot, and I’m sure he’d help us. He’s a friend of mine. He’s in…a rough neighborhood. But I think he would do it, and I think the King of Jordan would do it too.”

In the West Bank, the IDF has announced the assassination of Hamas official Tulkarm Ihab Atwi in Nour Shams. Additionally, the PIJ used explosive devices and small arms against the IDF in Tulkarm.

In the face of the suspension of most US foreign aid worldwide, Secretary-General Guterres has called “for additional exemptions to be considered to ensure the continued delivery of critical development and humanitarian activities for the most vulnerable communities around the world.”