Iran Update, April 28, 2024

IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi approved operational plans “for the continuation of the war” during a visit to IDF Southern Command on April 28.[i] He discussed the plans with IDF Southern Command commander Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman and division and brigade commanders. An Israeli war correspondent said that Rafah was “on the agenda” of the meeting.[ii] Israeli media claimed that Halevi approved plans ”for a major operation into Rafah” during the meeting.[iii]

Key Takeaways:

• Gaza Strip: The IDF Chief of Staff reportedly approved plans for a major operation into Rafah during a meeting with the IDF Southern Command commander and division and brigade commanders.
• West Bank: Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters in at least two locations across the West Bank since CTP-ISW’s last information cutoff on April 27.
• Lebanon: Lebanese Hezbollah has conducted at least four attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel since CTP-ISW’s last data cutoff on April 27.

Gaza Strip

Axis of Resistance objectives:

Erode the will of the Israeli political establishment and public to sustain clearing operations in the Gaza Strip
Reestablish Hamas as the governing authority in the Gaza Strip

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued to target Palestinian fighters and militia infrastructure across the Gaza Strip. The IDF Air Force struck dozens of Palestinian militia targets across the Gaza Strip since CTP-ISW’s last information cut off on April 27.[iv] The 679th Armored Brigade directed an airstrike targeting Palestinian fighters who were approaching Israeli forces in an unspecified area of the central Gaza Strip.[v] The brigade also directed airstrikes and artillery fire targeting a Palestinian militia cell in a building in the central Gaza Strip.[vi] The IDF Navy struck targets in the coastal central Gaza Strip to support Israeli forces operating under the command of the 99th Division.[vii]

Hamas and the al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, which is the self-proclaimed military wing of Fatah and aligned with Hamas in the current war, mortared Israeli armor near the Netzarim corridor in separate attacks on April 28.[viii]

Palestinian fighters conducted three indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel on April 28. Palestinian Islamic Jihad targeted an Israeli military position east of Gaza City.[ix] The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), which is a leftist Palestinian militia aligned with Hamas in the war, fired rockets at two towns near the Israel-Gaza Strip border.[x] The IDF said that DFLP fired the rockets from the northern Gaza Strip.[xi]

Recorded reports of attacks; CTP-ISW cannot independently verify impact.

West Bank

Axis of Resistance objectives:

Establish the West Bank as a viable front against Israel

Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters in at least two locations across the West Bank since CTP-ISW’s last information cutoff on April 27.[xii] Unspecified Palestinian fighters detonated improvised explosive devices targeting Israeli forces near a religious site in Bethlehem.[xiii] Palestinian fighters also fired small arms targeting Israeli forces conducting a raid in Nablus[xiv]

This map is not an exhaustive depiction of clashes and demonstrations in the West Bank.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights

Axis of Resistance objectives:

Deter Israel from conducting a ground operation into Lebanon
Prepare for an expanded and protracted conflict with Israel in the near term
Expel the United States from Syria

Lebanese Hezbollah has conducted at least four attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel since CTP-ISW’s last data cutoff on April 27.[xv] Hezbollah fighters launched dozens of Katyusha rockets at an IDF base on Mount Meron that hosts air traffic control, radar, surveillance, communication, and jamming facilities on April 27.[xvi] The IDF said that at least 26 rockets crossed into Israel and struck open areas near Bar Yohai.[xvii] The Hezbollah rocket barrage injured one Israeli soldier.[xviii] Hezbollah stated that the rocket barrage was in response to IDF Air Force strikes in several towns in southern Lebanon.[xix]