Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2025-09-06 at 15:06

HEADLINES
UAE Red Line on West Bank Annexation
Gaza War Israel Strikes City Civilians Suffer
Darfur Landslides Trigger Hundreds Dead Aid Urged

The time is now 11:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

At eleven this morning, we take stock of a region in which the drumbeat of conflict and diplomacy continues to shape daily life from the Mediterranean to the Nile and beyond. The core lines remain clear: a fragile pause between Israel and Iran, shifting dynamics among Iran’s proxies, and a Gaza war that has entered a long, punishing phase even as civilians bear the heaviest burden.

Across the wider region, the pause between Israel and Iran remains uneasy. There is no durable settlement announced, and diplomatic channels remain open as both sides weigh decisions with regional and global partners. In Washington and Jerusalem, allied coordination continues, framed by a shared concern for security and for preventing a broader escalation that could pull neighboring states into further confrontation. At the same time, a significant diplomatic signal has shaped perceptions here: a United Arab Emirates warning that any move toward Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank would constitute a red line that could derail the Abraham Accords and regional normalization. The warning was issued in public forums after prior private concerns, underscoring how regional partners view broader moves in the Israeli-Palestinian arena as having tangible consequences for stability and cooperation with the United States and its allies.

In Syria and Lebanon, the regional architecture is evolving as diplomatic and military pressures bind actors more tightly than ever. Israeli and allied security circles monitor discussions around Iran’s influence and the posture of Iran-backed proxies, including their posture in neighboring states. In Lebanon, a cabinet plan to centralize weapons under state control has prompted protests and a cautious reaction among Shi’ite communities; observers say the political signal from Beirut is that Lebanon seeks to reassert state sovereignty while Lebanese groups debate how best to engage with national security priorities. The broader implication is that Hezbollah’s future footprint in Lebanon remains a live issue for regional security, even as coordination among Lebanese authorities and their international partners continues.

In Gaza, the war’s intensity has not abated. Israel’s defense establishment says it has taken control of substantial portions of Gaza City as it presses operations aimed at dismantling Hamas’ military infrastructure. In recent days, the army has targeted high-rise towers it says Hamas used for military purposes, and it has issued urgent evacuation orders for residents in affected neighborhoods, urging a move toward designated humanitarian zones in the south. One high-profile strike leveled a major tower in Gaza City, with the army asserting that underground and surveillance infrastructure connected to Hamas facilities was destroyed in the process. Medical sources in the Hamas-controlled health system report dozens of deaths in ongoing strikes across the Gaza Strip, including in Gaza City, and warn of a growing humanitarian crisis as access to food and medical care remains severely constrained. The army says precautionary measures have been taken to minimize civilian harm, including evacuation advisories and the use of precision munitions, while dispatching field hospitals, water pipelines, and other humanitarian provisions to southern zones in cooperation with the United Nations and international partners.

On the hostage front, the conflict continues to cast a long shadow over political calculations and daily life in Israel and the Palestinian territories. The toll of the war remains incompletely verified, with the Hamas Health Ministry and other sources reporting thousands...