Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2025-09-13 at 21:06

HEADLINES
- Israel strikes Hamas leaders in Doha
- Hostage release talks hinge on Doha strike
- Israel imposes civil sanctions amid security drive

The time is now 5:01 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

Good evening. The region remains volatile as Israel negotiates a fragile balance between pressing military objectives and pursuing a path toward a sustainable ceasefire. In the backdrop, the war against Hamas and its Iranian allies continues to shape political calculations across Washington, Doha, Cairo, and Jerusalem.

Israel says its campaign against Hamas leadership is aimed at breaking the main obstacle to a lasting ceasefire and a safe return of hostages. Israeli officials describe the strike against Hamas leaders in Doha as a critical effort to disrupt the group’s command and to press for a new framework that could avert a broader confrontation. At the same time, the Israeli security establishment has signaled that the outcome of the strike remains unclear, with some top Hamas figures reportedly identified as casualties, while others appear to have survived or been unaccounted for. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used social media to argue that removing Hamas chiefs would remove the principal obstacle to freeing hostages and ending the war, while acknowledging that the battle to secure a broader ceasefire remains unresolved. In Washington, US officials, including representatives on the ground with Prime Minister Netanyahu’s team, have stressed the strength of the American-Israeli alliance even as they assess the implications of the Doha operation for stalled negotiations with Hamas and for regional diplomacy.

That diplomacy is taking shape in Doha, where reports say an emergency Arab-Islamic summit is being prepared in response to the Israeli strike. An Egyptian source indicated that President Abdul Fattah el-Sisi could attend. The summit reflects a broader regional recalibration as Gulf and Arab states weigh the consequences of continued fighting and the risk to civilian populations in Gaza. In Jerusalem, Prime Minister Netanyahu has warned that Hamas leaders living abroad, including those in Qatar, have obstructed ceasefire efforts and must be neutralized as part of the path to hostage release and peace. The American stance, articulated by Secretary of State and other senior officials, emphasizes support for Israel’s security and a united approach to defeating Hamas while pursuing humanitarian and diplomatic channels to advance the release of hostages.

The hostage crisis itself remains the core of the crisis in Gaza. Of the 251 people seized during Hamas’s October 2023 assault, a significant number remain unaccounted for or believed to be in Gaza. Family members have staged rallies in Tel Aviv and across the country, pressing Prime Minister Netanyahu to accelerate negotiations and to secure a prompt, comprehensive deal. Relations between the Israeli government and families of the hostages are tense as some warn that strikes elsewhere could derail or stall a breakthrough while others insist that “war-time realities” demand hard choices to end the danger.

Domestically, Israel has maintained a pace of forceful action in both Gaza and the West Bank. The military has continued high-profile operations and warnings aimed at preventing further attacks, including pressure on Palestinian communities to relocate away from targeted areas. In a related move, the government has imposed civil sanctions on certain relatives of Palestinians accused of terrorism and barred hundreds of work permits in an effort to deter future attacks. Civil liberties advocates and human-rights groups have criticized these measures as collective punishment, arguing they risk legal and moral questions while attempting to deter violence. The government contends these steps are necessary to discourage attacks and to...