The intensification of the war in the north doesn’t mean that Israel can let its guard down elsewhere, and it is still trying to uproot Hamas in Gaza while preventing it from turning the West Bank into a launching pad for terrorist attacks. Amid other operations in the area, the IDF raided the offices of Al Jazeera in Ramallah, confiscated equipment, and ordered the branch of the news network to shut down for 45 days. Andrew McCarthy comments:

Al Jazeera is based in Qatar, a longtime backer of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas (the Brotherhood’s Palestinian branch) and a close ally of Iran. The Biden administration nevertheless considers Qatar to be a “major non-NATO ally.” Naturally, Al Jazeera pushes anti-American and anti-Israeli propaganda. As it must now confront West Bank jihadists in addition to other Iran-backed enemies in the multi-front war, Israel concluded that the Al Jazeera studio in Ramallah is being used for “incitement and support of terrorist activities” and that its broadcasts at this time are a threat to regional and Israeli security.

There is no international-law requirement in wartime that combatants give immunity to outlets for enemy propaganda.

Nevertheless, a Biden-Harris State Department spokesman declared that Israel’s “action is inconsistent with U.S. support for freedom of the press in the West Bank and all over the world.”

The gall here is breathtaking, even by Biden-Harris administration standards. As recounted in litigation that culminated in a Supreme Court ruling in June, the Biden-Harris White House and other administration officials have engaged in extensive, intimidating actions to induce social-media platforms to suppress reporting and commentary by its political opponents.

Between December 27 and January 6, terrorists in Gaza fired rockets at Israel almost every night. On Monday, one rocket struck a home in the much-bombarded town of Sderot, although no one was injured. The rocket fire had largely halted last spring, and for some time barrages were often the result of Israeli forces closing in a Hamas unit or munitions depot. But the truth—which gives credence to Ran Baratz’s argument in his January essay that the IDF is struggling to accomplish its mission—is that Hamas has been able to rebuild. Yoni Ben Menachem writes that the jihadist group has been “producing hundreds of new rockets using lathes smuggled into tunnels that remain operational in Gaza.” Moreover, it has been replenishing its ranks:

According to Israeli security officials, Hamas has recruited approximately 4,000 new fighters over the past month. This rapid expansion bolsters its fighting capabilities and complicates Israel’s efforts to apply military pressure on Hamas to expedite a hostage deal. Hamas’s military recovery has allowed it to prolong its war of attrition against the IDF and adopt tougher stances in hostage negotiations. The funds for this recruitment effort are reportedly from the sale of humanitarian-aid packages, which Hamas forcibly seizes and resells in Gaza’s markets.

In fact, Ben Menachem writes, Hamas’s rocket fire is part of the same strategy:

By firing rockets, Hamas seeks to demonstrate its resilience and operational capability despite the IDF’s prolonged offensive. This message is aimed at both Gaza’s residents and the Israeli public, underscoring that Hamas remains a significant force even after enduring heavy losses [and] that Israel cannot easily occupy this region, currently a focal point of IDF operations.