Israel Eliminates Hamas Sniper with Al Jazeera Ties
Israel announced on Tuesday the targeted killing of Hossam Basel Abdul Karim Shabat, a Hamas sniper from the Beit Hanoun Battalion, who was also employed as a journalist by the Qatari-based media outlet Al Jazeera.
According to a joint statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), Shabat’s ties to Hamas’s military wing were uncovered in October 2024 through internal documents confirming his involvement in military training as far back as 2019.
Throughout the ongoing conflict, Israeli officials say Shabat actively participated in attacks against IDF personnel and Israeli civilians. His elimination, they argue, highlights the broader issue of Hamas operatives infiltrating media organizations.
This revelation follows an October 25, 2024, IDF disclosure that identified six Al Jazeera journalists as active members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad—a list that included Shabat. The five others named were Anas Jamal Mahmoud al-Sharif, Alaa Abdul Aziz Muhammad Salama, Ashraf Sami Ashour Saraj, Ismail Farid Muhammad Abu Omar, and Talal Mahmoud Abdul Rahman Aruki.
In response to Al Jazeera’s alleged connections to terrorist organizations, Israeli victims of the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre have filed a lawsuit against the network in a Washington federal court. Among the plaintiffs is Morris Schneider, uncle of Shiri Bibas, who was murdered in Hamas captivity along with her two young children, Kfir and Ariel.
Israeli officials have vowed to continue eliminating Hamas operatives and taking action against media platforms they accuse of aiding terrorism.
Auburn Basketball Coach Calls for Release of Hostages
As his team celebrated reaching the NCAA Sweet 16, Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl used his platform to highlight a different battle—the plight of Israeli hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Pearl—who is Jewish—began by calling on the world to remember Edan Alexander, an American still being held captive.
“I believe it was God’s plan to give us this success—success beyond what we deserve—so that we could have this platform,” Pearl said. “I wanted to start this press conference by reminding the world that Edan Alexander is still being held hostage in Gaza. Not enough people in this country know his name.”
Pearl, who sought his players’ permission before making the statement, ended with a firm demand: “Bring the hostages home.”
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum described Pearl’s statement as deeply passionate and commended him for using his visibility to advocate for those still in captivity.
Currently, 59 hostages remain in Hamas custody, including Alexander, with Israeli military data indicating that at least 35 of them are presumed dead. The bodies of four U.S. citizens—Judi Weinstein Haggai, Gadi Haggai, and IDF soldiers Itay Chen and Omer Maxim Neutra—are among those still being held.
More than 500 days have passed since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre, but the fight to bring the hostages home continues, now with voices like Pearl’s adding to the calls for action.
IDF Strikes Military Bases in Central Syria
Israeli airstrikes early Tuesday morning targeted key military installations in central Syria, hitting the Tadmur military base and the T-4 airbase—two strategic sites with links to Iranian forces.
According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the strikes focused on military capabilities that remained operational following the December 2024 overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s regime by Al-Qaeda-affiliated forces.
The T-4 airbase, Syria’s largest, has long been associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), while the Tadmur base sits within the Palmyra military airport.
In addition to the pre-dawn strikes, Israeli forces engaged in a separate clash later that morning, returning fire after being attacked by terrorists operating in southern Syria. The Israeli Air Force also launched a precision strike against the assailants.
This marks Israel’s second wave of attacks on Syrian military sites in the past week. Just days earlier, the IDF struck artillery positions in Khan Arnabah, near the Israeli border, as well as command centers housing weapons and military vehicles belonging to what was left of Syria’s previous regime.
These strikes come amid rising concerns over Syria’s post-Assad leadership. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has warned against expecting stability from the new government, which he describes as a terrorist faction originating from Idlib.
At a recent press conference in Brussels, Sa’ar dismissed notions of “regime transition,” calling it “ridiculous.” He accused the new leadership, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa (also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani), of being a jihadist Islamist group that seized Damascus by force.
In December, following Assad’s fall, Israel took control of the U.N.-patrolled buffer zone in the Syrian Golan Heights, a region previously governed under a 1974 ceasefire agreement. Syria’s new rulers and U.N. officials have since demanded an Israeli withdrawal, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it clear that Jerusalem will not allow jihadist forces to advance south of Damascus.
“Let this be clear: We will not allow HTS forces or the so-called new Syrian army to enter the area south of Damascus,” Netanyahu declared, referring to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the faction now in control of Syria’s capital.
As tensions escalate, Israel remains committed to preventing hostile forces from gaining ground near its borders, using military force when necessary.
