It has been reported that Israel has identified targets in Iran in response to Tehran’s missile attack, and that retaliation is ‘only a matter of time.’

Following the arrival of the THAAD anti-missile system in Israel yesterday—sent by the US to bolster Israel’s air defenses, along with the American soldiers who will operate it—the Israeli press has indicated that the anticipated retaliation against Iran will take place soon.

According to reports from Israel’s Channel 12, the Israeli army has presented Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant with a list of potential targets for the response to Iran.

Israeli state television, KAN, also reported that the Tel Aviv government has finalized its decision regarding the targets in response to Iran’s missile attack.

An unnamed Israeli official, speaking to KAN, stated: “The targets are clear. [The strike] is only a matter of time.”

Attack plan shared with the US

The report further mentioned that the Israeli government has shared its plan to strike Iran with the US in general terms, though it has not provided details on the specific sites to be targeted.

An Israeli source was quoted as saying that “the targets could change at the last minute.”

Yesterday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant asserted that Israel would “respond soon” to Iran’s massive ballistic missile attack, describing the impending action as both “decisive and deadly.”

On October 1, Iran launched a rocket attack on Israel. The Tel Aviv government had previously indicated that it would respond to this aggression.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to withdraw from southern Lebanon after its forces came under fire. The UN Security Council (UNSC) expressed its ‘deep concern’ over the shelling of UNIFIL facilities, though it did not specifically mention Israel.

In a video message, Netanyahu stated that the UNIFIL forces targeted by the Israeli military should ‘heed Israel’s call’ to withdraw. He dismissed the claim that Israel deliberately targeted UNIFIL personnel as “completely false,” adding that Hezbollah was using UNIFIL facilities and positions as cover.

After a closed-door UNSC meeting on Lebanon, Pascale Baeriswyl, Switzerland’s Permanent Representative to the UN, reiterated that council members were deeply concerned about the recent shelling of UNIFIL facilities.

“UNSC members demand respect for UNIFIL personnel and facilities, and emphasize that UN peacekeepers and their bases must never be targeted,” Baeriswyl said, noting that some peacekeepers had been injured in the attacks.

Baeriswyl added that UNSC members reaffirmed their support for UNIFIL and expressed concern over civilian casualties, destruction, and displacement. She stressed that all parties must comply with international humanitarian law and that UNSC Resolution 1701 must be respected.

Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy, and the UK issued a joint statement regarding Israel’s actions against UNIFIL.

“We, the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom, express our deep concern over the recent attacks by the Israeli army on UNIFIL bases, which have injured several peacekeepers. These attacks must cease immediately. We condemn any threats to the safety of UNIFIL personnel,” the statement said.

The ministers emphasized that any deliberate attack on UNIFIL is a violation of international humanitarian law and UNSC Resolution 1701, and that ensuring the protection of peacekeepers is the responsibility of all parties involved in the conflict.

The statement concluded: “We call on Israel and all parties to guarantee the safety of UNIFIL personnel at all times and to respect UNIFIL’s mandate. We reaffirm the fundamental role UNIFIL plays in stabilizing southern Lebanon and underline the importance of the UN in resolving armed conflicts and mitigating their humanitarian consequences.”

In the northern Gaza Strip, which has been besieged and heavily bombarded by Israel for 10 days, Israel is reportedly implementing the “Generals’ Plan,” though it has not officially announced this strategy. This plan envisions a division of Gaza into two parts.

The Israeli army has maintained a tight siege, with continued air and ground attacks on the Jibaliya refugee camp and the towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanun. No aid, including medicine, is being allowed into the region, and Israel continues to bomb civilian areas, ignoring warnings from international organizations, including the United Nations, about a looming humanitarian catastrophe.

The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) has announced that primary crossings into northern Gaza have been closed, with no food aid entering the region since October 1. Food distribution points, kitchens, and bakeries have shut down due to airstrikes and evacuation orders.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has also reported that health services in northern Gaza are almost non-existent.

The Arab League has described Israel’s actions in northern Gaza as “genocide” and condemned these actions.

The siege and intense attacks appear to follow the so-called “Generals’ Plan,” initially proposed by General Giora Eiland, a former head of the Israeli army’s operations department. This plan suggests indefinite Israeli control over northern Gaza and the establishment of a new administration free of Hamas.

While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formally stated last month that this plan was under consideration, no official decision has been made in parliament. The Israeli army denies its actions in northern Gaza are based on this plan, but the events of the past 10 days suggest that elements of it may be in effect.

General Eiland shared details of the plan with the Associated Press (AP). Under this strategy, Palestinians would have a week to leave a third of northern Gaza, including Gaza City, after which the area would be declared a closed military zone.

The plan includes a strict embargo on food, water, medicine, and fuel, and would label Palestinians who remain as “militants,” potentially justifying lethal force. The goal is to split Gaza and create a non-Hamas-controlled administration. Ultimately, Gaza would be divided into two separate areas.

When asked if the recent evacuation orders were part of this plan, Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said, “No, we have not received any such plan.” However, an official familiar with the matter told AP that some parts of the plan are being implemented, without specifying which.

No trucks carrying food, water, or medicine have entered northern Gaza since September 30, according to the UN and the Israeli military authority overseeing humanitarian crossings.

Human rights groups argue that this plan would condemn civilians to starvation, violating international law prohibiting the use of food as a weapon and forced displacement. Accusations that Israel is deliberately restricting food access to Gaza are part of a genocide case against it at the International Court of Justice, which Israel denies.

Few Palestinians have complied with the latest evacuation order. Some residents are elderly or sick, while others fear there is nowhere safe to go, believing they may never be allowed to return. Israel has previously barred those who fled at the start of the war from returning.

“All Gazans fear this plan,” said Jomana Elkhalili, a 26-year-old Palestinian aid worker for Oxfam in Gaza.

“They’re not going to run. They won’t make that mistake again. People know it’s not safe,” she said, referring to conditions in southern Gaza, where people live in tent camps frequently targeted by airstrikes. “In the north, people feel it’s better to die than to leave.”

After Eiland presented the plan, officials from the prime minister’s office called him for further details. Eiland asserts that the only way to weaken Hamas is by denying it access to aid, forcing it to surrender or starve.

“That doesn’t mean killing everyone. People won’t be able to live there; the water will run out,” he said.

Tania Hary, executive director of Gisha, an Israeli human rights organization defending Palestinians’ right to move freely in Gaza, expressed deep concern over the implication that anyone failing to comply with evacuation orders could be considered “at war.”

A copy of the plan seen by AP suggests that if this strategy succeeds in northern Gaza, it could be extended to other areas in the south, including tent camps housing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.