A Hamas terrorist was killed and four others were injured in an explosion in Gaza City Tuesday morning, where the Hamas website said they were on a “jihad mission.”

The terrorist was identified as 35-year-old Mohammed al-Bahloul.

Hamas stated that he “was martyred after a long bright path of Jihad, hard work, struggle and sacrifice” and that the terrorist organization “reaffirms its commitment and determination to continue the resistance against the belligerent occupation forces.”

Israel Air Force aircraft targeted two concealed rocket launchers in northern Gaza early Thursday afternoon after terrorists in Hamas-controlled Gaza attacked with two mortar shells , one on Wednesday and one Thursday morning.

“Launching rockets against Israel and its civilians is a breach of our sovereignty,” said  IDF Spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner.

As usual, the IDF added,” We maintain the right to operate against those who are involved in terror.”

As a result of the closure of many underground tunnels into Gaza, smuggling of weapons into Gaza by sea is on the rise, The Israel Navy thwarts many smuggling attempts into Gaza. Navy soldiers have noticed that one thing is missing: no vessels have arrived with medicine or humanitarian goods.

The security situation between the sea and the shore that surrounds the Gaza Strip is complex. Any change that happens on land can be felt at sea – whether it arises from local escalations in violence, like the rockets fired at Israel last week, or from regional changes, such as smuggling attempts from Egypt into the Gaza Strip.

An IDF Navy ship patrolling the Mediterranean Sea. Photo credit: IDF Spokesperson’s office.

Lt. Col. Eli Soholitzky, the commander of the squadron in charge of security in the Gaza Strip, explained that ever since two rockets were fired from the Strip at Israel, the sea has been storming with tension. “We are not seeing a change in the actions of the Gazan ships, but we are aware of the coming threats,” he said.

In the meantime, there has been significant growth in the number of smuggling attempts into Gaza from the sea in recent months. “There are several smuggling attempts that happen each week,” Lt. Col. Soholitzky said. “Naturally, as the process of closing tunnels from Egypt to Gaza becomes more efficient, the smuggling attempts by sea increase.” For many hostile infiltrators, the sea has become their alternative route. “It’s like a pressure cooker. It’s waiting to burst. When you close one opening – the pressure goes to the other one,” said Lt. Col. Soholitzky.

Even though there are some goods smuggled in for retail purposes, their number is insignificant compared to the amount of weapons smuggled in for terror organizations in the Gaza Strip.

At the top of the list of items smuggled into Gaza is various types of weapons, such as rocket systems and firearms, says Lt. Col. Soholitzky. Some smuggling of construction materials, oil and contraband, like drugs, have been documented as well. The items smuggled in cover a broad range, but there is one category missing: “We haven’t caught any vessels with medicine or humanitarian items,” he said.

Due to the rising naval threat, the importance of each navy soldier to security is rising. “We have to work much more intensely,” said Lt. Col. Soholitzky. “After all, we are the only ones left patrolling Gaza after the disengagement. We are at sea 24/7, ready on a moment’s notice for any mission.”

Photo credit: IDF Spokesperson’s office.

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Five IDF soldiers were injured last night at the start of the clash with Gaza.

A Golani unit was in the process of destroying the terror tunnel discovered on October 7 that led to the inside of Israeli Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha, when they were injured in an explosion. It is not yet clear if the explosion was from an explosive device or mortar fire.

Reportedly, the soldiers were 100 meters inside Gaza, working on destroying the part of the terror tunnel on the Gaza side of the fence.

The soldiers were evacuated to Soroka hospital in Be’er Sheva by helicopter. At least one was brought in, in serious condition, one in moderate, and the rest with lighter injuries.

The soldier who was seriously injured is Achiyah Klein (Achiyah ben Nira) of Kfar Etzion. Klein is an officer in the Yahalam combat engineering unit.

The IDF responded with tank fire, helicopter fire, and reportedly navy fire at Khan Yunis in Gaza.

Four Gazan terrorists were killed in the IDF response.

Recently, the IDF began reducing the forces placed within the Gaza border communities, saying that the situation is now safer along the Gaza border. On Thursday evening the IDF pulled out their last soldier stationed within the communities in Sha’ar HaNegev.

The Mossad gave an assessment this week, that as US pressured talks progress with the Palestinian Authority, Hamas will escalate their terror activities against Israel.

Former Jerusalem Police District chief Major General Niso Shaham was finally let go. Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovich and Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino got together and fired him. To many in Israel, from all walks of life and all ends of the political map, this was a decision that should have been made years ago.

Shaham was fired full eight years after an incriminating 2005 video showing him instructing underlings to use merciless violence against Jews in who demonstrated in Kfar maimon against the uprooting of Jews from Gush Katif, Gaza, made it to You Tube.

It wasn’t just the subject matter of the video – a high ranking Israeli police officer ordering his men to be ruthless against Jewish civilians; it was also Shahar’s lowbrow language, replete with curses, references to excrement and imageries of ladies of the night in action, that created a cult of Niso Shahar Haters. He became the face of the Israeli bad policeman, more like his counterpart in Cairo than in, say, London.

“[prostitution expletive], let there be arrests, kapara, I want arrests, and I’m telling you, use the water cannon to disperse demonstrators, [excrement expletive] on them, let them burn, don’t hesitate, use the water cannon, you say I talked to Niso, Niso gave me permission in advance,” Officer Shaham was saying while the Channel 10 camera was rolling and the soundman was picking up every precious pearl. Mind you, this was regarding a peaceful demonstration – and Shaham was planning its deterioration into violence.

“I’m not some [street walker] who [description of what said street walker does for a customer]. I collect payment for [doing what the street walker does]… I will [be highly intimate] with the mother of their mother,” Niso was instructing his underling and the whole country was watching. Here’s the video. If your Hebrew is not good enough – I don’t know of a better incentive to check into an ulpan:

But, somehow, despite the mounting evidence showing Major General Shaham (second in rank only to the police commissioner) as an offensive public servant and obviously a terrible influence on the police force – the man managed to cling to his job, and was promoted to deputy chief of the Jerusalem district in 2007, and then, in 2011, chief of our men and women in police uniform in all of Jerusalem.

Interesting factoid: in 2007, when his promotion was announced, some good citizens, including Attorney David Shusheim, appealed it to the Supreme Court, saying his promotion will encourage even more violence and crude behavior on the part of police. The high court, in a cowardly fashion, went with the cursing bully, with a decision that, essentially, said, if the police brass want him, they must know what they’re doing. So now if you read about Israeli policemen tasing a man in Yitzhar while he is sitting quietly in his home – you know who had a chance to say it ain’t right but just didn’t.

By the way, the court record on Niso Shaham offers a complete recitation of his colorful curses and violent expressions. I’m no psychiatrist, but I just know the man could benefit from a hefty regime of Thorazine.

But Major General Niso Shaham was not defeated by his penchant for smacking heads and breaking bones, nor by his colorful language that’s now been recorded for posterity by the Supreme Court. Like all great men, Niso Shaham was caught by his zipper.

Two weeks ago, also after years and years of complaints that no one bothered to heed, the prosecution charged Niso Shaham with criminal sexual harassment and abuse against female cops under his command. Only then, when the police brass that defended and promoted this violent and uncivilized officer realized his peccadilloes were going to be splashed across the tabloids while he was still drawing a paycheck, and that could reflect on them.

So they finally did the right thing for all the wrong reasons.

Folks on the right are saying today that Niso Shaham is joining the long list of Israeli officials who participated in the crime of uprooting the Jews of Gush Katif and have paid a heavy price, some through a radical deterioration of their communication skills, others by a degradation of their political power. But if you ask me, that list will not be complete without adding to it the Supreme Court, who made all this injustice possible.

Approximately 3,000 protesters, including Jewish Home party Knesset Members, protested at the Ofer prison near Jerusalem Monday night, where 26 terrorists will be freed during the night.

Their “human chain” has no chance of stopping the release of terrorists, but the demonstrators hope their presence may add enough angry sentiment among Israelis to stop the next release in the four-step program to free 104 terrorists so that the United States can stage and produce the “peace talks” charades.

The Jewish Home party cast aside coalition politics and took a strong ideological stand against Monday night’s release of terrorists.

Party MKs Uri Ariel, who is Minister of Housing, Ayelet Shaked and Shuli Moalem ignored Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s criticism of the Jewish Home’s opposition to the government decision to play along with  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

“The Shamgar Committee recommended against releasing prisoners. Why doesn’t the government adopt the report? Releasing prisoners isn’t according to Jewish values,” said Ariel, a veteran MK who consistently has been more honest in backing up his beliefs than have been many previous national religious legislators.

Gila Molcho, sister of Ian Feinberg who was murdered by terrorists in Gaza before the 2005 expulsion, said, “My brother believed justice lies with people, but a great wrong has been done here. His first murderer was released in the course of the Shalit deal, his second murderer was released on the first batch and the third will be released tomorrow.

“We’re not a goodwill gesture, we’re the people of Israel. The Prime Minister must wake up – we’re giving a horrible message here.”

Another relative of a victim of terrorists stated, “My country betrayed me. My brother’s blood was spilled for nothing.”

Gazan terrorists launched multiple rockets at Israel at 5 AM Monday morning. One rocket that was going to hit Ashkelon was intercepted by Iron Dome. The other three landed in open areas.

Israel is set to name 26 terrorists today that is will be releasing, including 5 Gazans, and just the other week uncovered terror tunnels leading from Gaza, into Israeli towns.

On Sunday, two mortars from Gaza landed in Israel. No damage was reported in that attack.

Soldiers on routine patrol along the Gaza security fence Monday morning discovered a large bomb that terrorists had planted for detonating when an army vehicle passes.

The soldiers called in sappers who naturalized the bomb.

The army last week discovered two large runnels that were intended by Hamas to use for kidnappings and attacks on Jewish communities near the fence.