Israel-Hamas war: What happened on day 174?

The Biden administration has notified Israel that it comprehends why the Jewish state does not want to see the complete evacuation of the humanitarian corridor in the Gaza Strip and the gradual return of Gazans in the northern Strip in the event of a hostage deal, Kan Reshet Bet reported on Friday.

The report comes amid ongoing efforts to reach a hostage deal.

In the past week, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held talks in Washington regarding an upcoming military operation in Rafah. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Friday that the head of the Mossad, David Barnea, will fly to Qatar, and Shin Bet chief, Ronen Bar, will fly with a delegation to Egypt. 

The PM's office said, "On the issue of the negotiations for the release of the hostages, the prime minister spoke with the head of the Mossad and the head of the Shin Bet and authorized delegations on their behalf to go to Doha and Cairo in the upcoming days, to continue negotiations."

Hamas had informed mediators on the hostage deal that it would maintain its original position regarding a ceasefire, Reuters reported on Monday. This includes requiring the withdrawal of IDF troops from the Gaza Strip, returning Palestinians to their homes, and exchanging prisoners. 

Hamas's response comes after Israel agreed on Saturday to a compromise proposed by the US regarding the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released and was waiting for the terror group's response.

Sergeant-Major Alon Kudriashov, from Modi'in, fell in battle in the southern Gaza Strip, the IDF announced on Friday.

He was posthumously promoted from the rank of Staff Sergeant to the rank of Sergeant-Major.

Anti-Israel protesters chanted against US President Joe Biden, the United States of America, and Israel at the Democrat's star-studded fundraiser featuring former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton at the New York City Radio City Music Hall on Thursday.

"Down with the USA," chanted protesters in a video taken by independent journalist Brendan Gutenschwager. "[Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu you will pay."

In the same video protesters chanted, "Al-Qassam are on their way," referring to Hamas's armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades.

“Down with the USA!” chants at today’s pro-Palestine protest in New York outside Biden’s fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall pic.twitter.com/I6u5XqAxLJ

— Brendan Gutenschwager (@BGOnTheScene) March 28, 2024

In another video posted by Gutenschwager, the massive crowed repeated that “Without US support, without Biden’s support, we would’ve stopped Israel a long time ago.” Protesters attacked US support for Israel in the ongoing Israel-Hamas War, in which they claimed that a genocide against Palestinians was unfolding. In videos posted by activists groups, they sang that "Israel bombs, USA pays."

Demonstrators repeatedly referred to the incumbent presidential candidate as "genocide Joe," and called on other not to vote for him in the upcoming US elections that he was fundraising for that night.

"Democrats you can't hide," protesters sang in a Within Our Lifetime video. "We charge you with genocide!" Many of the chants against Biden and the Democratic Party were led by the group's leader Nerdeen Kiswani.

In an exclusive interview with Israel Hayom, Donald Trump discussed Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, what he would do as president of the United States, and his opinions on current President Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress.

While at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, Omer Lachmanovich, editor-in-chief of Israel Hayom, and Ariel Kahana, the publication’s chief diplomatic correspondent, described the setting as lavish, with an aura of a royal palace. Israel Hayom reported that just before the interview began, Trump spent the first minute examining how the conversation would look on screen. After several seconds of watching the monitor set behind their backs, which displayed the interview, Trump said, “Looks good,” and the interview began. 

The first question the reporters asked the former president was if he agreed with Israel’s goal of completely destroying Hamas. He responded, "Only a fool or a crazy person would not have responded the way you did," Adding that if he had been in the Oval Office, the war would not have broken out on October 7.  "They would have never, ever done that [if I were president], for two reasons: number one, they were broke. Number two, when I was the president, they would have never done that because they knew there would be very big consequences.

Trump said in the interview that he blames President Joe Biden for the October 7 attack on Israel because “they [Hamas] have no respect for him. He can't put two sentences together. He can't talk. He's a very dumb person. He's a dumb person. His foreign policy throughout 50 years has been horrible. If you look at people that were in other administrations with him, they saw him as a weak, ineffective president, they [Hamas] would have never done that attack if I were there.” 

Sergeant-Major Alon Kudriashov, from Modi'in, fell in battle in the southern Gaza Strip, the IDF announced on Friday.

He was posthumously promoted from the rank of Staff Sergeant to the rank of Sergeant-Major.

Rocket sirens sound in Baram, Dovev, and Yiron.

An Israeli drone strike on a vehicle on the outskirts of Tyre in southern Lebanon on Friday killed a senior Hezbollah official, according to Israeli and Arab media.

The IDF later confirmed the death of Ali Naeem in the strike.

The IDF said Naeem, a senior Hezbollah official, served as the deputy commander of the terror group's rockets and missiles unit.

"Ali was considered to be a significant source of knowledge in the terrorist organization, and leader in the field of rockets. He was also one of the leaders for heavy-warhead rocket fire and responsible for conducting and planning attacks against Israeli civilians," the IDF added.

Head of Hamas's political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, met with Iranian Chief of Staff Mohammed Bagheri in Tehran, according to Iranian media.

In the meeting, Bagheri said that the Palestinian issue has been one of the Islamic Republic’s “main strategies and goals” since the revolution.

Bagheri praises October 7 massacre 

According to the media, the Iranian commander also praised Hamas’s October 7 massacre as “unique,” stating it had shattered Israel’s invincible image.

"If the Americans had not helped the Zionist regime, this collapse would have definitely happened by now,” Bagheri reportedly stated, referring to Hamas’s aim in the war.

Haniyeh was cited in Iranian media as stating that the terror group’s October 7 attack on Israel “made the words of the Palestinian people reach the ears of the world.”

At least 32,623 Palestinians have been killed and 75,092 injured in Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza since October 7, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said on Friday.