Israel-Hamas war: What happened on day 189?

Iran launched hundreds of drones directly from its territory against Israel on Saturday night, in a radical change from its usual use of proxies, the IDF has confirmed.

Iran has confirmed as well that its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has begun its missile and drone attack against Israel.

The IDF said that it is ready to shoot them down, though air defense is not hermetic.

Iranian Shahed-136 kamikaze UAV over Iraq at very low altitude, heading to Israel. pic.twitter.com/HpWeqXMMep

— Clash Report (@clashreport) April 13, 2024

The IDF's shoot-down capabilities include aircraft, Iron Dome, David's Sling, and the Arrow missile system.

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza announced on Saturday that the Palestinian death toll in the Strip since October 7 has risen to 33,686.

This figure is unable to be independently verified, and the health ministry does not differentiate between terrorist combatants and civilians.

Iranian forces took over the Portuguese ship "MCS ARIES" in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, according to Israeli media. The ship is currently sailing through the Persian Gulf, according to ship tracking site, Marine Traffic.

Israeli media outlets added that the MSC Aries is apparently associated with Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Maritime Shipping Company. 

There were 20 Filipinos on board the ship.

The Saudi Al-Hadath confirmed Iran's seizure.

At a Friday press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, former president Donald Trump suggested that Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza could escalate into a world war.

"What's going on in Israel could end up in a world war," Trump said.

Trump then continued by criticizing President Joe Biden, saying he "doesn't know what the hell he is doing." 

Earlier in the press conference, Trump called the United States a "declining nation," initially commenting on "record-breaking inflation" in the country.

The Netherlands will close its embassy in Tehran on Sunday as a precaution, the Dutch Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday, citing the rising tensions between Iran and Israel.

The Ministry added that it would decide on Sunday whether the embassy would reopen on Monday.

As IDF troops in the central Gaza Strip continued precise operations against entrenched targets, the military announced on Saturday that it had destroyed launchers containing ready-to-launch rockets aimed at central Israel.

Following sirens yesterday in the Sderot area, three launches crossed over from the Gaza Strip, which the IDF Aerial Defense Array successfully intercepted. IDF artillery responded by striking the area from which the launch was carried out. 

Additionally, IDF fighter jets struck and destroyed three launchers containing 20 rockets that were ready to fire toward central Israel, the military reported. 

The US had seen Iran moving military assets, such as drones and cruise missiles internally, two US intelligence sources told CNN. 

This is the latest development signaling a possible Iranian attack on Israeli targets, including targets within Israeli territory.

However, the sources say that it remained unclear whether or not Iran will attack from its own territory.

The US repositioned several warships in the Middle East in expectation of an Iranian attack, according to a Friday Wall Street (WSJ) Journal report.

US CENTCOM Commander General Michael Erik Kurilla was in Israel on Friday to coordinate US defense moves with the Israeli general staff.

Iran has threatened Israel with retaliation after Israel struck an Iranian embassy complex that was being used by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). 

The US has warned numerous times since then about a possible Iranian attack on Israeli territory.

US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Friday to discuss efforts to advance regional stability, particularly with respect to Israel and Sudan, the office of State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller reported on Saturday.

The American Secretary of State emphasized that an escalation by Iran would not benefit anyone in the region.  Blinken and  Shoukry also discussed efforts to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, lower the Palestinian civilian death toll, and achieve an immediate ceasefire that secures the release of all hostages.  

Secretary Blinken agreed with Foreign Minister Shoukry on the need to continue to coordinate closely with Egypt on how to advance a path to a Palestinian state while ensuring security for Israel.

The Secretary and Foreign Minister also discussed efforts to resume negotiations aimed at ending the conflict in Sudan.

IDF soldiers operated on Friday night and early Saturday morning throughout the West Bank, according to Palestinian reports.

The soldiers searched the homes of residents in the al-Arub camp, north of Hebron and in Qalqilya.

In addition, the IDF reportedly made arrests while operating in the town of Idna, west of Hebron, and the town of al-Samo, south of Hebron.

This is a developing story.