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Israel Launches ‘Firm Hand,’ Says Not Related to Iran

Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
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Israel Launches ‘Firm Hand,’ Says Not Related to Iran

Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military

The Israeli army has launched ‘Firm Hand,’ a large-scale two-week drill across the country, simulating a potential multi-front war.

According to the military, the drill was pre-planned and did not stem from any recent security assessments or tension with Iran.

General Michael "Erik" Kurilla , Commander of US Central Command, arrived in Israel on Tuesday for a three-day visit as part of a wider tour of the region.

Kurilla arrived a day after the Israeli army kicked off the military exercises, which he was set to observe.

He started off his visit at Unit 504, the HUMINT (human intelligence) unit of the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate (J2), where he was briefed on the unit's latest operations, as well as plans for the future.

Israeli army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi led an operational panel during which the commanders discussed cooperation between the military and the US Armed Forces and the strengthening of joint operational capabilities.

The ‘Firm Hand’ exercise will simulate a multi-front conflict in the air, at sea, on land and in the fields of cybersecurity.

The exercise will test the Israeli military's ability to prepare for a prolonged campaign on multiple fronts.

A military source said the drill would include the Air Force conducting simulated “strategic” strikes deep in enemy territory in an all-out war scenario, and the Navy carrying out mock offensive and defensive actions.

The Israeli army said troops from the standing and reserve army, from nearly all units, would participate in the exercise.

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Floods Displace 122,000 People in Malaysia

File photo: People walk past cars partially submerged in floodwaters in Shah Alam, Selangor on December 21, 2021, as Malaysia faces massive floods that have left at least 14 dead and more than 70,000 displaced. (AFP)
File photo: People walk past cars partially submerged in floodwaters in Shah Alam, Selangor on December 21, 2021, as Malaysia faces massive floods that have left at least 14 dead and more than 70,000 displaced. (AFP)
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Floods Displace 122,000 People in Malaysia

File photo: People walk past cars partially submerged in floodwaters in Shah Alam, Selangor on December 21, 2021, as Malaysia faces massive floods that have left at least 14 dead and more than 70,000 displaced. (AFP)
File photo: People walk past cars partially submerged in floodwaters in Shah Alam, Selangor on December 21, 2021, as Malaysia faces massive floods that have left at least 14 dead and more than 70,000 displaced. (AFP)

More than 122,000 people have been forced out of their homes as massive floods caused by relentless rains swept through Malaysia's northern states, disaster officials said Saturday.
The number surpassed the 118,000 displaced during one of the country's worst floodings in 2014, and disaster officials feared it could rise further as there was no let-up in torrential downpours.
The death toll remained at four recorded across Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak.
Kelantan state bore the brunt of the flooding, accounting for 63 percent of the 122,631 people displaced, according to data from the National Disaster Management Agency.
There were nearly 35,000 people evacuated in Terengganu, with the rest of the displacements reported from seven other states.
Heavy rains, which began early this week, continued to hammer Pasir Puteh town in Kelantan, where people could be seen walking through streets inundated with hip-deep waters.
"My area has been flooded since Wednesday. The water has already reached my house corridor and is just two inches away from coming inside," Pasir Puteh resident and school janitor Zamrah Majid, 59, told AFP.
"Luckily, I moved my two cars to a higher ground before the water level rose."
She said she allowed her grandchildren to play in the water in front of his house because it was still shallow.
"But if the water gets higher, it would be dangerous, I'm afraid they might get swept away," she added.
"I haven't received any assistance yet, whether it's welfare or other kinds of help."
Muhammad Zulkarnain, 27, who is living with his parents in Pasir Puteh, said they were isolated.
"There's no way in or out of for any vehicles to enter my neighbourhood," he told AFP.
"Of course I'm scared... Luckily we have received some assistance from NGOs, they gave us food supplies like biscuits, instant noodles, and eggs."
Floods are an annual phenomenon in the Southeast Asian nation of 34 million people due to the northeast monsoon that brings heavy rain from November to March.
Thousands of emergency services personnel have been deployed in flood-prone states along with rescue boats, four-wheel-drive vehicles and helicopters, said Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who chairs the National Disaster Management Committee.