Almost half of Israelis want to hold off on any invasion of Gaza, according to a poll published on Friday, in what may indicate a dip in support for the planned next stage of the counter-offensive against Hamas militants holding some 200 hostages.

Israel vowed to annihilate Hamas in response to the Palestinian Islamists' killing and kidnapping spree in its southern communities on Oct. 7, and has been stepping up tank and infantry raids in concert with heavy shelling of the enclave.

U.S. F-15 jets attack two Iranian-linked targets in Syria

The U.S. military on Thursday carried out strikes against two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and groups it backs, the Pentagon said, in response to a spate of attacks against U.S. forces in both Iraq and Syria.

As tensions soar over the Israel-Hamas conflict, U.S. and coalition troops have been attacked at least 19 times in Iraq and in Syria by Iran-backed forces in the past week.

A total of 21 U.S. forces have suffered minor injuries, the vast majority of them traumatic brain injuries.

The strikes targeted weapons and ammunition storage facilities using F-15 planes, an official said, and were not coordinated with Israel.

"These precision self-defense strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups that began on October 17," U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement.

"These narrowly tailored strikes in self-defense were intended solely to protect and defend U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria," Austin added. "They are separate and distinct from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. and do not constitute a shift in our approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict."

IDF enters northern Gaza again and attacks Hamas posts

The IDF entered northern Gaza on Thursday night for the third time in 24-hours and attacked Hamas posts, some of which in Gaza city.

According to the army, the targets were Hamas members, anti-tank missile launching pads and Hamas headquarters. No soldiers were harmed.

Israeli soldier wounded on Oct. 7 dies of his wounds

The IDF announced Friday that Sgt. Shoam Moshe Ben-Harush, 20, who was critically wounded in the Hamas attacks on October 7, has died of his wounds. Ben-Harush, a fighter in the Nahal Brigade, was from the religious community of Haspin on the Golan Heights. He will be buried on Friday in his hometown.