Summary of the day so far
It’s 5:11am in Gaza and Tel Aviv and this blog is now closing. But first, here’s a summary of today’s main developments:
US secretary of state Antony Blinken will leave Thursday evening on his fourth crisis trip to the Middle East, an official has told Agence France-Presse and Reuters news agency. The trip will include Israel, the US official said on condition of anonymity, but did not offer any further detail. On previous trips, Blinken has visited a number of Arab countries too.
Israel carried out the strike that killed Hamas’s deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut, Lebanon, a US defense department official told Agence France-Presse anonymously on Wednesday. “The strike was an Israeli strike,” said the official, without providing further details. On Tuesday, al-Arouri was killed in Dahiyeh, a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut. Both Hamas and Hezbollah have blamed Israel for al-Arouri’s killing.
A local Hezbollah official and two other members were killed on Wednesday in an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, Reuters reports two security sources saying. Wednesday’s strike bring the death toll in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon to nine Hezbollah members since the Iran-backed group began exchanging fire with Israeli forces at the start of October.
The United States sees no “clear desire” by either Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement or Israel to go to war with the other, a senior Biden administration official has told Reuters. The official was briefing reporters on condition of anonymity and referring to a speech earlier in the day by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on the assassination on Tuesday of a senior Hamas official in Beirut.
Twelve nations led by the United States on Wednesday have jointly warned Yemen’s Houthi rebels of consequences unless they immediately halt sea attacks that have been disrupting global commerce. President Joe Biden’s administration described the statement – joined by Britain, Germany and Japan – as a final warning, as Biden weighs possible military strikes against the Houthis if attacks persist, Agence France-Presse reports.
The US said that it is “not seeing any acts that constitute genocide” in Gaza, referring to South Africa’s case against Israel in the international court of justice in which it accused Israel of “genocidal” acts across Gaza. In a news briefing on Wednesday, US state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said, “Those are allegations that should not be made lightly ... we are not seeing any acts that constitute genocide … That is a determination by the state department.” Miller’s comments come as Israeli strikes have killed over 22,300 Palestinians across Gaza – which human rights organisations have described as an “open air prison” – since 7 October.
The international court of justice will hold public hearings on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by South Africa in its case against Israel over “genocidal” acts in Gaza next week. In a press release on Wednesday, the ICJ said that it will hold public hearings at the Peace Palace in The Hague next Thursday and Friday. It added: “The hearings will be devoted to the request for the indication for provisional measures contained in South Africa’s application.”
Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, has condemned what he called “inflammatory” comments made by two Israeli ministers who said Palestinians should emigrate from Gaza. In a tweet on Wednesday, Borrell wrote: “I strongly condemn the inflammatory & irresponsible statements by Israeli ministers Ben Gvir & Smotrich slandering the Palestinian population of Gaza & calling for a plan for their emigration.
A Qatari aircraft carrying 37 tons of aid for Palestinians in Gaza arrived in El Arish, Egypt, on Wednesday. The aid includes shelter kits and food items that will be further transferred to Gaza, the Qatari foreign ministry said in an announcement. Wednesday’s aircraft delivery brings the total amount of aid planes sent from Qatar to Gaza to 58, with a total of 1,814 tons of aid.
The US coordinated with Israel, Egypt and others in rescuing the mother of a US serviceman and her American brother-in-law in Gaza, the Associated Press (AP) is reporting. The news agency says it’s the only known operation of its kind to extract American citizens and their close family members during the months of fighting and Israeli airstrikes in Gaza.
A senior official in the US Education Department has stepped down, citing President Joe Biden’s handling of the conflict in Gaza, Reuters is reporting, in the latest sign of dissent in the administration over the war.
And here are the latest images coming out of Israel as the fighting continues from the southern border and the remaining damage from the 7 October Hamas attacks can still be seen:
