KEY POINTS
- Netanyahu slams South Africa for genocide accusation
- Maersk suspends Red Sea shipping yet again following merchant ship attacks
- Iraq's al-Assad base has been targeted by a drone, Arab media reports
The war in Gaza has entered its 87th day with no end in sight to the fighting even as 2024 dawned. Hamas fired a salvo of rockets toward Israel on New Year's Eve as the Israeli army reportedly started withdrawing some reserve troops from the Gaza Strip.
In the Red Sea, Yemen's Houthi rebels continued their rampage, but the U.S. struck back Sunday, sinking three small Houthi boats. Iran is reportedly deploying a destroyer and another warship to a troubled area in the Red Sea, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Back in Gaza, multiple local outlets reported that a former Palestinian Authority minister of religious affairs was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp.
- Palestinian ambassador seemingly confirms ex-PA minister's death
- Israel, Hamas positions on new truce deal 'very far apart': Report
- Israel looks to replace all Palestinian workers in 2024: Report
- 5 IDF brigades to withdraw from Gaza: Local media
- Israeli fighter jet intercepts 'suspicious' target 'from the east': IDF
- 29 IDF soldiers killed in 'accidents' since Gaza ground offensive started: Local media
- British army preparing to conduct airstrikes targeting Houthis: Report
- Commander of Hamas 'Nukhba' force in Deir al-Balah assassinated: IDF
- Kerem Shalom crossing reopens for inspection of humanitarian aid trucks
- Some IDF soldiers to be withdrawn from Gaza will prepare for potential northern front war: Report
As the families of around 129 remaining hostages wait for news regarding the fate of their loved ones in Hamas captivity, Israeli officials reportedly said their country has yet to receive a response from the Palestinian terror group if it will agree to a new truce.
Amid continuing pressure from the international community regarding the Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) military campaign in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the IDF was "acting as morally as possible."
Netanyahu has reiterated in recent days that the war, which started on Oct. 7 when Hamas militants invaded Israel and killed more than 1,200 people, will go on until Hamas is eliminated.
The decades-long conflict between Israel and Palestine has drawn attacks toward Israel by Hamas allies and Iran-backed groups, including the Houthis and Lebanon-based Hezbollah.
The live update has ended.
Over a dozen Israeli northern border communities demand to be evacuated
A total of 14 communities in Israel's northern border with Lebanon filed a petition with the High Court, demanding that they be evacuated from the area or be compensated for the damages since the Oct. 7 massacre by Hamas militants, Haaretz reported Monday.
Of the said communities, seven are communities only within five kilometers (approximately 3.1 miles) from the Lebanese border.
Northern Israel residents have expressed frustration over the unrest near the border with Lebanon since the war started as Hezbollah attacks intensified in recent weeks.
