KEY POINTS
- Israel raids Gaza's largest health and medical complex in hunt for Hamas officials
- Oxfam says Israel controlling 'chaotic' process of approving and inspecting aid for Gaza
- White House says it's up to Israeli people to determine if a new election is needed
The devastating war in Gaza has entered its 164th day – the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Monday that it assassinated Faiq Mabhouh, Hamas' head of internal security operations during a raid at the Al-Shifa Hospital early Monday following intelligence that senior Hamas officials were hiding at the enclave's largest medical complex.
Josep Borrell, the European Union's chief of foreign policy, accused the Israeli army of "provoking" famine in Gaza. He previously accused Israel of using hunger as a weapon of war.
- Famine now inevitable in northern Gaza: UN-backed report
- UNRWA chief says Israel denied him entry into Gaza Strip
- Rocket sirens sound in northern Israel: Local media
- Mabhouh fired at Israeli forces and refused surrender: Sources
- Islamic Resistance of Iraq claims it attacked IDF base in Golan: Local media
- Biden, Netanyahu hold first call since mid-February: Report
- 'Dozens' arrested in ongoing Al-Shifa raid: Israeli army
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said the Gaza Strip was facing famine and a ceasefire was immediately needed to avert the food crisis.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been under increasing pressure to do more in getting humanitarian aid delivered fast to Gaza civilians and refrain from launching a ground operation in Rafah, said Israel will push through with a military operation in the overcrowded southern Gaza city.
In Israel's northern border with Lebanon, Iranian-backed Hezbollah has been launching near-daily rocket barrages toward Israel, mainly targeting IDF bases.
Fighting between Israeli troops and Hamas has gone on for decades in the violent history of the Israel-Palestine conflict that has left civilians from both sides of the border suffering the consequences of war.
The live update has ended.
20 terrorists killed so far in Al-Shifa raid: IDF
The Israeli army published documentation of its operation at the Al-Shifa Hospital, saying troops have killed 20 terrorists so far and detained "dozens" of others. Terror funds and weapons were also seized.
תיעוד מפעילות צה"ל בבית החולים שיפא: 20 מחבלים חוסלו ועשרות נעצרו. הכוחות איתרו והחרימו כספי טרור ואמצעי לחימה@ItayBlumental @ela1949
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 18, 2024
צילום: דובר צה"ל pic.twitter.com/74s33bFuUw
The IDF kicked off its raid of Gaza's largest medical complex early Monday, later assassinating a high-ranking Hamas leader.
Netanyahu, Biden speak for the first time in over a month: Report
The Israeli prime minister and U.S. president are currently holding their first phone call since Feb. 15 amid a widening gap in the leaders' views of how Israel should handle the situation in Gaza, Axios reported Monday, citing an Israeli and American official.
Tensions have been building up between the two in recent weeks after Biden warned that launching a ground raid in Rafah without a clear civilian protection plan would be crossing a "red line."
Iraqi militias claim drone attack targeting IDF base in Golan: Local media
The Islamic Resistance of Iraq on Monday claimed that it attacked an Israeli army position in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, local i24 News reported Monday. The militant organization claimed that they used a "drone originating from Syria," as per the outlet.
The IDF has yet to deny or confirm the claim.
Northern Israel remains under looming #Hezbollah threat
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 18, 2024
'the Islamic resistance of Iraq has claimed responsibility for targeting a position in the Golan. They claim to have used a drone originating from Syria'' i24NEWS correspondent @zachonearth reports from northern Israel pic.twitter.com/AahbzAhNPq
Killed top Hamas official refused to surrender: Sources
Mabhouh, Hamas' leader in security operations, refused to surrender to Israeli troops and fired at the forces, Israel's national broadcaster Kan reported, citing sources for the Lebanese Al Mayadeen channel.
The new details regarding Mabhouh's assassination came hours after the IDF said the key Hamas official was killed in a fire exchange with Israeli forces.
Sirens sound in northern Israel: Local media
Rocket sirens sounded in northern Israeli communities Monday, local media reported.
🚨Rocket sirens sound in northern Israel communities
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 18, 2024
This comes amid continuing near-daily rocket launches from Lebanese territory toward Israel by Iran-backed Hezbollah, a Hamas ally that has a much larger weapons arsenal than the Palestinian militant group.
UNRWA chief says Israeli denied him entry into Gaza
Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the embattled United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said Monday afternoon that he was denied entry into the Gaza Strip by Israeli authorities.
"My visit today was supposed to coordinate & improve the humanitarian response. This man-made starvation under our watch is a stain on our collective humanity," he said.
On the day new data is out on famine in #GAZA, the Israeli Authorities deny my entry to Gaza.
— Philippe Lazzarini (@UNLazzarini) March 18, 2024
-Famine is imminent in the northern Gaza Strip, expected to arrive between now and May.
- Two million people= the entire population of Gaza is facing crisis levels of food insecurity…
The UNRWA has been accused of having employees who directly participated in Hamas' atrocities during its shock attack in Israel on Oct. 7. The Israeli exposé resulted in multiple countries halting donations for the agency.
Northern Gaza famine is imminent: UN
Famine has become inevitable in northern Gaza, the United Nation's World Food Program (WFP) said in a Monday report. While most of Gaza civilians are "struggling with catastrophic hunger and starvation," the situation is much worse in the north, the WFP said in the report, which was published under the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) partnership.
"To have 50 percent of an entire population in catastrophic, near-famine levels, is unprecedented," said Beth Bechdol, deputy director general of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Read the full story here.
Israeli people should decide whether elections necessary: White House
White House National Security adviser John Kirby on Sunday said U.S. President Joe Biden believes it's up to Israelis to handle its internal political affairs. "We respect the sovereignty of the Israeli people," he told Fox News.
"The president believes it's up to the Israeli people and the Israeli government to determine if and when there's going to be new elections," he explained further.
This comes after U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for a new Israeli adminstration as Netanyahu's government "no longer fits the needs of Israel after Oct. 7."
BREAKING: US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer calls for a 'NEW ELECTION' in Israel in order to break the "cycle of violence" and sharply criticises Netanyahu. pic.twitter.com/CRZGYIw0vt
— Khalissee (@Kahlissee) March 14, 2024
Israel rejected aid-packed warehouse for Gaza civilians: Oxfam
British NGO confederation Oxfam said in a Monday report that Israeli authorities "have rejected a warehouse full of international aid including oxygen, incubators and Oxfam water and sanitation gear." The said supplies have been stockpiled at Al Rish, near the Israel-Gaza border, the nonprofit said.
The confederation added that the aid has been rejected for months "as a result of an unpredictable and chaotic regime of approval, scanning and inspection ultimately controlled by Israeli authorities."
It also accused Israel of failing in its legal responsibilities as demanded by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to boost aid for Gaza civilians "in light of the risk of genocide in Gaza."
The scathing accusations come as Israel's allies pressure the Netanyahu administration to improve the country's processing of humanitarian aid for Palestinians so more supplies can enter the Strip at a faster rate.
Israeli troops operating around Shifa Hospital: IDF
The Israeli army on Monday said its troops are "currently conducting a precise operation in the area of the Shifa hospital" following intelligence information "indicating the use of the hospital by senior Hamas terrorists."
This Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza has repeatedly said tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought shelter in the complex.
As earlier reported, the IDF said it assassinated a top Hamas official who was hiding within the compound. The Israeli army previously raided the hospital in November and uncovered a Hamas tunnel within the hospital complex.
Read the full story here.
Israel will operate in Rafah: Netanyahu
Despite continuing pressure from global leaders and the international community to refrain from launching a ground raid of Rafah, the Israeli prime minister said Sunday that the elimination of Hamas means Israel should launch an operation in the overcrowded city.
"No international pressure will stop us from realizing all of the goals of the war: eliminating Hamas, freeing our hostages and ensuring that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to Israel ... in order to do this, we will operate in Rafah. This is the only way to eliminate Hamas's murderous brigades, and this is the only way to use the military pressure necessary to free all of our hostages," he reiterated.
Gaza 'facing famine: von der Leyen
The EU Commission's president told reporters Sunday that "Gaza is facing famine and we cannot accept this." She added that it was "critical" to achieve a ceasefire agreement as soon as possible to free the remaining hostages in Gaza allow more aid to enter the devastated enclave.
'Israel is provoking famine': Borrell
The EU's foreign policy chief on Monday said Gaza is on the brink of famine and Israel "is provoking" it. His made the accusation at the opening of a humanitarian aid conference for Gaza in Brussels. "Starvation is used as a weapon of war," he added.
Israel's foreign minister Israel Katz immediately rejected Borrell's accusation, calling on the top EU official to "stop attacking Israel and recognize our right to self-defense against Hamas' crimes." He said the country allows "extensive" aid into Gaza through various channels even as Hamas "violently" disrupts such operations.
Israel allows extensive humanitarian aid into Gaza by land, air, and sea for anyone willing to help. Despite Hamas violently disrupting aid convoys and @UNRWA's collaboration with them, we persist. It's time for EU Foreign Minister @JosepBorrellF to stop attacking Israel and…
— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) March 18, 2024
Top Hamas security leader killed: IDF
Mabhouh, the head of Hamas' Operations Directorate of Internal Security, was assassinated during the raid at Al-Shifa Hospital early Monday, the Israeli army announced. "Mabhouh was hiding in a compound at the Shifa hospital, from which he operated and advanced terrorist activity," the IDF said.
🔴 Eliminated: Faiq Mabhouh, head of the Operations Directorate of Hamas' Internal Security.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) March 18, 2024
Mabhouh was hiding in a compound at the Shifa hospital, from which he operated and advanced terrorist activity. pic.twitter.com/KFbGto2soE
The Hamas leader is responsible for "synchronizing Hamas mechanisms in the Gaza Strip in routine and combat," as per the IDF. He was killed in a fire exchange with Israeli forces, armed as he hid within the hospital complex.
The news comes just four days after the IDF eliminated Muhammad Abu Hasna, the Palestinian terror group's commander of operations in an airstrike in Rafah.
