KEY POINTS
- Spanish ship departs for Gaza as groups raise alarm over impending famine
- Qatar hopes for Israel-Hamas ceasefire before end of Ramadan month
- US, UK reportedly launch operation at vicinity of Yemeni airport following Houthi attack on US destroyer
It's Day 159 of the Israel-Hamas war, and the terror group said its senior official was killed Wednesday in a drone strike that targeted a vehicle in southern Lebanon, marking the second time since Oct. 7 that a Hamas leader was assassinated while outside of Palestinian territory.
The fate of another leader in the militant group, Marwan Issa, the deputy head of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades (military wing), is still unknown after he was targeted over the weekend in an Israeli strike in Gaza. Some local outlets reported that there are "no indications" he is alive after the targeted strike.
- US, allies reportedly planning commercial shipping route in expanded Gaza aid efforts
- Israeli general punished after unauthorized demolition of Gaza infrastructure: Local media
- US floats longer ceasefire to Hamas if it releases women, wounded and elderly
- Israel strikes Hezbollah infrastructure in tit-for-tat attacks
- UNRWA says 'scores injured' after one of its warehouses 'hit' amid raging war
- Netanyahu tells Rutte Rafah entry 'essential' in realizing Israel's war goals
Hezbollah said early Wednesday that it attacked a base of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the disputed Shebaa Farms. The IDF has been responding to rocket launches from Lebanese territory since Hamas' Oct. 7 massacre that saw militants killing more than a thousand people and abducting some 250 hostages.
In the troubled Red Sea and its surrounding waters, Iran-backed Houthis said they attacked container vessel Pinocchio, which they described as an "American ship." The Yemeni rebel militia also fired a close-range ballistic missile toward the USS Laboon in the Red Sea, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said early Wednesday.
Back in devastated Gaza, multiple countries, including the U.S., are hard at work to get more aid for civilians, who are suffering the consequences of a longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Germany has said it will join efforts to airdrop humanitarian supplies to the enclave, while other nations are also collaborating with Cyprus following the establishment of an aid maritime corridor.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is refusing to bend to international pressure over a ground raid of Rafah that U.S. President Joe Biden said would be a "red line." He said Israel would enter the overcrowded city and eliminate the last of Hamas operatives believed to be hiding in civilian infrastructure.
The live update has ended.
Netanyahu to Rutte: Rafah operation key to realizing Israel's war goals
The Israeli prime minister on Wednesday told his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte that "entering Rafah was essential for realizing the goals of the war and that unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state would be considered an achievement for Hamas," as per a release from Netanyahu's office.
He also urged the Dutch prime minister to join efforts in the global maritime corridor initiative to provide more humanitarian aid for Gaza civilians.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met today, at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. https://t.co/0ttfLqNStx pic.twitter.com/xqLOmX58Aa
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) March 13, 2024
This comes amid increasing global pressure on the Netanyahu administration to refrain from raiding Rafah, which currently shelters more than half of Gaza's total population.
