U.S. Secretary of State Reportedly Dispatched for New Mideast Trip as Tensions Rise
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will leave today for a trip to several Middle Eastern countries, including Israel, an unnamed U.S. official told reporters; he is expected to discuss increasing humanitarian aid and ramping up pressure on Israel to reduce Palestinian civilian casualties (VoA)
It comes after the leader of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah warned of retaliation following the killing of a top official of Palestinian militant group Hamas in Beirut on Tuesday (Al Jazeera)
Israel’s Top Court Delays Implementation of Law Making It Harder to Block PM’s Authority
The law that makes it more difficult to require the prime minister’s recusal must only go into effect after the next general elections, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled; the law was part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan, which was struck down by the court earlier this week (Times of Israel)
Senior Hamas Leader Killed in Lebanon
Hamas confirmed the death of Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of its political bureau, alongside three other people, in an explosion in Beirut (BBC)
Turkey Detains Thirty-Three People Accused of Spying for Israel
Turkey’s interior minister said the people were planning abductions and spying on behalf of Israel’s intelligence service (AFP)
Israel’s foreign ministry did not immediately comment on the arrests (Times of Israel)
Israel to Pull Thousands of Troops from Gaza
Israel’s military will pull thousands of troops from the Gaza Strip in the coming weeks so they can rest and receive further training, it announced yesterday; officials did not say whether the change represented a new phase of the war (AP)
Israeli Supreme Court Strikes Down Legal Pillar of Netanyahu’s Judicial Overhaul
The court struck down a law yesterday that sought to limit its power over government decisions and that had been central to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plans (WaPo)
In a written statement, the court’s chief justice said the law endangered one of the few checks on government decisions and the court’s ability to protect the public interest (NYT)
UN Names Outgoing Dutch Finance Minister as Gaza’s Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator
Hours before the announcement, Israel said it would no longer automatically approve visas for UN officials, and later rejected a visa renewal for the UN Palestinian humanitarian coordinator (Bloomberg)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Visits Gaza Strip
Netanyahu said the Israeli offensive “isn’t close to finished;” his visit to Gaza came after Israeli strikes killed more than one hundred people in the enclave, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said (The Guardian)
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed published yesterday, Netanyahu wrote that the three prerequisites for peace required Israel to “destroy Hamas, demilitarize Gaza and deradicalize the whole of Palestinian society” (WSJ)
UN Security Council to Hold Fresh Vote on Pause in Gaza Hostilities
The Security Council will vote today on a resolution calling for a halt in fighting in the Gaza Strip after negotiations seeking to avoid a U.S. veto delayed the vote multiple times; Yesterday’s closed-door negotiations failed to come to a consensus on whether the resolution should call for the United Nations to take over the responsibility of inspecting aid entering Gaza from Israel in addition to the cessation of hostilities (NYT)
Israel has pushed back against diplomatic efforts to pause or scale down fighting, saying they are detrimental to its war aim of destroying Palestinian militant group Hamas (VoA)
Yesterday, Israel’s military said it discovered a Hamas command center under Gaza City and ordered fresh evacuations from southern Gaza as a top Hamas official arrived in Egypt to discuss potential truce conditions (AP;AFP)
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization said northern Gaza no longer had any fully functional hospitals (WaPo)
Senior Hamas Official Travels to Egypt for Hostage Talks
Palestinian militant group Hamas’s top political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, arrived in Cairo today to discuss a possible truce in Hamas’s war with Israel and the potential release of more hostages taken during the group’s October 7 attack; Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Israel was ready for another pause in fighting and an increase in humanitarian aid in exchange for a hostage release (NYT)
Israel’s Allies Call for Scale Down of Attacks as Red Sea Tensions Affect Shipping
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was expected to urge Israel to decelerate its sweeping military offensive in the Gaza Strip on a visit to Israel today, while the foreign ministers of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom (UK) called for a cease-fire over the weekend in light of continued civilian casualties (AP)
Inside Israel, families of hostages held by Palestinian militant group Hamas also pressed for the Israeli government to increase its focus on hostage releases after Israeli troops said on Friday they mistakenly killed three hostages waving a white flag (Times of Israel)
Regional tensions related to the Israel-Hamas war also yielded new economic consequences today, with British oil giant BP announcing it was suspending oil and gas shipments through the Red Sea following a series of attacks on commercial tankers (The Guardian)
Over the weekend, the U.S. and UK militaries said their ships downed fifteen drones that were suspected to be launched by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen (AP)
U.S. Security Advisor Talks Timeline of Israel-Hamas War in Mideast Visit
In Israel yesterday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that the war against Palestinian militant group Hamas would stretch on for “more than several months” (Times of Israel)
Sullivan urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the high intensity phase of the war in weeks rather than months, Axios reported
Sullivan is meeting today with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank (Times of Israel)
U.S. Reportedly Seeks Assurances Before Approving Arms Sale to Israel
The United States is requesting a commitment that more than twenty thousand assault rifles that Israel has asked to buy will not be used in carrying out settler violence in the West Bank before greenlighting the sale (WaPo)
The holdup follows an announcement that Washington will impose visa restrictions on people believed to have attacked Palestinians in the West Bank (Reuters)
Meanwhile, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh to discuss Israeli-Palestinian relations before traveling on to Israel to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials (NYT)
UNGA Passes Motion for Immediate Humanitarian Cease-Fire in Gaza in 153–10 Vote
The United States opposed the resolution, with U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield saying that it was diplomacy on the ground that made the previous weeklong humanitarian pause possible (NPR)
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Palestinian Authority should not control the Gaza Strip after the end of the current war; his comments in a video statement publicly rejected weeks of U.S. pressure for that outcome (NYT)
In another sign of divergence between the United States and Israel, President Biden said at a fundraiser yesterday that Israel’s “indiscriminate bombing” in the war was costing them international support (AP)
Israel Vows Heightened Response to Hezbollah Actions on Northern Border
Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on a phone call yesterday that aggressive actions by Lebanese militant group Hezbollah “demand of Israel to remove such a threat to the civilian population of northern Israel,” an Israeli readout of the call said (Times of Israel)
Skirmishes on the Israel-Lebanon border have continued since the start of the current war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas; yesterday, Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at Israel from southern Lebanon (Times of Israel)
Israeli Forces Push Into Heart of Southern Gaza’s Khan Younis
Israeli tanks reportedly reached the main road of the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip today after intense combat with Palestinian militant group Hamas (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said dozens of Hamas fighters had surrendered, calling it the beginning of the end for the group, while Hamas denied this (Guardian)
Israel’s military is searching for Hamas’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, in the territory (Axios)
Hamas also threatened that if Israel did not meet its demands regarding prisoner releases, none of the hostages it was holding would leave Gaza alive (Times of Israel)
Tens of thousands of Gazans have fled south as fighting intensifies, but most have not been allowed to cross into Egypt (NYT)
UN Security Council Prepares for Latest Vote on Israel-Hamas War
The UN Security Council is expected to vote today on a resolution that calls for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in the war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas, and for Hamas to immediately and unconditionally release all hostages (Reuters)
It comes as Israeli forces continue their heavy offensive in southern Gaza, where they said they have detected rockets being fired from humanitarian zones (NYT)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said yesterday that there is a “gap” between Israel’s stated intent to protect civilians and what is happening on the ground; Israel also said yesterday it would take steps to allow some more fuel to enter Gaza (WaPo)
UN Chief Invokes Rarely Used Mechanism to Bring Cease-Fire Debate to Security Council
UN Secretary-General António Guterres invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter for his first time, triggering a debate at the Security Council on matters the Secretary-General believes threaten “international peace and security;” Guterres said the situation in the Gaza Strip has led to “a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system” (Axios)
Israel’s foreign minister posted that Guterres’ action “constitutes support of the Hamas terrorist organization” (Times of Israel)
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers blocked a bill that included aid for Israel and Ukraine, arguing that tougher restrictions on the U.S. border should be added to the package (FT)
Washington Announces Visa Bans on ‘Extremist Settlers’ Committing Violence in West Bank
The United States has not seen sufficient Israeli government action to “hold accountable extremist settlers who commit acts of violence,” State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said yesterday (State)
Washington imposed the first bans on Tuesday; Palestinians also face visa bans if they undermine peace or stability in the West Bank (WaPo)
Rights groups have reported record high settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank since Palestinian militant group Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel (PBS)
Netanyahu’s Corruption Trial Resumes in Israel
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial on charges of bribery, breach of trust, and fraud had been suspended along with all other court cases immediately following Palestinian militant group Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, but most courts have now been ordered to resume normal operations after an emergency order expired last week (Times of Israel)
Israel Widens Offensive Across Gaza, Withdraws Negotiators From Qatar
Israel widened its evacuation order in the southern Gaza Strip in what appears to be preparation for a ground invasion (NYT)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue the war against Palestinian militant group Hamas until Israel “achieve[s] all its aims” (AFP)
Israel also pulled its negotiators from hostage talks in Qatar, casting doubt over the possibility of a return to a previous cease-fire that lasted seven days before collapsing on Friday (CNN)
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that the United States continued to urge both Israel and Hamas to return to a pause in hostilities that could enable further hostage releases, and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned that Israel risks “strategic defeat” if it fails to protect civilians, saying such protection is crucial to winning urban warfare (Bloomberg)
Israel and Hamas End Cease-Fire, Resume Fighting
Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas resumed hostilities today, ending a weeklong cease-fire that saw Hamas release about 100 Israeli women and children, as well as some foreign nationals, and Israel release some 240 Palestinian women and children; international mediators had hoped to extend the pause for an eighth day, but the Israeli Defense Forces claimed that Hamas “violated the operational pause” and said they would resume fighting (FT)
Bomb sirens sounded across Israel and air strikes hit buildings in both the northern and southern Gaza Strip (Reuters)
Israel also dropped leaflets above some parts of southern Gaza, urging people to leave their homes; Qatari mediators said they are working to resume the cease-fire (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said today that Israel is committed to achieving its war goals of “releasing the hostages, eliminating Hamas and ensuring that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to the residents of Israel (CNN).” Yesterday, the New York Times reported on detailed plans for an attack similar to that carried out by Hamas on October 7 that were widely circulated among Israeli intelligence officials more than a year before the attack occurred, though they were dismissed; it was not clear whether Netanyahu or other top political leaders had seen the plans (NYT)
Israel, Hamas Extend Truce for Additional Day
Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas agreed to prolong their pause in fighting for an additional day, only minutes before it was set to expire this morning (NYT)
The United States has advocated for the extension, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel today for talks with officials (WSJ)
U.S. President Joe Biden posted yesterday on X, formerly Twitter, that a continuation of fighting would “give Hamas what they seek.”
Israel, Hamas Complete Fifth Exchange of Hostages And Prisoners
As a temporary cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas approaches its new expiration date, diplomats and intelligence officials are working to negotiate a longer pause in the war; the two sides have completed five sets of hostage and prisoner exchanges, bringing the total number of Hamas-held hostages released to at least eighty-five (NYT)
Despite the pause in fighting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that destroying Hamas remains his ultimate goal (AP)
Israel, Hamas Agree to Extend Cease-Fire for Two Days
The two warring sides struck a deal to swap more hostages and prisoners and allow further aid to enter the Gaza Strip, the Qatari government said; CIA Director William J. Burns arrived in Doha today for talks aimed at freeing more hostages, while U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel and the West Bank later this week (NYT)
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said yesterday that Washington had prioritized getting “much-needed relief into Gaza” (NYT)
The first of three U.S. aircraft carrying food, medical supplies, and winter clothes for people in Gaza is due to arrive in Egypt today, Bloomberg reported (Bloomberg)
Meanwhile, a World Health Organization spokesperson warned today that if Gaza’s health system is not repaired, more people in the territory could die from disease than from bombings (Reuters)
In Israel yesterday, tech CEO Elon Musk met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the war and Israel’s potential use of Starlink satellite technology; Musk’s visit follows his apparent endorsement of an antisemitic comment on the social media site X, formerly Twitter, that prompted advertisers to leave the platform and criticism from the White House (Bloomberg)