Israel’s war on Gaza updates: Qatar brokers aid deal between Israel, Hamas
Israeli air-and-artillery strikes continue to kill and maim as nearly 200 die in overnight bombardment.
- Qatar says it has brokered a deal to bring medicine and aid into Gaza in exchange for the provision of medicine to captives held in the enclave, as the White House says the US has been involved in “serious” captive talks in Doha.
- Israeli bombardment on Gaza kills at least 158 people in the past 24 hours, according to the latest figures by the Health Ministry.
- Qatar says it has brokered a deal to bring medicine and aid into Gaza in exchange for the provision of medicine to captives held in the enclave, as the White House says the US has been involved in “serious” captive talks in Doha.
- Israeli bombardment on Gaza kills at least 158 people in the past 24 hours, according to the latest figures by the Health Ministry.
- A family home is blown up in an Israeli strike in Rafah killing an entire family of 12, including kids, as hundreds of Palestinians die and are wounded in overnight bombing.
- At least 24,285 people killed and more than 61,154 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from the October 7 Hamas attack stands at 1,139.
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This live page is now closed. Follow along with our ongoing coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza here.
To learn more about Israeli violence in the occupied West Bank and why there are fears the territory is on the brink of a major outbreak of conflict, watch this video.
To learn more about Israel’s new $15bn war budget and its implications for the war on Gaza, read this story.
Here’s what happened today
We will soon be closing this live page. Here’s a recap of today’s developments:
- Qatar brokered a deal between Israel and Hamas to bring aid and medicine into Gaza in exchange for providing medicine to Israeli captives held in the enclave.
- Hamas announced attacks on Israeli forces in northern Gaza, where Israel had said it dismantled the Palestinian group’s “military framework”.
- Israel levelled homes in southern Gaza and attacked the vicinity of the Nasser Hospital and Al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis.
- The World Food Programme, UNICEF and the World Health Organization called for opening new entry routes to Gaza to avert widespread famine and disease.
- The EU added Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to its “terrorist” sanctions blacklist; the Palestinian group rejected the move.
- The Israeli army said it redeployed an elite unit from Gaza to the occupied West Bank, where the situation is “spiralling”.
- Israel is “destroying Gaza’s food system and using food as a weapon against the Palestinian people”, UN experts said.
- The Palestinian death toll has risen to at least 24,285 since October 7.
Senator Sanders speaking in Senate ahead of vote on resolution
“It is a very simple question. Do we support asking the State Department for information on whether human rights violations may have occurred using US assistance in Israel’s military campaign?” says Sanders.
“That’s it. That is what this resolution is about. It is non controversial and it should be passed in large numbers.”
WATCH: Displaced Palestinians burn Israeli army leaflets in Rafah
Oxfam urges US Senate to pass Sanders resolution
The United States Senate is now debating a resolution put forward by Senator Bernie Sanders requiring a report on Israel’s human rights practices.
Here’s what Oxfam America President Abby Maxman said ahead of the vote.
“US support for Israel has continued without any consideration of its contribution to the devastating siege and bombardment of Gaza,” said Maxman.
“It is past time that the United States government … take account of its own role in the crisis,” Maxman said, adding that the US should “investigate whether US funds and military support are being used by Israeli forces to commit human rights abuses.”
Displaced Palestinians flee vicinity of Nasser Hospital after Israeli shelling
Videos verified by Al Jazeera show Palestinians in a state of panic as they attempt to find safe areas to escape to, with Israeli forces approaching the hospital in Khan Younis.
The sound of shelling and gunfire can be heard in the videos, with people rushing to leave.
A man living in Khan Younis’s al-Nimsawi neighbourhood described an Israeli attack on his home, saying his house was hit while he was at home with his family. While he was able to escape, he said his home had been destroyed.
“We escaped safely and we checked on everyone,” the man tells local journalist Rami Saleim. “I asked my son, ‘Go look at the house and see what condition it’s in’. He said it wasn’t there any more.”
Hezbollah says launched six attacks against Israel
In a statement summarising its military operations on Tuesday, Hezbollah said it carried out three attacks on the eastern sector of the Lebanese-Israeli border and three in the western sector.
The Lebanese group said the attacks included targeting gatherings of Israeli troops and firing rockets at military bases.
Jordanian PM says Gaza war hurting country’s economy
Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh said on Tuesday that the war in Gaza was hurting the country’s economy, dragging down what had been an “extremely promising year”, which had enjoyed rising tourism revenues.
“Last year [2023], before October 7, economically, was an extremely, extremely promising year,” Al-Khasawneh said in remarks at Davos.
But, he added: “Tourism took a major hit and other sectors are still suffering.”
US to re-list Houthis as ‘terrorist’ group: Reports
The Associated Press and Reuters are reporting that Yemen’s Houthi rebels are expected to be re-listed as a “terrorist group” by the United States, with Reuters sourcing the news to a US official and the AP to its own sources.
The Biden administration removed the Iran-allied Houthis from its “foreign terrorist organization” list in 2021 in one of its first foreign policy moves, after the administration of former President Donald Trump had listed the group towards the end of its time in office.
At the time, the UN and aid groups had criticised the designations, citing fears of increased restrictions for aid deliveries to war-torn Yemen.
However, with increased Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea in response to Israel’s attacks on Gaza, and US-led air strikes on Yemen that began last week, it appears the Biden administration will now return the Houthis to the list.
Israel likely to keep fighting despite inability to achieve goals: Analyst
Mouin Rabbani, the co-editor of the online publication Jadaliyya, has said that despite reports of talks over a prisoner exchange deal, a ceasefire in Gaza does not appear to be imminent.
“Israel has been unable to achieve any of its primary military objectives, let alone achieve a decisive outcome,” Rabbani told Al Jazeera.
“Really, the only thing it managed to achieve is to sow death and destruction on a scale large and sufficient enough to be accused of genocide before the International Court of Justice.”
He added that Israel could cut its losses, declare victory and end the war, but it is more likely “to throw good money after bad and keep attempting to achieve something for its troubles over these past three months”.
UN food official: ‘Never seen anything so brutal’, on hunger in Gaza
Michael Fakhri, the UN special rapporteur on the right to food, tells Al Jazeera that the level of hunger in Gaza is unprecedented.
“What we’re witnessing in Gaza is an entire civilian population made to go hungry,” he said.
Fakhri said that the UN and humanitarian community are very concerned about how the extreme scarcity of food there, verging on famine, will affect younger Palestinians.
“Children under five are at a severe risk of malnutrition. Because of this risk of famine, this means an entire generation of Palestinians in Gaza are facing long-term limitations to their cognitive and physical ability,” he said.
“What’s clear is this a result of Israeli bombardment, this is a result of the denial of humanitarian relief,” he added. “We’ve never seen anything so brutal happen so quickly”.
Suez authority says transit suspension by some companies ‘temporary’
Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority chairman has said the decision by a handful of shipping companies to suspend transit through the canal due to mounting tensions in the Red Sea was “temporary”.
“Navigation through the Suez Canal is going as per normal,” Osama Rabei said in a statement, adding that the organisation is in contact with shipping lines to discuss the ongoing situation.
At least 13 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks on Khan Younis: Wafa
The deaths bring the total number of Palestinians killed by Israeli attacks on the area in southern Gaza on Tuesday to 23.
The Wafa news agency also reported that the vicinity of Khan Younis’s Nasser Hospital and Al-Amal Hospital were targeted by Israel.
It added that Israeli forces had destroyed dozens of houses and residential buildings in Khan Younis, according to local sources.
If you’re just joining us
It is 12am (22:00 GMT) in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel. Here are the latest developments:
- Qatar brokers a deal between Israel and Hamas to bring aid and medicine into Gaza in exchange for the provision of medicine to captives still held in the enclave.
- Israeli shelling damages the al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis, the Palestine Red Crescent says.
- UN experts accuse Israel of “destroying Gaza’s food system and using food as a weapon against the Palestinian people”.
- Hamas says its fighters attacked an Israeli troop carrier and clashed with forces in Gaza City.
- UN chief Antonio Guterres warns against expanding the war to Lebanon, stressing the need for “de-escalation”.
- The US Senate is set to vote on a resolution that would require the Biden administration to produce a report about possible Israeli abuses in Gaza.
Biden, Germany’s Scholz reassert support for Israel
The two leaders held a phone call and “reaffirmed their support for Israel’s right to self-defense and discussed the imperative of protecting civilians in Gaza against harm, and ensuring the free flow of life-saving humanitarian aid to people in need,” the White House said in a statement.
Biden faced criticism on Monday for releasing a statement marking the 100th day of the war in Gaza that failed to mention Palestinians.
Israeli kibbutz says two captives in Gaza dead
Kibbutz Beeri, a community in southern Israel that came under attack by Hamas on October 7, has said that two captives held in Gaza have been “murdered”.
In a statement on Tuesday, the kibbutz said that Yossi Sharabi, 53, and Itay Svirsky, 38, have been “murdered” and that their bodies remained with Hamas.
“We will demand they be returned along with the rest of the captives,” the community said.
The statement comes one day after Hamas released a video purporting to show the bodies of the two men. A video released by Hamas also shows 26-year-old captive Noa Argamani saying that the two had been killed in an Israeli strike.
It is not clear when the video was taken and statements given by people held in captivity are made under duress.
Israel provides more details on Qatar-brokered aid, medicine deal
Here’s the official statement from the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office:
On instruction from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and pursuant to the Director of the Mossad’s agreement with Qatar on providing medicines to the Israeli hostages, two Qatari Air Force planes are expected to fly tomorrow to Egypt with medicines that have been purchased in France, according to a list that was compiled in Israel, according to the medical needs of the hostages.
Upon the planes’ arrival in Egypt, the medicines will be transferred by Qatari representatives to their final destination inside the Gaza Strip.
Prime Minister Netanyahu conveys his appreciation to all those who have assisted in the endeavor.
Israel insists that all the medicines reach their destination.
Footballer Benzema files defamation lawsuit against far-right French minister
French footballer Karim Benzema has filed a defamation lawsuit against right-wing Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who said without offering evidence that Benzema had “notorious” links with the Muslim Brotherhood after the football star said civilians in Gaza were suffering from “unjust bombardments” in a social media post in October.
The news outlet AFP reported that the legal complaint, submitted by lawyer Hugues Vigier, denies that Benzema has ever had “the slightest link” with the group and says that Benzema was used “in political games”.
US supports Israel but wants war to end ‘as quickly as possible’: Blinken
Blinken has reiterated the US government’s unwavering support for what it calls “Israel’s right to defend itself”, saying the Biden administration “strongly” backs the Israeli response to Hamas’s October 7 attacks.
“But at the same time, we want to see this conflict come to an end as quickly as possible,” the US secretary of state told the CNBC news channel. “And until it does, we want to see everything possibly done to protect civilians and to get assistance to those who need it. Too many people are suffering in this conflict.”
Despite growing international calls for a ceasefire and concerns about the mounting civilian death toll in Gaza, Blinken’s State Department has issued emergency declarations twice in recent weeks to deliver bombs to Israel, bypassing Congress.
Israeli media: Government renews order barring Gaza detainees from seeing a lawyer
The Israeli government has renewed an emergency order preventing Palestinians detained in Gaza from accessing a lawyer, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“The regulation will be valid for an additional three months, and will allow the state to prevent prisoners from meeting with a lawyer for up to 180 days,” the outlet reported on Tuesday.
The article states that the Knesset also approved the first reading of an extension of another order from National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir that seeks to “degrade the conditions” of Palestinian prisoners.
US Muslim group urges backing for resolution to investigate Israeli abuses
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has called on US citizens to contact their senators and urge them to approve a legislative resolution that would require the US Department of State to produce a report on possible Israeli rights violations in Gaza.
“This the very least the Senate should do in response to what even President Biden has reportedly described as the Israeli government’s ‘indiscriminate bombing’ of Gaza, which has killed over 24,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children,” CAIR’s director of government affairs, Robert McCaw, said in a statement.
Israel’s new $15bn war budget: What’s it for and what gets cut?
The Israeli government has approved an increase to its annual budget, but not without a lot of infighting.
Read our breakdown here explaining why the budget needed to be amended, what departments have received more funding – and whether Israel can afford it.
‘A bilateral ceasefire is needed,’ says US congressman
Democratic US lawmaker Lloyd Doggett has called for an end to the war in Gaza.
“A bilateral ceasefire is needed now to release all hostages and prevent further death, starvation & disease of innocent Gazans,” Doggett, a member of the House of Representatives, wrote in a social media post.
A bilateral ceasefire is needed now to release all hostages and prevent further death, starvation & disease of innocent Gazans!
“The longer this war goes on, the greater the risk of a conflagration involving Israel & Lebanon, an uprising in the West Bank…or even a war w/Iran.” https://t.co/J8NqZKlUeG
— Lloyd Doggett (@RepLloydDoggett) January 16, 2024
PRCS in Gaza receives 25 aid trucks
The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) says it received the trucks from its Egyptian counterpart organisation through the Rafah border crossing in south Gaza.
The trucks contain food, water, relief aid and medical supplies.
Meanwhile, 102 humanitarian aid trucks entered through the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing.
“Forty-six commercial trucks entered the Gaza Strip through Rafah,” the PRCS added.
Argentina frees three suspected of ‘terror plot’ over lack of evidence
Argentina has released three men arrested for allegedly planning a “terrorist act” as the South American country hosted a large Jewish sporting event last month.
The news outlet AFP reported that the men were released yesterday after an investigation failed to find evidence against them, citing judicial sources. The report says that they must remain in Argentina as the investigation continues.