The U.N. Security Council has delayed voting on an Arab-sponsored resolution for an urgent cessation of hostilities in Gaza and the release of all Israeli hostages held by Palestinian militants.
The vote was pushed back to try to avoid another veto by the United States, Israel’s closest ally. The 10-week-old war has transformed much of the north of Gaza into a moonscape. Nearly 85% of Gaza’s population have fled their homes.
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U.S. and Israeli intelligence chiefs met with Qatar’s prime minister in Poland to broker the release of more hostages, the first known meeting of the three since a weeklong cease-fire ended in late November.
More than 19,400 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths. Thousands more lie buried under the rubble of Gaza, the U.N. estimates. Israel says 127 of its soldiers have died in its ground offensive after Hamas raided southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and taking about 240 hostages.
Currently:
— U.S. defense secretary and Israeli leaders discuss a more targeted approach in Gaza.
— Pentagon announces new international mission to counter attacks on commercial vessels in Red Sea.
— In Israel's killing of three hostages, some see the same excessive force directed at Palestinians.
— Houthi attacks on commercial ships have upended global trade in vital Red Sea corridor.
— European nations step up calls for a Gaza cease-fire.
— Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here’s what’s happening in the war:
US VETERANS IN CONGRESS URGE BIDEN TO PUSH ISRAEL TO LIMIT CIVILIAN HARM
A group of U.S. congressmembers who are veterans urged President Joe Biden on Monday to use “all our leverage” to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to change a military strategy killing many thousands of civilians in Gaza.
“The mounting civilian death toll and humanitarian crisis are unacceptable and not in line with American interests; nor do they advance the cause of security for our ally Israel,” six lawmakers, all Democratic representatives, said in an open letter to Biden.
The six are Jason Crow, a Bronze Star recipient and former Army Ranger; Mikie Sherrill, a former Navy pilot; Chrissy Houlahan, a former Air Force officer; Seth Moulton, a former Marine; and Elissa Slotkin and Abigail Spanberger, former CIA officers.
The letter adds to pressure from Biden’s own party in Congress to push Netanyahu to rein in a massive air and ground campaign The lawmakers sit on armed services, intelligence and foreign affairs committees in Congress.
“Some of us also spent years fighting America’s war on terror. We know from personal and often painful experience that you can’t destroy a terror ideology with military force alone,” the lawmakers wrote. “Accordingly, we urge you to continue to use all our leverage to achieve an immediate and significant shift of military strategy and tactics in Gaza.”
UN SECURITY COUNCIL DELAYS VOTE CEASE-FIRE RESOLUTION, SEEKING TO AVOID US VETO
UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council has delayed a vote on an Arab-sponsored resolution calling for a halt to hostilities in Gaza to try to avoid another veto by the United States.
The council said Monday’s 5 p.m. vote was pushed back until Tuesday morning, and diplomats said negotiations were taking place to get the United States, Israel’s closest ally, to abstain or vote “yes” on the resolution.
The draft resolution on the table Monday morning called for an “urgent and sustainable cessation of hostilities,” to allow unhindered access to deliver humanitarian aid to the massive number of civilians in need of food, water and medicine.
But this language is expected to be watered down to a “suspension” of hostilities or similar language to get U.S. support, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private.
The importance of a Security Council resolution is that it is legally binding, but in practice many parties choose to ignore the council’s requests for action. General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, though they are a significant barometer of world opinion.
The U.S. vetoed a Security Council resolution backed by almost all council members and dozens of other nations demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza. The 193-member General Assembly overwhelmingly approved a similar resolution on Dec. 12 by a vote of 153-10, with 23 abstentions.
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Associated Press writer Edith Lederer contributed.
COMEDIAN JERRY SEINFELD VISITS ISRAEL TO SHOW SUPPORT
JERUSALEM — Israeli media say comedian Jerry Seinfeld has arrived in Israel to show solidarity with the country in its war against Hamas.
Channel 13 TV said Seinfeld met late Monday with families of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip as well as with hostages recently released from captivity. The station said the meeting lasted two hours longer than scheduled, and Seinfeld was “sensitive” and “caring.”
Seinfeld, wearing a symbolic dog tag around his neck meant to draw attention to the plight of the hostages, waved to a camera as he got into a van but did not comment.
The channel said the Jewish-American entertainer planned to visit the southern border region and possibly to meet with Israeli soldiers.
HAMAS RELEASES VIDEO OF 3 OLDER ISRAELI HOSTAGES PLEADING FOR RELEASE
CAIRO — Hamas has released a video of three older Israeli hostages pleading for their immediate release.
Chaim Peri, one of the hostages seen in the clip, says all three men have chronic illnesses and accuses Israel of abandoning them. Peri gave few details about their condition.
The three men, in their late 70s and 80s and appearing under duress, chant at the end: “Don’t abandon us in old age.”
The video comes as public pressure mounts on the Israeli government to reach a deal to release the remaining hostage held by Hamas.
Some 240 people, mostly Israeli citizens, were taken captive by Hamas after its fighters stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7. The militants killed around 1,200 people during the attack, Israeli authorities say.
During a brief cease-fire in late November, Hamas released over 100 hostages -- including 81 Israelis -- in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners. Nearly all freed by both sides were women and minors.
The army’s spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said the Hamas video reflected the group’s brutality toward the hostages, including older people.
US CALLS ON UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO TAKE ACTION AGAINST HOUTHI REBEL ATTACKS ON COMMERCIAL SHIPPING
UNITED NATIONS – The United States has called on the U.N. Security Council to take urgent action against ongoing missile attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels that are threatening shipping in the Red Sea and strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Iranian-backed Houthis say their attacks on ships aim to end Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip, triggered by Hamas' surprise Oct. 7 deadly attacks inside Israel.
In a letter to council members obtained Monday by The Associated Press, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the Houthi attacks threaten “navigational rights and freedoms, international maritime security, and international commerce.”
The 15 council members discussed the Houthi threat behind closed doors on Monday but took no immediate action.
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Associated Press writer Edith Lederer contributed.
HAMAS VIDEO SHOWS APPARENT ATTACK ON ISRAELI TROOPS IN GAZA
JERUSALEM — A video released by Hamas’ armed wing Monday appears to show the militants firing an anti-tank missile at an Israeli army convoy in Gaza, hitting a truck and setting it alight.
The video then appears to show Israeli troops trying to remove one or more injured comrades as the truck burns next to them. One soldier is seen crawling next to the vehicle.
Israel’s military has admitted the death of 127 soldiers so far in their ground offensive in Gaza. It says it has killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.
Hamas militants are armed for the most part with light weapons like AK-47 assault rifles, but they also have heavier weapons like rocket-propelled grenades made in the former Soviet bloc and anti-tank missiles built in Iran and China.
Smuggled into Gaza either by boat or in underground tunnels from Egypt, RPGs and anti-tank missiles can penetrate certain types of armor and can pose a threat to Israeli army vehicles.
Hamas also appears to have developed the capability to manufacture some of these weapons locally, experts say.
ISRAELI TROOPS DESTROY WAR STATUE IN GAZA AND RELEASE PHOTO OF 20 ALLEGED MILITANTS CAPTURED
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military has released photos of soldiers destroying a well-known statue glorifying the deaths of Israeli soldiers and a separate image showing what it says are 20 militants detained in an arrest raid.
The army said it destroyed the statue in the Shijaiyah neighborhood, which depicted a fist coming out of an armored personnel carrier and three military dog tags.
One of the dog tags had the name of Oron Shaul, an Israeli soldier who was killed during fighting in the Gaza City neighborhood in 2014. His remains have been held by Hamas since then.
The Israeli military also shared footage of what it said were Gaza militants detained during an operation inside a school on Friday.
Around 20 detainees are shown in the photo, kneeling and wearing white jumpsuits. Nine have red circles around their heads and are identified as Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants.
The Israeli military said some of the detainees, who were taken for interrogations by Israeli intelligence, participated in the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war with Hamas. The cross-border attack killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped 240 others.
WHITE HOUSE EXPRESSES HOPE IN POSSIBLE CEASE-FIRE DEAL
WASHINGTON -- Biden administration officials are hoping that revived talks underway in the Israel-Gaza war will yield another round of hostage releases in exchange for a temporary cease-fire and humanitarian aid, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Monday.
Kirby spoke after the U.S. confirmed that discussions among U.S. and Israeli intelligence chiefs and Qatar’s prime minister on the hostages had resumed in recent days, although it was not clear if the Hamas militant group had agreed to join in what would be indirect talks.
“We continue to work really hard to try to get another deal in place, which would of course be accompanied by another humanitarian pause and … hopefully some additional humanitarian assistance,” Kirby told reporters in Washington. “But ... I can’t say that we are at a point where another deal is imminent.”
CIA Director William Burns was in Warsaw on Monday talking with Israeli intelligence chief David Barnea and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammad al-Thani. It was the first known meeting among the three since talks broke off shortly after Israel ended a dayslong cease-fire at the start of the month, ending that period of negotiated hostage releases by Hamas.
Since then, Hamas officials have said they would refuse anything less than a permanent end to Israel’s military offensive in Gaza and the release of all Palestinians detained by Israel in exchange for any release of hostages. Hamas and other militant groups are believed to still hold 129 foreign captives.
UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO VOTE ON A NEW CEASE-FIRE RESOLUTION
UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. Security Council has scheduled a vote Monday on an Arab-sponsored resolution calling for an urgent cessation of hostilities in Gaza to allow unhindered access to deliver humanitarian aid to the massive number of civilians in need.
The draft resolution also demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
The vote is scheduled for 5 p.m. in New York, but diplomats said the text is still being negotiated to try to get the United States, Israel’s closest ally, to abstain rather than veto the resolution. The U.S. vetoed a Security Council resolution on Dec. 8 backed by almost all of the 15 council members and dozens of other nations demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza.
The draft would reiterate the council’s demand that all parties comply with international humanitarian law, especially protecting civilians and the infrastructure critical for their survival including hospitals, schools, places of worship and U.N. facilities.
The draft, obtained by The Associated Press, would demand that the parties to the conflict — Gaza’s Hamas rulers and Israel, who are not named — fulfill their obligations under international humanitarian law and enable “the immediate, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance at scale directly to the Palestinian civilian population throughout the Gaza Strip.”
The only mention of Israel and the Palestinians is the draft’s “unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution,” and its stress at “the importance of unifying the Gaza Strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority.”
FREED PALESTINIANS DESCRIBE HARSH CONDITIONS AFTER MONTH IN ISRAELI CAPTIVITY
RAFAH, Gaza — Some 60 Palestinian men detained a month ago by Israeli forces returned to Gaza on Monday, entering the territory through the recently opened Kerem Shalom crossing.
Two of the men, unshaven and still in their prison tracksuits, told The Associated Press they had been held in an unspecified facility in southern Israel after being arrested as they fled south from northern Gaza. Another man, who did not want to reveal his name, said he was arrested and taken away by Israeli soldiers from his home in Gaza City.
According to Mohamed al-Hassanah, one of the freed men, all the prisoners at the facility had their hands tied, were threatened with electrocution, and were only allowed to sleep between midnight and 5 a.m.
“Each person has only a blanket all night,” he said. “Men were shaking.”
Al-Hassanah said he did not know exactly where he was taken to but said that it was roughly an hour and a half away from Gaza.
He said Israeli soldiers detained and separated him from his family on Gaza’s main highway while attempting to cross from the north into the central part of the territory.
Another of the recently released men, Ahmed Abd Rabbo, said most of those detained by Israeli forces and taken to southern Israel were government employees.
Last week, Israel's army spokesperson, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, rejected accusations that Palestinian prisoners were being mistreated after images emerged of mass arrests of half-naked men in Gaza earlier this month. He said arrests took place in two Hamas strongholds in northern Gaza and that detainees were told to strip to make sure they didn’t conceal explosives.
US TO HOLD INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON HOUTHI SHIPPING ATTACKS
TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says he is convening a meeting of his counterparts in the Middle East and beyond to respond to attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on international shipping in the Red Sea.
Austin told a Tel Aviv news conference Monday that the virtual meeting would take place the following morning.
The Iran-backed Houthis have targeted Israel-linked vessels during Israel’s war in Gaza but have escalated their attacks in recent days, hitting or just missing ships without clear ties to Israel.
“These attacks are reckless, dangerous and they violate international law,” Austin said. “We’re taking action to build an international coalition to address this threat.”
He said the attacks are not just a U.S. concern, but threaten global commerce.
“That’s why it deserves an international response,” he said.
US SAYS NO TIMELINE FOR ISRAEL TO END WAR IN GAZA
TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says the U.S. has not set a timeline for Israel to end the current, intensive phase of its Gaza offensive.
Speaking at a news conference in Tel Aviv on Monday, Austin said he had discussed goals and objectives of Israel’s war and ways to reduce harm to civilians during talks with his Israeli counterparts.
Austin and other U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concern about the large number of civilian deaths in Gaza. But he said the U.S. had not laid down explicit demands.
“This is Israel’s operation,” he said. “I’m not here to dictate timelines or terms.”
ISRAEL WARNS OF ACTION AGAINST HEZBOLLAH OVER CROSS-BORDER FIGHTING
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel’s defense minister says that Israel “will not hesitate to act” against Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group if quiet is not restored along the volatile border between Israel and Lebanon.
Since Israel’s war erupted against Hamas militants in Gaza on Oct. 7, Iran-backed Hezbollah has carried out a series of rocket and missile strikes on northern Israel, drawing Israeli strikes in response. Tens of thousands of Israelis have been forced to evacuate border communities. The ongoing fighting has raised fears of a broader regionwide conflict.
Speaking at a news conference with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Yoav Gallant said Monday that Israel expects Hezbollah to respect a 2006 cease-fire that required the Lebanese militant group to stay away from the border.
“If such a process will not be implemented diplomatically, we will not hesitate to act,” Gallant said.
US AND ISRAELI SPY CHIEFS MEET WITH QATARI PRIME MINISTER
WASHINGTON — CIA Director William Burns was in Warsaw Monday for talks with the director of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and Qatar’s prime minister in a renewed push to win the release of more of the hostages held by Hamas and other militant groups, a U.S. official said.
It was the first known meeting among the three since talks broke off shortly after Israel ended a dayslong cease-fire with Hamas at the start of the month.
The U.S. official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive discussions.
In all, 129 hostages are known to remain captive in the Gaza Strip, after a negotiated deal won the release of some others in exchange for an Israeli cease-fire last month. Burns was meeting with Israeli intelligence chief David Barnea and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammad al-Thani.
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Associated Press writer Ellen Knickmeyer contributed.
HEALTH MINISTRY SAYS MORE THAN 19,400 PALESTINIANS KILLED IN GAZA
The Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says 19,453 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in early October.
The announcement by ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra marked the first update since Thursday, when the toll stood at 18,787.
Internet and phone services dropped Thursday evening and were restored gradually on Sunday. It was the longest such blackout since the war began Oct. 7. The lack of connectivity meant the ministry could not compile its daily casualty count.
Al-Qidra said 52,286 Palestinians have been injured in the war, up from 50,897 on Thursday.
GAZA'S SHIFA HOSPITAL IS STRUCK BY ISRAELI FIRE, WITNESSES SAY
Witnesses say an Israeli airstrike has hit Gaza’s largest hospital, killing and wounding several people.
Al Jazeera television aired footage appearing to show the aftermath of the strike on Shifa Hospital, in Gaza City, with several people sprawled lifeless on the ground inside the medical compound, which includes several buildings. Two people sheltering at the hospital confirmed the strike to The Associated Press.
Assad Abu Radwan, who witnessed the strike, counted five dead and said he helped two wounded people take cover inside. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
Shifa was the scene of a prolonged standoff earlier in the war when Israel accused Hamas of concealing a major command center inside and beneath the medical compound, allegations denied by hospital staff and the militant group.
After raiding Shifa last month, Israel revealed what it said was a militant hideout in a tunnel underneath the hospital and other evidence that it said proved Hamas had used the facility.
Fighting outside Shifa had left hundreds of patients and tens of thousands of displaced people stranded for days with little food, water or medical supplies.
Most evacuated the hospital, which had all but stopped functioning, as Israeli forces closed in. But in the weeks since the raid the hospital has become a shelter once again.
The World Health Organization, which is working to restore services at Shifa and was able to visit on Friday, described its emergency department as a “bloodbath.” It said there were hundreds of wounded patients, some being sutured on the floor with little or no pain medicine.
The WHO said tens of thousands of people are sheltering in the medical compound despite severe shortages of food and water.
A COMMERCIAL SHIP IS ATTACKED IN THE RED SEA
A Cayman Islands-flagged tanker has been attacked in a crucial shipping route off Yemen, a U.S. military official said Monday.
The attack that targeted the Swan Atlantic, a chemical and oil products carrier, is the latest in a series of assaults on vessels in the Red Sea and its strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The attacks have been claimed by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who say they are targeting vessels linked to Israel in support of Palestinian militants.
The U.S. official said the vessel was attacked by multiple projectiles at about 9 a.m. local time.
The USS Carney, a U.S. warship which provides security to ships in the area, responded to the incident, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the attack.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which monitors Mideast shipping lanes, also reported an incident in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, off Yemen’s port of Mocha, and warned vessels in the area to exercise caution.
It reported “a possible explosion in the water" about 2 nautical miles from the vessel.
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the assault.
RIGHTS WATCHDOG ACCUSES ISRAEL OF DELIBERATELY STARVING CIVILIANS
JERUSALEM — Human Rights Watch is accusing Israel of deliberately starving Gaza’s population, a method of warfare that it described as a war crime.
The New York-based rights organization said Monday that Israeli forces were “deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food, and fuel, while wilfully impeding humanitarian assistance (and) apparently razing agricultural areas”
The United Nations’ food agency reported on Dec. 14 that 56% of Gaza’s households were experiencing “severe levels of hunger,” up from 38% two weeks earlier.
HRW said that following the Oct. 7 attack by Gaza-based militants on Israel that killed around 1,200 people, top Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, made public statements “expressing their aim to deprive civilians in Gaza of food, water and fuel.” Other Israeli officials have made statements conditioning the provision of humanitarian aid on the release of the approximately 240 hostages Palestinian militants took into Gaza, HRW said.
The starving of civilians is a war crime under international humanitarian law. For the first two months of the war, humanitarian aid was delivered to Gaza through a single border crossing from Egypt, severely restricting the amount of food and other supplies that could reach the coastal enclave’s residents. After pressure from the United States, Israel reopened a second border-crossing into Gaza last week. But the amount of aid entering the territory is still less than half of prewar imports, even as needs have soared and fighting hinders delivery in many areas.
The Israeli army’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said on Monday that Israel is not restricting the amount of humanitarian aid.
“We know civilians in Gaza are suffering. This is because of Hamas’ strategy and tactics and because Hamas steals the international aid meant for them,” he said.
US DEFENSE OFFICIALS ARRIVE IN ISRAEL FOR TALKS WITH NETANYAHU
TEL AVIV — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. CQ Brown Jr. have arrived in Israel to discuss Israel’s ongoing military operations against Hamas amid a growing political rift between Tel Aviv and Washington over the war.
The two defense leaders have spent decades of their military service focused on the Middle East. They are in Israel to focus on the tactical milestones of its campaign, amid hopes that the long-running military-to-military connections forged between the two allies can discuss the war’s next steps even as the political strain between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over differences on the bombardment campaign in Gaza grows.
Austin and Brown are expected to meet with Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and the War Cabinet during their visit. They are also expected to address the media following the day-long talks.
Austin, who oversaw the drawdown of forces in Iraq as major combat operations ended there, is also expected to offer guidance on how to shift into a more targeted, lower-intensity military campaign, something the White House is eager to achieve.