Palestinian hospital officials said Israeli airstrikes on the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip killed at least five people.
More than half of the territory’s population of 2.3 million have sought refuge in Rafah, where Israel has conducted near-daily raids as it prepares for an offensive in the city. The Israeli military has massed dozens of tanks and armored vehicles in the area in what appears to be preparations for an invasion of Rafah.
In central Gaza, four people were killed in Israeli tank shelling.
A ship traveling in the Gulf of Aden came under attack Thursday, officials said, the latest assault likely carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels over the Israel-Hamas war.
Meanwhile, a top Hamas political official told The Associated Press that the Islamic militant group is willing to agree to a truce of five years or more with Israel.
The Israel-Hamas war was sparked by the unprecedented Oct. 7 raid into southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250 hostages. Israel says the militants are still holding around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.
The war has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, around two-thirds of them children and women.
Currently:
— Ship comes under attack off coast of Yemen as Houthi rebel campaign appears to gain new speed
— Satellite photos show new port construction in Gaza Strip for US-led aid operation
— Some campuses call in police to break up pro-Palestinian demonstrations, while others wait it out
— UN report says 282 million people faced acute hunger in 2023, with the worst famine in Gaza
— EU military officer says a frigate has destroyed a drone launched from Yemen’s Houthi-held areas
— Hamas official says group would lay down its weapons if a two-state solution is implemented
— World Central Kitchen workers killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza will be honored at memorial
Here is the latest:
ISRAEL MASSES MILITARY VEHICLES ALONG GAZA BORDER
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military has massed dozens of tanks and armored vehicles along its border with the southern Gaza Strip in what appears to be preparations for an invasion of the border city of Rafah.
An Associated Press journalist saw the movement of the vehicles on Thursday near Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing, which is next to Rafah.
Israeli leaders say Rafah is Hamas’ last stronghold in Gaza after more than six months of war. Despite widespread international opposition, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to invade the city, located along the Egyptian border, as part of his plan to destroy Hamas in response to the group’s Oct. 7 raid into southern Israel.
Some 1.4 million Palestinians, more than half of Gaza’s population, have crammed into Rafah, most of whom fled fighting elsewhere in the territory. The international community, including the U.S., fears an Israeli operation will endanger civilians.
Israel says it is preparing a plan to evacuate civilians before carrying out any operation in Rafah.
UK ISSUES NEW SANCTIONS ON IRAN
LONDON – The U.K. on Thursday imposed a new round of sanctions on Iran over its unprecedented attack on Israel on April 13.
The sanctions are meant to hold Iran accountable for its attack and to deter further such activity. It’s the second set of sanctions the U.K. has imposed since the attack.
British Foreign Secretary…
This article was originally published by a apnews.com . Read the Original article here. .