Thank you for following our LIVE coverage of day 134 of the Israel-Hamas war. We will be back tomorrow with more news updates.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog considered it important to pursue cooperation between Israel and Saudi Arabia to normalize relations, which would mark "a victory over the actions" of Hamas, reports AFP.
"I sincerely believe that moving forward towards normalization and making every possible effort is a very important historical opportunity," the Israeli head of state told the Munich Security Conference, calling on all parties "to seize this moment."
Israel is waging a concerted campaign to destroy the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), said UNRWA Head Philippe Lazzarini in an interview published today, according to AFP.
"At the moment, we are facing an extensive and concerted campaign led by Israel, which aims to destroy UNRWA," Lazzarini told the Swiss newspaper group Tamedia, also believing that Israel's demand for his resignation fell within this framework.
"It's a long-term political goal because they think that if the agency is abolished, the question of the status of Palestinian refugees will be resolved once and for all, and with it, the right of return. There's a much broader political aim behind this," he added.
In the photo, UNRWA Head Philippe Lazzarini speaks at a press conference in Geneva, Feb. 13, 2024. (Credit: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP)
Israel will carry out its operation at Rafah even in the event of an agreement with Hamas over the hostages, says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quoted by AFP.️
Not carrying out an operation at Rafah would be tantamount to "losing the war" against Hamas, he added.
Qatar's prime minister said today that a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas "should not be conditioned" by an agreement on hostage release, according to AFP.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said today the only pathway towards security and stability in the Middle East, including Israel, was through a Palestinian state, according to Reuters.
Negotiations between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip have "not been very promising in recent days," said the Qatari Prime Minister quoted by AFP.
"We will always remain optimistic. We will continue to push. We will do our best to get closer" to an agreement, added Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, whose country has been very active for months, along with the United States and Egypt, to obtain a ceasefire.
The funeral of a Hezbollah fighter killed by Israel in Shehabieh (Sour), Feb. 17, 2024. (Credit: The party's press office)
Latest developments in south Lebanon
Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an attack carried out at 4:40 p.m. on the Israeli site of Ramia.
Israeli artillery targeted the areas around Jabal Blat, Ramieh (Sour), and Khiam (Marjayoun), local residents told our correspondent in the region.
An agreement to unfreeze tax funds earmarked for the Palestinian Authority (PA) that are held by Israel is "imminent," Norway's prime minister, whose country is working as an intermediary, said today, according to Reuters.
Hamas has threatened to walk out of truce talks if more aid is not quickly delivered to the Gaza Strip, including the famine-threatened north of the territory, reports AFP.
"Negotiations cannot take place while hunger gnaws at the Palestinian people. The movement intends to suspend negotiations until aid is brought to northern Gaza," said a Hamas leader in a statement broadcast by al-Aqsa, the movement's channel.
Questioned by AFP, a senior official of the Palestinian Islamist movement who requested anonymity confirmed that "the Egyptian and Qatari mediators had been informed of Hamas's intention to suspend negotiations until aid is brought to the Gaza Strip, including the north."
US forces conducted two strikes against a mobile anti-ship cruise missile and a mobile unmanned surface vessel (USV) launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said today, according to Reuters.
G7 foreign ministers said today that they were worried by the risk of forcible displacement of Palestinian civilians out of Gaza and the possible consequences of an Israeli military operation in the Rafah region, according to Reuters.
Waving pro-Palestinian flags and banners, thousands marched through the streets of Madrid today to demand an immediate ceasefire in the deadly war between Israel and Hamas, according to AFP.
In the last hour, Hezbollah announced two attacks which they said took place at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., at spying equipment and a military brigade respectively, around two Israeli positions facing the southern Lebanese village of Dhaira (Sour).
The party said they "directly hit" the target.
There is "an extraordinary opportunity" in the coming months for Israel to "normalize ties with its Arab neighbors," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today, while also emphasizing the need for the creation of a Palestinian state, according to Reuters.
Hezbollah announces that it attacked at 2 p.m. two Israeli positions in the disputed area of Shebaa Farms and claimed it "directly hit" the target.
In the last 30 minutes:
* Hezbollah announced that it attacked at 1 p.m. an Israeli position facing the southern Lebanese border village of Rmaish (Bint Jbeil) with a Falaq 1 missile and said it "directly hit" the target.
* The Israeli army bombed a house in the southern Lebanese border village of Maroun al-Ras (Bint Jbeil) and shelled an area around the southern Lebanese village of Rashaya al-Fukhar (Hasbaya), residents of the village told L'Orient Today.
Israel is making a concerted effort to destroy UNRWA, the head of the UN agency says, AFP reports..
"Right now we are dealing with an expanded, concerted campaign by Israel aimed at destroying UNRWA," AFP cites Philippe Lazzarini as telling the Swiss newspaper group Tamedia.
"It is a long-term political goal because it is believed that if the aid agency is abolished, the status of the Palestinian refugees will be resolved once and for all — and with it, the right of return. There is a much larger political goal behind this," he said. Click here for more.
The Israeli army says it has launched airstrikes on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon and on a weapons warehouse for the Syrian army in Syria.
Israeli army Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adrae, said that Israeli jets struck a Hezbollah position in Jabal al-Blat today, which is located in the Lebanese southern border village of Blat. He says a fighter was killed. Hezbollah has not yet confirmed this.
At night, the Israeli air force struck a Syrian army warehouse in the Syrian city of Mhajjah, in Daraa. It also said it struck a rocket launch post that had been attempting to fire, unsuccessfully, at the Golan Heights in northern Israel.
Israel earlier launched airstrikes on areas between Jabal al-Blat in Blat (Marjayoun) and Beit Lief and Ramyeh (Bint Jbeil), residents of the villages told L'Orient-Le Jour.
US Energy Advisor Amos Hochstein, who mediated the maritime border deal between Lebanon and Israel, says the US will have to do a lot to support Lebanon in the coming years.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, he said the US will have "to do a lot of building-up of the Lebanese armed forces" as well as the economy in southern Lebanon, which has been badly impacted by ongoing fighting between Hezbollah and the Israeli army. The US is a key donor to the Lebanese Army and its 80,000 members, providing over $3 billion in military aid since 2006.
Hochstein says he would need a coalition of international support to get Lebanon back on its feet. "I’m hopeful that we will see support from [Gulf allies] in this next phase," he added.
South Lebanon has experienced almost daily exchanges of attacks between Hezbollah and Israel since Oct. 7, causing significant casualties and infrastructure damage on the Lebanese side. The destruction comes as the country is struggling to cope with an economic collapse that has been ongoing since 2019. In April 2022, Lebanon signed a preliminary agreement with the International Monetary Fund, which would provide $3 billion to Lebanon on condition of making structural reforms; however, the reforms have yet to be implemented.
In his latest statement, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh blames Israel for a lack of progress in achieving a cease-fire deal in Gaza, Reuters reports.
Haniyeh adds that Hamas "will not accept anything less than a complete cessation of the aggression, withdrawal of the occupation army from Gaza, and lifting of the unjust siege."
The Health Ministry in Gaza says 28,858 people have been killed in Israel's war on the enclave since Oct. 7, AFP reports.
The Israeli army launched several airstrikes on the villages of Ramieh and Beit Lief (Bint Jbeil district) in southern Lebanon minutes ago, residents of the villages tell L'Orient Today.
Yesterday, Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, vowed that Israel would pay a price “in blood” for killing seven civilians during an airstrike earlier this week in Nabatieh, indicating the conflict could intensify.
Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging attacks almost daily since Hamas' al-Aqsa flood assault on Israel on Oct. 7.
Concern is mounting today for patients trapped in al-Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza, which has been taken over by the Israeli army.
Six patients, including a child, have died since yesterday as a result of power cuts that have halted oxygen distribution, according to a new report today from the Gaza Health Ministry, AFP reports.
"Newborn babies are likely to die in the next few hours," the ministry said. It also said that around 100 people had been killed overnight by Israeli bombardments in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli forces "are still detaining many medical staff, patients and displaced persons … and subjecting them to interrogation in inhumane conditions," it added.
For more details, click here.
Here's a recap of important events in the last 24 hours:
* Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah yesterday addressed the situation on the south Lebanon front and in Gaza, as well as the domestic situation in Lebanon, after 133 days of war between Hamas and Israel. ➡️ Here are the main points covered in his seventh speech since Oct. 8, when Hezbollah entered the conflict.
* Hezbollah announced the death of one of its fighters, Khaled Mohammad al-Tamer, in southern Lebanon. According to our count, 206 fighters from the group have been killed in Lebanon and Syria since Oct. 8.
* Hezbollah claimed responsibility for five strikes in the north of Israel.
* Caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati reiterated once again that Lebanon will remain "committed to all UN resolutions," calling on Israel to "implement them, cease its aggression against south Lebanon and its violation of Lebanese sovereignty, and withdraw from the occupied Lebanese territories."
⚡ Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis have fired missiles at the British oil tanker Pollux in the Red Sea, Reuters reports, citing a statement issued this morning by the group's military spokesperson Yahya Sarea.
So far this morning, things are calm in southern Lebanon, compared to other days.
Here is a summary of what happened last night, according to a security source:
* The Israeli army opened fire on the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab in the Marjayoun district around 11 p.m.
* The outskirts of Naqoura (Sour) and Houla (Marjayoun) were shelled by the Israeli army after midnight.
Good morning,
We're here again today with live updates from Gaza, Israel, Lebanon, the occupied West Bank and the wider region.
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