The Yemeni rebels Houthis have claimed responsibility for the attack on a cargo ship traveling through the Red Sea in international waters. This was reported by the Xinhua agency, which also claims responsibility for the drone attacks in the Israeli city of Eilat. “Our naval forces conducted a military operation using naval missiles against a merchant ship named MSC United,” Houthi military spokesman Yehya Sarea said in a statement broadcast live on Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.
The spokesman added that Houthi forces also launched another attack against the Israeli city of Eilat, using “a series of suicide drones.” There are currently no reports of casualties or damage from the two attacks.
MSC confirms that the container ship MSC United VIII was attacked during transit today in the Red Sea. “The ship notified a nearby coalition warship of the attack and took evasive action as instructed. The incident – says a note – occurred on December 26, 2023 at around 12:25 UTC while the MSC ship was en route from King Abdullah Port, Saudi Arabia, to Karachi, Pakistan. Currently The entire crew is safe and no one is injuredand a thorough assessment of the vessel will be carried out.”
“Our top priority – they emphasize from MSC – remains the protection of the lives and safety of our crews, and until their safety can be guaranteed, MSC will continue to divert ships booked for transit in the Suez Canal via the Cape of Good Hope. “
The US response: “12 drones and 5 missiles destroyed”
In response to the attacks, the US said it had destroyed 12 drones and five missiles fired by the Houthis over the Red Sea. This was confirmed by the United States Central Command, explains the Times of Israel. “The USS Laboon, a guided-missile destroyer, and F-18 fighter jets from the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group were involved in an attempt to shoot down 12 disposable attack drones, three anti-ship ballistic missiles and two cruise missiles” attack in the southern Red Sea carried out by the Houthis over a “It was launched within a period of 10 hours,” it said.
Gaza: The Red Crescent headquarters in Khan Younis was hit
Some An Israeli attack on the upper floors of the Red Crescent headquarters in Khan Younis injured displaced Palestinians, in the south of the Gaza Strip. The organization reported this on X, emphasizing that thousands of people are taking refuge in the building.
The Israeli military recently announced it was deploying more ground troops, including combat engineers, to Khan Younis, Gaza's second-largest city, to attack Hamas militants above ground and in tunnels.
Meanwhile, the number of people killed since Israel's offensive in Gaza began on October 7 has risen to 20,915. This was announced by the spokesman for the Gaza Ministry of Health, stating that 54,918 people were injured. In the last 24 hours, 241 people were killed and 382 injured.
This is the fourth time that telephone and internet communications have been suspended in the Gaza Strip. “We regret to announce a complete disruption of restored telecommunications and internet services in the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli offensive,” Palestinian telecommunications company PalTel said in a statement.
Galant: “Attacked from 7 fronts”
“Israel is under attack on seven fronts,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a speech to the parliamentary Security and Defense Committee, warning of the long battle that lies ahead for the country. “We are under attack from seven different fronts: Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank, Iraq, Yemen and Iran,” he said, explaining: “We have already responded and acted on six of these fronts.” “I want to say it explicitly: everyone “Anyone who acts against us is a potential target, there is no immunity for anyone,” he added.
Stop automatic visas for UN employees: Israel's decision
Israel, meanwhile, has announced it will no longer grant automatic visas to UN staff, accusing the United Nations of being “complicit partners” in Hamas's tactics. The move, the Times of Israel points out, “only exacerbates tensions between the United Nations and Israel, which has long claimed that the world body targets it with unfair and disproportionate criticism.”
Government spokesman Eylon Levy says Israel will not automatically consider visa applications from UN employees, but on a case-by-case basis.
Over 100 dead in Israeli attack on Maghazi refugee camp
More than 100 people died in the Israeli airstrike that hit the Maghazi refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip on Christmas Day, according to Palestinian health authorities. This was reported by Al Arabiya, which speaks of one of Israel's bloodiest raids since the war against Hamas began on October 7.
Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra said many of those killed in Maghazi were women and children. Eight others were killed when Israeli planes and tanks carried out dozens of attacks on homes and streets in the nearby towns of al-Bureij and al-Nusseirat, health officials said. Israel denies attacks on civilians and accuses Hamas of building tunnels and military infrastructure in densely populated civilian areas, using civilians as human shields.
A staff member at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) described what she saw at the nearby Al-Aqsadi Gaza Hospital as “absolute carnage.” Many seriously injured people could not be treated because the hospital was “completely overwhelmed,” Gemma Connell told the BBC.
Israeli airstrikes on over 100 targets in Gaza
Dozens of Israeli warplanes have struck more than 100 targets in Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said this morning. These included tunnels and military facilities used by Hamas. A terrorist cell in Jabalia that had tried to plant explosives near an Israeli tank was eliminated overnight, the IDF report said, adding that ground troops targeted the militants before they were killed by the airstrike were killed.
Hamas fighters were also killed the previous day in the southern town of Khan Younis, he added. The Israeli army intensified its operations against Hamas after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would “intensify the fight in the coming days.”
Hezbollah attacks a church in northern Israel
Hezbollah attacked a church in northern Israel with an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon. The Times of Israel reports on this, highlighting that Hezbollah said in a statement that it had attacked an Israeli army position near the northern municipality of Shomera. However, according to the Jewish press, it was a church that was hit in the nearby, virtually depopulated Christian Palestinian village of Igrit. The church caretaker, an 80-year-old man, was not seriously injured.
The Israeli military confirmed that a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hit St. Mary's Orthodox Church in Iqrit, northern Israel. “The attack is not only a clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, but also a violation of religious freedom,” the IDF said in a statement published on X.
US raids on pro-Iranian militia bases in Iraq
The United States responded to a series of attacks on American bases in Iraq with targeted raids against pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. Three American soldiers were injured in the attacks, one seriously, Austin said, explaining that “necessary and proportionate” attacks were carried out against three bases used by these militias on orders from President Joe Biden.
At the same time, the Secretary of Defense warned that there could be further attacks on US soldiers in the region, emphasizing that Washington is determined and ready to take all necessary measures to protect US soldiers and facilities in the region.
The Iraqi government condemned the US strikes as “a clear hostile act” and stressed that one soldier was killed and 18 people, including civilians, were injured. “These steps undermine bilateral relations and will make it more difficult to reach an agreement through joint dialogue aimed at ending the presence of the international coalition,” it said in a statement.
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