Israel says it is in a “multi-front war” and warns of a long battle. This is what you should know
Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the country was in a “war on multiple fronts” and was being attacked from several different sectors. He warned of a long fight and said anyone who moves against Israel is “a potential target.”
Gallant's comments before the Israeli Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee follow Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's comments on Monday that the war is far from over, after the Israeli leader visited Gaza for the second time since October 7.
Meanwhile, on the diplomatic front, a Netanyahu confidant met with US Secretary of State Tony Blinken and US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, as the White House hopes Israel will exit the high-intensity war in Gaza. A senior Israeli official told CNN that while there are disagreements between the United States and Israel over the war, both countries want to see an end to the militant group.
An Israeli army convoy advances near the Israel-Gaza border in southern Israel on December 25. (Leo Correa/AP)
Here are other key developments you should be aware of:
Conditions in Gaza: At least 250 people were killed and another 500 injured in the center of the Gaza Strip within 24 hours, the health ministry of the Hamas-controlled strip said on Monday. According to the ministry, more than 20,000 people have been killed since the conflict began in early October. Communications and internet services in the Gaza Strip are completely down, three Palestinian internet providers said Tuesday in statements posted on their social media accounts. Internet monitoring site Netblocks told CNN on Wednesday that network data suggested another breakdown in connectivity in Gaza.
WHO comments: World Health Organization officials visited Al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza on Monday, where dozens of people are being treated, including many of the victims of the reported airstrikes on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed that the hospital was overwhelmed and warned that “many will not survive the wait.” Tedros also again called for a ceasefire in Gaza in an editorial published on Tuesday. He said, “Without peace there is no health, and without health there can be no peace.”
On-site events: Israeli forces are using their military's ground, air and sea operations to attack what it says are “terrorist targets” in Gaza, according to an army statement on Tuesday. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad rejected a plan proposed by Egypt to end the war in Gaza, Portal reported on Monday, citing two Egyptian security sources. Additionally, on Tuesday, the U.S. Navy intercepted a barrage of drones and missiles fired by Yemen's Houthis over the Red Sea over a 10-hour period, according to U.S. Central Command. A spokesman for Houthi forces said in X that the launches were made “in continued support and solidarity with the Palestinian people.”
Further diplomatic efforts: The Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Sigrid Kaag, will resign from her post to become the new United Nations special coordinator for humanitarian assistance to Gaza, Kaag said in a statement on Day X. In addition, the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, talks with US President Joe Biden assessed the current developments in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories in a telephone call on Tuesday, Qatar's state news agency QNA reported. According to the statement, the leaders stressed the importance of joint mediation efforts “to calm the situation” and achieve a lasting ceasefire.