Live Updates
Demonstrators block a road in Tel Aviv demanding an immediate deal for the release Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
AFP
The war in Gaza is now on its 144th day, and hopes for a new ceasefire deal are on the rise as details of a draft truce proposal for Ramadan have emerged. Still, tensions in the Middle East remain at a concerning high as Iranian-backed Houthis continue to threaten commercial shipping activities in the Red and Arabian Seas and the Gulf of Aden.
Hamas is studying a 40-day ceasefire proposal in Gaza that reportedly includes releasing 40 hostages in exchange for freeing 400 Palestinian prisoners. U.S. President Joe Biden said Israel is ready to halt its military operations during Ramadan’s Holy Week, but a Hamas official reportedly said Biden’s optimistic remarks on a truce were premature.
In the Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report of “irregular activity” wherein three small boats tailed a merchant ship for one hour.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) also said it destroyed three unmanned surface vessels (USVs) and a drone in self-defense as they posed an imminent threat to merchant ships and U.S. Navy warships in the region.
Iranian-backed Hezbollah on Tuesday said it attacked the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) Meron air control base, a strategic air surveillance site, with a missile barrage “in response” to Israeli airstrikes in the Bekaa Valley that killed two Hezbollah members Monday.
The IDF announced late Monday that it eliminated Hassan Hossein Salami, Hezbollah’s leader “responsible for the Hajir region.” His assassination came following reports that an Israeli drone attack targeted a vehicle in southern Lebanon earlier Monday.
Back in war-torn Gaza, pressure is mounting on the Israeli government to allow more humanitarian aid to enter the devastated enclave. There have also been warnings from Israel’s allies against a ground operation in Rafah unless civilian protection is ensured.
Fighting in Gaza has been on and off for decades due to the deep-rooted Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but the situation reached its deadliest point on Oct. 7, when Hamas militants raided Israel, murdering more than a thousand people and abducting some 250 Israelis and foreigners.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will fight until Hamas is eliminated, even as the loved ones of some 130 remaining hostages in Gaza pressure his government to agree to a ceasefire-hostage deal.
