January 31, 2024 - Israel-Hamas war

Our live coverage of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has moved here.

The US carried out airstrikes against an Iranian-backed Houthi drone ground control station in Yemen and 10 Houthi drones early Thursday morning, the US Central Command said. 

These strikes are the latest in a series of attacks on Houthi weapons that the US military said were set to be launched against international shipping lanes and US warships in the region.

The USS Carney shot down one Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile and three drones on Wednesday evening Yemen time, the US Central Command said.  

CENTCOM described the drones as Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). 

CNN earlier reported that the US destroyer shot down a Houthi ballistic missile and drones. 

These strikes are the latest in a series of attacks on Houthi weapons before they are launched against international shipping lanes and US warships in the region.

The US carried out airstrikes against “a number of” Houthi drones in Yemen on Wednesday, a US official told CNN.

These strikes are the latest in a series of attacks on Houthi weapons before they are launched against international shipping lanes and US warships in the region.

More context: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have been stepping up their strikes on ships in the Red Sea, which they say are revenge against Israel for its military campaign in Gaza.

The attacks have forced some of the world’s biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes, which could potentially cause a shock to the global economy.

The Houthis are believed to have been armed and trained by Iran, and there are fears that their attacks could escalate Israel’s war against Hamas into a wider regional conflict.

CNN’s Christian Edwards contributed reporting to this post.

A United States destroyer operating in the Gulf of Aden intercepted a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile and Houthi drones on Wednesday, according to a US official. 

The USS Carney, an Arleigh-Burke class guided missile destroyer, shot down the Houthi launches on Wednesday evening (Yemen time). 

The interception of multiple launches comes one day after a Houthi cruise missile came within one mile of another US ship in the Red Sea, the closest a Houthi attack has yet come to a US warship.

On Wednesday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called the continued Houthi launches “reckless and illegal attacks against military vessels and commercial shipping.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday called for the end of the mission of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

His comments come after Israel alleged 13 employees were associated with Hamas’ October 7 attacks. It’s the first time Netanyahu has called for an end of the mission on camera and specifically accused UNRWA officials of being complicit in the attack.

Catch up on other headlines related to the Israel-Hamas war and tensions in the region:

At least 41 United States National Guard members were injured in the Sunday drone attack in Jordan that killed three US soldiers, according to the National Guard Bureau. 

The injured troops came from the Arizona, California, Kentucky and New York National Guard units. Of those injured, 27 were able to return to duty, while 14 are still being evaluated for further care, including one who was medically evacuated in stable condition.

On Tuesday, the Pentagon said that more than 40 troops were injured in the attack, a number officials said was expected to rise because of the delay in the onset of symptoms for traumatic brain injury.

The three US soldiers who were killed in the attack are expected to be returned to Dover Air Force Base on Friday during a dignified transfer of remains ceremony.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a delegation of UN ambassadors on Wednesday, January 31.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday called for the end of the mission of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

“I think it’s time that the international community and the UN itself understand that UNRWA’s mission has to end,” Netanyahu told a delegation of UN ambassadors.

It’s the first time Netanyahu has called for an end of the mission on camera and specifically accused UNRWA officials of being complicit in the October 7 Hamas attacks against Israel.

Netanyahu also addressed genocide accusations brought by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), saying many of the charges at the UN’s top court were brought by UNRWA officials.  

Netanyahu also said UNRWA is “self-perpetuating” in its “desire to keep alive the refugee, the Palestinian refugee issue,” adding “we need to get other UN agencies and other aid agencies replacing UNRWA in if we’re going to solve the problem of Gaza, as we intend to do.” 

Netanyahu said the UN has not been a “stellar organization” when it comes to dealing with Israel. “It’s often unbelievably tilted,” he said of the agency.

More about UNRWA: The agency is the primary humanitarian aid group in Gaza. Some 2 million Gazans rely on it for aid, with 1 million people using UNRWA shelters for food and healthcare amid the fighting in the enclave.

Two aid agencies are claiming they have evidence that indicates Israel carried out a strike earlier this month on a compound housing humanitarian workers and their families in a supposed safe zone in Gaza. 

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) and Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) said an independent assessment carried out by the United Nations concluded that the damage was caused by an airstrike most likely involving a missile package exclusively possessed by the Israeli military. 

“The Israeli military is the only armed actor in Gaza with access to this weaponry,” the statement on Wednesday said. The strike took place on January 18.

CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for comment on the claims. 

More context: Although officially designated as a safe zone by the IDF, Al Mawasi – a 5.22 square mile (13.5 square kilometer) coastal strip where the compound was located – has suffered several strikes in recent weeks, according to reports from the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza and the Palestinian state news agency, WAFA. 

The two organizations reiterated that attacks against these kinds of settings violate international humanitarian law. Despite remaining committed to serving the “humanitarian imperative,” the IRC and MAP likened the current situation in Gaza however to fighting a “losing battle.” 

CNN is unable to independently confirm these claims due to the difficulty of reporting from the war zone. 

Former Israel Security Agency chief Ami Ayalon appeared on CNN on Wednesday, January 31, during an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour.

Without a two-state solution framework, Hamas won’t be destroyed and “will flourish again,” according to Israel’s former security agency chief.

“The major defeat for Hamas is a future of two states. And unless we should discuss the future of two states, there is no way to defeat Hamas and to create a better political horizon for Palestinians and for Israelis,” he added. 

Ayalon went on to say that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doesn’t represent the views of the majority of the Israeli people, “and unfortunately, you know, he’s leading us.”

“We shall have elections in a few months and we should find the right way to to a better future,” he added. 

Ayalon said US President Joe Biden’s push for a two-state solution is perceived as strong leadership, because “he filled a vacuum of leadership in Israel.”  He also blamed extremists on both sides of the conflict for leading the region to the current situation.

Addressing the suspension of funding by a growing number of Western countries for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), following allegations from Israel that some of the agency’s staff were involved in the October 7 attacks, Ayalon said humanitarian aid for Gaza needs to continue but that perhaps the UN can find a different framework and work with other humanitarian organizations.  

A cruise missile launched by the Houthis into the Red Sea on Tuesday night came within a mile of a United States destroyer before it was shot down, four US officials told CNN, the closest a Houthi attack has come to a US warship.

In the past, these missiles have been intercepted by US destroyers in the area at a range of eight miles or more, the officials said. But the USS Gravely had to use its Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) for the first time since the US began intercepting the Houthi missiles late last year, which ultimately succeeded in downing the missile, officials said.

The CIWS, an automated machine gun designed for close-range intercepts, is one of the final defensive lines the ship has to shoot down an incoming missile when other layers of defense have failed to intercept it.

The episode underscores the threat the Houthis continue to pose to US naval assets and commercial shipping in the Red Sea, despite multiple US and British strikes on Houthi infrastructure inside Yemen. The close call also comes just days after three US service members were killed in a drone attack by Iran-backed militants at a US outpost in Jordan.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, speaks with UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, at the State Department, on Wednesday, January 31

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed the importance of the United Nation’s humanitarian work inside Gaza, saying it is “absolutely vital,” while also calling again for allegations made against UN staffers in the enclave to be addressed.

In remarks alongside UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag, Blinken noted that “her mission now could not be more vital.”

Blinken went on to say that the UN must “work through the terrible allegations” made against its aid agency, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

“That’s absolutely essential, and we’ll be looking at to see that the necessary work is done to deal with and address that situation,” Blinken said.

The US suspended approximately $300,000 in aid to UNRWA as the agency investigates Israeli allegations that 13 of its personnel were involved in the October 7 Hamas attacks. The US is among a growing list of countries who have suspended some or all funding to the agency.

Kaag did not mention the UNRWA situation in her remarks. She spoke of the “common objective” of “getting humanitarian aid, assistance to the innocent civilians of Gaza.”

“They need it. We need to help them sustain. We need to give them prospects,” she said. 

The United States destroyed a Houthi surface-to-air missile in Yemen early Wednesday Eastern time, according to a statement from Central Command.

The missile was prepared to launch and posed “an imminent threat to US aircraft operating in the region,” it said.

The US has carried out a series of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, some along with the United Kingdom, to go after Houthi weaponry and disrupt the rebel group’s ability to target international shipping lanes.

US National Security Councilspokesman John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, January 31.

The United States believes an umbrella group of militants called Islamic Resistance in Iraq was behind the drone attack in Jordan that killed three American service members, the White House said Wednesday, its first formal attribution for the incident.

He stopped short of assigning exact blame on Kata’ib Hezbollah, saying it was not the only group responsible for previous attacks on US bases.

“This certainly has the earmarks of the kinds of things that Kata’ib Hezbollah does,” he said, adding, “The attribution that our intelligence community is comfortable with is that this was done by the umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.”

Kirby said as the US was preparing to respond to the attack, there would likely be multiple phases of a counterattack.

A man walks past the United Nations Relief and Works Agency building in Gaza City in January 2023.

The United States said the main United Nations aid agency in Gaza needs to make changes to “restore donor confidence” before it will resume giving money to the agency, the US ambassador to the UN said.

The US has long been a leading donor for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNWRA), but the US and several other countries paused funding after Israel alleged 13 employees were associated with Hamas’ October 7 attacks.

Even though humanitarian aid is desperately needed in Gaza, the US will continue its pause until there are “fundamental changes to UNRWA to prevent this from happening again,” US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said Wednesday that he was “personally horrified” by the allegations and that the UN acted immediately after hearing them. Thomas-Greenfield said the US appreciates the allegations are being taken seriously.

Both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority are demanding an investigation after the reported discovery of about thirty bodies in bags buried under rubble and sand in a school in northern Gaza.

Video and images that emerged Tuesday showed dozens of body bags being uncovered at a school in Beit Lahia that had been used as a shelter during the fighting by hundreds of people. Some of the body bags had tags in Hebrew along with bar codes. CNN has geolocated the video to the Hamad bin Khalifa Secondary School, which along with other schools and shelters in the area was in the middle of intensive combat in early December.

The identity of the victims is unknown, as are the circumstances and date of their deaths. The area was the scene of heavy fighting in December, and two schools in Beit Lahia, including Hamad bin Khalifa, were surrounded by the Israeli military for a time. Satellite imagery from January 13 shows a number of craters in the immediate area and the tracks of bulldozers.

The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society reported Wednesday “the discovery of the bodies of 30 martyrs inside one of the schools that was besieged by the occupation,” and alleged that those killed had been “handcuffed and blindfolded.”

The accusation was later repeated by Hamas in a statement, which demanded human rights organizations “document this horrific crime.”

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry in the occupied West Bank also called “for the formation of an international field investigation team” into what it described as “the massacres committed by the occupation.” It alleged that “according to testimonies from Palestinian citizens, more than 30 decomposing bodies…have been discovered buried in the north of the Gaza Strip. They were killed, seemingly executed, while blindfolded and their hand shackled.”

CNN cannot independently verify that any of the victims had been handcuffed or blindfolded.

CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the allegations made, providing the video and geographic co-ordinates. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a press conference in Tel Aviv in October.

Israel’s prime minister is assuring the families of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza that he is “making every effort” to get them back. It comes as hostage talks, mediated by Qatar, are still ongoing.

In terms of an agreement to release hostages, Netanyahu said he could only share limited information and that it was “too early to say how it will take place.” Still, United States National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that “talks surrounding the subject have been constructive.”

Netanyahu has said he would not agree with Hamas’ demands to release thousands of Palestinian prisoners and withdraw from Gaza to secure the release of the hostages. And his far-right coalition partners, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have sharply criticized the potential deal.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he departs from Abu Dhabi on January 8.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel back to the Middle East at the end of the week, the White House said Wednesday.

The trip, which has not been publicly announced by the State Department, was announced at a Jewish Federation event in Washington by National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby.

CIA Director Bill Burns met with leaders in Europe last week and White House coordinator for the Middle East, Brett McGurk, returned from Doha over the weekend, Kirby said.

“Our Secretary of State will be heading back over to the region at the end of this week,” Kirby added in response to a question about the hostages being held by Hamas. 

Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza is “still standing,” but “barely functional,” the head of medical activities in Gaza for Médecins sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors without Borders, Aurélie Godard said Wednesday.

Godard visited Al-Shifa — the largest health facility in Gaza — on January 22 for the first time since MSF evacuated its staff from the hospital in November.

Since November, Al Shifa has gradually “transformed into a camp for displaced people,” accommodating around 50,000 people seeking safety, according to MSF. 

It said the lack of fuel for generators has made it “impossible to properly treat people in desperate need of medical care.” Godard visited the hospital with a UN convoy to deliver 19,000 liters (5,000 gallons) of fuel. “This fuel is essential because it is used to run the generators that supply the hospital with electricity,” she said.

Around 3,000 liters (793 gallons) of fuel per day are required for Al Shifa to be functional, meaning the convoy’s 19,000 liters (5,000 gallons) of fuel will supply the hospital for “barely a week,” according to Godard.

The US Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed sanctions on “three entities and one individual located in Lebanon and Türkiye for providing critical financial support to an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and Hizballah financial network.”

A notice from the Treasury Department said the entities had generated hundreds of millions of dollars by selling Iranian commodities, “including to the Syrian government.”

The latest round of sanctions comes amid a continued uptick of attacks on US troops in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militias. 

The latest attack on a US base in Jordan, which President Joe Biden said was tied to Iran, killed three US service members and injured more than 40 others. Biden has promised a response for the deadly strike.

Decisions by major donors to pause funds for the largest supplier of humanitarian aid — UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency — “will have catastrophic consequences for the people of Gaza,” the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned.

Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, he appealed for the 17 countries that have stopped their funding to reconsider their decisions, adding that no other body “has the capacity to deliver the scale and breadth of assistance that 2.2 million people in Gaza urgently need.”

His warning comes as 184,000 people in the southern town of Khan Younis register for humanitarian assistance after being forced to leave the area due to ongoing fighting, according to UNRWA.

Reporters in the region told CNN that helicopters and drones are circling several locations in southern Gaza. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Wednesday that patients, medical workers and displaced people at the Al-Amal hospital are living “in constant fear and anxiety.”

Here are the latest headlines:

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PCRS) said that Israeli forces are still stationed in the south- eastern part of the ​​Al-Amal Hospital complex in Khan Younis, a day after saying that Israeli units had entered the compound.

The PRCS also said that Israeli “snipers are on the roofs of the houses surrounding the hospital.”

In an update Wednesday afternoon local time, the PRCS said that from time to time, the sounds of explosions could be heard in the immediate area.

Where things stand: The aid group said Israeli forces were prohibiting everyone inside the association’s headquarters nearby and the hospital from going out to the street.

One of seven people killed Wednesday, according to PRCS, was a Red Crescent employee who was targeted at the southern door of the hospital. Crews had been unable to retrieve his body. The PRCS said the hospital’s stock of fuel and medical equipment was dangerously low.

CNN has asked the IDF for an update on its operations in the vicinity of Al Amal and whether it is prohibiting people from leaving the PRCS headquarters.

What Israel is saying: IDF said Wednesday that “during the operation in Khan Younis, the forces searched a house connected to terror activity and located explosives planted with the intention of harming the ground forces. In another incident, the soldiers identified an armed terrorist near IDF soldiers, and successfully directed the Israeli Air Force to eliminate the terrorist.”

A man carries relief supplies provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, on January 28.

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the decisions by major donors to pause funds for the largest supplier of humanitarian aid — UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency — “will have catastrophic consequences for the people of Gaza.”

Speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, he appealed for the decisions to be reconsidered, adding that no other body “has the capacity to deliver the scale and breadth of assistance that 2.2 million people in Gaza urgently need.”

At least 17 countries have announced they will suspend funding to the UN agency since Israel alleged that a dozen of its employees were involved in the October 7 attack. Some of UNRWA’s largest donors like the US, the UK and Germany are among those that have suspended funds.

WHO is facing “extreme challenges” trying to support the health system and workers in Gaza, and has faced “great difficulty” trying to reach hospitals in the south of the strip, according to Tedros. The director-general cited “heavy fighting” near hospitals in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, as “severely impeding access to health facilities for patients, health workers and supplies.”

Tedros said that WHO delivered medical supplies to Nasser Medical Complex, also in southern Gaza, on Monday during a UN mission, but other missions to deliver food were denied.

The UN Secretary-General António Guterres also called for funding to continue in the wake of the allegations, saying he was “personally horrified” by the allegations but that the UN acted immediately after hearing them on Wednesday.

Palestinians migrate to safer areas due to Israeli attacks on Khan Younis, Gaza on January 30.

As the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis is engulfed in intense fighting, 184,000 people have registered for humanitarian assistance after being forced to leave the area in recent days, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

“UNRWA along with the people of Khan Younis have fled to the outskirts down closer to the coast,” Tom White, director of UNRWA affairs, said in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Satellite images taken by Planet Labs over the last 10 days show that a large cluster of tents set up by displaced people to the west of Khan Younis have now disappeared.

Take a look at this area around the Aqsa Khan University west of Khan Younis. This is where many people had fled after heavy fighting erupted in Khan Younis as Israeli forces extended their ground operations in southern Gaza.

January 19: In satellite images, hundreds of tents can be seen

A satellite image shows tent in Khan Younis on January 19

January 29: Images show that the tents have gone. 

The same area on January 29 shows the tents have gone.

The university is on a road that leads west from Khan Younis toward the sea, and toward an area that the Israel Defense Forces had instructed civilians to move toward.

The Israel Defense Forces said that it has implemented a “closed military zone” in the area around the Nitzana crossing between Israel and Gaza.

In the past few days, protesters — including family members of hostages taken into Gaza by Hamas — have blockaded the Nitzana crossing, demanding no aid be sent into Gaza until all Israeli hostages are freed.

Waving Israeli flags and holding signs that read “where is the hostages humanitarian aid?,” the protesters say they want aid withheld until hostages are released. One woman, whose brother was killed in the Gaza Strip, said “no truck will enter until the last of the abductees returns.” 

Why this matters: The crossing is one of two between Israel and Gaza where humanitarian aid is inspected and processed.

The IDF said in a statement that “overnight, according to the situational assessment, the Commander of the Southern Command signed an order to implement a closed military zone in the area of Route 211 and the Nitzana Border Crossing.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at the the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, on December 31.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas don’t agree on much. But there are two ways in which they do: First, they both reject a two-state solution; and second, when it comes to a deal to bring back the 100-plus hostages Hamas abducted on October 7, 2023, both sides want to have their cake and eat it.

Hamas is demanding Israel withdraw all its troops from Gaza and release vast numbers of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. Netanyahu responded on Tuesday: “We will not withdraw the IDF from the Gaza Strip and we will not release thousands of terrorists. None of this will happen. What will happen? Total victory.”

Both are likely to be disappointed.

Negotiators have reportedly agreed on a “framework” for a deal. Phase one would see a six-week pause in fighting, during which civilian hostages would be released; three Palestinian prisoners would be freed for each one. A higher ratio would be applied in later phases, when IDF soldiers and bodies of dead hostages would be released, perhaps alongside a longer truce.

Whatever the contours of a final agreement, there are no good options for Netanyahu. On the one side, there are the families of hostages; on the other side are his far-right coalition partners.

Keep reading about the pressure Netanyahu is under for a hostage deal.

Displaced Palestinians take shelter at an UNRWA school in Rafah, in southern Gaza, on November 12.

Sweden has joined the growing list of countries that have decided to suspend their funding to the main UN agency in Gaza, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

The country will suspend funding for the “time being” and the funds originally earmarked for UNRWA will instead go to “other established humanitarian organizations in Palestine and Lebanon,” according to the statement from the Swedish government agency for development cooperation, SIDA.

The statement cited Israel’s accusations as a reason for the suspension. Israel accused some of UNRWA staff members of involvement in Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks. The UN agency fired several employees in the wake of the allegations.

SIDA will carry out its own investigation into both the claims and “UNRWA’s handling of the case,” the statement said, adding that it hopes UNRWA itself will also investigate the allegations with “full transparency and accountability.”

The Swedish government had planned to send $38 million (about 400 million Swedish kronor) to UNRWA in 2024, Swedish public broadcaster SVT reported, adding that no payments had been made yet this year. 

Here’s a list of UNRWA’s top donors as of 2022:

More than 100 babies and children seriously injured in Gaza arrived Monday night in Rome's Ciampino airport on an Italian Air Force flight. 

The first of what is expected to be at least 100 children seriously injured in Gaza arrived Monday night in Rome’s Ciampino airport on an Italian Air Force flight. 

Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X he “emotionally welcomed” the 11 Palestinian children who would be treated in Italian hospitals. 

According to Tajani’s office, four of the children, aged 2, 4, 13 and 15 were transferred to Bambino Gesu hospital run by the Vatican in Rome. The hospital said the children are being treated for “various cardiological, hematological, orthopedic and neurological pathologies” and undergoing diagnostic tests with specialists.

Six other children were flown to Pisa from where they were transferred to the Gaslini hospital in Genoa and the Meyer hospital in Florence, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. One injured young adult over the age of 18 was taken to San Camillo hospital in Rome. 

The injured children were flown from Egypt after having been transferred to the Italian ship hospital Vulcano of the Gaza Strip, where they underwent triage. An additional 19 children will be flown to Italy over the coming days, and the rest will be flown to Italy after they are transferred and undergo triage on the ship. 

A mural by Spanish street artist Nacho Welles, also known as Core246, depicts Palestinian journalist and Al Jazeera's Gaza City bureau chief Wael al-Dahdouh, on January 29, in London.

Colors of the Palestinian flag – red, white, black and green – are streaked across a wall in east London, which features an illustration of Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief, Wael Al-Dahdouh, who lost his family in an Israeli airstrike.

The striking mural commissioned by Calum Hall is part of a series in the British capital spotlighting Palestinian journalists documenting the daily horrors of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza. Like millions across the world, he says he was drawn to their reporting because it is “raw” and “matter of fact.”

“They’re kind of having to put their lives on the line to show what’s happening,” said Hall, founder of Creative Debuts, a UK-based platform that supports emerging artists.

A person skateboards near a mural by street artist Itaewon depicting Palestinian citizen journalist Doaa Mohamed, in London, on January 30.

“We’re looking at this all happening in real time and through iPhones and through Instagram and social media and yet… it’s obviously getting drastically worse by the day,” Hall, who started the campaign, told CNN on Monday.

As of January 30, at least 85 journalists and media workers have been killed since the war began on October 7, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

CCTV footage from the Israeli hospital attack in Jenin, West Bank, on January 30.

Experts have warned that the IDF may have violated international law by the means it used to infiltrate the hospital during a raid on Tuesday.

During the raid, Israeli special forces, dressed as civilians and medical staff infiltrated the Ibn Sina hospital in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin and killed three Palestinian men, both Israeli and Palestinian officials said. Israel said one of the men was a Hamas fighter, while the other two brothers who were killed were linked to Islamic Jihad.

In disguising themselves as civilians and medical staff, both of whom have protected status, Israeli troops may have resorted to perfidy, or deception.

International humanitarian law also prohibits the killing of the wounded and sick who, like medical staff and civilians, enjoy protected status. “Provided they abstained from any acts of hostilities, killing them was a violation of the law of armed conflict,” Sari added.

Asked whether planning an attack against Israel constituted an act of hostility, Sari said if the three men were members of organized armed groups, they were “liable to status-based targeting.” But Israel’s disguising of its soldiers and killing of a reportedly wounded person means the attack could nonetheless have violated international law.

Read more about how the West Bank hospital raid unfolded.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said that after 42 hours, the fate of a six-year-old girl trapped in a car that was fired upon by Israeli forces is unknown.

The girl, Hind, was trapped in a car after it was fired on Monday. She was in the car with six of her family members, all of whom were killed in the attack, PRCS said. 

PRCS released an audio clip purporting to be the moment gunfire was directed at the car on Tuesday. In the clip, 15-year-old Layan Hamadeh, who is related to Hind, is heard speaking to a PRCS paramedic, crying for help. 

In a message to the media Wednesday the PRCS also said that the status of the rescue crew sent to the site in central Gaza was also unknown.

“The PRCS expresses deep concern for the safety of the team and the child Hind,” the Society said.

Smoke rises during an Israeli ground operation in Khan Younis as seen from a tent camp sheltering displaced Palestinians in Rafah, Gaza, on January 31.

Reporters in Gaza told CNN on Wednesday that Israeli aircraft and artillery have again intensified attacks on Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, with helicopters and drones circling several locations.

Gunfire and shelling erupted in what’s known as the Austrian neighborhood in the west of Khan Younis, journalists said. The Israeli army had demolished a residential block in the center of Khan Younis.

Further north, Israeli strikes hit several locations in Gaza City, according to the journalists.

A house in Al-Daraj neighborhood in the east of Gaza City was bombarded. There were also artillery fire and airstrikes in the northwest of Gaza City. Israeli warplanes launched a series of airstrikes targeting houses in the local neighborhoods of Al-Zaytoun and Al-Rimal.

Patients, medical workers and displaced people at the Al-Amal hospital are living “in constant fear and anxiety,” the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported on Wednesday, as the Israeli military intensified its offensive in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.

A security officer at Al-Amal was killed “due to the occupation forces firing at him while he was standing near the rear door of the hospital,” according to the PRCS. There was “intense and ongoing targeting in the vicinity of Amal Hospital and the launch of smoke grenades,” the organization added.

Israeli tanks fired live ammunition and smoke grenades after entering the hospital grounds on Tuesday, according to the PRCS.

In recent weeks, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has ramped up its campaign in Khan Younis, which is regarded as a Hamas stronghold in southern Gaza.

The IDF told CNN that its units “did not operate inside Al-Amal Hospital or request its evacuation.”

“The IDF has maintained close communication with the hospital, additionally, monitoring efforts show that the Al-Amal hospital is functioning and has adequate fuel and electricity,” the IDF said. “Since the operation began, extra care and coordination has been taken by the IDF to ensure that the hospital continues its important functions.”

A woman holds a poster with the image of Ran Gvili, an Israeli hostage, during a rally outside the United Nations Headquarters in Manhattan, New York, on January 12.

Israel Police announced Wednesday the death of an officer killed during the October 7 Hamas attack before his body was taken to Gaza.

Sgt. 1st Class Ran Gvili was declared dead on Tuesday by a committee with representatives from multiple ministries, the intelligence agencies, the Israeli police, and the Chief Rabbi of Israel.

The officer is counted among about 250 hostages taken during the attack, of which more than 100 have been released, according to Israeli officials.

The declaration brings the number of hostages thought to be dead to 29, the police said in a statement.

President Joe Biden speaks to the media at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 30.

US President Joe Biden told reporters he made a decision about the US response to the drone strike that killed three US service members and injured dozens in Jordan.

His comments came as the most powerful Iran-backed militia in Iraq announced the suspension of its military operations against US forces, two days after the attack.

“We’ve seen those reports,” a Pentagon official said. “I don’t have a specific comment to provide other than actions speak louder than words.”

Here are other headlines you should know:

Tedros Ghebreyesus speaks to the media during a news conference at the Government Buildings in Dublin on December 18, 2023.

The World Health Organization (WHO) was able to reach Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis and “deliver essential medical supplies for 1000 patients” on Monday, WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus said.

WHO has issued several warnings about fighting in nearby areas. The vicinity around Nasser Hospital has seen frequent shelling and air strikes as the Israeli military says it is targeting operatives.

A referral hospital is usually a major hospital that includes specialty and emergency care.

The team had hoped to also deliver food to the hospital but were unable to do so because those supplies were grabbed by crowds gathered around the checkpoint.

Tedros said the incident “underscores the utter desperation of people in Gaza, who live in hellish conditions, including severe hunger.”

He highlighted the knock-on effect of delays in deliveries, saying the shortages “increase the health risks of vulnerable patients and hamper health personnel.” 

The hospital is grappling with a “serious shortage” of specialist medical personnel, medicines, oxygen and fuel, Tedros said.  

He also said WHO continues to seek permission to deliver fuel to the hospital.  

The families of the six remaining American hostages in Gaza met Tuesday night at the White House with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and White House Middle East Coordinator Brett McGurk, according to a White House official. 

Sullivan and McGurk updated the families on the ongoing hostage negotiations, including information from Sullivan’s meeting this week with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

They also emphasized the administration’s continued commitment to get the hostages out, the official said. 

The families participated both in person and virtually and had a chance to ask questions.

A US destroyer intercepted a single Houthi anti-ship cruise missile launched toward the Red Sea on Tuesday, according to US Central Command.  

The USS Gravely, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, intercepted the missile shortly before midnight in Yemen (approximately 3:30 p.m. ET). There were no injuries or damage reported, Central Command said in a statement.

More on Red Sea attacks: The latest Houthi attack on commercial vessels in one of the world’s most critical waterways comes just days after a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile hit an oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden, sparking a fire on the ship.

The USS Carney, another destroyer operating in the region, was one of several ships that responded to the Marshall Islands-flagged M/V Marlin Luanda after it issued a distress call.

The US has carried out a series of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, some along with the UK, to go after Houthi weaponry and disrupt the rebel group’s ability to target international shipping lanes.

The first steps to moving forward with a United Nations assessment mission to northern Gaza are expected to take place in the next few days, according to the US State Department.

Spokesperson Matt Miller said Tuesday that security and road conditions needed to be checked to ensure that the full assessment mission could be carried out safely. 

The planned mission was delayed “because of a renewed outbreak in fighting in the north,” Miller said at a briefing. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced earlier this month that Israel had agreed to allow such a mission to move forward to “determine what needs to be done to allow displaced Palestinians to return safely to homes in the north.”