Negotiations to secure an immediate ceasefire tied to the release of hostages held by Hamas are “getting closer” to a deal, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
A growing number of infants in Gaza are on the “brink of death” from acute hunger, the World Health Organization said, issuing another stark warning about the deteriorating humanitarian situation. The UN human rights chief said Israel’s sustained restrictions on aid may amount to the war crime of starvation.
The Israel Defense Forces said it killed 90 “terrorists” as its operation in the Al-Shifa medical complex in northern Gaza continued into its third day.
The Israeli Supreme Court temporarily halted a government plan to send a group of Palestinian hospital patients and babies back to Gaza following a CNN report.
US and coalition forces destroy drone and unmanned surface vessel launched by Houthis, CENTCOM says
From CNN's Mary Kay Mallonee
US and coalition forces destroyed one drone and one unmanned surface vessel launched by Houthis in Yemen on Wednesday, according to US Central Command.
A coalition aircraft destroyed the drone and US forces destroyed the unmanned surface vessel, CENTCOM said in a statement.
There were no injuries or damage to US or coalition ships, CENTCOM said.
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Saudi Crown Prince tells Blinken that need for ceasefire in Gaza is urgent, state media says
From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on March 20.
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Jeddah on Wednesday and discussed the urgent need for a cessation of hostilities in Gaza.
According to Saudi state-run SPA news, MBS and Blinken discussed “developments in the Gaza Strip and its surroundings in addition to efforts to stop military operations.”
They also discussed the security and humanitarian situation in the region, SPA said.
Diplomatic tour: Blinken, who is on a trip in the Middle East, said negotiations to secure a ceasefire in the war in Gaza tied to the release of hostages held by Hamas are “getting closer” to a deal.
Blinken will travel to Egypt to meet with Arab leaders on Thursday and head to Israel on Friday.
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Hamas says Israel gave a negative response to its counterproposal. Catch up on the latest
From CNN staff
Smoke rises during an Israeli raid at Al Shifa hospital and the area around it in Gaza City on Wednesday, March 20.
Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters
Israel’s response to Hamas’ latest counterproposal on a ceasefire and hostage release deal “was negative in general” and did not meet the demands of Hamas, according to Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan.
“In fact, they backed away from agreements previously made to the mediators,” Hamdan said.
Here are some other key developments:
US says gaps are narrowing in negotiations: Negotiations to secure an immediate ceasefire tied to the release of hostages held by Hamas are “getting closer” to a deal, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday. On March 14, Hamas delivered a counterproposal that included the release of Israeli hostages for 700 to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called the Hamas proposal “unrealistic.”
Israeli Supreme Court halts government plan: The high court temporarily halted a government plan to send a group of Palestinian hospital patients and babies back to Gaza following a CNN report. The decision follows a petition by the Israeli non-profit organization Physicians for Human Rights Israel, which decided to take action following the CNN report on the Palestinian hospital patients.
Netanyahu addresses Senate Republicans: The Israeli prime minister addressed the Senate Republican policy lunch on Wednesday for 15 minutes via video, and then took about 45 minutes of questions, according to Sen. John Kennedy. Netanyahu was sharply critical of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s comments calling for elections to form a new government in Israel, Kennedy said.
Canada indefinitely suspends arms exports to Israel: The Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs said Canada has “not approved new arms export permits to Israel” since January 8, “and this will continue until we can ensure full compliance with our export regime.” Export permits that were approved before January 8 are still in effect, according to the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. CNN previously reported that Canada had paused exports of non-lethal military goods and technology to Israel in January given the risk that goods could be used in connection with human rights violations.
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Blinken says gaps are narrowing in negotiations on Gaza ceasefire and hostage release
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Negotiations to secure an immediate ceasefire tied to the release of hostages held by Hamas are “getting closer” to a deal, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
Blinken did not give details about what gaps were narrowing or what undergirded his confidence that an agreement is possible. He again reiterated that the onus is on Hamas to accept the proposal that is on the table.
“We have to see if Hamas can say yes to the proposal. If it does — if it does — that’s the most immediate way to alleviate the misery of people in Gaza, which is very much what we want,” he said.
Blinken, who will travel to Egypt to meet with Arab leaders Thursday, said that it is important to be ready “for what happens with the governance of Gaza” after the war ends.
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Israeli Supreme Court halts plan to return Palestinian hospital patients to Gaza after doctors appeal
From CNN’s Jeremy Diamond, Kareem Khadder, Mick Krever, and Abeer Salman in Jerusalem
Israel’s Supreme Court has temporarily halted a government plan to send a group of Palestinian patients being treated in East Jerusalem and Tel Aviv hospitals back to Gaza.
The decision follows a petition by the Israeli non-profit organization Physicians for Human Rights Israel, which decided to take action following a CNN report on the Palestinian hospital patients.
Following the group’s appeal, the Israeli Supreme Court issued a temporary injunction to prevent the Israeli government from sending around two dozen Palestinian patients and their companions back to Gaza.
The Palestinians were set to be bussed to Gaza early Thursday morning.However, after the temporary court injunction, the Israeli government delayed that until at least Monday, hospital officials told CNN.
This post has been updated with information from Israeli officials.
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Israeli military subjected Palestinians to "humiliating investigation" during raid, Al-Shifa official says
From CNN's Abeer Salman, Khader Al Za’anoun, Ibrahim Dahman, Sana Noor Haq, Kareem Khadder, Lauren Izso and Tim Lister
Israeli forces detained Palestinian journalists and health workers, blindfolded them and stripped them down to their underwear in Al-Shifa Hospital, in northern Gaza, according to eyewitness accounts shared with CNN.
The Israeli military raided Al-Shifa after it claimed “senior Hamas terrorists” were using the facility to “conduct and promote terrorist activity.” It claims to have detained a senior Hamas operative during the operation.
CNN cannot independently verify the IDF’s statements.
Dr. Marwan Abu Saada, head of surgery at Al-Shifa, was not at the hospital when the Israeli raid began on Monday. He said on Tuesday that colleagues who had been permitted to leave the hospital reported Israeli troops breaking into most of the hospital buildings.
He said male medical staff were forced to strip and left “for hours in the cold,” an assertion made by other men who have been released from the area.
CNN has asked the IDF for its response to the allegations levied by Saada. The IDF has not so far responded.
Regional relationships are needed for sustained peace in Gaza, US and Saudi officials say
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on March 20.
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud emphasized the importance of continuing regional partnerships in getting humanitarian aid to Gaza and eventually resolving the conflict.
The two leaders “discussed the urgent need to protect all civilians in Gaza” and immediately increase the flow of aid, according to a readout from their Jeddah meeting by State Department spokesperson Matt Miller.
US officials have been working to lay the groundwork for such a “sustained peace” for months, with the idea that this facilitates a Saudi-Israel normalization agreement.
On his recent trips to the region, Blinken has stressed that the Israeli government must make “difficult” decisions and move toward a two-state solution if it wants to achieve that normalization with Saudi Arabia and if it wants the support of its Arab neighbors for security and reconstruction in Gaza.
The top US diplomat will meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman on Wednesday.
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Netanyahu was critical of Schumer in address to Senate Republicans
“We made it clear to the prime minister that in our judgment, the American people overwhelmingly support Israel’s war,” Kennedy said. “And he made clear he intends to prosecute the war against Hamas to the full extent of his power”
Kennedy said Netanyahu spoke for about 15 minutes via video link to the GOP meeting in the Capitol, and then took about 45 minutes of questions.
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz said Netanyahu was not critical of Biden.
Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, said Netanyahu was “candid” and “thorough” and said the Israeli leader gave a “pretty detailed update” of the war, answering questions about the prosecution of the war and explaining what Israel’s needs are from the US.
Hawley said Netanyahu was “very mindful” of concerns over civilian deaths and “talked about it at some length” and was “alert to the sensitives” over that issue, even talking about the estimated death toll of Palestinians.
“He wanted to project that the end is in sight,” Hawley said. “By far the greatest portion of this war is over.”
Netanyahu told the senators he does not envision US troops getting directly involved in combat.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer pushed back on Republican criticism of his Israel speech, in which he called for the US ally to hold new elections.
Pool
More on Schumer’s speech: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer pushed back on Republican criticism of his Israel speech, in which he called for the US ally to hold new elections.
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Israel’s response to Hamas' latest counterproposal was "negative in general," Hamas spokesperson says
From CNN's Jen Deaton and Mitch McCluskey
Israel’s response to Hamas’ latest counterproposal on a ceasefire and hostage release deal “was negative in general” and did not meet the demands of Hamas, according to Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan.
Israel’s response “was negative in general and did not meet the demands of our people and their resistance. In fact, they backed away from agreements previously made to the mediators,” Hamdan said at press conference in Beirut on Wednesday.
He also said it was a “continuation of their policy of procrastination, which could hamper the negotiations or even lead them to a dead end.”
More context: On March 14, Hamas delivered a counterproposal that included the release of Israeli hostages for 700 to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Canadian government indefinitely suspends arms exports to Israel
From CNN’s Paula Newton
The Canadian government has indefinitely suspended arms exports to Israel, according to the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
“The export permits approved between October 7th and January 8th have been shared with the parliamentary committee studying this matter. Since January 8th, the government has not approved new arms export permits to Israel and this will continue until we can ensure full compliance with our export regime,” the statement continued.
Export permits that were approved before January 8 are still in effect, according to the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Remember: CNN previously reported that Canada had paused exports of non-lethal military equipment and technology to Israel in January given the risk of human rights violations.
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Gazans in desperate need of humanitarian aid as WHO issues stark warning on starving babies. Catch up here
From CNN staff
An aircraft airdrops humanitarian aid over northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, March 20.
Leo Correa/AP
A growing number of infants in Gaza are on the “brink of death” from acute hunger, the World Health Organization said, issuing another grim warning this week about the deteriorating humanitarian situation.
Meanwhile, international entities and aid organizations are working to get supplies and funding to provide humanitarian assistance to the enclave.
Saudi Arabia announced it will provide $40 million in funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the main UN aid agency for Palestinians in Gaza, the kingdom announced on Wednesday.
The United Kingdom’s largest aid delivery to Gaza entered the enclave, the British Foreign Office said Wednesday. More than 2,000 tonnes of food aid that entered Gaza via the Jordanian land corridor were being distributed by the World Food Programme and will feed “more than 275,000 people,” the office said.
Israel also announced that 248 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday, according to a statement from Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT).
The US and Jordanian militaries conducted another airdrop of humanitarian assistance into northern Gaza on Wednesday, US Central Command said in a statement. Jordan said it carried out six airdrops of food into the northern strip.
Death toll: 104 people were killed and 162 were injured over the past 24 hours in Gaza, the Gaza Ministry of Health said in its daily update. The number of people killed in Gaza now stands at 31,923 with 74,096 injuries, the ministry said in its statement. CNN cannot independently verify the numbers from Gaza.
US and Israel: Officials from Israel and the US are expected to meet in Washington next week to discuss alternatives to a planned military offensive in Rafah, where about 1.5 million people are sheltering. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he told US President Joe Biden it was impossible to defeat Hamas without Israel entering Rafah. US House Speaker Mike Johnson said he isconsidering inviting Netanyahu to address Congress. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head to Israel on Friday.
Al-Shifa Hospital raid: As Israel continues its offensive at Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza Civil Defense says thousands of civilians sheltering inside are running out of basic necessities and subject to interrogations and torture. Israeli’s military said it killed 90 “terrorists” in the area.
Palestinian patients in East Jerusalem: The Israeli Supreme Court is temporarily stopping the Israeli government from sending a group of Palestinian patients being treated in East Jerusalem hospitals back to Gaza. The court issued the temporary injunction on Wednesday following an appeal from an Israeli nonprofit.
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Israeli attack kills at least 3 militants in Jenin, Palestine Red Crescent Society says
From CNN’s Mitch McCluskey, Mick Krever, Max Saltman and Tim Lister
An Israeli drone strike in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin killed at least three people and left one person seriously injured, according to the Palestine Red Crecent Society (PRCS).
The three people who died were militants with the Jenin battalion of Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad organization, PRCS said on its Telegram channel.
The attack occurred near Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin, PRCS’s director in Jenin, Mahmoud Al-Saadi, told CNN.
The injured individual, who was not identified, is in critical condition with burns all over their body, Al-Saadi said.
The Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency said in a statement that an aircraft struck “terrorist operatives” inside a vehicle in the area of Jenin. The IDF and ISA allege that one of the militants killed Israeli settler Meir Tamari in 2023 near the Israeli settlement of Hermesh in the occupied West Bank.
CNN cannot independently verify these allegations.
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US House speaker considering inviting Israeli prime minister to address Congress
From CNN's Haley Talbot and Melanie Zanona
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Getty Images
US House Speaker Mike Johnson is considering inviting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress after House members raised the idea in their closed-door conference meeting this morning.
Johnson said he had a “lengthy” conversation with Netanyahu this morning but said “those logistics” did not come up. The news was first reported by Axios.
An invitation to address a joint session of Congress would require buy-in from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who sharply criticized Netanyahu in a floor speech last week when he also called for Israel to hold new elections.
The consideration of having Netanyahu also comes as additional military aid to Israel appears stalled on Capitol Hill. The House passed a standalone military aid bill to Israel in November that the Senate did not advance because the House bill offset the cost with cuts to the Internal Revenue Service. The Senate passed a bill with aid to Ukraine and Israel in February, but Johnson has made no effort to put that legislation up for a vote as House Republicans have mulled several alternatives for sending aid overseas.
This post has been updated with additional information.
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Blinken not expected to be personally involved in talks with Israeli officials in DC about Rafah offensive
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he departs Philippines en route to Saudi Arabia, at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines, on March 20.
Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is not expected to participate in upcoming conversations with Israeli officials about Rafah in Washington, DC, according to the State Department. Deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel suggested that the talks will be at more of a working level.
CNN reported Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close confidant Ron Dermer — currently a member of Israel’s war cabinet and a former ambassador to the United States — and Israeli national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi will travel to DC for discussions with US officials.
The US has been calling on Israel to explain how it intends to keep safe over 1 million Palestinians who are seeking refuge in southern Gaza, as Israel warns that it will soon launch a military offensive into Rafah.
Asked by CNN if the US would be willing to provide resources to Israel to protect the civilian population in Rafah, Patel did not foreclose the possibility, but noted he would not get ahead of the talks with Israeli officials.
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IDF says it detained senior Hamas operative allegedly involved in 2014 murder during Al-Shifa raid
From CNN's Amir Tal
Smoke rises during an Israeli raid at Al-Shifa hospital and the area around it in Gaza City, on March 20.
Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters
The Israeli military has detained a senior Hamas operative allegedly involved in the kidnap and murder of three boys in 2014 during its ongoing operation at Al-Shifa Hospital, it said.
The Israel Defense Forces said that, along with the Israeli Security Agency, it arrested Mahmoud Qawasmeh, who it alleged to be a planner and financier of the infrastructure that carried out the boys’ kidnapping and murder.
Qawasmeh had been deported to the Gaza Strip as part of an exchange in 2011 in which hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were released in return for the freedom of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, who had been kidnapped by Hamas and taken into Gaza in 2006.
The IDF said Qawasmeh had been involved in “directing terrorist activities of Hamas” in the West Bank, “including a number of shooting terror attacks carried out in recent years.”
The IDF has also released new video of its operations around Al-Shifa. It said weapons had been located and about 350 suspects apprehended during the raid.
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Nonprofit to ask Israel's Supreme Court to stop removal of Palestinians in East Jerusalem hospitals to Gaza
From CNN’s Jeremy Diamond, Kareem Khadder, Mick Krever and Abeer Salman in Jerusalem.
An Israeli nonprofit organization is preparing to petition Israel’s Supreme Court on Wednesday to prevent the Israeli government from sending Palestinian patients being treated in East Jerusalem hospitals back to Gaza.
Physicians for Human Rights Israel decided to take action following a CNN report on the Palestinians, according to Ran Yaron, the organization’s spokesperson.
Around two dozen Palestinian patients and their companions are set to be bused to Gaza early Thursday morning, but their removal has already twice been delayed for unknown reasons.
Among the Palestinians, who were granted access to the hospitals by Israeli authorities before October 7, are five newborn babies and their mothers, cancer patients now in remission, and a few companions, according to hospital officials.
Hospital officials say they have largely been communicating with the Israeli agency coordinating the departure — Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) — by phone.
“At the very beginning, we agreed that Hamas should be eliminated. But during the war, it’s no secret, we had differences of opinion about the best way to achieve this goal.”
“There have been times when we have agreed with our friends, and there have been times when we have not agreed with them,” he said.
Netanyahu said he told Biden it was impossible to defeat Hamas without the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) entering Rafah.
An Israeli delegation is due to travel to Washington in the next week for discussions on those proposals, according to US and Israeli officials.
Netanyahu said Israel “always did what was essential for our safety, and we will do so this time as well.” But he suggested an operation into Rafah was not imminent.
The prime minister added that his government will soon approve a plan for the evacuation of civilians from Rafah – and that an Israeli military operation into the area would proceed “to complete the victory over Hamas.”
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Saudi Arabia announces $40 million funding for UN agency for Palestinian refugees
From CNN’s Becky Anderson in Doha
Saudi Arabia will provide $40 million in funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the main UN aid agency for Palestinians in Gaza, the kingdom announced in a news release on Wednesday.
Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah, the supervisor general of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief), signed an agreement with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini on Wednesday.
The funding will provide food for more than 250,000 people and tents for 20,000 families, according to officials.
The announcement comes as hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are on the brink of famine, with only a trickle of aid continues coming into the enclave, according to the UN.
“It is crucial to address the desperate needs of the people in Gaza. KSrelief remains committed to supporting these efforts to deliver humanitarian assistance in this difficult time,” Al Rabeeah said in a statement.
More background: UNRWA has seen an increased need for funding after many countries suspended payments following allegations by Israel that some of UNRWA’s staff were involved in Hamas’ October 7 attack.
UNRWA fired several employees after the allegations and launched an investigation, but some of UNRWA’s top donors — including the United States — have not resumed funding the organization.
In November 2023, KSrelief provided a $15 million payment to UNRWA to provide humanitarian assistance, including food and medicine.
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UK surgeon who returned from Gaza recounts seeing child with "burns so bad you could see her facial bones"
From CNN's Muhammad Darwish
NA high-level delegation of four critical-care doctors, Professor Nick Maynard, second left, Doctor Zaher Sahloul, Doctor Thaer Ahmad and Doctor Amber Alayyan who have worked on the frontlines of medical care in Gaza talks to the press at the United Nations in New York, United States on March 19.
Selcuk Acar/Anadolu/Getty Images
A British surgeon who has spent years volunteering in Gaza’s hospitals said he was not “remotely prepared” for what he saw on his latest visit to the strip.
Dr. Nick Maynard, who was in Gaza in December and January, told a media briefing at the United Nations on Tuesday: “I saw things at Al-Aqsa Hospital which I still wake up at night thinking about. Appalling injuries, in particularly women and children. The most devastating burns in small children.”
Maynard was one of four doctors speaking after recent visits to the Gaza Strip.
The delegation hopes to raise the severity of the humanitarian situation with members of Congress and the United States State Department. Maynard told CNN that the delegation – which represents Medical Aid for Palestinians, Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), and MedGlobal – would be meeting with officials of US President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday.
Aid agencies have accused Israel of impeding the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza, an allegation that Israel has repeatedly denied.
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"It's free, I'm not:" Bombs have not deterred Gazan children from making kites with whatever they can find
From CNN’s Antoinette Radford
Displaced Palestinian children fly kites in Rafah, Gaza, on February 20.
Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters
As smoke rises into the Gazan sky from the ruins of bombed buildings, so, too, do kites.
The constant fear of Israeli strikes has not deterred children in the enclave from cobbling the kites together with whatever they can find — leftover plastic bags found on the streets and twigs and paper are enough to catch in the wind.
Video shared with CNN by Mohsin Mohi-Ud-Din, the founder of nonprofit organization #MeWe International Inc. and a volunteer with medical charity MedGlobal, shows a child beaming with a smile and flying a kite on a beach in southern Gaza. Mohi-Ud-Din recently spent time in Gaza as a humanitarian volunteer.
In another video, at least five kites can be seen floating through the skies as smoke rises in the distance.
In Gaza, he told CNN, on top of “the smoke and the noise of drones and bombardment, you would see children making kites and flying kites – hundreds of them.”
“Every day, in the morning and in the evening, flying kites in the sky. And at the same time, you would hear the bombs, and you would hear explosions, and you would see thousands and thousands of tents with starving families in them,” he said.
In an audio recording shared with CNN, one Gazan said the kites symbolize freedom for the Palestinian people:
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Gaza official rejects IDF claim of 4 senior Hamas members killed in Rafah airstrike
From Lauren Izso and Ibrahim Dahman
The Israel Defense Forces said it has eliminated several senior figures in Hamas in a joint operation with the Israeli Security Agency (ISA), a claim rejected by Gaza’s government media office.
The IDF said that on Monday, IDF fighter jets “acting on IDF and ISA intelligence eliminated senior Hamas operatives in Rafah who assisted its military wing in establishing continued control, as well as operations in the field.”
It named the men as Sayid Katab Alkhashash, Osama Hamd Zaher and Muhammad Aud Almelalakhi, who are the heads of Hamas’ Emergency Bureau in Northern and Eastern Rafah, as well as Hadi Abu Alrus Kasin, an operations officer.
It’s not possible to verify the IDF statement.
What Hamas says: Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run government media office in Gaza, denied that four men named by Israel were senior Hamas members.
Al Thawabta directed CNN to a statement in which the office said that the “occupation army uses lies and deception in spreading its narrative in the context of justifying its ongoing crimes that violate international law … These crews do not work under the framework of the Hamas movement nor under the umbrella of the Palestinian government, but they work under the umbrella of the popular committees that provide humanitarian aid through international organizations.”
This post has been updated with the latest comments from Gaza’s Hamas-run government.
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248 humanitarian trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday, Israel says
From CNN's Ibrahim Dahman
Israel announced that 248 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday, according to a statement from Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT).
Of those that entered the besieged enclave, 175 trucks were transferred through the Kerem Shalom crossing and 73 trucks were transferred from the Nitzana crossing, COGAT said.
In addition, a further 21 aid trucks were transferred “via the Jordan delivery channel,” COGAT said.
Within Gaza, 126 truckloads of aid were distributed.
Israel added that fuel was received by five pumping faciities in northern Gaza, and four tankers of cooking gas entered the enclave on Tuesday.
“Over 200,000 doses of vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, and Hepatitis B donated by UNICEF,” also arrived in Gaza, Israel said.
It added that the IDF would pause operations for a four-hour period Wednesday in a western neighborhood of Rafah “to enable the movement of humanitarian aid.”
Separately, the Jordanian military said Wednesday that it had carried out 6 airdrops delivering food aid to a number of sites in the northern Gaza Strip.
Remember: The World Food Program (WFP) said earlier this week that 88% of Gaza’s population faces “emergency or worse” food insecurity and famine in Northern Gaza is “imminent.”
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IDF says it killed 90 "terrorists" around Al-Shifa as doctors say men forced to strip outside hospital
From CNN's Ibrahim Dahman, Lauren Izso and Tim Lister
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it has killed 90 people it described as “terrorists” as its operation in the Al-Shifa medical complex, in northern Gaza, continues into its third day.
In a statement early Wednesday, the IDF said its forces – along with those of the Israeli Security Agency (ISA)— “have eliminated terrorists and located weapons in the hospital area, while preventing harm to civilians, patients, medical teams and medical equipment.”
However, CNN spoke to a witness sheltering at Al-Shifa on Monday, who said “people who were on the hospital grounds were fired at. Some people were killed, and others injured. And dead bodies and those injured were pulled away by Israeli forces.”
The IDF said as well as killing 90 “terrorists,” it also questioned more than 300 suspects at the compound, and “an additional 160 suspects have been transferred to Israeli territory for further questioning.”
CNN has received testimony from Dr. Marwan Abu Saada, head of surgery at Al-Shifa. Abu Saada was not at the hospital when the Israeli operation began in the early hours of Monday. But he said Tuesday that colleagues who had been permitted to leave the hospital reported that male medical staff had been undressed and left outside in the cold, an assertion made by other men who have been released from the area.
CNN has asked the IDF for further details about the people it says it has killed or detained during the operation at Al-Shifa and in the vicinity.
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Injured civilians forced out of Al-Shifa as reports of torture surface, Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson says
From CNN's Ibrahim Dahman, Lauren Izso and Tim Lister
Smoke rises during an Israeli raid at Al-Shifa hospital and the area around it in Gaza City, on March 20.
Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters
As Israel says it is continuing a raid at the Al-Shifa Hospital for a third day, a Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson told CNN that civilians sheltering inside the hospital are running out of water and basic necessities.
SpokespersonMahmoud Basal claimed people inside the hospital said they had been subject to interrogations, torture and killing. He also alleged that the Israeli army was removing wounded people from inside the hospital, “even when they cannot walk or move.” The injured individuals then attempt to get to the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital3 kilometers (nearly 2 miles) away “in a very difficult condition,” he said.
He said people there were afraid to speak with journalists, also alleging that a journalist there – Mahmoud Aliwa – had been arrested by Israeli troops. CNN has asked the Israel Defense Forces about the reported arrest of Aliwa and the movement of wounded people to Al-Ahli hospital.
Ismail Al-Nono, a displaced man currently in the southern city of Rafah, told CNN the IDF had targeted a group of buildings close to Al-Shifa that belonged to his cousin. But around 5 a.m. local time, Al-Nono said, contact was cut off.
Elsewhere in Gaza, the IDF said its snipers and aircraft had killed several militants in central Gaza and Jabalya. It also said troops were continuing their operations in Khan Younis.
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expected to travel to Israel Friday
From CNN's Lauren Izso
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers a speech at the Third Summit for Democracy in Seoul, South Korea, on March 18.
Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to Israel Friday, an Israeli official told CNN.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday that Blinken will discuss ongoing negotiations to secure the release of all hostages, Israel’s planned Rafah offensive and the need to “dramatically increase and sustain the delivery of humanitarian aid” into Gaza.
Blinken’s visit to Israel comes at a critical time, as US and Israeli officials are likely to discuss alternatives to a ground offensive of Gaza’s southern city of Rafah next week, the White House said.
On Monday, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Biden had asked Netanyahu to send a team to Washington “to hear U.S. concerns about Israel’s current Rafah planning and to lay out an alternative approach that would target key Hamas elements in Rafah and secure the Egypt-Gaza border without a major ground invasion.”
But the Israeli statement Tuesday said that Netanyahu “is determined to act in Rafah in order to finally eliminate the remaining Hamas battalions, while providing humanitarian solutions to the civilian population.”
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will also host Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon next week, according to a defense official.
The official added the meeting comes after Austin extended an invitation for an official visit and is separate from the meeting announced after the call between Biden and Netanyahu.
CNN’s Kevin Liptak, Kylie Atwood and Alex Marquardt contributed reporting to this post.
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Biden could find himself in an uncomfortable position if Netanyahu ignores his Rafah warnings
From CNN's Kevin Liptak, Kylie Atwood and Alex Marquardt
US President Joe Biden, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Whether the meeting, now likely to occur early next week, can accomplish that objective remains an open question. But, there are indications that despite Biden’s warnings, the Israeli leader remains intent on entering the southern Gaza city.
That leaves Biden in a now-familiar, if uncomfortable, position: Having staked out a clear position on the invasion, it appears Netanyahu is poised to reject it out of hand.
“Out of respect for the president, we agreed on a way in which they can present us with their ideas, especially on the humanitarian side,” Netanyahu said Tuesday during a speech to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in the Knesset.
UK says its largest aid package to Gaza has arrived
From CNN's Mia Alberti
The UK’s largest aid delivery to Gaza has entered the enclave, the British Foreign Office said Wednesday.
More than 2,000 tonnes of food aid that entered Gaza via the Jordanian land corridor were being distributed by the World Food Programme and will feed “more than 275,000 people,” the office said.
The delivery includes fortified wheat flour for use in bakeries, hot meals, and Ready To Eat (RTE) food parcels.
The delivery adds to a previous batch of 150 tonnes of UK-funded relief items, including blankets and tents, which arrived last Wednesday and will be distributed by UNICEF, the Foreign Office said.
“A full UK field hospital run by UK-Med has also arrived in Gaza and is now operational and providing life-saving care”, the office said.
Imminent famine: The aid comes amid warnings of imminent famine among Palestinians. Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the UK continues “to push Israel to allow more crossings to be open and for longer, and for healthcare, water, and sanitation to be restored.”
Cameron also urged Israel to open a “land crossing in the north” and allow the entry of more UN staff to facilitate the delivery of aid in Gaza to tackle “the devastating and growing humanitarian crisis.”
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Israeli raid continues at Al-Shifa Hospital, where thousands are sheltering. Here's the latest
From CNN staff
Smoke is seen billowing in the vicinity of the Al-Shifa hospital complex in Gaza on March 18.
Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal told CNN the hospital is “besieged” by Israeli forces. The Israeli military said the site was being used by “senior Hamas terrorists.”
Warnings about hunger: Famine is set to break out in northern Gaza between now and May, a UN-backed report warns. The World Health Organization issued another stark warning about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, with a spokesperson saying that a growing number of infants are on the “brink of death” from acute hunger. Israel’s sustained restrictions on aid to Gaza may amount to the war crime of starvation, UN rights chief Volker Turk also said.
Rafah plan: US and Israeli officials are expected to meet in Washington next week to discuss alternatives to a planned military ground offensive in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, where about 1.5 million displaced people are sheltering.
Ceasefire talks: An Israeli delegation left Qatar after one day of indirect talks with no breakthrough in a ceasefire-hostages deal, but mediators are “cautiously optimistic” about the restart of discussions and negotiations will continue. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia and Egypt this week for talks on efforts to secure a ceasefire.
Hostages: The Israeli military sent text messages to Palestinians in Gaza on Tuesday offering cash in exchange for any information about Israeli hostages. A CNN journalist in Gaza received the message in Arabic on their phone.
Officials meet: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to address Senate Republicans during their closed-door conference lunch today via video, according to a person familiar with the matter. Next week, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will host his Israeli counterpart at the Pentagon, according to a defense official.
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Netanyahu will address US Senate Republicans via video today
From CNN's Manu Raju
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the media on March 16, 2023, in Berlin, Germany.
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to address Senate Republicans during their closed-door conference lunch today via video, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Netanyahu’s appearance today comes as Senate Republicans have rallied around him after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Netanyahu an obstacle to peace last week.
Netanyahu was invited by Sen. John Barrasso last week to address Senate Republicans during their annual retreat but he couldn’t make it.
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Netanyahu confidant and Israeli national security adviser will visit DC to discuss Rafah offensive
From CNN's Alex Marquardt and Sahar Akbarzai
Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, left, and Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi.
Getty Images
One of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest confidants, Ron Dermer, and Israel’s national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi will be heading to Washington, DC, to meet with US officials, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office obtained by CNN.
The statement did not say which US officials the Israeli delegation will meet with or when the visit will happen. The White House said it expects the visit to happen early next week.
Dermer is currently a member of Israel’s war cabinet and a former ambassador to the United States.
The US has been calling on Israel to explain how it intends to keep safe over 1 million Palestinians who are seeking refuge in southern Gaza, as Israel warns that it will soon launch a military offensive into Rafah. So far, US President Joe Biden’s administration says a plan has not been presented.
US wants Rafah alternatives: On Monday, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Biden had asked Netanyahu to send a team to Washington “to hear U.S. concerns about Israel’s current Rafah planning and to lay out an alternative approach that would target key Hamas elements in Rafah and secure the Egypt-Gaza border without a major ground invasion.”
But the Israeli statement Tuesday said that Netanyahu “is determined to act in Rafah in order to finally eliminate the remaining Hamas battalions, while providing humanitarian solutions to the civilian population.”
The Israeli delegation will be accompanied by a representative — who was not named — for Israel’s Coordination of Government Actions in the Territories, the statement said.
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Growing number of infants in Gaza are on the "brink of death" due to lack of food, WHO warns
From CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman
Feda al-Zahhar takes care of her 4-month-old baby as the family struggles to survive in a makeshift tent under difficult conditions on February 29.
Abed Zagout/Anadolu/Getty Images
The World Health Organization issued another stark warning about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza and a spokesperson on Tuesday said a growing number of infants there are on the “brink of death” from acute hunger.
While young children and infants are among the least able to cope with chronic hunger, the WHO says there is a rising number of dangerously underweight pregnant women, as well.
“This is entirely man-made, everything we’re seeing medically; this was a territory where the health system functioned well,” Harris said.
The WHO was aiming to build emergency malnutrition stabilization centers in Gaza, but progress had been hampered by a lack of security.
One center had been established in southern Gaza, and the WHO is attempting to establish one in northern Gaza, “but we can’t bring them in at the scale and to the people without the access and the safety. So there is no answer until there’s a ceasefire,” Harris said.
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US and Israel talks on Rafah are likely to occur "early next week," White House says
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
Displaced Palestinians shelter at a tent camp in Rafah, Gaza, on February 27.
Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters
A meeting in Washington between US and Israeli officials to discuss alternatives to a ground invasion of Gaza’s southern city of Rafah is likely to occur next week, the White House said.
US President Joe Biden asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call Monday to dispatch a delegation of military, intelligence and humanitarian officials to Washington to discuss the Rafah plans.
The timing of the meeting was unclear Monday, but press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday it was likely to happen early next week. She didn’t have additional details on who would participate in the talks.
On Monday, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the meeting was intended to bring officials together in the same room at a critical moment in the conflict.
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Aid group confirms 200 tons of food from first ship delivered successfully to northern Gaza
From CNN's Muhammad Darwish and Niamh Kennedy in London
A ship belonging to the Open Arms aid group approaches the shores of Gaza towing a barge with 200 tons of humanitarian aid on March 15.
Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
The nonprofit that organized the first aid boat to Gaza said Tuesday that the boat’s cargo of food aid has been delivered to northern Gaza.
The roughly 200 tons of aid was delivered to northern Gaza alongside a World Food Program convoy on Tuesday morning, World Central Kitchen (WCK) said.
Fears are mounting over hunger in northern Gaza after a United Nations-backed report published on Monday warned that famine could break out any time from mid-March to May.
200 tons of food from an aid boat was delivered to northern Gaza on March 19, and NGO said.
World Central Kitchen
The nonprofit said it has a second boat, named Jennifer, loaded with 240 tons of aid and ready to depart Cyprus. Unfavorable weather conditions have prevented the second boat from leaving the port of Larnaca, WCK said.
Alongside canned food and bulk products, the boat has also been loaded with two forklifts and a crane to assist future aid deliveries to Gaza, according to the NGO.
Remember: While welcoming the success of the maritime corridor into Gaza, aid agencies and the UN have warned that sea deliveries and airdrops remain much less effective methods of delivering aid than over land.
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Israeli military sends texts to Palestinians in Gaza offering cash for information on hostages
From CNN’s Abeer Salman
Photographs of some of those taken hostage by Hamas during their recent attacks are seen on October 18, in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Leon Neal/Getty Images
The Israel Defense Forces sent text messages to Palestinians in Gaza on Tuesday offering cash in exchange for any information about Israeli hostages.
A CNN journalist in Gaza received the message in Arabic on their phone on Tuesday stating:
The message had two phone numbers attached to it as well as a link to a website that directs one to another website with the pictures, names and ages of Israeli hostages.
Following the Hamas attack on October 7 in Israel last year, the group took Israeli hostages back to Gaza, many of whom are still in Gaza. According to CNN’s count last week, a total of 33 of the 130 October 7 hostages are now believed to be dead.
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Israeli restrictions on aid to Gaza may amount to war crime of starvation, UN human rights chief says
From CNN's Niamh Kennedy in London
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk addresses a news conference in Geneva, Switzerland, on December 6.
Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images
UN human rights chief Volker Turk warned that Israel’s sustained restrictions on aid into Gaza may amount to the war crime of starvation.
Just one day after a UN-backed report predicted an “imminent” famine in northern Gaza, Turk pinned the blame squarely on Israel, saying the “situation of hunger, starvation and famine” in Gaza is “a result of Israel’s extensive restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid.”
Turk also noted that as the occupying power, Israel has the responsibility to ensure and facilitate food and medical provisions as well as assist the work of humanitarian organizations.
Israel has repeatedly rejected accusations that it has been preventing aid from entering Gaza through its iron-clad controls at checkpoints. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attempted to shift the blame for limited aid deliveries onto Hamas during a recent interview with CNN, accusing the group of looting supplies.
“Our policy is to not have famine, but to be the entry of humanitarian support as needed, and as much as is needed,” Netanyahu told CNN on Sunday.
Turk also reminded Israel on Tuesday of its obligation under international human rights law to ensure civilians in Gaza can access aid “in a safe and dignified manner.”
It comes as a string of violent incidents have taken place, including allegations of Israel firing at civilians gathered to receive aid deliveries.
