GAZA STRIP: Gaza’s civil defense agency said on Wednesday that Israeli strikes killed at least 27 people, as the military issued new evacuation calls in northern areas of the Palestinian territory.
The latest Israeli strikes come as truce mediator Qatar said negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza were in their “final stages.”
The civil defense agency said in a statement that 11 bodies were brought to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza Strip, after Israel struck a family home in Deir el-Balah city during the night.
A seven-year-old boy and three teenagers were among the dead, the agency said.
A separate strike targeted a school building used as shelter for war-displaced Palestinians in Gaza City, killing seven people and injuring several others, the civil defense agency said.
A third strike at dawn hit a house in the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp, killing six people and injuring seven, the agency added.
Another three people were killed when the Israeli military targeted the Al-Shati camp in Gaza City, the agency said.
The Israeli military confirmed that its forces had carried out multiple strikes overnight in Gaza, saying in a statement that they were “precise” and targeted “terrorist operatives.”
In the past 24 hours, the military said it had struck more than 50 targets across the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli military on Wednesday issued a new evacuation call in Arabic for the northern Gaza city of Jabalia, warning residents to move south to Gaza City before it attacks the area.
Jabalia and its surrounding areas have been the focus of an intense Israeli military operation since October 2023, causing thousands of displaced and shortages of everything for those remaining.
The army says it is fighting Hamas militants who have regrouped in the area.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched the deadliest attack in Israeli history, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, a majority of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory which the UN considers reliable.
Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 27 Palestinians
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Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 27 Palestinians

- The civil defense agency said in a statement that 11 bodies were brought to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital
- A seven-year-old boy and three teenagers were among the dead
Israel security cabinet to discuss new phase of Gaza truce after Rubio visit

Rubio was in Israel on his first Middle East trip as President Donald Trump’s secretary of state.
“Hamas cannot continue as a military or a government force... they must be eliminated,” Rubio said of the Palestinian Islamist group that fought Israel for more than 15 months in Gaza until a fragile ceasefire took effect on January 19.
Standing beside him, Netanyahu said the two allies had “a common strategy,” and that “the gates of hell will be opened” if all hostages still held by militants in Gaza are not freed.
The comments came a day after Hamas freed three Israeli hostages in exchange for 369 Palestinian prisoners — the sixth such swap under the ceasefire deal, which the United States helped mediate along with Qatar and Egypt.
Israel and Hamas have traded accusations of ceasefire violations, and adding to strain on the deal is Trump’s widely condemned proposal to take control of rubble-strewn Gaza and relocate its more than two million residents.
“We discussed Trump’s bold vision for Gaza’s future and will work to ensure that vision becomes a reality,” Netanyahu said.
The scheme that Trump outlined earlier this month as Netanyahu visited Washington lacked details, but he said it would entail moving Gazans to Jordan or Egypt.
Trump has suggested the coastal territory could be redeveloped into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
Washington, Israel’s top ally and weapons supplier, says it is open to alternative proposals from Arab governments, but Rubio has said that for now, “the only plan is the Trump plan.”
However, Saudi Arabia and other Arab states have rejected his proposal, and instead favor — as does much of the international community — the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Sunday said establishment of a Palestinian state was “the only guarantee” of lasting Middle East peace.
Hamas and Israel are implementing the first, 42-day phase of the ceasefire, which nearly collapsed last week.
“At any moment the fighting could resume. We hope that the calm will continue and that Egypt will pressure Israel to prevent them from restarting the war and displacing people,” said Nasser Al-Astal, 62, a retired teacher in southern Gaza’s Khan Yunis.
Since the truce began last month, 19 Israeli hostages have been released in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Out of 251 people seized in Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war, 70 remain in Gaza, including 35 the Israeli military says are dead.
In a statement, Rubio condemned Hamas’s hostage-taking as “sick depravity” and called for the immediate release of all remaining captives, living and dead, particularly five Israeli-American dual nationals.
Negotiations on a second phase of the truce, aimed at securing a more lasting end to the war, could begin this week in Doha, a Hamas official and another source familiar with the talks have said.
Netanyahu’s office said he would convene a meeting of his security cabinet on Monday to discuss phase two.
It said the prime minister was also dispatching negotiators to Cairo Monday to discuss the “continued implementation” of phase one.
The team would “receive further directives for negotiations on Phase II” after the cabinet meeting, the office said.
The Gaza war triggered violent fallout throughout the Middle East, where Iran backs militant groups including in Yemen and Lebanon.
Israel fought a related war with Hamas’s Lebanese ally Hezbollah, severely weakening it.
There were also limited direct strikes by Iran and Israel against each other.
The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,211 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,271 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.
On Sunday, Hamas said an Israeli air strike killed three police officers near south Gaza’s Rafah in what the militant group called a “serious violation” of the truce.
Israel said it had struck “several armed individuals” in south Gaza.
It is at least the second Israeli air strike in Gaza since the ceasefire began.
Shipment of ‘heavy’ US-made bombs arrives in Israel

- The war has devastated much of Gaza, resulting in the displacement of much of its 2.4 million population
- In response to concerns over civilian deaths, former US President Joe Biden’s administration had blocked a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, but Trump reportedly approved them after taking office
JERUSALEM: Israel’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday that a shipment of “heavy” US-made bombs has arrived in Israel, as Marco Rubio began his first visit to the country as Washington’s top diplomat.
“A shipment of heavy aerial bombs recently released by the US government was received and unloaded overnight in Israel,” the ministry said in a statement, referring to MK-84 munitions recently authorized by President Donald Trump’s administration.
“The munitions shipment that arrived in Israel, released by the Trump administration, represents a significant asset for the air force and the military and serves as further evidence of the strong alliance” between Israel and the US, Defense Minister Israel Katz said in the statement.
The Trump administration had earlier in February approved the sale of more than $7.4 billion in bombs, missiles, and related equipment to Israel.
The sale “improves Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats, strengthen its homeland defense, and serves as a deterrent to regional threats,” the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said at the time.
Israel launched a hugely destructive offensive against Hamas in Gaza in October 2023 in response to an attack by the Palestinian group that month.
The war has devastated much of Gaza, resulting in the displacement of much of its 2.4 million population.
A ceasefire has been in effect since Jan.19, providing for the release of hostages seized by Hamas.
In response to concerns over civilian deaths, former US President Joe Biden’s administration had blocked a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, but Trump reportedly approved them after taking office.
A former Israeli negotiator has said Israel missed two opportunities last year to secure a Gaza truce and hasten hostage releases, prompting a swift rebuttal from the premier’s office.
“In my view, we missed two opportunities to sign an agreement ... in March and July” last year, said Oren Setter, who resigned from the Israeli negotiating team in October, in remarks broadcast on Channel 12.
“We did not do everything we could to bring them back as quickly as possible.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been accused by opposition figures and some families of hostages of not doing enough to secure their release and torpedoing talks.
On Saturday, his office dismissed Setter’s remarks, stating that “his claims that an agreement could have been reached earlier are entirely baseless.”
“Had the prime minister not stood firm, at least half of the living hostages would not have been freed in the first phase” of an ongoing truce, the statement said.
“As repeatedly testified by senior US officials, Hamas refused to engage in negotiations for months and was the sole obstacle to a deal,” the statement added.
Setter clarified that he wanted to “speak about facts” and argued that the deaths of hostages in captivity and “unnecessary suffering” could have been avoided while still placing primary responsibility for last year’s negotiation deadlock on Hamas.
Extremist militias in Lebanon ‘part of history,’ says Druze leader

- Walid Jumblatt calls for ‘stability to prevail’ and end to violence
- Iran halts flights to Beirut after Lebanese authorities suspend Iranian permits
BEIRUT: Extremist militias in Lebanon have become part of history, Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt said on Sunday.
In a statement, the former Progressive Socialist Party leader also said that the situation in Lebanon “has changed due to political and military circumstances, as well as the Israeli aggression.”
He said: “We have also agreed to implement international resolutions.”
Jumblatt added: “No one opposes a political confrontation with Israel, but we have seen where the use of arms led us, despite Hezbollah’s significant sacrifices.”
FASTFACT
Lebanon’s army on Sunday urged residents against going to southern areas where its forces had not finished deploying under an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal, after Israeli gunfire killed a woman.
He added: “We do not want a segment of Lebanese society to be a tool in the hands of Iran. After all these wars, we have the right to see stability prevail.”
Jumblatt’s statement comes in the wake of a decision by Lebanese authorities to suspend Iranian flights to Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport until Feb. 18.
Hossein Pourfarzaneh, head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Authority, said that in light of “security issues” at Beirut airport, all flights to Lebanon have been canceled until Feb. 18 at the earliest.
Social media users on Sunday called for sit-ins on the airport road for the fourth consecutive day despite the Lebanese army’s decision to prevent the closure of public roads.
Troops used tear gas to disperse protesters who blocked the airport road on Saturday after demonstrations escalated into attacks on UNIFIL vehicles, resulting in injuries, and causing widespread outrage both in Lebanon and internationally.
The army command on Sunday said that its intervention during Saturday’s sit-in on the road to Rafic Hariri International Airport was pre-coordinated with the organizers.
Despite agreeing to stage a peaceful demonstration, a group of protesters blocked the road and attacked military personnel assigned to maintain security, the army statement said.
Vehicles were damaged and at least 23 soldiers, including three officers, were injured in the ensuing violence.
The statement added that military units had to intervene to protect personnel and reopen the road.
Lebanon is waiting to complete deployment of its army in areas that Israeli forces are due to vacate by Feb.18.
However, Israel announced it will not remove its troops from five strategic hills along the border.
With 48 hours remaining for the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops, further Israeli military action took place in several border towns, including Kfarshouba.
A woman was killed and several other people wounded on Sunday when Israeli forces fired on a group of residents attempting to return to the border town of Houla.
Five people, including two paramedics, were also arrested after residents tried to cross earth barriers set up by Israeli forces.
Families bypassed the Lebanese army’s positions and tried to enter the town with the aim of “recovering the bodies of their sons” who were affiliated with Hezbollah and were killed during clashes with Israeli forces.
Khadija Hussein Atwi was killed when Israeli troops fired on the group. Her father had been killed during confrontations with Israel.
Lebanon’s army later urged residents to avoid heading to border areas where its forces had not completed deployment.
In a statement, the army command said that “citizens must not go to the southern regions where the army has not completed its deployment and must adhere to the instructions of the deployed military units, to preserve their safety and avoid the fall of innocent people, given the danger of unexploded ordnance left behind by the Israeli enemy, in addition to the possibility of the presence of enemy forces in those areas.”
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam discussed the ceasefire agreement and the withdrawal of the Israeli troops in a phone call with his Qatari counterpart and Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.
The Qatari foreign minister reiterated Qatar’s support for Lebanon, its unity and territorial integrity.
A statement from Qatar’s Foreign Ministry highlighted “the importance of fully adhering to the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon and the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation from the Lebanese territories.”
Israel is committed to the ceasefire, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Netanyahu said that he expects Lebanon to commit to its role and to disarm Hezbollah.
The US secretary of state said that the Lebanese state “must be strong and able to disarm Hezbollah.”
Hezbollah chief says Israel must fully withdraw from Lebanon by February 18

- Hezbollah secretary general Naim Qassem said: “Israel must withdraw completely on Feb. 18, it has no pretext, no five points or other details... this is the agreement”
BEIRUT: The head of Hezbollah said on Sunday that Israeli troops must withdraw from Lebanese territory in full by a February 18 deadline, saying it had “no pretext” to maintain a military presence in any post in southern Lebanon.
Under a truce brokered by Washington in November, Israeli troops were granted 60 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon where they had waged a ground offensive against fighters from Iran-backed Hezbollah since early October.
That deadline was later extended to February 18, but Israel’s military requested that it keep troops in five posts in southern Lebanon, sources told Reuters last week.
In a recorded televised speech, Hezbollah secretary general Naim Qassem said: “Israel must withdraw completely on Feb. 18, it has no pretext, no five points or other details... this is the agreement.”
Qassem said any Israeli military presence on Lebanese soil after February 18 would be considered an occupying force.
“Everyone knows how an occupation is dealt with,” Qassem said, without explicitly threatening that his group would resume attacks against Israel.
Israel’s public broadcaster said on Wednesday the US had authorized a “long term” Israeli troop presence in southern Lebanon.
During the broadcast of Qassem’s speech, at least three Israeli air strikes hit Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley. Israel’s military said it conducted strikes after identifying Hezbollah activity at sites containing rocket launchers and other weapons.
US Mideast envoy says phase two Gaza talks to continue this week

- Witkoff said he had “very productive and constructive” calls on Sunday with Netanyahu, Qatar’s prime minister and Egypt’s director of intelligence
NEW YORK: US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said on Sunday that talks on phase two of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas would continue this week “at a location to be determined” to figure out how to reach a successful conclusion.
He told Fox News that he had “very productive and constructive” calls on Sunday with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Egypt’s director of intelligence.
Witkoff said they spoke about “the sequencing of phase two, setting forth positions on both sides, so we can understand ... where we are today, and then continuing talks this week at a location to be determined so that we can figure out how we get to the end of phase two successfully.”