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A senior Houthi official has vowed that the Yemeni rebels will continue operations against Israel, as repeated attacks by the Iran-backed group have disrupted international shipping through a key Red Sea waterway.
“The Houthis will not abandon the Palestinian cause, regardless of any US, Israeli, or Western threats,” Houthi politburo member Ali al-Qahoum told Al-Mayadeen, according to Reuters, while warning any hostile move against Yemen would have dire consequences.
Israel pounded targets in the crowded southern half of the Gaza Strip on Saturday and ordered more neighborhoods designated for attack to evacuate, driving up the death toll even as the United States and others urged it to do more to protect Gaza civilians a day after a truce collapsed.
At least 200 Palestinians have been killed since the fighting resumed Friday morning following the weeklong truce with the territory’s ruling militant group Hamas, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. Several homes were hit across Gaza on Saturday, with multiple casualties reported in a strike that flattened a multi-story building on the outskirts of Gaza City.
Qatar’s foreign ministry says that 13 women and children held hostage by Hamas in Gaza will be handed over to the Red Cross.
A four-day cease-fire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas will begin Friday morning, Qatar said, a day later than originally announced, as negotiators worked out final details of the deal, which is to lead to the release of dozens of hostages held by militants and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
The Israeli army announced Thursday evening that it had “completed the encirclement of Gaza City”, a week after the start of its ground operation in the Palestinian territory.
“Our soldiers have completed the encirclement of Gaza City, the centre of the Hamas terrorist organisation,” Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari told a news briefing.
Israel is preparing a ground invasion of Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised statement on Wednesday, but he declined to provide any details on the timing or other information about the operation.
He said the decision on when forces would go into the Palestinian enclave, controlled by the Islamist movement Hamas, would be taken by the government’s special war cabinet, which includes the leader of one of the centrist opposition parties.