Dozens of Palestinians leave the besieged Nasser Hospital in the southern town of Khan Younis after Israeli forces ordered an evacuation.
Here’s how things are going on Thursday, February 15, 2024:
Humanitarian crisis in Gaza
- Dozens of Palestinians were seen leaving the besieged Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip after Israeli forces ordered the evacuation of the medical center, but health officials said Thousands of people, including seriously ill patients, remained indoors.
- Heavy tank and machine gun fire was reported as the Israeli army entered the hospital.
- The Israeli military called the attack “precise and limited,” adding that it was based on “credible information” that Hamas fighters were hiding at the facility and keeping prisoners there. A Hamas spokesperson denied the allegations, calling them “lies.” Israel has made similar claims in the past, but has presented no evidence.
- Tel Aviv Tribune correspondents reported that at least 11 people were killed during an intense bombardment on the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central part of the Gaza Strip.
Regional tensions and diplomacy
- UN relief chief Martin Griffiths has warned that the 1.4 million Palestinians who have sought refuge in Rafah could be forced to flee to Egypt if Israel launches its planned military operation against the border town.
- “The possibility of a military operation in Rafah with the possibility of closure of the terminal, with the possibility of overflows, … a sort of Egyptian nightmare, … is before our eyes,” Griffiths said.
- Separately, the U.S. military’s Central Command, or CENTCOM, said its forces seized advanced conventional weapons and other lethal aid from Iran that were bound for Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on a ship in the Arabian Sea on January 28.
- In Lebanon, Israeli military aircraft carried out a wave of at least 12 strikes in the Wadi Saluki region of Lebanon, according to an Israeli military statement posted on social media.
Occupied West Bank
- Israel has arrested at least 20 Palestinians in the West Bank, including a child and a former prisoner, the Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Society of Palestinian Prisoners said.
- The arrests took place in Tulkarem, Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus, Jenin and Jerusalem. The total number of arrests since October 7 now stands at 7,040.