EXPLANER
At least 18 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza town of Khan Younis.
Here’s how things are going on Saturday January 6, 2024:
Latest updates:
- An Israeli airstrike killed at least 18 Palestinians after targeting a house in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis overnight.
- Three people were killed and several injured in an Israeli attack on a house in the town of Deir el-Balah in Gaza, in the central area of the Palestinian territory.
- Violent clashes were reported in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus and the Shu’fat refugee camp in occupied East Jerusalem amid Israeli military raids.
- The Israeli army says it struck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon on Friday with airstrikes, tank fire and artillery bombardments.
Human impact
- At least 22,600 people have been killed and 57,910 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll from the October 7 attack on Israel stands at 1,139.
- The Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza has been flooded by heavy rains and municipal services remain closed. Sewage is seeping into the camp, which houses thousands of people, raising fears of the spread of disease.
- The United Nations has warned that Gaza has become “uninhabitable” after three months of fighting.
Diplomacy
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Turkey where he is expected to discuss the war in Gaza with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Blinken will also visit several other Middle Eastern countries before heading to Israel and the occupied West Bank next week.
- Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has warned that Lebanon could be “exposed” if the armed group does not respond to the assassination of Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut.
- The families of six people captured in the October 7 Hamas attack have arrived in Qatar to discuss efforts to free remaining prisoners with the country’s prime minister.
- Rwanda, Chad and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have categorically denied any negotiations with Israel regarding the movement of Palestinians from Gaza to their respective countries.