UN shelter hit in deadly strike as Red Cross warns of total medical shutdown. Here's what to know
From CNN staff
A United Nations building sheltering displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza was hit by Israeli tank fire Wednesday, killing at least nine people and injuring 75 others, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency in Gaza.
Israel's military said it "currently" ruled out that an Israeli aerial or artillery strike hit the UNRWA Khan Younis Training Center. The IDF said a “thorough review of the operations of the forces in the vicinity is underway.”
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on X that the entire center, one of the largest UNRWA facilities in Gaza, was sheltering 30,000 people, and is clearly marked as a UN site.
On the ground: Israel's military operation in Khan Younis will continue for "several days," the IDF said Wednesday as streams of Palestinians flee the southern city. US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Israeli forces have "taken steps to transition their operations," including moving toward more "targeted" operations.
Humanitarian crisis: Huge displacement camps have mushroomed across Gaza, where illnesses such as diarrhea, jaundice and Hepatitis A are spreading due to overcrowded conditions and limited access to drinkable water or sanitation. Several displaced Gaza residents detailed having no access to medicine or clothes amid the soaking rain. Dozens of displaced women and children gathered in front of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah on Wednesday, chanting for a ceasefire.
Health care warning: The International Committee of the Red Cross issued a stark warning, saying Gaza faces a complete medical shutdown unless immediate action is taken to safeguard essential services. Meanwhile, the Israeli military operation in Khan Younis will shut down the largest operating hospital in southern Gaza, UNRWA told CNN.
ICJ ruling: The International Court of Justice said that it will deliver its ruling Friday on whether to enact provisional measures to temporarily suspend Israel's military campaign in Gaza. South Africa took Israel to the ICJ, on claims that it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Israel denies the accusation.
Houthi attacks: Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted US warships with ballistic missiles in the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandab Strait on Wednesday. It comes after the US Navy said it shot down two missiles fired by the Houthis at a US-flagged container ship.
2 min ago
ICJ will deliver a ruling Friday on genocide case against Israel
From CNN’s Mariya Knight and Jomana Karadsheh
International Court of Justice members are seen in The Hague, Netherlands, on January 11. Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
The International Court of Justice will deliver its ruling Friday on whether to enact provisional measures to temporarily suspend Israel's military campaign in Gaza, the ICJ said in a news release.
South Africa filed the case against Israel at the ICJ, claiming it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and failing to prevent and punish genocide in violation of its obligations under the Genocide Convention.
Israel has rejected the accusations, calling them “false” and "grossly distorted."
South Africa has asked the court, which is the main legal arm of the United Nations, to enforce “provisional measures” to protect the rights of Palestinians in Gaza “from imminent and irreparable loss.”
The measures would function as a kind of restraining order to stop the dispute from escalating while the full case progresses through the court, which could take years. And while the court’s rulings are final and binding, in practice it has no way of enforcing them.
36 min ago
Houthi rebels claim missile attacks on US warships in Gulf of Aden
From CNN's Ruba Alhenawi
Yemen's Houthi rebels targeted US warships with ballistic missiles in the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandab Strait on Wednesday, a Houthi spokesperson said Wednesday.
The Yemeni group "engaged" with US warships that tried to protect two American commercial vessels, spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a statement.
As a result, one of the vessels suffered a “direct hit” and the two American commercial ships were forced to turn back from the area, Saree said.
“Several of our ballistic missiles hit their targets despite the warships’ attempts to intercept them,” Saree said.
The Iran-backed Houthis have said they won’t stop their attacks on commercial shipping in until the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza ends.
The USS Gravely, which was nearby at the time, shot down two of the missiles, and one landed in the water, the officials said. There were no injuries or damage to the ship, CENTCOM said in a statement.
3 hr 41 min ago
Displaced Palestinians in central Gaza demand ceasefire: "Our children have the right to live"
From CNN’s Abeer Salman and Sana Noor Haq
Dozens of displaced women and children gathered in front of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah on Wednesday, raising their hands and chanting for a ceasefire.
Draped in scarves and winter coats, demonstrators carried posters aimed at both Israel and Hamas, with messages that read, “Stop the war” and “Release prisoners now,” referring to the Israeli hostages taken during Hamas' murderous rampage in Israelon October 7.
Israel has fiercely responded to that attack by besieging and bombing Gaza, devastating large parts of the enclave and displacing at least 1.93 million people, according to the United Nations agency for Palestine refugees.
"We were forced to leave our homes. The airstrikes were on our heads, our relatives are under the rubble, they were killed in front of our eyes, so we fled,” one woman, who wished to remain anonymous, told CNN. "I am dying. I don't want flour, I don't want coupons, I want to go back home."
Huge displacement camps have mushroomed across Gaza, where illnesses such as diarrhea, jaundice and Hepatitis A are spreading due to overcrowded conditions and limited access to drinkable water or sanitation.
"We cannot feed our children or buy wood. We demand a ceasefire and to go back to our homes, even if they are struck. We will rebuild them,” said Ismail Hassouna, another civilian. "We are against transferring and killing policies, killing children and starving people, stealing aid, keeping people inside tents without the minimum essentials for living,” Hassouna added. “We have the right to live, our children have the right to live."
With winter winds and torrential rains lashing Gaza, Nuha Shaheen told CNN that children “are dying of cold.”
“What's left? Enough, we want to go back home."
33 min ago
"Mass casualties" after Israeli tank fire hits UN shelter in Khan Younis, UN says
From CNN's Celine Alkhaldi, Ibrahim Dahman and Kareem Khadder
Israeli tank fire struck a United Nations building sheltering hundreds of displaced people in southern Gaza on Wednesday, causing "mass casualties," according to the main UN relief agency in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
In a post on X, Thomas White, director of UNRWA Affairs, said at least nine people were killed and 75 others injured at the agency's Khan Younis Training Center, where 800 people were sheltering.
“Buildings ablaze and mass casualties. Safe access to and from the center has been denied for two days. People are trapped,” White said on X. Teams from UNRWA and the World Health Organization were trying to reach the site, he added.
Video obtained by CNN showed wreaths of smoke hanging over the UN shelter after a huge blaze broke out.
Israeli military response: In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had “currently” ruled out that the incident was “the result of an aerial or artillery strike by the IDF.” The IDF said a “thorough review of the operations of the forces in the vicinity is underway” and added it is “examining the possibility that the strike was a result of Hamas fire.”
In the past week, the IDF has intensified its offensive on Khan Younis, where medical facilities sheltering displaced civilians and health workers have been battered. The IDF maintains there are Hamas militants located in hospitals in the area. Relief agencies say the siege has blocked critical humanitarian operations.
Urgent action needed to stop complete medical shutdown in Gaza, Red Cross says
From CNN's Hamdi Alkhshali
Gaza faces a complete medical shutdown unless immediate action is taken to safeguard essential services, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned on Thursday
The Nasser medical complex and the European Gaza Hospital, both in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, are the only referral hospitals “that provide advanced surgical and medical emergency services with large bed capacities, which is not sufficient for the current wounded and sick across Gaza,” the Red Cross said.
More than 1.5 million people are living in dire conditions in southern Gaza, according to the Red Cross.
“Every functioning hospital in the Gaza Strip is overcrowded and short on medical supplies, fuel, food and water. Many are housing thousands of displaced families. And now two more facilities risk being lost due to the fighting,” said William Schomburg, the head of the Red Cross' office in Gaza. “The cumulative impact on the health system is devastating and urgent action must be taken.”
The Israel Defense Forces have insisted that Hamas systematically operates in Gaza hospitals and adjacent areas, "using the residents as human shields." The IDF said Wednesday that it will continue to operate in Khan Younis for "several days."
4 hr 35 min ago
Israeli military operation in Khan Younis will force main hospital to close, UN agency says
From CNN’s Celine Alkhaldi and Kareem Khadder
The Israeli military operation in Khan Younis will shut down the largest operating hospital in southern Gaza, the director of affairs for the UN's relief agency for the enclave told CNN.
Thomas White of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said the Nasser Hospital is “under threat” because it is located in an area that is being forced to evacuate.
“The Israeli army intend to undertake a major operation in the west of Khan Younis, despite all of the assurances that we receive that people would be safe there,” White said.
For several days, UNRWA has been trying to get access to western Khan Younis, where the hospital is located, but White said the agency has been denied by the Israeli military because "fighting is too heavy."
“Now, tens of thousands of people are on the road again, many of them displaced multiple times,” White said, adding that many are making their way to the southern city of Rafah, where “there is no more open ground for people.” “Nobody imagined the level of death, destruction and displacement that we've seen in the last three months,” he said.
A UN building sheltering displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis was struck by Israeli tank fire, causing "mass casualties," a UN agency said. Israel's military said it "currently" ruled out that the strike was the result of an IDF aerial or artillery strike.
The Red Cross has warned that Gaza faces a complete medical shutdown unless immediate action is taken to safeguard essential services.
The International Court of Justice said it will deliver its ruling Friday on whether to enact provisional measures to temporarily suspend Israel's military campaign in Gaza. South Africa took Israel to the ICJ on claims that it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, which Israel denies.
Meanwhile, Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted US warships with ballistic missiles. It comes after the US Navy said it shot down two missiles fired by the Houthis at a US-flagged container ship.
A United Nations building sheltering displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza was hit by Israeli tank fire Wednesday, killing at least nine people and injuring 75 others, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency in Gaza.
Israel's military said it "currently" ruled out that an Israeli aerial or artillery strike hit the UNRWA Khan Younis Training Center. The IDF said a “thorough review of the operations of the forces in the vicinity is underway.”
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on X that the entire center, one of the largest UNRWA facilities in Gaza, was sheltering 30,000 people, and is clearly marked as a UN site.
On the ground: Israel's military operation in Khan Younis will continue for "several days," the IDF said Wednesday as streams of Palestinians flee the southern city. US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Israeli forces have "taken steps to transition their operations," including moving toward more "targeted" operations.
Humanitarian crisis: Huge displacement camps have mushroomed across Gaza, where illnesses such as diarrhea, jaundice and Hepatitis A are spreading due to overcrowded conditions and limited access to drinkable water or sanitation. Several displaced Gaza residents detailed having no access to medicine or clothes amid the soaking rain. Dozens of displaced women and children gathered in front of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah on Wednesday, chanting for a ceasefire.
Health care warning: The International Committee of the Red Cross issued a stark warning, saying Gaza faces a complete medical shutdown unless immediate action is taken to safeguard essential services. Meanwhile, the Israeli military operation in Khan Younis will shut down the largest operating hospital in southern Gaza, UNRWA told CNN.
ICJ ruling: The International Court of Justice said that it will deliver its ruling Friday on whether to enact provisional measures to temporarily suspend Israel's military campaign in Gaza. South Africa took Israel to the ICJ, on claims that it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Israel denies the accusation.
Houthi attacks: Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted US warships with ballistic missiles in the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandab Strait on Wednesday. It comes after the US Navy said it shot down two missiles fired by the Houthis at a US-flagged container ship.
International Court of Justice members are seen in The Hague, Netherlands, on January 11. Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
The International Court of Justice will deliver its ruling Friday on whether to enact provisional measures to temporarily suspend Israel's military campaign in Gaza, the ICJ said in a news release.
South Africa filed the case against Israel at the ICJ, claiming it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and failing to prevent and punish genocide in violation of its obligations under the Genocide Convention.
Israel has rejected the accusations, calling them “false” and "grossly distorted."
South Africa has asked the court, which is the main legal arm of the United Nations, to enforce “provisional measures” to protect the rights of Palestinians in Gaza “from imminent and irreparable loss.”
The measures would function as a kind of restraining order to stop the dispute from escalating while the full case progresses through the court, which could take years. And while the court’s rulings are final and binding, in practice it has no way of enforcing them.
Yemen's Houthi rebels targeted US warships with ballistic missiles in the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandab Strait on Wednesday, a Houthi spokesperson said Wednesday.
The Yemeni group "engaged" with US warships that tried to protect two American commercial vessels, spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a statement.
As a result, one of the vessels suffered a “direct hit” and the two American commercial ships were forced to turn back from the area, Saree said.
“Several of our ballistic missiles hit their targets despite the warships’ attempts to intercept them,” Saree said.
The Iran-backed Houthis have said they won’t stop their attacks on commercial shipping in until the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza ends.
The USS Gravely, which was nearby at the time, shot down two of the missiles, and one landed in the water, the officials said. There were no injuries or damage to the ship, CENTCOM said in a statement.
Dozens of displaced women and children gathered in front of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah on Wednesday, raising their hands and chanting for a ceasefire.
Draped in scarves and winter coats, demonstrators carried posters aimed at both Israel and Hamas, with messages that read, “Stop the war” and “Release prisoners now,” referring to the Israeli hostages taken during Hamas' murderous rampage in Israelon October 7.
Israel has fiercely responded to that attack by besieging and bombing Gaza, devastating large parts of the enclave and displacing at least 1.93 million people, according to the United Nations agency for Palestine refugees.
"We were forced to leave our homes. The airstrikes were on our heads, our relatives are under the rubble, they were killed in front of our eyes, so we fled,” one woman, who wished to remain anonymous, told CNN. "I am dying. I don't want flour, I don't want coupons, I want to go back home."
Huge displacement camps have mushroomed across Gaza, where illnesses such as diarrhea, jaundice and Hepatitis A are spreading due to overcrowded conditions and limited access to drinkable water or sanitation.
"We cannot feed our children or buy wood. We demand a ceasefire and to go back to our homes, even if they are struck. We will rebuild them,” said Ismail Hassouna, another civilian. "We are against transferring and killing policies, killing children and starving people, stealing aid, keeping people inside tents without the minimum essentials for living,” Hassouna added. “We have the right to live, our children have the right to live."
With winter winds and torrential rains lashing Gaza, Nuha Shaheen told CNN that children “are dying of cold.”
“What's left? Enough, we want to go back home."
Israeli tank fire struck a United Nations building sheltering hundreds of displaced people in southern Gaza on Wednesday, causing "mass casualties," according to the main UN relief agency in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
In a post on X, Thomas White, director of UNRWA Affairs, said at least nine people were killed and 75 others injured at the agency's Khan Younis Training Center, where 800 people were sheltering.
“Buildings ablaze and mass casualties. Safe access to and from the center has been denied for two days. People are trapped,” White said on X. Teams from UNRWA and the World Health Organization were trying to reach the site, he added.
Video obtained by CNN showed wreaths of smoke hanging over the UN shelter after a huge blaze broke out.
Israeli military response: In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had “currently” ruled out that the incident was “the result of an aerial or artillery strike by the IDF.” The IDF said a “thorough review of the operations of the forces in the vicinity is underway” and added it is “examining the possibility that the strike was a result of Hamas fire.”
In the past week, the IDF has intensified its offensive on Khan Younis, where medical facilities sheltering displaced civilians and health workers have been battered. The IDF maintains there are Hamas militants located in hospitals in the area. Relief agencies say the siege has blocked critical humanitarian operations.
Gaza faces a complete medical shutdown unless immediate action is taken to safeguard essential services, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned on Thursday
The Nasser medical complex and the European Gaza Hospital, both in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, are the only referral hospitals “that provide advanced surgical and medical emergency services with large bed capacities, which is not sufficient for the current wounded and sick across Gaza,” the Red Cross said.
More than 1.5 million people are living in dire conditions in southern Gaza, according to the Red Cross.
“Every functioning hospital in the Gaza Strip is overcrowded and short on medical supplies, fuel, food and water. Many are housing thousands of displaced families. And now two more facilities risk being lost due to the fighting,” said William Schomburg, the head of the Red Cross' office in Gaza. “The cumulative impact on the health system is devastating and urgent action must be taken.”
The Israel Defense Forces have insisted that Hamas systematically operates in Gaza hospitals and adjacent areas, "using the residents as human shields." The IDF said Wednesday that it will continue to operate in Khan Younis for "several days."
The Israeli military operation in Khan Younis will shut down the largest operating hospital in southern Gaza, the director of affairs for the UN's relief agency for the enclave told CNN.
Thomas White of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said the Nasser Hospital is “under threat” because it is located in an area that is being forced to evacuate.
“The Israeli army intend to undertake a major operation in the west of Khan Younis, despite all of the assurances that we receive that people would be safe there,” White said.
For several days, UNRWA has been trying to get access to western Khan Younis, where the hospital is located, but White said the agency has been denied by the Israeli military because "fighting is too heavy."
“Now, tens of thousands of people are on the road again, many of them displaced multiple times,” White said, adding that many are making their way to the southern city of Rafah, where “there is no more open ground for people.” “Nobody imagined the level of death, destruction and displacement that we've seen in the last three months,” he said.
