The Times of Israel is liveblogging Tuesday’s events as they happen.
IDF announces 4 soldiers killed fighting in Gaza; ground op toll rises to 180
The Israel Defense Forces announces that four soldiers have been killed fighting in the Gaza Strip, raising the death toll in the ground offensive against Hamas to 180.
They are:
Sgt. Roi Tal, 19, from Kfar Yehoshua, of the Kfir Brigade’s 94th Duchifat Battalion, who was killed in southern Gaza.
Sgt. First Class (res.) David Schwartz, 26, from Elazar, of the Combat Engineering Corp’s 8219th Battalion, who was killed in southern Gaza.
Sgt. First Class (res.) Yakir Hexter, 26, from Jerusalem, of the Combat Engineering Corp’s 8219th Battalion, who was killed in southern Gaza.
Sgt. First Class (res.) Gavriel Bloom, 27, from Beit Shemesh, a combat engineer in the 36th Division, who was killed in central Gaza.
The army says that in the battle in which Schwartz and Hexter were killed, another soldier the Combat Engineering Corp’s 8219th Battalion was seriously wounded.
It adds that an officer and two other reserve combat engineers from the 36th Division were seriously hurt in the fighting that claimed Bloom’s life.
Additionally, two officers from the 646th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade were seriously wounded in central Gaza.
All of the wounded troops were taken to hospitals for medical treatment.
Blinken speaks with UN’s new humanitarian coordinator for Gaza
The US State Department says Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with the UN’s new coordinator for humanitarian and reconstruction in the Gaza Strip.
According to the State Department, Blinken and Sigrid Kaag called for “strengthening the coordination mechanism delivering humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza, and facilitating assistance to the northern part of the Gaza Strip to enable the return of displaced people.”
“They emphasized a shared commitment to reach the most vulnerable including urgently expanding the entry of aid and commercial goods into Gaza, increasing use of localized aid to meet immediate needs, and enhancing funding for humanitarian assistance,” says the readout from the State Department.
The State Department statement is released following Blinken’s arrival in Tel Aviv, where he’s slated to meet with Israeli leaders to discuss the ongoing war against Hamas.
Jordan launches strikes in Syria on Iran-linked drug smugglers — intel sources
AMMAN — Jordanian jets conducted four strikes inside Syria early Tuesday in the second such raid within a week against suspected farms and hideouts of Iran-linked drug smugglers, regional intelligence sources say.
Jordan’s army has stepped up a campaign against drug dealers after clashes last month with dozens of people suspected of links to pro-Iranian militias, who were carrying large hauls over its border with Syria along with weapons and explosives.
Jordan and its Western allies have blamed Lebanon-based, Iran-backed Hezbollah and other pro-Iranian militia who control much of southern Syria as being behind the surge in smuggling.
Iran and Hezbollah have dismissed the allegations as a Western plot against Syria, which itself denies complicity with Iran-backed militia which opponents link to its security forces.
The sources confirm reports by Syrian newsportal Suwayda 24 that three strikes targeted leading drug dealers in the towns of Shaab and Arman in Sweida province near the Jordan-Syria border. The fourth strike hit a farm near the village of Malah.
Last Thursday, Jordan hit similar locations in Sweida, where officials suspect much of the cross-border smuggling operations take place.
Pentagon says no plans to withdraw US troops from Iraq
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon says it’s not currently planning to withdraw its roughly 2,500 troops from Iraq, despite Baghdad’s announcement last week it would begin the process of removing the US-led military coalition from the country.
“Right now, I’m not aware of any plans (to plan for withdrawal). We continue to remain very focused on the defeat ISIS mission,” Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder tells a news briefing, using an acronym for Islamic State. He adds that US forces are in Iraq at the invitation of its government.
Ryder says he’s also unaware of any notification by Baghdad to the Department of Defense about a decision to remove US troops, and refers reporters to the US State Department for any diplomatic discussions on the matter.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s office announced on Friday the moves to evict US forces following a US drone strike in Baghdad that was condemned by the government. The Pentagon said the strike killed a militia leader responsible for recent attacks on US personnel.
Sudani’s office released a statement saying a committee would be formed to “put arrangements to end the presence of the international coalition forces in Iraq permanently.”
“We stress our firm position in ending the existence of the international coalition after the justifications for its existence have ended,” Sudani was quoted as saying in the statement.
The US strike on Thursday, which came four years after another one in Baghdad that killed a prominent Iranian general, triggered outrage among Iran-aligned groups which demanded the government end the presence of the coalition in Iraq.
The strike was pre-authorized by US President Joe Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin before the latter was admitted to a hospital on New Year’s Day, where he remains.
The US has 900 troops in Syria in addition to its troops in Iraq on a mission it says advises and assists local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State, which in 2014 seized large parts of both countries before being defeated.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began in October, the US military has come under attack at least 100 times in Iraq and Syria, usually with a mix of rockets and one-way attack drones.
Sudani has limited control over some Iran-backed factions, whose support he needed to win power a year ago and who now form a powerful bloc in his governing coalition.
Last month, the United States also carried out retaliatory air strikes in Iraq after a drone attack by Iran-aligned militants that left one US service member in critical condition and wounded two others.
Herzog speaks with Harris, hails US backing for Israel’s ‘right and duty to defend itself – on all its borders’
President Isaac Herzog spoke with US Vice President Kamala Harris earlier today, their offices say.
“I was pleased to speak this evening with US Vice President Kamala Harris who stressed the steadfast commitment of US President Joe Biden along with her own and that of the Administration, to the well-being and security of the State of Israel,” Herzog tweets.
“I thanked her for the US’s continued support for Israel’s right and duty to defend itself — on all its borders. I also thanked her for the US’s ongoing efforts to see all the hostages returned home, which must be an urgent priority for the whole world,” he adds.
The White House readout repeats old talking points, saying that Harris “reiterated our steadfast support for Israel and its right to defend itself in the face of threats from Hamas, and she again condemned Hamas as a barbaric terrorist organization that perpetrated a horrific massacre on October 7 and engaged in brutal sexual violence.”
The pair “discussed efforts to prevent the conflict in Gaza from spreading to the broader region, including in Lebanon and the Red Sea.”
They also “spoke about the shift to lower intensity operations in Gaza, securing the release of all hostages, and the importance of protecting of civilian lives and increasing humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” the White House readout says, adding that they also “discussed ongoing planning for post-conflict Gaza and progress made on that front.”
Harris “reiterated US positions, including that Israel must be secure, there must be no forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, and the Palestinians must have a hopeful political horizon,” the White House says, adding that the vice president “also reiterated that the United States wants to see a more integrated, connected and prosperous Middle East.”