Israel war on Gaza updates: No deal means captives in ‘coffins’, says Hamas

To learn more about Hamas’s warning that Israel’s military raids in Gaza mean more captives will “return in coffins”, read this.

For more on the deadly Israeli incursion into the occupied West Bank, click here.

And follow along with all our coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza, here.

This live page is closing soon. Here’s a look at the latest news:

• US President Biden acknowledged that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu isn’t doing enough to secure a deal with Hamas to free Israeli captives. Netanyahu brushed aside the criticism.
• Hamas’s armed wing said it issued new instructions to guards handling captives, saying: “Netanyahu’s insistence on releasing the prisoners through military pressure – instead of concluding a deal – will mean they’ll be returned to their families in coffins.”
• Medical teams have now vaccinated 158,992 children in Gaza after two days of a complex polio eradication campaign.
• As the Israeli assault on the occupied West Bank continues, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said it received the body of Ayman Rajeh Abed, 58, from the village of Kafr Dan, just outside Jenin, after he was arrested at dawn.
• The Israeli army has attacked a queue of people buying bread in front of a shelter for displaced Palestinians in the Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern Gaza Strip, killing at least five and injuring several others.
• The UK announced that it would suspend 30 arms export licences to Israel over fears the weapons will be used in “international crimes”.

The salvage operation of the oil tanker MV Sounion, recently attacked by Yemen’s Houthis, is set to begin, the European Union’s mission in the Red Sea, Aspides, says.

“Several fires” continue to burn on the Greek-registered vessel, which is laden with about 1 million barrels of crude oil, Aspides said in a statement, adding that there are no visible signs of an oil spill.

The salvage operation is likely to be complex and if a spill occurs, it has the potential to be among the largest from a ship in recorded history and could cause an environmental catastrophe in an area particularly dangerous to access.

“The MV Sounion, due to the large amount of crude oil it carries, presents a significant environmental threat. Private companies are involved in the salvage operation,” Aspides said on X.

The EU’s naval force said on Monday that it would provide protection to the tug boats that will deal with the salvage operation. The Houthis have waged a campaign against Israeli-linked commercial shipping to support Palestinians during Israel’s war on Gaza.

Late Monday, several thousand demonstrators gathered outside Netanyahu’s private home in central Jerusalem, chanting, “Deal, Now”, and carrying coffins draped in the Israeli flag.

Scuffles broke out when police snatched away the coffins, and several protesters were arrested. Thousands more marched outside Netanyahu’s Likud party in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media.

Netanyahu has pledged “total victory” over Hamas and blames it for the failure of the negotiations. On Monday, he rejected a full withdrawal from Gaza – a key Hamas demand – saying he saw no other party that could control Gaza’s borders.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) says the polio outbreak in Gaza is a consequence of Israel’s continuous destruction of the Strip’s infrastructure and health system.

“The resulting unhygienic and appalling living conditions and the lack of access to vaccination can lead to the spread of the disease,” MSF said in a post on X.

The medical charity is aiding the UN in its large-scale polio vaccination drive.

“The campaign – which targets about 640,000 children under 10 years old – is a positive step but it is still a drop in the ocean in response to the critical medical humanitarian needs,” MSF said.

“The campaign and announcement of military pauses during the vaccination should not divert attention from the relentless violence and impact on delivery of humanitarian aid.”

Gil Dickmann’s aunt was killed on October 7. His cousin is a captive. He’s leading the charge against Israel’s war on Gaza.

Night after night, Dickmann takes to a stage in Tel Aviv to rally his fellow Israelis in demanding their government change its approach to the war. The 31-year-old says a deal with Hamas is the only way to end the killing and bring Israeli captives home.

Dickmann reveals how the war has changed him. “I don’t know any people from Gaza. Maybe that’s the wake-up call. We thought we could live if we shelter ourselves and go to safe rooms and build the Iron Dome… and we don’t have to find a solution for this.”

Five people, including a paramedic, were wounded when Israeli drones attacked the Tulkarem refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, the Wafa news agency reports.

Israeli drones bombed the Al-Hamam neighbourhood. The paramedic was injured by shrapnel to the face. Volunteer medics working inside the camp were able to reach the wounded and provide first aid as their injuries were minor, the news agency said.

Israel’s raid on the Tulkarem camp continues as the military expands its destructive incursion into the occupied West Bank, now in its seventh day.

The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process denounced the rising civilian death toll during Israel’s unrelenting war on Gaza.

“Today, I returned to Gaza and witnessed firsthand the catastrophic impact of the hostilities. The scale of destruction is immense, the humanitarian needs are colossal and soaring, and civilians continue to bear the brunt of this conflict,” Tor Wennesland said in a statement.

“I unequivocally condemn the horrifying civilian death toll in Gaza.”

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 40,786 Palestinians – mostly women and children – and wounded at least 94,224 others, according to local health authorities.

Reiterating his call for a ceasefire, Wennesland said he would continue to engage the warring sides.

“A deal is crucial to saving lives, reducing regional tensions and enabling the UN, in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority, to accelerate efforts to address the pressing needs of Gaza’s population.

“The ongoing conflict has destroyed the lives of countless families. It must stop.”

Biden acknowledged Netanyahu isn’t doing enough to secure a deal with Hamas to free Israeli captives – an issue that has gained renewed urgency following the recovery of six bodies of abductees.

Asked about Biden’s comments, Netanyahu said the pressure should be applied to Hamas, not Israel, particularly after the deaths.

“And now, after this, we’re asked to show seriousness? We’re asked to make concessions? What message does this send Hamas? It says, kill more hostages,” said Netanyahu.

He said he doesn’t believe Biden or anyone serious about “achieving peace” would ask Israel to make more concessions. “We’ve already made them. Hamas has to make the concession.”

Medical teams have vaccinated 158,992 children after two days in a complex polio vaccination campaign in Gaza, according to the Health Ministry.

The six-day vaccination campaign aims to reach about 640,000 Palestinian children and comes after the first polio case in 25 years in Gaza was discovered this month.

Israel agreed to pause its military offensive in Gaza to allow health workers to administer the vaccines, UN officials say. Hamas also pledged to halt fighting to support the effort.

Israel’s ongoing military incursion in the occupied West Bank is the largest of its kind since 2002.

It marks a significant escalation from the military assaults and settler violence that have surged since October 7. Why is this happening now?

We’ve been reporting on mass protests against Netanyahu’s government as well as the demand for a ceasefire deal to return captives held in Gaza.

Israeli activists and platforms are also sharing scenes documenting protesters setting fires during demonstrations in the capital, Tel Aviv.

Translation: This is now happening in Citadel Ze’ev

Translation: Ze’ev fortress

Translation: Now in King George Tel Aviv – two bonfires in front of Ze’ev Fortress

Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the rights situation in the Palestinian territories, says Israel’s recent deadly raids in the occupied West Bank mark “a dangerous escalation”.

“Israel’s genocidal violence risks leaking out of Gaza and into the occupied Palestinian territory as a whole,” she said in a statement.

“The writing is on the wall and we cannot continue to ignore it. There is mounting evidence that no Palestinian is safe under Israel’s unfettered control. Apartheid Israel is targeting Gaza and the West Bank simultaneously as part of an overall process of elimination, replacement, and territorial expansion,” Albanese added.

“The long-standing impunity granted to Israel is enabling the de-Palestinisation of the occupied territory, leaving Palestinians at the mercy of the forces pursuing their elimination as a national group.”

Albanese called on the international community to “do everything it can to immediately end the risk of genocide against the Palestinian people under Israel’s occupation, ensure accountability, and ultimately end Israel’s colonisation of Palestinian territory”.

Two oil tankers – the Saudi-flagged Amjad and Panama-flagged Blue Lagoon I – have been attacked in the Red Sea off Yemen.

Yemen’s Houthis late on Monday claimed responsibility for targeting the Blue Lagoon with multiple missiles and drones, but did not make any mention of the Saudi tanker.

Two unnamed sources told Reuters news agency the ships were sailing near each other when they were hit, but were able to continue their voyages with no major damage or any casualties.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, run by international naval forces to track Houthi attacks, said three ballistic missile attacks hit the Blue Lagoon I tanker.

The Houthis first launched drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea in November in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians during Israel’s bloody war on Gaza. In more than 70 attacks, they have sunk two vessels, seized another, and killed at least three seafarers.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has urged Biden to condemn the killing of a 58-year-old Palestinian man from the occupied West Bank whose body was returned with clear signs of torture after two hours in Israeli custody.

“Just as President Biden clearly and passionately condemned the killing of Israeli hostages, he should clearly and passionately condemn the torture-murder of this 58-year-old Palestinian man from the West Bank and the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, as well as numerous Israeli hostages, in Gaza,” CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement.

“Every innocent human life matters whether Palestinian, Israeli or American, but our government’s policies and rhetoric say otherwise. President Biden must finally start to treat Palestinians as human beings who deserve the same rights as all other people.”

Awad also welcomed Biden’s remarks that Netanyahu isn’t doing enough for the release of Israeli captives in Gaza but said the US president must match his words with action.

A 12-year-old girl was hit by Israeli gunfire in Tulkarem, the occupied West Bank, and was taken to the hospital, the Palestine Red Crescent Society says. Her condition is unclear.

Israeli forces are conducting one of the largest raids in decades in the occupied territory, using helicopters and drones and destroying public infrastructure.

At least 30 Palestinians have been killed in less than a week with 121 people have been wounded.

The incident came as the Israeli forces expanded their operations in the flashpoint city of Jenin and the surrounding areas for a sixth day.

Earlier we reported Israeli soldiers had turned over the body of a Palestinian man hours after his arrest in the occupied West Bank.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it received the body of Ayman Rajeh Abed, 58, from the village of Kafr Dan, just outside Jenin, after he was arrested at dawn.

The director of the Jenin Government Hospital said the body bore signs of beatings and torture. The Israeli military said Abed was detained during “counterterrorism operations” and experienced a “cardiac event” on arrival at a detention facility.

Hundreds of Israeli soldiers backed by drones and helicopters have taken part in the major West Bank incursion, which has caused extensive damage to houses and infrastructure in Jenin and the densely packed refugee camp adjacent to the city.

The security barricades were placed around the Israeli leader’s home in Jerusalem.

Social media footage showed protesters breaking them down.

Translation: Determined citizens broke through the barrier on the way to Netanyahu’s house!