Israel continues its shelling during Eid, and on Wednesday an Israeli attack in northern Gaza killed three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Here's what happened on Thursday, April 11, 2024:
Combat and humanitarian crisis
- Three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh were killed in an Israeli attack in northern Gaza on Wednesday as Israel continued its shelling of the besieged enclave on the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
- Israel claimed they were Hamas operatives, but Haniya accused Israel of acting in a “spirit of revenge and murder.”
- Separately, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel plans to “flood” aid into Gaza through a new border and port just north of the besieged area.
- He promised to “streamline security checks” that aid groups blame for disrupting the flow of aid to more than 2 million people in the region throughout the six-month war.
- On Wednesday, the U.S. military added more humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command. “U.S. C-130s dropped more than 50,680 meals worth of U.S. military food into northern Gaza,” the statement said.
Diplomacy and geopolitical tensions
- On Thursday, the Israeli Air Force conducted joint training with the Cypriot Air Force, according to a report by Israeli Army Radio Station GLZ. GLZ said it included long-range training and attacks on remote targets.
- Mohammad Sloul, a Lebanese man who was sanctioned by the United States for his ties to the Palestinian group Hamas, was found dead on Wednesday after being missing for a week. He was sanctioned in 2019 for providing “financial, material, technical support, financial and other services” to Hamas and for his ties to Hezbollah.
- In the United States, President Joe Biden on Wednesday pledged “ironclad” support for Israel as Iran threatened retaliation over the attack that destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus and killed two generals.
- In a post on X, Foreign Minister Israel Katz threatened that the Israeli military would attack Iran directly if it launched an attack against Israel from Iranian territory.
- Reuters reported on Thursday that the US special envoy for the Middle East, Brett McGuirk, called the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Iraq and asked them to convey a message to Iran to avoid escalating tensions with Israel. Iran blames Israel for escalating tensions.
- German airline Lufthansa said on Wednesday it had suspended flights to Tehran due to growing concerns about the possibility of a major fire between Iran and Israel.
Violence in the occupied West Bank
- On Thursday, Israeli forces reportedly raided two towns in the occupied West Bank.
- An Al Jazeera correspondent said Israeli forces entered the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, early Thursday. They also went to Iduna, west of Hebron.
