Israeli Military Says it Has Intercepted 2 Suspicious Drones 

People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israeli Military Says it Has Intercepted 2 Suspicious Drones 

People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel’s military said they had intercepted two suspicious drones that approached Israel from Lebanon and Iraq on Wednesday morning, the day after pagers used by the group Hezbollah exploded in Lebanon and Syria, killing at least nine people, including an 8-year-old girl, and wounding nearly 3,000. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government blamed Israel for what appeared to be a sophisticated remote attack. 

On Wednesday, the Israeli military said they intercepted a drone launched from Lebanon over the Mediterranean Sea near the coast of northern Israel. Another drone launched from Iraq was intercepted by Israeli air force fighter jets. There were no injuries or damage reported. 

Israel also began moving more troops to the northern border with Lebanon in preparation for a possible retaliation. 

As a precautionary measure, the Israeli military moved its 98th division to the northern border, an official said. The division, which includes infantry, artillery and commando units, has until recently been fighting in Gaza. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. 

Hezbollah began firing rockets over the border into Israel on Oct. 8, the day after a deadly Hamas-led attack in southern Israel triggered a massive Israeli counteroffensive and the ongoing war in Gaza. Since then, Hezbollah and Israeli forces have exchanged strikes near-daily, killing hundreds in Lebanon and dozens in Israel and displacing tens of thousands on each side of the border. 



Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Strikes Kill 24 Palestinians

A boy walks past a destroyed building in the aftermath of an Israeli strike at Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on January 15, 2025, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
A boy walks past a destroyed building in the aftermath of an Israeli strike at Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on January 15, 2025, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
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Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Strikes Kill 24 Palestinians

A boy walks past a destroyed building in the aftermath of an Israeli strike at Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on January 15, 2025, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
A boy walks past a destroyed building in the aftermath of an Israeli strike at Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on January 15, 2025, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)

Gaza's civil defense agency said on Wednesday that Israeli strikes killed at least 24 people across the Palestinian territory, with Israel's military saying it had targeted Hamas militants overnight.

The latest violence, following more than 15 months of war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, comes as truce mediator Qatar said negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal were in their "final stages”

The civil defense agency said in a statement that 11 bodies were brought to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza Strip, after Israel struck a family home in Deir el-Balah city during the night.

A seven-year-old boy and three teenagers were among the dead, the agency said.

A separate strike targeted a school building used as shelter for war-displaced Palestinians in Gaza City, killing seven people and injuring several others, the civil defense agency said.

A third strike at dawn hit a house in the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp, killing six people and injuring seven, the agency added.

The Israeli military confirmed that its forces had carried out multiple strikes overnight in Gaza, saying in a statement that they were "precise" and targeted "terrorist operatives.”

Over the past 24 hours, the military said it had struck more than 50 targets across the Gaza Strip.

Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 46,707 Palestinians and wounded 110,265 since Oct. 7, 2023, the Palestinian enclave's health ministry said on Wednesday.