Israeli Strikes Kill at Least 25 in Gaza and Huckabee Makes First Appearance as US Ambassador

A man looks through the rubble to inspect a destroyed building that was hit by Israeli bombardment in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 18, 2025. (AFP)
A man looks through the rubble to inspect a destroyed building that was hit by Israeli bombardment in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Israeli Strikes Kill at Least 25 in Gaza and Huckabee Makes First Appearance as US Ambassador

A man looks through the rubble to inspect a destroyed building that was hit by Israeli bombardment in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 18, 2025. (AFP)
A man looks through the rubble to inspect a destroyed building that was hit by Israeli bombardment in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 18, 2025. (AFP)

Israeli airstrikes across Gaza killed at least 25 people on Friday including children, hospital workers said, as the new US ambassador to Israel made his first public appearance in Jerusalem.

The dead included 15 people killed in three strikes on the southern city of Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. Ten people were killed in Jabalia, including eight from the same home, according to the Indonesian Hospital, where the bodies were brought.

The strikes came a day after more than two dozen people died in Gaza as Israel continued attacks, pressuring Hamas to return the hostages and disarm.

US Ambassador Mike Huckabee visited the Western Wall on Friday, the holiest Jewish prayer site in Jerusalem’s Old City. He inserted a prayer into the wall, which he said was handwritten by US President Donald Trump. "Those are his initials, D.T.,“ said Huckabee while showing the note to the media.

In his first act as ambassador, Huckabee said Trump told him to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Huckabee also said every effort was being made to bring home the remaining hostages held by Hamas. A one-time presidential hopeful, Huckabee has acknowledged his past support for Israel’s right to annex the West Bank and incorporate its Palestinian population into Israel but said it would not be his “prerogative” to carry out that policy.

During his first term, Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital over Palestinian objections and moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv. Palestinians seek the eastern part of the city, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war, as their future capital.

Huckabee's arrival comes at a pivotal time in the 18-month war, as international mediators including the US are trying to get a broken ceasefire back on track.

Israel is demanding that Hamas release more hostages at the start of any new ceasefire and ultimately agree to disarm and leave the territory. Israel has said it plans to occupy large “security zones” inside Gaza.

Khalil al-Hayya, head of Hamas’ negotiating delegation, said Thursday the group had rejected Israel’s latest proposal along those lines. He reiterated Hamas’ stance that it will return hostages only in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting truce, as called for in the now-defunct ceasefire agreement reached in January.

Hamas currently holds 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive.

Friday’s airstrikes came a day after aid groups raised alarm over Israel’s blockade of Gaza, where it has barred entry of all food and other goods for more than six weeks. Thousands of children have become malnourished, and most people are barely eating one meal a day as stocks dwindle, the United Nations said.

Israel’s Defense Minister says the blockade is one of the “central pressure tactics” against Hamas, which Israel accuses of siphoning off aid to maintain its rule. Aid workers deny there is significant diversion of aid, saying the UN closely monitors distribution. Rights groups have called it a “starvation tactic.”

The war began when Hamas-led gunmen attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have since been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s offensive has since killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.  

The war has destroyed vast parts of Gaza and most of its food production capabilities. The war has displaced around 90% of the population, with hundreds of thousands of people living in tent camps and bombed-out buildings.



Israel Attacks Yemeni Ports, Warns That Houthi Leader Is a Target

Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
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Israel Attacks Yemeni Ports, Warns That Houthi Leader Is a Target

Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)

Israel struck Yemen's Red Sea ports of Hodeidah and Salif on Friday, continuing its campaign to degrade Houthi military capabilities and warning that the group's top leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, could be targeted if attacks on Israel persist.

The Houthis have continued to fire missiles at Israel in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, although they have agreed to halt attacks on US ships.

Israel has carried out retaliatory strikes in response, including one on May 6 that damaged Yemen's main airport in Sanaa and killed several people.

On Friday, the Israeli military said the ports of Hodeidah and Salif were being used to transfer weapons, reiterating its warnings to residents of those areas to evacuate.

Residents in Hodeidah said they heard four loud booms and saw smoke rising from the port following the Israeli strikes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement they would hunt down the Houthis' top leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi.

"If the Houthis continue to fire missiles at the State of Israel, they will be severely harmed, and we will also hurt the leaders," they said, adding that al-Houthi could join the list of militant figures killed by Israel, such as Hamas' Yahya Sinwar and Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah.

The Houthis are part of Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance" against Israeli and US interests in the Middle East, alongside Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, the Houthis have launched dozens of missile and drone attacks toward Israel, most of which have been intercepted or landed short.