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Israeli Fire Kills 11, Including Journalists, Gaza Health Officials Say

Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians who, according to medics, were killed by Israeli strikes on Wednesday, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians who, according to medics, were killed by Israeli strikes on Wednesday, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
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Israeli Fire Kills 11, Including Journalists, Gaza Health Officials Say

Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians who, according to medics, were killed by Israeli strikes on Wednesday, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians who, according to medics, were killed by Israeli strikes on Wednesday, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa

Israeli fire killed 11 Palestinians, including two boys and three journalists, in Gaza on Wednesday, local medics ​said, and the Israeli military said it had "eliminated" a Palestinian militant who posed a threat to soldiers.

In the latest violence disrupting a brittle, three-month-old ceasefire, Palestinian health officials said an Israeli airstrike killed three Palestinian journalists travelling in a car in the central Gaza Strip.

The three were on an assignment sponsored by the Egyptian Committee, which supervises Egypt's relief work in Gaza, to film tent encampments built by Egypt for displaced Palestinians, other local journalists told Reuters.

An Egyptian security source confirmed the vehicle belonged to the committee but gave no further details. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request ‌for comment.

Israel and Hamas ‌have traded blame for multiple breaches of the October truce after ‌two ⁠years ​of war ‌that devastated Gaza and caused a humanitarian disaster, and remain at odds over the next steps in US President Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan.

Earlier on Wednesday, Palestinian medics said three people, including a 10-year-old boy, were killed as a result of Israeli tank shelling east of Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza. Two others, a boy of 13 and a woman, were killed in two Israeli shooting incidents in eastern Khan Younis in Gaza's south, they said.

Three other Palestinians were killed in other shootings across the coastal enclave, taking Wednesday's ⁠death toll to at least 11, the health ministry of the Hamas-run Gaza said.

Residents said the two incidents occurred in Palestinian-controlled areas. The ‌ceasefire brought about a partial Israeli military withdrawal, leaving Israeli forces holding ‍about 53% of the enclave, but they ‍have been gradually expanding their presence in recent weeks, leading to further displacement of Palestinian families, residents ‍told Reuters.

There was also no immediate Israeli military comment on the two incidents.

Earlier on Wednesday, it said in a statement that Israeli forces had killed a "terrorist" who entered an area under their control, posing an imminent threat to soldiers operating there.

TRUMP PLAN STRUGGLES TO MOVE BEYOND FIRST STAGE

The US-brokered October deal has not progressed beyond ​the first-phase ceasefire, under which major fighting stopped, some Israeli forces pulled back, and Hamas freed hostages in return for Palestinian detainees and convicted prisoners.

Under future phases whose details ⁠have yet to be hammered out, Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli forces withdraw further and an internationally backed administration installed to rebuild the ruined, densely populated territory.

But no timetable has been set to implement the plan.

Trump was due on Thursday to preside over a ceremony celebrating the Board of Peace, a group he formed with the stated goal of redeveloping the coastal enclave.

Israel says it can only move into the second phase after Hamas hands over the remains of the last Israeli hostage.

On Wednesday, Hamas Gaza spokesperson Hazem Qassem said the Islamist group had shared all information it had on the body of the last hostage and searched for it but in vain, blaming what it called Israeli military obstruction.

More than 460 Palestinians and three Israeli soldiers have been reported killed in clashes since the ceasefire took effect.

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Arab World

Pro-Palestinian Flotilla’s New Gaza Mission to Start in Spain on April 12

The Global Sumud Flotilla's first weeks-long journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, blockaded by Israel during the war against Hamas, drew worldwide attention. (Reuters)
The Global Sumud Flotilla's first weeks-long journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, blockaded by Israel during the war against Hamas, drew worldwide attention. (Reuters)
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Pro-Palestinian Flotilla’s New Gaza Mission to Start in Spain on April 12

The Global Sumud Flotilla's first weeks-long journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, blockaded by Israel during the war against Hamas, drew worldwide attention. (Reuters)
The Global Sumud Flotilla's first weeks-long journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, blockaded by Israel during the war against Hamas, drew worldwide attention. (Reuters)

A flotilla of pro-Palestinian activists who attempted to reach Gaza last year said on Thursday they would launch a new mission to the devastated territory from Barcelona on April 12.

The Global Sumud Flotilla's first weeks-long journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, blockaded by Israel during the war against Palestinian group Hamas, drew worldwide attention.

Israel's interception of their boats and arrests of the activists as they approached Gaza, which suffered severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel, sparked international condemnation.

The group, which described its first attempt as a humanitarian mission, said the latest trip starting in Spain's second city would gather more than 80 boats and 1,000 international participants.

"The cost of inaction is too high to bear," it said in a statement, adding that a land-based movement would join the maritime action to create pressure in multiple countries.

"As Gaza endures intensifying blockade, violence, and deprivation, the mission is a principled, nonviolent intervention: a defense of human dignity, a call for humanitarian access, and a demand for international accountability," the group said.

Gaza is under a fragile ceasefire agreed last October, which followed two years of devastating conflict sparked by the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.

The attack resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people Israel, mostly civilians, according to official Israeli figures tallied by AFP. Palestinian fighters also abducted 251 hostages.

The retaliatory Israeli military campaign killed more than 70,000 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry whose figures the United Nations considers reliable.

Both sides have repeatedly accused each other of violating the ceasefire.

Gaza's health ministry says Israeli strikes have killed more than 700 Palestinians since the truce. Israel says five of its soldiers have been killed in the same period.

Arab World

Israel Says It Has Struck Over 3,500 Targets in Lebanon in Past Month

This picture taken from the southern Lebanese area of Tyre shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the area of Naqoura on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
This picture taken from the southern Lebanese area of Tyre shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the area of Naqoura on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
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Israel Says It Has Struck Over 3,500 Targets in Lebanon in Past Month

This picture taken from the southern Lebanese area of Tyre shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the area of Naqoura on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
This picture taken from the southern Lebanese area of Tyre shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the area of Naqoura on March 31, 2026. (AFP)

The Israeli military said Friday it had struck more than 3,500 targets across Lebanon in the month since fighting with the Hezbollah group began.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 after Iran-backed Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel to avenge the US-Israeli attack that killed Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Israel has responded with massive strikes across Lebanon and a ground offensive.

The Israeli military said Friday it had killed approximately 1,000 militants in Lebanon over the past month, with strikes targeting what it described as "terrorist infrastructure, weapons storage facilities, launch positions, and command and control headquarters" belonging to Hezbollah.

Lebanon's health ministry said on Thursday that 1,345 people had been killed and 4,040 wounded since the start of the war, including 1,129 men, 91 women and 125 children.

The ministry said the toll also included 53 healthcare workers.

Hezbollah has so far not announced its losses.

On Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem would pay an "extraordinarily heavy price" for escalating attacks during the ongoing Jewish holidays.

"The Hezbollah terrorist organization you now lead, and its supporters in Lebanon, will bear the full and severe consequences," Katz said.

His warning followed claims by Hezbollah that it had carried out a series of rocket attacks on northern Israel late Wednesday and early Thursday, as Israeli Jews began marking Passover.

Katz also reiterated that Israeli forces "will clear Hezbollah and its supporters from southern Lebanon, maintain Israeli security control throughout the Litani area, and dismantle Hezbollah's military capabilities across Lebanon".

Eighteen European countries on Thursday urged Israel and Hezbollah to stop fighting as their latest conflict reached one month and with fears over Israeli plans to occupy part of southern Lebanon post-war.

"Israeli military operations in Lebanon and Hezbollah's attacks must cease," the foreign ministers of the countries including Italy, Spain, Belgium, Poland and Ireland said in a joint statement.

"We urge Israel to fully respect Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and call on all parties, both Hezbollah and Israel, to halt military action," the statement said.

The countries include Spain, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Moldova, Norway, Poland, San Marino, Slovenia and Sweden.

Arab World

US Warning on Iraq's Militias Deepens Tensions with Baghdad

Iraqis inspect smoke rising from an oil storage facility on the outskirts of Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, following a suspected drone strike on April 1, 2026. (AFP) 
Iraqis inspect smoke rising from an oil storage facility on the outskirts of Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, following a suspected drone strike on April 1, 2026. (AFP) 
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US Warning on Iraq's Militias Deepens Tensions with Baghdad

Iraqis inspect smoke rising from an oil storage facility on the outskirts of Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, following a suspected drone strike on April 1, 2026. (AFP) 
Iraqis inspect smoke rising from an oil storage facility on the outskirts of Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, following a suspected drone strike on April 1, 2026. (AFP) 

Relations between Baghdad and Washington have entered a more tense phase after the US embassy issued sharp security warnings and questioned Iraq’s ability to prevent attacks on American interests.

The US embassy in Baghdad said Thursday that Iran-aligned Iraqi militias could carry out attacks in central Baghdad within 24 to 48 hours, urging US citizens to leave Iraq immediately.

It said potential attacks could target Americans and US-linked interests, including companies, universities, diplomatic facilities, energy infrastructure, hotels, and airports.

The warning came a day after the State Department announced a reward of up to $3 million for information leading to the identification of those responsible for attacks on US diplomatic facilities in Iraq.

In a separate statement issued hours earlier, the embassy said the Iraqi government “has not been able to prevent terrorist attacks” taking place inside Iraq or launched from its territory, referring to repeated incidents targeting the US embassy in Baghdad, the consulate general in Erbil, and a diplomatic support center in the capital.

It further noted that certain members of armed groups may possess identification documents indicating employment with the Iraqi government, suggesting potential institutional affiliations or official cover, though no additional details were provided.

The escalation comes less than a week after Iraq’s Joint Operations Command and US officials reaffirmed their commitment to keeping Iraq out of the ongoing regional conflict. They stressed that Iraqi territory, airspace, and territorial waters should not be used to threaten Iraq or neighboring countries.

At the same time, airstrikes targeted sites belonging to armed factions in Anbar and Nineveh provinces.

Local sources in Anbar said a US strike hit the headquarters of the Tribal Popular Mobilization Forces’ 57th Brigade in Haditha, west of the province. No immediate official toll on damage or casualties was released.

In Nineveh, the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said a site belonging to the 38th Regiment of the 58th Brigade under Nineveh Operations Command was struck in Qayyarah, south of Mosul, with no casualties reported.

The PMF said the strike occurred at 11:30 a.m., adding it came less than 24 hours after another site in the same province was targeted. Earlier Thursday, it reported a double airstrike targeting the 4th Regiment of the 14th Brigade, also without casualties.

The repeated targeting of these sites in a short period point to a widening military escalation, coinciding with US warnings of possible attacks in Baghdad and underscoring growing security risks.

Politically, the State Administration Coalition — which includes Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish parties in government — rejected “any violation of the country’s sovereignty under any pretext” and reiterated its refusal to allow Iraqi territory to be used to launch attacks on other states, particularly neighbors.

It also condemned attacks on state institutions, diplomatic missions, and vital facilities, voicing support for government and judicial efforts to enforce the law and restore stability.

Analysts say the combination of airstrikes and US warnings could increase pressure on Baghdad to take a clearer stance on armed factions and attacks originating from Iraqi territory.

A former Iraqi government adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the embassy warning “signals declining confidence in Baghdad’s ability to take decisive action against armed groups.”

He said US policy had shifted “from giving the government room to maneuver to exerting direct pressure” to adopt a clearer position, warning that continued ambiguity could lead to further political and security pressure on Iraq.