An Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed an attack targeting the southern Israeli port city of Eilat on Wednesday. The militants are allied with Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who are suspected of attacking a ship in the Gulf of Aden early Wednesday. Shipping has reduced drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.
International criticism is growing over Israel’s campaign against Hamas as Palestinians face severe and widespread hunger. The eight-month war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and basic goods to Gaza, and people there are now totally dependent on aid. The top United Nations court has concluded there is a “plausible risk of genocide” in Gaza — a charge Israel strongly denies.
On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon. Netanyahu said Sunday that the current phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza is winding down, setting the stage for Israel to send more troops to its northern border to confront the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducted about 250.
Since then, Israeli ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 37,600 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.
Currently:
— A Palestinian was shot, beaten and tied to an Israeli army jeep. The army says he posed no threat.
— The U.S. military shows reporters the pier project in Gaza as it takes another stab at aid delivery.
— Israelis’ lawsuit says a United Nations agency helps Hamas by paying Gaza staff in dollars.
— Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat.
— The U.N. tells Israel it will suspend aid operations across Gaza without improved safety.
— Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here’s the latest:
Turkey’s president accuses Israel’s Netanyahu of trying to expand fighting in Gaza to Lebanon
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon in a move, he said, would lead to a “great disaster.”
In an address to his ruling party’s legislators on Wednesday, Erdogan said Turkey would stand with Lebanon and called on other countries in the region to also show solidarity with the Middle Eastern nation.
“Israel, which has destroyed Gaza, has now set its sight on Lebanon,” Erdogan maintained. “Netanyahu’s plans to spread the war to the region, with the consent of the West, will lead to a great disaster.”
“We should not allow this to happen. Turkey stands by the brotherly people and state of Lebanon and we call on other countries in the region to stand in solidarity with Lebanon,” he said.
Norway’s largest pension fund will exclude a Texas company it says may be contributing to human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Norway’s largest pension fund said Wednesday that it will exclude Caterpillar Inc. from its investment portfolios due to the risk that the Irving, Texas-based company may be contributing to human rights abuses and violations of international law in the West Bank and Gaza.
“For a long time, Caterpillar has supplied bulldozers and other equipment that has been used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure to clear the way for Israeli settlements,” Kiran Aziz, senior analyst with Oslo-based KLP, said in a statement.
She said it also has been alleged that Caterpillar equipment was used by the Israeli army in Gaza following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.
“Since the company cannot provide us with assurances that it is doing anything in this regard, we have decided to exclude the company from investment,” Aziz said. Caterpillar Inc. was excluded from investment with effect from June 2024.
Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Suspected attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.
The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, the Houthis faced allegations they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and the country’s exiled government.
The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.
The Houthis did not immediately claim the ship attack, but it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults.
Republican in Congress says it’s in Israel’s ‘best interest’ to resolve Gaza’s humanitarian aid issue
WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress have been hesitant to publicly criticize Israel and its handling of the Israel-Hamas war, but when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met Tuesday with a high-ranking Republican on Capitol Hill, he was told it would be in Israel’s “best interest” if his military resolves the humanitarian aid issue that has plagued the war from months.
“My admonition (to Gallant) was to finish your military objective as quickly as possible so that you focus on humanitarian so that we can move into this peace process,” Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told AP on Tuesday. It is a rare public statement that reflects the changing political climate for both Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to address an increasingly divided Congress in July.