KEY POINTS
- Hezbollah announces deaths of 3 members after Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon
- US, UK, France back Israel's call for UN Security Council emergency meeting on Hamas sexual abuse
- UN Human Rights Office said Israeli invasion of Rafah must be stopped
The Israel-Hamas war is now on its 154th day, and the international community is rallying to keep Gaza from crumbling into famine as the U.S. President Joe Biden, an ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ordered American forces to construct a pier on the shores of Gaza to allow for wider-scale humanitarian aid delivery.
During his State of the Union address, Biden also warned Israel not to use aid for Gaza as a "bargaining chip" in its war with Hamas. The Netanyahu government has been under U.S. pressure to allow more aid into the war-torn enclave and agree to a ceasefire deal.
- Israel welcomes inauguration of Cyprus maritime corridor for Gaza aid
- UN torture expert investigating mistreatment allegations on Palestinian inmates
- Israel will push through with planned ground operation in Rafah: Netanyahu
- Another ship attacked off Aden in Yemen: UKMTO
- EU, UK, US, UAE and Cyprus publish joint statement on maritime aid corridor
- Sirens sound in northern Israel after Hezbollah announces deaths of 3 members
- Cyprus maritime corridor to conduct pilot operation Friday
The European Union is also leading wider efforts to help feed the civilians of Gaza as a maritime corridor to Gaza from Cyprus is being rushed to begin facilitating aid this weekend.
In the Gulf of Aden, U.S. forces with the Central Command (CENTCOM) shot down drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen Friday.
Fire exchanges between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Hezbollah continued Friday in the Israeli-Lebanese border as Israeli warplanes conducted strikes in southern Lebanon area following several rocket launches from Lebanon toward Har Dov and Metula in northern Israel.
Decades of violence in the Israel-Palestine conflict ultimately erupted on Oct. 7, when Hamas militants raided Israel, murdering more than a thousand people – mostly civilians – and abducting over 250 hostages, of which around 130 are still being held in Gaza five months into the war.
Cyprus aid corridor to launch pilot operation
The maritime corridor inaugurated in Cyprus will kick off an "initial pilot operation" Friday, EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said.
Multiple countries are pushing for more aid to enter the Gaza Strip amid mounting hunger in the enclave. Along with the U.S., Cyprus, the UAE and the UK, the bloc is looking to accelerate and significantly increase aid deliveries for Gaza civilians.
Read the full story here.
Sirens sound in northern Israel
Rocket sirens sounded in northern Israel at around 4:30 p.m. local time (9:30 a.m. EST), as per Israeli media.
🚨Rocket sirens sound in northern Israel
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 8, 2024
The report comes a few hours after Hezbollah announced the deaths of three of its members. The casualty announcement was made following Israeli strikes on at least three Hezbollah paramilitary sites in southern Lebanon.
Joint statement on maritime corridor released
The UK, EU, Cyprus, the U.S. and UAE have released a joint statement on their efforts to set up a maritime corridor to allow for more aid to enter the Gaza Strip.
There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support to Gaza.
— Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) March 8, 2024
The United Kingdom, alongside the European Commission, the Republic of Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates and the United States, have announced our intent to open a maritime corridor to deliver aid by sea.
Ship attack reported southeast of Aden: UKMTO
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) just a few minutes ago said it received a report of an attack on a merchant ship some 50 nautical miles southeast of Aden in Yemen.
Authorities are investigating the incident. Details are scarce as of writing.
UKMTO WARNING INCIDENT 047
— United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) (@UK_MTO) March 8, 2024
ATTACK
Warnings - 2024 (https://t.co/5An1YH0JyE)#MaritimeSecurity #MarSec pic.twitter.com/a5Xz8KIeGa
Israel will pursue Rafah operation: Netanyahu
The Israeli prime minister has once again reiterated that the Israeli army will pursue a ground operation in Rafah despite international pressure to spare the overcrowded city considering more than a million civilians sheltering in the southern Gaza city.
Netanyahu said Rafah is the last Hamas stronghold. "Whoever tells us not to operate in Rafah, is telling us to lose the war – and that will not happen," he said, as per a statement from his office.
UN torture expert probes mistreatment allegations among Palestinian inmates
Dr. Alice Jill Edwards, a UN expert on torture, said Friday that she was looking into allegations that some Palestinian detainees in Israel experienced torture and mistreatment, Reuters reported.
She further revealed that she was currently in discussions to visit Israel for her investigation. "I'm calling on ... Hamas, the state of Palestine, Israel to put their torture tools down, to really have a focus on peace and a prospect of living side-by-side as neighbors in the future," she added.
Israel welcomes Cyprus maritime corridor initiative
Lior Haiat, spokesperson of the Israeli foreign ministry on Friday said the country welcomes the initiative to bring more aid into Gaza through a maritime corridor in Cyprus.
"It is very important that additional countries join the Cypriot initiative and the international effort to transfer aid," Haiat said, adding that while Israel will continue to facilitate humanitarian aid for Gaza civilians, it will also continue to fight Hamas until the terror group is eliminated.
Israel welcomes the inauguration of the maritime corridor from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip. The Cypriot initiative will allow the increase of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, after security checks are carried out in accordance with Israeli standards.
— Lior Haiat 🇮🇱🎗️ (@LiorHaiat) March 8, 2024
Israel will continue to… pic.twitter.com/T68hLQB0mY
UNHR office says Israeli ground raid in Rafah must be stopped
The UN's Human Rights office on Friday said a ground invasion of Rafah by the Israeli army "must not be allowed to happen." Rafah is an overcrowded city in southern Gaza where it is believed more than a million civilians have moved to due to the raging war.
"Any ground assault on Rafah would incur massive loss of life and would heighten the risk of further atrocity crimes," the office said in a statement.
3 countries back Israel's call for UN Security Council meeting on Hamas' sexual abuse
The U.S., United Kingdom and France "back my call for a UN Security Council session on Hamas' sexual violence," Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz announced Friday.
The US, UK, and France back my call for a UN Security Council session on Hamas's sexual violence.
— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) March 8, 2024
On International Women's Day, the @UN and the secretary general @antonioguterres must act, not be silent. Time to declare Hamas a terror group and call for the release of all…
This comes after a UN team that investigated claims of sexual violence by Hamas during the Oct. 7 massacre found "reasonable grounds to believe that conflict-related sexual violence" was committed by the Palestinian terror group across different locations.
The probe also found "convincing information" that some of the hostages were subjected to sexual violence by the Iran-backed militant group.
Hezbollah announces deaths of 3 members after Israeli strikes
Hezbollah, a heavily armed and massive terror group that's just one of the many militant organizations backed by Iran, announced the deaths of three of its members Friday, Sky News in Arabic reported.
The announcement came following strikes in southern Lebanon that targeted three separate sites the IDF said belonged to the Lebanese terror group.
Israeli jets strike multiple Hezbollah sites after rocket launches toward northern Israel
Israeli warplanes on Friday attacked multiple sites belonging to Iranian-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, including a "military headquarters" and two other paramilitary structures that the Hamas ally had been using, the IDF said.
There were secondary explosions after the attack on a building in the Al Mansouri area, "which indicated the presence of weapons that were stored in the building," the Israeli army added.
לפני זמן קצר מטוסי קרב תקפו מפקדה צבאית של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב אל מנצורי ומפקדה נוספת של הארגון במרחב בינת ג׳בל.
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 8, 2024
אמש הותקף מבנה צבאי של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב תלוסה, לצד מבנה צבאי נוסף במרחב מג׳דל זון>> pic.twitter.com/Dguw22sLob
The strikes came after several rocket launches were detected from Lebanese territory toward Har Dov and Metula in northern Israel on Thursday.
US downs Houthi drones over Gulf of Aden: CENTCOM
U.S. forces on Thursday afternoon shot down three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) "from Iranian-backed Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward the Gulf of Aden," CENTCOM said Friday.
The U.S. army also conducted "self-defense strikes" on four mobile anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCMs) and one drone in Houthi-held areas of Yemen on Thursday as part of the efforts to protect navigation freedom, the U.S. military added.
March 7 Red Sea Update
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 8, 2024
Between the hours of 3:35 p.m. and 4:55 p.m. (Sanaa time), United States Central Command (CENTCOM) conducted self-defense strikes against four mobile Houthi anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCM) and one Houthi unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in Houthi-controlled… pic.twitter.com/WBrJ0kmiTJ
EU announces Cyprus maritime corridor for Gaza aid
The European Commission on Friday announced the establishment of the Cyprus Maritime Corridor, which should help getting more aid into the Gaza Strip. The Commission's president said she is expecting the maritime corridor to start operating this weekend.
"Palestinians, particularly those in Gaza, need our help. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire with innocent Palestinian families and children desperate for basic needs," she said.
The corridor is a joint effort between the European Union, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates, she added.
Europe is financing a major humanitarian aid effort for Palestinians.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) March 8, 2024
€250 million euros this year alone.
But the key challenge is getting this aid to people in Gaza.
This is why we’re launching the Cyprus Maritime Corridor, with the US and UAE ↓ https://t.co/mrNBl9WsHb
Biden warns Israel not to use aid as a 'bargaining chip'
Amid concerns that Israel isn't doing enough to get more aid into the Gaza Strip, Biden said during his State of the Union address that Israel shouldn't use humanitarian aid as a "bargaining chip" in its raging war against Hamas.
Biden has been increasing pressure on the Netanyahu government to do more to help innocent civilians in Gaza and to ensure that they are protected even as Israel exercises its right to self-defense.
Read the full story here.
Biden announces US will build temporary pier for Gaza aid deliveries
The U.S. president on Thursday directed the U.S. army to "lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments" of food, water, medicine and other humanitarian supplies for civilians in the enclave.
The temporary pier should increase the amount of aid entering the Gaza Strip, he noted. He also clarified that no U.S. troops will be stationed on the ground in Gaza. Finally, he said "Israel must do its part" by allowing more aid into Gaza.
During the annual State of the Union speech, President Joe Biden announced that the US military will construct a temporary port in Gaza to receive humanitarian aid by sea #SOTU https://t.co/A3BZuMQKO2 pic.twitter.com/e9G1oRL8rV
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 8, 2024
