Our live coverage of the conflict in the Middle East has moved here.
February 5, 2024 Israel-Hamas war
By Chris Lau, Sana Noor Haq, Aditi Sangal, Elise Hammond and Zara Khan, CNN
Updated 12:04 a.m. ET, February 6, 2024
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Tent city holding more than 1 million Palestinians is rapidly expanding, satellite images show
From CNN's Paul P. Murphy and Gianluca Mezzofiore
A makeshift tent city estimated to hold more than 1 million displaced Palestinian civilians is rapidly expanding in Rafah, southern Gaza, according to new satellite images from Maxar Technologies.
The images show much of the previously open area in Rafah has been filled with tents, largely between December 10 and February 3, as internally displaced Palestinians seek shelter from the war.
Aid workers have raised concerns over any expanded Israeli military operation in Rafah as forces push south in their war with Hamas.
More than half of the estimated 2.2 million people in Gaza are seeking refugee in the Rafah area, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
OCHA said Monday that refugees facing acute shortage of food, water, shelter and medicine are still pouring into Rafah as fighting worsens nearby.
US strikes more Houthi targets in Yemen, military says
From CNN's Rashard Rose
The United States military conducted a strike Monday against two Houthi explosive uncrewed surface vehicles in Yemen, US Central Command said.
The vehicles "presented an imminent threat" to US Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region, CENTCOM said in a statement.
"On Feb. 5, at approximately 3:30 p.m. (Sanaa time), U.S. Central Command forces conducted a strike in self-defense against two Houthi explosive uncrewed surface vehicles,” CENTCOM said.
The Iran-backed Houthis, who have said their attacks on global shipping in the Red Sea are in response to Israel's war in Gaza, have vowed recent US strikes will not go unanswered.
Hamas leader "on the run" as Israeli troops advance on Rafah, defense minister claims
From CNN's Mitchell McCluskey
Hamas' leadership, including its top official in Gaza, is "on the run" as Israel's military pushes further south in the Palestinian enclave, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claimed on Monday.
The Israeli military operation in the southern city of Khan Younis will "soon achieve its goals" as troops advance southward on Rafah — Hamas' last remaining stronghold, Gallant said in a televised briefing. "Our forces operate on the ground in most of the territory of the Gaza Strip," he said.
Israel has publicly accused Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar of being the “mastermind” behind the group's October 7 attack — though experts say he is likely one of several — making him one of the key targets of its war in Gaza.
Gallant claimed Monday that Sinwar had no contact with his fighters and was forced to flee from one hideout to another with the Israeli military in close pursuit. "He is not leading the forces; he is busy with his own personal survival. He became, instead of the head of Hamas, a fugitive terrorist," Gallant said.
Gallant also claimed that Israeli forces had killed or seriously wounded about half of Hamas' fighters in Gaza.
Hamas denial: Husam Badran, a Qatar-based spokesperson for Hamas, denied Gallant's claims, saying they were an attempt to raise Israeli morale. Hamas fighters were "still operating in all areas" of Gaza, according to a statement from Badran published by Hamas media outlet Al Aqsa late Monday.
Catch up: US vows more strikes against Iranian-backed groups as top diplomat argues attacks are defensive
From CNN staff
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken is back in the Middle East as he tries to make progress on a number of fronts: progress on a hostage deal, coordinating on the “day after” for Gaza, and trying to ensure the Israel-Hamas war does not escalate into a wider regional conflict.
It comes after the US conducted major airstrikes over the weekend against Iran-backed militias in Iraq in response to a drone attack that killed three US service members and wounded more than 40 others in Jordan. Meanwhile, US forces also carried out further strikes on Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.
On his trip, Blinken will again argue that the US actions in the region have been defensive, not escalatory.
Here are the top headlines:
- Blinken in Saudi Arabia: On Monday, Blinken met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh. The leaders discussed “regional coordination” on ending the war in Gaza and plans for the war-torn strip after the fighting ends, the State Department said. They also talked about the "urgent need to reduce region tensions." This is Blinken's fifth trip to the Middle East since the October 7 attacks.
- More about the US retaliatory strikes: The Biden administration says the strikes were working to deter Iranian-backed militias. Still, US and coalition forces have come under attack three more times in Syria since then, an official said. The US did not give the Iraqis advance notice of the strikes on Friday, a State Department official said, contradicting a previous comment from the White House that Iraq was informed ahead of time. A National Security Council spokesperson later clarified, saying the US told the Iraqis generally that the US would be responding to the drone attack.
- Expanding offensive: On the ground in Gaza, Palestinian civilians are "afraid" of Israel's military pressing into the southern city of Rafah, according to a relief worker. The director of the Hamas-run Government Media Office also warned the expansion would "cause a real disaster." More than half of Gaza's entire population has been forcibly displaced to Rafah since the start of the war, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Israel's defense minister said last week Israel Defense Forces ground troops would "soon reach" the southern city.
- More evacuations: The IDF is telling Palestinian civilians west of Gaza City, in the north, and much of Khan Younis, in the southern part of the enclave to leave their neighborhoods for other areas. It is unclear how many people are aware of the orders, given the lack of internet and mobile service in much of Gaza. The Palestine Red Crescent Society said about 8,000 displaced people had been evacuated from its headquarters at Al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis on Monday. Meanwhile, the IDF ramped up its offensive in and around the southern city, as well as in north and central Gaza.
- Aid agency under scrutiny: A group has been appointed to conduct an external review of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said it will begin next week and run alongside a current investigation by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services into Israel's allegations that UNRWA personnel were involved in Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks.
State Department says US did not give Iraq advance notice of Friday's strikes
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler, Haley Britzky and Natasha Bertrand
The United States did not give the Iraqi government advance notice of the strikes in the country Friday, a State Department spokesperson said Monday.
This contradicts a previous comment from the White House saying that the Iraqis were informed ahead of time. A spokesperson from the National Security Council has since clarified those remarks, saying the US told the Iraqis generally that the US would be responding to a drone attack on January 28 that killed US service members.
“As for this specific response on Friday, there was not a pre-notification. We informed the Iraqis immediately after the strikes occurred,” State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said at Monday's briefing.
Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder did not directly address conflicting accounts of whether the Iraqi government was notified ahead of US strikes, saying only that they are “a valued partner.”
On Friday, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters the US “did inform the Iraqi government prior to the strikes.” Another NSC spokesperson later told CNN on Monday that Kirby meant that Iraq understood there would be a response.
“For operational security, we did not provide any kind of official pre-notification with specific details on these strikes," the NSC spokesperson said.
Kirby said in a separate statement on Monday that he “responded with information that I had been provided at the time. It was not as specific as it could have been, and I regret any confusion caused."
Read more about what the US is saying about the strikes.
This post has been updated with new information from the NSC spokesperson.
About 8,000 displaced people evacuated Palestine Red Crescent Society headquarters and Al-Amal hospital
From CNN's Ibrahim Dahman, Tim Lister and Ibrahim Hazboun
Approximately 8,000 displaced people have been evacuated from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PCRS) headquarters and Al-Amal hospital in Gaza's southern city of Khan Younis on Monday, PCRS said.
About 80 patients and wounded, 40 elderly displaced individuals and 100 administrative and medical staff remain, it added.
This comes after PRCS earlier said that hundreds of people who had been taking shelter at its headquarters and the hospital have begun to leave. On Friday, the aid group had called for a humanitarian corridor for evacuees as Israeli tanks had surrounded the area and were “firing live ammunition,” killing four people.
Alarms have been raised for days over the hospital as a site of “relentless bombing and direct gunfire,” PRCS said in a news release, with the group also sayings its medical workers were living in a “state of terror and panic.”
The aid group said on Monday: “This comes after the International Committee of the Red Cross informed the PRCS of the occupation's approval to provide a safe passage, allowing the displaced individuals to exit Al-Amal Hospital and the PRCS's headquarters towards the Mawasi area in Khan Younis.”
“Hundreds of displaced individuals have begun leaving the PRCS's headquarters and Al-Amal Hospital after being besieged for over two weeks,” it added.
At the same time, the PRCS said the Israeli military had taken the General Manager of Al-Amal Hospital, Dr. Haider Al-Qaddura, and the hospital's Administrative Director, Maher Atallah, “to an unknown location.” The Israel Defense Forces told CNN it did not detain two officials, but they were questioned.
Blinken and Saudi crown prince discuss "regional coordination" on ending the war in Gaza
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed “regional coordination” on ending the war in Gaza and plans for the war-torn strip after the fighting ends on Monday, a State Department spokesperson said in a readout.
During their more than two-hour-long meeting in Riyadh, the leaders also spoke about the “importance of addressing humanitarian needs in Gaza and preventing further spread of the conflict" and the "urgent need to reduce region tensions," including attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea, according to the readout from spokesperson Matt Miller.
Following his meetings in the region last month, Blinken said that partners in the Middle East were “ready to support a lasting solution that ends the long-running cycle of violence and ensures Israel's security.”
Blinken said at the time those partners underscored that this should include "a pathway to a Palestinian state."
US and coalition forces in Syria attacked 3 more times since Friday airstrikes, official says
From CNN's Haley Britzky and Natasha Bertrand
The United States and coalition forces have come under attack three more times in Syria since the US launched airstrikes against Iranian-backed militias over the weekend, a US official said.
US President Joe Biden said “yes” on Sunday when asked whether the strikes were working to deter Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and affiliated militia groups — but several attacks were carried out in the region in the last few days.
- On Saturday, multiple rockets were launched against US forces at Mission Support Site Euphrates, Syria. No casualties or infrastructure damage were reported.
- On Sunday evening a one-way drone attack against US, coalition and Syrian Democratic Forces at Omar Oil Field near Mission Support Site Green Village, Syria, resulted in multiple SDF casualties and “significant damage to infrastructure,” the official said.
- On Monday morning, a single rocket was launched at Mission Support Site Euphrates. There were no casualties or infrastructure damage reported.
More background: On Friday, the US military struck more than 85 targets in Iraq and Syria, including command and control operations centers, intelligence centers, weapons storage facilities, rockets, missiles, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities used by the Iran-backed militia groups and the IRGC.
Officials said Friday they believed the strikes to be successful.
