March 19, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) sent text messages to Palestinians in Gaza on Tuesday offering cash in exchange for any information about Israeli hostages.

A CNN journalist in Gaza received the message in Arabic on their phone on Tuesday stating:

The message had two phone numbers attached to it as well as a link to a website, machtoffin.com, which directs one to a website with the pictures, names, and ages of Israeli hostages.

Some background: Gaza is facing a humanitarian crisis following Israeli bombardment across the enclave, where 70% of the population is already suffering from catastrophic levels of hunger, a UN-backed report said Monday.

Following the Hamas attack on October 7 in Israel last year, the group took Israeli hostages back to Gaza, many of whom are still in Gaza. According to CNN's count last week, a total of 33 of the 130 October 7 hostages are now believed to be dead. 

CNN is attempting to reach out to the IDF for comment.

An Israeli delegation led by Mossad Director David Barnea has left the Qatari capital of Doha after one day of talks with no breakthrough, but mediators remain optimistic by the resumption of talks after weeks of an impasse, an official said.  

The indirect talks, held between Israel and Hamas under Qatari and Egyptian mediation, were the first to be held in Doha at that level in months — and even though the Mossad chief is under pre-approved guidelines by his government to negotiate, mediators still believe the visit is positive.

Barnea’s departure does not mean talks have ended, Al-Ansari said, as technical teams continue discussing the parameters of the three-phase proposal oF a six-week pause is currently being negotiated on. The next step is a counterproposal to be sent to Hamas, Al-Ansari said. 

More background: Since the last truce in November, Hamas and Israel have rejected several proposals, and talks have reached numerous deadlocks. Israel refused to send a delegation to a mediation meeting in Egypt earlier this month and called Hamas’ demands "ridiculous," while Hamas kept mediators waiting for days to send back its latest response. 

An agreement, if reached, is expected to have multiple phases.

Qatar has separated any direct link between the ongoing talks in Doha over the release of hostages and a humanitarian pause with the US-Israel upcoming discussions on a Rafah operation. Still, Al-Ansari warned that any escalation on Rafah will have "serious" bearings on the talks. 

The nongovernmental organization that organized the first aid boat to Gaza confirmed Tuesday that the boat's cargo of food aid has been delivered successfully to northern Gaza. 

The roughly 200 tons of aid was delivered to northern Gaza alongside a World Food Program convoy on Tuesday morning, World Central Kitchen (WCK) said in a statement. 

Fears are mounting over hunger in northern Gaza after a United Nations-backed report published on Monday warned that famine could break out any time from mid-March to May.

The nonprofit has a second boat, named Jennifer, loaded with 240 tons of aid and ready to depart Cyprus, according to the statement. Unfavorable weather conditions have prevented the second boat from leaving the port of Larnaca, WCK said. 

Alongside canned food and bulk products, the boat has also been loaded with two forklifts and a crane to assist future aid deliveries to Gaza, according to the NGO. 

Remember: While welcoming the success of the maritime corridor into Gaza, aid agencies and the UN have warned that sea deliveries and airdrops remain much less effective methods of delivering aid than over land.  

Israeli troops continue "precise operations" at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza "to thwart terrorism," according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israel Security Agency, known as Shin Bet (ISA). 

"Thus far, the troops killed over 50 terrorists and apprehended approximately 180 suspects," according to a joint IDF and ISA statement. "The troops eliminated terrorists in close-quarters combat and located weapons in the area while avoiding harm to civilians, medical staff, and medical equipment," it added.

The Israeli army launched an operation on the hospital, where thousands of people are sheltering, on Monday.

A woman named Lamya, who is trapped inside the hospital, told CNN on the phone that people who look out the window or move between rooms get hit by Israeli fire and killed.  

A fifth-year medical student, Ezz El-Din Lulu, who is also trapped inside Al-Shifa, called for an "urgent intervention before the hospital turns into a mass grave." The hospital is out of food, water and electricity, and Israeli troops "have literally cut us off from everything," he said. 

In a statement released on Tuesday, Hamas condemned the Israeli operation on the hospital and "civilians' homes" in the surrounding areas in which "dozens" of people died. 

CNN is unable to independently confirm the number of dead because of difficulties accessing the Gaza Strip. 

This post has been updated with an eyewitness account from inside the hospital.

Israel's head of Security Services, David Barnea, has left Doha after participating in talks with Qatari and Egyptian officials on a potential ceasefire in Gaza. 

The Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson told reporters at a news conference in Doha on Tuesday that this round of talks has now ended, and will continue at a lower level. 

Here's what's next: A counterproposal from Israel is now expected to be sent to Hamas, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson added.

Qataris and Egyptians have been the principal interlocutors with Hamas.

Israel's Prime Minister's Office said they have no comment on Barnea's departure. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that Gaza's entire population is "at severe levels of acute food insecurity."

Blinken called the war a “horrific humanitarian situation for women, for children, for men,” and implored Israel to protect civilians.

Blinken said he urged Israel to have a plan for Gaza after the war, which he said he hoped would end soon. The plan, he said, would have to be “consistent with Israel’s needs to defend itself and make sure that October 7 never happens again.” 

Famine warning: According to a UN-backed report, all 2.2 million people in the enclave do not have enough food to eat, with half of the population on the brink of starvation and famine projected to arrive in northern Gaza “anytime between mid-March and May 2024.”

Diplomatic tour: Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia and Egypt to meet with government leaders this week and discuss efforts to reach an “immediate ceasefire agreement” between Israel and Hamas.

China’s Foreign Ministry said its envoy Wang Kejian spoke with Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in the first meeting between a Chinese and Hamas official publicly acknowledged by Beijing since October 7.

During the meeting on Sunday in Qatar, Wang and Haniyeh “exchanged views on the Gaza conflict and other issues,” the ministry said.

Haniyeh stressed "the need to quickly stop the aggression and massacres," for the Israeli military to withdraw from Gaza, and “achieve the political goals and aspirations of establishing an independent Palestinian state," according to a Hamas media office statement.

Last Wednesday, Wang visited the occupied West Bank and met with Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Riyad Al-Maliki, the Chinese ministry said.

Wang told Al-Maliki that China is “deeply concerned” about the war and the grave humanitarian situation in Gaza — and that China has been working hard to bring about a ceasefire and protect civilians. 

He then visited Israel last Thursday and met with Hagai Shagrir, the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s head of Asia and Pacific Bureau, the ministry said.

Wang is the first Chinese diplomat known to be sent to the West Bank and Israel since the war began.

Middle East tour: Since March 10, Wang has been on a diplomatic tour in the Middle East, where he met with officials in Egypt, the West Bank, Israel and Qatar, according to China’s Foreign Ministry. 

Read more about China's role in the conflict.

Famine is imminent in northern Gaza, where 70% of the population is suffering "catastrophic" levels of hunger, a UN-backed report said Monday.

All 2.2 million people in Gaza do not have enough food to eat, with half of the population on the brink of starvation and famine projected to arrive in the north “anytime between mid-March and May 2024,” according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report.

Acute hunger and malnutrition have already “far exceeded” the threshold for famine in northern Gaza and the IPC warns of a “major acceleration of death and malnutrition.”

Acute hunger and malnutrition have already “far exceeded” the threshold for famine in northern Gaza and the IPC warns of a “major acceleration of death and malnutrition.”

Scarce supplies mean that “virtually all households are skipping meals every day” and adults are going without so their children can eat, the report said.

Famine could be halted if aid organizations were allowed full access to Gaza to bring food, water, and other supplies to the civilian population, the report said.

Read more on the food security crisis in Gaza.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia and Egypt to meet with government leaders this week and discuss efforts to reach an “immediate ceasefire agreement” between Israel and Hamas, according to the State Department.

The deal would secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel, the State Department said.

Blinken also plans to discuss how to end Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Some background: In Qatar, truce talks are taking place between Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Israel’s Mossad chief David Barnea, and Egyptian officials. The talks touch on a ceasefire deal in Gaza in exchange for the release of hostages held by Hamas, a source with knowledge of the discussions told CNN.

Blinken's visit will be part of a larger trip, which includes stops in Austria, South Korea, and the Philippines.