Smoke rises from a building hit by a strike in Erbil, Iraq on January 16. Rudaw TV/AP
The United Nations in Iraq has condemned Iran's missile attack in Erbil, capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq.
"We strongly condemn last night’s Iranian attack on locations in Erbil, Iraq's Kurdistan Region, which caused civilian casualties. Attacks, by any side, violating Iraqi sovereignty and territorial integrity must stop," the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq said in a statement posted on X on Tuesday.
It added that security concerns must be addressed "through dialogue."
On Monday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards launched ballistic missiles at a number of locations in Erbil, including what it said was a spy base for Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad and at “anti-Iran terror groups” in Syria.
The strikes, which killed at least four civilians and injured six others according to the Security Council of the Kurdistan region, were condemned by the United States as “reckless” and imprecise, as fears over a wider regional conflict mount.
1:40 a.m. ET, January 16, 2024
UN relief chief says famine has arrived in Gaza as regional hostilities rise. What you need to know
From CNN staff
Israel's war in Gaza has brought famine with "such incredible speed," the United Nations’ relief chief said Monday, as he warned that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are starving in the besieged enclave.
The "great majority" of 400,000 Gazans characterized by UN agencies as at risk of starving "are actually in famine, not just at risk of famine," UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths told CNN.
Israel’s relentless bombing of Gaza in response to Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks has killed more than 24,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, and wrought widespread devastation, as civilians live with the threat of imminent death — either by an airstrike, starvation or disease.
Here's the latest updates:
Hostage videos: Israel said Monday that Hamas is carrying out "psychological torment" after the militant group released a third video in the space of 24 hours featuring the same three hostages being held in Gaza, the last of which appears to show two of the captives dead. Israel believes more than 100 hostages remain alive in Gaza.
Ramming attacks: Twin vehicle ramming attacks in the central Israeli city of Raanana killed one person and injured at least 17, authorities said. Israeli police said two suspects held in custody were residents of Hebron in the occupied West Bank. Hamas said the attacks were a "natural response" to Israeli aggression against Palestinians.
Houthi strike: A Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile struck a US-owned on Monday, US Central Command said. The Yemeni militant group claimed responsibility for the strike against the M/V Gibraltar Eagle, which appears to be the first time the Houthis have successfully struck a US-owned or operated ship, raising the stakes in the Red Sea after Washington vowed that further Houthi launches would be met with a response.
Iran attacks: Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Monday launched ballistic missiles at what it said was a spy base for Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad in northern Iraq, and at "anti-Iran terror groups" in Syria, in the latest escalation of hostilities that further risks spiraling into a wider regional conflict. The US condemned the strikes as "reckless" and imprecise.
Israel's military operation: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its latest air raids killed two militants in Gaza's southern city of Khan Younis, and that it struck two weapons storage facilities, alongside "Hamas operational infrastructure" in the area. In northern Gaza, the IDF said it killed five militants who attempted to locate weapons in an area where Israeli forces had been operating.
Egyptian border clash: An Israeli soldier was wounded during an exchange of fire along the southern border with Egypt after about 20 unidentified people, some of them armed, approached the boundary, the Israeli military said. Several suspects were also hit in the incident, the IDF said.
12:06 a.m. ET, January 16, 2024
Iran claims to destroy Israeli spy base in northern Iraq strikes
From CNN's Hamdi Alkhshali, Nechirvan Mando and Helen Regan
Authorities and others gather near the site where missiles hit near the US consulate in Erbil, Iraq, on January 15. Rudaw TV/AP
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Monday launched ballistic missiles at what it said was a spy base for Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad in northern Iraq, and at “anti-Iran terror groups” in Syria, in the latest escalation of hostilities that further risks spiraling into a wider regional conflict.
The strikes were condemned by the United States as “reckless” and imprecise.
Iranian forces said the midnight missile strike in Iraq destroyed “one of the main espionage headquarters” of Israel in Erbil, capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, in response to what they said were Israeli attacks that killed Iranian Revolutionary Guard commanders and members of the Iranian resistance front.
“This headquarters has been the center for developing espionage operations and planning terrorist acts” in the region and Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement Monday.
CNN has reached out to Israel’s Prime Minister’s office for comment on the IRGC’s claim.
The IRGC also said it struck several locations in Erbil and claimed to target “sites of Iranian opposition groups.”
At least four civilians were killed and six others injured in the attack, according to a statement early Tuesday by the Security Council of the Kurdistan region.
Hamas hostage videos amount to "psychological torture" of families, Israel says
From CNN's Andrew Carey
Israel on Monday accused Hamas of "psychological torture" after the militant group released a series of videos featuring hostages in Gaza, the last of which appears to show two of the captives killed.
“Hamas are hit badly by the [Israel Defense Forces] and all that is left for them is to bring psychological torment to the families [of the hostages], leaving the IDF to clarify things for the families later,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told reporters.
The first video, released Sunday, showed the three hostages -- Noa Argamani, Itai Svirsky and Yossi Sharabi. Sharabi's family previously asked for his name to be withheld. It ended with a caption saying, “Tomorrow, we will inform you of their fate.”
A subsequent clip Monday appeared to show the bodies of Svirsky and Sharabi. It also featured Argamani saying both men had been killed by Israeli forces.
It is not clear if Argamani was speaking under duress. The video is also highly edited, including the looping of some of her words.
CNN is not airing the videos, and it is not immediately possible to verify when and where they were filmed.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari denied Monday that Svirsky had been hit by Israeli forces.
We do not strike in places where we know there may be hostages,” Hagari said.
He said the IDF representatives had met with the families of the three hostages and updated them on the latest information they had, adding the IDF “expressed grave concern” for the fate of Svirsky and Sharabi.
From CNN’s Amir Tal and Ivana Kottasová. This post has been updated to reflect the IDF naming the third hostage shown in the videos, Yossi Sharabi.
1:40 a.m. ET, January 16, 2024
Hundreds of thousands are starving in Gaza as famine arrives at "incredible speed," UN aid chief says
From CNN's Chris Lau
Children cry out for food relief in Rafah, Gaza on December 31, 2023. Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua/Getty Images
Israel's war in Gaza has brought famine with "such incredible speed," the United Nations’ relief chief told CNN on Monday, as he warned that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are starving in the besieged enclave.
The "great majority" of 400,000 Gazans characterized by UN agencies as at risk of starving "are actually in famine, not just at risk of famine," UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths told CNN's Christiane Amanpour.
"It's been an extraordinary and holy unwelcome aspect of the Gazan war," he said. "It has brought famine with such incredible speed to the front of the lines."
Aid has been trickling into Gaza slowly from two border crossings in the south.
Last week, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Israel had denied critical supplies from entering northern Gaza. But Israel has accused the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency of not doing enough and “stalling” the progress.
Griffiths told CNN Monday that work to provide humanitarian aid to 300,000 Gazans who remain in the north of the strip continues to be a challenge.
"If you cannot rely on deconfliction of access routes of people in need, If you cannot rely on hospitals not being attacked ... if you cannot rely on people having to move from one place of insecurity to another place of insecurity, those are the issues that make humanitarian aid deliveries," he said. "It's not a matter of the number of trucks that can get in."
More than 24,000 people have been killed in Gaza and more than 60,000 others injured since October 7, the Hamas-run Ministry of Health said Monday. Meanwhile, nearly 90% of Gaza's pre-war population has been displaced, according to the UN.
Griffiths warned Monday that the dire humanitarian situation in the enclave could create "generational hatred."
"We worry for the security of Israel as much as the security of Gaza," he said.
10:26 p.m. ET, January 15, 2024
Israeli soldier wounded in exchange of fire with unidentified group along Egyptian border
From CNN's Mitchell McClusky, Amir Tal, Hamdi Alkhshali and Mohammed Tawfeeq
An Israeli soldier was wounded during an exchange of fire along the southern border with Egypt after about 20 unidentified people, some of them armed, approached the boundary, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Monday.
In a social media post, IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the Israeli soldier was lightly wounded and treated in the hospital.
Several suspects were also hit in the incident near the border crossing at Nitzana, the IDF said. It did not provide further details.
There has been no immediate word from Egypt about the incident.
Earlier, Egyptian media reported that authorities had foiled a drug-smuggling operation at the same location, arresting six people, though it is not clear if the two incidents were linked.
Some context: Border relations between Israel and Egypt have been back in the spotlight after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wanted to change arrangements along the border between Egypt and Gaza. After the war, Israel would control all access into Gaza to prevent weapons and other smuggling into the enclave, Netanyahu claimed.
In response, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said Cairo has maintained full control over the security of its borders.
12:05 a.m. ET, January 16, 2024
New Houthi missile attack shows limited scope of US-led airstrikes in Yemen
From CNN's Katie Bo Lillis, Oren Liebermann, Alex Marquardt and Haley Britzky
Last week’s US-led airstrikes on Houthi rebel targets in Yemen destroyed less than a third of the Iranian proxy group’s overall offensive capabilities, a US official told CNN, with the group maintaining the majority of its ability to strike ships in the Red Sea.
Despite a barrage of strikes last week, including 150 precision-guided munitions fired at nearly 30 sites, the Houthis still have about three-quarters of their ability to target commercial vessels in international shipping lanes in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, the official added.
That was apparent Monday, when a Houthi missile hit a US-owned cargo ship in the Red Sea, marking what appears to be the first time the militants have successfully struck a US-owned or operated ship.
Last week’s airstrike was a success as designed — the US destroyed or damaged 93% of the targets it had selected — but some US officials privately acknowledged that it did little to set back the Houthis’ ability to continue striking international shipping.
“Message received and some degradation but we expect a response and don’t believe we have set back their military efforts substantially,” one senior US official said of the strikes.
UN chief renews calls for ceasefire and release of hostages in speech marking 100 days of war
From CNN's Richard Roth and Jen Deaton
Antonio Guterres attends a press briefing on the situation in the Middle East at the UN headquarters in New York on January 15. Wang Fan/China News Service/VCG/Getty Images
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday delivered remarks to mark 100 days since the October 7 attacks and the ensuing Israel-Hamas war.
Guterres didn't hold back on renouncing the horrific Hamas attacks, the unprecedented civilian casualties and catastrophic humanitarian conditions in Gaza since Israel launched war on Hamas, the taking of and the fate of the hostages in the enclave and the tensions spilling over across the region.
He said the only solution is an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages in Gaza. Guterres also called for all accounts of sexual violence committed by Hamas and others on October 7 to be rigorously investigated and prosecuted.
He added that the "onslaught on Gaza by Israeli forces over these 100 days has unleashed wholesale destruction and levels of civilian killings at a rate that is unprecedented during my years as Secretary-General."
"Nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people," he said.
"The longer the conflict in Gaza continues, the greater the risk of escalation and miscalculation. We cannot see in Lebanon what we are seeing in Gaza. And we cannot allow what has been happening in Gaza to continue."
