February 7, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

A US military strike killed a Kataib Hezbollah commander in Iraq on Wednesday night who was responsible for attacks on US forces in the region, according to US Central Command.  

The attack was carried out by a drone against a vehicle in Baghdad, according to US and Iraqi officials. There are no indications of collateral damage or civilian casualties, Central Command said in its statement.

Iraqi police said there was at least one other person inside the vehicle who has not been identified. 

The identity of the commander has not yet been released. Local police officials in Baghdad said on Wednesday that the strike hit an SUV in the Al-Mashtal, a predominantly Shia neighborhood in eastern Baghdad.

The strike came as the US has been planning retaliatory attacks against Iran-backed militants who launched a drone at a US outpost in Jordan last month that killed 3 American soldiers.

The US has blamed that attack on an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.

A CNN team on the ground in Baghdad heard at least two loud explosions in quick succession around 9:30 p.m. local time. 

The two people who were inside the vehicle have not been identified because the bodies were completely charred from a fire that erupted from the strike, the police said.

But a senior local security source and a senior source with the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) told CNN that a senior leader with the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia was killed in the attack.

The US conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria last week targeting seven facilities used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated militias in retaliation for the deadly drone attack in Jordan.

Former Israeli hostage Adina Moshe on Wednesday criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that "there won’t be any hostages to release" if his government continues its plan to eliminate Hamas.

Moshe, 72, who was kidnapped by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Oz and held hostage in Gaza for seven weeks, spoke at a news conference for the Hostages and Missing Families Forum — directing her comments specifically to Netanyahu. 

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters also delivered a message to Netanyahu and the Israeli War Cabinet in a release on Wednesday.

Earlier Wednesday, Netanyahu reiterated that Hamas must be destroyed for Israel to be safe. He dismissed Hamas’ proposals for a ceasefire and hostage deal, calling them “delusional.” However, the Israeli leader did not rule out the possibility of further negotiations.

The toll of Israel’s military operations on Palestinian civilians “remains too high,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials on Wednesday.

The top US diplomat’s statement that Israel still has not taken adequate action to protect civilians comes after four months of Blinken pressing the Israeli government "on all of (his) previous visits and pretty much every day on concrete ways to strengthen civilian protection, to get more assistance to those who need it."

Although Blinken acknowledged that Israel had taken some important actions, he outlined in his meetings Wednesday additional “key steps” that the government must take to mitigate the civilian suffering.

Blinken noted that those steps should include opening the Erez crossing "so that assistance can flow to northern Gaza, where, as I said, hundreds of thousands of people are struggling to survive under dire conditions,” he said.

The US secretary of state also urged to "expedite the flow of humanitarian assistance from Jordan."

"And Israel must ensure that the delivery of life-saving assistance to Gaza is not blocked for any reason, by anyone,” the top US diplomat said, appearing to reference ongoing protests that have blocked the entrance of aid.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Hamas' counterproposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal leaves room for a potential agreement.

Blinken said he discussed the proposal with Israeli government officials.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed Hamas’ proposals, calling them “delusional.” However, the Israeli leader did not rule out the possibility of further negotiations.

Blinken said he believes Netanyahu was referring to the "absolute nonstarters" in Hamas' response when he dismissed it while adding that he doesn't "want to speak for him."

“But at the same time, we see in what was sent back is space to continue to pursue an agreement, and these things are always negotiations,” Blinken said. “It’s not flipping a light switch. It's not yes or no. There's invariably back and forth."

This post was updated with more details from Blinken's comments.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Hamas must be destroyed for Israel to be safe.

Netanyahu said he told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday that it is only after Israel “destroys” Hamas that Gaza will be safe. 

CNN reported Wednesday that Hamas has presented its response to a proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal by calling for a phased Israeli withdrawal during a four-and-a-half-month truce and a plan to permanently end the war, according to a copy of the group’s counteroffer obtained by CNN.

The Palestinian militant group that rules Gaza has proposed a three-phase deal, each lasting 45 days, that would also see the gradual release of hostages held in the enclave in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel – including those serving life sentences – as well as the start of a massive humanitarian and rebuilding effort.

Hamas did not call for an immediate ceasefire. Negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place during the truce and the remaining hostages would only be released once a final deal to end the war was agreed, the document said.

United Nations Secretary General António Guterres expressed deep concerns over the escalating humanitarian crisis in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Wednesday, saying an extension of Israeli operations there would have "disastrous" repercussions.

Rafah is “where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been squeezed in a desperate search for safety," he said in an address to the UN General Assembly Wednesday.

Highlighting the dire situation as a "humanitarian nightmare with untold regional consequences," he urgently called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire and the unconditional release of all hostages”.

Earlier on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also raised concerns about a potential expansion of Israeli military operations into Rafah during meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials, two Israeli officials told CNN. Rafah is where thousands of displaced civilians fled to as fighting intensified in northern Gaza and slowly made its way south.

Those trapped in the city have no remaining escape route. The city borders Egypt, and the crossing into that country has been closed for months.

Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, the Israeli military's chief of staff, briefed Blinken on Wednesday on Rafah, one Israeli official said, including the complexity of maneuvering in an area with so many civilians and which is located right on the Egyptian border.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up his final meeting of the day in Israel, after speaking with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for nearly an hour and a half.

Their one-on-one meeting took place amid US concerns about the humanitarian toll of Israel expanding its operations into Rafah, where more than one million people have fled fighting in the north.

CNN reported earlier Wednesday that Blinken raised concerns about a potential expansion of Israeli military operations into Rafah during meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials, according to two Israeli officials.

Gallant was present at an earlier meeting with Netanyahu and Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Herzei Halevi, who briefed Blinken on the Israeli military’s plans to expand ground operations into Rafah in the coming weeks, one Israeli official said, including the complexity of maneuvering in an area with so many civilians and located right on the Egyptian border.

Hamas will send a delegation to Cairo Thursday to follow up on the counterproposal it offered, the group's spokesman Osama Hamdan said at a press conference in Beirut on Wednesday.

Hamdan called the Hamas counterproposal a "positive response" that "guarantees reconstruction, lifting the siege, and releasing prisoners."

CNN reported on Wednesday that Hamas has presented its response, proposing a three-phase deal — each lasting 45 days — that would see the gradual release of hostages held in the enclave in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel, as well as the start of a massive humanitarian and rebuilding effort. Contrary to earlier demands, Hamas did not call for an immediate end to the war.

Negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place during the truce, and the remaining hostages would only be released once a final deal to end the war was agreed, the document said.

Hamdan condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for saying Wednesday that he has not committed to the "crazy demands" of Hamas and that Israel's aim is "complete victory." He also called on the US to stop supporting Israel.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas discussed the latest developments in Gaza at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah on Wednesday.

Blinken and Abbas spoke about "developments in the ongoing efforts to stop the aggression against our people,” according to the official Palestinian news agency, WAFA.

The president highlighted the importance of swiftly delivering relief, medical and food supplies, along with essential services like water, electricity and fuel, to facilitate hospital functionality and shelters across Gaza, WAFA reported.

Abbas also called for the US recognition of Palestinian statehood and a full United Nations membership, highlighting a two-state solution as essential for peace.

Israel has repeatedly claimed its war is not against the Palestinian people, but against Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly dismissed the idea of a Palestinian state or a role for the Palestinian Authority in post-war governance. 

In a meeting with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu earlier Wednesday, the US State Department said Blinken stressed “the urgent need to de-escalate tensions in the West Bank and prevent the conflict from expanding.” US President Joe Biden's administration last week imposed sanctions on four Israeli settlers for perpetrating violence in the West Bank.