April 2, 2024 - Israel-Hamas war

The UK is “urgently seeking further information” on the death of a British aid worker killed in Gaza, its foreign office said on Tuesday.

The British national was one of seven aid workers working with non-profit World Central Kitchen (WCK) who were killed by an Israeli airstrike, according to the charity and authorities in Gaza.

The office called for International Humanitarian Law to be respected and civilians to be protected, saying too many civilians have been killed and that they wanted to see greater care to avoid harming civilians and destroying homes.

Those killed include a dual US-Canada national, as well as people from Australia, Poland, the United Kingdom, and a Palestinian, the non-profit said.

The Israel Defense Forces said it was “conducting a thorough review” of the incident.

Iran has vowed to retaliate after a bombing of its embassy complex in Syria that it blamed on Israel — a deadly escalation of regional tensions over the war in Gaza that appeared to raise the risk of a wider Middle Eastern conflict.

Here's what we know about the attack:

Who was killed in the strike? The strike killed at least seven officials, including Mohammed Reza Zahedi, a top commander in Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), and senior commander Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi.

Zahedi is the most high-profile Iranian target killed since former US President Donald Trump ordered the assassination of IRGC Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020.

How may Iran respond? Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani warned that Tehran “preserves the right to take reciprocal measures and will decide the type of response and punishment against the aggressor.”

Iran’s most powerful paramilitary ally, Hezbollah, warned that Israel would pay for the attack. Hezbollah has been embroiled in daily crossfire with Israeli forces since the war in Gaza started.

Israel's military said it does not comment on foreign reports, but its spokesperson told CNN the consulate was a "military building of Quds forces disguised as a civilian building."

How does the strike escalate regional tensions? While Israel has long targeted Iran and its proxies in Syria, its alleged attack in Damascus is a significant escalation due to both the location and the target. The consulate building, which includes the ambassador’s residence and is located next to the Iranian Embassy, is considered sovereign Iranian territory.

Read the full story.

Gaza’s General Directorate of Civil Defense has condemned the “targeting” of non-profit World Central Kitchen's aid workers after seven were killed in a strike, and said it held the Israeli government accountable.

The directorate said World Central Kitchen has “a major role in providing and securing aid and food for our people in the Gaza Strip and providing food and clothing for the displaced near the checkpoint.”

The statement called for the protection of aid workers in line with international law.

The directorate also called for the protection of aid workers in line with international law.

At least seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Monday, according to the aid group.

The Israel Defense Forces said it was “conducting a thorough review” of the incident.

Saif Issam Abu-Taha, a Palestinian driver and translator working with non-profit World Central Kitchen, was one of the aid workers killed in an Israeli strike on Gaza on Monday, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.

The driver was among at least seven aid workers killed, despite the team traveling in what the organization referred to as "deconflicted zone" in two armored cars branded with the charity’s logo.

Those killed include a dual US-Canada national, as well as people from Australia, Poland, and the United Kingdom, the non-profit said.

Seven aid workers, including multiple foreigners, from a team delivering food to starving civilians in Gaza have been killed in an Israeli military strike, according to non-profit group World Central Kitchen and authorities in the besieged enclave.

World Central Kitchen said its aid workers were traveling in a “deconflicted zone” in two armored cars branded with the charity’s logo as well as “a soft skin vehicle”.

Those killed include a dual US-Canada national, as well as people from Australia, Poland, the United Kingdom, and a Palestinian, the group said.

“The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity rises above all, and the impact they made in countless lives will forever be remembered and cherished,” Gore said.

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US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan will travel to Saudi Arabia this week to continue talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about a normalization deal between Israel and the kingdom, according to a US official. 

No major breakthroughs are expected from the meeting, the official added. 

Sullivan's visit comes less than two weeks after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken cited "good progress" in the ongoing talks during his visit to Saudi Arabia.

The potential deal, which many view as a major hurdle that may prove too challenging to pull off — especially while Israel is at war in Gaza — would have many elements, including a US military agreement with Saudi that would support its development of a civilian nuclear program, US officials have told CNN.

But the details of that portion of the deal, as well as many other aspects, remain in the works, the US official said Monday. 

Axios was the first to report on Sullivan's visit. 

Some background: Just weeks before Hamas launched its October 7 attack on Israel, Saudi Arabia said it was inching closer to normalizing diplomatic ties with the Jewish state. But months of war in Gaza have left the Arab world seething, jeopardizing any potential deal.

Iran has vowed a "decisive" response after a strike it blamed on Israel killed two of its top commanders and five other officials at its consulate in Syria, in what may be the most dangerous escalation outside of Gaza since the start of the Hamas-Israel war nearly six months ago.

Iranian authorities and state media named senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders Mohammed Reza Zahedi and Haji Rahimi among those killed.

Israel's military said it does not comment on foreign reports, but its spokesperson said the consulate was a "military building of Quds forces disguised as a civilian building."

The Quds Force is a unit of Iran's IRGC responsible for foreign operations.

Here are the latest developments in the region:

Japan has lifted its funding suspension of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoko Kamikawa said Tuesday.

Israel has accused at least 12 staffers from the UN Relief and Works Agency of being involved in the October 7 Hamas attacks and has alleged that about 12% of the UN Relief and Works Agency's 13,000 staffers are members of Hamas or other Palestinian militant groups. UNRWA says it has fired 10 of the 12 accused staffers and that the other two are dead. CNN cannot confirm the allegations.

Japan's move came after a meeting on Saturday between Kamikawa and Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner General of UNRWA.

In the meeting, Lazzarini laid out the steps the agency was taking to “improve screening and education to ensure neutrality of UNRWA staff,” according to a statement from Japan's foreign ministry on Saturday.

UNRWA also agreed to establish a new framework with Japan on project management and monitoring to ensure “transparency and traceability of projects,” the ministry added.

Some background: UNRWA is the primary humanitarian aid group in Gaza. About 2 million Gazans rely on the agency for aid, with 1 million people using UNRWA shelters for food and healthcare amid the fighting in the enclave.

An Australian is among members of the aid organization World Central Kitchen who were killed in Gaza, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday.

Australia has contacted Israel, Albanese said, adding that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has "requested a call-in from the Israeli ambassador to Australia" to "ask for accountability."

The prime minister sent his deepest condolences to her family.