December 18, 2023 Israel-Hamas war

In his meeting with Israeli officials, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he discussed pathways “toward a future for Gaza after Hamas,” the protection of civilians in Gaza and the need “to take urgent action to stabilize the West Bank.”

“[I]t would compound this tragedy if all that was waiting for the Israeli people and your Palestinian neighbors at the end of this awful war was more insecurity, fury, and despair,” he added. “As I have said, Israelis and Palestinians have both paid too bitter a price to just go back to October 6.”

Austin traveled to Israel on Monday for meetings with senior Israeli officials alongside Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr. The stop in Tel Aviv — Austin’s second since Hamas’ invasion of Israel on October 7 — is part of a trip to the region that also includes stops in Bahrain and Qatar.

The USS Carney responded Monday to a distress call from a commercial vessel after it was attacked by “multiple projectiles” in the southern Red Sea, a US military official said.

The merchant vessel Swan Atlantic was attacked at roughly 9 a.m. local time, the official said. More information regarding what kind of projectiles were launched and from where was not immediately available, though the attack follows a string of others in recent days by Houthi forces, who are funded and trained by Iran, on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack on the Swan Atlantic later Monday. The group claimed it attacked another ship as well and that both ships were linked to Israel, and that the ships’ crews refused to respond to calls from the Houthis. The Houthis also said that “no harm will be dealt” to ships heading to ports around the world, “except for Israeli ports.”

The ship’s owner, Inventor Chemical Tankers, said in a release there is “no Israeli link in the ownership (Norwegian), technical management (Singapore) of the vessel, nor in any parts of the logistical chain for the cargo transported.”

“We note that information provider Marine Traffic has wrongfully claimed that the vessel is managed by an ‘Israel affiliated company’ on their web site. This is believed to be the reason for her having been targeted now on her southward passage through the Red Sea. This is incorrect,” ICT said.

The attack came as US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is in the region for meetings with senior Israeli officials in Tel Aviv amid ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Houthi forces in Yemen have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming the attacks as revenge against Israel. Oil giant BP announced Monday that it would pause all shipments through the Red Sea due to the “deteriorating security situation,” marking the latest shipping firm to pause routes through the channel.

CNN has reported that the US is considering beefing up protections for commercial ships around the vital shipping route, according to military officials, with members of the Combined Maritime Forces – a multi-national naval task force charged with protecting commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Read more about a US warship responding to a distress call from a commercial vessel in the Red Sea.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack on the vessel MT Swan Atlantic, which, according to its Norwegian owner Inventor Chemical Tankers (ICT), was hit by an “unidentified object” Monday morning.

The vessel was carrying a cargo of biofuel feedstock from France to Reunion Island, ICT said in its press release Monday, adding there were no injuries to any members of the crew and there was limited damage to the vessel. 

In a statement, Yemen's Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, and added that they had targeted another ship. The group claimed that both ships were linked to Israel, and that the ships' crews refused to respond to calls from the Houthis.

The Houthis also said that "no harm will be dealt" to ships heading to ports around the world, "except for Israeli ports."

The Houthis have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming the attacks as a means of pressuring Israel to send aid to Gaza.

ICT went on to say in Monday's press release there is “no Israeli link in the ownership (Norwegian), technical management (Singapore) of the vessel, nor in any parts of the logistical chain for the cargo transported."

Benjamin Brown contributed to the reporting of this post.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared more details about the incident on Friday in which Israeli troops shot and killed three Israelis in Gaza who had been taken hostage by Hamas during the October 7 attacks. 

The three men had tried to use leftover food to create signs calling for help, the IDF said in a statement released late Sunday accompanied by pictures. Earlier on Saturday, an IDF official said the men were killed while waving a white flag, in violation of IDF rules of engagement.

One of the photos shows a white sheet with the words "help" and "three hostages" written on the sheet in Hebrew.

The IDF said it is reviewing the incident and has notified the families of hostages with the additional findings.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Tel Aviv Monday for meetings with senior Israeli military and political leaders. It comes amid an intensifying rift between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over mounting civilian casualties in Gaza.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Austin said he discussed pathways “toward a future for Gaza after Hamas” with Israeli officials and the protection of civilians in Gaza, and the need “to take urgent action to stabilize the West Bank.

CNN reported earlier this month that US officials expected Israel could transition by January to a lower-intensity, hyper-localized strategy that narrowly targets specific Hamas militants and leadership.

Nearly 19,500 people have been killed by Israeli military action in Gaza since October 7, and more than 52,000 recorded wounded, according to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.

Here are the latest developments:

Oil firm BP said it is suspending all shipping through the Red Sea due to the "deteriorating security situation" after a series of attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels in recent weeks.

In a statement, the firm said it "has decided to temporarily pause all transits through the Red Sea. We will keep this precautionary pause under ongoing review, subject to circumstances as they evolve in the region."

It comes after major shipping firms Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM Group all decided to pause shipping through the Red Sea after Houthi forces targeted commercial ships in the area.

Also on Monday, shipping firm Evergreen said it would suspend its Israel import and export service with immediate effect due to the "rising risk and safety considerations."

Belgian shipping group Euronav also said it will "avoid the area until further notice. We are monitoring the situation very closely. The safety of our crew and our ships is paramount."

Meanwhile, the USS Carney responded Monday morning to a distress call from a commercial vessel after it was attacked by "multiple projectiles" in the southern Red Sea, a US military official said.

The merchant vessel Swan Atlantic was attacked at roughly 9 a.m. Yemen time, the official said.

More information regarding what kind of projectiles were launched and from where was not immediately available, but the attack follows a string of others in recent days by Houthi forces on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

Key background: Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi forces have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming the attacks as revenge against Israel.

Rebels have repeatedly attacked commercial ships with drones and missiles in recent weeks, and in November seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship, taking its crew hostage. They have also launched missiles toward Israel, one of which was intercepted by a US Navy destroyer in October.

At least 110 people have been killed and dozens more injured during Israeli attacks on Jabalya in northern Gaza over the past 24 hours, the director-general of the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza told CNN Monday.

Munir Al-Bursh, who is in a field clinic in Jabalya, said 110 bodies have already been buried at an old cemetery in Jabalya as of Monday morning, while dozens of people are still believed to be under the rubble.

The old cemetery in Jabalya, which had fallen into disuse, had to be reopened because the dead could not be buried at the nearby Al-Falluja cemetery due to the shelling, he said. 

A video that Al-Bursh shot and sent to CNN appears to show nine dead children laying on the ground. Four of them are wrapped in white cloth with their names written on the cloth. Al-Bursh said the children are from three families in Jabalya, including his own immediate relatives.

CNN cannot independently verify the health ministry's numbers.

Ministry of Health announcements do not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but Al-Bursh said the majority of the dead and wounded are women and children.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it could comment on specific allegations of strikes without geographic coordinates, but told CNN it adheres to international law. It accused Hamas of "deliberately and systematically" placing military targets within the civilian population.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in Tel Aviv on Monday, where he is due to meet with Israeli government officials.

His visit comes amid an intensifying rift between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over mounting civilian casualties in Gaza.

Austin was greeted at the airport on Monday by Israel's director of the policy bureau Dror Shalom, charge d’affaires Stephanie Hallet and Gen. C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

He is expected to meet with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant later Monday. A senior defense official said Sunday that Austin wants to hear "a very clear articulation" of Israel's security establishment's assessment of the campaign in Gaza.

Delicate diplomacy: Austin's visit comes after rifts between the US and Israel spilled into public view last week. Biden has warned his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel is losing international support for its campaign against Hamas, while Netanyahu has publicly rejected American plans for post-war Gaza.

Speaking to Democratic donors in Washington last week, Biden suggested Netanyahu needed to alter his approach.

Biden also said the Israeli government "doesn't want a two-state solution" after the current military campaign winds down.

Speaking ahead of Biden’s comments at the fundraiser, Netanyahu admitted Tuesday that he and the US president disagree on what should happen to Gaza after the war.

Britain's minister for the Middle East on Sunday condemned a deadly shooting at a Gaza church allegedly carried out by an Israeli military sniper.

The sniper shot and killed a mother and daughter and injured seven others inside the Holy Family Parish in Gaza on Saturday, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, in an incident also condemned by Pope Francis.

Pope Francis on Sunday addressed the deaths at the Holy Family Parish, lamenting that “unarmed civilians are targets for bombs and gunfire” in Gaza.

CNN has repeatedly reached out to the IDF for comment.

Read more about the shooting.

CNN's Christopher Lamb contributed reporting.