December 25, 2023 Israel-Hamas war

By Tara Subramaniam, Christian Edwards and Aditi Sangal, CNN

Updated 1034 GMT (1834 HKT) December 26, 2023

What we covered here

Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza "will be a long fight" and is far from ending, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday after he returned from a trip to the enclave. It comes after Netanyahu said the military was "intensifying" operations in Gaza.
At a special session of parliament Monday, Netanyahu was interrupted by shouts from family members of hostages held in Gaza. They held posters and signs displaying photos and names of their loved ones.
At least 250 people were killed and 500 others injured over the past 24 hours in central Gaza, the strip's Hamas-controlled health ministry said Monday. More than 20,000 people have been killed since the conflict began in early October.
Pope Francis used his Christmas Day message to call for an end to the war. With heavy fighting in Gaza, Christmas celebrations were effectively canceled in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.
Here's how to help humanitarian efforts in Israel and Gaza.

2 Posts

Sort by

11:33 p.m. ET, December 24, 2023

Netanyahu says Israeli forces are "intensifying" operations inside Gaza

From Tamar Michaelis and Radina Gigova

Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a cabinet meeting at the Kirya military base, which houses the Israeli Defense Ministry, in Tel Aviv on December 24. Ohad Zwigenberg/AFP/Getty Images

Israeli forces are "intensifying" operations inside Gaza and will continue to fight until victory over Hamas is achieved, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video statement released Sunday.

"Citizens of Israel, we are intensifying the war in the Gaza Strip. We will continue to fight until absolute victory over Hamas. This is the only way to return our hostages, eliminate Hamas and ensure that Gaza will no longer be a threat to Israel," Netanyahu said.
"This will take time, but we are united — the soldiers, the people and the government. We are united and determined to fight until the end."

Netanyahu also talked about the Israeli soldiers who were killed during military operations in Gaza.

"The war has a price, a very heavy price in the lives of our heroic soldiers, and we will do everything to safeguard the lives of our soldiers. However, there is one thing we will not do: We will not stop until we achieve victory," he said

Netanyahu's statement comes after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday during a news conference that the conflict "needs to move to a lower-intensity phase."

7:09 p.m. ET, December 24, 2023

Who are the Houthis and why are they attacking ships in the Red Sea?

From CNN's Christian Edwards

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels are stepping up their strikes on ships in the Red Sea, which they say are revenge against Israel for its military campaign in Gaza.

Now, newly declassified United States intelligence suggests that Iran has been "deeply involved" in the operations, US National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told CNN.

The Houthi rebels have launched over 100 attacks against about a dozen commercial and merchant ships transiting the Red Sea over the past four weeks, CNN previously reported.

The attacks have forced some of the world’s biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes, which could potentially cause a shock to the global economy.

The Houthis are believed to have been armed and trained by Iran, and there are fears that their attacks could escalate Israel’s war against Hamas into a wider regional conflict.

Here’s what we know about the Houthis.