March 9, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

Our live coverage of Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza has moved here.

The US Army Vessel General Frank S. Besson departs Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

The first equipment needed to establish a temporary pier in Gaza is on its way, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Saturday.

On Thursday, US President Joe Biden announced that the US military would begin establishing a port in the territory that could receive large shipments of critically needed food and medical supplies, with Gaza in the grips of a harrowing humanitarian crisis.

CENTCOM said that the US Army Vessel General Frank S. Besson, a logistics support boat, had departed Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia and was en route to the eastern Mediterranean.

Besson is carrying the first equipment to establish the temporary pier, according to CENTCOM.

But relief could be a long way off. The pier and causeway are expected to take at least one month, possibly two, to build and become fully operational, the Pentagon said Friday – and will likely require up to 1,000 personnel to complete.

The extraordinary measure is among a flurry of actions by the international community to alleviate the crisis in Gaza caused by Israel’s refusal to open additional land crossings or surge more aid by land as it continues to fight Hamas.

In the besieged strip, more than two million people are in need of food and the medical system has all but collapsed.

The Jordanian Armed Forces made 10 airdrops of humanitarian relief into northern Gaza on Saturday.

The airdrops were carried out in cooperation with the United States, France, Egypt and Belgium, the military said in a statement.

“Jordan continues its endeavors and efforts to send more medical, relief and food aid to people in the Gaza Strip with the aim of compensating for the acute shortage of food and medicine as a result of the continuing Israeli war on the Strip,” the statement added.

Jordan said it has carried out 35 aid airdrops on Gaza since November 6. 

A video obtained by CNN on Saturday shows several military transport aircraft dropping humanitarian aid in areas in Gaza.

Some context: While airdrops are a speedy way of getting supplies into a conflict zone, aid agencies say their drawbacks overwhelmingly outweigh their benefits.

For starters, they are more expensive. Airdrops cost up to seven times as much as land deliveries, the World Food Programme says. They also have much more limited delivery capacity. 

“Humanitarian workers always complain that airdrops are good photo opportunities but a lousy way to deliver aid,” Richard Gowan, the International Crisis Group’s United Nations director, told CNN.

Aid workers are urging the US to pressure its ally Israel to lift the tight siege it holds on the enclave, which has left Palestinians on the brink of famine.

At least five people were killed and 9 others injured in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to the Lebanese state-run National News Agency (NNA).

NNA reported that fighter jets fired two air-to-surface missiles at a house in the Al-Ain area of Kharbet Selim, killing a man, his pregnant wife, their two children and another individual.

Emergency and relief teams were dispatched to recover the bodies and transport them to the government hospital in Tebnine, NNA reported.

“The raid caused the complete destruction of the house and caused heavy losses to dozens of surrounding homes,” according to NNA.

Hezbollah on Saturday released a statement that three of the Iran-backed Islamist movement’s fighters were killed on Saturday, providing no further details.

CNN has contacted the Israel Defense Forces for comment, which said it is looking into the airstrike reports.

There has been daily cross-border fire between Israel and Lebanon since the war in Gaza began, and the IDF has repeatedly said it is targeting “Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in the areas in southern Lebanon.” Hezbollah has voiced support for Hamas and Palestinians, and is among several Iranian proxy groups at the center of inflamed regional tensions during the war.

US President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign event in Philadelphia on March 8.

US President Joe Biden said in an interview Saturday that a Gaza ceasefire deal before the start of Ramadan on Monday is still “possible,” mentioning that CIA Director Bill Burns is in the region to aid the negotiations “right at this minute.”

“I never give up on that,” Biden told MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart when asked if a ceasefire could be reached before the Muslim holy month begins.

CNN has previously reported that a ceasefire deal in Gaza — which would see Israeli hostages freed and the first break in fighting in more than three months — is unlikely to happen by the start of Ramadan, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.

On addressing Israeli lawmakers: Biden also said he would like to return to Israel and address the country’s parliament, the Knesset, but declined to discuss it in more detail when pressed by the MSNBC anchor.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told CNN’s Fareed Zakaria last week that Biden should go over current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s head and address the parliament directly.

US President Joe Biden pledged continued support for Israel but indicated there are “red lines” that Israel could cross in its war against Hamas in Gaza.

In an interview on MSNBC Saturday, Biden was asked if he has any “red line” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Biden said the US wouldn’t cut off all weapons shipments to Israel.

“There’s other ways to deal … with the trauma caused by Hamas,” he added.

Biden has been increasingly vocal in his calls for Israel to more deliberately protect civilian life in Gaza over the last few weeks. 

“Israel has had the overwhelming support of the vast majority of nations,” Biden told comedian Seth Meyers in an interview last week. “If it keeps this up with this incredibly conservative government they have … they’re going to lose support from around the world.”

On Saturday, Biden told MSNBC he cautioned Israel’s war cabinet to not “make the mistake America made,” referencing his visit to Israel in October of last year, where he cautioned Israelis not to be “consumed” by rage like America was after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“America made a mistake. We went after (Osama) Bin Laden until we got him. But we shouldn’t have gone into Ukraine,” Biden said, before correcting himself. “I mean, we shouldn’t, we shouldn’t have gone into the whole thing in Iraq and Afghanistan. It wasn’t necessary, wasn’t necessary.” 

At least eight people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on buildings in central Gaza on Saturday afternoon local time, according to health officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and witnesses on the ground.

Several witnesses told CNN on Saturday that the airstrike hit residential buildings in Nuseirat in central Gaza.

A video obtained by CNN from the hospital shows at least four of the dead being brought from the area to the facility — including two children, who were found dead after being pulled out from under rubble.

CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the alleged airstrike. The IDF has repeatedly said they are “operating to dismantle Hamas military and administrative capabilities.”

Mounted Israeli security forces push protesters away from a road during a demonstration in Tel Aviv on March 9.

Thousands of protesters gathered again on Saturday in Israeli cities — including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and the coastal town of Caesarea — to demand a general election and the removal of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from government.

In Tel Aviv’s Democracy Square, protesters chanted: “We will not stop until Bibi (Netanyahu) is arrested!”

Police use water cannon to disperse protesters in Tel Aviv on March 9.

As the night progressed, clashes erupted between Israeli police and some demonstrators. 

The Israeli police arrested 16 people, saying a group breached orders by “crossing fences,” “throwing smoke grenade” toward an intersection and “firing a gas grenade” at both protesters and police.

Photos from the scene showed police on horseback and on foot attempting to disperse people, with some using water cannons on the protesters. 

Yousef Hammash speaks with CNN.

Yousef Hammash, a Gaza resident and advocacy officer for the Norwegian Refugee Council, said the efforts on airdrops and plans for a port in Gaza would be better put toward getting aid trucks directly into the strip.

Palestinian children wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen amid shortages of food supplies, in Rafah, Gaza, on March 5.

He said the US plan to build a temporary port off the coast — which the Pentagon says could take up to two months to complete — is also “kind of unrealistic, to be honest.”

His comments echo those made by United Nations and aid agency officials.

Hammash said the international community — especially the US — should instead focus on using its influence to get aid trucks into Gaza as hunger threatens the enclave. Israel has maintained severe restrictions on that access, allowing aid via ground routes only in a trickle.

Hammash called for a permanent ceasefire to the war. “We don’t want to find ourselves in that circle of violence again and again,” he said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau waits to greet Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa in Ottawa, Canada, on March 5.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a phone call with Benny Gantz — a key figure in the Israeli war cabinet — on Friday to discuss Israel, the West Bank and Gaza.

The two leaders called for the immediate release of all remaining hostages held in Gaza and urged the international community to keep working toward their release, the Canadian prime minister’s office said in a statement Saturday.

Trudeau, however, expressed his concern about “Israel’s planned offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah and the severe humanitarian implications for all civilians taking refuge in the area,” according to the statement.

Remember: Gantz has previously said Israel will expand military operations in Rafah — where displaced Palestinians are now sheltering by the thousands in desperate conditions — if a deal is not reached by the start of Ramadan early next week. That has caused panic in the southern city. Gazans say they have nowhere left to flee, and the United Nations aid chief has warned of a potential “slaughter” if Israeli troops move in.

The US conducted another humanitarian assistance airdrop into northern Gaza on Saturday, according to US Central Command. The airdrop included supplies equal to more than 41,400 meals and 23,000 bottles of water, CENTCOM said in a statement.

But the United Nations and aid agencies have questioned the effectiveness of ongoing airdrops from several countries. The risks were shown starkly on Friday when malfunctioning parachutes caused aid pallets to hurtle from the sky at breakneck speed, killing five unsuspecting people.

While Israel continues to severely restrict the distribution of aid within the enclave, some critics have said the American effort should instead be focused on halting Israel’s military campaign and pressuring the US ally to allow critical humanitarian access.

Here are other headlines you should know:

The United States and coalition forces downed at least 28 unmanned aircraft flown by the Houthi rebel group in the Red Sea area Saturday, according to US Central Command. 

In a statement, CENTCOM wrote the “defeat” of the Houthi attack came “following further engagements through the morning.” No US vessels or commercial ships were damaged in the attack, according to the statement.

CNN reported earlier that US forces shot down over a dozen drones launched by the Iranian-backed Houthis over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Saturday morning local time, according to CENTCOM, after the Houthis conducted a “large-scale” drone attack.

For context: The wave of drones comes in spite of continued US and coalition airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

The first fatal attack by the Iran-backed militant group occurred this week, when at least three crew members were killed and four others injured in the assault Wednesday on the M/V True Confidence, a Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned bulk carrier.

The Houthis have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea since shortly after the war between Israel and Hamas began, with the group tying the attacks to its effort to pressure Israel and its allies to stop the war in Gaza. They are among several Iranian proxy groups at the center of global concerns the war could spill further through the Mideast.

US service members secure humanitarian aid, bound for airdrop over Gaza, onto a cargo aircraft on March 1. 

The US has joined several other countries in airdropping aid into Gaza, which is grappling with a humanitarian crisis.

Aid deliveries on land are severely restricted by Israel and falling far short of the numbers needed to ward off famine in the enclave, so it is hoped these airdrops will provide a lifeline to civilians.

But the United Nations and aid agencies have questioned how effective they will be at alleviating the situation, and their risks were shown starkly on Friday when malfunctioning parachutes caused aid pallets to hurtle from the sky at breakneck speed, killing five unsuspecting people.

Photo ops and pitfalls: Airdrops evade the often rigorous examinations carried out at land checkpoints, so are undoubtedly a speedy way of getting supplies into a conflict zone. But despite this advantage, aid agencies say their drawbacks overwhelmingly outweigh their benefits.

For starters, they are more expensive. Airdrops cost up to seven times as much as land deliveries, the World Food Programme says. They also have much more limited delivery capacity. For example, one truck is capable of delivering nearly 10 times the amount one aircraft could deliver — roughly 20 to 30 metric tonnes, according to the UN.

Experts have also questioned whether countries have plans in place for the aid once it reaches the ground. The UN special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri, says airdrops usually culminate in chaos.

Read more about the history of airdrops and why they are being carried out now in Gaza.

At least two more people died in Gaza on Saturday due to severe malnutrition and dehydration, according to Dr. Ashraf Al-Qidra, the spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.

A two-month-old infant passed away at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, and a 20-year-old woman also died due to starvation at the Al-Shifa medical complex in Gaza City, Al-Qidra said in a statement, bringing the total number to 25.

More context: As Israel’s severe restrictions on aid entering the Gaza Strip drain essential supplies, displaced Palestinians told CNN they are struggling to feed their children. Starving mothers are unable to produce enough milk to breastfeed their babies, doctors say. Parents arrive at overwhelmed health facilities begging for infant formula. Civilians have lost on average tens of kilograms of weight, according to relief workers. In northern Gaza, people rush to grab aid from infrequent humanitarian drops. Health workers say they cannot offer life-saving treatment to malnourished Gazans because Israel’s bombardment and siege has crushed the medical system.

The United States Air Force drops humanitarian aid into Gaza Strip on Saturday, March 9.

The US conducted another humanitarian assistance airdrop into northern Gaza on Saturday, according to US Central Command.

The airdrop included supplies equal to more than 41,400 meals and 23,000 bottles of water, CENTCOM said in a statement.

Some background: The airdrops come as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, with Palestinians reporting deaths of starvation and having to ration food for children.

President Joe Biden also announced plans this week for the US to build a new port in Gaza, to help facilitate delivery of humanitarian aid. But it will take weeks before the port is functional.

Officials from humanitarian organizations working in Gaza have criticized US aid efforts as insufficient as long as its ally Israel continues to severely restrict the entry and distribution of aid in the strip.

CIA Director Bill Burns met with David Barnea, the director of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, in Jordan on Friday.

The meeting was “part of ongoing efforts to promote another deal for the return of the hostages,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement on behalf of Mossad. It said it remains engaged with mediators but again blamed Hamas for the lack of progress on a deal.

Burns traveled to the Middle East this week and has also made stops in Egypt and Qatar, as the US tries to help the mediators broker a ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.

US officials tell CNN the negotiations have reached a standstill, and that a deal is unlikely by the start of Ramadan next week.

CNN’s Lauren Izso contributed reporting to this post.

Palestinians gather in front of a residential building hit in an overnight Israeli air strike in Rafah, Gaza, on March 9.

The Israel Defense Forces said Saturday that it targeted a Hamas military asset in the Rafah area of southern Gaza overnight, after Palestinian reports that scores of civilians were hurt in the strike.

“Terror activities against Israeli civilians and IDF troops were planned inside this property,” the IDF claimed. The military also claimed civilians had been evacuated.

CNN is unable to independently verify the casualty numbers or claims made by WAFA in its reporting, or the IDF claims in its statement, due to lack of access to wartime Gaza.

A CNN stringer on the ground in Rafah reported that five missiles hit the building. Video obtained by CNN shows smoke billowing out of the building.

CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman, Kareem Khadder and Amy Cassidy contributed reporting to this posts.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebel group has claimed it targeted US war destroyers in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with drones, the group’s military spokesperson Yahya Saree said, marking the rebels’ latest attack on shipping in the region as Israel wages war in Gaza.

US Central Command said earlier that US forces shot down 15 drones launched by the Houthis over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Saturday morning.

Other attacks: Also according to US Central Command, the Houthis fired two missiles from Yemen into the Gulf of Aden at the Singapore-owned ship M/V Propel Fortune on Friday, but the missiles did not hit the ship, and there were no injuries.

And overnight, a British warship shot down two Houthi attack drones, according to the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense. There were no injuries or damage, the ministry said. 

This comes days after the first fatal attack by the militant group in its ongoing assaults in the Red Sea. At least three crew members were killed and four others injured on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden after a Houthi ballistic missile struck the M/V True Confidence, a Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned bulk carrier.

The Houthis are among several Iranian proxy groups at the center of global concerns that the war in Gaza could spill further through the Mideast.

CNN’s Lauren Kent contributed reporting to this post.

Palestinians fill containers with water in Gaza City on March 3.

Four out of every five households in Gaza are without safe water, the United Nations warned Saturday. 

It comes as water, hygiene and sanitation services “remain severely constrained” in the war-torn strip, the UN said.

“Access to clean water is a human right,” it said.

CNN has previously reported on people in Gaza drinking polluted water and facing unsanitary conditions, as starvation and dehydration increasingly become threats in the enclave. Some say they have resorted to eating grass for survival.

The number of people who have died of dehydration and malnutrition in Gaza has risen to at least 23, a Palestinian Ministry of Health spokesman in Gaza said Friday.

CNN cannot independently confirm the deaths or their causes, due to the lack of international media access to wartime Gaza.

Previous reporting from CNN’s Sana Noor Haq, Rosa Rahimi and Kareem Khadder

French armed forces have destroyed four combat drones in the Gulf of Aden that were heading towards a European Union naval operation Saturday morning, according to the French Armed Forces Ministry, which called the move “self-defense.”

According to a statement by the Armed Forces Ministry, a frigate was patrolling the Gulf of Aden the EU military operation to safeguard commercial vessels in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. The frigate detected four combat drones that were heading towards it in “tactical flight” and destroyed them in self-defense, the statement said.

The French ministry said that the “defensive action directly contributed to the protection of the cargo ship True Confidence,” which was attacked on Wednesday, causing at least three crew members to be killed and four others to be injured.

Ongoing sea assaults: This comes after US forces shot down 15 drones launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Saturday morning, according to the US Central Command.

The militants claimed they targeted US war destroyers in those areas and said such attacks will “persist” in the Red and Arab Seas until “the siege on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip” is stopped.