Israel-Hamas Conflict: Israeli Forces Expand Offensive, Encircle Gaza's Second Largest City

'Solid intelligence' some remaining hostages are in 'immediate danger': Families

The Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum told Israel's war cabinet in a letter that they received "solid intelligence that there are abductees whose condition has deteriorated and there is now immediate danger to their lives," as per local media.

The families demand that the war cabinet, which comprises of Netanyahu, defense minister Yoav Gallant, and minister without portfolio Benny Gantz, "act urgently" to get the remaining hostages freed.

The IDF previously said 137 hostages are still being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Of the said number, 17 are women and children.

At least 10 freed hostages were sexually abused: Doctor

A doctor who treated some of the hostages freed by Hamas during the seven-day truce said at least 10 of the released men and women were either sexually assaulted or abused, the Associated Press reported.

No further details were provided, but the news came after earlier reports that Hamas militants who raided Israel on Oct. 7 committed "gender-based" sexual crimes during the attacks.

Drone incident reported in the Red Sea

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) on Wednesday received a report of an "incident involving a Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS)," west of Houthi-controlled port Hodeidah in Yemen.

Due to the incident, the UKMTO has advised ships within the vicinity to exercise caution and report "any suspicious activity" in the area.

The news comes after Houthis attacked three commercial vessels in the Red Sea on Sunday.

Turkey's Erdogan issues stark warning against targeting Hamas leaders in Turkey

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday warned that Israel "will pay a heavy price" if it attempts to eliminate Hamas leaders residing in his country, Israel's national broadcaster Kan reported.

Erdogan's warning came following reports that Israel was planning a campaign to assassinate top Hamas leaders abroad.

Huge stockpile of weapons located near clinic and school in Gaza: IDF

One of the largest stockpiles of weapons that the Israeli army has encountered in the Gaza Strip since the war started was located Wednesday by Israeli troops "near a clinic and a school" in northern Gaza, the IDF said in a Google-translated post on X.

Among the weapons found were long-range rockets, ready-for-use explosive charges, drones and hundreds of missiles and launchers.

Israeli forces have encircled Khan Yunis: IDF chief

The IDF's chief of staff Herzi Halevi said Wednesday that Khan Yunis, Gaza's second-largest city, has been encircled by Israeli forces, local i24 News reported Wednesday.

The Israeli army previously said its forces were operating "in the heart" of the city, which means Israeli troops are "both inside and both around" the southern Gaza city, as per the report.

Israeli tanks rolled into Khan Yunis after the IDF said it has expanded operations in the Gaza Strip. Streets across the city were almost empty Wednesday morning as residents sought shelter amid intense artillery fire exchanges.

Read the full story here.

Blinken reiterates preventing regional spillover in call with Chinese foreign minister

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated "the imperative of all parties working to prevent the [Israel-Hamas] conflict from spreading" in a call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Wednesday, AFP reported.

Wang, for his part, stressed that the "top priority" should be achieving a ceasefire and seeing the war send soon.

IDF spokesperson calls on international community to help free remaining hostages

"As the IDF expands its operations to dismantle Hamas in Gaza, we have not lost sight, not for one moment, of our critical mission to rescue hostages," IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said in a message posted on X Wednesday.

"I can say with absolute certainty – every minute in Hamas captivity endangers their lives," he said. He further called on the international community to "take action." He also said the Red Cross should have access to the abductees that are being held "in brutal and inhumane conditions."

Hagari's call to action came shortly after local media reported that a 77-year-old freed hostage has been hospitalized and is now in serious condition following a lack of medical care while in captivity.

Freed elderly hostage in serious condition: Local media

Hanna Katzir, the 77-year-old hostage who was freed by Hamas during the seven-day ceasefire, has been hospitalized and is in serious condition, Israel's national broadcaster Kan reported Wednesday.

The Katzir family said "the trauma, the hunger and the lack of medical attention caused her heart problems," as per a translation by Kan. Katzir's son, Elad, remains in captivity in Gaza, while her husband, Avraham "Rami", was among more than a thousand people murdered by Hamas during the Oct. 7 massacre.

Israeli diplomat Yonatan Gonen said Carmit, Katzir's daughter, revealed that the Red Cross "did not send her [Hanna] any medication."

4 Israeli soldiers die in Gaza

Four more Israeli soldiers have died in the Gaza Strip as clashes with Hamas ensue – one of them being a search unit commander, the IDF announced Wednesday on its tribute page for fallen soldiers since the war started.

• Lt. Col. Yohai Gur Hershberg, 52 – commander of the Fire Brigade's Missing Persons Search Unit
• Sgt. Maj. Matan Damari – platoon commander in the Fire Brigade's patrol company
• Maj. Yonatan Malka, 23 – armored fighter in the 82^nd Battalion
• Maj. Eliyahu Cohen, 23 – a fighter in the 7008^th Battalion

Rocket sirens sound in Gaza border communities

Rocket sirens sounded in communities near Israel's southern border with Gaza, local outlets reported Wednesday morning local time.

Israeli foreign minister slams Harvard, Penn, MIT presidents after congress hearing on anti-Semitism

Cohen on Wednesday joined U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., in calling for the resignation of the presidents of Harvard, Penn and MIT: Claudine Gay, Liz Magill, and Sally Kornbluth, respectively.

During a Tuesday hearing to address the surge of anti-Semitism in American universities, the three university presidents refused to directly answer Stefanik's question of whether "calling for the genocide of Jews" violates the universities' code of conduct on bullying and harassment.

"The answer is yes, and this is why you should resign," a visibly appalled Stefanik said after the presidents responded with answers that included "depending upon the context" and "if the speech becomes conduct."

"These are unacceptable answers across the board," she added.

"This is a dangerous and sad moment. Absurd that places that are supposed to be a moral beacon have become a breeding ground for hatred," Cohen said, adding that "whoever gives place to anti-Semitism must not stay one day in his position!"

Houthis hail Red Sea attacks as 'strategic victory': Local media

Yemen's Houthi rebels called their attacks against commercial vessels and a U.S. Navy warship in the Red Sea in recent days as a "strategic victory," local media reported, citing Al-Masirah, the Houthis' media arm.

They also said the harassment of ships in the Red Sea was part of the Iranian "axis of resistance," which is a term used to refer to an informal anti-Israel and anti-Western coalition led by Iran.

250 targets attacked by Israeli air defense forces

The IDF's air defense troops attacked about 250 targets in the last day, the IDF said Wednesday. Two rocket launchers were destroyed by Israeli strikes during the operations.

No more hostage releases until Israel halts attacks: Hamas official

Osama Hamdan, a Hamas official, said the terror group will no longer release any hostages until Israel stops its aggression in Gaza.

Hamdan's remarks came as the families of hostages who remain captive in Gaza call for more action in getting the remaining abductees freed.

IDF now on 'third phase' of Gaza ground operations: Chief of staff

The Israeli army is now on the "third phase" of its ground operations in the Gaza Strip, the IDF's Halevi said in a video message Tuesday. After having seized "many" Hamas strongholds in the north, the IDF is now focused on strongholds in the south, he said.

He reiterated that Israeli troops were operating "professionally," telling Gazans to evacuate before operations, and carrying out "combined" strikes against Hamas assets and combatants "from the air, sea and land."

Mounting evidence suggesting Hamas committed 'gender-based violence' on Oct. 7: Report

There is a "mounting body of evidence" that Hamas operatives who raided Israel on Oct. 7 sexually abused, raped or mutilated Israeli women during the attacks, NBC News reported. The outlet reviewed the evidence over the past several weeks.

There was also evidence that the genitals of some men who were killed during the carnage were mutilated, according to the report. "They had a thing with sexual organs, both in women and men," a first responder told police in videotaped testimony viewed by the outlet.

One woman who worked on preparing the bodies of women killed during the massacre told the outlet that multiple female corpses were mutilated. "They were shot in the vagina, they were shot in the breast...and this seemed like a systematic attempt at genital mutilation," she said.

Hamas has denied committing sexual violence and sexual crimes during the Oct. 7 attacks.

Netanyahu slams UN silence over sexual violence against women on Oct. 7

Israel's prime minister criticized the UN and other women's organizations for their silence amid increasing accounts of "sexual abuse and rapes of unparalleled brutality" that Hamas committed against women during the Oct. 7 carnage in Israel.

"I did not hear the human rights organizations. I did not hear the women's organizations. I did not hear the UN. I did not hear them crying out. And I say to them: 'Where are you? You are being silent because they are Jewish women?'", Netanyahu said during a war cabinet press conference Tuesday night.

US announces visa restrictions policy against extremists in the West Bank

Blinken on Tuesday announced a visa restrictions policy against amid increasing violence in the West Bank. "Violence against civilians will have consequences," he said.

Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller said the restrictions will be implemented "against individuals involved in or meaningfully contributing to the undermining of peace, security, or stability in the West Bank."

IDF eliminates 5 commanders in Hamas' second largest brigade

Israeli air strikes eliminated five commanders of the Northern Gaza Strip Brigade, which is Hamas' second largest brigade, the IDF announced early Wednesday. The commanders were allegedly "hiding in a tunnel" near the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza.

Egypt starts construction of wall in Gaza border: Report

Egypt has started constructing a concrete wall in its border with the Gaza Strip, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing Arab media. It is believed that the project may be a means of preventing the potential passage of Gazan refugees into its territory, as per the report.

Israel revokes UN coordinator's residence visa

Cohen late on Tuesday announced his decision to revoke UN humanitarian coordinator Lynn Hastings' residence visa, saying the Israeli government will "no longer be silent in the face of the bias of the UN."

Cohen said Hastings did not condemn Hamas for its atrocities on Oct. 7, and for this, the UN coordinator "cannot serve in the UN and cannot enter Israel."

Netanyahu addresses calls to end war quickly

The Israeli Prime Minister on Tuesday addressed increasing calls around the world for the Israel-Hamas war to end soon amid the rising number of casualties on both sides, especially among civilian Palestinians.

"Our only way to end the war, and end it quickly, is to apply crushing pressure against Hamas – and destroy it," he wrote on X. He also called on Israel's "friends" to "stand with us" if they want to help shorten the war.

UNIFIL urges Israel, Hezbollah to 'end the cycle of violence'

The United Nations' peacekeeping mission to southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, on Tuesday urged "those exchanging fire along the Blue Line (the UN-drawn demarcation line between Israel and Lebanon) to end the cycle of violence."

The mission's statement came after a Lebanese soldier was killed in an Israeli air strike that targeted Hezbollah on Tuesday. "This is the first time, a LAF soldier was killed during this critical period," UNIFIL noted, adding that the Lebanese Army "have not engaged in conflict with Israel."

1 Lebanese soldier killed, 3 others wounded in Israeli shelling

The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) said in a Google-translated post on X late Tuesday that Sgt. Abdul Karim Al-Miqdad was killed in an Israeli ark strike. Three other Lebanese soldiers were wounded in the said shelling. The injured soldiers have been transferred to a hospital for treatment.

Shortly after, the IDF released a statement, saying Israeli troops "operated in self defense to eliminate an imminent threat that had been identified from Lebanon." The said threat was detected "within a known launch area and observation point of the Hezbollah," it said.

The Israeli army said it "expresses regret" over the incident, adding that the incident was under review. Observers noted that it was "rare" for the IDF to issue an apology statement.