Middle East Conflict: US Abstains In UNSC Gaza Ceasefire Resolution Vote

Israeli national security minister calls UN a 'wasteland'

Itamar Ben Gvir on Monday said the UN "is a wasteland" following the adoption of a new UNSC resolution that called for both an immediate ceasefire and the unconditional release of all remaining hostages in Gaza.

Netanyahu says Israeli delegation won't travel to Washington: Local media

The Israeli delegation that was supposed to travel to the U.S. will no longer push through with the visit, Netanyahu announced Monday following the UNSC's adoption of a new resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, local N12 News reported.

Washington has been vetoing earlier texts at the UNSC, but this time, it abstained, highlighting the widening gap between the U.S. and Israel's views of the war in Gaza.

'Unforgivable' to not implement new resolution: Guterres

UN chief Antonio Guterres on Monday, shortly after the UNSC approved a resolution that called for an immediate Gaza ceasefire, said failing to implement the text "would be unforgivable."

US abstains in latest Gaza ceasefire UNSC resolution vote

The UN Security council on Monday passed a resolution that calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during the Ramadan month, and demands that all remaining hostages in Gaza be freed unconditionally. The U.S. abstained from the vote, but also did not veto the resolution as it did in previous voting sessions.

This comes following reports that Netanyahu threatened to pull out an Israeli delegation to Washington if the U.S. doesn't veto the said resolution.

Israel raids two more Gaza hospitals: Report

The Israeli army conducted raids on two more hospitals in the Gaza Strip Monday, Reuters reported. Israeli forces "besieged" the Al-Amal and Nasser hospitals in Khan Younis, southern Gaza's main city and the known hometown of Hamas' top leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar.

The raids come about a week after the IDF stormed into the Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza's largest health and medical complex, where troops assassinated a key figure in Hamas' Gaza leadership.

Israel confirms government will halt cooperation with UNRWA

Israel has confirmed that it will no longer collaborate with the UNRWA. "UNRWA are part of the problem, and we will now stop working with them. We are actively phasing out the use of UNRWA because they perpetuate the conflict rather than try and alleviate the conflict," Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer told reporters Monday, as per Reuters.

As earlier reported, the agency's chief said Israel has informed the UN it will no longer allow UNRWA food convoys to enter northern Gaza.

Israel revealed in an exposé late in January that some UNRWA employees were directly involved in Hamas' Oct. 7 atrocities. The UN has since launched an investigation into the allegations and fired some personnel in relation to the scathing revelation.

Netanyahu reportedly warns US of Israeli delegation pullout

The Israeli prime minister has warned that it will pull out an Israeli delegation to Washington if the U.S. doesn't veto a new UNSC resolution calling for an "immediate ceasefire" in Gaza, the Jerusalem Post reported Monday.

The report comes as Israel's National Security Council chief Tzachi Hanegbi and Israeli strategic affairs minister Ron Dermer are scheduled to visit the U.S. this week.

Israel says it thwarted Iranian weapons smuggling attempt

A joint operation between the Israeli army and Israel's security agency Shin Bet resulted in the foiling of an attempt by "Iranian security forces" to smuggle weapons into the Judea and Samaria areas "with the intention of carrying out terrorist acts against Israeli targets," the IDF said in a press release Monday.

Among the weapons that were seized were 50 guns and 15 kilograms of explosives, according to the IDF.

Sirens sound in Ashdod, breaking 2-month southern peace

Rocket sirens sounded in Ashdod, southern Israel Monday afternoon, local time, the IDF and other local media reported.

This comes following some two weeks of peace in the southern part of the country as sirens only sounded in the north amid Hezbollah attacks. Hamas has taken responsibility for the attacks, according to Israel's national broadcaster, Kan. A total of eight rockets were fired, with some falling in open areas and others being intercepted by Israel's air defense system, as per the outlet.

UNSC to vote on another Gaza ceasefire resolution

The UN Security Council will once again vote on a draft resolution calling for an "immediate ceasefire" in Gaza after China and Russia vetoed a U.S. resolution on the same matter.

The new text "demands an immediate ceasefire" during the ongoing Muslim Ramadan month and also "demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages."

Read the full story here.

French president hardens stance on Israel's planned Rafah invasion

Macron told Netanyahu during a phone call Sunday that he was firmly opposed to an Israeli ground incursion on Rafah. "He recalled that the forced transfer of populations constituted a war crime within the meaning of international law," according to a Google-translated press release from the Elysée.

The French leader further noted that Gaza's future "could only be decided within the framework of a future Palestinian state and under the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority."

France is just one of a growing list of countries that have called on Israel to spare Rafah, considering the massive population that found shelter in the southern Gaza city since the war started.

Israel signals openness to allowing return of northern Gaza residents: Report

Israel on Sunday signaled that it was open to allowing the return of displaced Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip as part of ceasefire talks, Reuters reported.

This comes as mediators Qatar and Egypt attempt to achieve a six-week truce deal between the warring sides in exchange for the release of 40 hostages still being held in Gaza.

"We are now willing to discuss a return of some of the displaced," an Israeli official briefed on Doha talks said as per the report. There is speculation that such an arrangement would be limited to women and children, but the official did not elaborate on numbers and specific groups.

'Impossible' to defeat Hamas if Rafah left intact: Netanyahu

Despite mounting calls on Israel to refrain from launching a ground incursion into Rafah without a clear plan to keep Gaza civilians safe, the Israeli prime minister insisted that the Israeli army has to enter the overcrowded southern city.

"It is impossible to defeat the sheer evil by leaving it intact in Rafah. As in ancient times, like our brothers, we are also united. We are fighting and will be victorious. We will enter Rafah and achieve total victory," he said Sunday night, as per a release from his office.

This comes as Israel's ties with the U.S. begin to show cracks due to contradicting views over Israel's military offensive in response to Hamas' Oct. 7 massacre.

IRGC 'experts' assist Houthis in moving missiles: Arab media

Following the destruction of some assets belonging to the Houthi rebel militia on Saturday by U.S. CENTCOM forces, it appears the Iranian-backed rebels have started stockpiling on their weapons arsenal again.

Some "experts" with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) provided assistance to the Houthis in transferring long-range missiles from the Yemeni capital of Sana'a to the Houthi-controlled port town of Hodeidah Monday, Sky News in Arabic reported, citing Yemeni sources.

Iran previously denounced joint U.S. and UK strikes targeting Houthi assets in Yemen, saying they "contradict" the allied nations' call to refrain from starting a "wider conflict" in the region.

Hezbollah fires 15 missiles toward IDF post

Hezbollah fired "about 15 missiles" from Lebanese territory toward an Israeli army post near Menara in northern Israel overnight, the IDF said Monday. The missiles fell on open areas and there were no casualties from the launches.

In response to the attacks, Israeli warplanes struck a "military building" in the Meiss Ej Jabal area in southern Lebanon that belonged to the Iran-backed terror group.

Israel denies UNRWA food convoys from entering northern Gaza: UNRWA

Lazzarini made the announcement Sunday, saying Israel has informed the UN that "as of today," UNRWA food convoys en route to the devastated northern part of Gaza will no longer be approved for entry.

"This is outrageous & makes it intentional to obstruct lifesaving assistance during a man made famine," the UNRWA chief wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "By preventing UNRWA to fulfill its mandate in Gaza, the clock will tick faster towards famine & many more will die of hunger, dehydration + lack of shelter," he added.

Israel has yet to deny or confirm the report.