al jazeera

By Linah Alsaafin, Nils Adler and Brian Osgood

    Netanyahu rejects Biden’s suggestion that he is open to a two-state solution. “No compromise” on Israeli control west of Jordan River, he said on X.
    Palestinian Health Ministry says 165 Palestinians were killed and 280 wounded in Gaza over a 24-hour period.
   Several Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes on a civilian car in Rafah, and on Jabalia and al-Bureij refugee camps.
   Footage and witness accounts shared with Al Jazeera reveal how Israeli forces carried out summary executions in Gaza last month.
   At least 24,927 people have been killed and 62,388 were wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll in Israel from the October 7 Hamas attack stands at 1,139.

    Here’s what happened today

    We will be closing this live blog soon. Here’s a review of today’s main developments:

    Fighting intensified in Khan Younis as Israel continued its deadly attacks across Gaza – including in Rafah and the Jabalia refugee camp.
   The Israeli army dropped flyers asking people in southern Gaza for information on captives taken by Hamas on October 7.
   Netanyahu has doubled down on his rejection of a Palestinian state, saying he would “not compromise” on Israeli security control west of the Jordan River.
   Footage and witness accounts shared with Al Jazeera have revealed how Israeli soldiers carried out summary executions in Gaza last month.

    Report: Tensions in Israeli war cabinet becoming unresolvable

    UK newspaper The Times has quoted Gadi Eisenkot, a member of Israel’s emergency war cabinet, who said that, in his opinion, Israel should accept a ceasefire in Gaza to secure the release of the captives still held there.

    He said that two other members of the cabinet, Beny Gantz and Ayre Deri, are also in favour of this position, but that Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister Netanyahu are strongly opposed.

    He suggested that he, Gantz and Deri will abandon the cabinet if their arguments continue to be ignored, though they have not set a deadline.

    US military says Iran-backed groups behind missile attack on base with US troops

    The US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said that Iran-backed groups fired ballistic missiles at a base in western Iraq that hosts US forces.

    The agency said that most of the missiles were intercepted by the defence system at the al-Asad base, but that damage assessments are ongoing. At least one Iraqi service member was injured.

    Father of teen killed by Israeli fire in West Bank slams US support for Israel

    The father of 17-year-old Tawfiq Ajaq, a Palestinian-American killed by Israeli fire in the town of Al-Mazra’a ash-sharqiya in the occupied West Bank yesterday, has slammed US support for Israel’s ongoing illegal occupation. The slain teen was buried on Saturday.

    “They are killer machines,” Hafez Ajaq said of Israeli forces. “They are using our tax dollars in the US to support the weapons to kill our own children.”

    “The American society does not know the true story,” he said. “Come here on the ground and see what’s going on… How many fathers and mothers have to say goodbye to their children? How many more?”

    US demands investigation into killing of Palestinian-American teen

    The US Office for Palestinian Affairs has said on X that it is “devastated to hear” about the killing of a young Palestinian man who was born and raised in the US.

    Yesterday, 17-year-old Tawfiq Ajaq was killed by Israeli bullets in the occupied West Bank.

    “We call for an urgent investigation to determine the circumstances of his death”, the Office added.

    The US continues to offer unconditional support for Israel, despite its war on Gaza claiming nearly 25,000 Palestinian lives.

    Saudi Arabia expresses concern over growing Red Sea tensions

    Saudi Arabia’s Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has said that the kingdom is “very worried” that exchanges between US forces and the Houthis could lead to further escalation.

    “Of course, we are very worried … We are in a very difficult and dangerous time in the region and that’s why we are calling for de-escalation,” bin Farhan told CNN in an interview that will be aired on Sunday.

    “We, of course, believe very much in the freedom of navigation. And that’s something that needs to be protected. But we also need to protect the security and stability of the region. So we are very focused on de-escalating the situation as much as possible,” he added.

    France supports two-state solution

    Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné says on X that Palestinians have the right to a state and that France will “remain faithful to its commitment to achieve this goal”.

    His words come as senior Israeli officials, most notably Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have been making strong statements opposing the creation of a Palestinian state.

    Israeli army’s focus remains on Khan Younis

by Hamdah Salhut

    The Israeli army spokesman, Daniel Hagari, has been saying for weeks that the focus of Israel’s ground offensive is now in the southern city of Khan Younis.

    Remember, this is Gaza’s second-largest city and the Israeli army has said for some time that they believe all of Hamas’s leadership as well as an abundance of fighters are in this southern city.

    The Israeli army also says that they believe captives are being held in tunnels underneath Khan Younis.

    The focus on Khan Younis comes as the Israeli army said they have fully dismantled Hamas’s military capabilities in the north, which we do know is not completely true, because there are still pockets of fighters – there are still rockets being launched from there.

    The Israeli army even says that there are exchanges of fire in Gaza City, but in southern Gaza is where they say they are shifting a lot of their focus on the hopes of retrieving the captives but also dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities there.

    But that challenge is going to prove quite difficult given how many displaced Palestinians there are.