By Lyndal Rowlands and Alastair McCready

    Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reports Israeli forces “firing heavily” in a raid on al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis; Nasser and al-Amal hospitals under Israeli military siege for days.

    “We’ve lost a health clinic, major shelters – facilities that were supporting the people of Khan Younis,” says Thomas White, UNRWA’s director of Gaza affairs, as staff join thousands fleeing the city in southern Gaza.

    Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour has told the UN Security Council that for the International Court of Justice’s “provisional measures to be implemented, there must be a ceasefire in Gaza”.

    US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby says that talks on an “extended pause” in fighting are “constructive”.

    At least 26,900 people have been killed and 65,949 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from the October 7 Hamas attacks stands at 1,139.

    If you’re just joining us

    It’s 7am (05:00 GMT) in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel.

    Here are some of the main developments overnight:

•     “As the ICJ has found, it is plausible that Israel’s conduct amounts to genocide,” US Federal Court Judge Jeffrey White said in a ruling to dismiss a civil case brought against US President Joe Biden and senior officials over their alleged “complicity” in genocide in Gaza.
•     Mohammed Monadel Herzallah, a plaintiff in the civil case, said: “We will continue to do everything in our power to save our people”.
•     Israel is “almost systematically” denying aid deliveries to northern Gaza, says Leo Cans, MSF’s head of mission for Palestine.
•     Israel’s spy chief reportedly briefed the war cabinet on a deal involving a pause in fighting in Gaza and the release of captives, Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut reports.

    More US city councils call for ceasefire in Gaza war: Report

    About 70 US cities, including Chicago and Seattle, have passed resolutions in relation to Israel’s war on Gaza with most calling for an immediate ceasefire, the Reuters news agency reports.

    According to Reuters, at least 48 cities have passed symbolic resolutions calling for a halt to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, with six others passing resolutions advocating more broadly for peace. At least 20 states have also passed resolutions condemning Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel.

    On Wednesday, Chicago became the largest city to call for a ceasefire in Gaza in a tight vote where Mayor Brandon Johnson broke a 23-23 tie to get the resolution passed.

    Most of the ceasefire resolutions have passed in Democratic states such as California, though at least 14 have passed in swing states such as Michigan.

    US President Joe Biden’s administration continues to reject calls for a ceasefire in Israel’s war on the Palestinian territory.

    CENTCOM confirms strikes against 10 Houthi drones

    The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) has confirmed reports that it carried out strikes on a “Houthi UAV ground control station” and 10 “one-way UAVs”.

    The US military said the UAVs “presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and the US Navy ships in the region”.

    Earlier we reported that the Houthis had claimed an attack on the US merchant ship “KOI” in the Gulf of Aden.