al jazeera
by Lyndal Rowlands and Alastair McCready
   Jordan’s King Abdullah II tells US President Joe Biden the world “cannot afford” Israel’s planned ground invasion on Rafah, where more than 1.4 million people are sheltering.
   Hamas says three more Israeli captives have been killed in Israel’s bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip.
   Israeli citizens have shot two Palestinians, set fire to vehicles and destroyed property in a night of settler violence in the occupied West Bank.
   Israel’s attacks on Gaza have killed at least 28,340 Palestinians and wounded 67,984 others since October 7. The death toll in Israel from the October 7 Hamas-led attacks stands at 1,139.

    Ship targeted by Houthis was carrying corn to Iran: CENTCOM

    A cargo ship that Houthis struck in the Red Sea on Monday was bound for a port in Iran, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said.

    Houthi spokesperson, Yahya Saree, earlier identified the Star Iris – which flies under a Marshall Islands flag – as an American ship.

    According to the AP news agency, the ship’s owner Star Bulk Carriers Corp. is from Athens, Greece but the company is traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market in New York.

    But while the ship’s owners may trade on a US stock exchange, US CENTCOM says the Star Iris was on its way to Bandar Iman Khomeini, Iran and was carrying a cargo of corn from Brazil.

    The ship which was struck by two missiles has reported that it is “seaworthy with minor damage and no injuries to the crew,” CENTCOM added.

    The Houthis are an Iran-aligned group based in Yemen who have said their attacks on ships in the Red Sea are a response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.

    Israeli military announces death of 3 soldiers

    The Israeli military has announced that three soldiers have been killed and two more injured during fighting in Gaza.

    All three men – aged 36, 30 and 27 – were killed fighting with Israel’s 630th Battalion in southern Gaza.

    The UN reports, citing Israeli military statistics, that 227 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since October 7. It’s not known if the latest deaths are counted in that figure.

    Israeli bomb kills at least 5 people in Nuseirat camp

    Our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues are reporting that an Israeli bomb has killed at least five people after striking a house in the Nuseirat camp northeast of Deir el-Balah in central Gaza.

    We will bring you further updates on this story when we have them.

    Pakistan condemns Israel’s Rafah aggression, ‘massacre’ of Palestinian people

    Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement “strongly” condemning “Israel’s military aggression against Rafah city in Gaza and the resulting destruction and massacre of the Palestinian people”.

    Israel has been bombarding Rafah from air and sea but is planning a full-scale ground invasion on the southern-most city in Gaza where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have fled.

    Pakistan’s statement said that an offensive on Rafah would “violate the provisional measures indicated by the International Court of Justice to protect the people of Gaza from genocide

    Pakistan also said that the planned incursion would “further aggravate the humanitarian disaster witnessed in Gaza” and “jeopardise the ongoing efforts for a potential ceasefire”.

    Pakistan said that the UN Security Council – which is currently considering a draft ceasefire resolution – should especially “take urgent measures to bring an immediate end to Israeli aggression”.

    The statement comes amid protests and uncertainty over the formation of Pakistan’s next government after an election on February 8.v c