Live updates | Fighting across Gaza as UN aid agency faces more cuts

Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants in different parts of Gaza on Monday, even in northern areas where the army has been operating for months, and militants fired a barrage of around 15 rockets at central Israel for the first time in weeks.

Cease-fire talks are ongoing, but Israel has said “ significant gaps ” remain in any potential agreement. The talks are meant to bring about some respite to Gaza and secure the release of more than 100 Israeli hostages still held by militants.

Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 26,000 Palestinians, most of them women and minors, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza.

Despite the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in the besieged territory, the U.N. aid agency for Palestinians faced more funding cuts Monday. Some Western countries froze vital funds for UNRWA amid accusations that 12 of its roughly 13,000 employees in Gaza were involved in the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war.

The Hamas attack killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians. About 250 people were taken captive, according to Israeli authorities.

Currently:

— A Palestinian is killed while with a group waving a white flag. Israel says it will look into it.

— Biden says US ‘shall respond’ after drone strike by Iran-backed group kills 3 US troops in Jordan.

— What is Tower 22, the military base that was attacked in Jordan?

— Israel military operation destroys a Gaza cemetery. Israel says Hamas used the site to hide a tunnel.

— What is UNRWA, the main aid provider in Gaza that Israel accuses of militant links?

— Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

Here's the latest:

UN URGES DONOR COUNTRIES TO AID PALESTINIAN REFUGEES ACROSS MIDEAST

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations is urging all donor countries to ensure they meet “the dire needs” of millions of Palestinians who rely on the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees — not only in Gaza but in East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Right now, the outlook for the UNRWA and the Palestinians it serves “is very bleak,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Monday.

“The dire needs of the desperate populations they serve must be met,” he said.

Major donors to UNRWA, including the U.S. and some European Union members including Germany, have suspended funding following accusations that 12 of its employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

The EU, a major donor, has not suspended aid, and its next disbursement isn’t scheduled until the end of February. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell spoke to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday about the allegations and “the EU will determine upcoming funding decisions in light of the outcome of the investigations,” the EU said in a statement Monday.

Dujarric said the contracts of the accused employees have been terminated, the U.N.’s internal watchdog is investigating, and the U.N. Secretariat is ready to cooperate with any “competent authority” able to prosecute any UNRWA employee involved “in acts of terror.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will host a meeting at U.N. headquarters in New York on Tuesday afternoon, the spokesman said, and he met the U.S. ambassador and is speaking to the Jordanian and Egyptian leaders on Monday.

Dujarric welcomed a letter from 20 international aid organizations including the Norwegian Refugee Council, Oxfam and Save The Children, supporting Guterres’ call for a resumption of donor support to UNRWA.

“The NGO community understand the critical work that UNRWA does right now in keeping people alive,” he said.

Dujarric said the 13,000 UNRWA employees in Gaza are continuing to work as the war continues, including helping over one million people in overcrowded UNRWA shelters.

“We are open to answering any and every question that they (donors) may have,” the U.N. spokesman said.

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This entry has been corrected to show the European Union has not suspended funding to UNRWA.

ISRAEL'S DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS ISRAEL HAS UPPER HAND IN GAZA WAR

JERUSALEM — Israel’s defense minister says Israel has gained the upper hand in its battle against Hamas.

Speaking to troops in southern Israel on Monday, Yoav Gallant said Israel has killed or wounded half of Hamas’ army.

“”The terrorists don’t have supplies, they don’t have ammunition, they don’t have reinforcements,” he said.

The military says it has battled militants and called in airstrikes in recent days in northern Gaza, where entire neighborhoods have been destroyed and where the military has been operating for months.

New evacuation orders were issued on Monday for parts of Gaza City, indicating there is still heavy fighting there. Palestinian militants have also kept up rocket fire, including a barrage that set off air raid sirens in central Israel on Monday.

“We have already eliminated at least a quarter of Hamas’ terrorists, I think even more, and there is a similar number of wounded,” he added, without giving any specific figures. Israel has previously said it has killed about 9,000 Hamas militants, though it has not provided evidence to back up the claim.

Gallant said the campaign to eliminate Hamas’ capabilities will take months, but that the “hourglass has flipped against them.”

QATAR'S PRIME MINISTER HINTS AT PROGRESS ON CEASE-FIRE AND HOSTAGE RELEASE

WASHINGTON — Qatar’s prime minister said senior U.S. and Mideast mediators had achieved a framework proposal to present to Hamas for freeing hostages and pausing fighting in Gaza.

Prime Minister Mohammed al-Thani spoke at the Atlantic Council in Washington after talks Sunday in Paris among U.S., Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian officials seeking a new round of cease-fires and hostage releases in Gaza.

Al-Thani said the mediators had made “good progress” and achieved a “foundation for the way forward.”

The foreign mediators had tried to bridge gaps in Israeli and Hamas demands and intended to now present them to Hamas, he said.

“We are hoping to get them to a place … where they engage positively and constructively in this process,” he said of Hamas.

Al-Thani gave no details of the proposal, but said an outline presented by one of the event moderators that called for a phased release of hostages and an extended cease-fire was “well-informed.” Hamas has demanded a permanent cease-fire ahead of any further releases of hostages held by Hamas militants and others in Gaza.

PROBE SUGGESTS DRONE THAT KILLED TROOPS IN JORDAN WAS CONFUSED WITH A RETURNING U.S. DRONE

WASHINGTON — A drone that killed three American troops and wounded dozens of others in Jordan may have been confused with an American drone returning to the U.S. installation, according to a U.S. official.

The official, who was not authorized to comment and insisted on anonymity, said Monday the preliminary accounts suggest the enemy drone that struck the installation known as Tower 22 may have been mistaken for an American drone that was also in the air at the same time.

The official said that as the enemy drone was flying in at a low altitude, a U.S. drone was also returning to base. As a result, there was no effort to shoot down the enemy drone.