The Latest | Blinken urges Israel not to invade Rafah. Netanyahu says he'll 'do it alone'
Palestinians mourn during the funeral of their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, in Khan Younis, Friday, March 22, 2024. Credit: AP/Hatem Ali
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sternly rejected the visiting U.S. secretary of state's plea not to launch a ground invasion into Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah, saying Friday “we will do it alone” if necessary.
The looming Rafah invasion has cast a shadow over ongoing efforts to forge a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters “there’s still a lot of work to be done” as he wrapped up his sixth trip to the Mideast since the war began.
And at the U.N. Security Council, Russia and China vetoed a U.S.-sponsored resolution on the Israel-Hamas war that “determines the imperative of an immediate and sustained cease-fire.” The two dissenting nations called the measure ambiguous, and said it was not the direct demand to end the fighting that much of the world seeks.
International aid officials say the entire population of the Gaza Strip — 2.3 million people — is suffering from food insecurity and that famine is imminent in the hard-hit north. More than a million people have crowded into Rafah as they flee fighting across the besieged territory.
Gaza's Health Ministry raised the territory's death toll to 32,070 people, with around 74,300 wounded. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.
Some 1,200 people were killed on Oct. 7 when Palestinian militants launched a surprise attack out of Gaza, triggering the war, and abducted another 250 people. Hamas is still believed to be holding some 100 Israelis hostage, as well as the remains of 30 others.
Currently:
Israeli army bulldozers are seen near the Gaza Strip border, in southern Israel, Thursday, March 21, 2024. Credit: AP/Ohad Zwigenberg
— Russia and China veto US resolution calling for immediate cease-fire in Gaza.
— Blinken says an Israeli assault on Gaza’s Rafah would be a mistake, and isn’t needed to defeat Hamas.
— Israel says Rafah is Hamas’ last major stronghold in the Gaza Strip, and it's determined to launch an offensive.
— U.S. House speaker says he plans to invite Netanyahu to address the Congress.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, speaks with U.S. Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Tom Sullivan before he departs Egypt for Israel, as the push for a ceasefire between the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel continues, in Cairo, Egypt,, Friday, March 22, 2024. Credit: AP/Evelyn Hockstein
— Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here's the latest:
U.S. FIGHTER JETS BOMB YEMEN'S CAPITAL, TARGETING STORAGE FACILITIES IN HOUTHI-CONTROLLED AREAS
SANAA, YEMEN — U.S. fighter jets from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier struck three underground storage facilities in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen late Friday, according to a U.S. official. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a military operation not yet made public, said the ship is in the Red Sea.
Strikes and explosions were seen and heard in the capital Sanaa on Friday night, according to witnesses and videos, some circulating on social media. Footage showed explosions and smoke rising over the city.
There was no official confirmation of the injured or the origin of the explosions. Yemeni TV station Al-Masirah, which is linked to the Houthis, reported strikes hitting the city.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels, which are allied with Iran and control much of the country’s north and west, have launched a campaign of drone and missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, which the rebels describe as an effort to pressure Israel to end its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The Houthis have kept up their campaign of attacks despite two months of U.S.-led airstrikes.
