First aid boat unloads in Gaza as Hamas proposes new truce

TNA’s live coverage of the latest from the war on Gaza concludes for today. Join us again at 0800 GMT for updates from the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Senior figures from Hamas and Yemen's Houthi rebels held a rare meeting to discuss coordinating their actions against Israel, Palestinian factional sources told French news agency AFP on Friday.

According to sources from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, leaders from the two Palestinian Islamist groups, as well as the Marxist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, held an "important meeting" with Houthi representatives last week.

The groups discussed "mechanisms to coordinate their actions of resistance" for the "next stage" of the war in Gaza, the sources said without identifying where the meeting took place.

The Palestinian groups and the Houthis also talked about a possible Israeli ground assault into southern Gaza's Rafah, said the sources, who requested anonymity.

The sixth night of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan saw 90,000 worshippers attend the nightly Taraweeh prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The large number of attendees comes after Israeli limitations for thousands of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to attend Friday prayers at the mosque. 

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, Israeli forces also blocked medical teams and ambulances from entering the site.

Germany has warned Israel against a military offensive on southern Gaza's Rafah- as about 1.5 million displaced Palestinian civilians are currently seeking refuge.

“A large-scale offensive in Rafah cannot be justified,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on social media platform X.

“Over a million displaced people have sought refuge there, they have nowhere to go. A humanitarian ceasefire is needed immediately so no more people die and the hostages are finally released,” she said.

The Israeli government announced earlier on Friday that the war cabinet has authorised plans to conduct in the territory's southernmost city- despite increasing international pressure.

Eine großflächige Offensive in #Rafah ist nicht zu rechtfertigen. Über eine Million Geflüchtete haben dort Schutz gesucht und können nirgendwo hin. Es braucht sofort einen humanitären #Waffenstillstand, damit nicht noch mehr Menschen sterben und die Geiseln endlich freikommen.

— Außenministerin Annalena Baerbock (@ABaerbock) March 15, 2024

British maritime security firm Ambrey said on Friday that a vessel was reportedly targeted approximately 80 nautical miles northwest of Yemen's Hodeidah where the Iran-aligned Houthis continue to attack shipping lanes in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war.

The crew was reported safe, Ambrey added in an advisory note.

UKMTO said it had received a report of an incident 65 nautical miles west of Hodeidah where the master of a merchant vessel reported an explosion a distance off the vessel's starboard beam.

"There is no damage to the vessel and the crew are reported safe. The vessel is continuing to its next port of call," UKMTO said.

It was unclear if Ambrey and UKMTO were reporting the same incident.

A United States charity said on Friday it was unloading the first shipment of food aid sent via a maritime corridor from Cyprus to war-ravaged Gaza.

"World Central Kitchen is unloading the barge connected now to the jetty," said Linda Roth, a spokesperson for the group.

The Israeli military confirmed that the vessel, the Open Arms, had arrived in Gazan waters and said Israeli troops had "been deployed to secure the area".

"The vessel underwent a comprehensive security inspection," the military said.

"The ship contained 130 pallets of humanitarian equipment, 115 tons of food and water, which were transferred to 12 WCK trucks, which will distribute them to the northern Gaza Strip," it said.

Open Arms, the Spanish charity that operates the vessel, earlier said it had been towing a barge loaded with 200 tonnes of food for Gazans threatened with famine after more than five months of war.

The Elders, a non-governmental organisation founded by Nelson Mandela in 2007, says US President Joe Biden should stop arming Israel to make an effort in ending the war on Gaza, instead of sending limited numbers of humanitarian aid to the besieged territory. 

"The United States can influence Israel by not continuing to provide arms. It has provided a lot of the arms, bombs and other arms that have been used on the Palestinian people, and [Biden] is continuing to do that. He’s also providing money," said Mary Robinson, chairwoman of the organisation.

"This government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on the wrong side of history completely."

Elders’ Chair Mary Robinson says President Biden should not continue to provide arms to Israel.

“The United States can influence Israel by not continuing to provide arms… The Government of Prime Minister Netanyahu is on the wrong side of history, completely. It’s making the… pic.twitter.com/fN3ptMjktz

— The Elders (@TheElders) March 15, 2024

Hamas and other factions said Friday that this week's appointment of a new Palestinian prime minister by president Mahmoud Abbas could deepen divisions as war rages in Gaza.

"Making individual decisions, and engaging in formal steps that are devoid of substance, like forming a new government without national consensus, is a reinforcement of a policy of exclusion and the deepening of division," the factions said in a statement.

Such steps point to a "huge gap between the (Palestinian) Authority and the people, their concerns and their aspirations."

The statement came the day after Abbas appointed Mohammed Mustafa, a long-trusted adviser on economic affairs, as prime minister and tasked him with forming a new government.

The other signatories were Islamic Jihad, the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Palestinian National Initiative, a political party which seeks a third way between Abbas's Fatah movement and Hamas.

Mustafa replaces Mohammed Shtayyeh, who resigned less than three weeks ago citing the need for change after the Hamas attack of October 7.

The 69-year-old Mustafa now faces the task of forming a new government for the Palestinian Authority, which has limited powers in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

According to the Houthi-run Al Masirah television channel in Yemen,  "millions"  more people are participating in protests took part in demonstrations to show solidarity to Palestinians- which is the first weekly rally held since the start of Ramadan.

بتقنية تايم لابس..

شاهد| الطوفان البشري اليمني في صنعاء؛ إسناداً لغزة والمقاومة. pic.twitter.com/7dfZ21igzM

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) March 15, 2024

 The United States is working intensively with Israel and intermediaries Qatar and Egypt to bridge remaining gaps for a hostage deal that would see a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.

Blinken, speaking during a visit to Austria, said Israel sending a team reflected "a sense of both possibility and of urgency" to reach an agreement on the release of hostages.

"We have conversations that are happening now, as we speak here, and I am convinced they'll go on into the coming days," Blinken told reporters.

"This is something that we're committed to, and we will work as long and as hard as it takes to get it done," Blinken said.

Blinken said the US needs to see a clear and implementable plan for a military operation in Rafah, including to get civilians out of harm's way, but that Washington has not yet seen such a plan.

"We have to see a clear and implementable plan, not only to get civilians out of the harm's way but also to make sure that once out of harm's way, they're appropriately cared for, with shelter, with food, with medicine, with clothing -- and we've not yet seen such a plan," Blinken said.

The United States has grown increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu's government over the past several weeks as Washington has kept pressing Israel to allow more aid into Gaza, where more than half a million people are now at risk of famine.

The White House said Friday it wanted to see Israel's plan for an operation in Gaza's Rafah that protects civilians, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the military's proposal for an offensive.

"We haven't seen it. We certainly would welcome the opportunity to see it," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, adding that the United States could not support any plan without "credible" proposals to shelter more than one million Gazans.

Dutch foreign minister Hanke Slot has said that reports of Israel preparing to launch an offensive in Rafah are "deeply worrying".

"The Netherlands firmly repeats its call to Israel to refrain from such an offensive, which would result in an even bigger humanitarian catastrophe," she posted on X.

"An immediate humanitarian ceasefire is of the highest importance, resulting in a sustained cessation of hostilities."

An immediate humanitarian ceasefire is of the highest importance, resulting in a sustained cessation of hostilities. This is crucial for significantly increasing the amount of humanitarian aid and for the release of hostages. 2/2

— Hanke Bruins Slot (@HankeBruinsSlot) March 15, 2024

The International Court of Justice on Friday said it would hold hearings on April 8 and 9 in Nicaragua's case against Germany for giving military aid to Israel and defunding the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA).

Nicaragua asked the ICJ, also known as the World Court, earlier this month to issue emergency measures requiring Berlin to stop military aid to Israel and reverse its decision to stop funding UNRWA.

According to Nicaragua, Germany is violating the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1949 Geneva Conventions on the laws of war in the occupied Palestinian territories.

German government spokesperson Wolfgang Buechner said Germany would present its position in court but added that Berlin believes the case is unjustified.

Major donors to UNRWA, including the United States and Germany, suspended funding after allegations that around 12 of its tens of thousands of Palestinian employees were suspected of involvement in the October 7 attacks in Israel by Hamas.

Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, has denounced the attack on civilians collecting aid on Thursday night in which 20 people were killed and 150 injured.

In a post on X, Griffiths said aid must be distributed in a safe and dignified manner.

Distributing aid in Gaza should be done in a safe, dignified and predictable manner.

Anything less is unconscionable. pic.twitter.com/qDjn8zIqV9

— Martin Griffiths (@UNReliefChief) March 15, 2024

The US military said on Friday it had completed an operation to drop aid into north Gaza, where thousands of people are said to be facing severe hunger levels.

In a post on X, US Central Command said its military planes had dropped 35,700 meals "ready to eat" and 31,800 bottles of water.

Over the past few weeks, Gaza has seen a number of airdrops delivering food but the practise has been criticised by aid groups as more of a dangerous PR stunt than an efficient mechanism of aid delivery.

U.S. Central Command conducts 11th Humanitarian Airdrop into Gaza

U.S. Central Command conducted the 11th air drop of humanitarian assistance into Northern Gaza on March 15, 2024, at 12:12 p.m. (Gaza time) to provide essential relief to civilians affected by the ongoing… pic.twitter.com/ZzwKOn24gy

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 15, 2024

Blinken said the US needs to see a clear and implementable plan for a military operation in Rafah, including to get civilians out of harm's way, but that Washington has not yet seen such a plan.

"We have to see a clear and implementable plan, not only to get civilians out of the harm's way but also to make sure that once out of harm's way, they're appropriately cared for, with shelter, with food, with medicine, with clothing -- and we've not yet seen such a plan," Blinken said.

Earlier on Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had given the green light to his military's plan to invade Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians are sheltering.

A United States charity said on Friday it was unloading the first shipment of food aid sent via a maritime corridor from Cyprus to war-ravaged Gaza.

"World Central Kitchen is unloading the barge connected now to the jetty," said Linda Roth, a spokesperson for the group.

AFP footage showed the Open Arms, which set sail from Cyprus on Tuesday, towing a barge that the Spanish charity operating it says is loaded with 200 tonnes of food for Gazans threatened with famine after more than five months of war.

President Joe Biden on Friday praised a speech by the US Senate leader Chuck Schumer urging new elections in Israel, saying many Americans shared concerns about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the Gaza war.

"He made a good speech, and I think he expressed serious concern shared not only by him, but by many Americans," Biden said when asked about the speech after a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar at the White House.

Biden told reporters in the Oval Office that Schumer had contacted his staff to say he was going to make the comments, and added that he was "not going to elaborate on the speech."

Read more about Schumer's comments from The New Arab's Washington correspondent here.

The Palestinian group has criticised the appointment of Mohammad Mustafa as the next prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, saying the decision was taken without its consultation.

"We express our rejection of continuing this approach that has inflicted and continues to inflict harm on our people and our national cause," Hamas said in a statement.

"Making individual decisions and engaging in superficial and empty steps such as forming a new government without national consensus only reinforces a policy of unilateralism and deepens division."

Read more about it here.

Israeli security officials on Friday told ministers that they are confident that Marwan Issa, deputy head of the Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' military wing, was killed when the Israeli military struck Nuseirat refugee camp last Saturday.

Issa, considered no.3 on Israel's wanted list, was targeted by the military in the strike which hit central Gaza, according to Hebrew media. 

If his death is confirmed by Hamas, Issa would be the most important figure to be killed in Gaza since the war. The commander of the Al-Qassam Brigades Mohammed al-Deif and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar are said to be in hiding.

Israeli jets flew over south Lebanon on Friday and dropped bombs in the area of Bint Jbeil, near Naqoura and Alma el Chaab where it struck and destroyed a three-story house, according to Lebanese media.

Cross border fire also struck near the village of Tallet al-Hamames in the border zone.

The Israeli strikes followed Hezbollah rocket fire from south Lebanon towards northern Israel, triggering warning sirens in the areas of Malkia and Shtula. No casualties or injuries have been reported.

Earlier this week, an Israeli drone strike hit a car in south Lebanon killing Hamas member Hadi Mustafa, the second targeted killing of a Hamas member in Lebanon since fighting began in October.

UNRWA said on Friday that it will take years to clear the nearly 23 million tons of debris across the Gaza Strip.

Five months of Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip has decimated swathes of the territory, destroyed countless homes, schools, universities, and religious buildings.

There is also growing concerns about unexploded ordnance from Israeli attacks which are buried under rubble and a major risk to civilians and emergency workers.

The destruction across the #GazaStrip 📍 has created nearly 23 million tons of debris

It will take years to clear the rubble & unexploded ordnance

Houses, schools, clinics & other civilian infrastructure have been impacted

The lives of +2 million people have been devastated pic.twitter.com/2DkprZTY73

— UNRWA (@UNRWA) March 15, 2024

The Palestinian group's ceasefire proposal announced on Thursday after weeks of stalled negotiations is said to contain three-stages each constituting 42 days.

Hamas sources told Al Jazeera network on Friday that details include facilitating aid deliveries and allowing displaced Palestinians to return to their homes, two issues Hamas has maintained from the start of the talks.

For every 50 Palestinians free from jail in Israel, Hamas would release one female Israeli soldier from the group of captives in Gaza. Israeli forces would also have to push back beyond Salah al-Din street near Gaza City to allow people to safely return.

The third and final stage proposes Israel's full withdrawal and reconstruction efforts to begin.

Aid groups have expressed concern over the Israeli military's plans to transfer civilians from Rafah to so-called 'humanitarian islands' ahead of their invasion.

Earlier this week, Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that the over one million people sheltering in Rafah will be relocated to zones in central Gaza to make way for the military's invasion of the southern city.

Riham Jafari, Communications and Advocacy Coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, said: "All this ceasefire talk from leading nations is hot air if they allow the Israeli government to facilitate the mass transfer of the now largest refugee camp on earth.

This cannot be allowed to happen, and we urge governments to ensure it does not for the good of humanity."

Read about the army's proposal in The New Arab's article here.

Yemen's Houthis-affiliated al-Masirah TV on Friday said that the group fired missiles on the "Pacific 01" ship in the Red Sea, using drones to attack a US destroyer.

The US military said the group fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles in two instances on Thursday and early Friday from Yemen towards the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. 

The Friday missile strike hit a tanker off the port city of Hodeida, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said. UKMTO later reported that the ship did not sustain any damage and all crew members were safe.

The leader of Yemen's Houthis, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, said on Thursday the group's operations targeting vessels will escalate to prevent Israel-linked ships from passing through the Indian Ocean towards the Cape of Good Hope.

UKMTO WARNING

INCIDENT 052 – ATTACK – UPDATE 002https://t.co/fX3hWupi7g#MaritimeSecurity #MarSec pic.twitter.com/q2Z9q1LvI9

— United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) (@UK_MTO) March 15, 2024

At least 149 people have been killed in Gaza in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 31,490 people, the health ministry said on Friday.

Over 73,439 people have been wounded in Israel's offensive in the enclave which began in October.

The death toll is expected to be higher considering the ministry only accounts for registered deaths, with at least 8,100 people missing under rubble.

The Israeli army has said 'armed Palestinians' were responsible for opening fire on a crowd of civilians waiting for aid at the Kuwait Roundabout in Gaza City on Thursday night during an attack which killed at least 20 people and injured over 100.

Following an "intensive preliminary review" conducted by the military, it concluded that its troops who were present at the scene "did not open fire at the aid convoy" in contradiction of witness and medic accounts.

Palestinians said that gunfire came from an Israeli tank and helicopter as dozens waited to collect bags of flour. It is just the latest in a series of attacks on civilians collecting supplies in the north. 

Last week, the Israeli army admitted its troops opened fire on a crowd of people collecting flour in February, in which 112 died and was dubbed the 'Flour Massacre'.

The Danish and Australian governments have announced they are resuming funding to UNRWA, the UN Palestinian agency,  joining Sweden and the European Union in stepping away from Israel's unfounded claims over the agency.

Australia said it consulted with both UNRWA and other donor countries and was satisfied with the additional safeguards put in place and will release $3.9 million in paused funding.

Denmark's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday it will disburse 15 million dollars to the agency after it said it was satisfied by the UN's investigation into Israeli claims that staff members had participated into the October 7 attack.

Read more about it here.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will discuss Hamas' new ceasefire proposal with his war cabinet later on Friday.

Hamas released a proposal on Thursday which details handing over women, men and the elderly held by the group in Gaza which would in turn see the freeing of 700 to 1,000 Palestinians who are held in Israeli jails, many without charge.

Netanyahu denounced the group's proposals as "ridiculous demands" in comments late on Thursday.

Hamas and Israel have clashed in demands over Netanyahu's desire to destroy the group which includes invading Rafah, whereas the Palestinian group wish for a total ceasefire and Israel's military withdrawal.

The first aid vessel heading to the besieged Gaza Strip via a new maritime corridor was visible Friday off the coast of the war-ravaged territory, an AFP journalist said.

AFP video footage and photographs showed the Open Arms towing a barge which the Spanish charity operating it says is carrying 200 tonnes of food for Gazans threatened with famine after more than five months of war.

A handful of civilians gathered on the rubble-strewn coast on Friday to watch the vessel, AFP footage showed, though it was unclear when it would actually reach shore.

The food has been supplied by the US NGO World Central Kitchen, which has a team in Gaza building a jetty onto which the cargo can be unloaded.

Egypt is seeking to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, increase entry of aid, and allow for the displaced in the south of the enclave to move to the north, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Friday.

Sisi, speaking in a recorded message, warned against Israel's proposed invasion of Rafah, the southern city which borders Egypt where over a million have taken refuge.

Israel presented on Thursday a proposal to remove the civilians sheltering there to 'humanitarian islands' in central Gaza as it vows to press on with its invasion into the city despite international concern.

Gaza's government media office has condemned the Israeli attack on  people seeking aid in Gaza City on Thursday evening in which more than 20 were killed and 150 wounded.

Civilians had gathered at the Kuwait Roundabout, an aid collection point, when Israeli forces reportedly opened fire.

The latest attack is "to be added to the series of massacres and brutal attacks against the defenceless civilians who face the Zionist starvation policy," the government media office said in a statement.

"The failure of the international community and the United Nations to take action against the occupation army was a green light to commit more horrific crimes," the statement added.

A truck, which was carrying aid, turned into a vehicle to carry victims to hospitals after Israel's army targeted hundreds of hungry civilians, who were waiting for aid at Al Kuwait roundabout in Gaza City. pic.twitter.com/hbvjx6zOwi

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) March 14, 2024