Middle East latest: An Israeli strike on a Gaza hospital kills a teen in a wheelchair

An Israeli drone strike on a hospital compound in northern Gaza on Thursday killed a 16-year-old boy in a wheelchair and wounded at least 12 other people, including medical staff, the Gaza Health Ministry and the hospital director said.

Kamal Adwan Hospital is one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the , where Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months.

Earlier Thursday, the human rights group Amnesty International accused Israel of during its war with Hamas, saying it has sought to deliberately destroy Palestinians by mounting deadly attacks, demolishing vital infrastructure and preventing the delivery of food, medicine and other aid. Israel says it goes to great lengths to avoid harming civilians as it battles Hamas.

has destroyed and displaced 90% of the population of 2.3 million, often multiple times. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel in October 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, .

Israel’s blistering retaliatory offensive , more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

___

Here's the Latest:

Attack near US base in eastern Syria may have wounded 3 service members, Pentagon says

WASHINGTON -- Three U.S. service members were being evaluated for potential traumatic brain injuries following an attack near a base in eastern Syria this week, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday.

Ryder said U.S. Central Command is still evaluating who was behind the attack near Mission Support Site Euphrates, which prompted the U.S. to conduct counter strikes on Tuesday. At the time, the Pentagon said rockets and mortars had landed in the vicinity of the base.

The U.S. has about 900 troops in Syria to conduct missions to counter the Islamic Stage group.

___

By Lolita Baldor

Hezbollah says it will help pay to rebuild homes destroyed in war with Israel

BEIRUT — Hezbollah chief Naim Kassem said in a televised speech on Friday that the Lebanese militant group will provide financial assistance to families whose during the recent war with Israel.

In addition to being an armed group, Hezbollah is also a political party and provides extensive social services.

In his second speech since the ceasefire that ended the war between Hezbollah and Israel on Nov. 27, Kassem reiterated that the U.N. Resolution 1701 “is not a new agreement,” adding that it stipulates that “Israel must withdraw from all Lebanese territories.”

“The agreement is limited to the area south of the Litani River and nothing else,” Kassem said. He also accused Israel of committing over 60 violations of .

Seated against the backdrop of a banner reading “reconstruction campaign,” Kassem announced that Hezbollah, with support from Iran, will provide financial aid to families whose homes were completely destroyed during the war. will receive $14,000, while families outside the capital will receive $12,000, covering annual rent and compensation for furniture, he said.

For partially damaged homes, specialized committees will assess the damages, Kassem said.

and the stunning offensive by jihadi insurgents in recent days, Kassem said Hezbollah “will stand alongside Syria to stop the aggression.”

“The aggression against Syria is sponsored by America and Israel,” Kassem said.

He did not specify whether Hezbollah would send fighters to Syria to join forces with the Syrian army.

Biden administration says genocide accusations against Israel are ‘unfounded’

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration says it believes accusations by Amnesty International that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza are “unfounded” although it says human rights groups play a “vital role” in speaking to the consequences of the conflict.

Deputy State Department spokesman Vedant Patel declined to comment Thursday about specifics in the report, saying he would “let Amnesty International speak to the details about it.” But, he said the administration continues to disagree with its conclusion, as it has with previous similar reports from other organizations.

“As you’ve heard us say previously, we disagree with the conclusions of such a report,” Patel told reporters in Washington. “We have said previously and continue to find that the allegations of genocide are unfounded. But there continues to be a vital role that civil society organizations like Amnesty International and human rights groups and NGOs play in providing information and analysis as it relates to Gaza and what’s going on.”

At the same time, he said the administration’s concern about the situation in Gaza also remains unchanged and urged Israel to do more to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza.

“We continue to stress at every turn that there is a moral and strategic priority for Israel to comply with international humanitarian law and that is something we’re going to continue to raise with partners in the region and directly with Israel,” Patel said.

An Israeli drone strikes a hospital in northern Gaza, killing a teen in a wheelchair and wounding at least 12

CAIRO — An Israeli drone strike on a hospital compound in northern Gaza killed a 16-year-old boy in a wheelchair and wounded at least 12 other people, including medical staff, the Gaza Health Ministry and the hospital director said.

Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya said an Israeli drone deliberately targeted patients and staff at the entrance to the reception and emergency area of Kamal Adwan Hospital, killing Mahmoud Abu al-Aish, a patient being taken in a wheelchair to the radiology department.

Abu Safiya spoke in a video he posted on social media, standing inside the hospital as doctors operated on a wounded man behind him, calling it, “The injured treating the injured.”

Abu Safiya was wounded in his thigh and back by an Israeli drone strike on the hospital last month.

Israel says it goes to great lengths to avoid harming civilians as it battles Hamas.

Kamal Adwan Hospital has been struck multiple times over the past two months since in northern Gaza against Hamas militants. In October, Israeli forces raided the hospital, saying that militants were sheltering inside and arrested a number of people, including some staff. Hospital officials denied the claim.

The United Nations humanitarian office estimates up to 75,000 people remain in the northern towns of Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya and the Jabaliya refugee camp.

The area has been almost completely sealed off from humanitarian aid for two months and .

A medical relief team from the U.N. World Health Organization was able to reach Kamal Adwan Hospital on Monday, delivering 10,000 liters of fuel (2,640 gallons), blood supplies, essential medical items and food. The U.N. press office also said

Baby formula shortage in Gaza leaves Palestinian mothers struggling to feed infants, Health Ministry says

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian mothers in Gaza are struggling to secure baby formula for their newborn children and are forced to resort to alternatives that aren't the best options for infants.

The Health Ministry in Gaza reported Thursday a shortage in baby formula amid a lack of aid entering the besieged territory and high prices due to scarcity. If found in the market, one box of baby formula could cost up to $50, according to an Associated Press journalist.

Ahmed al-Farra, director of the child and maternity department at Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, said in the video statement posted by the Health Ministry that Israeli forces have been denying the entry of baby formula to the Gaza Strip for around three months.

He explained that some women in Gaza can’t breastfeed their babies due to their own malnutrition or illness and must resort to giving infants starch or dissolved herbs instead, which pose a health risk.

One mother said in a video posted by the Health Ministry that she was feeding her baby crushed biscuits, ground rice, and Cerelac brand baby formula if available. Medical professionals often recommend waiting to feed a child solid foods until at least the age of six months.

The amount of aid entering Gaza plunged in October, and hunger is widespread across the territory, even in central Gaza where aid groups have more access. Humanitarian organizations say Israeli restrictions, ongoing fighting and the breakdown of law and order make it difficult to deliver assistance. Israel has said it is working to increase the flow of aid.

Israeli rights groups demand end to ‘forcible transfer’ of Palestinians out of northern Gaza

JERUSALEM — Israeli rights groups are calling on the government to stop the “forcible transfer” of Palestinians out of northern Gaza and for the displaced to be allowed to return home.

A joint letter from five well-known groups says “this forcible transfer is being undertaken through direct attacks on the civilian population, threats of such attacks, and the creation of inhumane living conditions.”

The letter was issued by Gisha, Adalah, HaMoked, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and Physicians for Human Rights – Israel, groups based in Israel that advocate for Palestinian rights.

Tens of thousands have fled Gaza’s northernmost governorate since in early October against Hamas militants. The United Nations humanitarian office estimates up to 75,000 people remain in the northern towns of Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya and the Jabaliya refugee camp.

The area has been almost completely sealed off from humanitarian aid for two months and .

Israel has ordered repeated mass evacuations since the start of the war. Around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million people have fled, . Hundreds of thousands are packed into sprawling tent camps along the coast, an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone where Israel against what it says are militant targets.

Moshe Yaalon, a former top Israeli general and defense minister, said last week that Israel was in northern Gaza. Amnesty International on Wednesday said .

Israel has adamantly denied the allegations, saying it goes to great lengths to avoid harming civilians as it battles Hamas, which ignited the war with its Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel.

Amnesty International accuses Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip

CAIRO — Amnesty International accused Israel of during its war with Hamas, saying it has sought to deliberately destroy Palestinians by mounting deadly attacks, demolishing vital infrastructure and preventing the delivery of food, medicine and other aid.

The human rights group released a report Thursday in the Middle East that said such actions could not be justified by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel, which ignited the war, or the presence of militants in civilian areas. Amnesty said the United States and other allies of Israel could be complicit in genocide, and called on them to halt arms shipments.

“Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now,” Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said in the report.

Israel, which was founded in the aftermath of the Holocaust, has adamantly rejected genocide allegations against it as an antisemitic “blood libel.” It is challenging such allegations at the , and it has rejected accusations that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister committed war crimes in Gaza.

“The deplorable and fanatical organization Amnesty International has once again produced a fabricated report that is entirely false and based on lies,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Israel accused , which has vowed to annihilate Israel, of carrying out a genocidal massacre in the attack that triggered the war, and said it is defending itself in accordance with international law.