He comes to plead for a de-escalation. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to meet with several senior Israeli officials to discuss the war in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday January 9. In particular, he is due to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as President Isaac Herzog, the country’s war cabinet and the ministers of Defense and Foreign Affairs. He is due to have discussions later in the day with Benny Gantz, an opposition figure who has joined the war cabinet. Follow our live stream.
Blinken calls for “protecting civilians.” Faced with a toll that continues to rise, the American Secretary of State said he wanted “talk about the direction the military campaign in Gaza will take.” In particular, he wants “insist on the absolute imperative” that Israel “do more to protect civilians”. The Israeli army’s operation left more than 23,000 dead in the Gaza Strip according to the Hamas government. A report that Franceinfo is unable to confirm, due to lack of independent verification.
Four Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza. The Israeli army announced early Tuesday the death of four of its soldiers, bringing to 180 the number of soldiers killed since the start of its ground operations in the Palestinian enclave. The IDF, whose campaign against Hamas has entered its fourth month, announced that it would now carry out targeted operations in central and southern Gaza.
Hezbollah announces the death of one of its “commanders”. The Lebanese Islamist movement reported Monday that Wissam Hassan Tawil had been killed in an Israeli strike, which is a first since October for this movement. The Israeli army said it had struck “military sites” of Hezbollah in Lebanon, but did not immediately comment on the death of this senior official.