Live: Trump envoy urges Netanyahu to reach ceasefire deal

An Israeli air strike on the city of Rafah in southern Gaza has claimed the life of another Palestinian, Al Jazeera’s Arabic has reported.

A complaint has been lodged in Sweden against an Israeli soldier accused of committing war crimes in Gaza, according to Israel Hayom.

The Hind Rajab Foundation, leading a global campaign to hold soldiers accountable, says the soldier, a Nahal Brigade fighter, is currently in Sweden. “He may leave the country soon, we demand his immediate arrest,” the group stated.

The complaint includes evidence such as a photograph showing the soldier using a sniper rifle in Gaza on 1 March. It also says that his unit was involved in attacks on civilians, including women and children, as well as the vandalism of Palestinian homes. The accusations extend to the unit’s reported role in a raid on the Shifa Hospital in Gaza, a move widely condemned as a violation of international law.

This case follows similar complaints against Israeli soldiers in Brazil, Thailand, Chile, and elsewhere, as international efforts intensify to address Israeli war crimes in the region.

A Palestinian was killed, and two others were wounded in an Israeli drone strike targeting civilians west of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, Al Jazeera Arabic reported.

CCTV footage has revealed the dramatic abduction of a Palestinian man by Israeli special forces in the Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem.

The video, shared by the Palestinian Media Center, shows soldiers leaping from what appears to be a delivery van and seizing Salah Faraj from his car.

These covert operations are increasingly commonplace in the occupied West Bank.

• In a recent raid in Nablus, Israeli special forces used an ambulance to enter the area, an act a UN expert condemned as a “flagrant violation of international law.” The raid resulted in the deaths of an elderly Palestinian woman and a man.

• Last year, similar tactics were employed during a raid on a hospital in Jenin, where Israeli forces posed as medical staff and civilians. The operation ended with three Palestinians dead, including a patient.

Israel’s reliance on deception and civilian disguises in its military operations has drawn international criticism, with rights groups accusing it of undermining basic principles of international law.

Good morning, Middle East Eye readers,

Here are some of the latest updates on Israel's war on Gaza:

• Israeli forces have bombed makeshift shelters housing displaced Palestinians west of Khan Younis, killing at least one person in southern Gaza.

• A study in The Lancet suggests that official Palestinian death tolls caused by Israel’s war on Gaza may have undercounted casualties by as much as 41 percent during the first nine months of the conflict.

• Former International Criminal Court president Piotr Hofmanski criticised Poland for its decision not to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at an upcoming Auschwitz commemoration, warning it will damage the nation’s international reputation.

• In the occupied West Bank, Israeli settlers have torched Palestinian crops and defaced property with racist graffiti in a village north of Ramallah, extending a week of escalating violence.

Good evening Middle East Eye readers. On Thursday, Israeli forces killed at least 22 Palestinians in its attacks on Gaza.

Throughout the first nine days of 2025, Israel has killed roughly 500 Palestinians, with the death toll now officially topping 46,000 — experts say the actual number of Palestinians killed is much higher.

US President Joe Biden claimed that progress was made in the ceasefire talks, however, he didn't offer further details. Biden blamed Hamas for the delays in achieving a deal.

Inside the US, the crackdown on pro-Palestinian speech, and criticism of Israel, ramped up this week from the university level all the way to the federal government.

At New York University, administrators banned nearly a dozen students for taking part in anti-war protests, while the House of Representatives passed a bill to sanction the International Criminal Court for issuing arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.

Here's what else you need to know about Thursday's developments in Israel's war on Gaza:

• Poland's government adopted a resolution promising senior Israeli officials — including Netanyahu — can freely travel to Poland without risk of facing arrest by the ICC.

• Israel's military said they have downed a total of 40 surface-to-air missiles and 320 drones that were launched from Yemen by the Houthi movement, officially known as Ansar Allah.

• The UK's charity regulator said "it is not lawful" for British charities to raise funds or send money to soldiers fighting for the Israeli army.

• Channel 12 Israel reported that over 800 parents of soldiers currently deployed in Gaza have sent an urgent letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demanding an immediate end to the war.

• A Quaker organisation advocating for peace announced it scrapped a planned advertisement in The New York Times after the paper refused to allow the term "genocide" to describe Israel’s actions in Gaza.

• The Israeli paper Yedioth Ahronoth has reported that at least 10 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the launch of the most recent military operation in Beit Hanoun.

• Pope Francis intensified his critique of Israel's military onslaught in Gaza on Thursday, describing the dire humanitarian conditions in the besieged Palestinian enclave as "very serious and shameful."

• The Palestinian Authority said it arrested 247 individuals during its controversial "Homeland Protection" operation in the Jenin refugee camp.

• Palestinian Authority security forces handed over a rocket-propelled grenade launcher to Israel after seizing it during its operations in Jenin. 

• Musa Abu Marzouk, a senior member of Hamas, told the Quds News Network that the group has long sought for Gaza to be governed by a unity coalition made up of various Palestinian factions. Abu Marzouk said Hamas was open to a governing body made up of technocrats.

Poland's government on Thursday adopted a resolution promising senior Israeli officials can freely travel to Poland without risk of facing arrest.

This measure would include both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, both of whom currently face arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court.

The bill extends this protection to Israeli officials for the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz, which is set to take place later this month.

“The Polish government treats the safe participation of the leaders of Israel in the commemorations on January 27, 2025, as part of paying tribute to the Jewish nation, millions of whose daughters and sons became victims of the Holocaust carried out by the Third Reich,” read the resolution.

As a member state of the ICC, Poland is required to detain suspects facing arrest warrants if they set foot on their soil. However, the ICC has no power to enforce this.

The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed its first major foreign policy bill of the 119th Congressional session to sanction officials at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for issuing an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 

The warrant, issued in November, is for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. The Biden administration was quick to condemn the warrant at the time.

The Biden administration's language is now mirrored in Thursday’s bill that condemns the ICC's actions, entitled the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, which would likely end up on President-elect Donald Trump’s desk if it passes the Senate.

For its part, the House voted 243-140-1 to sanction anyone associated with the ICC’s efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any "protected person" of the US and its friends abroad who are not party to the Rome Statute, which established the court.

The legislation also mentions the warrant issued against Israel's former defence minister, Yoav Gallant.

To read the full story, click below.

READ MORE: US lawmakers vote to sanction ICC officials for issuing Netanyahu warrant

In a press conference in Gaza organised by Palestinian journalists on Thursday, journalist Abubaker Abed gave an address in English to the international community.

"We don't know how many journalists should be killed so you can really act and stop Israel's impunity against us," Abed said.

"Our message is very clear. We are journalists. And we are Palestinian journalists. And we have been let down by the international community, particularly the international media organisations."

Israeli forces have killed more than 200 journalists and media workers throughout its war on Gaza. Palestinian journalists operating in the enclave are often subject to attacks despite the fact that under international law, they are supposed to receive humanitarian protections during war.

"Even the press vests we are wearing right now mark us as a target," Abed said.

"Maybe if we were Ukrainians, or of any other citizenship with blonde hair and blue eyes, the world would rage and rant for us. Because we are Palestinians, we have only one right, which is to die and be maimed."

I had a word to say against the lack of international support for Palestinian journalists pic.twitter.com/9Rdj81bDT3

— Abubaker Abed (@AbubakerAbedW) January 9, 2025

Israel's military said it downed another drone attempting to enter Israeli airspace on Thursday, making it the third drone it has intercepted in a day.

Earlier on Thursday, Israel's military said it intercepted a drone coming from the direction of Yemen and then said it intercepted another drone that was intercepted from "the east".

New York University suspended nearly a dozen students for a year for participating in non-violent, anti-war protests for Gaza last month, the university's chapter of Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine (NYU FSJP) said.

NYU FSJP said on Wednesday that the notices went out that same day, suspending 11 students until January 2026.

The group called it “a draconian case of collective punishment”. 

“Those suspended thus far include students who participated in a sit-in in front of the administration offices on the 12th floor of Bobst Library and those who simply sat in the lobby of the library in solidarity. The sit-in was to demand a meeting with administration officials regarding disclosure of and divestment from institutional investments in Israel,” the statement read. 

Two NYU faculty members were also arrested during those sit-ins in December, despite the American Association of University Professors saying they were not involved in the protest itself but were there to ensure the safety of the student demonstrators.

To read the full story, click below.

READ MORE: New York University issues one-year suspensions over peaceful sit-ins for Gaza, staff says

Hamas issued a statement on Thursday congratulating Jospeh Aoun for being elected as Lebanon's new president.

The Palestinian group wished Aoun “success in leading the country towards prosperity” and said it hoped he can help Lebanon liberate "their land from the Zionist enemy”.

Hamas also called for Lebanon to grant Palestinian refugees in the country their social and human rights until they can return to their homeland.

Israel also offered its congratulations to Aoun, with the country's foreign minister saying he hopes Aoun will usher in a period of friendlier relations between Israel and Lebanon.

“I hope that this choice will contribute towards stability, a better future for Lebanon and its people and to good neighborly relations,” Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on X.

Israel's military is currently occupying parts of southern Lebanon, and despite a ceasefire with Hezbollah they continue to attack and bomb sites in the area, including civilian homes.

The Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday that the Houthi movement in Yemen has fired a total of 40 surface-to-surface missiles at Israel since the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023.

It added that out of all the missiles launched by the Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, all but three were intercepted.

In addition to the missiles, Ansar Allah fired 320 drones at Israeli territory. One hundred were intercepted, while two of the drones resulted in "effective hits".

The full extent of the damage caused by Ansar Allah's attacks is unknown, as throughout the war, Israel has barred off military zones and restricted the reporting of attacks on Israeli territory.

Israel's military said in a statement on Telegram on Thursday that its forces intercepted a drone, saying it was "likely launched from Yemen".

No sirens were sounded inside Israel, according to the statement.

The UK's charity regulator said "it is not lawful" for British charities to raise funds or send money to soldiers fighting for the Israeli army. 

On Thursday, the Charity Commission issued a warning against Chabad Lubavitch Centres North East London and Essex Limited after the charity received 180 complaints for raising money for a soldier fighting for the Israeli army in northern Israel. 

In October 2023, Chabad Lubavitch Centres North East London and Essex Limited set up a fundraising page for a soldier stationed in northern Israel.

The page, which was eventually removed in January 2024, raised approximately £2.280. From that amount, Chabad sent £937 to an individual soldier. 

Charities in the UK are required to serve a purpose that fulfils a public benefit and are regulated by the Charity Commission.

Helen Earner, director for regulatory services at the Charity Commission, said: "It is not lawful, or acceptable, for a charity to raise funds to support a soldier of a foreign military."

To read the full story, click below.

READ MORE: UK charity regulator says 'it is not lawful' for British charities to raise funds for soldiers in Israeli army