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Israeli soldiers patrol the Israel-Gaza border on Thursday. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)

Middle East conflict live updates Strike in Syria; Netanyahu tells hostage families Israel’s preparing Rafah attack

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A strike inside Syria early Friday killed dozens of Syrian soldiers and some members of the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah, a Hezbollah spokesperson told The Washington Post; Syrian state news agency blamed Israel for the attack. In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the families of soldiers held captive in the Gaza Strip that continued military pressure was the only way to secure the hostages’ release, reiterating Israel’s intention to launch an offensive in the crowded southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Key updates
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The Palestinian Authority’s recently appointed prime minister, Mohammad Mustafa, on Thursday announced the names of 22 ministers who would join him as members of a new cabinet. The Biden administration has expressed hope that a rehabilitated Palestinian Authority, which runs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, could become the postwar government for Gaza.
Israeli forces are carrying out operations around al-Amal Hospital in southern Gaza, the Israeli military said. And their raid on al-Shifa Hospital in the north continues, spokesman Daniel Hagari said Thursday. He added that the Israel Defense Forces had identified 513 people at al-Shifa Hospital it suspected of being “terrorists from Hamas and Islamic Jihad.”
At least 32,623 people have been killed and 75,092 injured in Gaza since the war began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel estimates that about 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack and says 253 soldiers have been killed since the start of its military operation in Gaza.
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The Palestinian Authority’s recently appointed prime minister, Mohammad Mustafa, on Thursday announced the names of 22 ministers who would join him as members of a new cabinet. The Biden administration has expressed hope that a rehabilitated Palestinian Authority, which runs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, could become the postwar government for Gaza.
Israeli forces are carrying out operations around al-Amal Hospital in southern Gaza, the Israeli military said. And their raid on al-Shifa Hospital in the north continues, spokesman Daniel Hagari said Thursday. He added that the Israel Defense Forces had identified 513 people at al-Shifa Hospital it suspected of being “terrorists from Hamas and Islamic Jihad.”
At least 32,623 people have been killed and 75,092 injured in Gaza since the war began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel estimates that about 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack and says 253 soldiers have been killed since the start of its military operation in Gaza.
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Israel-Gaza war

Israel-Gaza war: Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to make a quick stop in Israel as tensions are rising between the United States and Israel over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to invade Rafah. The Israeli military said Wednesday that it was continuing its raid on al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, where people said they were trapped in dire conditions.

Middle East conflict: Tensions in the region continue to rise. As Israeli troops aim to take control of the Gaza-Egypt border crossing, officials in Cairo warn that the move would undermine the 1979 peace treaty. Meanwhile, there’s a diplomatic scramble to avert full-scale war between Israel and Lebanon.

U.S. involvement: U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria killed dozens of Iranian-linked militants, according to Iraqi officials. The strikes were the first round of retaliatory action by the Biden administration for an attack in Jordan that killed three U.S. service members.