Latest | Iran-aligned militants claim responsibility for attack on Israeli port city of Eilat

An Iranian-backed umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for an attack on the southern Israeli port city of Eilat on Wednesday. The militants are allied with Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who are suspected of attacking a ship in the Gulf of Aden early Wednesday morning. Shipping traffic on the route, which is important for markets in Asia, the Middle East and Europe, has fallen dramatically. The Houthis expect this campaign to continue as long as the war between Israel and Hamas rages in the Gaza Strip.

International criticism of Israel’s actions against Hamas is growing, while Palestinians are suffering from severe and widespread hunger. The eight-month war has largely disrupted the flow of food, medicine and basic goods to Gaza, and people there are now completely dependent on aid. The United Nations’ top court has concluded that there is a “plausible risk of genocide” in Gaza – a charge that Israel strongly denies.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon. Netanyahu said on Sunday that the current phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza was coming to an end, setting the stage for Israel to send more troops to the northern border to confront the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Israel began the war in the Gaza Strip after the October 7 Hamas attack, in which militants entered southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250.

Since then, more than 37,600 people have been killed in Gaza by Israeli ground offensives and bombings, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. Its count does not distinguish between fighters and civilians.

At the moment:

— A Palestinian was shot, beaten and handcuffed to an Israeli army jeep. The army says he posed no threat.

– The US military shows reporters the pier project in Gaza as part of another attempt to deliver aid.

– The Israelis’ lawsuit alleges that a United Nations agency is helping Hamas by paying employees in the Gaza Strip in dollars.

– The suspected Houthi attack targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while the attack claimed by Iraq targeted Eilat.

– The UN tells Israel it will suspend aid efforts in the Gaza Strip if security is not improved.

– Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

Here is the latest information:

The Turkish president accuses Israel’s Netanyahu of trying to spread the fighting in the Gaza Strip to Lebanon

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of trying to spread the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon, saying the move would lead to a “major catastrophe.”

In a speech to members of his ruling party on Wednesday, Erdogan said Turkey would stand by Lebanon and called on other countries in the region to also show solidarity with the Middle Eastern country.

“Israel, which destroyed Gaza, now has Lebanon in its sights,” Erdogan claimed. “Netanyahu’s plans to expand the war to the region with the approval of the West will lead to a major catastrophe.”

“We cannot allow this to happen. Turkey stands with the brotherly people and state of Lebanon and we call on other countries in the region to show solidarity with Lebanon,” he said.

Norway’s largest pension fund is excluding a Texas company that it believes may contribute to human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Norway’s largest pension fund said Wednesday it will exclude Caterpillar Inc. from its investment portfolios due to risks that the Irving, Texas-based company could contribute to human rights abuses and violations of international law in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

“Caterpillar has long supplied bulldozers and other equipment used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure to make way for Israeli settlements,” Kiran Aziz, senior analyst at Oslo-based KLP, said in a statement.

She said there were also allegations that the Israeli army used Caterpillar equipment following the October 7 Hamas attack in Gaza.

“Since the company cannot assure us that it will take any action in this regard, we have decided to exclude the company from the investment,” Aziz said. Caterpillar Inc. was excluded from the investment effective June 2024.

The suspected Houthi attack targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq claimed the attack targeted Eilat

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Suspected attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden early Wednesday morning, while another attack claimed by rebel-aligned Iraqi militants targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to attacks by the Houthis. Those attacks have drastically reduced shipping traffic on the route, which is vital to markets in Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The Houthis expect this campaign to continue as long as the war between Israel and Hamas rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have faced allegations that they hijacked commercial aircraft carrying pilgrims returning from the hajj amid a worsening economic dispute between the rebels and the country’s government in exile.

The Houthis have previously attacked Eilat with drones and missiles, but an Iranian-backed umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack. This group recently began joint operations in the war between Israel and Hamas, as they and the Houthis describe.

The Houthis have not immediately claimed responsibility for the ship attack, but it may take hours or even days for the rebels to admit their attacks.

Republican in Congress says it is in Israel’s “best interest” to resolve the issue of humanitarian aid to Gaza

WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress have been reluctant to publicly criticize Israel and its handling of the war between Israel and Hamas. But when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met with a senior Republican on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, he was told it was in Israel’s “best interest” for its military to resolve the humanitarian aid issue that has bedeviled the war for months.

“My admonition (to Gallant) was to accomplish your military objective as quickly as possible so you can focus on humanitarian things so we can get into this peace process,” Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told AP on Tuesday. It is a rare public statement that reflects the changing political climate for both Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will address an increasingly divided Congress in July.