Israel’s war cabinet disbanded by Netanyahu: Live updates | CNN (2024)

The Barbados-flagged ship True Confidence is seen ablaze following a Houthi missile attack at sea on March 6.

The Iran-backed Houthis have launched more than 190 attacks on commercial shipping and US Navy assets in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November, Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said on Monday.

The Houthis, a militant group in Yemen, have launched attacks as recently as last week. On Wednesday the M/V Tutor, a bulk cargo carrier, was hit by a Houthi uncrewed surface vessel, resulting in the crew abandoning the ship and one civilian mariner going missing.

On Thursday, another bulk cargo carrier the M/V Verbena was also struck in two missile attacks, seriously injuring at least one civilian mariner. The crew later abandoned the ship.

Despite the ongoing attacks, however, Singh defended US efforts in the region as successful against the Houthis.

More about the Houthis: The Houthis have launched dozens of missile and drone attacks directed at ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since Israel launched its invasion of Gaza following Hamas’ October 7attack.

The Houthi attacks have forced some of the world’s biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world’smost important maritime trade routes, which could potentially cause a shock to the global economy.

The Houthis are believed to have been armed and trained by Iran, and there are fears that their attacks could escalate Israel’s war against Hamas into a wider regional conflict.

CNN’s Christian Edwards contributed reporting to this post.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS)condemned Israel’s “heinous crimes” in the Gaza Strip on Monday, imploring the international community to implement Gaza-related UN Security Council resolutions and work towards a ceasefire.

The Crown Prince also called on the international community to immediately recognize an independent state of Palestine based on “1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” which he said would “enable the brotherly Palestinian people to obtain their legitimate rights and to achieve comprehensive, just and lasting peace.”

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF)announced a “tactical pause”of military activities along a road in southern Gaza that has been designated for humanitarian aid deliveries every day for 11 hours.

The announcement comes as the strip’s population of more than 2 million grapples with humanitarian conditions that the United Nations has described as “unspeakable.”

The “pause,” which the IDF announced Sunday but COGAT, the Israeli agency responsible for approving aid into Gaza, said came into effect on Saturday, raised questions about what it means for the conflict and for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Human rights groups have described health concerns “beyond crisis levels”for Palestinians in the enclave, with over 75% of the population displaced, according to the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA). Israel’s military campaign has pulverized neighborhoods, damaged health infrastructure and depleted food, water and fuel supplies.

The announcement also appeared to have deepened existing political rifts in the Israeli government, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unhappy when he first heard about it, according to one official.

More about the “tactical pause:” It will take place every day from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. local time until further notice.

The pause began Saturday, the IDF said, and is meant to allow trucks to move from the Kerem Shalom Crossing, the main entry point for incoming aid to southern Gaza, up the Salah al-Din Road and northwards.

The IDF has designated a specific route for aid trucks to take, which starts from Kerem Shalom to Al Bayuk neighborhood and onto the European Hospital in Khan Younis.

The route will be run in coordination with international organizations, the IDF said, as part of efforts to increase volumes of aid reaching Gaza.

Read more about this development.

Hezbollah’s “key operative in the Rocket and Missile Department” was killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon on Monday, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in a statement.

The IDF said an Israeli warplane “struck and eliminated” Muhammad Mustafa Ayoub in the area of Selaa in southern Lebanon.

“Over the past few months, Ayoub was involved in promoting terror attacks against Israeli civilians and communities, he promoted and planned terror attacks from southern Lebanon against the State of Israel,” the IDF statement added.

Separately, Israeli fighter jets also struck Hezbollah’s “infrastructure and a military structure in the area of Meiss El Jabal in southern Lebanon,” the statement said.

Hezbollah confirmed the death of Ayoup in a short statement on Tuesday, saying he “died as a martyr on the road to Jerusalem,” but without providing further details on the circ*mstances of his death.

Why this matters: Israel and Hezbollah have been ramping up cross-border attacks after months of low-intensity fighting, prompting the Israeli military to warn that it is prepared to launch a large-scale attack on its northern border. With both sides trading fire for more than eight months, experts say Israel feels it can no longer ignore its northern front or delay taking action there.

Palestinians packed up their tents and fled to safe areas with what they could take with them following the Israeli army attack on a refugee tent encampment in the al-Mawasi area in Rafah, Gaza on May 28.

More than 1.3 million people are believed to have been displaced from Rafah to other parts of Gaza in a span of six weeks, according to theUnited Nations Relief and Works Agencyfor Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

“UNRWA estimates that 65,000 people are sheltering in Rafah,” it said on X. “Six weeks ago there were around 1.4 million.”

UNRWA didn’t provide any detail as to where in Gaza those people had been displaced to.

More on displaced Gazans: Last week, theNorwegian Refugee Counciloutlined in a report that almost a million people — half of Gaza’s population — have been displaced in the past month following Israel’s expanded military operations in Rafah.

The report stated that it is becoming increasingly difficult for displaced people in Gaza to relocate, facing issues such as clogged streets, overcrowding, fuel shortages, and a sixfold surge in transport costs. It also warned of a rise in Hepatitis A cases, with the accumulation of solid waste becoming a “critical problem.”

CNN’s Eyad Kourdi and Mohammad Al-Sawalhi contributed to this report.

The Israeli settlement of Givat Zeev, near the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on February 3, 2023.

Israel’s government says it is looking to “strengthen” Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank after several countries unilaterally recognized a Palestinian state.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Prime Minister’sOffice said all of the proposals for strengthening settlements in what Israel biblically refers to as Judea and Samaria would be voted on at the next Security Cabinet meeting.

Norway, Ireland, Spain and Slovenia have each recognized an independent Palestinian state in recent weeks, a move motivated at least in part by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s open refusal to commit to a two-state solution.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the move was a reward for terrorism and would strengthen Hamas.

The statement also said Israel would look at what actions to take against the Palestinian Authority as it took actions against Israel in international bodies.

Read more about Israel’s plans here.

The Israeli militaryspokespersonRear Adm.Daniel Hagari admitted theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF)could’ve been clearer when it came to explaining its announcement of a “tactical pause” in military activity along a route in southern Gaza to allow aid distribution.

Hagari said the military did not stop fighting against Hamas, and the decision was made by the military, not the Israeli government.

“We are a democracy, and we are being ordered by the cabinet and our political echelon, the Ministry of Defense, and this is how theIDFworks,” he explainedinresponse to a question by Hanco*cks. “Our order was to make sure humanitarian aid was gettinginto Gaza. Israel is working according to theinternational law. We will keep on doing so, this is what the cabinet have ordered us to do.”

On Sunday, the Government Media Office (GMO) inGazadenied that a “tactical pause” was in effect in the southernGaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the special envoy of the US President Amos Hochstein, at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on June 17.

US special envoy Amos Hochstein met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday, the Israeli PM’s office said in a statement.

The statement didn’t detail what was discussed in the meeting but Hochstein’s visit happens as Washington is intensifying diplomatic efforts to try and prevent an escalation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

“The meeting was attended by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Chief of Staff Rabbi Tzachi Braverman, the Prime Minister’s military secretary General Roman Goffman, political advisor Ofir Fleck and US Deputy Ambassador to Israel Stephanie Hallett,” the statement added.

Hochstein also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, where the pair discussed the necessity of securing the release of all hostages held by Hamas as well as Hezbollah’s attacks.

“In their meeting, they discussed the relentless attacks and rocket fire from Hezbollah, instigated by Iran, towards Israel’s northern towns and cities, and the urgent need to restore security to the northern border and allow residents to return safely to their homes,” Herzog’s office added.”

Remember: The latest fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, a powerful, Iran-backed paramilitary group that operates out of southern Lebanon, was sparked by the October 7 attacks by Hamas and the ensuing war in Gaza. Hezbollah has voiced support for Hamas and says it is fighting in support of the Palestinian people.

This post has been updated with additional reporting on the meeting.

United Nations workers are brought to the Nassr Hospital after being injured in Israeli attacks in Khan Younis, Gaza on October 19.

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The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, says 193 of its staff have been killed since the war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7.

“Despite this, our colleagues keep working to support families and provide aid amid the dire humanitarian crisis.”

The agency added that it works in the most challenging circ*mstances and that its facilities continue to be targeted.

Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas and other militant groups of embedding themselves amid the civilian population, and it has also denied targeting civilian infrastructure.

Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm.Daniel Hagari told CNN that he thinks there is “enough food” going into Gaza when pressed about the humanitarian crisis across the strip; however, he admitted there is “a problem with distribution.”

Speaking to CNN’s Paula Hanco*cks at the Kerem Shalom border crossing, Hagari said the “tactical pause” was to ensure that the road is “safe for the trucks to drive on” and get more aid into the strip. He maintained that the government was fighting Hamas in Rafah.

Hagari also told Hanco*cks that 1,200 trucks worth of aid, including food, water, medicine, and baby diapers, are currently waiting to be collected at the crossing. He pointed the finger at international aid groups for not distributing the aid.

When pressed about safety concerns expressed by aid agencies, Hagari said Israel would “help them,” “monitor them,” and the “road will be safe, military wise it will be safe.” He did not give specific details about how Israel would help aid agencies secure their vehicles. Hagari previously said there would be a military presence along the route but, when pressed repeatedly by CNN, would not commit to providing military escort to convoys along the route.

According to the United Nations, 254aidworkershave beenkilledin Gaza since October.

Hanco*cks also asked Hagari about the recent UN report that predicts half of Gaza’s population is “expected to face death and starvation” by mid-July.

Israeli Prime Minister BenjaminNetanyahuspeaks during a press conference at the Sheba Tel-HaShomer Medical Centre, in Ramat Gan, Israel, on June 8.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has disbanded the country’s war cabinet, an Israeli official has told CNN

Netanyahu’s decision comes after opposition leader Benny Gantz announced his withdrawal from the body last week, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s request to join.

The war cabinet was formed five days after the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas and included not only Netanyahu and Gantz but also Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Other politicians such as Gadi Eisenkot and Ron Dermer also took part as observers.

But Gantz – seen as Netanyahu’s most formidable political opponent – announced his “complex and painful” decision to withdraw from the cabinet last week, citing Netanyahu’s failure to devise a strategy for the conflict in Gaza and the future governance of the Strip.

Gantz’s resignation sparked calls from far-right members in Netanyahu’s governing coalition, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, to join the war cabinet. Both men were earlier pointedly excluded from the cabinet at Gantz’s behest.

By dismantling the cabinet, Netanyahu may have avoided having to accede to Ben-Gvir’s calls to join it, which could have further strained Israel’s relations with the United States, or having to reject his demands, which could have angered the more extreme wing of Netanyahu’s coalition.

Another interpretation is that without Gantz – and Eisenkot who also resigned – in it, there was no longer any point in keeping the war cabinet going. Instead, an Israeli official tells CNN, Netanyahu will in the future hold smaller forums to discuss sensitive matters relating to the war with Hamas. It’s unclear whether Ben-Gvir will be excluded from these as well.

Read more about Netanyahu disbanding the war cabinet here.

A truck carrying aid for delivery into Gaza drives through theKeremShalomcrossing in southern Israel, on June 17.

Israel says it has introduced a daily “tactical pause” of military activity along a route in southern Gaza to allow aid to be distributed, but said there will be no let up in fighting in and around Rafah in southern Gaza.

The pauses began on Saturday and will take place every day from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. local time until further notice to allow trucks to move from the Kerem Shalom Crossing, the main entry point for incoming aid to southern Gaza, up the Salah al-Din Road and northward, the Israel Defense Forces said.

Soon after announcing the move, the Israeli military said “the fighting in Rafah continues,” adding “there is no change in the entry of goods into the Strip.”

A bottleneck of aid has built up at Kerem Shalom amid Israeli airstrikes and fighting in much of southern Gaza.

Dire humanitarian crisis: Human rights groups have described “unspeakable” living conditions for Palestinians in Gaza following eight months of Israeli bombardment. Israel’s military campaign has pulverized neighborhoods, damaged health infrastructure and depleted food, water and fuel supplies.

More than 50,000 children in Gaza now require treatment for acute malnutrition, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said in aposton X on Saturday.

Last month, Israel pressed ahead with its ground operation in central Rafah, saying Hamas fighters are embedded in civilian areas of the enclave’s southernmost city.

The operation has led hundreds of thousands of already displaced people to leave the area. Gazans say they have been bombed even when they evacuated to areas that were supposed to be safe — and that they have nowhere left to go. Internally displaced Palestinians are estimated to be crammed into an area of 69 square kilometers(27 square miles).

Israeli leadership criticizes the move: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was unhappy when he first heard of the plan, according to an Israeli official.

Netanyahu then contacted his military secretary and said this was unacceptable, until he was assured the fighting in Rafah would continue. It raises the question of where the “tactical pause” order originated,but it’s expected to continue.

Israeli security minister Ben Gvir — a leading right-wing member of the country’s cabinet — condemned the pause. “Whoever decided on a ‘tactical pause’ for the purpose of a humanitarian transition, especially at a time when the best of our soldiers are falling in battle, is an evil and a fool who should not continue to be in his position,” he said.

Fighting and deadly strikes: Fierce fighting and airstrikes have rocked Rafah as the Israeli effort to destroy Hamas in Gaza continues. A civil defense official in the enclave told CNN heavy clashes were ongoing in neighborhoods of western Rafah on Sunday.

Ahmed Radwan, the media officer ofRafahCivil Defense, said the organization had received pleas to collect bodies and wounded people, but it was difficult for crews to access many areas due to Israeli military operations.

On Saturday,eight IDF soldiers were killednear the city, one of the single deadliest incidents of the war for Israeli troops.

Israeli soldiers carry the flag-draped casket of Israeli soldier Wassem Mahmoud, who was killed when an armoured personnel carrier exploded near the southern Gaza city of Rafah, during his funeral in Beit Jann, Israel, on June 16.

Eight Israeli soldiers were killed in southern Gaza on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces says, in one of the deadliest single incidents involving its troops since October 7.

The IDF told CNN that preliminary findings suggest an armored vehicle carrying soldiers as part of a convoy was hit by an explosion around 5:15 a.m. local time (10:15 p.m. ET Friday) during an operation targeting “terrorist infrastructure” in the Tal al-Sultan area near the city of Rafah.

However, it’s unclear whether the blast was caused by an explosive device planted in the area or by the ignition of explosives being carried by the armored vehicle – or whether it was a mix of both. The incident remains under review.

Earlier, Al Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said it “carried out a complex ambush against enemy vehicles” operating in Tal al-Sultan.

The militant group said it targeted a military bulldozer,which then caught on fire, killing and wounding the crew. When rescue troops arrived,the militant group then struck an armored personnel carrier, killingthe soldiers, it said.

The Israeli military said the damage from the explosion was so great that it was difficult to identify and locate the bodies of those killed. One of the dead soldiers was identified as Capt. Wassem Mahmoud, deputy company commander in the Engineering Battalion. The other seven names are yet to be disclosed.

Rafah in crisis: The deadly explosion came as Israel continues its push into Rafah, the enclave’s southernmost city, where there were reports of more airstrikes and artillery shelling Saturday. Some of the fiercest fighting of recent days has been seen in Tal al-Sultan.

The Israeli operation in Rafah has deepened the already dire humanitarian crisis for Palestinians in Gaza. Almost a million people — half of the enclave’s population — have been displaced in the past month by the operations, theNorwegian Refugee Counciloutlined in a report on Thursday.

Gazans say they have nowhere left to go.

The World Health Organization is warning of an “escalating health crisis” for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem due to rising Israeli violence, attacks on health infrastructure and increased restrictions on movement.

Attacks by extremist Israeli settlers and incursions by the Israeli military in the occupied territories have spiked in the months since Hamas launched its October 7 attack from Gaza into southern Israel.

The WHO has documented at least 480 attacks on health care, affecting 54 health facilities, 20 mobile clinics and 319 ambulances, with 59% of the attacks occurring in the cities of Tulkarem, Jenin and Nablus, the organization said in astatement Saturday.

The WHO said access to health facilities has been further restricted by the closure of Israeli checkpoints, as well as “the siege and closure of entire towns and communities.”

According to the health organization, a total of 521 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since October 7, including 126 children. The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah puts the number higher, at 547 people killed, including 133 children over the same time period.

U.S. envoyAmosHochsteinspeaks during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, on March 4.

US special envoy Amos Hochstein will arrive in Israel on Monday as tensions on the Israel-Lebanon border escalate, CNN analyst Barak Ravid reports, citing two Israeli officials.

Israel and Hezbollah have recently been ramping up cross-border attacks after months of low-intensity fighting, prompting the Israeli military to warn that it is prepared to launch a large-scale attack on its northern border.

Latest clashes: Hezbollah claimed at least three additional attacks against Israel on Saturday, including one that the Israel Defense Forces said started another fire.

The IDF said the Hezbollah attack was carried out by drones carrying explosives. It also reported its own attack, saying an Israeli aircraft struck what it described as a Hezbollah terrorist in the area of Aitaroun in southern Lebanon, releasing aerial video of a motorbike being hit.

Remember: The latest fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, a powerful, Iran-backed paramilitary group that operates out of southern Lebanon, was sparked by the October 7 attacks by Hamas and ensuing war in Gaza. Hezbollah has voiced support for Hamas and says it is fighting in support of the Palestinian people.

Walid Al Omari works at the network's offices in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on May 5.

A leader at the media organization Al Jazeera has rejected “all the excuses and accusations” that the Israeli government has made against the network and called it a “campaign of incitement” against the network’s staff in Israel.

The comments come after an Israeli court upheld an order to extend the ban on Al Jazeera’s broadcasts within Israel for an additional 45 days. The Arabic news channelhas produced dogged, on-the-ground reporting of Israel’s war in Gaza.

Jerusalem bureau chief Walid Al Omary says the accusations against the network’s staff “endangers their lives and the lives of their families,” adding that he places “all responsibility for (the staff’s) safety on the authorities in Israel.”

An Israeli court upheld an order to extend the ban on Al Jazeera broadcasts within Israel for an additional 45 days. The Israeli government requested the extension, and the Israeli High Court approved it on Thursday.

According to the Tel Aviv District Court, the decision follows “a thorough review of both written and oral arguments presented by the involved parties.”

CNN has contacted the Al Jazeera Media Network for comment.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Israel’s oldest and largest human rights organization, said in a statement that the court’s decision on Al Jazeera “violates freedom of expression and freedom of the press,” and the group is considering an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Some background:In early May, the Israeli cabinetforced the network, which is funded in part by the government of Qatar, to close its operations in Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the time: “Al Jazeera reporters harmed Israel’s security and incited IDF soldiers. It is time to expel the mouthpiece of Hamas from our country.”

CNN’s Eyad Kourdi, Eugenia Ugrinovichand Lauren Idocontributed reporting.