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What we know
- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has fired 12 aid workers accused of involvement in the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, and has launched an investigation. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said yesterday that he was "horrified" by the allegations and that those found to have been involved would be referred for potential criminal prosecution.
- Germany, Australia, Finland, Italy and the U.K. joined the U.S. and Canada today in suspending funding to the agency. UNRWA employs about 13,000 Palestinians and runs schools and shelters and distributes aid across Gaza.
- Houthis fired at a U.S. warship for the first time yesterday, as well as a British oil tanker. The U.K. said it reserves “the right to respond appropriately,” along with its allies. In a pre-dawn strike today, the U.S. said, it destroyed an anti-ship ballistic missile that was aimed at the Red Sea and ready to launch, and Houthis reported U.S. raids in the port city of Al-Hudaydah.
- CIA Director William Burns is set to meet with Qatar’s prime minister and the director of Mossad this weekend in an effort to break a deadlock in talks for a new hostage deal with Hamas.
- The International Court of Justice has ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent acts of genocide against Palestinians, but stopped short of demanding a cease-fire. South Africa, which brought the case to the ICJ, called yesterday’s interim ruling a “decisive victory” toward justice for Palestinians. Israel called the implication it is perpetuating genocide “false” and “outrageous.”
- More than 26,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. More than 64,400 have been injured, and thousands more are missing and presumed dead.
- Israeli military officials said at least 220 soldiers have been killed during the ground invasion of Gaza. About 1,200 people were killed and about 240 hostages were taken after Hamas launched multipronged attacks on Israel on Oct. 7.
- NBC News’ Raf Sanchez, Matt Bradley, Anna Schecter, Chantal Da Silva and Ali Arouzi are reporting from the region.
Palestinian woman pulled alive from the rubble says goodbye to mother killed by Israeli airstrike
A house in Rafah was hit by Israeli airstrikes, leading to the deaths of three people seeking shelter inside.
An NBC News camera crew captured the moment rescuers pulled 30-year-old Najwa Rahma from the rubble. A few feet away, her sister was also found under the rubble and taken to the hospital.
Despite her pain and injuries, Najwa refused care as she was calling out and pointing to the spot where her mother was. While rescuers were digging her mother’s body out, Najwa repeatedly screamed “Is she alive? Is my mother alive?”
Rescuers announced her mother death, to which Najwa begged to wish her mother farewell and kiss her forehead one last time.
“Mother, mother,” Najwa is heard calling. “Allah will give you peace. I love you, mother.”
UNRWA may be forced to end lifesaving aid due to funding suspension, commissioner-general says
Lifesaving aid provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East may end due to the suspension of funding from multiple countries, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said.
The U.S., U.K., Canada, Italy and Finland are among the countries that have suspended funding to the UNRWA pending an investigation into allegations that members of staff participated in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.
“It is shocking to see a suspension of funds to the Agency in reaction to allegations against a small group of staff, especially given the immediate action that UNRWA took by terminating their contracts and asking for a transparent independent investigation," Lazzarini said. "The United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), the highest investigative authority in the UN system, has already been seized of this very serious matter."
The UNRWA is the primary humanitarian agency in Gaza and over 2 million people in the enclave depend on the agency for survival, according to Lazzarini.
“It would be immensely irresponsible to sanction an Agency and an entire community it serves because of allegations of criminal acts against some individuals, especially at a time of war, displacement and political crises in the region," he said. "UNRWA shares the list of all its staff with host countries every year, including Israel. The Agency never received any concerns on specific staff members."
Lazzarini urged countries that have suspended funding to UNRWA to reconsider before the agency "is forced to suspend its humanitarian response."
"The lives of people in Gaza depend on this support and so does regional stability," he said.
Germany joins nations pausing U.N. relief agency funding
Germany is the latest major donor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency to pause funding pending an investigation of allegations 12 employees were involved in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
The country's foreign ministry said in a statement that it would pause any new funding until such an investigation was complete. No UNRWA funding was in the pipeline as of today, the ministry said.
The ministry added that Germany recently increased funding for the International Committee of the Red Cross and UNICEF, originally know as the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, by 7 million euros total ($7.6 million USD) as part of its humanitarian aid for Gaza.
Pope Francis renews call for cease-fire
Pope Francis made a renewed call for a cease-fire in Gaza, saying that because of global conflict “too many children continue to suffer, to be exploited and to die.” Francis made the remarks during an address to an Italian nonprofit fundraising for a Rwandan orphanage.
Gaza Health Ministry and PRCS report damages at the Nasser Medical Complex and Al-Amal Hospital after attack
The Gaza Ministry of Health and the Palestine Red Crescent Society have reported injuries and damage at the Nasser Medical Complex and Al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis following what they say were attacks from Israel on the medical centers.
The PRCS said a displaced person was killed and three others were injured at Al-Amal Hospital due to the Israeli attack.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, water tanks at Nasser Medical Complex were damaged as a result of shrapnel from Israeli fire, which "led to water leakage into the buildings and the intensive care unit, and the lack of water in the dialysis center."
"The Israeli occupation deliberately paralyzes the capabilities of the Nasser Medical Complex and Al-Amal Hospital in Khan Yunis through siege, targeting, and preventing ambulance movement," said Ashraf Al-Qudra, a spokesperson for the Gaza Ministry of Health.
In response to claims that the Israeli forces have been attacking the hospital, the Israel Defense Forces said it’s “carrying out precise operations against the Hamas terrorist organization in Khan Yunis.”
The statement added that “IDF intelligence indicates that Hamas terrorists are operating from inside and around the Nasser hospital and Al-Amal hospital in Khan Yunis.”
NBC News is unable to verify these claims.
Finland suspends funding to UNRWA
Finland has joined a group of countries that have suspended funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East following allegations that some of its members assisted in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the allegations "serious" and called for "an independent and thorough investigation of the matter."
"We must make sure that not a single euro of Finland’s money goes to Hamas or other terrorists," Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio said in a statement.
Prior to the suspension, the country had a four-year agreement with UNRWA that is meant to end in 2026 to provide 5 million euros a year.
Photos: Observers and survivors mark Holocaust Remembrance Day
Survivors, their families and other visitors commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Saturday, which marks the anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau on Jan. 27, 1945.
Netanyahu strikes out at ICJ ruling in speech marking Holocaust Remembrance Day
TEL AVIV — Netanyahu struck out at yesterday's ruling from the International Court of Justice tonight as he delivered a speech marking Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Netanyahu also repeated his stance that any investigation into Israeli forces' response to the Oct. 7 attacks "should be done after the war and not during."
"I said my opinion: The investigations and checks should be done after the war and not during," he said. "I do not want officers, commanders and statesman to deal with sourcing attorneys," he said. "This is a mistake. The only necessary thing is to deal with the victory of the war."
His comments came as hundreds of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv's "Hostages Square" to mark the day of remembrance.
"Never again is now!" one speaker said at the somber demonstration organized by the Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum, which represents the loved ones of those held hostage by Hamas.
Palestine ambassador to the U.N. on Holocaust Remembrance Day: 'No one can instrumentalize the Holocaust to justify atrocities'
In a speech today, Majed Bamya, the ambassador of the state of Palestine to the U.N., honored the victims of the Holocaust while emphasizing that the horrors of the genocide should never be used to justify other atrocities.
"The Israel permanent representative stood in the Security Council and placed a yellow star on his jacket, evoking the Holocaust, while at the same time justifying the bombings that are killing Palestinian civilians by the thousands, children by the thousands," Bamya said while addressing the U.N. Security Council. "No one can instrumentalize the Holocaust to justify atrocities, no one."
Bamya said the Holocaust "was one of the worst horrors humanity ever witnessed" and "led us to elaborate the very rules that are being breached today," including the U.N. Charter, the Geneva Convention and the Universal Declaration for Human Rights.
"It led us to adopt the Rome Statute, 50 years too late, and build a quote with a universal calling. Not for one group against another, but for all of humanity," Bamya said.
He then posed the questions: "Are we not part of that human family? Are Palestinian civilian lives less sacred? Does anyone here agree with Israel that we are subhumans?"
Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemns Israel's 'systematic campaign of incitement' against UNRWA
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the Israeli government's "systematic campaign of incitement" against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East in a statement today.
The ministry called the situation "premeditated and prejudicial to eliminate the refugee issue" and "hidden hostility that has been exposed over the past years." It accused Israel of pre-anticipating investigations into its allegations.
"In this context, the Ministry expresses its strong astonishment at the measures taken by some countries before the completion of the United Nations investigations and demands that they immediately withdraw them in accordance with the law and legal procedures," the ministry said of the decision to suspend funding to the UNRWA by countries including the U.S., U.K. and Italy.
The ministry warned that if the allegations against UNRWA members aiding in the events of Oct. 7 are proven to be true, it "must not prejudice UNRWA and its powers and high-level humanitarian missions."