Gazans injured in war live with disabilities but little medical support
Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images
(KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA) — The humanitarian crisis and ongoing conflict in Gaza has left in its wake thousands of people with life-altering disabilities.
The ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, coupled with Gaza’s crumbling health care infrastructure, has created what some describe as insurmountable challenges for those injured during the violence.
About 25% of the people who have sustained injuries in the conflict — an estimated 22,500 people — now require long-term rehabilitation, according to the World Health Organization. More than 106,000 people have been injured in Gaza since the war began, according to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry.
But in Gaza, where medical resources are already stretched to the breaking point, even basic rehabilitation services remain out of reach.
Many disabled individuals face not only physical pain but also profound psychological scars and societal rejection in Gaza, international and local medical professionals said. With limited access to medical care, psychological support, and assistive devices, they are often left to navigate life with disabilities that forever alter their futures.
“In any circumstances, recovering from an extensive injury and attending physical rehabilitation takes an enormous amount of psychological strength. To do this in a conflict zone — where accessing mobility aids, appropriate transportation, or any at all, physiotherapy sessions, proper nutrition, and rest is very difficult — takes a severe toll on every individual experiencing it,” International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson Hisham Mhanna told ABC News in an interview.
In the more than a year since Israel began its retaliatory war against Hamas, the terrorist group that attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostage, much of Gaza has been destroyed by airstrikes, according to the United Nations. Nearly 100 hostages remain missing in Gaza with about two-thirds believed to be alive.
About 60% of all buildings in Gaza have been destroyed, a U.N. agency said in September. The Strip’s hospital system has “collapsed,” a spokesperson for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders, told ABC News in October. Nineteen of the 36 hospitals and nine field hospitals formerly operating in Gaza were still partially functioning, the WHO said at the time.
Ahmed Al Haw, 17, a displaced person living in Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza, said he is among those whose lives have been irreversibly changed. Al Haw was injured in front of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis while visiting a sick relative. His family’s trip turned into a nightmare when a bomb exploded near their car.
“My grandfather’s leg was amputated, and as the injury developed, he passed away. My mother and sister were also injured. I lost my eye and part of my foot,” Al Haw said.
For Al Haw, the aftermath of the explosion has been almost as unbearable as the injuries themselves. He has been thrust into a reality where even the simplest tasks are a struggle. The physical pain is unrelenting, but it pales in comparison to the psychological toll he endures, he said.
“At the beginning of the injury, I was in a state of depression. I didn’t eat at all. One time, I even thought about committing suicide,” he said.
Gaza’s health care system lacks the resources to adequately address the needs of the disabled, the World Health Organization said in a recent press release announcing the publication of an analysis of the medical situation in Gaza. There is a lack of medical supplies, including prosthetics, wheelchairs and essential medications to treat people with injuries that have left them disabled, the press release said. Hospitals are overwhelmed, understaffed, and under-resourced.
“Accessing proper prosthetics and mobility aids is difficult in Gaza, where there are shortages of everything, including critical medical drugs and supplies. The focus of medical staff is on saving lives, as it must be in any emergency, but this leaves gaps in the post-recovery care in many areas.” Mhanna said.
Medical aid has accounted for about 2.5% by weight of all aid that’s been brought in Gaza since the conflict began about 14 months ago, according to the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, the Israeli ministry overseeing the flow of food, medical aid and other supplies into Gaza. About 28,918 tons of medical aid have crossed into the Strip, according to COGAT data.
“Israel actively and continuously operates to facilitate the increase of the medical response in Gaza,” COGAT says on its website. “This is done in close coordination with humanitarian aid organizations specializing in health services, and donor countries.”
The most common injuries medical staff see are “loss of limbs” from bombings and shrapnel, said Dr. Sami Owaimer, director of the Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Unit at the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
“The most common injuries we see are the loss of limbs due to explosions and shrapnel, alongside eye injuries that lead to blindness and spinal injuries resulting in paralysis. These wounds often cause permanent deformities and profoundly alter lives,” Owaimer said.
Rehabilitation, a critical step in recovery, is virtually non-existent in Gaza. The region lacks specialized centers, modern equipment and trained professionals to provide comprehensive care. As a result, many disabled individuals are left without the tools or support needed to adapt to their new realities.
“There is a glaring lack of specialized rehabilitation centers and modern equipment, such as prosthetics and movement training devices,” Owaimer said. “Comprehensive programs that integrate physical, psychological and social services are desperately needed.”
For Al Haw, the psychological impact of his injuries is compounded by the stigma he faces from society, he said.
“Society does not accept me,” he said. “When I walk slowly on crutches, people start shouting at me, ‘Hurry up!’ One time, I fell to the ground. I cry every day. I have nightmares every night. I feel very lonely. I’ve become mentally ill in addition to being physically and visually disabled.”
The lack of psychological support exacerbates the suffering of those like Al Haw. Many patients, particularly young people, find themselves battling depression and anxiety with no professional guidance or emotional support.
“Adapting to life with a disability is a significant challenge,” Owaimer said. “While some programs offer psychological and social rehabilitation, the lack of resources limits their reach and effectiveness.”
The societal challenges faced by people with disabilities in Gaza, limited facilities, lack of accessibility and entrenched stigma leave many feeling isolated and marginalized. Al Haw described this isolation as being particularly painful. As the oldest of seven siblings, he said he feels a deep responsibility to support his family, especially with his father imprisoned in an Israeli jail.
“I’ve lost my feet and my sight, the most precious things I had. My dreams have deteriorated. I can’t support my mother and sisters. My future is completely unknown,” he said.
Despite the obstacles he faces, Al Haw keeps going, driven by his love for his family.
“Because of my family, I am struggling to continue living. I want to have a good future, to support my family in the absence of my father,” he said.
“These individuals are not just numbers — they are human beings with rights who deserve dignity, education, and proper rehabilitation,” Owaimer said.
“In the chaos of conflict, many people with disabilities are forgotten,” Mhanna, of the Red Cross, said. “But they are civilians and receive special protection under international humanitarian law. People with disabilities, and the different challenges and needs they have, must be taken into account by parties to a conflict during active hostilities.”
Tanya Dzafarowa/Suspilne Ukraine/JSC “UA:PBC”/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
(LONDON) — Russia launched a major missile and drone attack on Ukraine overnight into Sunday targeting power plants and energy infrastructure across the country.
The barrage was the largest attack on Ukraine since late August and the third largest so far this year. Missiles and drones targeted cities including the capital Kyiv, forcing people into basements, subway stations and other underground shelters.
Ukrainian authorities reported that at least five people were killed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram early Sunday that the “massive strike” targeted areas in “all regions of Ukraine.”
Zelenskyy said around 120 missiles and 90 drones were fired into the country, with Ukrainian air defenses downing more than 140 targets.
Ukraine’s air force said that at least eight Kinzhal hypersonic missiles — among Moscow’s most advanced weapons — were among the projectiles used in the attack. So too were one Zircon hypersonic cruise missile and more than 100 Kalibr cruise missiles.
The air force said Ukrainian defenders downed 144 targets — 102 missiles and 42 drones. The Russian aircraft involved in the assault included Tu-160 and Tu-95 strategic bombers, the air force said, as well as Su-34, Su-27 and MiG-31 jets.
“We are grateful to all our air defense,” the president said, noting that American-made F-16 fighter jets were involved in the defense.
Strikes and explosions were reported in Kyiv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro and in western Ukraine. The Black Sea port city of Odesa was reportedly left without power following the strikes.
Zelenskyy said a drone impact in the southern city of Mykolaiv killed two people and injured six others, including two children.
Poland’s military, meanwhile, said the Russian missile barrage prompted it to scramble fighter jets to protect its skies.
Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko confirmed in a post to social media that the strikes were targeting Ukraine’s grid. The attack prompted authorities to impose emergency energy shutdowns in Kyiv and at least one other region.
Russia has targeted Ukraine’s grid as winter looms. The country’s centralized heating systems having been turned on in the past couple of weeks as temperatures drop below freezing. The strikes threaten to leave millions without power.
Moscow has launched missile and drone barrages against Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war in February 2022. Russia has generally expanded long-range strikes as winters approach hoping to collapse the Ukrainian energy grid.
This year appears no different, with recent months bringing an intensification of drone and missile attacks across the country as the change in U.S. administration prompts talk of renewed peace negotiations.
Zelenskyy told Radio Ukraine on Saturday that Kyiv expects Russia to “continue combined strikes” through the winter period. “We need to prepare for everything,” he added.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the attack was Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “true response” to recent conversations with world leaders — an apparent jab at German Chancellor Olaf Scholz who spoke with Putin Friday for the first time in two years, against Ukraine’s objections.
“Russia launched one of the largest air attacks: drones and missiles against peaceful cities, sleeping civilians, critical infrastructure,” Sybiha said. “This is war criminal Putin’s true response to all those who called and visited him recently. We need peace through strength, not appeasement.”
(SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will face an impeachment vote Saturday, days after briefly imposing martial law.
The country’s dominant opposition party moved on Wednesday to impeach Yoon, submitting a motion a day after his declaration of martial law set off a night of political chaos.
The opposition party, the Democratic Party, had been working Friday to gain enough votes from the ruling party side to pass the motion to impeach, which would then go to the Constitutional Court.
A high-level official in Korea’s spy agency this week also said he had refused a request by the president to arrest several key political figures. He was immediately dismissed with Yoon claiming he did note order arrests of lawmakers.
The head of the ruling People Power Party turned course from Thursday in announcing that the president is unfit to lead the country.
“I think that President Yoon Suk Yeol should be suspended from office as soon as possible,” Han Dong-hoon said during an emergency party meeting on Friday morning.
He was careful to avoid using the word “impeachment” but implied that Yoon should either resign or be forced to step down.
After that about-face statement, South Korea’s political scene went through a roller coaster ride.
Han briefly met with the president at his request in the afternoon.
The president was on his way to the National Assembly but turned back after a group of opposition party lawmakers gathered at the entrance of the Assembly Hall chanting “impeachment,” “treason” and and even calling for the arrest of Yoon.
The speaker of the National Assembly read a stern statement on camera demanding that the president hold off a visit to the National Assembly until security matters are ironed out.
“A second sate of emergency cannot be tolerated,” and “If there is, by any chance, another misjudgment by the President in declaring a state of emergency, we will do everything in our power to prevent it,” Woo Won-shik said.
Yoon declared martial law in a televised speech late Tuesday, saying the measure was necessary due to the actions of the country’s liberal opposition, which he accused of controlling parliament, sympathizing with North Korea and paralyzing the government.
The move sparked massive protests, and hours after the declaration, the National Assembly voted early Wednesday morning local time demanding that the president lift the martial law order. Yoon lifted the order shortly thereafter.
“This is a serious act of rebellion and perfect grounds for impeachment,” a Democratic Party spokesperson said in a statement after martial law was lifted.
(LONDON) — The Israel Defense Forces continued its intense airstrike and ground campaigns in Gaza — particularly in the north of the strip — and in Lebanon, with Israeli attacks on targets nationwide including in the capital Beirut. The strikes form the backdrop for a fresh diplomatic push by the White House ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office in January.
Tensions also remain high between Israel and Iran after the former launched what it called “precise strikes on military targets” in several locations in Iran following Tehran’s Oct. 1 missile barrage.
US vetos Gaza UN Security Council cease-fire resolution
The U.S. vetoed another United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza because it did not include a hostage release.
This is the 12th time the Security Council voted on a draft resolution since the war in Gaza started 13 months ago.
At least 43,972 people have been killed in Gaza since October 2023, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
In June, the Security Council passed a U.S.-drafted cease-fire deal that President Joe Biden approved. At the time, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said “we voted for peace.”
US sanctions Hamas leaders as officials say group’s political wing has rebased in Turkey
The U.S. is rolling out sanctions against six senior Hamas leaders accused of facilitating the transfer of weapons and funds into Gaza to support the group’s terror activities as well as smuggling in construction materials to build the underground tunnels critical to its operations, according to the Biden administration.
“There is no distinction between Hamas’ so-called military wing and its political leadership,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement announcing the tranche of sanctions.
Three of the targeted individuals are based in Turkey, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
Despite the denials coming from Hamas and the Turkish government, two U.S. officials say that the bulk of Hamas’ political wing has now relocated to Turkey following the group’s ouster from Qatar.
The U.S. has turned a blind eye to Hamas’ relationship with NATO ally Turkey for years, which allows the U.S. designated terror group to openly recruit, fundraise and interface with its government officials.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he hopes to strengthen ties with the U.S. when President-elect Donald Trump takes office. However, Trump’s cabinet is expected to feature many staunchly pro-Israel voices who will object to Turkey’s tolerance of Hamas — potentially complicating Erdogan’s plans.
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
Hospitals in northern Gaza running out of medical supplies, requesting patient transfers as attacks continue
Kamal Adwan Hospital is running out of medical supplies, and more people with cases of malnutrition are arriving at the hospital because of the lack of food and water allowed into northern Gaza, the hospital director said in comments Tuesday.
“There are a number of cases of malnutrition that have begun to arrive, including children and the elderly,” Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, the director of Kamal Adwan hospital said.
“The health system is working under extremely harsh conditions to the point that we have started losing numbers of infected people due to the lack of medical supplies,” Abu Safia added.
At least 50 people were killed, and 110 people were injured in Gaza over the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health said.
The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Palestine Red Crescent Society transferred 15 patients from Al Awda Hospital in north Gaza to Al Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City Sunday, the ICRC said in a statement Tuesday. The patient transfers were requested by the hospitals, the ICRC said.
The organizations also delivered medical supplies to three hospitals in Gaza City Monday, the ICRC said in a post on X.
“The delivery and medical transfer came in the wake of another large-scale attack in the Beit Lahia area of the Northern Governorate, in which dozens of people were killed and many more injured,” the ICRC said.
-ABC News’ Diaa Ostaz and Sami Zyara
UN peacekeepers, buildings targeted in 3 incidents in south Lebanon
United Nations peacekeeping forces in Lebanon and facilities were targeted in “three separate incidents in south Lebanon,” Tuesday, UNIFIL said in a post on X.
Four Ghanian peacekeepers on duty “sustained injures as a rocket … hit their base,” UNIFIL said in a post on X. Three of the injured peacekeepers were transferred to a hospital in Tyre, Lebanon for treatment, UNIFIL said.
In a different attack, a UNIFIL building was “impacted by five rockets,” UNIFIL said.
“In another incident, UNIFIL Sector West Headquarters in Shama was impacted by five rockets, which struck the maintenance workshop,” UNIFIL said. “Although it caused heavy damage to the workshop, no peacekeeper was injured. This was the second time this UNIFIL base was impacted by the ongoing clashes in the area in less than a week.”
In a third incident, a UNIFIL patrol was “passing through” a village, and “an armed person directly fired at the patrol,” UNIFIL said. No injuries were reported from this incident.
UNIFIL is investigating the incidents and has informed the Lebanese armed forces about them, UNIFIL said.
“UNIFIL once again reminds all actors involved in the ongoing hostilities to respect the inviolability of United Nations peacekeepers and premises,” UNIFIL said in a post on X.
5 killed, 31 injured after Israeli strike on central Beirut
At least five people were killed, 31 were injured and at least two people remain missing after an Israeli airstrike in the Zuqaq al-Blat neighborhood of central Beirut, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said.
The Israeli Defense Forces did not issue a warning before conducting this airstrike on central Beirut Monday.
At least 28 people were killed and 107 were wounded across Lebanon from Israeli attacks Monday, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said.
Overall, 3,544 people have been killed, and 15,036 have been injured since Israel’s increased attacks on the country began in mid-September, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said in a post on X.
U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein met with Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut Tuesday, according to Lebanese state media.
After meeting with Hochstein for two hours, Berri said the cease-fire negotiations were “good in principle,” but warned Israel could change its minds about the proposal as it has done before.
Berri said the U.S. is managing guarantees about Israel’s position on the proposal, according to Lebanese state media.
-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Israel kills 5 in central Beirut strike, officials say
At least five people were killed and 31 wounded by an Israeli strike in the Zuqaq al-Blat neighborhood of central Beirut on Monday, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health. Two other people are missing.
The Israel Defense Forces did not appear to issue any public evacuation order prior to the strike. ABC News has reached out to the IDF for comment on the target of the strike.
The attack made Monday the second consecutive day of Israeli strikes within central Beirut. To date, the vast majority of airstrikes on the capital have hit the southern Dahiya suburb, known as a Hezbollah stronghold.
Israel has intensified its bombardment in and around Beirut over the past week, while Hezbollah has continued missile fire into Israel. Fresh discussions are ongoing as to a potential cease-fire to end the fighting.
-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor, Jordana Miller and Joe Simonetti
Israel demands ‘immediate’ action against pro-Iran militias in Iraq
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Tuesday published a letter sent to the president of the United Nations Security Council in which he called for “immediate action regarding the activity of the pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, whose territory is being used to attack Israel.”
“The Iraqi government is responsible for everything that happens on its territory,” Saar wrote, noting Israel’s right to self-defense.
“I called on the Security Council to act urgently to make sure that the Iraqi government meets its obligations under international law and to make these attacks on Israel stop,” Saar said.
Iran-backed Iraqi militias have been launching drone attacks into Israel from the east in support of Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon, with whom Israeli forces have been engaged since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack into southern Israel.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Nearly 100 aid trucks looted: UNRWA
The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said Monday their aid convoy was “violently” looted over the weekend, one of the largest such cases of looting since the war began.
The 109-truck U.N. convoy was carrying food supplies to people in Gaza when it was looted on Saturday, UNRWA said.
“The vast majority of the trucks, 97 in total, were lost and drivers were forced at gunpoint to unload aid,” UNRWA said in a statement.
UNRWA said the Israel Defense Forces made the convoy leave a day earlier than planned.
The IDF has not yet commented on this incident.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Israel’s October attack damaged some of Iran’s nuclear program: Netanyahu
Israel damaged some of Iran’s nuclear program in its October attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday.
Iran’s air defense, ballistic missile production and ability to produce “solid fuel” were impacted, Netanyahu said during remarks to Israel’s parliament.
“There is a certain element of their nuclear program that was damaged in this attack,” he said, though added that its ability to operate “has not yet been thwarted.”
Netanyahu said Iran’s nuclear threat must be dealt with.
“If we don’t deal with the nuclear program, then all the other problems will come back and resurface, both in the axis, and in armaments, and in other things,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu also said Israel is “currently talking about possible negotiations for a settlement” to be reached between Israel and Lebanon, but added, “Even if there is a cease-fire, no one says it will last.”
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
US envoy en route to Lebanon for cease-fire talks, official says
U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein is on his way to Lebanon for talks on a cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel, an official familiar with the plans confirmed to ABC News.
Hochstein left from the U.S. for Lebanon on Monday, the official said.
Israel is getting close to being ready to agree to the U.S.-backed cease-fire proposal, which is very similar to the proposal that was floated by the U.S. at the end of September. The U.S. needs to see how Hezbollah feels about this proposal, which is what Hochstein aims to do during his trip, according to the official.
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
4 killed in Israeli attack in Beirut: Health ministry
Four people were killed and at least 18 injured in an Israeli attack in Beirut, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said Monday.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
1 killed, 10 injured in strike on residential building in Israel: Officials
A woman was killed and 10 people injured after a Hezbollah rocket directly hit a residential building in northern Israel, Israeli emergency services said Monday.
Dozens of projectiles were fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israel Monday afternoon, the Israel Defense Forces said. Not all of the projectiles were intercepted, the IDF said.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
US sanctions entity, 3 individuals tied to West Bank violence
The State Department said Monday it is sanctioning three individuals and one entity for allegedly undermining “peace, security, and stability in the West Bank.”
The department accuses the entity, Eyal Hari Yehuda Company LTD, of having supported Yinon Levi, an Israeli settler who was sanctioned by the Biden administration over accusations of attacks and harassment against Palestinians earlier this year.
The three impacted individuals are Itamar Levi, Shabtai Koshlevsky and Zohar Sabah, the State Department said. Itamar Levi, the brother of Yinon Levi, is being designated for his role as the owner of the aforementioned company, while Koshlevsky is accused of holding a leadership position at Hashomer Yosh, an Israeli nongovernmental organization that provides material support to U.S.-designated outposts in the West Bank and was sanctioned in August of this year.
Sabah is accused of engaging “in threats and acts of violence against Palestinians, including in their homes” as well as “a pattern of destructiveness targeting the livestock, grazing lands and homes of local Palestinians to disrupt their means of support,” the State Department said in a press release.
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
Hamas denies that leaders relocated from Qatar to Turkey
Hamas denied reports in Israeli media that its leadership has relocated from Qatar to Turkey amid a breakdown in Doha-supported cease-fire talks earlier this month.
Hamas dismissed the news reports as “rumors” spread by Israeli authorities in a statement posted to its official website.
Qatar told Israel and Hamas earlier this month it could not continue to mediate cease-fire and hostage release talks “as long as there is a refusal to negotiate a deal in good faith.”
Doha is under U.S. pressure to expel Hamas leaders. A senior administration official told ABC News earlier this month that the group’s “continued presence in Doha is no longer viable or acceptable.”
-ABC News’ Diaa Ostaz, Shannon K. Kingston and Somayeh Malekian
Gaza death toll nears 44,000, health officials say
The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said Monday that 43,922 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7, 2023, with nearly 104,000 more injured.
Israeli airstrikes killed at least 96 people and wounded at least 60 in Gaza through the weekend, officials said. The dead included 72 people in north Gaza and more than 20 from other areas of the strip.
Most of those killed were displaced women and children sheltering in residential buildings in the northern town of Beit Lahiya, officials said.
Beit Lahiya is at the heart of the Israel Defense Forces’ recent northern offensive, which has been accompanied with sweeping evacuation orders and spiking civilian casualties.
-ABC News’ Samy Zyara and Joe Simonetti
Hezbollah positive on US cease-fire proposal, reports say
Hezbollah responded positively to the U.S.-proposed cease-fire deal between Israel and Lebanon, Israeli and Lebanese media reported Monday.
U.S. special envoy for Lebanon Amos Hochstein is expected to arrive in Beirut on Tuesday to discuss the proposal before heading to Israel to speak with leaders there.
The proposal is reportedly based on the United Nations Security Council’s resolution 1701 that sought to end the last major cross-border conflict in 2006.
That deal ordered Hezbollah to withdraw all military units and weapons north of the Litani River, which is around 18 miles north of the Israeli border. The resolution also prohibited Israeli ground and air forces from crossing into Lebanese territory.
Israeli leaders have demanded open-ended freedom to act against threats in Lebanon, a stipulation reportedly opposed by Hezbollah and Lebanese leaders.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Joe Simonetti
Khamenei meets with ambassador injured in pager attacks
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei met with the country’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, as the latter continues his recovery from injuries sustained during Israel’s detonation of Hezbollah communication devices in September.
Khamenei’s official X account posted a short video of their interaction on Monday, in which Amani told the Iranian leader he lost around half of the vision in his right eye in the attack.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Hezbollah media relations chief killed in Israeli strike
Mohammed Afif, Hezbollah’s media relations chief, was killed in an Israeli strike Sunday, Hezbollah confirmed.
The strike on central Beirut partially collapsed a building and injured three others, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
The Israel Defense Forces also confirmed Afif’s death. In a statement, the IDF said he joined Hezbollah in the 1980s and went on to become a “central and veteran figure in the organization who greatly influenced Hezbollah’s military activity.”
Citing one particular incident, the statement claimed that he had played a key role in the drone attack on Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home in Caesarea in October.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Pope calls for investigation to determine whether Israeli attacks on Gaza are ‘genocide’
Pope Francis, in an upcoming book to be released ahead of his 2025 jubilee, called for an investigation to determine whether Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute genocide, according to the Vatican.
“In the Middle East, where the open doors of nations like Jordan or Lebanon continue to be a salvation for millions of people fleeing conflicts in the region: I am thinking above all of those who leave Gaza in the midst of the famine that has struck their Palestinian brothers and sisters given the difficulty of getting food and aid into their territory,” he wrote in a passage released by the Vatican.
“According to some experts, what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide,” the pope wrote. “It should be carefully investigated to determine whether it fits into the technical definition formulated by jurists and international bodies.”
