Israel’s military said Thursday one of its soldiers was killed and another seriously wounded during an operation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The operation took place in Jenin where witnesses reported an improvised explosive device detonated.
Israeli forces have carried out regular raids in Jenin and other parts of the West Bank as part of an effort the military says is aimed at disrupting terrorist activity. The raids have continued throughout Israel’s offensive against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, with Israel reporting it arrested more than 1,700 Hamas members in the West Bank.
The Israeli military also said Thursday it conducted airstrikes in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
US aid
Israeli defense chief Yoav Gallant on Wednesday said “significant progress” has been made in allaying Israel’s concerns about the flow of U.S. weapons to the Jewish state.
“Obstacles were removed, and bottlenecks were addressed, in order to advance a variety of issues, and more specifically the topic of force build-up and munition supply,” Gallant said after meeting at the White House with Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden's national security adviser.
Earlier in the week, Gallant had met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The U.S. is Israel’s chief arms supplier, but in recent weeks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had complained about what he said was the slowed pace of deliveries over several months. White House officials said they were baffled by Netanyahu’s remarks.
A White House statement said Sullivan “reaffirmed President Biden’s commitment to ensure that Israel has all it needs to defend itself militarily and confront its Iranian-backed adversaries,” Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
The war in Gaza was triggered by last October’s Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials, and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Israel's counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 37,700 Palestinians, mostly civilians, but including thousands of combatants, according to the territory's health ministry.
Red Sea attacks
Maritime security firm Ambrey said Thursday a merchant ship reported being struck by a projectile in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen.
Ambrey said there were no reports of damage or casualties from the attack.
There was no immediate claim or responsibility for the attack, but the Yemen-based Houthi militant group has been conducting similar attacks targeting vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The Iran-backed Houthis say their campaign is in solidarity with the Palestinians.
Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
