The Western strikes targeting the Houthis' missile and drone capabilities risked inflaming regional tensions, and came despite Biden's previous warnings against any escalation in the Middle East after the October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel.

Amid relentless international pressure on Israel to end its military activities in the Gaza Strip, Indonesia has been preparing a delegation for a hearing at the United Nations top court on Tel Aviv’s occupation of Palestine.

The case, brought by South Africa, is due to begin hearings on Thursday and focus on the many civilians among the more than 23,000 people that Gaza health authorities say have been killed in the more than three-month-old war between Israel and Hamas.

The West Bank, a territory occupied by the Israeli army since 1967, has seen a sharp increase in violence since the start of the war in Gaza.

"Muslim and arab (especially palestinian) colleagues in the tech community i've spoken with feel uncomfortable speaking about their recent experiences, often out of fear of retaliation and damaged career prospects," Altman wrote on social media network X, formerly known as Twitter. 

At least 103 people died in southern Iran at the grave of Revolutionary Guards General Qasem Soleimani, as mourners gathered exactly four years after he was killed in a US drone strike.

Arouri, 57, was the first senior Hamas political leader to be assassinated since Israel launched a shattering air and ground offensive against the group almost three months ago after its shock assault and rampage into Israeli towns. 

The base in question is the Al Udeid Air Base, which is located in the desert southwest of Doha and hosts the largest US military facility in the Middle East, the source said, asking to not be identified. 

Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a New Year's message that some of the 300,000 army reservists would get a break from the war, in order to prepare for the "prolonged fighting" ahead.

There has been no respite from Israel's air raids, artillery fire or ground fighting with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, to the despair of Palestinians surviving the onslaught.

The Indonesia Hospital, which stopped operations due to a fuel shortage in November, is reportedly being used by the Israeli military personnel as an outpost.

Israeli strikes that began hours before midnight persisted into Christmas Day on Monday. Local residents and Palestinian media said Israel stepped up air and ground shelling against al-Bureij in central Gaza.

Thick smoke hung over the northern town of Jabalia, which is also home to Gaza's largest refugee camp, and residents reported persistent aerial bombardment and shelling from Israeli tanks, which they said had moved further into the town.

As Israeli bombs rained down on targets across Gaza, members of the UN's top peacemaking council demanded "immediate, safe and unhindered" deliveries of life-saving aid.

Some of the bodies are badly mutilated. Only those that have been identified or claimed by relatives can go for burial and be included in the Gaza Health Ministry's death toll for the war. The rest are stored in the morgue's refrigerator, often for weeks.

Ships on their way to Israel will also be barred from loading cargo at any port in the largely Muslim Southeast Asian nation with immediate effect, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in a statement.

The trio were among those kidnapped during Hamas's raids into Israel on Oct. 7, which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw an estimated 240 hostages taken, according to Israeli authorities.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi has renewed her call for the international community to step up its efforts and ensure accountability from international law violators, as the crisis in Gaza enters its third month.

After 13 days of talks and another sleepless night in a country built on oil wealth, the Emirati leadership of the COP28 summit banged a gavel to signal the world had reached consensus.

The attack on the tanker STRINDA took place about 60 nautical miles (111km) north of the Bab al-Mandab Strait about 2100 GMT, one of officials said. The US Navy destroyer USS Mason was there and provided aid, the officials said.

Lebanon accused Israel of repeatedly using the incendiary weapon in October, while the Washington Post on Monday said analysis of shell fragments from one attack showed the rounds were US-made.

Footage of the men stripped down to their underwear, with some of them appearing to hand over weapons, was aired by Israeli media on Thursday, reporting the alleged surrender of Hamas militants.

The Foreign Minister has lamented the US veto against a UNSC draft resolution calling for a cease-fire in the war-torn Palestinian territory, joining the chorus of countries around the world condemning the move.

Fighting escalated and the Palestinian death toll rose on Friday, with Israel pounding the enclave from north to south in an expanded phase of the two-month-old war against the Islamist group Hamas.

The contact group was formed last month at a joint summit of the Arab League and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on the fighting in Gaza. It includes officials from Turkey, Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Nigeria, the Palestinian Authority and the OIC.

A new draft climate agreement had been expected on Wednesday but none was published by the end of the afternoon. The negotiations are due to end, in theory, on Dec. 12.

Putin has limited his international travel since deploying troops to Ukraine, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an international arrest warrant for Putin on the war crime accusation of unlawfully deporting Ukrainian children.

Israel's closest ally the United States has said the Israeli offensive in the south should not repeat the "massive" civilian toll it has had in the north.

A tentative "phasedown/out" was included in a first draft of an agreement on climate action that delegates are haggling over during talks that are scheduled to finish on December 12.

Karim Khan stressed his visit was "not investigative in nature" but said he was able to speak to victims on both sides of the conflict.