A floating pier and causeway that will be used to deliver critical humanitarian aid by sea to Gaza is expected to take at least one month — or possibly two — to become fully operational, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said on Friday. Ryder also said the construction will likely require as many as 1,000 US military personnel to complete.
How it will work: The maritime corridor will be used by multiple nations, but the floating pier off the coast of Gaza will be run by the US government and will be constructed by the US military, including Navy and Army personnel.
The pier will allow ships to offload aid, which will then be transported across a causeway into Gaza that will also be constructed by the US military, officials said. The US is still trying to determine who will be on the other side of the causeway to receive the aid and distribute it inside the strip, they said.
How it was developed: The temporary pier concept was developed in part by an organization called Fogbow, according to a person familiar with the planning, which is an advisory group comprised of former military, United Nations, and USAID and CIA personnel.
What Biden is saying: In his announcement on Thursday, US President Joe Biden promised “no US boots will be on the ground.” When pressed Friday by reporters at Joint Base Andrews about who would provide security for the port, Biden said it would be the Israelis.
Biden also told reporters Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to allow more aid into Gaza.
US President Joe Biden announced plans for the US military to establish a temporary port along the Gaza coast to bring desperately needed additional humanitarian aid into the war-torn strip. Follow for live updates.
At least 94 journalistshave been killed in Gaza, Israel and Lebanon since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported on Wednesday.
As of March 6, CPJ’s preliminary investigations showed 89 Palestinian, two Israeli, and three Lebanese journalists were among the list who died during the Israel-Hamas war.
The latest journalist who lost his life in the conflict was Mohammad Salama, a journalist for Al-Aqsa satellite channel who was killed by an airstrike overnight in Deir Al-Balah, according to the Palestinian Media Office.
Salama was displaced from Gaza City and was killed with a number of his family members when an airstrike hit the house where he was sheltering in central Gaza, the Palestinian Media Office reported.
CPJ’s list did not include Salama as of Wednesday but said in a statement, “CPJ is also investigating numerous unconfirmed reports of other journalists being killed, missing, detained, hurt, or threatened, and of damage to media offices and journalists’ homes.”
“CPJ emphasizes that journalists are civilians doing important work during times of crisis and must not be targeted by warring parties,” Sherif Mansour, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator said in a CJP statement, adding, “Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this heart-breaking conflict.
“Those in Gaza, in particular, have paid, and continue to pay, an unprecedented toll and face exponential threats. Many have lost colleagues, families, and media facilities, and have fled seeking safety when there is no safe haven or exit.”
The United States on Tuesday circulated a newly revised draft United Nations Security Council resolution calling for an immediate temporary ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all hostages, according to a UN diplomat who confirmed the text to CNN.
The third revision supports “an agreement for an immediate ceasefire of roughly six weeks in Gaza together with the release of all hostages as soon as the parties agree,” a copy seen by CNN and confirmed by the UN diplomatic source says.
The US, which wants any Security Council support for a ceasefire to be linked to the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, has traditionally protected its ally Israel from UN actions. It has repeatedly resisted calls for a “ceasefire,” emphasizing what it claims is Israel’s right to defend itself following Hamas’ terror attack on October 7.
In its latest draft, the US emphasized support for a temporary ceasefire to “intensify diplomatic and other efforts aimed at creating the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities and lasting peace.” Earlier drafts of the US resolution called for a “temporary ceasefire in Gaza as soon as practicable,” which fell short of the wishes of most other Security Council members.
The US has said it plans to allow time for negotiations on its latest draft and will not rush to a vote, according to the diplomatic source.
To be adopted, the resolution would need at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes from any of the Security Council’s five permanent members — the US, France, Britain, Russia and China.
Egyptian, Qatari and US mediators are meeting in Cairo to untangle deadlocked ceasefire talks after Israel said it would not send a delegation. Follow for live updates.
The official said the reason was that Hamas had not responded to two Israeli demands: a list of hostages specifying which are alive and which are dead; and confirmation of the ratio of Palestinian prisoners to be released from Israeli prisons in exchange for hostages.
The official asked not to be named as they discussed closed-door diplomatic maneuvers.
A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Sunday, for the talks that are hoped to bring a halt to the fighting.
The decision not to send an Israeli delegation was made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in coordination with Mossad director David Barnea — who has been a key Israeli negotiator — after Barnea received a message that Hamas had not responded to the conditions, the Israeli official said.
A high-ranking Hamas official did not immediately respond to a CNN question about whether the militant group had responded to Israel’s conditions.
More background: Netanyahu outlined the terms in a speech on Thursday, saying: “I demand to know in advance the names of all the hostages who will be included in the outline. I have yet to receive an answer on the two questions and it is too early to say, in spite of our willingness, if we will achieve an outline for an additional release in the coming days.”
The Israeli decision that no delegation will go to Cairo comes a day after a senior Biden administration official told reporters that Israel had “basically accepted” a proposal for a six-week ceasefire.
An injured Palestinian receives medical treatment in Al-Shifa Hospital after Israeli forces open fire on Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid trucks at Al-Rashid Street in Gaza City, Gaza on February 29. Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu/Getty Images
The United Nations Security Council has expressed “deep concern” over a devastating incident that killed more than 100 Palestinians seeking aid on Thursday in northern Gaza, while acknowledging that an Israeli investigation is underway.
“The council members express deep concern regarding reports stating that over 100 individuals lost their lives with several hundred others sustaining injuries, including people with gunshot wounds as observed by UN-OCHA, in an incident involving Israeli forces at a large gathering surrounding a humanitarian assistance convoy southwest of Gaza City,” the Security Council said in a statement Saturday.
“The council members take note that an Israeli investigation is underway,” it added.
On Thursday, the day of the incident, Security Council members were unable to agree on a statement because of US objections.
The statement released Saturday said members of the Security Council “reiterate their demand for parties to the conflict to allow, facilitate, and enable the immediate, rapid, safe, sustained and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance at scale to the Palestinian civilian population throughout the Gaza Strip.”
“The council members urge Israel to keep border crossings open for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, to facilitate the opening of additional crossings to meet humanitarian needs at scale, and to support the rapid and safe delivery of relief items to people in all of the Gaza Strip,” the statement said.
The carnage: At least 118 people were killed and 760 injured Thursday when Israeli troops open fired on Palestinian civilians who were gathering around food aid trucks, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza.
CNN is unable to independently confirm these numbers.
Israel’s military has denied that account, saying it fired warning shots to disperse a crowd.
On Friday, a spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, citing a UN team that visited the hospital where survivors were taken, said many of the injured civilians had suffered gunshot wounds.
“From what they saw, in terms of the patients alive and getting treatment is that there is a large number of gunshot wounds,” Stéphane Dujarric said.
Following the incident, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said an effective independent investigation was required.
Palestinian women and children walk past buildings destroyed during Israeli strikes in Beit Lahia, Gaza, on February 26. AFP/Getty Images
UN Women, a United Nations organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women, called the war in Gaza “also a war on women.”
In a statement Friday, the organization estimated 9,000 women have been killed in Gaza since the October 7 attack.
“As the war on Gaza approaches its five-month mark, Gazan women continue to suffer its devastating impact,” the statement read. “While this war spares no one, UN Women data shows that it kills and injures women in unprecedented ways.”
UN Women reported an average of 63 women are killed every day in Gaza, with an approximate 37 mothers who are killed daily, “leaving their families devastated and their children with diminished protection.”
“More than 4 out of 5 women (84 per cent) report that their family eats half or less of the food they used to before the war began, with mothers and adult women being those tasked with sourcing food, yet eating last, less, and least than everyone else,” the statement added.
Displaced Palestinian women prepare bread inside a tent in Rafah, Gaza, on December 27. Mohammed Abed/AFP/Getty Images
UN Women also pointed out that 87% of women in Gaza find it harder to access food than men.
“Some women are now resorting to extreme coping mechanisms, such as scavenging for food under rubble or in dumpsters,” UN Women said.
They called for immediate humanitarian aid to reach Gaza and an end to “the killing, bombing, and destruction of essential infrastructure in Gaza.”
“Unless there is an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, many more will die in the coming days and weeks,” UN Woman said.
More than 100 people were killed in northern Gaza where Israeli troops opened fire Thursday, triggering panic as hungry Palestinian civilians were gathering around food aid trucks, Palestinian officials and eyewitnesses said.
CNN is unable to independently confirm the death toll, and the Israeli military has given a different account of the circumstances.
What we know: The carnage unfolded early Thursday when a group of trucks carrying desperately needed aid arrived at Haroun Al Rasheed Street in western Gaza City, in the Sheikh Ajleen neighborhood.
People had swarmed around the newly arrived aid trucks when Israeli forces started shooting, according to witnesses. Many of the victims died when they were run over by trucks, according to one account.
As the aid trucks tried to escape the area, others were accidentally rammed, causing further deaths and injuries, an eyewitness told CNN.
A local journalist in Gaza, Khader Al Za’anoun, who was at the scene and witnessed the incident, said the chaos and confusion that led to people being hit by the trucks only started once Israeli forces opened fire.
What the IDF says: An Israeli official told CNN IDF troops did use live fire on people surrounding aid truck as “the crowd approached the forces in a manner that posed a threat to the troops, who responded to the threat with live fire. The incident is under review.”
Israeli government spokesperson Avi Hyman also told reporters the incident was “obviously a tragedy, but we’re not sure of the specifics quite yet.”
What Hamas says: Hamas senior member Izzat Al-Risheq warned that Thursday’s incident could lead to the failure of ongoing talks aiming at the release of hostages and a ceasefire.
A Greek-owned commercial vessel targeted by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea on Monday was carrying corn from Brazil to Iran, according to US Central Command and the State Department.
This appears to be the first time the Houthis have targeted a ship destined for Iran, which provides backing for the rebel group that controls parts of Yemen.
“In this case, it seems Iran’s destabilizing activities have imperiled the food security of the Iranian people,” a State Department spokesperson said.
The vessel was not subject to US sanctions because it was carrying corn, which falls under an exemption that covers food supplies, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the vessel is owned by Star Bulk Carriers, “a Greek-based global shipping company with partial U.S. owners.”
The ship suffered minor damage and no injuries to its crew, according to the US Central Command.
The vessel, named the “Star Iris,” was sailing from the Brazilian port of Vila Do Conde to Iran’s Bandar Imam Khomeini port in the Persian Gulf, according to marine tracking company Kpler.
“The Star Iris, like every Iran-bound bulker, had not diverted away from the Red Sea, perhaps unafraid of attacks from Iran-backed Houthis who could be considered ‘friendly’ given the vessel’s destination,” said Ishan Bhanu, Lead Agricultural Commodities Analyst at Kpler.
“At a projected 4.5 million tonnes for this year, flows from Brazil make for the majority of Iran’s corn imports,” he said.
The Houthis have been targeting vessels delivering for Israel in the Red Sea in response to what they call Israel’s “aggression” against Gaza.
Despite repeated strikes against Houthi weapons, the Iran-backed rebel group has vowed to continue targeting vessels with links to Israel, the US and the UK.
Palestinians form a dense crowd on the streets of Rafah, Gaza, on February 8. Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu/Getty Images
As civilians brace themselves for a potentially imminent Israeli incursion into the border city of Rafah, several non-governmental organizations have issued warnings about the humanitarian consequences for the city.
The Israel Defense Forces will “soon go into Rafah, Hamas’s last bastion,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday. The US would not support an Israeli military operation in Rafah “without serious planning,” US State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said Thursday.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC): Rafah could soon turn “into a zone of bloodshed and destruction that people won’t be able to escape,” it said in a press release Thursday. “Attacks in areas where they provide food, water and shelter means this life-saving support will be impeded, if not entirely stopped,” cautioned Angelita Caredda, an NRC regional director.
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF): The UN agency also shared its fears for the over 600,000 children sheltering in Rafah, many of whom have “been displaced from other parts of Gaza.”
As months of heavy fighting in the north have practically wiped out healthcare and humanitarian facilities in the north, officials are calling for the scant services that remain in the south to be protected.
“We need Gaza’s last remaining hospitals, shelters, markets and water systems to stay functional. Without them, hunger and disease will skyrocket, taking more child lives,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell implored in a statement published Thursday.
CNN has obtained a copy of the Hamas response to Israel’s proposal for a ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid in exchange for the release of hostages held in Gaza, confirmed by Muhammad Nazzal, a senior Hamas official.
Here’s a breakdown of each phase:
Phase one would include the release of Israeli hostages, including women and children (under 19 years old) “who are not enlisted, as well as the elderly and the sick, in exchange for a specific number of Palestinian prisoners,” Hamas said.
It would also include “intensifying humanitarian aid, relocating forces outside populated areas, allowing the start of reconstruction works for hospitals, houses, and facilities in all areas of the Gaza Strip, and allowing the United Nations and its agencies to provide humanitarian services and establish housing camps for the population.”
The first phase would also include a “temporary cessation of military operations and aerial reconnaissance, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces away from populated areas in the Gaza Strip to be parallel to the separation line, in order to facilitate the exchange of detainees.”
Phase two would see the “completion of (indirect) talks on the requirements necessary for the continuation of the mutual cessation of military operations and the return to a state of complete calm.”
This phase would aim for the release of all male hostages held in Gaza (civilians and enlisted personnel) “in exchange for a specified number of Palestinian prisoners, continuing the humanitarian measures of the first phase, the withdrawal of Israeli forces outside the borders of all areas of the Gaza Strip, and the comprehensive reconstruction of houses, facilities, and infrastructure that were destroyed in all areas of the Gaza Strip.”
Remember: Israel has repeatedly said it will not withdraw troops from Gaza until a complete victory over Hamas and other militant groups in the territory.
Phase three would aim “to exchange bodies and remains of the deceased on both sides after their arrival and identification,” while humanitarian aid and reconstruction continue.
Finally, Hamas proposes that the guarantors of the agreement would be Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, Russia and the United Nations. It does not include the US among the guarantors.
Demands for answers are mounting over the fate of a 6-year-old Palestinian girl, Hind Rajab, who was trapped in a car with her dead relatives after it came under Israeli fire in Gaza more than a week ago.
Mystery also surrounds the whereabouts of two ambulance staff from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), who were dispatched to find her on January 29.
“We need to know what has happened to Hind and the PRCS ambulance team,” the society said in their latest statement on X early Tuesday. “So many wonderful things can happen in a week, but for those waiting for news or for information a week is anguish. Each moment is marked by worry and sadness.”
CNN gave the Israeli military details about the incident last Friday, including coordinates provided by the PRCS. In response, the Israel Defense Forces said it was “unfamiliar with the incident described.”
Hind was traveling in a car with her uncle, his wife and their four children, fleeing fighting in northern Gaza, when they came under Israeli fire, according to the PRCS.
Hind’s cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamadeh, made a harrowing call for help to emergency services that was recorded by the PRCS and shared on social media.
In the clip, the teenager can be heard speaking to a paramedic, crying for help and describing a tank close by.
“They are shooting at us. The tank is right next to me. We’re in the car, the tank is right next to us,” Layan screams, as intense gunfire is heard in the background.
Layan then goes quiet, and the rounds of fire stop.
The paramedic on the phone tries to speak to her, repeatedly saying, “Hello? Hello?” but there is no response.
The PRCS believe that the six other people in the car with Hind, including Layan, were killed when the car was shot at.
The US State Department announced the first round of sanctions under a new executive order targeting those perpetrating violence in the West Bank on Thursday.
The new sanctions — which block their financial assets and bar them from coming to the US — target four Israeli nationals.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that “Israel must do more to stop violence against civilians in the West Bank and hold accountable those responsible for it.”
Here are some more specifics:
Who the order targets: The order focuses on four individuals accused of directly perpetrating violence or intimidation in the West Bank, the State Department said. Thisincludes people accused of initiating and leading a riot; setting buildings, fields and vehicles on fire; assaulting civilians; and damaging property. The four individuals named are David Chai Chasdai, Einan Tanjil, Shalom Zicherman and Yinon Levi.
What the order will do: The order will block the individuals’ property and financial transactions in the United States and prohibit Americans from funding or contributing money to them. The order is directed toward foreign nationals and not American citizens, an official said, though some dual nationals have been accused of being involved in the violence.
Why this matters: President Joe Biden has faced backlash from key parts of his political coalition for his backing of Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza. While the order is not expected to address the situation in Gaza, it will mark one of the more significant actions he has taken to critique Israel since the war began, and it could be a signal from Biden toward Muslim and Arab-American voters who are upset with his refusal to call for a ceasefire.
Once seen in the Middle East as a menacing Iranian proxy that wreaked havoc in the Arab world’s poorest country by overthrowing the internationally recognized government and prompting a brutal Saudi-led military intervention, the Houthi group’s fortunes have changed since Israel launched its devastating war on Gaza.
Israel’s war came after Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an October 7 attack on the Jewish state, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping more than 250 others, according to Israeli authorities. The war in Gaza has so far killed almost 27,000 people in the enclave, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the territory.
The Shiite-Muslim Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, are now seen in parts of the largely Sunni Muslim world and beyond as champions of the Palestinian cause, defending the people of Gaza against Israel and even taking on the Jewish state’s superpower ally in the fight.
Since mid-November, the rebels have been attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Strait of Bab al-Mandab. The Red Sea is a vital waterway that connects to the Suez Canal, through which 10% to 15% of world trade passes. The group’s activities have effectively closed the trade route to most container ships as vessels steer clear of the waterway amid the attacks.
Palestinians inspect a damaged house after an Israeli air strike on Rafah in southern Gaza on January 27. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa/Reuters
CNN filmed rare footage Saturday of Palestinian men detained by Israeli forces in Gaza and brought across the border to Israel — witnessing the men blindfolded and barefoot, with their hands bound behind their backs.
The Israel Defense Forces said the men are “suspected of terrorist activity and were arrested in Gaza and transferred to Israel for further interrogation.”
Meanwhile, a growing number of countries have temporarily suspended aid to the main United Nations relief agency in Gaza over allegations some staff members were involved in last October’s Hamas attacks, and the Palestine Red Crescent Society says hospitals in the southern part of the strip are “under siege.”
These are the biggest headlines from the war today:
More on the Palestinian detainees: Some of the men in the video appear physically exhausted, with their heads falling and swaying as they attempt to remain kneeling. They appear to be wearing only disposable white coveralls, despite the 10-degree Celsius temperature (50 degrees Fahrenheit). The IDF said the men filmed Saturday were about to be transferred to a “heated bus” when CNN filmed the scene, and maintained that detainees are treated in accordance with international law. A bus was waiting nearby, but CNN could not confirm when the men were put onto the bus. The Israeli military has detained hundreds – if not thousands – of Palestinian boys and men, and sometimes women, as its ground forces sweep through the enclave.
More countries pause UNRWA funding: Multiple nations have announced they are temporarily pausing their funding to the embattled UN agency in Gaza, in the wake of the allegations against its staff members. The Israel Defense Forces claimed UNRWA facilities were used for “terrorist purposes” in a statement on Saturday. The head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East urged the countries to reconsider suspending their funding, noting the accused employees have been fired, the highest investigative authority of the UN has already taken action and an independent review by external experts is forthcoming.
Situation deteriorating at Khan Younis hospitals: Nasser Hospital, the main medical center in the southern Gaza city, is running out of its supply of blood, anesthesia and other medications, the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health said Saturday. The city has been a flashpoint area in recent fighting between Israel and Hamas. Hospital facilities have been “under siege” as the Israeli military intensifies operations there over the past week, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society.
Where hostage talks stand: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu challenged Qatar on Saturday, saying, “They position themselves as intermediaries. Well, let them prove it and help to bring the hostages back.” The prime minister was also asked about an alleged leaked audio recording that aired on Israeli television Tuesday, in which he appeared to criticize Qatar for not putting enough pressure on Hamas. “I’m not taking back even one word that I said,” he said on Saturday. “I will not give up a route of pressuring Hamas or whoever can affect Hamas to bring our hostages back.” Meanwhile, CIA Director Bill Burns is set to meet in the coming days with Israel and Egypt’s intelligence chiefs and the Qatari prime minister to discuss a hostage deal.
Houthi attack: A Marshall Islands-flagged commercial tanker was carrying a highly flammable liquid hydrogen mixture when it was struck by a Houthi missile in the Gulf of Aden on Friday, US Central Command said, sparking a fire that took a day to extinguish. Despite a series of US strikes against Houthi missiles, drones and radar sites, the Iran-backed rebel group has continued to attack international shipping lanes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Houthis claim the attacks are in solidarity with the Palestinian people as a result of the war in Gaza — an argument the US has repeatedly rejected.
Damaged buildings and infrastructure in Gaza on January 19. Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images
The network in most of Gaza is “still down,” director of Palestinian telecommunication provider Ooredoo, Samer Fares, told CNN on Friday.
In southern and central Gaza, there is a communications blackout because the underground fiber-optic line connecting internet and cellphone towers in Gaza to Israel and the West Bank has been severed by Israeli military activity, Fares said. This infrastructure is operated by Gaza’s main telecommunications provider Palestinian Telecommunications Company (Paltel).
Paltel have been trying to fix the cut in the line, but have not yet been able to, Fares said. “We were told by Paltel that communications would be restored on Thursday, but they have not come back yet,” he added.
Ooredoo has partial services in northern Gaza because it has a backup microwave link with Cellecom, an Israeli telecom provider, Fares said.
Paltel have been unable to access the southern areas of Gaza “due to the lack of secure routes and the difficulty of movement due to the massive destruction of roads, and due to a shortage of spare parts,” the Palestinian state news agency (WAFA) said, citing Ihab Sbeih, an official at the Palestinian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
The communications blackout has now entered its eighth day, WAFA said, adding that it is “the longest outage” since October 7. CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces to inquire about the restoration of network in Gaza.
A Houthi drone struck a US-owned and operated vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday, according to US Central Command, marking the second time this week the Iran-backed rebel group has succeeded in targeting a US vessel.
No one was injured aboard the vessel, CENTCOM said, which suffered “some” damage. The ship, which is flagged in the Marshall Islands, remains seaworthy and continued on its way, the statement said.
Earlier Wednesday, a spokesman for the Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they had launched a series of direct missiles at the American ship.
On Monday, a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile struck another US-owned and operated vessel in the Gulf of Aden. It appeared to be the first time since the Houthis began attacking international shipping lanes in mid-November that they had succeeded in hitting a US-owned and operated commercial ship.
Earlier this week, the US Transportation Department issued an alert to US merchant ships, advising them to steer clear of the southern part of the Red Sea until further notice.
Officials advised that although the decision is ultimately up to companies and individual vessels, “it is recommended” US-flag and US-owned commercial vessels avoid the area “until further notice.”
Two Israeli men held hostage in Gaza since October 7, and featured in recent videos released by Hamas, have died, according to short statements from their home village released on Tuesday.
Kibbutz Be’eri announced the deaths of Yossi Sharabi and Itai Svirsky in separate statements released with the Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum headquarters.
Sharabi, 53, was “a loving and devoted father and husband, a real family man with a big heart,” the kibbutz statement said. “A kind soul, he was caring and known for his dedication to all those around him.”
Originally from Tel Aviv, Sharabi moved to Kibbutz Be’eri 30 years ago, “following in the footsteps of his brother Eli, as he wanted to embrace the communal lifestyle there,” the kibbutz said.
He leaves behind a wife and three daughters. Sharabi’s brother Eli was also kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Be’eri and is still held captive by Hamas.
Eli’s wife and daughters were murdered in the October 7 massacre, according to the kibbutz.
Sharabi’s body is still being held by Hamas, the kibbutz said. It called on the Israeli government to do “everything possible to bring the Sharabi family back home, as well as the other hostages.”
In a separate statement, Kibbutz Be’eri also announced the death of Itai Svirsky.
“Our hearts go out to the family in their immense pain,” the kibbutz said. “May his memory be a blessing.”
Svirsky’s body is also still held by Hamas, the kibbutz said, adding “we will demand its return with the rest of our abductees.”
The announcement of the two men’s deaths came a day after the Israeli military expressed grave concerns about their fate following the release of a video by Hamas claiming to show their dead bodies.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “nobody will stop us” from destroying Hamas as the war in Gaza passed the 100-day mark. Follow live updates.
