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US forces destroy Houthi surface-to-air missile

U.S. forces struck and destroyed a Houthi surface-to-air missile in Yemen after deciding it posed an "imminent threat" to American aircraft, the U.S. Central Command in the Middle East announced.

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Biden hopes for Gaza truce before Ramadan, says US to airdrop aid

U.S. President Joe Biden said earlier this week that a cease-fire deal could be reached by Monday. But on Friday evening, he said he still held hope a deal can be struck, but possibly before Muslims around the globe begin observing the holy month of Ramadan that is expected to begin March 10.

“I’m still hoping so,” Biden said. “We’re still working real hard at it. We’re not there yet.”

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EU clears 50-mn-euro payment to UNRWA

The European Commission announced Friday it was clearing a 50-million-euro ($54 million) payment to the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA, which was under review following Israeli claims its staff participated in Hamas's October 7 attack.

Commission spokesman Eric Mamer told reporters the funds would be released "early next week" after UNRWA agreed to a "series of conditions" including an EU-led audit, with a further 32 million euros to follow later.

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Health ministry in Gaza says war death toll 30,228

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Friday the wartime death toll had reached 30,228 after 193 new fatalities were recorded in the previous 24 hours.

The ministry also said 920 injuries were tallied in the same period in the besieged territory, bringing the total wounded from Israel's nearly five-month-old war against Hamas to 71,377.

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Hamas, other Palestinian groups stress 'unity' at Moscow talks

Palestinian factions including rivals Hamas and Fatah said on Friday they would pursue "unity of action" in confronting Israel after representatives met at Russia-hosted talks.

The meeting in Moscow on Thursday brought together Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Fatah and other Palestinian groups for talks on the war in Gaza and an eventual post-war period.

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Media leaders express support for journalists in Gaza

Three dozen leaders at news organizations around the world have signed a letter expressing solidarity with journalists in Gaza, calling for their safety and freedom to report in the war zone.

The letter, released Thursday, was spearheaded by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which said at least 89 journalists and media workers have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, the vast majority of them Palestinians.

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Israeli strike in Syria kills Iran Guard, two others

An Israeli strike in Syria on Friday killed an Iranian Revolutionary Guard and two other people, reports said, in the third consecutive day of Israeli attacks on Syria.

Three violent explosions shook the centre of Banias, on Syria's Mediterranean coast, during the dawn strike on a villa that sheltered "a group affiliated with Iran", said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.

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Deaths at aid delivery site in Gaza draw condemnation

Israeli troops in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire on Palestinians scrambling for food aid on Thursday, in a chaotic incident that the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said killed more than 100 people.

There were conflicting reports about how the pre-dawn incident unfolded.

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Israel strikes near Damascus, Syria-Lebanon border

Israel hit a car used by Hezbollah in Syria, close to the Lebanese border, also striking near Damascus Thursday, a war monitor said, hours after similar attacks near the Syrian capital.

"An Israeli drone targeted a car belonging to Hezbollah in the Homs countryside near the Syrian-Lebanese border," said Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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104 dead, over 700 hurt as Israeli troops fire on Gaza crowd at aid point

Israeli forces in war-torn Gaza opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians at an aid distribution point Thursday, killing at least 104 people and wounding over 700 according to Palestinian health officials.

Israeli sources confirmed that troops shot at the crowd, believing they "posed a threat," in the pre-dawn incident in Gaza City in the north of the besieged territory.

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