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Bodies of 3 hostages recovered in Gaza, Israeli forces say
From CNN's Benjamin Brown in London
The bodies of three hostages taken by Hamas have been found in Jabalya, in northern Gaza, the Israeli military said on Friday.
All three were killed on October 7 at the Mefalsim intersection near Israel's border with Gaza, and their bodies were taken into the enclave by Hamas, according to the military.
Identities of victims: The three victims were identified as Hanan Yablonka, Michel Nisenbaum, and Orion Hernandez, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. Authorities have informed their families.
Their bodies were recovered by the IDF and the ISA, Israel’s domestic security agency, in a military operation in Jabalya overnight.
“At the beginning of the operation, intense combat was carried out in the area,” the IDF said.
Remember: Israel launched its war in Gaza following the Hamas-led October 7 attacks in southern Israel, where the militant group killed around 1,200 people and abducted more than 250 people.
There are still 121 hostages who were abducted on October 7 in Gaza. Israel's Prime Minister's Office believes that at least 37 of those hostages are dead, with their bodies being held in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli attacks in Gaza have since killed at least 35,800 Palestinians, according to the Ministry of Health there.
What we know about South Africa's request to stop Israel's invasion of Rafah at the ICJ
From CNN Staff
South Africa filed an urgent request on May 10 for additional measures in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) genocide case against Israel.
A decision will be handed down by the court today.
South Africa accused Israel of using forcedevacuation ordersin the southern Gaza city of Rafah to "endanger rather than protect civilian life."
A lawyer for South Africa, Professor Max du Plessis,condemned the forcedevacuation of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from Rafah and the Israeli designation of "humanitarian zones" elsewhere in Gaza.
The measures "endanger rather than protect civilian life," Du Plessis told a hearing of the ICJ in The Hague on May 16.
"The so-called 'humanitarian zones' are not safe, the zones are policed by the same Israeli forces who attacked Palestinians."
"Israel has defied this court by trapping, besieging and bombarding an overcrowded Rafah, exacerbating the security and the safety of 1.5 million highly vulnerable Palestinians," he said.
"Genocidal intent":Israel’s “full scale bombardment” of Rafah, and the sealing of entry and exit for “life-saving aid to an already devastated population” suggests a “genocidal intent," the lawyer argued, saying that the Israeli military's assault on the city has “deliberately inflicted” conditions to bring about Palestinians' “physical and biological destruction."
ICJ hearing:Israel, which has rejected South Africa's claim that it is violating the 1949 Genocide Convention as"baseless,"responded to the claims, with the Deputy Attorney General for International Law Gilad Noam arguing "calling something a genocide again and again doesn’t make it genocide. Repeating a lie does not make it true." Armed conflict, Noam argued, was not synonymous with genocide.
UNRWA chief spotlights destruction in West Bank
From CNN's Sarah El Sirgany and Mohammed Tawfeeq
Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), said his staff have described intense destruction after visiting the Nour Shams refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank.
"Another war goes unnoticed," Lazzarini said Thursday.
"What was once a bustling area with markets and life lays in destruction now" as part of the Israeli forces' impact, Lazzariniadded. He said buildings and roads have been destroyed, and water and electricity networks have been dismantled.
"People are sinking into poverty," he said on X.
CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment.
Lazzarini went on to say: "All over the West Bank, the story repeats: fear, uncertainty and anxiety engulf the communities."
He said Palestinian armed groups are also causing instability.
"Any further escalation in the area + Israeli settlements expansion will further push away from a peaceful solution to this decades-long conflict," Lazzarini warned.
Violence has risen in the occupied West Bank since Israel declared its war on Hamas and continued to strike Gaza.
Israeli forces are going after Hamas in Rafah in "a targeted and precise way," spokesperson says
From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq
Israeli forces are conducting operations in Rafah against Hamas militants "in a targeted and precise way" with "accurate intelligence," according to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief spokesperson Daniel Hagari.
The military "has gained a lot of experience in conducting precise operations in complex areas and targeted raids against Hamas based on accurate intelligence," he said.
"Hamas is in Rafah, Hamashas been holding our hostages in Rafah, which is why our forces are maneuvering in Rafah," Hagari said.
He described the operation as a "critical mission" to bring back all hostages home and to ensure "an enduring defeat of Hamas."
Hagari repeated his callto civilians in Gaza "to temporarily evacuate to humanitarian areas," butdid not provide further details.
"We'renot smashing into Rafah, we're operating carefully and precisely," Hagarisaid.
"The IDF is committed to operating in accordance with international law and will continue to keep that commitment," he added.
Some context: US President Joe Biden said he was halting some weapons shipments to Israel, fearing they could be usedto kill civilians in Rafah if a large-scale Israeli operation went ahead.
Gaza hospital warns of health catastropheif power generators run out of fuel
From CNN's Abeer Salman and Mohammed Tawfeeq
Hospital officials have warned of animminent health catastrophe if the power generators run out of fuelat Al AqsaMartyrs Hospital inDeir al-Balah, Gaza.
Officialssaid Thursday that some medical equipment that relies on electricity will be shut down entirely in six hours.
The hospital serves more than 1,200 patients.
Medical facilities in Gaza have been crippledby months of intense fighting and fuel shortages.
Israeli army "failed to protect" female soldiers taken hostage on October 7, spokesperson says
FromCNN's EugeniaYosef and Jonny Hallam
The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday admitted it had failed to defend its personnel on October 7, after a graphic video was released showing female soldiers from Israel's Nahal Oz military base being abducted during the Hamas attack.
The video shows five female soldiers lined up against a wall with hands bound behind their backs, surrounded by Hamas fighters. Some of the women have bruised and bloodied faces.
"Daniella, Karina, Liri, Agam and Naama... We failed to protect you, your friends, and many soldiers and residents. We are responsible and committed to bringing you back home," IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said.
The footage, recorded by Hamas fighters during their attack, was released by families of the hostages in the hope of galvanizing Israeli officials to do more to free the captives after hostage deal negotiations had stalled.
Hagari said the video was a "reminder of the moral duty, the moral imperative" to bring all the hostages back to Israel. "We will not rest until you return to us. We are fighting and will continue to fight to bring you and all the hostages back home as soon as possible," he said.
Remember: Fifteen female troops from the Nahal Oz base were killed on October 7, and seven were abducted, according to Israel.Ori Megidish was rescued by IDF forces after 23 days in captivity. Noa Marciano was killed in Gaza while in captivity — her body was returned to Israel by the IDF for burial.Five female Israeli soldiers, Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Agam Berger, Daniela Gilboa, and Naama Levy, have been held in Gaza for more than seven months.
CIA director heading to Europe for ceasefire talks, US official says
From CNN's Alex Marquardt
CIA Director Bill Burns is traveling back to Europe to try to get the talks on a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas that would halt thewar in Gazaback on track, a US official told CNN.
“The Director is traveling to Europe in the coming days in an effort to revive the talks,” the US official said. “The director is in frequent discussions with the Egyptians, Qataris and Israelis. Both Egypt and Qatar are very engaged, as are the Israelis.”
Burns has acted as a key interlocutor for the US in the talks between Israel, Hamas, Egypt and Qatar, and he has been dispatched during previous rounds of talks, only to see them later collapse.
A Qatari official told CNN that Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani will also take part. The prime minister is currently in Paris, the official said.
Neither official would confirm the other participants. In the past they have been joined in Paris by Israel’s Mossad Director David Barnea and the head of Egyptian intelligence Abbas Kamel.
The talks were paused three weeks ago after Burns crisscrossed the region trying to close the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas. CNNreported Tuesdaythat Egypt muddied the negotiations after independently changing the terms of a framework that Israel had signed on to and presenting it to Hamas who then declared they accepted it.
Read the full story.
What's the difference between International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice?
From CNN's Antoinette Radford
The International Court of Justice is expected to rule today in a case against Israel that was brought by South Africa.
South Africa filed an urgent request on May 10 for additional measures in its genocide case against Israel, accusing it of using forcedevacuation ordersin the southern Gaza city of Rafah to "endanger rather than protect civilian life."
The allegation was rejected by Israel. Deputy Attorney General for International Law Gilad Noam said the picture South Africa painted was “completely divorced from the facts and circ*mstances.”
South Africa filed its claim to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), not the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The ICJ is the main legal arm of the United Nations. It is based in The Hague, in the Netherlands, and wasset up by the UNin 1945. It is a civil court and seeks to settle disputes between states.
Conversely, the ICC is a permanent, autonomous court — not affiliated with the United Nations — that prosecutes individuals.
The court can only prosecute individuals from countries that have ratified the Rome Statute — which gives it jurisdiction — or if a crime has taken place in a country that is a signatory.
This week, the ICC said it is seeking arrest warrants for the Hamas leader in Gaza,Yahya Sinwar, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the October 7 attacks on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza.
Israeldoesn’t recognizethe ICC so the court has no jurisdiction over it.
Israel, however, is a signatory to the Genocide Convention, which gives the ICJ jurisdiction.
Israeli forces kill 12 people, including 4 children, in West Bank city of Jenin, Palestinian officials say
From CNN’s Kareem Khadder, Abeer Salman and Lucas Lilieholm
Israeli military forces withdrew from the occupied West Bank city of Jenin following a two-day incursion that killed 12 people, including four children, according to Palestinian officials.
“This is a great loss to us, the killing of teachers, doctors and students during this military incursion by the occupation forces to jenin and its camp and its neighborhoods. We lost 12 people in Jenin and the last was overnight a man who died of his wounds,” Mayor Nidal Obaidi told CNN on Thursday, adding “This military incursion ended.”
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah confirmed that 12 people had been killed, including 4 children.
CNN has contacted the Israeli military for confirmation of the withdrawal.
Obaidi said the incursion had been “by far” the biggest of dozens in the city by Israeli forces and had caused over $8 million in damage to local infrastructure, including roads, sewage, and water systems.
“Israeli military occupation purposely targeted the water lines leading to the hospitals where our crews yesterday tried to restore the piping to hospitals but came under fire,” he said.
Obaidi added that electrical generators had also been struck, knocking out power to a large part of the community. He said it would take months to repair the damage.
