Just arrived back from war-torn Gaza, the head of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) for the Palestinian territories told AFP of the dire situation, labelling it a "massacre" and lamenting the charity's limited ability to help.

Leo Cans, who returned from Gaza last week, said that since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7, hospitals and ambulances have been targeted by the Israeli army, which claims that Hamas fighters are using these facilities as shields.

Iran will meet pre-tournament favourites Japan in the Asian Cup quarter-finals after surviving extra time with 10 men before defeating Syria 5-3 on penalties on Wednesday.

Japan beat Bahrain 3-1 despite another mistake from goalkeeper Zion Suzuki, as Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma made his first appearance in Qatar after injury.

Skipper Ehsan Hajsafi scored the winning penalty for Iran, who are ranked 70 places above Syria and were comfortably the better team for much of the game.

Iran will meet pre-tournament favourites Japan in the Asian Cup quarter-finals after surviving extra time with 10 men before defeating Syria 5-3 on penalties on Wednesday.

Skipper Ehsan Hajsafi scored the winning penalty for Iran, who are ranked 70 places above Syria and were comfortably the better team for an hour of the last-16 game.

Goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand was the penalty hero, saving Syria's second spot-kick.

American forces destroyed a missile belonging to Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels on Wednesday that posed an "imminent threat" to US aircraft, the military said.

The United States has carried out strikes on the Huthis both unilaterally and jointly with Britain, but previous air raids were focused on reducing the rebels' ability to target international shipping rather than addressing a danger to aircraft.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called his organization's Palestinian refugee agency the "backbone" of Gaza aid on Wednesday after several countries suspended funding over Israeli claims 12 UNRWA staffers participated in Hamas' October 7 attacks.

"Yesterday, I met with donors to listen to their concerns and to outline the steps we are taking to address them... UNRWA is the backbone of all humanitarian response in Gaza," Guterres told a UN committee on Palestinian rights.

The number of people uprooted by the war between rival generals in Sudan is around eight million, the United Nations said on Wednesday.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who is visiting Ethiopia, rallied international donors to open their wallets to fight the crisis, describing the situation as "serious".

"The conflict has increased in intensity and in impact on civilians," Grandi told the press in Addis Ababa.

Yemen's Huthi rebels fired "several" missiles at a US warship in the Red Sea, they said on Wednesday, hours after the US military reported shooting down a missile.

"The naval forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces, with the help of God Almighty, fired several... naval missiles at the American destroyer USS Gravely in the Red Sea," the Huthi statement said.

Earlier, US Central Command said the USS Gravely shot down a Huthi missile at about 11:30 pm (2030 GMT) on Tuesday -- the latest in a series of such incidents in the Red Sea.

International efforts towards a new pause in the devastating Gaza war gathered pace Wednesday, as Israel bombarded the Palestinian territory during fierce fighting with Hamas militants.

Hamas was reviewing a proposal for a six-week truce in its war with Israel, a source told AFP, after mediators gathered in Paris.

While talks take place, the population of Gaza is starving to death due to constraints imposed on humanitarian aid, the World Health Organization's emergencies director Michael Ryan said, in the latest such warning.

Son Heung-min's South Korea came back from the dead to beat Saudi Arabia 4-2 on penalties on Tuesday and join dark horses Uzbekistan in the Asian Cup quarter-finals.

South Korea will face Australia in the last eight while the Uzbeks play hosts and holders Qatar after beating Thailand 2-1.

Second-choice goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo was the hero for South Korea in Doha, saving penalties from Sami Al-Najei and Abdulrahman Ghareeb in the shootout.

Jo was only playing because of a serious knee injury to regular stopper Kim Seung-gyu in training earlier in the tournament.

US President Joe Biden said Tuesday he had decided on a response to a drone strike that killed three American troops in Jordan, while insisting he did not want a wider war in the Middle East.

Facing growing pressure in a US election year, Biden said he held Iran responsible for supplying the weapons to the people who carried out the deadly attack on a military base.

The White House warned that "multiple actions" were likely in retaliation for the first fatal attack on US forces in the region since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in October.