Day 83 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Thursday, Dec. 28

Clashes on the Lebanon-Israel border intensified as the United Arab Emirates called for an urgent UNSC meeting on Friday.

Rina Bassist, Ezgi Akin, Beatrice Farhat, Elizabeth Hagedorn, Adam Lucente, Jack Dutton, Jared Szuba and Al-Monitor’s contributors on the ground in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel contributed to this blog.

Click here for our most recent updates.

Live updates (all times EDT):

Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023

3:55 pm: Syria reports Israeli air attack

Syria’s official SANA news agency reported that Israeli missiles allegedly targeted unspecified areas in southern Syria. Syrian air defenses downed “most” of the missiles and the strikes caused material damage, according to the agency. Israel typically does not comment on its military operations abroad but is suspected of carrying out regular strikes against Iran-affiliated military targets in neighboring Syria.

1:52 pm: Two Palestinian children from Gaza arrive in France for medical treatment

"In accordance with the commitments of the president, France welcomes the first two injured Palestinian children who arrived in France this Thursday, Dec. 28," read a statement issued by the French Foreign Ministry. The statement said that the children will be treated in pediatric departments, adding that the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Health were working jointly to bring more injured Palestinian children to France beginning next week.

12:00 pm: UAE Mission to UN calls urgent UNSC meeting

The United Arab Emirates has called for an urgent UN Security Council meeting for Friday, Dec. 29, in response to a report by UN Human Rights revealing that human rights were "rapidly deteriorating" in the West Bank. In a post on X, UAE spokesperson Shahad Matar wrote, "Extremist settler violence and reports of Israeli raids put a political horizon for Israel & Palestine at severe risk." The statement comes just days before the UAE’s presidency of the council ends at the close of the year.

7:00 am: Israeli army says drone from Lebanon intercepted

The Israeli army said its air defenses shot down a drone launched from Lebanese territory toward northern Israel, near Haifa. Israel’s Army Radio had earlier reported that Israeli warplanes had launched a “premeditated attack” against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese National News Agency reported a series of Israeli airstrikes in the southern town of Aita al-Shaab. The border tensions ongoing between Iran-backed Hezbollah and the Israeli military since October have escalated in recent days.

3:30 am: Israeli official says wrong munition used in Gaza caused ‘extensive collateral damage’

An Israeli airstrike on the Maghazi refugee camp in Gaza that Hamas health officials said killed 70 people on Sunday was the result of improper munition, an Israeli official said. “The type of munition did not match the nature of the attack, causing extensive collateral damage which could have been avoided,” the official told Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster.

An IDF spokesperson told the broadcasting network in a follow-up statement that the army "regrets the harm done to those uninvolved and is working to learn lessons from the incident."

2:30 am: Israeli army confirms drone crash in Golan Heights

The Israeli military confirmed that an explosive-laden drone had crashed in the southern Golan Heights after an Iran-backed Iraqi armed group claimed responsibility for the attack. According to the Israeli outlet Ynet, the drone was launched from Syria and exploded near the village of Hispin. The Golan regional council said that no casualties were reported but some damage was identified, noting this was the first such incident in the area. The Israel Defense Forces is now investigating why the entry into Israeli airspace was not detected and no alarm was sounded.

1:45 am: Israel declares five money exchange offices in West Bank terror organizations 

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed an order declaring five money exchange offices in the West Bank terror organizations. The decision came after Israeli claims to have identified money transfers through them to Hamas and to Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza. Shortly after the order was signed, Israeli troops raided the offices, confiscating funds and arresting 21 people allegedly connected with the money transfers.

12:00 am: Three Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza 

Three Israeli soldiers were killed overnight in Gaza, said Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari, bringing the Israeli death toll in its ground offensive to 167.

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