Israel orders further evacuations in Gaza after militants fire rockets

The Israeli military has again ordered the evacuation of several residential areas in the northwest of the Gaza Strip, where Palestinian militants are said to have fired rockets at the nearby Israeli city of Ashkelon.

The orders issued on Monday came after a rocket attack in Ashkelon the previous day set off air raid sirens. The military said it intercepted one projectile and another fell into the sea.

Israel ordered the evacuation of the entire northern Gaza Strip, including the territory's largest city, in the first weeks of the war, which was sparked by the Hamas attack on October 7.

Most residents followed orders and moved south, but up to 300,000 remained in the north, where Israel's air and ground operations have caused widespread destruction. The north has been surrounded by Israeli forces since October and largely isolated.

About 90 percent of Gaza's 2.3 million residents have been displaced, often multiple times, in the 11-month war. Hundreds of thousands of people are crowded into tent camps along the coast, where there are few or no public services.

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The Turkish president announces that he will demand justice for the murdered Turkish-American activist before an international court

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday Turkey will seek justice for the slain Turkish-American activist by bringing her “brutal” killing before an international court. Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, a witness said.

“We will take all legal steps to ensure that the blood of our daughter Aysenur Ezgi does not go unpunished and we will continue our fight against the State of Israel by appealing to the International Court of Justice in The Hague at the highest level,” Erdogan said after a cabinet meeting.

In his televised speeches, the Turkish president also called on the nations of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OI) to urgently come together and take a common stance against what he sees as Israel's expansionist policy regarding the holy sites in Jerusalem.

President Joe Biden is expected to meet with senior advisers to discuss a ceasefire

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden is expected to meet with senior advisers at the White House on Monday to discuss efforts to get Israel and Hamas to agree on a cease-fire, according to a person familiar with the talks.

White House officials spoke on Monday morning with Egyptian and Qatari politicians who are acting as mediators with Hamas about the status of negotiations.

The person, who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. side was frustrated by Hamas' demands for the release of more Hamas prisoners in the first phase of the deal following the killing of six hostages last week. That demand is a no-go for the Israeli side, but the White House still has hope that Qatar can persuade Hamas to take a more reasonable stance on the hostage-prisoner exchange.

-Aamer Madhani

Funeral procession in the West Bank for Turkish-American pro-Palestinian activist

NABLUS, West Bank – Dozens of mourners took part in a funeral procession for a Turkish-American activist who a witness said was shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.

The procession for Aysenur Ezgi Eygi on Monday was organized by the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, whose security forces carried her body draped in a Palestinian flag and with a traditional black-and-white checkered scarf over her face.

Several Palestinian officials took part in the procession in the West Bank city of Nablus.

Another pro-Palestinian protester said the 26-year-old was shot in the head by Israeli forces when the situation was calm following a clash between soldiers and Palestinian protesters.

The military said it was investigating the shooting and that forces had shot an “instigator of violent activities” in the protest area last Friday.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said it was working to transfer her remains to Turkey for burial. US authorities did not respond to a request for comment.

Since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October, there has been an escalation of violence in the West Bank, including increasing Israeli raids, attacks by Palestinian militants on Israelis and attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians.

Death toll from Israeli attacks on Syria rises to 14, according to Syrian state media

DAMASCUS – The number of people killed in overnight Israeli strikes in Syria has risen to 14 and more than 40 injured, Syrian state media reported Monday morning.

The Syrian state news agency SANA reported that Israeli strikes hit several areas in central Syria late Sunday, damaging a highway in Hama province and causing fires. Masyaf National Hospital in the western Hamas province initially reported four deaths.

On Monday morning, SANA reported 14 dead and 43 injured, citing hospital director Faysal Haydar. It is unclear how many of the dead and injured were civilians and how many were militants.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, reported that one of the attacks targeted a scientific research center in Maysaf and other sites where “Iranian militias and experts are based to develop weapons in Syria.” Local media also reported attacks around the coastal city of Tartous.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets in government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years, but it rarely acknowledges or discusses these operations. The attacks are often directed against Syrian forces or Iranian-backed groups. Israel has vowed to stop Iranian entrenchment in Syria.

The Associated Press