Heavy fighting continues as the Israel-Hamas war enters its ninth month. The Israel Defense Forces named Thursday nine terrorists they say they killed in an air strike on a school in Gaza. Hamas says 33 Gazans were killed in the attack. Israel is criticizing international media for taking Hamas’s data at face value without considering the individuals’ possible terrorist connections. The Associated Press has also released a report detailing inconsistencies in Hamas’s released death toll data. Meanwhile, the United Nations has put both Israel and Hamas on its “list of shame” for gravely violating children’s rights.
The U.S. military has completed repairs on a temporary pier in Gaza and is preparing to send increased aid supplies into the war-torn area. President Joe Biden continues to attempt to mediate a ceasefire negotiation between both sides of the war. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to travel to the Middle East for further truce talks next week.