Israeli army

Israeli air strikes and ground operations were focused Thursday on the Gazan city of Khan Yunis, where the U.N. said nine people were killed by tank shelling at one of its shelters the day before.

The deadly incident came after the Israeli army said it had encircled the city, where footage released by the military showed soldiers engaged in urban combat amid ruined buildings.

The White House has condemned Wednesday's deadly shelling of a U.N. shelter in southern Gaza, reiterating its position that Israel has a "responsibility to protect civilians" as it prosecutes its war with Hamas.

Israel kept up its heavy assault on the "encircled" Gazan city of Khan Yunis following an outpouring of grief over the army's deadliest single day since ground operations in the territory began.

Israel has put forward an extensive ceasefire proposal to Hamas, introducing a conditional truce coupled with a staged plan for the release of hostages held in Gaza. CNN, citing US officials, reports that Israel suggests Hamas leaders leave Gaza safely, a condition intended to diminish the group's influence in the region.

Israel bombs Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, against a backdrop of negotiations aimed at bringing about a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas in the absence of a long-term peace plan.

The United States has reported the first casualties in its operation against the Houthi rebels in the Red Sea. Two Marines, missing since an operation on January 11 to seize Iranian weapons destined for the Houthis in Yemen, are now believed to have died, according to the Pentagon.

The Israeli army bombarded Khan Yunis, the new epicentre of the war in Gaza, on Monday as the families of hostages held by Hamas urged  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal to secure their release.

Witnesses reported deadly strikes overnight in Khan Yunis, the largest city in southern Gaza, and fierce fighting between Israeli soldiers and Hamas militants.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will pay a visit to Jordan to discuss the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza, where millions of Palestinians are stranded with poor living conditions.

According to a statement by the Foreign Ministry on Jan. 17, Fidan will hold talks with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and be received by Jordan's King Abdullah II.

The two Al Jazeera journalists killed in one of the Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip on Sunday were "terrorist operatives" linked to the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad, the Israeli military said, quoted by AFP.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday that his forces must avoid inflicting further harm on civilians in Gaza, the State Department said.