Daily News

The United Nations says only 16 of the 36 hospitals in Gaza are functional and only able to offer partial services. It's verified more than 650 Israeli attacks on medical facilities since the war began in October 2023. At least 1,054 health workers have been killed. Israel says Hamas fighters are operating from hospitals, but provides little evidence to substantiate its claim. Is it possible to prevent the collapse of Gaza's health system?

Another infant in Gaza has died from hypothermia amid severe weather and a lack of adequate shelters. The grieving father, seen at the hospital morgue, has lost two children to hypothermia this winter. These tragedies are part of the broader impact of the Israeli military’s actions in the region. Families endure harsh conditions in makeshift tents offering little protection against the freezing cold. Many lack basic necessities like blankets, mattresses, and winter clothing due to ongoing restrictions. The situation in Gaza has become a dire pressure cooker of despair and human suffering.

For more than 15 years, Nigeria’s armed forces have battled Boko Haram and groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS), with millions affected and thousands killed. Despite government claims of “technical defeat”, rebel attacks persist, raising critical questions about strategy and accountability. General Christopher Musa, Nigeria's chief of defence staff, talks about it and also discusses allegations of human rights abuses and corruption within the military and challenges that threaten troop morale and operational capacity. Meanwhile, security concerns are amplified by political instability in the region, including coups and external influences such as Russia.

A high-level Syrian delegation, including the new foreign minister Asaad al-Shaibani, has arrived in the Qatari capital Doha. It's the new administration's second foreign visit, after a trip to Riyadh on Wednesday. Shaibani is expected to travel to several countries to establish relations, including the United Arab Emirates and neighbouring Jordan.

The Nigerian military has launched an offensive against a new rebel group that’s been attacking villages near the border with Niger. The military says the Lakurawa is responsible for a series attacks in the northwest in recent weeks, including a massacre of 15 villagers.

Israeli forces have killed at least 194 people across Gaza in the past three days, many of them in residential areas. Children and babies are among the injured. The Israeli army says it targeted more than a hundred Hamas sites.

An air strike on a home in the Shujaiya neighbourhood in Gaza city, killed 11 members of the same family. Civil defence crews are working to recover those trapped under rubble.

Alan Fisher reports live from Washington, DC, explaining that this is likely the Biden administration's final approved shipment, with only 14 days left in its term. He adds that while Congress must still approve it, a block is unlikely, as Speaker Mike Johnson has prioritized supporting Israel. Fisher highlights that these weapons, funded by US aid, include heavy artillery and aircraft ammunition, though delivery may take time.

As Gaza truce talks resume in Qatar, Dan Perry, a former regional editor for The Associated Press, says chances “are low” that a ceasefire deal gets done. “Israel’s leaders are waiting for Donald Trump to take office because they think they’ll have greater leeway … to put more pressure on Gaza to finally get Hamas to relent. I’m not so sure this is going to a happy place soon,” he told Al Jazeera. While Trump has indicated he wants the war on Gaza to end, Perry said that doesn’t mean a negotiated settlement that halts the blood-shed.

Lifting sanctions in Syria will depend on how its political future develops. That's the message from France and Germany's foreign ministers to the country's new leaders. So what do both sides want from each other - and what divides them?