Day 68 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Wednesday, Dec. 13

US President Joe Biden hosted families of American hostages currently held by Hamas while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to press on with the Gaza war despite mounting international pressure.

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.

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Live updates (all times EDT):

Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023

3:50 pm: Romanian-Israeli citizen, Tanzanian citizen kidnapped by Hamas declared dead 

Romanian-Israeli Tal Haimi, who was thought to be held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has been declared dead, said the headquarters of the families of the abductees. It is now known that Haimi was killed on Oct. 7 in Hamas' attack on southern Israel and his body taken to Gaza.

The family of Joshua Loitu Mollel, a Tanzanian citizen, was informed that he had also been killed Oct. 7 by Hamas and his body taken to Gaza. He had been working at the Nahal Oz kibbutz.

2:00 pm: CIA chief to meet with families of American hostages

Israel’s Channel 13 reported that CIA chief William Burns will meet in Washington with families of American nationals held hostage in Gaza, his first such meeting. Burns has largely led the United States' negotiation efforts with Qatar over the release of hostages held by Hamas.

11:20 am: Biden hosts relatives of Israeli-Americans kidnapped in Gaza

US President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken met at the White House with relatives of dual Israeli-American citizens kidnapped by Hamas and held hostage in Gaza. Since Oct. 7, Biden has spoken on the phone several times with relatives of those abducted, and he met some family members in person when he visited Israel in mid-October. 

The relatives of six captives attended in person, and  those of two other hostages participated via phone. Of the remaining hostages in Gaza, seven are US citizens and one is a green card holder: Idan Alexander, Itay Chen, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Gad Haggai, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Omer Neutra, Keith Siegel and Judi Weinstein.

10:00 am: Israeli foreign minister says war will continue ‘with or without international support’

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said in a statement, “Israel will continue the war against Hamas with or without international support.” He added, “A cease-fire at the current stage is a gift to the terrorist organization Hamas.” His words come one day after US President Joe Biden warned at a private event that Israel was losing international support for its war in Gaza.

7:04 am: US, UK impose new sanctions on Hamas, Islamic Jihad

The United States and United Kingdom have implemented a new round of sanctions against figures linked to  Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the US Treasury Department announced. The measures targeted several officials and leaders from Hamas “who perpetuate Hamas’s violent agenda by representing the group’s interests abroad and managing its finances,” according to the Treasury. The latest move is the fourth round of US sanctions since the Hamas-Israel war erupted.

4:04 am: Two vessels come under fire in the Red Sea

Two vessels came under fire in the Red Sea near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to a British maritime security firm. The company, Ambrey, said that in two separate incidents, a Marshall Islands–flagged chemical tanker and a Malta-flagged bulk carrier were transiting off the coast of Yemen's Red Sea port of Hodeidah, under Houthi control, when a speedboat with armed men aboard approached them. An exchange of fire was reported. A US official told the Associated Press that the Marshall Islands–flagged Ardmore Encounter escaped two missiles fired from Houthi-held territory in Yemen. Another suspected Houthi drone was shot down by an American ship during the incident, according to the official. The Iran-backed Houthis have claimed a series of attacks against vessels in the Red Sea that they say are linked to Israel. The strikes are in retaliation for the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.

3:00 am: 10 Israeli soldiers killed overnight in Gaza 

Ten soldiers, including the commander of the Golani Brigade’s Battalion 13 and the head of the commander’s team, were killed in northern Gaza overnight, said Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari. Nine of the ten were soldiers in the Golani Brigade and were killed in the same battle, in Shajaiyah, east of Gaza City. The troops reportedly came under heavy fire in a densely populated area. Some of them were killed by direct fire from Hamas fighters emerging from a tunnel shaft, and others were killed by an explosive device activated inside a building.

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