Israel-Gaza-Lebanon updates: Rabbi missing in UAE found dead, Israel says

Netanyahu's office confirmed that Zvi Kogan's body had been found.

Last Updated: November 25, 2024, 3:33 AM EST

The Israel Defense Forces continued its intense airstrike and ground campaigns in Gaza -- particularly in the north of the strip -- and in Lebanon, with Israeli attacks on targets nationwide including in the capital Beirut. The strikes form the backdrop for a fresh diplomatic push by the White House ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's return to the Oval Office in January.

Tensions also remain high between Israel and Iran after the former launched what it called "precise strikes on military targets" in several locations in Iran following Tehran's Oct. 1 missile barrage.

Nov 24, 2024, 3:55 AM EST

Rabbi missing in UAE found dead, Israeli authorities say

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Sunday that authorities located the body of rabbi Zvi Kogan, who had been missing in the United Arab Emirates since Nov. 21.

Kogan, 28, was an Israeli-Moldovan national and managed a kosher grocery store in Dubai.

A man walks past Rimon Market, a kosher grocery store managed by the late rabbi Zvi Kogan in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Nov. Nov. 24, 2024.
Jon Gambrell/AP

Netanyahu's office said the rabbi was killed, describing his death as "a criminal anti-Semitic terrorist incident." Israel, the office added, "will act by all means and bring justice to the criminals responsible for his death."

Israeli President Isaac Herzog expressed "sorrow and outrage" over the killing.

The UAE's Foreign Ministry confirmed in a statement that Kogan was reported missing. "The relevant authorities in the UAE have initiated the search operations and investigations immediately following the receipt of the report," it said.

The ministry did not note Kogan's Israeli citizenship, describing him as a "missing Moldovan citizen."

Three people have been arrested in the UAE, according to the country's Interior Ministry.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Somayeh Malekian.

Nov 23, 2024, 5:42 PM EST

North Gaza hospital director injured in bombing

The director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza was injured in an Israeli bombing of the hospital Saturday night, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.

Earlier in the evening, Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya reported that a drone had bombed a fuel tank of the hospital, which is located in Beit Lahia.

Staff at the hospital were also injured in an Israeli bombing in the overnight hours into Saturday, leaving a dozen wounded.

The hospital has been subject to continued attacks in the seven weeks since the Israel Defense Forces began its North Gaza operation. Last month, the IDF raided the hospital, arresting nearly all male staff and forcing patients and civilians to leave.

The IDF has not commented on attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital in recent days.

-ABC News' Samy Zyara

Nov 23, 2024, 10:32 AM EST

Hostage killed in northern Gaza, Hamas says

Hamas has released a statement announcing that a female hostage being held in Gaza was killed in recent weeks, and a second hostage was injured.

The statement says Hamas has only just been able to make contact with the fighters holding these hostages after contact was "interrupted for weeks" in northern Gaza. The statement says the life of the injured hostage is "still in danger."

The statement does not elaborate on how the other hostage was killed.

The IDF said in a statement they are "examining the information" but that as of now "cannot confirm or refute" it.

There are only 12 women hostages left in Gaza, three of whom were already confirmed to have been killed. Only one American woman was still being held and has been confirmed dead.

-ABC News’ Samy Zyara

Nov 23, 2024, 10:10 AM EST

North Gaza hospital remains under siege, at least 12 injured in latest attack

Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza remains under siege by Israeli forces, with a dozen people wounded in the latest attack, the facility's director said Saturday morning.

"The occupation forces targeted the hospital with drone bombs and bullets from yesterday afternoon until midnight," Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya said in a statement. "The bombing directly and repeatedly targeted the entrance to the reception and emergency departments, the courtyards, the electricity generators, and the hospital gates.”

At least 12 people were injured, including “a doctor, a nurse, and an administrator who were inside the reception and emergency department,” according to Safiya. The bombing "disabled the electric generator, the oxygen and water network, and terrified the injured and sick children and women," the hospital director said.

Kamal Aswan Hospital in the city of Beit Lahia, just north of Jabalia, currently houses 86 injured patients, including eight people in intensive care on ventilators and 13 children receiving treatment, according to Safiya.

"We receive cases of malnutrition of children on a regular basis," he added. "We call on the world to intervene urgently to bring in medical and surgical delegations, medical supplies and ambulances."

Israeli air and ground forces have been continuously raiding multiple areas in northern Gaza for weeks, leaving about 2,300 people dead or missing, according to a spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defense.

“The occupation is deliberately displacing citizens from the northern Gaza Strip," the spokesperson said in a statement Saturday. "Running out of fuel is a major dilemma facing our crews and hindering the crews from arriving."

-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor

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