Coverage on this live blog has ended. Follow live updates here.
What we know
- President Joe Biden is expected to issue an executive order today, targeting Israeli settlers in the West Bank, a U.S. official confirmed to NBC News. Separately, a senior administration official said policy staff members had been tasked with looking into the idea of the U.S.’ recognizing a Palestinian state before it reaches a final deal with Israel to end the war in Gaza.
- Earlier, the White House blamed an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias, collectively known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, for the drone strike on a base in Jordan that killed three American service members. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said U.S. retaliation to the attack will be sustained over time.
- And overnight, U.S. Central Command said it struck Houthi targets in Yemen that were readying attack drones as part of the militia's campaign against shipping in the Red Sea.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called yesterday for the dissolution of UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees and the chief provider of aid in Gaza, following Israeli allegations that some of its workers participated in the Oct. 7 attacks. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said it was irresponsible to sanction an entire agency for the alleged acts of individuals.
- More than 27,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. More than 66,000 have been injured, and thousands more are missing and presumed dead.
- Israeli military officials said at least 223 soldiers have been killed during the ground invasion of Gaza. About 1,200 people were killed and about 240 hostages were taken after Hamas' multipronged attacks on Oct. 7.
- NBC News’ Keir Simmons, Raf Sanchez, Matt Bradley and Chantal Da Silva are reporting from the region.
Pro-Palestinian activists take up residence outside Blinken's Virginia home
WASHINGTON — Activists Hazami Barmada and Laila El-Haddad spoke to reporters about their protest outside the secretary of state’s home in the suburbs of Virginia, a campsite they’ve named ‘"Kibbutz Blinken" where they have been for six days.
Barmada quoted Rep. John Lewis, the late civil rights icon, saying they were there to "make good trouble with hopes to appeal to the heart and mind of the secretary.”
El-Haddad — plaintiff in a lawsuit against Biden, Blinken and Austin — says she has lost five of her close family members and 90 members of extended family who have been killed in Gaza. She noted that Blinken has not met with any families of Americans who have been evacuated from Gaza or were injured while trapped there in the early weeks of the war.
“We’re speaking on a day when Secretary Blinken is attempting to meet performatively with members of the Palestinian community, the overwhelming majority of who declined the invitation to shed some crocodile tears while going back to business as usual and genociding our families,” she said.
The activists said they’ve tried to have a direct conversation with Biden, saying they don’t want to have one at the State Department because previous meetings “gaslit” attendees, resulted in “zero tangible action” and were “hush hush” compared to widely publicized meetings with Israelis.
Asked why they’re refusing to meet with Blinken, El-Haddad told reporters, “Really, there’s nothing more to say that hasn’t already been said."
“We are not a box for you to check off.”
Former Israeli prime minister says it's time to choose a path
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak says that distrust of Israel's government is growing and that it is time "to choose our way."
In comments critical of Netanyahu, Barak said he preferred Biden's vision of the future for Israel. But he also said a two-state solution might be hard to sell to the Israeli public following Hamas' Oct. 7 attack.
Barak said the two-state solution is the "only viable long-term position."
"The other position is a tragedy," Barak said.
Gaza’s GDP could take decades to return to pre-war level, U.N. trade agency says
It could take until the end of the century for Gaza’s gross domestic product to return to its pre-war level if the conflict ends immediately, the U.N. trade agency said in a statement.
The U.N. Conference on Trade and Development said it estimated a 24% drop in GDP and a 26% drop in GDP per capita last year.
“If the 2007–2022 growth trend persists with an average growth rate of 0.4%, it will take Gaza 70 years just to restore the GDP levels of 2022 with GDP per capita continuously and precipitously declining given the population growth rate,” it said.
“A lasting cease-fire is needed now to allow sufficient and adequate humanitarian aid to enter Gaza,” it added. “Reconstruction and recovery need to start now to put Gaza back on a sustainable development path.”
Security minister, who called for resettlement of Gaza, says U.S. should rethink position on settlers
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has been vocal in his belief Israel should resettle Gaza, wrote on X that the U.S. should "rethink" its position on settlers following an order sanctioning those involved in violent attacks.
"President Biden is wrong about the citizens of the State of Israel and the heroic settlers," Ben-Gvir wrote, according to an NBC News translation. "Those who are attacked, those who are pelted with stones in an attempt to hurt and murder them, are the heroic settlers in Judea and Samaria."
In 2007, Ben-Gvir was convicted of racist incitement against Arabs during his time with the Kahane Chai, or Kach, political party. Kach was placed on the U.S.' list of foreign terrorist organizations in 1997 and removed in 2022, as it is now considered a defunct group.
The Times of Israel reported last year that Ben-Gvir claimed to have "refined" his views after some sought to challenge his appointment to Israel's Cabinet, saying it was a mistake to promote the expulsion of Arabs.
In recent weeks, he has repeatedly suggested that settlers should go back to Gaza after the war, saying Israel should encourage Palestinians to migrate out of the strip. He made a keynote address at an event Sunday reiterating those beliefs, which U.S. officials deemed "reckless" and "incendiary" this week.
Israel's war Cabinet waiting for Hamas' response to principles of hostage deal
Israel’s war Cabinet is on standby for Hamas’ reaction to the principles ironed out in Paris on Sunday by CIA director William Burns, head of the Mossad David Barnea, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and an Egyptian senior intelligence official, according to a senior adviser to the war Cabinet.
“Everyone is waiting to see Hamas’ reaction,” the adviser said, who asked not to be named given the sensitivity of the talks, adding that it could take several days.
The war Cabinet is expecting to start negotiations according to the principles sent to Hamas once Hamas replies, the adviser said.
Israel has floated a two-month pause in fighting in order to get the hostages back, NBC News has previously reported, but current and former Israeli officials say no terms have been set in stone.
There are still “wide gaps” between Israel and Hamas on the outline of a potential deal, according to professor Jacob Nagel, former national security adviser to Israel who is also in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s orbit.
Hamas has previously demanded that Israel end the war and withdraw all troops from Gaza, that Hamas stay in power in the enclave, and that Israel not make any changes along the border of Israel and Gaza.
“There might be a deal if Sinwar will give up his three basic demands, meaning going back to Oct. 6th,” said Nagel, who is a senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.
Netanyahu posted a video Tuesday responding to “rumors” about the deal.
“We are committed to getting a hostage deal, but not at any price. I have red lines,” he said. “Among them are: we won’t end the war, we won’t remove the IDF from the Gaza Strip, and we won’t release thousands of prisoners.”
Hamas is currently fragmented, with leadership split geographically between Doha, Qatar, and inside the Gaza Strip. There are both physical and ideological divides between the political and military wings, making consensus-building a challenge.
Adding to the logistical hurdles, Hamas’ leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar is in hiding in Gaza, working to mask his communications so Israel’s military doesn’t find him.
Nagel said he believes Sinwar will likely keep some hostages forever as “his insurance policy.”
“We also want that the deal to be for all the hostages, not only the 35 humanitarian prisoners,” Nagel said.
Another senior Israeli official said that, given all the challenges, it’s unclear if the deal will come together. “I don’t think it’s more than 50/50 it will materialize,” the senior official said.
Blinken announces sanctions on 4 Israeli citizens following executive order, says 'Israel must do more'
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the State Department has moved to sanction four Israeli citizens involved in extremist settler activities following President Joe Biden's executive order today.
The State Department named four people who it said were involved in settler-led attacks on Palestinians: David Chai Chasdai, Einan Tanjil, Shalom Zicherman and Yinon Levi. Blinken said there can be no justification for extremist violence "whatever their national origin, ethnicity, or religion."
"Israel must do more to stop violence against civilians in the West Bank and hold accountable those responsible for it," he said in a statement.
"The United States will continue to take actions to advance the foreign policy objectives of the United States, including the viability of a two-state solution, and is committed to the safety, security, and dignity of Israelis and Palestinians alike," he added.
Dearborn mayor says Arab Americans want to speak to policymakers, not Biden campaign staff
Arab American leadership wants to speak to policymakers and not Biden's election staff, Dearborn, Michigan, Mayor Abdullah Hammoud told MSNBC.
The Associated Press reported last week that Biden's campaign manager was turned away by many activists and leaders in the Detroit suburb. Over half of the community is of Middle Eastern or North African descent, an electorate that NBC News has reported is furious with Biden over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
"For us, Palestinian lives should not be measured in poll numbers," Hammoud said.
Netanayhu's office says there is 'no room' for Biden order on extremist settlers
Netanyahu's office said that Israel acts against all lawbreakers" following news that Biden signed an executive order to sanction violent settlers.
The prime minister's office added in a statement on X that "there is no room for unusual measures in this regard." Biden's order today comes weeks after an American teenager was shot and killed during a visit to the occupied West Bank, where, his family says, a settler attacked him during a picnic with friends.
"The absolute majority of the settlers in Judea and Samaria are law-abiding citizens, many of whom are currently fighting regularly and in the reserves for the defense of Israel," the statement said.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported there were 494 settler attacks against Palestinians from Oct. 7 to Jan. 31, including at least 388 incidents that resulted in damage to Palestinian property.
The executive order, which includes visa bans for foreign nationals, would sanction violent Israeli settlers "responsible for or complicit in" attacks on Palestinians or Palestinian property.
Chicago passes resolution calling for permanent cease-fire
The Chicago City Council narrowly passed a resolution calling for a permanent cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, becoming the largest city in the country in favor of the proposal.
After hours of debate, Mayor Brandon Johnson voted in favor, breaking a 23-23 deadlock.
Although the resolution does not have any legal effect, it is an indication of the community’s divergent views on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
So far, at least 48 U.S. cities have passed resolutions urging cease-fires in the enclave. According to Reuters, nine were approved in Michigan, where growing criticism has been voiced by Arab communities against Biden’s policies in the region.
Netanyahu cease-fire comments not viewed as a rejection, senior administration official says
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration does not view Netanyahu’s public comments about a cease-fire deal as a rejection, a senior administration official told NBC News today.
Netanyahu has said he will not accept any cease-fire deal that requires Israeli troops to leave Gaza or involves releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
The official said the administration sees the situation as evolving, because Israel is not making as much headway against Hamas in Gaza as hoped and Netanyahu faces increasing public pressure to secure the release of the hostages who remain in Hamas captivity.
However, his public comments still reflect the influence of right-wing members in his coalition, who have threatened to quit and bring the government down if he softens his stance.
