The latest Israel-Palestinian war reverberated around the world Tuesday, as foreign governments tried to determine how many of their citizens were dead, missing or in need of medical help or flights home.

Numerous countries also offered to play a role in mediating an end to the fighting, which already has killed at least 1,600 people. The death toll was expected to grow as Israel pummeled the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and sent Palestinians fleeing into U.N. shelters.

Here's what is happening on Day 4 of the conflict:

DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS' STAFF CONCERNED ABOUT DWINDLING SUPPPLIES IN GAZA

CAIRO — The head of Doctors Without Borders for the Palestinian territories said he is concerned their team in Gaza will soon run out of medical supplies now that the enclave's borders have closed.

Leo Cans told The Associated Press that he is particularly concerned about the supply of surgical equipment, bandages, antibiotics and fuel. The group, otherwise known as MSF, are currently operating from Shifa Hospital, in Gaza City, and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.

“We are just running on the stock we have,” Cans said. The group had previously brought in all its supplies through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom border crossing.

In Gaza, MSF has 300 local staff and 23 international workers, he said.

GERMANY INVESTIGATING KIDNAPPING OF ITS CITIZENS IN ISRAEL

BERLIN — German prosecutors are investigating after German citizens were apparently kidnapped in the attack by Hamas on Israel.

The federal prosecutor’s office said in an emailed statement that the investigation of unknown members of Hamas on suspicion of hostage-taking, murder and membership in a foreign terrorist organization was opened on Tuesday.

The German Foreign Ministry has said it has to assume that an unspecified number of German-Israeli dual citizens were among those kidnapped by Hamas on Saturday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Tuesday that Germany is working closely with Israel to determine how many citizens were kidnapped and how they might be freed.

It is standard practice for German prosecutors to open an investigation when the country’s citizens are harmed abroad.

INDIA'S MODI REITERATES SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL

NEW DELHI — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said he had spoken with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the phone and thanked him for “providing an update on the ongoing situation."

“People of India stand firmly with Israel in this difficult hour,” Modi wrote on X, the social media platform, and said India strongly condemns terrorism in all forms.

During the Cold War, India didn’t have open relations with Israel and leaned heavily in favor of the Palestinians. The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992. Ties between the two countries have grown under Modi, who became the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel in 2017.

2 RUSSIAN CITIZENS WERE KILLED IN HAMAS ATTACKS IN ISRAEL

MOSCOW — Russia’s ambassador to Israel said that two Russian citizens have been killed in of the latest Israel-Palestinian war.

Ambassador Anatoly Viktorov didn’t name the victims, saying in remarks broadcast by Russia’s state Channel 1 that the embassy isn’t aware of the circumstances of their deaths and hasn’t contacted their families yet.

Viktorov said that four other Russian citizens remain missing. He said the embassy has no information confirming Hamas’ claim that several Russian citizens were among the hostages it has taken.

FRANCE HAS NO ‘FORMAL TRACE’ OF IRAN'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE ATTACKS, SAYS MACRON

HAMBURG, Germany — French President Emmanuel Macron says his country has no evidence that Iran was directly involved in Hamas’ attack on Israel but the militant group does appear to have had outside help and cooperation.

Iran has been a longtime supporter of Hamas other militant groups, and senior Iranian officials have openly praised Saturday’s incursion.

Asked what Iran’s role in the crisis was after a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Hamburg on Tuesday, Macron said France has “no formal trace” that Iran was directly involved in the attacks.

"It seems that there was help for and cooperation with Hamas but I will stay cautious on this point as long we haven’t consolidated intelligence that is totally certain,” he added, but didn't elaborate further.

Macron said: “We condemn with a lot of clarity all the countries that congratulated the horrors perpetrated by Hamas, which was the case with Iran.”

CLERIC SAYS IRAQ STANDS READY TO SEND SUPPLIES TO GAZA

BAGHDAD — The influential Iraqi Shiite cleric and political leader Muqtada al-Sadr in a speech Tuesday from the city of Najaf urged “all Arabs, especially Egyptians, to open their borders and break the inhumane siege imposed on Gaza, allowing water and food to reach the civilians” and said Iraq stands ready to send supplies to the besieged coastal enclave, although it was unclear how it would do so.

He criticized “Arab rulers who kept silent and did not show any reaction towards this righteous case in order to keep their position,” in reference to Arab countries that have normalized ties with Israel in recent years.

RAFAH CROSSING TO BE EVACUATED UNDER BOMB THREATS, HAMAS SAYS

The Rafah Crossing administration on the Egyptian side informed the Rafah Crossing crews on the Palestinian side to evacuate the crossing immediately due to threats to bomb the crossing, spokesperson for the Hamas Ministry of Interior and National Security Iyad Al-Bazm said Tuesday.

RUSSIA SAYS IT WILL TALK TO ISRAEL AND PALESTINIANS IN HOPES OF REACHING A SETTLEMENT

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that Moscow has been talking to both Israel and the Palestinians to help search for a settlement.

Asked about a claim by the Palestinian ambassador to Moscow that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas will visit Moscow soon, Peskov said that the visit had been planned before the war. He added that Moscow will announce the date after it’s finally determined.

Peskov rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s claim that Moscow was interested in fueling the war as “totally baseless.”

WHO SAYS MEDICAL SUPPLIES ARE ALREADY USED UP IN GAZA

GENEVA — The United Nations health agency says the medical supplies that it had pre-positioned in seven hospitals in Gaza have already been used up, as needs balloon in the wake of Israel’s military strike against the militant group Hamas.

Spokesperson Tarik Jazarevic of the World Health Organization told a briefing Tuesday that affiliate hospitals had triggered emergency plans to better manage the surge of casualties, “but with the number of casualties currently coming in, these hospitals are now running beyond their capacity.” He said WHO was reprogramming $1 million of its funds to allow for purchases of medical supplies from the local market to fill gaps in need.

The health agency has already called for a humanitarian corridor to be opened to allow new supplies to be ferried into Gaza.

UN AGENCY FOR PALESTINIAN REFUGEES REPORTS SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE FROM AIRSTRIKE

BEIRUT — The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, says the building housing its headquarters in Gaza City suffered significant damage because of an airstrike nearby. No casualties among staff were recorded.

UNRWA said Tuesday that all U.N. international staff present in Gaza are taking shelter in another building within the same compound.

Since October 7, UNRWA recorded both collateral and direct damage to at least 18 of its facilities including schools sheltering displaced civilians. It said that until Tuesday, the U.N. estimates that over 187,500 people have been displaced within Gaza, and more than 137,000 people are sheltering in over 80 UNRWA schools across the Gaza Strip.

4 FRENCH CITIZENS HAVE BEEN KILLED BY HAMAS MILITANT ATTACKS IN ISRAEL

PARIS— France’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed the deaths of another two French citizens killed by Hamas militant attacks in Israel, bringing the total number of French victims to four.

The ministry said Tuesday that another 13 French citizens are missing and that some of them have “very likely” been kidnapped. The ministry has previously said that a 12-year-old appears to be among those taken captive.

CYPRUS WILL HELP EVACUEES FROM ISRAEL ON THEIR WAY TO THEIR HOME COUNTRIES

NICOSIA, Cyprus — Cyprus’ Foreign Ministry says the east Mediterranean island nation is now ready to act as a waystation for foreign nationals fleeing Israel.

According to a statement, a crisis management team composed of the ministers of foreign affairs, defense, the interior and justice decided to activate Tuesday a dedicated plan to help evacuees from Israel reach their home countries through Cyprus. That means Cyprus will offer accommodations and other facilities to foreign nationals to help in their repatriation.

European Union member Cyprus’ proximity to the Middle East and Africa has in the past made it a ready transfer point for evacuees from war-torn countries. In April, Cyprus received hundreds of United Kingdom citizens who where evacuated from war-battered Sudan before they returned to Britain. In 2006, Cyprus hosted tens of thousands of foreign nationals fleeing war in Lebanon following Israel’s attack on Hezbollah.

7 JOURNALISTS HAVE BEEN KILLED IN AIRSTRIKES IN GAZA

The Government Media Office in Gaza announced Tuesday that seven journalists have been killed since the beginning of the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza: Ibrahim Lafi, photographer at Ain Media Company; Muhammad Jarghoun, photographer at Smart Media Office; Muhammad Al-Salhi, freelancer; Asaad Shamlikh, freelancer; Saeed Al-Taweel, editor at Alkhamisa News Network; and Muhammad Subh Abu Rizq and Hisham Al-Nawajaha, photographers at Khbr press.

More than 10 journalists have sustained various injuries, and contact was lost with journalists Nidal Al-Wahidi and Haitham Abdel-Wahed.

IRAN REJECTS ALLEGATIONS THAT IT PLAYED A ROLE IN HAMAS ATTACKS

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejected allegations Tuesday about his country’s role in Hamas attacks against Israel, but said Iran will continue supporting Palestinians, media reported. It was the first reaction to the war by Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters in the country.

However, Khamenei said, “We defend Palestine, we defend the fights.” He praised Palestinians as “capable, smart and courageous” young Palestinians. He said the disaster for Israel came because mistakes by Israel against Palestinians.

AUSTRIA PREPARES TO EVACUATE AUSTRIAN CITIZENS

VIENNA — The Austrian government is preparing to evacuate Austrian citizens who want to leave Israel.

Chancellor Karl Nehammer said during a visit to Ankara, Turkey, that an Austrian air force transport plane will be sent to Cyprus on Wednesday and then to pick up Austrians who want to leave Israel, the Austria Press Agency reported. Once they have arrived in Cyprus, they can continue their journey on scheduled flights. The Foreign Ministry called on Austrians who want to take evacuation flights to register with the embassy in Tel Aviv.

Poland, Hungary and Romania already have flown citizens out of Israel.

THE PALESTINIAN ISLAMIC JIHAD MILITANT GROUP SAYS 2 MEMBERS WERE KILLED

BEIRUT — The Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group announced Tuesday that two of its members were killed by Israeli fire after crossing from Lebanon into Israel on Monday as part of the Hamas-led attack that started over the weekend. Funerals were set to be held in Ein el-Hilweh on Tuesday.

Islamic Jihad said in a statement that seven Israeli soldiers were wounded in Monday’s cross-border operation, while the Israeli army reported that its troops shot and killed several gunmen who crossed into the country from Lebanon. Israel also intensified shelling of southern Lebanon in response to the incident.

ROMANIA REPATRIATES HUNDREDS MORE OF ITS CITIZENS FROM ISRAEL

BUCHAREST, Romania — Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says an additional 596 Romanian citizens were repatriated from Israel overnight on four separate flights. Monday night’s repatriation comes after around 600 people were flown back to Romania over the weekend, bringing the total number to at least 1200 in the past few days after Hamas launched its unprecedented attacks against Israel.

AUSTRIA SUSPECTS 3 OF ITS DUAL CITIZENS ARE AMONG THOSE KIDNAPPED BY HAMAS

VIENNA — The Austrian government says three Austrian-Israeli dual citizens may be among the people kidnapped by Hamas during its attack on Israel.

The Foreign Ministry in Vienna said on Tuesday that the three were in southern Israel independently of each other. It said that there is no official confirmation that they were abducted and noted that the situation on the ground is still very unclear.

Several countries have said their citizens were killed or apparently abducted in the attack.

AID AGENCIES TALK TO EGYPT ABOUT WAYS TO SECURE HUMANITARIAN CORRIDORS

CAIRO — The United Nations and other aid agencies were talking with Egypt to send humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza through the Rafah crossing point between the strip and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, an Egyptian official and aid worker said Tuesday. They said Egyptian authorities have contacted Israel and the United States to secure humanitarian corridors in Gaza amid Israel’s unrelenting bombardment of the strip.

Both the official and the aid worker spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief journalists.

The efforts came as Israel sealed it off from food, fuel and other supplies to over 2 million people in Gaza in retaliation for a bloody incursion by Hamas militants.

GAZA'S PARLIAMENT AND CIVILIAN MINISTRIES ARE LEGITIMATE TARGETS, ISRAEL SAYS

In a briefing Tuesday, Israel's military spokesperson said Gaza’s parliament and civilian ministries were legitimate targets in its offensive against Hamas.

Spokesperson Richard Hecht also said that because Israel’s air force is stretched thin, there might not be the same “level of fidelity” in warning targets before strikes. Asked if Israel considered Hamas’ civil government, such as parliament and ministries, legitimate targets, Hecht said “if there’s a gunman firing rockets from there, it turns into a military target.”

Top EU officials gathered outside the European Parliament in Brussels for a solemn moment in solidarity with the victims of terror attacks in Israel.

EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola delivered a speech.

"Our presence here - outside the European Parliament - is significant. Our gathering held in the Simone Veil Agora is symbolic. Our voice is important. And our strong stand against terrorism is crucial. October 7th is a day that will go down in global infamy. The world has witnessed Jews being murdered simply because they were Jewish. Again. In Israel. We are here with the President of the European Council, the President of the European Commission, and all of you - as one - to express our solidarity, to condemn the appalling acts of terror and murder and to demand the immediate release of hostages."

Europe, she said, "stands ready to help broker resolutions, but I have said it before and it bears repeating - There is no justification for terrorism. Hamas is a terrorist organisation. They do not represent the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people. They do not offer solutions. They offer bloodshed."

"It helps to speak plainly. On October 7th Hamas murdered more than a thousand innocent babies, children, women and men and still hold close to 100 more hostage. They opened fire on hundreds of young people at a music event, killing indiscriminately - including EU nationals. They abducted young girls and boys. They took elderly Holocaust survivors and dragged them out of their homes. They paraded dead people through the streets like trophies."

"This is not a time for whataboutism. We have to be clear about what we are talking about: this is terror in its worst form."

Photo: EU Parliament

A draft bill allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to become mayors and deputy mayors has been approved by Cabinet, Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government Alison Zerafa Civelli said on Wednesday.

During a press conference held in the Parliament building, Zerafa Civelli said that the bill will be now presented in parliament for discussion.

She said that now, anyone elected with the most votes, coming from the party with the majority of votes can be elected as mayor or deputy mayor, irrespective of age. Until now, 16- and 17-year-olds could contest but could not be appointed mayors even if they are the candidates who obtain the highest number of votes.

Local Government Minister Owen Bonnici said “the proof of the pudding is in the eating”, when referring to the government’s confidence in the country’s youth, adding that Malta is set to become the first country where 16-year-olds are given the opportunity to become mayors.

“We believe that we have to continue strengthening our confidencein young people,” he said, adding that this event is going in the “the history books of this country’s democracy”.

Going on a personal note, he said that when his political career took off at the age of 20 years old, it was seen as something strange as there weren’t many his age.

“I had decided that this needs to change,” he said adding that this new draft law shall bring new ‘blood’ into politics.

The minister was also asked about the maturity level needed for a 16-year-old to administer public funds.

He said that, back in 2019, 16-year-old showed a lot of enthusiasm as they were given the right to vote. Moreover, he said that from results of the last local council elections, there were many under 18-year-olds who “got very good results”.

“I have no doubt that history is going to look back at this as a step towards the completion of democracy for this country,” he said.

Bonnici was also asked about the removal of powers from local councils, with mayors contending that councils had lost much of their autonomy in the past years.

The minister denied this and said that this is another invention by the opposition.

On the contrary, he said that the government has given more powers along the years, with the most recent one being on deciding whether to give permission for caravan placing.

Moreover he also said that the government has also given more powers thanks to the launch of the regional local council.

Gender Equality mechanism to be studied before local council elections implementation - Minister

The Gender equality mechanism needs to be studied and analysed in detail before government commits itself to implementing it in the next local council elections, he said.

Last May, the same minister announced the National Strategic Vision for Local Governments from 2023-2030 proposing the implementation of the gender equality mechanism, in efforts to ensure equality in the representation of genders in local governments.

He had also said that a study will be carried out on this, which will be concluded in time for this to be implemented for the 2024 local council elections. The strategy mentioned how this will be similar to the gender quota which was implemented in parliament where both PN and PL had to have six women MPs, however, there may be some differences to make it suitable for local governments.

Residents in Gaza are facing ever-growing uncertainty after the territory's only power plant ran out of fuel and shut down Wednesday. Israeli airstrikes further demolished entire neighborhoods and sent people scrambling to find safety. And hospitals in the Gaza Strip are struggling to treat the injured with dwindling medical supplies.

The war, which has claimed more than 2,200 lives on both sides, is expected to escalate. The weekend attack that Hamas said was retribution for worsening conditions for Palestinians under Israeli occupation has inflamed Israel’s determination to crush the group’s hold in Gaza.

The Israeli military said more than 1,200 people, including 155 soldiers, have died in Israel since Saturday’s incursion. In Gaza, the health ministry says more than 1,050 have been killed and over 5,100 injured. The United Nations Palestinian refugee agency says 250,000 people have been displaced in Gaza.

Here's what's happening on Day 5 of the latest Israel-Palestinian war:

CZECH GOVERNMENT TO EVACUATE CZECH NATIONALS FROM ISRAEL ON WEDNESDAY

PRAGUE — A Czech government plane will fly to Israel on Wednesday to evacuate Czech nationals from the country which is at war with Hamas, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said.

Fiala said other flights will follow through the end of the week, but gave no further details.

The announcement came after a plane with Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky landed in Prague early Wednesday with 34 other Czechs onboard who returned from Israel with the minister.

Lipavsky was the first foreign minister to visit Israel after Saturday’s attacks, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on X, formerly known as Twitter, after their meeting.

There are still at least 181 Czechs in Israel, Lipavsky said Wednesday.

PROMINENT MOSQUE CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO WAR CRIMES BY ISRAEL

CAIRO — Al-Azhar al-Sharif, the Sunni world’s foremost seat of religious learning, on Wednesday called for an international investigation into allegations of war crimes by Israel against civilian Palestinians in Gaza.

In a strong worded statement, the Cairo-based religious institution called for Arab and Islamic countries to take “a serious and unified position against the West’s inhuman rally” behind Israel’s attacks against “innocent Palestinian civilians.”

It said Israel’s “inhuman siege,” which included cutting off electricity and water, and preventing the delivery of food and humanitarian aid to the strip, is a “genocide and war crimes.”

The statement urged Arab and Islamic countries to quickly provide humanitarian aid and “ensure its crossing” to the Palestinians in Gaza.

BRITAIN'S FOREIGN SECRETARY ARRIVES IN ISRAEL, WILL MEET WITH SENIOR OFFICIALS

LONDON — Britain’s top diplomat has arrived in Israel to express “unwavering solidarity” with the country following the attacks by Hamas.

The government says Foreign Secretary James Cleverly will meet survivors and senior Israeli officials “to outline U.K. support for Israel’s right to defend itself.”

The U.K.’s Conservative government and the opposition Labour Party have both strongly backed Israel’s right to retaliate for the attacks that killed more than 1,200 Israelis.

The British government has said 10 or more U.K. citizens are dead or missing after the attacks on southern Israel.

AUSTRIA SAYS AUSTRIAN-ISRAELI CITIZEN DEAD, 2 OTHERS STILL MISSING

BERLIN — The Austrian government has confirmed that one of three Austrian-Israeli citizens who had been missing after Hamas’ attack on Israel, has been found dead.

The Austria foreign ministry said in a statement Wednesday that “he was a victim of the brutal large-scale attack on Israel by the terrorist organization Hamas. The family of the deceased informed us about this today.”

The Austrian government did not release the victim’s name and said that out of respect for the victims and their families, no further details would be released.

The ministry added that “we strongly condemn the barbaric terror of Hamas. Our deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends."

GAZA'S SOLE POWER PLANT RUNS OUT OF FUEL

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s only power plant ran out of fuel Wednesday afternoon, forcing it to shut down after Israel cut off supplies, the Energy Ministry said. That leaves only generators to power the territory — but they also run on fuel that is in short supply.

1 SPANIARD DIES AFTER HAMAS ATTACKS, SPANISH GOVERNMENT SAYS

MADRID — Spain’s Foreign Ministry says one of two Spaniards affected by the Hamas attacks in Israel has died.

The ministry named the woman as Spanish-Israeli citizen Maya Villalobo Sinvany. The ministry condemned the attacks and expressed its condolences to her family. It gave no further details about the woman.

Spain’s state news agency Efe and other outlets have reported that Villalobo was on military service at an Israeli miliary base at the time of the attacks.

The ministry earlier this week reported that another Spaniard was also affected in the attacks but gave no other details. Efe said the person was a Spanish man who lived in a kibbutz near the Gaza Strip.

GERMAN PARLIAMENT HOLDS MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR ISRAELI VICTIMS

BERLIN — The German government held a minute of silence for the Israeli victims of the Hamas terror attacks in parliament.

The president of parliament, Baerbel Bas, vowed Wednesday that Germany will stand univocally on the side of Israel and support the country’s right to defend itself and protect its people.

“In these dark hours, our thoughts are with the families of all the victims, with the injured and with the abducted hostages who are being abused as human shields, and with the family members and friends who fear for them. Their anguish, unimaginable to us, cannot be put into words,” Bas said.

Bas stressed that Germany will not accept any kind of anti-Israeli or antisemitic protests in Germany.

The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, who also attended the minute of silence in parliament, received long, standing ovations by Germany’s government ministers and lawmakers.

MEDIA REPORTS: 3 CIVILIANS INJURED AND 10 HOMES DAMAGED IN LEBANON BY ISRAELI SHELLING

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency says Israeli shelling of southern Lebanese villages has wounded three civilians and damaged about 10 homes.

The agency said the shelling hit the villages of Marwaheen and Duhaira.

The Israeli shelling came after the militant Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile at an Israeli army position.

CONSERVATIVE MUSLIMS IN INDONESIA PROTEST US SUPPORT OF ISRAEL

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Hundreds of conservative Muslims marched to the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy in Indonesia’s capital on Wednesday to protest the U.S.'s staunch support of Israel and to demand an end to Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip.

More than 500 pro-Palestinian protesters, many wearing white Islamic robes, gathered along a major street in Jakarta that runs outside the embassy. They chanted “God is Great” and “Save Palestinians” as they marched. Their banners and placards slammed the airstrikes in Gaza and some protesters expressed their anger by burning the U.S. and Israeli flags.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday said in a televised comments that the occupation of the Palestinian territories by Israel must be resolved and urged an end to the war.

PALESTINIAN FACTIONS IN SYRIA EXPRESS SUPPORT FOR FIGHTERS IN GAZA

DAMASCUS, Syria — Top officials from Palestinian factions based in the Syrian capital have expressed their support to fighters in Gaza saying their aim is to liberate their land.

The officials did not comment on a rocket attack late Tuesday from southern Syria that hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

There have been concerns that the heightened escalation in Gaza and southern Lebanon could escalate into Syrian territories, sparking a regional war.

The officials from factions including the "Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command said Arab Foreign ministers meeting in Cairo later Wednesday should come out with a clear stance supporting the Palestinian people.

KING OF JORDAN CALLS AGAIN FOR ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN TALKS

BEIRUT — The King of Jordan renewed calls for Israeli-Palestinian talks as the ongoing war between Gaza and Israel continues, as it threatens regional security.

“There will be no security, no peace, no stability without just and total peace that comes through a two-state solution,” King Abdullah II said in an address to Jordanian parliament Wednesday, calling for a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital based along on its pre-1967 borders.

Abdullah II Tuesday called to dispatch medical and humanitarian aid to the blockaded Gaza Strip through Egypt.

FATE OF RUSSIAN CITIZENS AND OPEN DIALOGUE WITH BOTH SIDES ARE TOP PRIORITIES, KREMLIN SAYS

MOSCOW — The Kremlin said that Russia needs to maintain a dialogue with both sides amid the Israeli-Palestinian war.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that “it’s important for us to maintain a balanced approach and remain in contact with both parties to the conflict.”

He said that Russia has “long historic ties” with both Israel and the Palestinians, adding that millions of Russians have moved to live in Israel and Moscow is concerned about their security.

“The fate of Russian citizens is our No. 1 priority,” Peskov said. “We need to maintain an equal distance — only that will give us the right to participate in a settlement process."

Peskov added that “acts that can only be described as terrorist must be undoubtedly condemned, but the roots of the situation mustn’t be forgotten.”

A PROMINENT MILITIA THREATENS TO ATTACK US BASES IF THE COUNTRY INTERVENES IN THE LATEST GAZA WAR

BAGHDAD — The leader of a prominent Iranian-backed militia in Iraq threatened Wednesday to attack American bases in retaliation if the United States intervenes in the latest war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza.

“Our missiles, drones, and special forces are ready to direct qualitative strikes at the American enemy in its bases and disrupt its interests if it intervenes in this battle,” Ahmad “Abu Hussein” al-Hamidawi, head of the Kataib Hezbollah militia, said in a statement. He also threatened to launch missiles at Israeli targets.

Al-Hamidawi called on Iraqis to demonstrate and collect donations in support of the Hamas military campaign.

9 UN STAFFERS ARE KILLED IN AIRSTRIKES IN GAZA SINCE SATURDAY

JERUSALEM — The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees told the AP on Wednesday that nine of its staffers have been killed in airstrikes since the the start of the Israeli bombardment on Gaza on Saturday, with several killed late Tuesday.

“The protection of civilians is paramount, including in times of conflict,” said Juliette Touma, director of communications of the agency, known as UNRWA. “They should be protected in accordance with the laws of war.”

Touma said the strikes killed the U.N. staffers at their homes across the territory. She also said that 18 UNRWA schools-turned-shelters were damaged in the bombing, and that its headquarters in Gaza City was also damaged, without causing casualties.

POPE FRANCIS CALLS ON HAMAS TO RELEASE HOSTAGES IMMEDIATELY

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Wednesday called for the immediate release of hostages taken by Hamas fighters in the most serious assault on Israel in half a century.

Francis said during a weekly audience that he is following events in Israel and the occupied territories with “pain and apprehension,” with “many dead and injured,’’ and said he is praying for those who saw “a day of celebration transformed into a day of mourning.”

The pope said that “whoever is attacked has the right to defend himself. But I am very worried about the total siege under which the Palestinians in Gaza are living, where there are also many innocent victims.”

GERMAN DEFENSE MINISTER OFFERS HIS ISRAELI COUNTERPART SUPPORT

BERLIN — Germany’s defense minister has offered his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Galant, support from Germany following the major attack by Hamas.

The German government made that offer also to the Israeli military attaché in Berlin, Boris Pistorius told reporters on Wednesday. “Both have said so far that they do not need support of a military or technical nature. It is about political support,” the German defense minister said, adding that Germany’s political support for Israel was self-evident.

Pistorius also said that “as soon as we can help in a humanitarian way, the offer is there, too, but so far it has not been asked for.”

RAFAH BORDER CROSSING IS STILL CLOSED, EGYPT SAYS

CAIRO — The Rafah border crossing remains closed on both sides as of Wednesday morning, according to an Egyptian security official.

The official told The Associated Press that a number of Egyptian aid convoys loaded with fuel, construction materials and food were unable to enter the Gaza Strip through Rafah on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, dozens of Palestinian families remain stranded in the Sinai city of el-Arish. No other details were immediately available. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not briefed to speak.

A plane carrying advanced armaments “designed to facilitate significant military operations” landed Tuesday evening at the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said.

“We are grateful for the US backing and assistance to the IDF, and to the State of Israel in general, during this challenging period. Our common enemies know that the cooperation between our militaries is stronger than ever, and is a key part in ensuring regional security and stability,” the IDF said in a statement.

Palestinians in the sealed-off Gaza Strip struggled to find any safe area Wednesday, as Israeli strikes demolished entire neighborhoods, hospitals ran low on supplies and the territory's only power plant ran out of fuel, deepening the misery of a war sparked by a stunning and deadly assault by Hamas militants.

Airstrikes smashed entire city blocks to rubble in the tiny coastal enclave and left unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris. The bombardment raged on even though militants are holding an estimated 150 people snatched from Israel — soldiers, men, women, children and older adults.

Israel has vowed unprecedented retaliation against the Hamas militant group ruling the Palestinian territory after its fighters stormed through the border fence Saturday and gunned down hundreds of Israelis in their homes, on the streets and at an outdoor music festival. Since then, militants have continued to fire rockets at Israel, including a heavy barrage at the southern town of Ashkelon on Wednesday.

The war, which has already claimed at least 2,200 lives on both sides, is expected to escalate — and compound the misery of people living in Gaza, where basic necessities and electricity were already in short supply.

After the attack, Israel stopped the entry of food, water, fuel and medicine into the territory — a 40-kilometer-long (25-mile) strip of land wedged among Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea that is home to 2.3 million Palestinians. The sole remaining access from Egypt was shut down Tuesday after airstrikes hit near the border crossing.

As Palestinians crowded into U.N. schools and a shrinking number of safe neighborhoods, humanitarian groups pleaded for the creation of corridors to get aid in, warning that hospitals overwhelmed with wounded people were running out of supplies.

“There is no safe place in Gaza right now,” journalist Hasan Jabar said after three Palestinian journalists were killed in the bombardment of a downtown neighborhood home to government ministries, media offices and hotels. “I am genuinely afraid for my life.”

Gaza’s only power plant ran out of fuel Wednesday afternoon, forcing it to shut down after Israel cut off supplies, the Energy Ministry said. That leaves only generators to power the territory — but they also run on fuel that is in short supply.

The U.N.’s World Health Organization said that supplies it had pre-positioned for seven hospitals have already run out amid the flood of wounded. Doctors Without Borders said surgical equipment, antibiotics, fuel and other supplies were running out at two hospitals it runs in Gaza.

In one, “we consumed three weeks worth of emergency stock in three days, partly due to 50 patients coming in at once,” Matthias Kannes, the aid group’s head of mission in Gaza, said Wednesday. He said the territory's biggest hospital, Al-Shifa, only has enough fuel for three days.

Israel has mobilized 360,000 reservists and appears increasingly likely to launch a ground offensive into Gaza, with its government under intense public pressure to topple Hamas, which has ruled the territory since 2007 and remained firmly in control through four previous wars.

That would likely require a prolonged ground assault and reoccupying Gaza, at least temporarily. Even then, Hamas has a long history of operating as an underground insurgency in areas controlled by Israel.

“We will not allow a reality in which Israeli children are murdered,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a meeting with soldiers near the southern border on Tuesday. “I have removed every restriction — we will eliminate anyone who fights us, and use every measure at our disposal.”

Israeli airstrikes late Tuesday struck the family house of Mohammed Deif, the shadowy leader of Hamas’ military wing, killing his father, brother and at least two other relatives in the southern town of Khan Younis, senior Hamas official Bassem Naim told The Associated Press.

Deif has never been seen in public and his whereabouts are unknown.

Exchanges of fire over Israel’s northern borders with militants in Lebanon and Syria, meanwhile, pointed to the risk of an expanded regional conflict.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday warned other countries and armed groups against entering the war. The U.S. is already rushing munitions and military equipment to Israel and has deployed a carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean as deterrence.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at an Israeli military position and claimed to have killed and wounded troops. The Israeli military confirmed the attack but did not comment on possible casualties. The Israeli army shelled the area in southern Lebanon where the attack was launched.

In a new tactic, Israel is warning civilians to evacuate whole neighborhoods —rather than just individual buildings — then inflicting devastation, in what could be a prelude to a ground offensive.

“The objective is for this war to end very differently from all of the previous rounds. There has to be a clear victory,” said Chuck Freilich, a former deputy national security adviser in Israel. “Whatever has to be done to fundamentally change the situation will have to be done.”

Hamas officials have said they planned for all possibilities, including punishing Israeli escalation. Desperation has grown among Palestinians, many of whom see nothing to lose under unending Israeli military occupation and increasing settlements in the West Bank, a 16-year-long blockade in Gaza and what they see as the world’s apathy.

The Hamas-run Interior Ministry said Israeli airstrikes destroyed the entire al-Karama neighborhood in Gaza City, with a “large number” of people killed or wounded. It said medical teams were unable to reach the area because all roads to it were destroyed. Rescue officials say they have struggled to enter other areas as well.

In another neighborhood on Tuesday, Palestinian Civil Defense forces pulled Abdullah Musleh out of his basement together with 30 others after their apartment building was flattened.

“I sell toys, not missiles,’’ the 46-year-old said, weeping. “I want to leave Gaza. Why do I have to stay here? I lost my home and my job.”

On Wednesday, an AP reporter witnessed waves of rockets rain down on Ashkelon, with shrapnel slamming into the street and Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepting at least one overhead. Residents screamed and wept as they heard the explosions.

On Tuesday night, a group of militants entered an industrial zone in Ashkelon, sparking a gunbattle with Israeli troops, the military said. Three militants were killed, and troops were searching the area for others.

The Israeli military said more than 1,200 people, including 155 soldiers, have been killed in Israel, a staggering toll unseen since the 1973 war with Egypt and Syria that lasted weeks. In Gaza, 1,055 people have been killed, according to authorities there; Israel says hundreds of Hamas fighters are among them. Thousands have been wounded on both sides.

The bodies of roughly 1,500 Hamas militants were found on Israeli territory, the military said. It wasn’t clear whether those numbers overlapped with deaths reported by Palestinian authorities.

Days of clashes between rock-throwing Palestinians and Israeli forces in the West Bank have left 15 Palestinians dead. The violence also spread into east Jerusalem, where Israeli police said they killed two Palestinians who hurled stones at police late Tuesday.

In Gaza, more than 250,000 people have fled their homes, the U.N. said, the most since a 2014 air and ground offensive by Israel uprooted about 400,000. The vast majority are sheltering in schools run by the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees. Damage to three water and sanitation sites have cut off services to 400,000 people, the U.N. said.

Tens of thousands of people in southern Israel have been evacuated since Sunday.

A vernacular farmhouse in Gozo is set to be saved from partial demolition after a decision by a Planning board, the Times of Malta reports.

The PA's executive council told the applicant to submit fresh re-zoning plans.

The building in Victoria, which is known as the Razzett ta' San Ġużepp, was going to be partially removed to make way for a road, however the PA's executive council has proposed that the alley near the farmhouse be upgraded to allow pedestrian access instead, and that a road on the other side of the site proposed for rezoning will be rebuilt, the report read.

The applicant was asked to publish new plans to this effect, the report read.

Israeli warplanes pounded downtown Gaza City, home to Hamas' centers of government, with relentless bombardments into early Tuesday, after Israel’s prime minister vowed retaliation against the Islamic militant group that would “reverberate for generations.”

The 4-day-old war has already claimed at least 1,600 lives, as Israel saw gun battles in the streets of its own towns for the first time in decades and neighborhoods in Gaza were reduced to rubble. Hamas also escalated the conflict, pledging to kill captured Israelis if strikes targeted civilians without warning.

Israel said that Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza are holding more than 150 soldiers and civilians snatched from inside Israel after the attack caught its vaunted military and intelligence apparatus completely off guard.

The Israeli military said it had largely gained control in the south and “restored full control” over the border. Spokesperson Richard Hecht said no Hamas fighters have crossed into Israel since last night, although infiltrations could still be possible.

As the Israeli military activated 300,000 reservists in a massive mobilization, a major question was whether it will launch a ground assault into the tiny Mediterranean coastal territory. The last ground assault was in 2014.

Thousands of Israelis were evacuated from more than a dozen towns near Gaza, and tanks and drones were deployed to guard breaches in the Gaza border fence against new incursions. In Gaza, tens of thousands fled their homes as airstrikes leveled buildings.

The moves, along with Israel’s formal declaration of war on Sunday, pointed to Israel increasingly shifting to the offensive against Hamas, threatening greater destruction in the densely populated, impoverished Gaza Strip.

“We have only started striking Hamas,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a nationally televised address. “What we will do to our enemies in the coming days will reverberate with them for generations.”

The Israeli military said it struck hundreds of Hamas targets in Gaza’s City Rimal neighborhood, which is home to Hamas’ ministries and governing buildings, overnight.

Hecht said Gazans were being told to evacuate “over social media” before strikes, but did not give details.

On Monday, Israel found more bodies from Hamas’ stunning weekend attack into southern Israeli towns. Rescue workers found 100 bodies in the tiny farming community of Be’eri — around 10% of its population — after a long hostage standoff with gunmen.

The Israeli military said more than 900 people already have been killed in Israel. In Gaza and the West Bank, 704 people have been killed, according to authorities there; Israel says hundreds of Hamas fighters are among them. Thousands have been wounded on both sides.

In response to Israel's aerial attacks, the spokesman of Hamas' armed wing, Abu Obeida, said Monday night that the group will kill one Israeli civilian captive any time Israel targets civilians in their homes in Gaza “without prior warning.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen warned Hamas against harming any of the hostages, saying, “This war crime will not be forgiven.” Netanyahu appointed a former military commander to manage the hostage and missing persons crisis.

Israel and Hamas have had repeated conflicts in past years, often sparked by tensions around a Jerusalem holy site. This time, the context has become potentially more explosive. Both sides talk of shattering with violence a yearslong Israeli-Palestinian deadlock left by the moribund peace process.

The surprise weekend attack by Hamas left a death toll unseen since the 1973 war with Egypt and Syria. That fomented calls to crush Hamas no matter the cost, rather than continuing to try to bottle it up in Gaza. Israel is run by its most hard-right government ever, dominated by ministers who adamantly reject Palestinian statehood.

Hamas, in turn, says it is ready for a long battle to end an Israeli occupation it says is no longer tolerable. Desperation has grown among Palestinians, many of whom see nothing to lose under unending Israeli control and increasing settler depredations in the West Bank, the blockade in Gaza and what they see as the world’s apathy.

Attacks by both sides created more scenes of devastation Monday. In Israel's southern coastal city of Ashkelon, a man holding a crutch with one hand and an older boy with the other joined evacuees being shepherded from a street after a rocket blew out the front of a house.

In Gaza, Palestinians passed the bodies of the dead through dense crowds of men in the rubble in the Jebaliya refugee camp.

Early Monday evening, the sound of explosions echoed over Jerusalem when a volley of rockets fired from Gaza hit two neighborhoods — a sign of Hamas’s reach. Israeli media said seven were wounded.

Israeli warplanes carried out an intense bombardment of Rimal, a residential and commercial district of central Gaza City, after issuing warnings for residents to evacuate. Amid continuous explosions, the building housing the headquarters of the Palestinian Telecommunications Company was destroyed.

Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have razed 790 housing units and severely damaged 5,330, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said early Tuesday. Damage to three water and sanitation sites have cut off services to 400,000.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered a “complete siege” on Gaza, saying authorities would cut electricity and block the entry of food and fuel.

Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council aid group, warned that Israel’s siege would spell “utter disaster” for Gazans.

“There is no doubt that collective punishment is in violation of international law,” he told The Associated Press. “If and when it would lead to wounded children dying in hospitals because of lack of energy, electricity and supplies, it could amount to war crimes.”

The Israeli siege will leave Gaza almost entirely dependent on its crossing into neighboring Egypt at Rafah, where cargo capacities are lower than other crossings into Israel.

An Egyptian military official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the press, said more than 2 tons of medical supplies from the Egyptian Red Crescent were sent to Gaza and efforts were underway to organize food and other deliveries.

Tens of thousands of Gaza residents continued to flee. The U.N. said Tuesday that more than 187,000 of Gaza's 2.3 million people have left their homes — the most since a 2014 air and ground offensive by Israel uprooted about 400,000.

UNRWA, the U.N. agencies for Palestinian refugees, is sheltering more than 137,000 people in schools across the territory. Families have taken in some 41,000 others.

In the southern Gaza city of Rafah, an Israeli airstrike early Monday killed 19 people, including women and children, said Talat Barhoum, a doctor at the local Al-Najjar Hospital.

Hundreds of Hamas militants were buried under rubble of buildings destroyed by Israel in the past 48 hours, according to Israeli Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari. His claims could not be confirmed.

New exchanges on Israel’s northern border Monday raised worries that the war could spread to a new front.

Palestinian militants from the Islamic Jihad group slipped from Lebanon into Israel, sparking Israeli shelling into southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group said five of its members were killed, and it retaliated with a volley of rockets and mortars at two Israeli army bases across the border.

After breaking through Israeli barriers with explosives at daybreak Saturday, an estimated 1,000 Hamas gunmen rampaged for hours, gunning down civilians and snatching people in towns, along highways and at a techno music festival attended by thousands in the desert. Palestinian militants have also launched around 4,400 rockets at Israel, according to the military.

Hamas spokesman Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua told the AP that the group’s fighters continued to battle outside Gaza and had captured more Israelis as recently as Monday morning.

He said the group aims to free all Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, which in the past has agreed to lopsided exchange deals in which it released large numbers of prisoners for individual captives or even the remains of soldiers.

Among the captives are soldiers and civilians, including women, children and older adults, mostly Israelis but also some people of other nationalities.

Hamas has ruled Gaza since driving out forces loyal to the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority in 2007, and its rule has gone unchallenged through the blockade and four previous wars with Israel.

Meanwhile in the West Bank, Palestinians entered a fourth day under severe movement restrictions. Israeli authorities have sealed off crossings to the occupied territory and closed checkpoints, blocking movement between cities and towns. Clashes between rock-throwing Palestinians and Israeli forces in the territory since the start of the incursion have left 15 Palestinians dead, according to the U.N.