Harris is to meet with Israeli Cabinet official who is in Washington despite Netanyahu's rebuke

Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday is hosting a member of Israel's wartime Cabinet who is visiting Washington in defiance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

A fertilizer-laden cargo ship, which sank in the Gulf of Aden after it was damaged by missiles from Yemen's Houthi rebels, poses an environmental risk, the U.S. military warned.

The Houthis claimed the February 18 attack against the Rubymar, a cargo ship flying a Belizean flag and operated by a Lebanese firm, which transported combustible fertilizers.

The Israeli military has said AI helps it more accurately target militants in its five-month war against Hamas, but as Gaza deaths rise, experts are questioning how effective algorithms can really be.

Egypt was Sunday set to host the latest talks aiming for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas as Gaza officials reported more deadly bombardment in the nearly five-month-old war.

A senior Hamas official told AFP that a delegation from the Palestinian group would discuss with mediators a proposal for a six-week truce, after a U.S. official said Israel had "more or less accepted" its terms.

Israel has essentially endorsed a framework of a proposed Gaza cease-fire and hostage release deal, and it is now up to Hamas to agree to it, a senior U.S. administration official said Saturday, a day before talks to reach an agreement were to resume in Egypt.

International mediators have been working for weeks to broker a deal to pause the fighting before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins around March 10. A deal would likely allow aid to reach hundreds of thousands of desperate Palestinians in northern Gaza who aid officials worry are under threat of famine.

Nabela thought the United Nations school in Gaza City was a safe haven. Then, the Israeli army arrived.

Soldiers stormed the place, ordering men to undress and hauling women to a mosque for strip searches, she said. So began six weeks in Israeli custody that she says included repeated beatings and interrogations.

U.S. forces struck and destroyed a Houthi surface-to-air missile in Yemen after deciding it posed an "imminent threat" to American aircraft, the U.S. Central Command in the Middle East announced.

U.S. President Joe Biden said earlier this week that a cease-fire deal could be reached by Monday. But on Friday evening, he said he still held hope a deal can be struck, but possibly before Muslims around the globe begin observing the holy month of Ramadan that is expected to begin March 10.

“I’m still hoping so,” Biden said. “We’re still working real hard at it. We’re not there yet.”

The European Commission announced Friday it was clearing a 50-million-euro ($54 million) payment to the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA, which was under review following Israeli claims its staff participated in Hamas's October 7 attack.

Commission spokesman Eric Mamer told reporters the funds would be released "early next week" after UNRWA agreed to a "series of conditions" including an EU-led audit, with a further 32 million euros to follow later.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Friday the wartime death toll had reached 30,228 after 193 new fatalities were recorded in the previous 24 hours.

The ministry also said 920 injuries were tallied in the same period in the besieged territory, bringing the total wounded from Israel's nearly five-month-old war against Hamas to 71,377.