The United States national security adviser and the Palestinian president were set Friday to discuss postwar arrangements for Gaza — which, according to a senior U.S. official, could include reactivating Palestinian security forces driven out by Hamas in its 2007 takeover of the territory.

The proposal, floated as one of several, was the first specific indicator of Washington's vision for security arrangements in Gaza if Israel achieves its U.S.-backed objective to end Hamas control of the besieged enclave.

A missile fired from territory controlled by Houthi rebels in Yemen missed a container ship traveling through the crucial Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Thursday, a U.S. defense official said, the latest attack threatening shipping in the crucial maritime chokepoint.

The attack saw the missile splash harmlessly in the water near the Maersk Gibraltar, a Hong Kong-flagged container ship that had been traveling from Salalah, Oman, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the official said.

Ireland's prime minister Leo Varadkar said on Thursday that the European Union is losing its credibility because of a lack of a strong position in the war between Israel and Hamas, urging his counterparts to call for a humanitarian cease-fire.

Speaking at the start of a EU summit in Brussels focusing more on Ukraine, Varadkar said the EU should condemn "terrorism perpetrated by Hamas," but also call for justice for the Palestinian people.

As the United Nations COP28 climate summit ended Wednesday, Sultan al-Jaber walked out with what the United Arab Emirates wanted all along — the prestige of hosting negotiations that got the world to agree to transition away from fossil fuels while still being able to pump ever-more oil.

That left some wanting much more from the two weeks of talks, even as many praised its historic accord. But it no longer will matter to the state oil company chief executive and renewable energy advocate who embodies many of the traits that have propelled this young nation into the global spotlight.

A wartime opinion poll among Palestinians has showed a rise in support for Hamas, which appears to have ticked up even in the devastated Gaza Strip, and an overwhelming rejection of Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas, with nearly 90% saying he must resign.

The findings by a Palestinian pollster signal more difficulties ahead for the Biden administration's postwar vision for Gaza and raise questions about Israel's stated goal of ending Hamas' military and governing capabilities.

The spike in attacks claimed by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea is dangerously increasing tensions in a bottleneck for international maritime trade and fuelling fears of an uncontrolled regional spillover of Yemen's longstanding conflict.

Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza, Yemen's Houthi rebels have threatened to attack any ship heading to Israeli ports and stepped up their raids.

Israel bombed Gaza on Thursday as a top White House advisor was due to arrive in Jerusalem with a rift growing over U.S. calls for its ally to exercise restraint.

The war, now in its third month, began after the October 7 attacks on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas that Israeli officials say killed 1,200 people.

Iraq's parliament postponed until further notice its planned vote for a new speaker on Wednesday, local media reported, with MPs focused on local elections.

The previous speaker, influential Sunni politician Mohamed al-Halbussi, was dismissed last month after accusations of forgery in an arcane dispute with another member of parliament.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday backed imposing sanctions on "extremist" Israeli settlers responsible for attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank.

"I am in favour of sanctioning those involved in the attacks in the West Bank. They must be held accountable. This violence has nothing to do with the fight against Hamas and must stop," the European Commission president told EU lawmakers.

Palestinian militants ambushed Israeli troops in a dense Gaza City neighborhood, killing at least nine of them, media reported Wednesday, as Hamas put up stiff resistance in areas that Israel has isolated and pounded with airstrikes for over nine weeks.

The air and ground offensive has resulted in the deaths of over 18,400 Palestinians, mostly civilians, since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that triggered the war. Nearly 85% of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have been forced to flee their homes, and much of the territory's north resembles a moonscape.