The IDF has announced the resumption of the ground invasion of Gaza, effectively bringing a complete breakdown to the ceasefire agreement made a few months ago. Following similar orders issued for Rafah yesterday, the IDF ordered the evacuation of the Palestinian cities of Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya, and some areas of Sheikh Zayed, al-Manshiya, and Tal al-Zaatar. These areas are found in the northeastern corner of Gaza near the Jabaliyah refugee camp. Residents have been advised to take shelter in Gaza City, south of Jabaliya.

Now, four weeks into the Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid reaching Gaza, Al Jazeera reported that several Palestinian bakeries providing food provisions for Palestinian refugees, including those run by international aid organizations such as the World Food Program, have been forced to close over the past few days. The Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid is likely a strategy aimed at sewing public discontent among the populace, thus forcing Hamas into a disadvantageous stance in negotiations. However, this is a war crime and a crime of genocide under international law.

OCHA reported the recovery of 15 bodies of humanitarians killed by Israeli forces in Gaza and the crushed remains of their clearly marked UN vehicles. Among the medical aid workers killed were eight from the Palestinian Red Crescent, six from the Palestinian Civil Defense, and one from the UN agency administering Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. The remains of these individuals were buried in a mass grave in Gaza. Deliberate attacks on medics and humanitarian workers constitute yet another war crime under international law. According to the Red Crescent, the medics were killed while on their way into al-Hashaashin in Rafah following an aerial bombardment when they were killed by Israeli fire. Ambulance operative Assad al-Nassasra was not identified among the dead found in the mass grave and is still missing.

Following the Israeli strike on southern Beirut, Lebanese Hezbollah MP Ibrahim Musawi stood outside the scene of the attack and told journalists that the government must “act with the highest level of effectiveness, make the international community bear its responsibility, and take the highest level of measures to guarantee the safety of the Lebanese.”

There has been confirmation that Hassan Ali Mahmoud Badir, the target of Israel’s trike on Dahieh, was killed on the scene. He was a member of the Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force and a member of Hezbollah’s Unit 3900, where he coordinated strategy between Hezbollah’s military branch and Palestinian organizations within the Axis of Resistance, most notably Hamas. Three other individuals were also killed, including a woman and Badir’s son, who was also a member of Hezbollah.

According to Western intelligence, Türkiye seeks to become the main provider of the Syrian interim government’s air defense. They aim to establish the T4 Air Base in Homs province as a drone facility. A Hisar air defense system is scheduled to be delivered to the base. Turkish media have reported that construction plans for the base have been drawn up to assist in this endeavor. Syria’s aerial capabilities are severely limited, and during the civil war, the Assad regime was highly reliant on Russian forces in this regard. However, HTS has historically been opposed to the Russian military presence in Syria and now has strained relations following the fall of the previous regime. The American-led Operation Inherent Resolve Coalition forces have retained aerial supremacy over a large section of Syria but are confined mainly to the country's east and northeast and are not apparently seeking to become a security guarantor for the new government.

Israeli national security officials are strongly opposed to this development, as since the ascension of the new government to power in Damascus, they have conducted regular strikes targeting the remnants of the Syrian Arab Army, its allies, and the weapons stockpiles they left behind. Having a regional power such as Türkiye, which is generally opposed to Israeli military intervention throughout the region and a strong supporter of the new Syrian government, provide for the air defense of Syria would be a significant constraint on the IDF’s operational capabilities. Israel has hit the T4 Air Base multiple times recently in opposition to this development.

Syria’s Ministry of Energy announced a power grid failure tonight due to a “technical fault in the electrical system,” contradicting fears that it was due to an airstrike. Electrical engineers are currently trying to resolve the issue, but the country is experiencing a nationwide power outage.

During celebrations of Akitu — the Assyrian celebration of the new year — in Dohuk, an assailant wielding an axe assaulted and injured three people. The perpetrator was tackled by attendees and taken into custody. Officials confirmed preliminary suspicions that the assailant was a member of ISIS, who committed genocidal atrocities against the Christian Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac community in northern Iraq beginning in 2014. In response to the attack, the Democratic Assyrian Movement called for the government to pass a law banning hate speech in the country and prevent the dissemination of exclusionist ideologies that perpetuate such violence.

The US escalated its offensive on the Yemeni Houthis today with an attack on al-Mansouriyah in Hodeidah province. It comes after the Houthis escalated their attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The American strikes killed four people. Washington has also announced the deployment of a second aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson, to the Middle East, largely in light of recent developments in Yemen.