An Israeli strike killed at least four people in northern Gaza, including two children, hospital officials said Thursday. The Israeli military said the attack killed a militant. Separately, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels entered Yemen’s strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha, according to several residents, which could bring the rebels closer to targeting shipping through a critical waterway to the Red Sea. Here’s a look at the latest news in the Middle East. Full coverage can be found here. 2 children are killed in a Gaza strike Two children were among the dead after Israel carried out a new strike in the northern Gaza community of Beit Lahiya, according to Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were taken. The strike killed a husband and wife, alongside their two daughters, aged 8 and 12. “There is nothing that can justify Israel attacking this home,” said Zuheir al-Heisami, a neighbour of the family, at the hospital. He said the strike happened at around 2 a.m. “These were two children and their parents that were killed while they were asleep.” The Israeli military in a statement said the strike in Beit Lahiya “eliminated” a militant who had taken part in attacks against its forces. It did not give details. Israel’s military in the past has said it carries out strikes in response to threats against its forces under the fragile ceasefire that has been in place since October. Yemen’s Houthi rebels take key port city, officials say The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Thursday took over Yemen’s port city of Mokha, Houthi and Yemeni officials said. Mokha is about 80 kilometres (50 miles) from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic waterway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden through which about 12 per cent of the world’s oil and other goods are shipped. The Bab el-Mandeb has become even more important for global energy supplies since shipping through the nearby Strait of Hormuz was disrupted by Iran after it was attacked by the United States and Israel in February. The Houthis’ takeover of Mokha was confirmed to The Associated Press by Ahmed Baash, a commander with the National Resistance Forces allied with Yemen’s government, and Hazam al-Assad, a member of the Houthis’ political bureau. Algeria says it’s ending diplomatic ties with the UAE Algeria’s government announced on Thursday that it’s severing diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates. An Algerian Foreign Ministry statement read on state television gave no specific reason for the decision, but cited alleged “provocative and hostile actions” by the Gulf Arab state and “regrettable and unjustified behavior.” Israel threatens strikes on Iran’s energy facilities if attacked Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Iran of a “powerful response” if Israel is attacked, saying it would “inflict severe damage on Iran of a kind it has not yet suffered, including on its central energy facilities.” Katz’ video statement came after Iran launched missiles at U.S. targets in Israel’s eastern neighbor of Jordan earlier this week in response to U.S. strikes on Iranian oil tankers.
