Israel finds the remains of a presumed hostage as the US pushes a cease-fire plan

US President Joe Biden said Friday that Israel has offered Hamas a three-phase cease-fire and hostage release deal, declaring it was time to end the fighting in Gaza and that Hamas is “no longer capable” of carrying out another large-scale attack on Israel.

Israel is expanding its offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, once the main hub of humanitarian aid operations. The Israeli invasion has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and other supplies to Palestinians facing widespread hunger. Israel faces growing international criticism over the huge cost in civilian lives and the widespread destruction caused by its nearly 8-month war with Hamas.

Israeli bombardments and ground operations in the besieged territory have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Israel launched its war in Gaza after Hamas’ October 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people

— mostly civilians

— and abducted about 250.

Israel says around 100 hostages are still captive in Gaza, along with the bodies of around 30 more.

Currently:

— Israeli leader Netanyahu faces growing pressure at home after Biden’s Gaza proposal

— Israel seeks a ‘ governing alternative ’ to Hamas in Gaza. It’s been tried and failed before

— Israel maintains a shadowy hospital in the desert for Gaza detainees. Critics allege mistreatment

— Two Lebanese shepherds killed amid ongoing escalation along Lebanon-Israel border

— Maldives will ban Israelis from entering the country over the war in Gaza

— Condemnations mount over Israeli proposal to label UN aid agency a terrorist group

— Ultra-Orthodox protesters block Jerusalem roads ahead of Israeli court decision on draft exemptions

— Parade for Israel in NYC focuses on solidarity this year as Gaza war casts a grim shadow

— Michael Douglas pays solidarity visit to southern Israel

Israeli military reports shooting down missile over red sea

The Israeli military says it shot down a surface-to-surface missile fired toward southern Israel from the Red Sea.

There were no reports of casualties or damage in Monday’s incident, which set off air raid sirens in the southernmost Israeli city of Eilat. The military did not specify the missile’s origin, but it was likely fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have claimed several drone and missile strikes on Israel in recent months.

Nearly all the projectiles have been intercepted. The Iran-backed Houthis have also repeatedly attacked international shipping in the Red Sea, portraying their actions as a blockade of Israel in support of the Palestinians. But most of the ships that have been targeted have no known ties to Israel.