WORLD BRIEFING: December 15, 2023
Israel - Hamas War
The bodies of three Israeli hostages have been recovered including two Israeli soldiers, Nik Beizer and Ron Scherman who were taken by Hamas on 7 October
US National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, will meet the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, in the West Bank later today. Speaking in Israel this morning, Sullivan said the US wants to see results on Israel's intent to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza, but added "the United States stands with Israel" - BBC
The intense bombardment of Gaza continues with reports of dead and wounded including children in the southern Strip. Israeli forces say they have wiped out a Hamas base in northern Gaza, the HQ of the group's Shejaya Battalion - BBC
The pace is astonishing: In the wake of the brutal attacks by Hamas-led militants on October 7, Israeli forces have struck more than 22,000 targets inside Gaza, a small strip of land along the Mediterranean coast. Just since the temporary truce broke down on December 1, Israel's Air Force has hit more than 3,500 sites. The Israeli military says it's using artificial intelligence to select many of these targets in real-time. The military claims that the AI system, named "the Gospel," has helped it to rapidly identify enemy combatants and equipment, while reducing civilian casualties. But critics warn the system is unproven at best — and at worst, providing a technological justification for the killing of thousands of Palestinian civilians - NPR
Ukraine War
President Volodymyr Zelensky returned to Ukraine on Friday from a flurry of diplomatic meetings without major aid packages from the United States and Europe. Political infighting in Washington and the European Union have blocked further aid to Ukraine. Early on Friday, E.U. leaders conceded they would not be able to pass a multiyear, 50-billion-euro, or $54.5 billion, aid package over the objections of Hungary. Ukraine relies on foreign aid for about half of its federal budget and most of the ammunition and weaponry sustaining its army, meaning any substantial delays in Western support could imperil the country’s ability to fight off Russia. Key decisions on aid next year by the United States and European Union, Ukraine’s two largest military and financial backers, may now be pushed back until January, even as Kyiv’s forces remain stalled on the battlefield - NYT
A Russian drone fell in Romania during an attack on the Ukrainian civilian ports of Odesa last night, according to the Romanian Ministry of Defense. During the Russian attack on the border areas of Ukraine next to Romania, F-16 planes had to take to the air, and the Eurofighter Typhoon jets of the German Air Force, which are now helping to protect this flank of NATO, also came to their aid. Radars detected at least one russian drone entering Romania's national airspace while flying at low altitude in Tulcea County, which borders Ukraine's Izmail. In the morning, search teams discovered a 1.5-meter-deep crater in this area, formed "as a result of an uncontrolled fall of the drone." The drone fell in an unpopulated area about 4 km upstream from the city of Grindu, which is not far from the Ukrainian city of Reni.
Austria is seeking to have Raiffeisen Bank International, the biggest Western bank in Russia, struck off a Ukrainian blacklist in return for signing off fresh European Union sanctions on Russia, said two people familiar with the situation. Austria and the bank wants it to be taken off a Ukrainian list dubbed "international sponsors of war" - which sets out to shame companies doing business in Russia and supporting the war effort by, for instance, paying taxes - Reuters
Elsewhere
A binder containing highly classified information related to Russian election interference in 2016 went missing at the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, raising alarms among intelligence officials - CNN
Dozens of migrants crossed into Finland on Friday, hours before the reclosure of two southern crossing points on the border with Russia as the Nordic country experiences an influx of asylum-seekers. The Vaalimaa and Niirala crossings had reopened briefly Thursday after being shut down at the end of last month, along with Finland’s six other posts on the border with Russia. Finland blames Moscow for sending migrants to the border in an effort to destabilize the country, which joined NATO in April. Russia denies the accusation - AP
A metro train collision in Beijing sent hundreds of commuters to the hospital on Thursday. The collision occurred during the evening rush hour on the Changping subway line extending to the northwest of the Chinese capital. A preliminary investigation found the collision was caused by a brake system malfunction and adverse weather conditions - CNN