Israel-Gaza war live updates: Pakistan says it struck targets in Iran; U.S. hits Houthi sites in Yemen

Qatar said a shipment of medicine and aid had entered Gaza as part of a deal, brokered by Qatar and France, under which Hamas would allow medicine to be transferred to Israeli hostages in exchange for aid to civilians in Gaza. Two Qatari Armed Forces planes carrying more than 60 tons of assistance including food and medicines were inside Gaza by Wednesday evening, according to the Qatar Foreign Ministry.

Gaza remained under a telecommunications blackout on Wednesday night after the fifth consecutive day with almost no internet or phone access in the Strip, according to watchdog group NetBlocks. The blackout “prevents people in Gaza from accessing lifesaving information or calling for first responders, and impedes other forms of humanitarian response,” the U.N. humanitarian affairs office said Wednesday night.

Only one of three water pipelines from Israel into Gaza is working after the Deir al-Balah pipeline stopped functioning, the U.N. humanitarian affairs office said. Repairs could take up to four weeks, “even if sustained access and the necessary supplies are allowed,” it said.

At least 24,448 people have been killed in Gaza and 61,504 wounded since the war began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Israel estimates that about 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.