Mid East update

The Israeli defence minister has suggested that Israel would keep security control of Gaza after Hamas has been defeated with an undefined, Israeli-guided Palestinian body running day to day administration and the US, European Union and regional partners taking responsibility for the reconstruction of the territory.

 Axios -  As the fighting in Gaza continues to intensify, the U.S. is increasingly becoming more involved, militarily and diplomatically, in three other hotspots in the Middle East — with fears growing that rising tensions could spiral into a much bigger war. One of the Biden administration's main goals since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack has been to prevent fighting in Gaza from spilling over to other parts of the region. As time passes, that's tougher.

Three theaters to watch:

1. Iraq and Syria: Since Oct. 7, there have been more than 100 attacks by pro-Iranian militias against U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq, with the U.S. conducting several strikes in retaliation.

• The most recent took place in Baghdad yesterday, when the U.S. killed a leader of the Shiite militia Harakat al-Nujaba and one of his aides in an air strike.
• The Pentagon says the militia leader was involved in planning and conducting attacks against U.S. forces.
• This was the most significant U.S. air strike since Oct. 7 — both because it was done in the Iraqi capital and because the target was a senior figure in Iraq. The strike increased tensions between the Biden administration and the Iraqi government, which denounced the U.S. attack.

2. Houthis and the Red Sea: Tensions are also rising in the Red Sea, where Yemen's Houthi rebels have attacked more than 25 commercial ships and U.S. Navy vessels since November, according to the Pentagon.

• U.S. officials said the Biden administration has been considering taking military action against the Houthis for several weeks, but President Biden has been hesitant. That's partly because of concerns it could drag the U.S. further into the crisis militarily, and fears it could hurt the Yemen peace process.
• Instead, the administration has focused on building an international coalition of countries and a multinational naval task force aimed at trying to deter the Houthis. But the situation has continued to deteriorate.

3. Hezbollah and Lebanon: Tensions between Hezbollah and Israel along the Lebanon-Israel border continue to escalate, despite U.S. efforts to contain the situation. The assassination by Israel of senior Hamas official Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut earlier this week has heightened concerns even more.