Palestinian hospital officials said Israeli airstrikes on the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip killed at least five people. More than half of the territory’s population of 2.3 million have sought refuge in Rafah. Israel has conducted near-daily raids there as it prepares for an offensive in the city. Four people were killed in Israeli tank shelling in central Gaza. Officials said that a ship traveling in the Gulf of Aden came under attack Thursday. It was the latest assault likely carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels over the Israel-Hamas war.

Iran's state news agency says the country's air defense batteries have fired after reports of explosions near a major air base at the city of Isfahan. It remains unclear if the country is under attack, but tensions remain high after Iran’s unprecedented missile-and-drone attack on Israel. Israel has vowed to respond to Iran’s unprecedented weekend attack, leaving the region bracing for further escalation after months of fighting in Gaza. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Friday's action in Iran. On Thursday, the U.S. vetoed a widely backed U.N. resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for a state of Palestine. The U.S. and Britain also announced new sanctions on Iran.