Israel launched airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday (Mar. 18) that killed more than 400 Palestinians, shattering a ceasefire in place since January. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the strikes after Hamas refused Israeli demands to free half of the remaining hostages as a precondition for extending the ceasefire. Israel's deadliest bombardment in its 17-month assault on the territory killed mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Netanyahu said the attack was "only the beginning" and that Israel would press ahead until it achieves all of its war aims - destroying Hamas and freeing all hostages held by the militant group. The White House said it had been consulted and voiced support for Israel's actions. The new campaign comes as aid groups warn supplies are running out two weeks after Israel cut off all food, medicine, fuel and other goods to Gaza's 2 million Palestinians.

The US launched what it called a "decisive and powerful" wave of air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on Saturday (Mar. 15), as part of efforts to stop Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Washington said some key Houthi figures are among the dead, but the group has not confirmed this. US President Donald Trump said he ordered the series of airstrikes, promising to use "overwhelming lethal force" until the Iran-backed rebels cease their attacks on shipping along a vital maritime corridor.

He also warned Iran to stop supporting the rebel group, promising to hold the country "fully accountable" for the actions of its proxy. It comes two weeks after the U.S. leader sent a letter to Iranian leaders offering a path to restarting bilateral talks between the countries on Iran's advancing nuclear program. Updating an earlier death toll, Houthi health ministry spokesperson Anis al-Asbahi posted on X that 53 people had been killed including "five children and two women."

The European Union launched a push to buy more weapons in the bloc and from allied countries, rather than from the US. The UK, US and Turkey will be excluded from defence contracts funded by a €150bn (£125bn) EU loans programme, unless they sign a security and defence partnership agreement with the EU. The €150bn loans scheme will be open to EU member states as part of a massive surge in defence spending, but 65% of the costs of equipment funded must come from suppliers in the EU, Norway or Ukraine.

The rest could be spent in non-EU countries with a security agreement. The details came as the European Commission said Russia would remain "a fundamental threat to Europe's security for the foreseeable future". The EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters that the EU was preparing for the worst: "We don't have a cold war, but we have a hot war on European soil, and the threat is existential. It's as real as it can get."

The Malaysian cabinet approved a fresh search for the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, more than a decade after the aircraft vanished. The search will cover a 15,000 sq km area in the southern Indian Ocean, under a "no find, no fee" agreement with the exploration firm Ocean Infinity. The company will receive $70m (£56m) if the wreckage is found, transport minister Loke Siew Fook announced.

Flight MH370 disappeared in 2014 with 239 people on board while travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Its disappearance is one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries, which continues to haunt the families of the passengers. Despite extensive searches in the years since it vanished, no wreckage has been found. The governments of the three nations involved - Malaysia, Australia and China - said the search would only be resumed "should credible new evidence emerge" of the aircraft's location.