Gaza’s vital Rafah crossing remains closed after Israeli forces seized it the day before. Associated Press journalists heard sporadic explosions and gunfire in the area overnight, including two large blasts early Wednesday. Rafah has been a vital conduit for humanitarian aid since the start of the war and is the only place where people can enter and exit. Israel now controls all of Gaza’s border crossings for the first time since it withdrew troops and settlers from the territory nearly two decades ago. The U.N. says northern Gaza is already in a state of “full-blown famine.”

The Biden administration is due to deliver a first-of-its-kind verdict on whether Israel's conduct of its war in Gaza complies with international and U.S. laws. The decision is due from the administration Wednesday. But a State Department spokesman says that deadline may slip. The formal assessment of whether Israel has used U.S. weapons and other military assistance lawfully is mandated under a directive issued by President Joe Biden in February. The White House agreed to the review under pressure from Democratic lawmakers. A growing number of those Democrats and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders have demanded the U.S. start conditioning military aid to Israel in light of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

Cambodia’s Defense Ministry is insisting that the months-long presence of two Chinese warships at a strategically important naval base that is being expanded with funding from Beijing does not constitute a permanent deployment of the Chinese military in the country. Questions had arisen after the Center for Strategic and International Studies reported last month that two Chinese corvettes that docked at the Ream Naval Base’s new pier in December had maintained a nearly permanent presence there since. Current satellite images, analyzed by The Associated Press, confirm that the two ships remained there on Wednesday, more than five months since they initially appeared.