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Drawdown after four months of fighting in Khan Younis coincides with new ceasefire talksIsrael has pulled all of its ground troops out of southern Gaza for “tactical reasons”, the country’s army has said, raising questions about the future direction of the war as Hamas and Israeli delegations travel to Egypt for a new round of ceasefire talks.Two brigades will stay in the northern half...

Israel was previously undecided on whether to attend talks but will now take part in the latest round of negotiationsSee all our coverage of the Israel-Gaza warThe Israeli military has withdrawn all ground troops from the southern Gaza Strip except for one brigade, a military spokesperson has said, according to Reuters.An Israeli brigade is typically made up of a few thousand troops. Continue reading...

UN Human Rights Council is debating possible ban on arms sales to IsraelSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverageThe United Nations Human Rights Council on Friday adopted a resolution calling for Israel to be held accountable for possible war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip.Twenty-eight countries voted in favour, 13 abstained and six voted against the resolution. Continue reading...

Humanitarian groups say they cannot operate safely after Israeli targeting of food charity convoy prompts international outcry Gaza aid convoy strike: what happened and who were the victims?The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza seems likely to worsen after charities announced they are suspending operations in the territory in the aftermath of an Israeli drone attack which repeatedly targeted a clearly identified convoy of international aid...

Palestinian residents say IDF has ‘destroyed all sense of life’ as it leaves area after a two week raidSee all of our Israel-Gaza war coverageHundreds of residents have rushed to the area around the al-Shifa hospital to check on damage to the surrounding residential districts.“I haven’t stopped crying since I arrived here, horrible massacres were committed by the occupation here,” said Samir Basel, 43,...

Aid officials and people in territory describe erosion of civil order and gangs filling power vacuum after months of warGaza is facing deepening anarchy as the last remnants of civil order break down, leaving a vacuum increasingly filled by armed gangs, clans, powerful families and criminals, dozens of interviews with senior aid officials, experts and people in the territory reveal.The interviewees described the continuing...

Truce talks had been set to begin again in Cairo on Sunday; Israel PM to be fully sedated after hernia discovered during examination. This live blog is closedTalks aimed at brokering a truce between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip will reportedly resume in Cairo today, days after Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, gave the green light for fresh negotiations. “An Egyptian security...

Civilians and military personnel killed and injured in strike targeting Hezbollah weapons depots, says Syrian Observatory for Human RightsHere are some of the latest images from the news wires:At least 32,623 Palestinians have been killed and 75,092 injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since 7 October the Gaza health ministry said. Continue reading...

Judges issue unanimous decision and say Palestinians are in urgent need of humanitarian assistanceThe international court of justice has ordered Israel to allow unimpeded access of food aid into Gaza, where sections of the population are facing imminent starvation, in a significant legal rebuke to Israel’s claim it is not blocking aid deliveries.A panel of judges at the UN’s top court, which is already...

Israeli PM had cancelled officials’ US visit to discuss planned offensive in southern Gaza after the US refused to veto a UN security council vote on a ceasefireSee all of our Israel-Gaza war coverage here32,552 Palestinians have been killed and 74,980 injured in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since 7 October, the Gazan health ministry said.Australian officials scrambled to “understand what the allegations are”...

Moves come despite growing international pressure for an immediate ceasefireSee all our Middle East coverageThe Israeli prime minister’s handling of relations with the Biden administration, which led the US on Monday to decline to veto a ceasefire resolution at the UN security council, has been greeted by sharp criticism by Israeli commentators.After the US abstention, prominent columnists across the Israeli media condemned Benjamin Netanyahu’s...

Australian and UK stress ‘urgency’ over need to allow aid into Gaza and for hostages to be released; US draft resolution calls for an immediate truce as part of a hostage dealThe Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that “hundreds of worshipers” were “blocked” from reaching the al-Aqsa mosque compound by Israeli forces on Friday.According to Wafa: “Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli forces significantly increased their...

Findings come as UN secretary general calls on Israel to give unconditional access to Gaza for aid reliefHalf the population of the Gaza Strip is at imminent risk of famine as food shortages approach catastrophic levels for more than a million people, the World Bank has warned.Almost six months after the war between Israel and Hamas began, the Washington-based Bank said urgent action was...

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Issa had been killed last week in an Israeli operationSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverageAt least 31,819 Palestinians have been killed and 73,934 injured since 7 October in Israel’s military offensive on the Gaza Strip, the territory’s health ministry said on Tuesday.About 93 Palestinians were killed and 142 injured in the past 24 hours, the Hamas-led...

Retaking of Shifa complex shows Hamas militants, despite heavy losses, are still operational in northern GazaThe latest raid on al-Shifa hospital reveals that the Israeli military’s hold on the areas of Gaza supposedly cleared of Hamas militants is considerably more tenuous than the country’s political leaders have claimed – and suggests the region’s military superpower is facing its own “forever war” in the territory...

'Gaza is in ‘state of famine’ and Israel is using starvation as weapon of war, says Josep BorrellSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverageIn an operational update, Israel’s military has said that it “struck a Hezbollah military structure and an observation post” in Ramyeh inside Lebanon. The village is situated just north of the UN-drawn blue line that separates Israel and Lebanon.Israel is provoking famine...

PM acknowledges international pressure is increasing but says it will not stop Israel achieving its goalsBenjamin Netanyahu has vowed to press ahead with sending Israeli troops into Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, rejecting deep international concerns over the risks to more than a million Palestinians who have sought shelter there.The prime minister said no amount of international pressure would stop Israel from realising all...

Syria’s state news agency reports airstrikes coming from Golan Heights led to ‘material losses’ and wounding of a soldierIsraeli forces arrested eight Palestinians in overnight raids across the occupied West Bank, local news sources said, according to Al Jazeera.The arrests reportedly took place in Qalqilya, Hebron and Jenin after Israeli troops raided Palestinian homes. Continue reading...

World Central Kitchen says 200 tonnes of food is ready for distribution as second boat prepares to leave CyprusSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverage hereThe Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its fighter jets had struck a building used by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon’s Tayr Harfa and another infrastructure in Labbouneh overnight, according to the Times of Israel.A US charity said on Saturday that its...

Hamas seeks scaled-back release it can portray as victory as Israeli government weighs conflicting pressures over hostagesIn a cafe on a dusty roundabout in the small West Bank town of Silwad, men sit and play cards, one eye on the large TV screen showing the latest news from Gaza. When there is any mention of a possible ceasefire deal – and so the release...

The Open Arms, towing barge with 200 tons of food for Palestinians threatened with famine, said to be five kilometres off Gaza coastReuters has a breaking news line about the Gaza aid ship, the Open Arms, that set off from Cyprus on Tuesday. According to the news agency, witnesses have reported that the ship is close to Gaza’s coast now.More details soon … Continue...

Israel claims it targeted fighters who had launched a rocket towards Israel; highway blocked in Tel Aviv by early morning protestLebanon’s National News Agency reports Israeli planes have overflown Jezzine in southern Lebanon. There are unconfirmed images circulating social media appearing to show airstrikes have been carried out. Israel and anti-Israeli forces in Lebanon have repeatedly exchanged fire since 7 October.The aid ship from...

Vessel expected to leave ‘as soon as possible’, aid group says as start of Muslim holy month overshadowed by warSee all our coverage of the Israel-Gaza warHaaretz reports that the IDF has issued a disciplinary note to a top commander after he ordered the destruction of a university compound in southern Gaza City without the approval of his superior.Al-Asraa university building was blown up...

In MSNBC interview US president says Rafah offensive would be a ‘red line’ but he would not cut off weapons fundingAt least 31,045 Palestinians have been killed and 72,654 injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza since 7 October, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Sunday.Most of the casualties have been women and children, the ministry has said, and thousands more bodies...