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David Cameron says it is hoped Israel ‘does as little to escalate as possible’ as he visits Jerusalem as west considers new sanctions on IranSee all our Middle East crisis coverageHere are some more pictures sent over the news wires from Rafah showing the aftermath of an Israeli strike there.Reuters, citing the semi-official Tasnim news agency, reports that Iran’s navy is to begin escorting...

The warning from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations offered no details about the boarding See all our coverage of the Middle East crisisThe search for a missing Israeli teenager resumed on Saturday in the occupied West Bank, where settler attacks on Palestinian villages have left at least one dead and dozens injured, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP) citing sources on both sides.The Israeli army...

Few of Hamas’s senior leaders have been harmed but its ability to govern is reduced and thousands of fighters are deadSix months after the surprise attacks it launched into Israel, triggering the Gaza conflict, Hamas is weakened and divided but far from defeated, experts, officials and sources close to the militant Islamist organisation say.Hamas remains in de facto control of swaths of Gaza, including...

Israel’s defence minister says it will launch ‘appropriate’ response if Iran retaliates over embassy attack in SyriaSee all our Israel-Gaza war covergeAn assessment conducted by a UN team in Khan Younis after the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the area, has reported “widespread destruction”.In an update on its website, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) wrote:Every building they visited –...

This live blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereIsraeli forces killed three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in an airstrike in Gaza without consulting senior commanders or political leaders including prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, says Reuters citing Israeli media reports on Thursday.Quoting senior Israeli officials, Walla news agency said neither Netanyahu nor defence minister Yoav Gallant had been...

US-backed proposal involves women, children and elderly or sick hostages in Gaza being exchanged for 900 Palestinian prisonersMiddle East crisis – live updatesThe Palestinian militant group Hamas has indicated it does not have 40 captives who are still alive who meet the “humanitarian” criteria for a proposed hostages-for-prisoners ceasefire agreement with Israel.A senior Israeli official confirmed claims made at the weekend by Hamas during...

Israel’s foreign minister threatens Iran as tension between two countries flare after killings of Iranian generals at consulate in SyriaSee all of our Israel-Gaza war coverageThe commander of the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (Unifil), Aroldo Lazaro, said on Wednesday the danger of escalation on the Lebanon-Israel border was real, reports Reuters.“Unifil calls for a return to the cessation of hostilities, and a move...

US president gives some of his strongest criticism of Israeli PM yet, saying he needs to ‘empower’ Israel’s negotiators to call for a truceSee all our coverage of the Israel-Gaza warUS president Joe Biden has said prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach on Gaza was a “mistake” and urged Israel to call for a ceasefire, in an interview that aired on Tuesday.Biden’s comments were some...

Foreign secretary says Britain’s position on export licences is ‘unchanged’ after reviewing latest legal adviceMiddle East crisis – live updatesDavid Cameron has confirmed the UK government will not suspend arms exports to Israel after the killing of seven aid workers in an airstrike on Gaza last week, as he insisted the UK would continue to act within international law.The foreign secretary said that he...

France’s foreign minister says they will continue to pressure Israel to obtain the opening for humanitarian aidRecent tragedies in Gaza are not a reason to “walk away from Israel”, the former British home secretary, Suella Braverman, said.Asked if the UK should still be selling arms to Israel, Braverman told LBC: “I don’t think the fact that these tragedies happen is a reason to walk...

Israeli defence minister says withdrawal forms part of preparations for later attack on RafahAn Israeli strike on southern Lebanon early on Monday killed a field commander in the heavily-armed Lebanese group Hezbollah, as the United Nations warned that shelling was spreading and urged a halt to the violence.Hezbollah and the Israeli military have been exchanging fire across Lebanon’s southern frontier in parallel with the...

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...

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...

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...