- Israel continues pounding Gaza after killing at least 38 people across the Strip on Tuesday.
- The United Nations calls for “concerted” action to stop the “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza as Israel’s total blockade enters its 60th day.
- The UK’s defence ministry says British forces participated in a joint operation with the US military against a Houthi target in Yemen.
- Israel has released 10 Palestinian detainees from Gaza, including Asaad Al-Nasasra, a paramedic who survived the Israeli attack that killed 15 emergency workers near Rafah in March.
- Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 52,365 Palestinians and wounded 117,905 others, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry. The Gaza Government Media Office updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.
Israel carrying out ‘live-streamed genocide’ in Gaza, Amnesty says
Israel is perpetrating a “live-streamed genocide” in Gaza, committing illegal acts with the “specific intent” of wiping out Palestinians, Amnesty International has said.
In its annual report, the human rights organisation said Israeli forces in Gaza have violated the UN Genocide Convention with acts that include “causing serious bodily or mental harm to civilians” and “deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction”.
Israeli forces storm Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron
The Wafa news agency is reporting that “large numbers” of Israeli troops have stormed the revered mosque in the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.
It cited an activist as saying that Israeli forces have also set up checkpoints near the mosque and the Old City of Hebron ahead of visits to the area by Jewish settlers.
The Ibrahimi Mosque – known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs – is revered by Jews, Muslims and Christians alike, as it is the site where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their wives, are believed to be buried.
The site, located in the centre of Hebron, has long been a source of tension between Jews and Muslims.
Three arrested during riot at Israeli synagogue
We’ve been covering a riot by far-right Israeli protesters at a synagogue in the central city of Ra’anana, where peace activists were holding a screening of a memorial for Israelis and Palestinians killed in the conflict.
The Times of Israel is reporting that four police officers sustained minor injuries during the violence and that three people have been arrested on charges of assault.
The riot took place at the Beit Samueli synagogue.
Peace activists were holding a screening of the joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day ceremony that was being held in Jaffa.
That ceremony takes place every year on the eve of Memorial Day for fallen Israeli soldiers. Organisers say they have had to deal with demonstrations and attempts of right-wing politicians and people to quash the event in recent years.
Fast facts: Gaza on the verge of famine
- No food, water or medical supplies have entered the Gaza Strip since March 2, when Israel imposed a total blockade on the Strip in a bid to force Hamas to release the remaining captives held in the territory.
- The blockade is now in its 60th day, and the UN and other aid agencies have warned of “full-scale famine conditions” across the Gaza Strip.
- The World Food Programme (WFP) says all of its bakeries have shut down and all of its stocks inside Gaza have now been fully depleted.
- The remaining charity kitchens in Gaza say they may have to shut down within days unless aid is allowed in.
- The Gaza Government Media Office said on Friday that famine is no longer a looming threat and is becoming a reality. It said 52 people have died due to hunger and malnutrition, including 50 children.
- It also says more than 65,000 children have sought treatment for severe malnutrition.
Remaining charity kitchens in Gaza could shut down within days
The Reuters news agency is reporting that dozens of local community kitchens in Gaza risk closing down, potentially within days, unless aid is allowed into the Strip.
At the Al-Salam Oriental Food community kitchen in Gaza City, Salah Abu Haseera said he is offering what he fears could be one of the last meals for the 20,000 people he and his colleagues serve daily.
“We face huge challenges in keeping going. We may go out of operation within a week, or maybe less,” Abu Haseera told Reuters by phone.
These kitchens vary from one-room businesses to regular restaurants.
“We have 70-80 community kitchens still working in Gaza… In four to five days, these community kitchens will close their doors,” Amjad Shawa, the director of the Palestinian NGOs Network (PNGO) in Gaza, told Reuters.
Shawa put the number of operational community kitchens in Gaza before the crossings closed at about 170.
He said an additional 15 kitchens closed down on Monday.
Israel, which has abandoned the ceasefire deal agreed with Hamas in January, imposed its total blockade on Gaza on March 2, in a bid to pressure the Palestinian group into agreeing to new terms.
The ongoing blockade is the longest such closure the Gaza Strip has ever faced.
US, UK forces conduct joint military operation in Yemen
The UK’s Ministry of Defence says British forces participated in a joint operation with the US military against a Houthi target in Yemen on Tuesday.
The ministry said the Royal Air Force’s Typhoon FGR4s, with air refuelling support from Voyager tankers, bombed a cluster of buildings used by the Houthis to manufacture drones near the capital, Sanaa.
There was no immediate comment from the US military.
Earlier, the Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV reported a series of air raids in the province of Sanaa, in the districts of Bani Matar, Bani Hashish, Al Husn and Hamdan.
It said a number of houses were damaged in the Al Dalia neighbourhood of Bani Hashish district.
The US has been bombarding Yemen on a near-daily basis since last month, when the Houthis, who control most of the country, threatened to resume attacks on Israel-linked ships passing through the Red Sea.
Three Palestinians, including child, killed in Israeli attack on central Gaza
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that Israeli forces have bombed the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least three people.
The victims included a child.
The attacks follow a day of relentless bombardment that has killed at least 38 people.
UN chief warns two-state solution is ‘near a point of no return’
Antonio Guterres, the UN’s secretary-general, says the two-state solution is “at risk of dwindling to the point of disappearance” as Israel’s war and total blockade of Gaza continues.
A recap of recent developments
- Israeli forces continue bombarding Gaza after killing at least 38 Palestinians across the Strip on Tuesday.
- The United Nations rights chief, Volker Turk, has called for “concerted” action to stop the “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza from “reaching a new, unseen level” as Israel’s total blockade of the Strip entered its 60th day.
- Israel released 10 Palestinian detainees from Gaza, including Asaad Al-Nasasra, a paramedic who survived the Israeli attack that killed 15 emergency workers near Rafah in March.
- Israeli forces have arrested 22 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including journalist Ali Al-Samoudi, following a raid on his home in Jenin.
- The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has held its second day of hearings to assess Israel’s humanitarian responsibilities as an occupying power in Palestinian territories.
- Qatar and the United Kingdom called for an immediate return to the truce in Gaza, while UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for “irreversible action towards implementing a two-state solution” in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Welcome to our live coverage
Hello, and thank you for joining our live coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza as well as its attacks on the occupied West Bank and the wider region.
Follow this page for round-the-clock updates on the latest developments.