LIVE UPDATES: Israel starves Gaza as global condemnation grows

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Here’s where things stand on Saturday 26 July 2025:

• The leaders of Germany, France, UK call on Israel for “immediate” action to lift aid blockade on Gaza, as 221 UK lawmakers call on government to recognise Palestine.
• Gaza hospitals have recorded nine new deaths due to starvation and malnutrition over 24 hours, raising the total number of starvation deaths to 122, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
• Gaza will run out of the specialised therapeutic food needed to save the lives of severely malnourished children by mid-August, UNICEF and humanitarian agencies say.
• French President Emmanuel Macron says his country will formally recognise the State of Palestine in September at the UN General Assembly.
• Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 59,676 people and wounded 143,965. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks and more than 200 were taken captive.

Houthis say considering escalating attacks on Israel

The Yemeni rebel group has claimed the earlier missile attack on Israel that we reported on, saying it was aimed at Beersheba in the south of the country and was carried out with a hypersonic missile.

“We attacked vital Israeli enemy targets in Umm al-Rashrash, Ashkelon, and Hadera with three drones”, Yahya Saree, the group’s military spokesperson, said.

“We are studying further escalation options to stop the aggression, starvation and genocide in Gaza”, he added.

The Houthis have been carrying out attacks on Israel and on commercial ships it says are linked to Israel for the duration of Israel’s war on Gaza.

Hind Rajab foundation files war crimes complaint against Israeli soldier in Cyprus

The foundation, named for a little girl killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, tracks the movements of Israeli soldiers who have operated in Gaza, urging world governments to arrest and prosecute them on war crimes charges.

Its latest criminal complaint was filed against Israeli paratrooper Tameer Mulla, an Arab Druze soldier it says is currently on Cypriot soil, “for his direct involvement in war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts potentially amounting to genocide during Israel’s onslaught in the Gaza Strip between 2023 and 2025”.

The foundation alleges Mulla deliberately attacked civilian infrastructure, educational institutions, participated in the forced displacement of Palestinians and participated in incitement to genocide.

WFP: Food aid distributed in Gaza amounts to ‘tiny fraction’ of what’s needed

The UN’s World Food Programme says on X that it has distributed 22,000 metric tonnes of food aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza since May 21, and dispatched 349 trucks carrying about 4,200 tonnes of food in the last week alone.

“Despite these efforts, the quantity of food aid delivered to date is still a tiny fraction of what a population of over 2 million people need to survive”, it said in its post.

It called on Israel to show “commitment” to speeding up approval of the entry of aid convoys to the Gaza Strip.

As we’ve been reporting, Palestinians are dying from complications related to malnutrition, in effect starving to death, daily, with at least nine people passing in this manner today. Israel maintains a blockade on the Gaza Strip.

Israeli settlers shoot 14-year-old Palestinian near Ramallah: Report

A group of Israeli settlers has stormed the Palestinian village of al-Mughayyir, near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, and opened fire at people there, according to Wafa news agency.

One shot hit a 14-year-old in the leg near their home, according to witnesses cited by the agency, adding that Israeli forces also stormed the village later on.

Earlier, the Palestinian Authority said Israeli forces killed two other Palestinians, including a 19-year-old, in the Hebron area in the occupied West Bank.

Photos: Protests for Gaza outside UK PM’s house on Downing Street

What’s happening with Gaza ceasefire, captives release talks?

There has been a lot of news in the past few days on prospects for a deal between Hamas and Israel. Here’s the latest:

• Israel and the United States withdrew their delegations on Thursday from the ceasefire talks in Qatar, hours after Hamas submitted its response to a truce proposal.
• Sources initially said that the Israeli withdrawal was only for consultations and did not necessarily mean the talks had reached a crisis.
• Hours later, US special envoy Steve Witkoff said he was cutting short talks, accusing Hamas of “acting in good faith”.
• Hamas said it was surprised by Witkoff’s remarks, affirming its eagerness to continue negotiations.
• Earlier today, Netanyahu and Trump made comments that appear to leave little or no room for further discussion.
• Netanyahu said Israel was now mulling “alternative” options to achieve its goals of bringing the captives home from Gaza and ending Hamas rule in the enclave.
• “Hamas really didn’t want to make a deal. I think they want to die. And it’s very bad. And it got to be to a point where you’re going to have to finish the job,” Trump told reporters.
• Qatar and Egypt released a joint statement to affirm their continued mediation efforts to reach an agreement, emphasising that it is normal in the context of complex negotiations to suspend engagement to hold consultations. They also said that progress had been made in the latest round of talks.

Israeli families urge US to act in securing captives’ release during meeting with Rubio

A group of Israeli families has met Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging the US to take all possible steps to bring back the captives.

“We trust that President Trump and his administration will do everything in their power to ensure this deal does not collapse and that this pressing opportunity is not lost,” the families said in a statement, adding that Rubio reaffirmed his “unwavering commitment – 100% – to achieving a hostage deal”.

The statement comes after Netanyahu and Trump appeared to abandon Gaza ceasefire negotiations with Hamas, both saying it had become clear that the Palestinian group did not want a deal. The Israeli prime minister said Israel was now mulling “alternative” options to achieve its goals of bringing the captives back.

WFP calls for ‘massive’ scale-up in food aid in Gaza

“Only a massive scale-up in food aid can stabilize the hunger catastrophe engulfing Gaza,” the World Food Programme has said in a statement.

The UN agency said severe acute malnutrition is surging, and almost a third of families miss meals for days at a time. Humanitarian assistance is the only way for people to access food as market prices have skyrocketed, the WFP said.

“A huge humanitarian scale-up is also needed to calm anxieties and rebuild trust within communities that more food is coming,” it added.

According to UN data:

• The entire population of Gaza faces acute levels of food insecurity.
• 470,000 people are facing catastrophic hunger.
• 70,000 children need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.

‘We don’t want words, we want actions’, Gaza-based journalist pleads

Gaza-based journalist Noor al-Shana said people in the enclave are tired of what she called empty expressions of solidarity from the international community.

“We don’t want just words … we want actions,” al-Shana pleaded. “We want you to open borders. We want you to stop this genocide.”

Israeli Home Front says missile attack over, no reports of casualties

Israel’s Arutz Sheva media cites the Israeli Home Front as saying a missile attack from Yemen has “concluded”.

Israel’s emergency service has not received any reports of injuries from the incident, according to Arutz Sheva.

Domestic outcry over Gaza pushed France towards recognising Palestinian state: analyst

France’s move to recognise Palestinian statehood was partly fueled by growing domestic pressure, according to Jacques Reland, senior research fellow at the Global Policy Institute.

“There’s such an outcry over what’s happening, and he [French President Macron] had to do something,” Reland told Al Jazeera.

“The French people are really upset, and not just the Muslim population, all of France,” Reland added. “Anyone with a soul should be at what’s going on in Gaza.”

While Reland acknowledged that France’s voice “is not that important” on its own, its decision on Palestinian statehood could push other influential European states, such as the UK, to move in the same direction, he said.

“The main point is to try to bring other European leaders … it is quite significant,” said Reland.

Today’s death toll in Gaza rises

Sources at hospitals in the Gaza Strip tell Al Jazeera that at least 38 people have been killed by Israeli attacks since the early hours of this morning.

This death toll includes at least six Palestinians killed while trying to collect desperately needed food aid.

Israeli army says it intercepted projectile from Yemen

The military said it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen.

Alerts were activated in several areas of Israel after the army detected the projectile.

Red Cross says Gaza bloodshed ‘must end now – immediately and decisively’ 

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has released a statement calling for an immediate end to the “abhorrent suffering” in Gaza.

“There is no excuse for what is happening in Gaza,” said ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric. “The scale of human suffering and the stripping of human dignity have long exceeded every acceptable standard – both legal and moral.”

“People are being relentlessly killed in hostilities and while attempting to get food,” said Spoljaric. “Children are dying because they do not have enough to eat. Families are being forced to flee again and again in search of safety that does not exist.”

“This tragedy must end now – immediately and decisively,” she added. “Every political hesitation, every attempt at justification of the horrors being committed under international watch will forever be judged as a collective failure to preserve humanity in war.”

Time for a recap

If you’ve just joined us, here are the latest developments:

• Israeli attacks have killed a total of 31 Palestinians in Gaza since early this morning, according to hospital sources cited by our colleagues on the ground.
• Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, has appealed for the organisation’s aid stockpiles to be let into Gaza, warning the enclave is suffering from “deliberate mass starvation”.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that Israel and the US are weighing ways to secure the release of captives in Gaza that do not depend on a negotiated agreement with the Palestinian group, contradicting statements from mediators Qatar and Egypt, who said that progress had been made in the latest round of talks.
• A group of 221 UK parliamentarians has signed a letter calling on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to formally recognise a Palestinian state.
• Footage circulating online, which has been verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking Sanad agency, shows Israeli settlers, protected by soldiers, storming the village of al-Tuwani in Masafer Yatta south of Hebron.
• The Israeli military says its forces today killed a man in southern Lebanon, claiming he was the personnel officer for Hezbollah’s Bint Jbeil sector, Ali Mohammad Hassan Qoutan.

Israeli forces beat two elderly men in West Bank: Report 

Israeli forces “severely beat” two elderly men while raiding the town of Bani Naim, near Hebron, and Masafer Yatta in the occupied West Bank, reports the Wafa news agency.

One of the men, aged 66, was hospitalised after the attack, according to Wafa.

Additionally, Israeli settlers assaulted three more Palestinians, including a village council head, in Masafer Yatta while being protected by Israeli forces, reports Wafa.

Palestinian journalist Adam Abu Harbid killed in Israeli strike

An Israeli strike on a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians killed several people overnight, including journalist Adam Abu Harbid.

Major international news outlets have issued a statement warning that journalists in Gaza are working under dire circumstances.

Large crowds demonstrate for Gaza in Yemen

The Houthis in Yemen have organised another weekly large-scale demonstration in capital Sanaa to support Palestinians and oppose Israel, the US and the war on Gaza.

“Silence will disgrace you”, the crowds chanted, in reference to international inaction over the starvation imposed on Gaza by Israel.

31 killed by Israeli attacks today

Israeli attacks have killed a total of 31 Palestinians in Gaza since early this morning, according to hospital sources cited by our colleagues on the ground.

Six of the victims were killed while attempting to get desperately needed aid, they report. This adds to more than 1,000 Palestinians killed at or near GHF-run aid sites since the agency took over aid deliveries in May.

UK’s Starmer says Palestine recognition must be part of ‘wider’ peace plan

The British prime minister has said he is “unequivocal” about the need to recognise a Palestinian state, but that it should “be part of a wider plan” that brings about a lasting two-state solution.

“This is the way to ensure it is a tool of maximum utility to improve the lives of those who are suffering,” Starmer said in a statement released by his office.

In the statement, Starmer also condemned the “appalling scenes” in Gaza and Israel’s “disproportionate military escalation”.

“The continued captivity of hostages, the starvation and denial of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people, the increasing violence from extremist settler groups, and Israel’s disproportionate military escalation in Gaza are all indefensible,” said Starmer.

As we reported, a group of 221 British MPs have urged Starmer to recognise Palestinian statehood.

Qatar, Egypt say they will continue to work for Gaza ceasefire

Qatar and Egypt have released a joint statement to affirm their continued mediation efforts to reach an agreement that ends the war on Gaza, alleviates the humanitarian suffering, and ensures the protection of civilians and the exchange of Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners.

The two countries noted some progress in the latest round of the talks, which lasted for three weeks, and emphasised that it is normal in the context of complex negotiations to suspend engagement to hold consultations.

They said supposed leaks are circulating on a number of media outlets in order to “diminish” the efforts and influence the course of the negotiations. These leaks “do not reflect reality” and are “issued by parties uninformed about the progress of the negotiations”.

Qatar and Egypt said international media must remain ethically responsible in their reporting so they won’t undermine efforts to end the war that has caused much suffering.

Hundreds of UK MPs call for Palestine recognition

A group of 221 UK parliamentarians have signed a letter calling on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to formally recognise a Palestinian state.

The letter, shared on X by Labour MP Sarah Champion, urges the government to make the move before a UN conference in New York on July 28-29.

“We are expectant that the outcome of the conference will be the UK Government outlining when and how it will act on its long-standing commitment on a two-state solution; as well as how it will work with international partners to make this a reality,” reads the letter, backed by MPs of nine different parties.

“UK recognition would have a significant impact due to our historical connections and our membership on the UN Security Council, so we urge you to take this step,” the letter states.

Yesterday, French President Macron said his country would recognise Palestine, drawing the ire of Israeli officials.

Mexico denounces Gaza’s humanitarian crisis

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum is the latest world leader to speak out on the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, where starvation has claimed nine lives today.

“Of course, we condemn what is happening right now and Mexico is putting all its words and actions into building peace,” Sheinbaum said during a morning news conference.

Also today, the leaders of the UK, France and Germany released a joint statement saying the humanitarian crisis in Gaza “must end now” and that Israel should lift aid restrictions.

Protesters condemn Gaza starvation in front of Egyptian embassies in Finland, Norway

In the Finnish capital, Helsinki, activists have demonstrated in solidarity with Palestinians in front of the main gate of the Egyptian embassy to express their rejection of the closure of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

Footage posted by pro-Palestinian accounts showed activists placing pictures of Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the ground in front of the embassy gate and pouring red paint on them. Police arrived to secure the embassy entrance.

Activists closed the iron gates of the Egyptian embassy in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, in protest against the starvation of the people of Gaza. Embassy security personnel tried to intervene.