Closing Summary
It is approaching 6pm in Gaza and Tel Aviv. We will be closing this blog soon, but you can stay up to date on the Guardian’s Israel-Gaza war coverage here and on the Middle East here.
Here are the latest developments:
At least 42 people were killed in attacks on districts of Gaza City in the north of the Palestinian territory on Saturday, the director of the Hamas-run government media office reported. According to initial reports in the Israeli media, the bombings were aimed at assassinating a very senior Hamas commander. Amid initial reports of tens of casualties, including some still buried under the rubble, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement it had struck Hamas “military infrastructure sites”.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said that 25 people were killed in a shelling attack that damaged its Gaza office, which is surrounded by hundreds of displaced Palestinians living in makeshift tents. The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory also said there were 50 injured in the shelling, which it blamed on Israel. Al-Mawasi had been designated as a humanitarian “safe zone” by Israel and thousands of people had fled there following Israel’s assault on the southern city of Rafah. The Israeli military said the episode was under review but that “there is no indication that a strike was carried out by the IDF” inside the safe zone. It did not provide details on the episode or say what the intended targets might have been.
An Israeli civilian was shot dead in the Palestinian town of Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank on Saturday. Israeli troops arrived in the area shortly after and were investigating what happened, the military said. It gave no further details. Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported the man was shot and killed after driving into Qalqilya. His car was later set on fire.
An Israeli drone carried out a “precise strike” in the Beqaa area in Lebanon. The IDF said the strike was carried out “in order to eliminate” a weapons supplier for Hamas.
Washington assured Tel Aviv that it will have its full support if a full-scale war breaks out with Hezbollah. The assurance came after Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly accused the US of withholding weapons and ammunitions from his country earlier this week, amid a tense back-and-forth between Israeli and US officials. Tensions have been growing between Israel and Hezbollah after months of intensifying cross-border attacks in southern Lebanon and northern Israel. The Lebanese armed group has warned that there will be “no restraint and no rules and no ceilings” if war breaks out.
UN secretary-general António Guterres issued warnings over rapidly escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah in neighbouring Lebanon. “One rash move – one miscalculation – could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border, and frankly, beyond imagination,” he told reporters on Friday. “Let’s be clear: The people of the region and the people of the world cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza.”
Food has piled up at a Gaza crossing with aid agencies saying they are unable to work. Days after Israel announced a daily pause in fighting on a key route to allow more aid into Gaza, chaos in the besieged Palestinian territory has left vital supplies piled up and undistributed in the searing summer heat. More than eight months of war have led to dire humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip and repeated UN warnings of famine with outside aid severely restricted.
A commercial ship traveling through the Gulf of Aden saw explosions near the vessel, likely to be the latest attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The apparent fire by the Houthis comes after the sinking this week of the ship Tutor, which marked what appears to be a new escalation by the Iranian-backed Houthis in their campaign of attacks on ships in the vital maritime corridor over the Israel-Gaza war.
Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 37,551 Palestinians since Oct. 7, Gaza’s health ministry has said. A further 85,911 have been wounded. A total of 101 Palestinians have been killed and 169 wounded in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement.
Pro-Palestinian protesters sprayed the University of Cambridge’s historical Senate House in red paint. “The site, used for the university’s upcoming graduation ceremonies, now reflects the Palestinian bloodshed which soaks the university’s financial records, research output, and historical legacy,” the group said.
Qatar said Friday it was pursuing efforts to “bridge the gap” between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and release Israeli hostages held there. “We have continued our efforts without interruption over the last few days,” Qatar’s prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a news conference in Madrid with Spanish foreign minister Jose Manuel Albares.
Armenia announced Friday it was recognising the State of Palestine, the latest country to do so during the war in Gaza, saying it was against “violence towards civilian populations.” Shortly after the former Soviet republic announced the recognition, Israel’s foreign ministry said it summoned Yerevan’s ambassador for a “severe reprimand”.
In photos: Palestinians search through rubble after Israeli strikes in Gaza City.
Earlier on Saturday, the director of the Hamas-run government media office said at least 42 people were killed in the strikes on districts of Gaza City, in the north of the Palestinian territory.
The Israeli military said IDF fighter jets struck two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the area.
