Closing summary
Here’s a recap of the latest developments:
At least 35,233 people have been killed in Gaza by Israeli attacks since 7 October, according to the latest figures by the territory’s health ministry on Wednesday.
Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel must do “what is required” in Rafah despite disagreements with its longtime ally the US. The Israeli prime minister, in an interview with CNBC, acknowledged a “disagreement” with Washington over his country’s military offensive in the southernmost Gaza city, but he stood firm that the operation would be necessary.
The Israeli leader said that it is pointless to “talk about the day after while Hamas is still intact.” “There is only one substitute for victory – defeat. My government will not agree to this,” Netanyahu said on Wednesday, according to Reuters. Netanyahu also repeated his claim that there is not a humanitarian crisis in southern Gaza.
Netanyahu said his government unanimously rejected the UN decision to promote the recognition of a Palestinian state, his office said. “We will not let them establish a terror state from which they can attack us even more,” he said on Wednesdau. “Nobody will prevent us, Israel, from exercising our basic right to defend ourselves – not the UN general assembly and not any other entity.”
The US state department has moved a $1bn package of weapons aid for Israel into the congressional review process, two US officials said on Tuesday. The latest weapons package includes tank rounds, mortars and armored tactical vehicles, according to multiple sources in US media.
The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said Israel must have a clear and concrete plan for the future of Gaza. Blinken, in a press conference in Kyiv on Wednesday, said that the US “do not support and will not support an Israeli occupation”, adding that “we can’t have a vacuum in Gaza that’s likely to be filled by chaos.”
Turkey’s foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, told his US counterpart, Antony Blinken, that Israel’s attack on the Gazan city of Rafah is unacceptable, according to a Turkish diplomatic source. In a call on Wednesday, Fidan also told Blinken that it was important to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza as soon as possible.
Israel’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant, called on the Israeli government to make a decision about postwar governance in Gaza. Gallant, in comments carried by Haaretz, said he would not agree to a military regime in Gaza and claimed he had promoted a plan for a new Palestinian administration not linked to Hamas but “got no response” from various Israeli cabinet forums.
Israel’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant, has said the country’s relationship with the US is “essential, strong and stable”.
The European Union has urged Israel to end its operation in Rafah immediately as the operation disrupts the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza and is leading to more internal displacement, famine and suffering, EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell said on Wednesday.
Israel’s military confirmed that it has pulled some troops out of the Zeitoun area in northern Gaza, but says that it continues to operate there, and has intensified its operations in Jabaliya refugee camp as well as carrying out what it described as “targeted operations in specific areas of eastern Rafah”.
A senior Hezbollah commander, Hussain Ibrahim Mekky, has been killed by an Israeli strike inside Lebanon. Lebanon’s emergency responders said the strike also wounded two people who were taken to a hospital. Israel’s military described him as being “responsible for the planning and execution of numerous terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and territory since the start of the war.”
Israel and Egypt are embroiled in a growing diplomatic row over the Rafah border crossing after Israel’s takeover of the Gaza side of the crossing, amid warnings Cairo may be planning to downgrade relations.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has said it faces “significant disruptions” to its humanitarian operations due to Israel’s recent ground operations in Rafah. In a statement, the organisation said “the closure of the Rafah crossing and a blockade on entry of humanitarian workers and aid, including fuel, [is] critically hindering our ability to deliver essential services and aid to those in desperate need.”
Palestinian officials said Israeli troops killed a man on Wednesday as clashes broke out after a West Bank march commemorating the mass displacement of Palestinians in the Nakba of 1948. Ayser Muhammad Safi, a 20-year-old student at Birzeit University, was shot in the neck during a confrontation between a group of young men and Israeli forces, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa said.
Ireland’s foreign minister, Micheál Martin, said his country will recognise Palestine as a sovereign state by the end of the month. In March the leaders of Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and Malta said in a joint statement that they stand ready to recognise Palestinian statehood, and last week, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell mooted 21 May as the date.
The UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has been accused of acting as “a bystander” to the “horror” of deaths of Palestinians in Gaza. Labour MP Dr Rosena Allin-Khan told the Commons on Wednesday: “Can the Prime Minister tell me why he allows Israel to get away with it unchallenged? And why he continues to act as a bystander to such horror?”
Israel's defence chief calls on Netanyahu to reject military rule in Gaza
Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a press conference on Wednesday, also called on the Israeli government to make a decision about postwar governance in Gaza.
Gallant said that soon after the 7 October attacks, he had promoted a plan for a new Palestinian administration not linked to Hamas but “got no response” from various Israeli cabinet forums, according to a Reuters report.
He added that this effectively meant a military regime in Gaza, which he said he would not agree to, according to comments carried by Haaretz. The Israeli minister was also quoted as saying:
Soon, we will be required to make a decision on how to return [Israelis] to their homes in the north – through an agreement or through military action.
