Hamas claims 30 people killed in Israeli attack on UN school
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Around 30 people were killed in an Israeli attack on a school affiliated with the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency in northern Gaza, Hamas claimed in a statement on Thursday.
The school is based in the Jabalia refugee camp, many buildings of which have been turned to rubble after intense air strikes since Oct 7.
The alleged attack comes the evening before a temporary four-day pause in fighting, due to start tomorrow at 7am, which will also see Israeli hostages and Palestine prisoners released.
The agreement entails a complete ceasefire with no attacks from the air or the ground and the skies clear of drones to allow for the hostage release to happen in a safe environment.
10:02 PM GMT
That’s all for today
Thank you for following our live coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict. The key developments from the day were the following:
A temporary four-day pause in fighting is due to start tomorrow at 7am, which will also see Israeli hostages and Palestine prisoners released.
Around 30 people were killed in an Israeli attack on a school affiliated with the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency in northern Gaza, Hamas claimed.
The head of Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital was arrested Thursday by Israeli forces who said it was over the facility’s alleged use by Hamas.
The spokesman of Hamas called for the escalation of the confrontation with Israel in the West Bank and on all resistance fronts.
Achieving control over the northern half of the Gaza Strip will mark only the first stage in the Israeli campaign to destroy Hamas, the chief military spokesman.
Spain’s prime minister has told Benjamin Netanyahu the number of dead Palestinians is “truly unbearable”.
A spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry has said hostages from the same family will be released together.
09:39 PM GMT
Pictures of the day
09:22 PM GMT
More on the Israeli forces detaining Al-Shifa hospital’s chief in Gaza
The head of Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital was arrested Thursday by Israeli forces who said it was over the facility’s alleged use by Hamas.
Hospital director Mohammad Abu Salmiya has been frequently quoted by international media about the conditions inside Al-Shifa, a major focus of the Israeli ground offensive.
The Israeli army, which raided the hospital last week, has alleged that Hamas fighters used a tunnel complex beneath the facility in Gaza City to stage attacks. Hamas and hospital officials have repeatedly denied the claims.
Palestinian health officials said Abu Salmiya, another doctor and two nurses had been arrested.
The hospital director was held for questioning following “evidence showing that Shifa Hospital, under his direct management, served as a Hamas command and control centre”, the Israeli military said in a statement.
There was “extensive Hamas terrorist activity” at the hospital while it was “under his management”, it said, adding that a Hamas tunnel network used electricity and other resources from the facility.
Whether the director would be subject to further questioning would depend on whether he was found to have “involvement in terrorist activity”, it said.
In a statement, Hamas said it “strongly denounces” the arrest of Salmiya and his colleagues, calling on the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international bodies to work towards their “immediate release”.
09:06 PM GMT
WHO chief discusses health situation in Gaza
The World Health Organization chief Tedros Ghebreyesus met with the Arab League Ambassadors Group in Geneva on Thursday to discuss the deteriorating health situation in Gaza.
In a post on X, Ghebreyesus said that the group “agreed unfettered access is needed to ensure constant and enough health supplies.”
This morning I met with Arab League Ambassadors Group in Geneva to discuss the health situation in #Gaza and @WHO's efforts to provide health assistance. We agreed unfettered access is needed to ensure constant and enough health supplies. pic.twitter.com/L8FaXh3sBr
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) November 23, 2023
08:25 PM GMT
Haaretz publisher responds to Israel's communication chief's comments
More on the earlier story that Israel’s Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi submitted a proposal to cut state funding and advertising in Haaretz newspaper.
Karhi, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, said the newspaper was “sabotaging Israel in wartime” and was an “inflammatory mouthpiece for Israel’s enemies.”
Haaretz publisher Amos Schocken responded to Karhi’s proposal by saying: “If the government wants to close Haaretz, that’s the time to read Haaretz.”
The Israeli journalists’ union said in a statement that “the communications minister has lost his way.”
08:11 PM GMT
Pictured: Destroyed Israeli vehicles from the Oct 7 attacks
08:03 PM GMT
Hamas calls for escalation in fighting in West Bank
The spokesman of Hamas has called for the escalation of the confrontation with Israel in the West Bank and on all resistance fronts.
“We call for escalation of the confrontation with the occupation throughout the West Bank and all resistance fronts,” the spokesman for the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Ubaida, said in a video speech aired by Al Jazeera TV.
07:28 PM GMT
Israeli military says control over northern Gaza is only first stage
Achieving control over the northern half of the Gaza Strip will mark only the first stage in the Israeli campaign to destroy Hamas, the chief military spokesman said on Thursday, a day before a four-day pause in fighting was due to start.
“Control over northern Gaza is the first step of a long war,” Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told a regular news briefing, reported by Reuters.
“We are preparing for the next stages, we are looking forward in the coming days we will focus on planning and fulfilling the next stages of the war,” he added.
07:14 PM GMT
Lebanon's Hezbollah intensifies attacks on Israel
The Iran-backed Hezbollah group on Thursday intensified its attacks on Israel from southern Lebanon where Israeli bombardments killed seven of its fighters, including members of an elite unit., AFP is reporting.
The border between Lebanon and Israel has seen escalating exchanges of fire, primarily involving Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, along with Palestinian groups.
The clashes have raised fears of a broader conflagration.
Hezbollah said it carried out more than 20 attacks on Israeli military positions and claimed to have caused casualties.
In one of the attacks, it said it fired 48 Katyusha rockets at a military base at Ein Zeitim, near the town of Safed in northern Israel, about 10 kilometres from the border.
07:07 PM GMT
Reuters cameraman hospitalised
06:15 PM GMT
Israel parents name babies after communities ravaged by Hamas
Israeli parents have been naming newborn babies after communities that were attacked by Hamas militants on Oct 7, in tribute to the victims, the interior ministry said Thursday.
At least 45 babies born since October 7 have been named Beeri, the kibbutz community near the Gaza Strip that saw some of the worst atrocities in the cross-border attacks, the ministry said, reported by AFP.
The ministry added that the name Oz, which means “strength” in Hebrew, was given to 49 boys and one girl after Nir Oz and Nahal Oz, two other communities targeted in the attacks.
Eight other babies were named Nir and three girls were named Nova, after a desert rave targeted by Hamas.
05:57 PM GMT
Biden says he has 'fingers crossed' for release of American toddler
US President Joe Biden has told reporters that he has his “fingers crossed” that a three-year-old American girl being held hostage in Gaza will be among those released Friday.
He added that he would not be providing any more updates until after the deal if finished.
“I’ll be able to talk to you guys tomorrow,” he said in Massachusetts. “I’m not prepared to give you an update until it’s done.”
When asked about Abigail Edan, the three-year-old hostage, he said: “Keeping my fingers crossed.”
05:48 PM GMT
Turkey planning to evacuate some wounded Gazan children
Turkey plans to evacuate some wounded or sick Gazan children and young people on Friday as part of its third round of evacuation, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Thursday, reported by Reuters.
Turkey has so far brought 150 people, mostly cancer patients and their companions, from Gaza to continue their treatment. It has also evacuated more than 100 Turks, Turkish Cypriots, and their relatives this week.
Speaking at Ankara’s Esenboga airport, Koca said three sick Gazan children had been brought to Turkey on Thursday. He added that the children – a two-year-old boy, as well as two girls aged nine and 10 – would receive treatment in Turkey.
The third round of evacuations, consisting of a group of 50 people, has been delayed due to issues regarding permissions for their releases, the minister said, but added that those problems were now largely resolved and officials were working to complete the preparations.
“We expect the third evacuation to be tomorrow (Friday) and it will be an evacuation that will largely consist of children and young people,” Koca told reporters.
“There are less cancer patients (in the group), but it will be an evacuation that mostly consists of wounded children and young people,” he said, adding that none of the people in the list of 50 were in critical condition.
05:26 PM GMT
Pictured: The Gaza Strip and West Bank
05:22 PM GMT
Israel's communications minister proposes halting funding to Haaretz
Israel’s communications minister has proposed halting state advertising and commercial connections with the daily Haaretz newspaper, accusing the publication of “defeatist and false propaganda” against the state of Israel, according to a Times of Israel report.
In a letter to cabinet secretary Yossi Fuchs, Shlomo Karhi criticised Haaretz for its editorial stance on the war, and said that the state should not enter into any new commercial agreements with the newspaper, halt all advertising in it, and block any outstanding payments from being made.
“Since the beginning of the war, my office has received numerous complaints that the Haaretz newspaper has taken a harmful line that undermines the goals of the war and weakens the military effort and societal resilience,” he said.
Haaretz has not yet released a comment.
04:50 PM GMT
Three US citizens expected to be released
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on Thursday that Israel had received an initial list of hostages to be released from Gaza.
Among the 50 women and children under the age of 19 being released by Hamas are three US citizens, including a girl who turns 4 on Friday, a US official said.
04:27 PM GMT
Pictured: Israeli Howitzer artillery gun fires towards Gaza
04:10 PM GMT
Number of premature births has risen by a third in Gaza, Oxfam says
The number of premature births has risen by almost a third in Israeli-besieged Gaza over the past month as mothers suffer growing stress and trauma, British charity Oxfam said on Thursday.
Juzoor, an Oxfam partner organisation that is supporting hundreds of pregnant women in Gaza, said the number of premature births had risen by 25-30 per cent in the last month, attributing the rise to difficulties faced by mothers who have had to flee their homes due to bombardment and have suffered stress and trauma.
Premature babies are more susceptible to illness and Juzoor said that at least one newborn had died in each of its 13 shelters for displaced people in north Gaza over the past month.
04:01 PM GMT
Spain’s PM tells Netanyahu the number of dead Palestinians is ‘truly unbearable’
Spain’s prime minister has told Benjamin Netanyahu the number of dead Palestinians is “truly unbearable”.
Speaking during a visit to the Middle East, Pedro Sánchez called for a peace conference and said that the creation of a Palestinian state remained the best way to bring peace and security to the region.
He said that the response to Hamas’s terrorist attacks last month cannot include “the deaths of innocent civilians, including thousands of children.”
“Let me also be clear: Israel must abide by international law, including international humanitarian law, in its response,” he said. “The whole world is shocked at the images that we see coming from Gaza every day. The number of Palestinians killed is truly unbearable. I believe that all civilians must be protected at all costs.”
03:46 PM GMT
Hostages captured with family to be released together
A spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry has said hostages from the same family will be released together.
Majed Al-Ansari told reporters in Doha: “If there were a group of hostages from the same family they will be released together in this first batch.”
A total of 50 hostages are expected to be released over four days.
03:31 PM GMT
Pictured: The funeral of Shani Gabay in Israel
03:18 PM GMT
Hostage families contacted
The Israeli prime minister’s office has said authorities were in contact with the families of all the hostages being held in Gaza after receiving “a first list of names”, AFP has reported.
It did not immediately specify who was on the list, which was announced shortly after Qatar and Hamas said a ceasefire would go into effect at 7:00am (0500 GMT) on Friday.
03:06 PM GMT
Hamas' statement on the truce
On its Telegram channel, Hamas has said that once the truce begins “hostile aircraft” would completely halt flights over the southern Gaza Strip and would also cease flying for six hours daily, from 10 am to 4 pm over Gaza City and the northern areas.
The truce would last for four days, during which all military actions by al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, and Israeli forces would cease, the statement added.
02:54 PM GMT
Israel confirms it has received initial list of hostages to be released
Israel has received an initial list of hostages to be released from Gaza, planned to take place after a ceasefire with Hamas takes hold on Friday, the Israeli prime minister’s office said on Thursday.
“The relevant authorities are checking the details of the list and are presently in contact with all the families,” it said in a statement.
02:51 PM GMT
IDF finds weapons stashed under the beds of Hamas member's children
The Israeli Defence Forces has claimed that it found weapons stashed underneath the beds of the children of senior Hamas members.
The IDF said fighters from its Brigade 401 operating on the outskirts of Gaza’s Jabaliya located four “significant” tunnels dug deep underground.
The tunnels allegedly connect to an electricity network.
One was discovered during a search of the home of a senior member of the group.
At one home, IDF forces also uncovered documents and battle plans that have been handed to intelligence forces for examination.
Shafts for launching rockets, alongside long-range rockets - like those used to target Israel - were also found.
“We have reached the heart of Hamas’s deployment,” says the brigade commander, Col. Benny Aharon.
The claims have not been independently verified.
02:31 PM GMT
Qatar says Gaza ceasefire and hostage release to start Friday
A Gaza truce and hostage release will start on Friday morning, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman said.
“The pause will begin at 7am on Friday ... and the first batch of civilian hostages will be handed over at approximately 4:00 pm on the same day,” Majed Al-Ansari said Thursday, adding that the number of people freed will be thirteen.
02:28 PM GMT
Benjamin Netanyahu thanks Lord Cameron
Benjamin Netanyahu has thanked Lord Cameron for his visit to Israel, vowing that Israel will “destroy Hamas”.
Mr Netanyahu said the fight against Hamas is a fight against the “savagery” Lord Cameron saw during his visit to a kibbutz that was attacked on October 7.
He said:
“We’ll continue with our war aims, namely to eradicate Hamas, because Hamas has already promised that they will do this again and again and again. They’re a genocidal terrorist cult. There’s no hope for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, between Israel and the Arab states, if we don’t eradicate this murderous movement that threatens the future of all of us.
“It’s a larger battle of civilization against barbarism, the kind of savagery that you saw on your visit. It’s the worst savagery perpetrated on Jews since the Holocaust. And just as the world united to vanquish the Nazis or vanquish al-Qaeda after 9/11 or vanquish ISIS, we have to unite to vanquish Hamas.”
02:15 PM GMT
Pictured: Lord Cameron meets Benjamin Netanyahu
02:02 PM GMT
Lord Cameron meets Benjamin Netanyahu
Lord Cameron met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today, saying that Britain “stands with the people of Israel in sympathy”.
The Foreign Secretary told Mr Netanyahu that it had been “important” to visit the sites where Hamas landed its deadly attack on Israel.
He said:
“I just want to say thank you very much for finding the time to see me. I wanted to come in person and go to the sites of the country and go to Kibbutz Be’eri to see just the true nature of the horrific attacks that you faced.
“I think it’s very important to do that and see that. And, you know, we stand with the people of Israel in sympathy for what you have gone through. I think that was important.”
01:57 PM GMT
IDF hits further Hezbollah targets
The Israeli Defence Forces have hit Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.
The sites include rocket launchers and other infrastructure and come as a response to repeated attacks on northern Israel.
In another attack, helicopters and tanks struck a Hezbollah cell that fired an anti-tank missile at an Israeli base, according to the IDF.
01:40 PM GMT
The latest pictures
Here is a roundup of the latest photographs from the conflict.
01:18 PM GMT
France says Israel-Hamas deal must start 'without further delay'
France on Thursday said an agreement between Israel and Hamas on the release of 50 hostages in exchange for a humanitarian truce should go ahead “without further delay”.
Paris is also urging “the immediate release of all hostages”, said Anne-Claire Legendre, spokeswoman for the French foreign ministry. “We call for the terms of this agreement to be fully respected,” she added.
01:09 PM GMT
Israel confirms detainment of al-Shifa hospital director
The Israeli military has confirmed that it detained the director of al-Shifa hospital.
Earlier, a chief of department at the hospital said that Dr Muhammad Abu Salmiya and several other “senior doctors” had been taken by soldiers for questioning.
According to reports, Israel has said that it is questioning the doctor over evidence that Hamas had used the hospital as a command and control centre.
“In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity,” the military said in a statement.
12:50 PM GMT
Red Cross staff 'fired upon'
Staff from the International Committee of the Red Cross were fired upon while trying to deliver humanitarian aid in northern Gaza, according to Al Jazeera.
It said “healthcare workers have special protection under international law and we are pressing for immediate protection for all civilians”.
It added that hospitals in Gaza have been “turned into cemeteries and war fields”.
12:36 PM GMT
Watch: David Cameron shown site of Hamas atrocities on first visit to Israel
Lord Cameron was taken to Kibbutz Be’eri, where hundreds of people were killed and abducted by Hamas, on his first visit to Israel as Foreign Secretary.
12:20 PM GMT
Comparisons between Holocaust and Hamas attack are 'simplistic'
The chairman of Jerusalem’s holocaust memorial centre has said that comparisons between Hamas’s attack on Israel and the Holocaust were “simplistic” even if “the genocidal intentions, sadism and barbarism of Hamas” had similarities with Nazi atrocities.
Dani Dayan told AFP: “The crimes that took place on 7 October are on the same level as Nazi crimes, but they are not the Shoah. I do not accept the simplistic comparison with the Holocaust even if there are similarities in the genocidal intentions, sadism and barbarism of Hamas.
“For any Jew who has heard the stories of families putting their hands over a baby’s mouth to stop it from crying, the association of ideas is obvious. We have all thought about it.”
11:54 AM GMT
Celebrations relating to Palestinian prisoners banned
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has said that no celebrations will be allowed upon the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners.
He told Israel’s Prison Service, Katy Perry, to quash any form of jubilation within incarceration facilities and Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai to use “an iron fist”.
Mr Ben Gvir has given police permission to shut down any celebrations in East Jerusalem.
“My instructions are clear: there are to be no expressions of joy,” Mr Ben Gvir said.
“Expressions of joy are equivalent to backing terrorism, victory celebrations give backing to those human scum, for those Nazis.”
11:45 AM GMT
Palestinian politician calls war 'genocide'
A Palestinian politician has accused Israel of commiting genocide in Gaza.
Mustafa Barghouti of the Palestinian National Initiative told Sky News that 9,000 have been killed since Israel’s bombardment began.
“The tragedy is there are about 7,000 people missing under the rubble and half of them are probably Palestinian children,” he added.
He urged for a permanent ceasefire deal.
“There has been a ceasefire deal, which should be initiated, but I think the Israelis have delayed it so far, but it has to go into effect very soon,” Mr Barghouti said.
“Continuing this war is absolutely unacceptable and represents a terrible war crime because it means genocide.”
11:30 AM GMT
Pictured: Lord Cameron visits kibutz
Lord Cameron visited a kibbutz that was a target of Hamas’s attack on October 7.
11:14 AM GMT
Iran top diplomat meets Hezbollah chief in Lebanon
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has met with Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah which has traded deadly cross-border fire with Israel since the start of the Gaza war, the Lebanese movement said Thursday.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, the border between Lebanon and Israel has witnessed escalating exchanges of fire, primarily involving Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah, along with Palestinian groups.
The clashes have raised fears of a broader conflagration.
In a statement, Hezbollah said Amir-Abdollahian and Nasrallah “reviewed the latest developments in Palestine, Lebanon and the region, and... the efforts made to end the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip”.
Amir-Abdollahian, who warned on Wednesday that the war could spiral out of control, left Beirut for Doha after their meeting, Iran’s Nour news agency reported.
11:02 AM GMT
Israel intercepts missiles from Lebanon
The Israeli military has claimed it intercepted missile launches sent from inside Lebanon.
It wrote on Telegram:
“Following the initial reports regarding sirens sounding in northern Israel, approximately 35 launches were identified crossing from Lebanon toward Israeli territory.
“The IDF Aerial Defense Array intercepted a number of the launches. In addition, since this morning, terrorists launched a number of anti-tank missiles and mortars at various locations along the border with Lebanon.
“There have been frequent exchanges of fires between the IDF and anti-Israeli forces over the UN-drawn blue line that separates Lebanon and Israel.
“Earlier it was reported that Hezbollah had claimed to fire 48 rockets into Israeli territory in Upper Galilee. There are no reports of any casualties on the Israeli side.”
10:48 AM GMT
Lord Cameron to meet Israeli PM
Lord Cameron is set to meet Israel’s prime minister shortly, according to reports.
The talks with Benjamin Netanyahu are part of his trip to Israel.
He landed in the country earlier this morning as part of a wider trip to the Middle East.
Earlier today, Israel’s foreign minister, Eli Cohen, showed him around damaged buildings at a kibbutz targeted by Hamas.
10:29 AM GMT
Spain in favour of a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza in 'the very short term'
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said his country is in favour of a humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas “in the very short term”.
“Our position with regards to Palestine and the Palestinian people is clear. We are in favour of a Palestinian State. In the very short term, what is truly urgent is for a humanitarian ceasefire to happen,” Mr Albares said in an interview with Spanish radio station RNE.
The existence of a Palestinian state “will be the best guarantee for peace in the Middle East”, ahead of a visit by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to Israel and the West Bank on Thursday.
He reiterated that Spain is ready to hold a peace conference on the conflict.
10:15 AM GMT
Gazans flee strikes in southern Gaza
Gazans are fleeing the site of Israeli strikes in the southern city of Rafah.
10:13 AM GMT
David Cameron shown site of Hamas atrocities on first visit to Israel
Lord Cameron was taken to Kibbutz Be’eri, where hundreds of people were killed and abducted by Hamas, on his first visit to Israel as Foreign Secretary.
He joined Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and walked through the fire-damaged buildings on the Kibbutz.
The Foreign Secretary’s visit to Israel is part of a wider trip to the Middle East, and comes as a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas looms.
Lord Cameron welcomed the agreement to a four-day pause in fighting in exchange for the release of hostages, calling it a “crucial step” and urging the parties to deliver the deal in full.
But the deal appears to have been delayed, with Israeli officials saying it will not take effect until Friday at the earliest.
10:04 AM GMT
Lord Cameron: I have heard and seen things I will never forget
This morning, together with @elicoh1, I visited Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the communities affected by the appalling terror attack Israel suffered on 7 October.
I wanted to come here to see it for myself; I have heard and seen things I will never forget.
Today is also a day where… pic.twitter.com/2dU4gbeaIE— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) November 23, 2023
09:52 AM GMT
Israel orders evacuation of Indonesian Hospital
Israel has ordered the evacuation of the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, a Hamas health official inside the hospital has said.
Dr Munir al-Boursh told Al Jazeera that the hospital was organising buses to evacuate its 200 patients.
Fighting has raged outside the hospital for days.
09:36 AM GMT
Lord Cameron urges Israel and Hamas to 'make sure' hostage deal happens
Israel and Hamas must “make sure” the hostage deal is implemented, Lord Cameron has said.
Britain’s foreign secretary is visiting Israel today and has visited Kibbutz Be’eri, describing what he saw as “absolutely horrific”.
“Today we hope to see a humanitarian pause,” he said.
“I think it’s important because it’s an opportunity to get the hostages out and to get aid in, and I hope and would urge everyone involved in that agreement to make sure that it happens.”
09:19 AM GMT
Israeli spokesperson says delay in hostage release is 'heartbreaking'
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy appeared on British TV today, where he said that Hamas could choose to release hostages without a deal on tha table.
Speaking on Sky News, he said the delay in securing their release was heartbreaking.
“You know, Hamas could release the hostages now. It could have released them yesterday. It could have released them on 7 October. And every moment that it chooses not to release those vulnerable little children is a moment that it continues to psychologically terrorise these children’s families.
“They’ve been holding them in the dark and they’ve been keeping their families in the dark. Their families know nothing about their condition. Physically, mentally, emotionally. You know, maybe even worse, these children don’t know what has happened to their families.
“This hostage crisis is intensely personal for everyone in Israel. We’re a small country. Everyone knows someone who has had someone stolen from them. And we’re hoping to begin bringing back our stolen children, bring back those hostages, and we’re committed to the pledge that we will bring all of them back, and there will be no one left behind.”
09:04 AM GMT
US intercepts multiple attack drones launched from Yemen
A US warship patrolling the Red Sea intercepted multiple attack drones launched from Huthi-controlled areas in Yemen on Thursday, the US Central Command said.
“On the morning (Yemen time) of November 23, the USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116) shot down multiple one-way attack drones launched from Houthi controlled areas in Yemen,” CENTCOM said on X, previously Twitter.
“The ship and crew sustained no damage or injury,” it added.
The Huthis have declared themselves part of the “axis of resistance” of Iran’s allies and proxies and have launched a series of drones and missiles towards Israel after the start of the war in Gaza.
The Huthis have also threatened to target Israeli shipping over the country’s war with Islamist militant group Hamas, which is backed by Iran’s clerical leadership.
08:55 AM GMT
Pictured: German police raid suspected Hamas homes
08:41 AM GMT
Death toll in Gaza reaches 13,000
More than 13,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the director of the Hamas run Health Ministry.
The report follows a gap in the reporting of the death toll inside Gaza. on November 11, after the breakdown of access and communication in northern Gaza/
The latest count is based on updated figures from hospitals in the south and November 11 figures from the northern hospitals. The real toll is likely higher.
The Health Ministry says another 6,000 people have been reported missing, and are feared buried under the rubble.
08:27 AM GMT
Germany says raids underway on homes of Hamas supporters
Germany on Thursday said raids were underway in four regions on the homes of members and supporters of Hamas and another Palestinian organisation which are banned in the country.
“We are carrying out action against radical Islamists. By banning Hamas and Samidoun in Germany, we have sent a clear signal that we will not tolerate any apology or support for Hamas’s barbaric terror against Israel,” Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said in a statement.
“Islamists and ant-Semites must not feel safe anywhere,” she said.
The interior ministry said 15 properties had been raided so far since 6:00 am after courts in four regions ordered the raids.
08:11 AM GMT
Deal to free Hamas hostages delayed until Friday
A deal to release some of the hostages held by Hamas has been delayed, with Israeli officials saying it will not take effect until Friday, a day later than originally planned.
The diplomatic agreement between Hamas and Israel gave hopes of some relief to the bombardment pummelling Gaza since the October 7 attacks.
As part of the temporary ceasefire deal, 150 Palestinians, mostly women and teenagers, are due to be freed from Israeli jails in return for 50 of the roughly 240 hostages Hamas is holding.
Israel’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, announced the delay late on Wednesday.
He did not provide a reason, but Israeli media reported that some final details were still being worked out.
Hamas had said the ceasefire was due to begin at 10am local time (0800 GMT) on Thursday.
08:05 AM GMT
Spain in favour of recognition of Palestinian state in 'the very short term'
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Thursday said his country is in favour of the recognition of a viable Palestinian state “in the very short term”.
The existence of a Palestinian state “will be the best guarantee for peace in the Middle East,” he said in an interview with Spanish radio station RNE.
He reiterated that Spain is ready to hold a peace conference on the conflict.
07:55 AM GMT
David Cameron visits Israel
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron is due to visit the Middle East on Thursday and meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, Britain’s Foreign Office said in a statement.
Former prime minister Cameron, who was appointed to the foreign policy brief last week, met with counterparts from Arab and Islamic countries in London on Wednesday to discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict.
He has welcomed the agreement between the Israeli government and Hamas to a four-day pause in fighting, calling it a “crucial step” and urging the parties to deliver the deal in full.
07:44 AM GMT
German authorities search properties connected to Hamas
German authorities searched 15 properties on Thursday in connection with a recent ban on activities of Hamas as well as pro-Palestinian group Samidoun, the German interior ministry said in a statement.
The searches in four German states, which started at 6 am local time (0500 GMT), are intended to enforce the ban as well as clear up illegal structures of Hamas, designated a terrorist organisation in the country, and Samidoun, it said.
“We continue our consistent action against radical Islamists,” German interior minister Nancy Faeser said in the statement.
“With the bans on Hamas and Samidoun in Germany, we have sent a clear signal that we will not tolerate any glorification or support of the barbaric terror of Hamas against Israel,” Faeser added.
According to the ministry, there are around 450 members of Hamas in Germany, whose activities range from support and propaganda to financing and the collection of donations.
