Israel Palestine war news LIVE: UN warns Gaza is 'on the verge of collapse' after days of missile strikes as Hamas claims threat of ground invasion 'doesn't scare us'

The Pentagon has reportedly selected about 2,000 troops to prepare for a deployment to help Israel as a second carrier strike group steams for the eastern Mediterranean.

Officials said the troops will not serve in a combat role but would be tasked with medical support or advisory duties.

Details emerged on Monday after the Department of Defense said the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower strike group, which deployed from Norfolk, Virginia, on Friday, is on its way.

She will join the USS Gerald R. Ford, which arrived off the coast of Israel last week.

The presence of two of the Navy's most powerful warships will send a clear signal to Iran and its regional proxies, such as Hezbollah, not to escalate the conflict.

Iran has warned of a possible 'pre-emptive action' against Israel 'in the coming hours', as Israel readies for a ground offensive on the Gaza Strip.

Tehran has repeatedly warned that a ground invasion of the long-blockaded Gaza would be met with a response from other fronts - prompting fears of a wider conflict that could draw in other countries.

'The possibility of pre-emptive action by the resistance axis is expected in the coming hours,' Iran's foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said in a live broadcast to state TV, as he referred to his meeting with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday.

Earlier Monday, Iran's top diplomat and president, Ebrahim Raisi had said time was running out to reach a political solution and warned against the expansion of the Israel-Hamas war to other fronts.

Amir-Abdollahian said Monday that 'the resistance leaders' will not allow Israel 'to do whatever it wants in Gaza'.

Smoke rises as Israeli attacks continue during the 10th day of clashes near the Gaza border in Sderot, Israel

U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani on Monday afternoon as he worked to contain the Israeli conflict, the White House said.

Two persons are dead and another has been wounded in a shooting attack in Brussels, the spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor told reporters on Monday, adding the suspect had not yet been arrested.

'Go home and stay at home as long as the threat has not been eradicated,' the spokesman, Eric van Duyse, said, adding that the attacker claimed to be inspired by Islamic State.

Police cordon off an area where a shooting took place in the center of Brussels

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that Europe had been 'shaken' by a 'terrorist attack' in Brussels, after two Swedes were killed in a shooting.

'A few minutes ago, Brussels was hit again by an Islamist terrorist attack which apparently, as I speak to you, took the lives of at least two other Europeans, two Swedes,' Macron said during a visit to Tirana.

The BBC has been dragged into a new impartiality row after Dragon’s Den judge Touker Suleyman suggested countries that support Israel ‘will have blood on their hands.’

Suleyman posted: ‘Wanton killing of innocent civilians is terrorism, not a war against terrorism.’

Beneath his post Suleyman wrote: ‘Politicians or leaders that give order to kill civilians, and try to justify it should be tried for war crimes. Some countries and politicians and leaders think they are untouchable. Countries who support these leaders and politicians and countries will have blood on their hands. Countries of the free world, is there any of you strong enough to stand by what is international law?’

Suleyman, 70, who was born in Famagusta, a Turkish Cypriot city and moved to the UK when he was five, is a clothing entrepreneur who is said to be worth £200m. He has been a judge on Dragon’s Den since 2015.

Lack of water in the Gaza Strip under Israel blockade is driving people to drink from contaminated sources and could lead to the spread of diseases, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has warned.

'There continues to be no water for the vast majority of the population in Gaza,' UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma told reporters in New York in a video conference from Amman.

The World Health Organization earlier said that water, fuel and electricity would run out within 24 hours, warning that Israel had intensified the blockade on the enclave after the deadly attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on October 7.

'We're talking about two million people in the Gaza Strip who do not have water and water is running out and water is life. Life is running out of Gaza,' said Touma.

'We are very concerned about the spread of waterborne diseases if water continues not to be available in Gaza, because we do know that people are resorting to dirty water sources, including wells,' she said.

US President Joe Biden spoke with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday, the White House said, as the Israel-Hamas war raged in Gaza.

Biden, who is currently weighing an invitation to visit Israel, also spoke to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz 'in advance of chancellor Scholz's travel to Egypt and Israel,' a White House statement said.

Hundreds of protesters booed the BBC and demanded the corporation labels Hamas as 'terrorists' at a rally in central London.

The National Jewish Assembly hosted the rally alongside the UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) and the European Jewish Association.

Protesters placed posters of kidnapped Israelis on a wall opposite Broadcasting House while others chanted, prayed and waved Israeli flags for around 90 minutes.

Gideon Falter, speaking on the behalf of the CAA, told crowds: 'When it comes down to it, the BBC has used the word 'terrorists'.

'I'm sure you can all remember where you were in 2005 during the London bombings. Do you know what the BBC called that, a 'terrorist atrocity'.

'What do you call it when Hamas terrorists cross into Israel and gun people down at a music festival?'

He added: 'It is not impartial to call a terrorist a militant. It is excusing the terrorist.'

Speaker Asher Edreyi also told the crowd how painful it was hearing about the attacks that had taken place in Israel on October 7.

He said: 'This black Saturday is a day that will go down in history as one of the most tragic and painful days that us Jews, us Israelis have experienced and will be remembered for generations.

'I have been privileged to have served in the IDF Air Force and I have experienced just a fraction of the hard work our soldiers are doing in order to protect our loved ones.

'Trust me if it was hard for me then I can only imagine the long days and sleepless nights our soldiers are experiencing.'

At one stage, the rally was paused briefly to pray after hearing there had been warnings of rockets in Tel Aviv before chanting broke out again.

A BBC spokesperson said: 'We always take our use of language very seriously. Anyone watching or listening to our coverage will hear the word 'terrorist' used many times - we attribute it to those who are using it, for example, the UK Government.

'This is an approach that has been used for decades, and is in line with that of other broadcasters.

'The BBC is an editorially independent broadcaster whose job is to explain precisely what is happening 'on the ground' so our audiences can make their own judgment.'

A top Hamas leader has said the group 'has what it needs' to free all Palestinians in Israel's jails, indicating the militant group may try to use the Israelis it kidnapped as bargaining chips to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Soon after Hamas official Khaled Meshaal made the remarks on the captives, who include Israelis and non-Israelis kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, the group's armed wing separately said the non-Israelis were 'guests' who would be released 'when circumstances allow'.

Irish President Michael D Higgins has criticised Ursula von der Leyen's comments on the Israel-Hamas war.

Mr Higgins said the EU Commission president was 'not speaking for Ireland and she wasn't speaking for the opinions that they hold'.

He was speaking at the World Food Forum in Rome, where he joined criticism of Ms von der Leyen's comments on the Middle East conflict where she did not urge Israel to ensure its retaliation for the Hamas attacks to conform with international law.

More than 4,000 people have been killed in Israel and Palestine since Hamas's action on October 7.

In retaliation, Israel cut off food, fuel and electricity to the Gaza Strip, an area inhabited by 2.3 million people, around half of whom are children.

Mr Higgins has previously said that Israel's response must respect international law, while Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said Israel is engaging in 'collective punishment' in the region.

The Bishop of Sheffield, the Rt Rev Peter Wilcox, has condemned the 'cancers of antisemitism and Islamophobia that stalk our streets', against the backdrop of the current Middle East conflict.

Speaking in the House of Lords, the senior Anglican cleric said: 'There is no justification for the truly shocking atrocities perpetrated by Hamas. A shock exacerbated for many of us by the fact these attacks took place on the Sabbath.

'Nor is there any justification for the cancers of antisemitism and Islamophobia that stalk our own streets.'

Liberal Democrat leader in the Lords, Lord Newby, told Parliament that as a young student he had been visiting the Golan Heights when Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack against Israel on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, on October 6 1973.

He said: 'It is therefore a source of profound sadness to me that in the intervening 50 years so little has been done to deal with the root causes of this conflict.'

Supermodel Gigi Hadid has been slammed by the Israeli government after she posted in support of the Palestinian people on her Instagram story.

Over the weekend, Hadid, whose famous real-estate developer father Mohamed Hadid, is Palestinian, posted a graphic about the war that read: 'There is nothing Jewish about the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians.'

'Condemning the Israeli government is not antisemitic and supporting Palestinians is not supporting Hamas.'

Israel's government quickly skewered Hadid's position, posting on their Instagram story a response that read: 'There is nothing valiant about Hamas' massacre of Israelis. Condemning Hamas for what it is (ISIS) is not anti-Palestine and supporting Israelis in their fight against barbaric terrorists is the right thing to do.'

The account of the State of Israel then directed comments at Hadid specifically, tagging her account and writing: 'Have you been sleeping the past week?'

'Or you just fine turning a blind eye to Jewish babies being butchered in their homes? Your silence has been very clear about where you stand. We see you.'

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said the attack that left two dead in Brussels on Monday evening was 'despicable' and vowed unity against terrorism.

'Tonight, my thoughts are with the families of the two victims of the despicable attack in Brussels,' the European Commission president said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

'I extend my heartfelt support to the Belgian police, so they swiftly apprehend the suspect. Together, we stand united against terror.'

Belgium has raised the terror alert in Brussels to its highest level after a gunman claiming to be a member of ISIS opened fire on a group of Swedish football fans - killing two people.

The gunman is said to have began shooting at fans who were passing through Boulevard d'Ypres just a few minutes north of the city's famous Grand Plaza.

It comes as Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo slammed a 'harrowing attack' in Brussels that targeted Swedish citizens and left two people dead on Monday evening.

'I have just offered my sincere condolences to the Swedish PM following tonight's harrowing attack on Swedish citizens in Brussels,' De Croo said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

'Our thoughts are with the families and friends who lost their loved ones. As close partners the fight against terrorism is a joint one.'

An officer stands guard as Belgian police secure the area after a shooting in Brussels

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has called for a humanitarian corridor to be opened into Gaza, saying urgent help was needed to address an increasingly dire situation in the enclave of 2.3 million.

Trudeau made his remarks after diplomatic efforts failed to get aid to Gaza. Israel, reacting to an attack by Hamas last week that killed more than 1,300 people, has put Gaza under a total blockade and pounded it with unprecedented air strikes.

'Canada is calling for unimpeded humanitarian access and a humanitarian corridor, so that essential aid like food, fuel and water, can be delivered to civilians in Gaza. It is imperative that this happen,' Trudeau said.

Canada fully supported Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law, but 'even wars have rules', he told the House of Commons lower chamber of parliament.

'Terrorism is always indefensible, and nothing can justify Hamas' acts of terror. ... Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people nor their legitimate aspirations,' he said.

Earlier in the day, Ottawa said Canadians should consider leaving Lebanon while they can because of heightened security risks in the region.

Canada has been using two military planes to airlift people who needed help leaving Israel. The first group of Canadians has safely crossed from the West Bank into Jordan and there are also about 300 people in Gaza that Canada is seeking to bring out through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt.

Five Canadians have been killed in the Hamas attack on Israel while three are still missing.

Brussels has been brouight to a standstill after a gunman claiming to be a member of ISIS opened fire on a group of Swedish football fans - killing two people.

Harrowing footage taken by bystanders shows a man shooting several times using a large weapon while shouting in Arabic.

The alleged attacker used the name 'Slayem Slouma' to boast about the two murders on Facebook.

Speaking in Arabic, he celebrated the slaughter, and said he committed them in the name of ISIS.

Police confirmed that the man in the video - wearing an orange jacket, black scarf, yellow baseball hat and heavy black beard - was the one they were searching for in relation to the attack.

Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades are holding 200 people captive since a massive onslaught on Israel's south on October 7, with about 50 others held by other 'resistance factions and in other places', Abu Obeideh, the spokesman of Hamas's military wing, has said

Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said earlier Monday Israel had been able to confirm and notify the relatives of 199 people held captives in Gaza.

According to Abu Obeideh, 'we will release the foreign prisoners when conditions are ripe'.

He said at least 22 hostages taken from Israel had been killed in Israeli air strikes on Gaza.

Overall, more than 2,750 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on the narrow Palestinian enclave since October 7, according to Hamas officials.

The threat of an Israeli ground invasion of the blockaded Gaza Strip 'doesn't scare us and we are ready for it', Abu Obeideh, the spokesman of Hamas's military wing, has said .

In a televised statement, he said Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades were holding 200 people captive since a massive onslaught on Israel's south on October 7, with about 50 others held by other "resistance factions and in other places".

'The threat of the occupation (Israel) to launch a ground offensive against our people doesn't scare us and we are ready for it,' Abu Obeideh said ahead of an expected Israeli invasion more than a week into war.

More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel in the violence that began with the early morning Hamas attack, according to Israeli officials.

Protesters sung a prayer for Israel after hearing from five speakers outside BBC Broadcasting House in central London.

The crowd, which had gathered to back calls for the BBC to refer to Hamas as 'terrorists', sang and waved flags and placards while musician Ivor Goldberg performed.

Protesters then heard from TalkTV presenter Andre Walker who said 'for now all of us must be Israeli. All of us must be Jewish', as he held an Israeli flag.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sheltered in a bunker for five minutes on Monday when air raid sirens went off in Tel Aviv during their meeting, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

All the meeting participants have since moved out of the bunker, resumed their meeting and were going to a command center at Israel's defense ministry to continue their discussions, he said.

The incident occurred as President Joe Biden weighs a trip to the region himself amid an Israeli bombardment of Gaza after Hamas' deadly attack on Israel 10 days ago.

'During the Secretary's meeting with PM Netanyahu and the war cabinet, the air raid sirens went off and they sheltered in bunker for five minutes,' Miller said.

Blinken returned to Israel after an intense series of visits with regional leaders to try to contain the Israel-Hamas conflict and secure humanitarian aid and safe passage for U.S. citizens and civilians in Gaza.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held a phone call with the leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, on Monday, a Turkish foreign ministry source said.

Fidan and Haniyeh discussed the latest developments in the fighting between Israeli and Palestinian forces, as well as the release of civilian hostages held by Hamas, the source said.

A spokesperson for Israel's military has said that a visit by U.S. President Joe Biden to Israel would have 'strategic importance.'

Asked by reporters about a possible visit by Biden, which Israeli media has reported could happen this week, Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said a 'visit by the president of the United States has strategic importance.'

'Its strategic importance is for the entire Middle East, and the impact in which the highest level figure in the United States comes to Israel in time of war,' Hagari said.

Ofcom's online safety supervision director has been suspended after anti-Israel comments were posted on her private Instagram account.

Fadzai Madzingira was appointed by media watchdog Ofcom in June 2023 and has now been suspended.

Screengrabs published by the Guido Fawkes website appeared to show posts from Ms Madzingira's account describing Israel as an 'apartheid state' and liking a post criticising Israel and the UK for a 'vile colonial alliance'.

An Ofcom spokesperson said: 'Having reviewed these comments we've suspended this colleague, pending further investigation.'

Protestors have gathered outside BBC Broadcasting House in central London to urge the broadcaster to call Hamas 'terrorists'.

Many waved Israeli flags while others held placards with pictures of Israeli children kidnapped by Hamas.

One placard said 'BBC if the King can call Hamas terrorists so can you" while another said "BBC! Hamas are terrorists, not militants!'

A large crowd of protesters cheered and chanted before speeches started outside BBC Broadcasting House to protest against the corporation not using the word 'terrorists' to describe Hamas.

The crowd shouted 'Hamas, terrorists' and 'BBC, shame on you' as they waited to hear from speakers.

One protester stood on the railings next to the BBC building and led chants using a megaphone.

Hundreds of protesters joined the event outside Broadcasting House, with the crowd stretching up to Regent Street.

Protesters shouted 'don't pay the licence', 'shame' and 'Hamas is Isis' as they heard from podcaster Jonny Gould.

The National Jewish Assembly hosted the rally in collaboration with the UKLFI, CAA and the European Jewish Association.

Red paint found on the gates of a Jewish primary school in north London is to be treated as a 'hate crime' by the Met Police.

Beis Chinuch Lebonos Girls' School on Woodberry Down Road was splattered with the paint in an incident that is being treated as a hate crime by the Metropolitan Police.

Officers patrolled the area outside the school in Woodberry Down, searching through the contents of a nearby bin.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call on Monday that Russia was ready to help end the confrontation between Israel and the Palestinians, the Kremlin said.

'Vladimir Putin informed (Netanyahu) about the steps Russia is taking to help normalize the situation, prevent further escalation of violence and prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip,' the Kremlin said.

Earlier on Monday Putin discussed the crisis with the leaders of Iran, Egypt, Syria and the Palestinian Authority and said any form of violence against civilians was unacceptable, the Kremlin said.

Swiss International Air Lines has said it was suspending flights between Switzerland and Beirut initially until October 28 due to unrest on the border between Lebanon and Israel.

'SWISS places top priority on the safety of its passengers and crew,' the flag carrier said in a statement.

'We have decided to suspend our return connections between Switzerland and Beirut, as an extension of the conflict cannot be ruled out at this time.'

Four flights would be affected, the airline said.

Repeated fire in recent days has claimed lives on both sides of the UN-patrolled border between Lebanon and Israel, which remain technically at war.

If Israel does invade the Palestinian enclave of Gaza in its war on Hamas, Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement has warned it may escalate its military involvement.

SWISS has cancelled its scheduled flights between Zurich and Tel Aviv, and has now suspended its special repatriation flights too, citing the expected Israeli ground offensive.

Around 880 people had returned to Switzerland on four such flights.

The European Union will launch a humanitarian air corridor to Gaza through Egypt with the first flights expected this week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Monday.

'Palestinians in Gaza are in need of humanitarian help and aid.

'That is why... we are launching an EU humanitarian air bridge to Gaza through Egypt.

'The first two flights will start this week,' von der Leyen told a press conference in the Albanian capital Tirana, where she attended a regional Balkan summit.

Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has confirmed media reports he would travel to Israel and Egypt this week in the wake of the deadly attack by Hamas militants.

'It is important to me to also express my solidarity with Israel very practically with my visit,' he told reporters, while confirming a 'later trip' to Egypt.

Lebanese authorities should take all necessary measures to avert a war with Israel, France's foreign minister has said in Beirut following repeated exchanges of fire along the shared frontier.

'Lebanese officials have a responsibility... to do everything possible to prevent Lebanon from being dragged into a spiral,' Catherine Colonna said.

She added that, no group 'should take advantage' of the situation.

An Israeli government spokesman who was explaining why Hamas must be crushed was forced off-air as the terrorist group rained rockets down on Tel Aviv today.

Eylon Levy, a British-born Israeli advisor and journalist, was discussing how his government is seeking to 'destroy' Hamas after its bloody invasion from the Gaza Strip last week.

Dramatic footage shows the moment he was speaking to Sky News when sirens blared out and he had to run for his life, evacuating from the studio.

Levy was speaking before he began to trail off, with someone advising him through his ear piece to stop before a man came from behind the camera to help get him to safety.

'After we destroy Hamas, after we topple it, we expect to work together with international partners so that the reality that will exist inside the Gaza Strip is one in which no terrorist organisation is able...' he said before he was cut off.

The head of Israel's Shin Bet domestic intelligence agency has taken responsibility for failing to prevent Hamas from carrying out its deadly rampage through Israeli towns.

'Despite a series of actions we carried out, unfortunately, on Saturday we were unable to generate sufficient warning that would allow the attack to be thwarted,' Shin Bet director Ronen Bar said in a statement.

'As the one who heads the organization, the responsibility for this is on me. There will be time for investigations. Now we fight.'

Gina Semiatich, a 90-year-old Czech-born Holocaust survivor, was tragically murdered in her home at Kibbutz Kissufim, less than two miles from the Gaza border.

According to reports in Israel, Semiatich was dragged from her home shelter by the terrorists and shot in the head in her living room.

Another tragic victim of the attacks has been revealed to be a boy named Eitan.

According to Israel's official account on X (formerly Twitter), Eitan was celebrating his fifth birthday when he was killed by Hamas gunmen.

'Instead of celebrating his birthday, his parents will mourn their child's death on the day he was born for the rest of their lives,' the account said, along with two pictures: one of the youngster wearing a Spiderman costume, and another of his grave.

The pair were among the more than 1,400 victims of the October 7 Hamas terror attack in Israel.

Read our full story here

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has told the House of Commons that the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel was a 'pogrom', MailOnline's Deputy Political Editor David Wilcock reports from parliament.

'We should call it by its name. It was a pogrom,' Sunak said of the attack.

French President Emmanuel Macron has held a special security meeting with the country on high alert over feared terror threats after a school where a teacher was fatally stabbed last week was evacuated over a bomb alert.

The threat appeared to be a false alarm.

• A teacher at the Gambetta-Carnot high school was killed and three other people were wounded on Friday in an attack by a former student suspected of Islamic radicalisation.
• The Louvre Museum in Paris and Versailles Palace were also evacuated on Saturday after receiving bomb threats.
• Mr Macron cut short travel plans abroad to hold the security meeting with the prime minister and other key government members as well as top military and counter-terrorism officials.
• Speaking at the end of the meeting, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said that 102 people have been arrested in relation with antisemitic acts or inciting terrorism since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7.
• As a result, French authorities have reinforced security measures, especially around Jewish sites.

Read our full story on the bomb threat here

The World Health Organisation has warned there is only '24 hours of water, electricity and fuel left' in the Gaza Strip before 'a real catastrophe' sets in.

WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Ahmed Al-Mandhari said the bombarded, besieged territory must be allowed to receive convoys of aid, currently stuck at the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

If assistance does not arrive, doctors will have to 'prepare death certificates for their patients', he told AFP news agency.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns Iran and Lebanon's terror group Hezbollah not to 'test us' in the north.

Speaking to the Israeli Knesset today, Netanyahu warned Iran and Hezbollah, 'Don't test us in the north. Don't make the mistake of the past. Today, the price you will pay will be far heavier,' referring to Israel's 2006 war with Hezbollah.

He also called on the world to unite as it did 'to defeat the Nazis and ISIS', and admtitted that there are 'many questions aurrounding' last week's disaster.

The nation is united towards one goal, victory. We will triumph because it’s about our very existence in this region, which is fraught with dark forces. Hamas is part of the evil axis of Iran and Hezbollah. They aim to plunge the Middle East into an abyss of chaos. Now, many around the world understand who Israel is facing. They comprehend that Hamas represents a new version of Nazism. Just as the world united to defeat the Nazis and ISIS, so it must unite to defeat Hamas

Read our full story here

Crowds of Palestinian dual nationals waited anxiously at the still-closed Rafah crossing on Monday, sitting on their suitcases or crouching on the floor, comforting crying infants and trying to entertain bored children.

• Rafah, Gaza's only connection to Egypt, was shut down nearly a week ago because of Israeli airstrikes. While people wait to leave on the Gaza side, aid supplies are stalled inside Egypt. Mediators are pressing for a cease-fire.
• Earlier today, two Egyptian security forces said Egypt had agreed to re-open the Rafah border crossing for eight hours between 6am to 2pm GMT alongside a ceasefire.
• But half an hour later, Israel denied such claims that a truce was underway in southern Gaza.

'There is currently no truce and humanitarian aid in Gaza in exchange for getting foreigners out,' a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said.

This is the moment an Israeli pathologist broke down as he described how a victim of last week's Hamas attack was burned alive while hugging his loved ones.

Dr Chen Kugel, head of Israel's National Centre of Forensic Medicine, explains that the man whose remains are shown on a screen was burned alive in his home while hiding inside a shelter, thinking it would keep him safe from the terror attack.

However, he says, the man was killed when the terrorists set fire to his home.

Reports have detailed how Hamas fighters, upon learning civilians were hiding in safe rooms, set fire to their houses to either smoke them out or burn them alive.

Read our full story here

A cruise ship evacuating US nationals has left Israel for Cyprus, according to reporters on the ground working for AFP news agency.

Some 2,500 Americans are being taken out of the country, leaving from the northern Israeli port city of Haifa.

Commercial airlines have largely stopped flying into Israel's Ben-Gurion International Airport, making it extremely difficult to get out of the country.

With Israel now moving towards a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, the US embassy had on Sunday urged its 'citizens and their immediate family members with a valid travel document' to depart from Haifa today.

Russia has called for an 'immediate ceasefire' in the Israel-Gaza conflict, the Kremlin has said in a statement.

'The main thing now in this environment is to immediately cease fire and start the process of political settlement,' Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.

Earlier, in a readout of a call between President Vladimir Putin and Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad, the paid “called for an end to the shelling of Gaza and the forced displacement of its residents.”

Forces under both Putin and Assad have been accused of committing war crimes in the last decade, in Ukraine and Syria respectively.

This is not the first time since the Israel-Gaza conflict broke out last week that Putin has called for the violence to end while making no mention of his on-going invasion of Ukraine that has resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last night warned the nation was approaching a 'fateful hour' with more than 400,000 Israeli troops now gearing up for an imminent invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's forces have already positioned themselves along Gaza's border with Israel and drilled for what Israel said would be a broad campaign to 'demolish' Hamas.

But there are fears such a ground invasion will see house-to-house fighting erupt in the streets of Gaza.

Here, former British Army Major General Charlie Herbert explains what exactly an IDF ground assault into the Gaza Strip might look like...

This is the moment an Israeli AH-64 Apache attack helicopter targeted Hamas fighters with bursts of gunfire and hellfire air-to-ground missiles:

Hezbollah terror group says it has started destroying surveillance cameras on several Israeli army posts along the border as tensions rise.

• Hezbollah's military media arm released a video showing snipers shooting at and destroying surveillance cameras placed on five points along the Lebanon-Israel border including one outside the Israeli town of Metula.
• The terror group appears to want to prevent the Israeli army from monitoring movements on the Lebanese side of the border after days of fire exchange that left at least seven people dead, including four Hezbollah fighters.
• Israel and Hezbollah are bitter enemies that fought a monthlong war in the summer of 2006 that ended in a draw.
• Israel considers the Iran-backed Shiite militant group - which wants to see Israel destroyed - its most serious immediate threat, estimating that Hezbollah has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel.
• There are concerns that Hezbollah could join Hamas's war against Israel.

Read our full report here on now fears of an all-out war are growing

The below clip, released by Hezbollah on social media platforms, shows gunmen targeting suveilance cameras.

US President Joe Biden has cancelled plans for a trip to Colorado today, the White House said, fuelling speculation that he will go to Israel in a show of support.

Biden will instead stay in Washington to attend national security meetings, the White House said in a short statement, as several media outlets report he might travel to Israel this week.

Biden has been invited to Israel by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told CNN, adding that he had no travel plans to announce for now.

A spokesman for Hamas has said Israel has not resumed water supplies for Gaza, a claim that has been disputed by Israel.

Eyad Al-Bozom, speaking on behalf of the Hamas interior ministry, said today: 'The residents drink unhealthy water, posing a serious health crisis threatens the lives of the citizen.'

Israel has said its siege of the enclave won't be lifted until Hamas releases all hostages, but the country's water ministry said water had been restored at one 'specific point' in Gaza, at a location outside the southern town of Khan Younis.

Aid workers in Gaza said they had not yet seen evidence the water was back.

British Ministers have been pressing for Egypt to open the Rafah crossing to allow Britons to flee Gaza and to reduce the 'almost inevitable' impact on civilians, PA reports.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said today that an imminent Israeli military operation must focus on Hamas as he raised concerns about a 'regional escalation'.

Defence minister James Heappey warned that combat in Gaza, as Israel is expected to launch an offensive by sea, air and land, is likely to be 'horrendous'.

British officials are working with the Egyptian authorities in an effort to facilitate British and dual nationals, as well as their spouses and children, to leave Gaza through the border at the southern point of the enclave.

The Israeli Defence Forces claim they have killed another commander in Hamas’ elite Nukhba forces who they believe was behind the Kibbutz Nirim and Nir Oz massacres last weekend.

Gaza is 'on the verge of the abyss', UN chief Antonio Guterres warned today, as Israel said there was no temporary truce to allow aid in or foreigners out.

Here's what you need to know about the situation on the ground in Gaza:

• After Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel on October 7 and killed more than 1,400 people, Israel unleashed a relentless bombing campaign of the Gaza Strip that flattened neighbourhoods and killed at least 2,750 people, mainly civilians.
• Fears are growing over the dire humanitarian situation faced by the millions of Palestinians trapped in the heavily bombarded enclave.
• The territory - home to more than two million people - is gripped with panic, anger and despair as inhabitants of northern Gaza are frantically fleeing to the south after Israel's warning to vacate before its major offensive.
• The arrival of hundreds of thousands of people was putting further pressure on already stretched resources in the densely populated south where there is no escape valve.
• 'No electricity, no water, no internet. I feel like I'm losing my humanity,' Mona Abdel Hamid, 55, told AFP news agency. Hamid fled Gaza City to Rafah in the south of the enclave, where she is staying with strangers.
• Gazans are effectively trapped, with Israeli-controlled crossings closed and Egypt also having shut the Rafah border in the south.
• Any departure of Palestinians from Gaza is a sensitive issue, with Arab nations fearing that it could lead to permanent expulsion.
• Foreigners have flocked to Rafah in the hopes of being let out, after US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he was confident the crossing 'will be open' for aid into the strip.
• Reports had suggested that Egypt was blocking the passage of Gazans with foreign passports until relief supplies are allowed in.
• But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office dashed hopes of a deal, saying in a statement today that 'there is currently no ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza in return for removing foreigners'.

Sickening footage has emerged of the moment Hamas gunmen entered an Israeli compound, injuring several female soldiers with grenades before brutally executing them at near point-blank range as they cowered behind a desk.

Read the full story here

The European Union has called for the unconditional release of the hostages that are being held inside Gaza by Hamas terrorists.

'Human suffering can be no bargaining chip,' Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said in a statement on X.

He also said the UN must be granted access to Gaza so that humanitarian aid can be delivered to the people trapped there.

The statement followed one from António Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, who made the same demands.

Germany has warned Iran not to 'pour oil on the fire' of the Israel-Hamas war, after the country's foreign minister met with high-ranking Hamas officials.

'Anyone who wants to play with fire in this situation and pour oil on the fire or ignite it in any other way should really think twice because we are facing a potentially major regional conflict,' foreign ministry spokesman Sebastian Fischer said.

The warning comes ahead of an expected visit to Israel by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is set to travel there on Tuesday.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was in Israel last week, where she expressed Berlin's firm support for the country to defend itself against Hamas.

Here is a map detailing the latest key developments to the on-going conflict:

Iran has accused the United States of already being 'militarily involved' in the on-going conflict between Israel and Hamas.

'Iran considers that the United States is already militarily involved in the conflict between Israel and Palestinians,' Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said today during a televised press conference.

• Iran backs both Hamas and Hezbollah. The trio were described on Friday as an 'axis of evil' by Israel's defence secretary.
• All three have stated their wish to see Israel cease to exist.
• The United States, which has given unequivocal backing to Israel, has sent two aircraft carriers to the eastern Mediterranean as a deterrent against other countries in the region from getting involved in the conflict.

Israel's ambassador to the UK has defended her military's brutal bombardment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, arguing this morning that Tel Aviv's military at least gave Gazans warning that the attacks were coming.

Tzipi Hotovely, 44, gave an impassioned and defiant speech, pointing out that Hamas terrorists launched their attacks with no forewarning and slaughtered innocent, unarmed Israeli citizens.

She said:

Hamas are in charge of any harm that will be happening in Gaza to their own people. If we see innocent people get killed in Gaza, it's Hamas in charge. It's not Israel's responsibility - we don't have any obligation to bring Gaza water. 1,300 Israelis were targeted, slaughtered... they didn't get 24 hours to flee or protect themselves.

In a separete interview with Sky News, Hotovely also claimed 'there is no humanitarian crisis' in Gaza, where millions are currently running dangerously low on food, water and power, and are evacuating their homes.

You can read the full story here

Further to our update at 08:56, China's foreign minister has called for a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza.

Speaking in Beijing alongside his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, Wang Yi condemned Israel's actions for going 'beyond the scope of self-defence' and called for it to 'cease its collective punishment of the people of Gaza'.

According to Reuters, he said:

The UN security council must take action, and the major powers should play an active role. It is imperative that a ceasefire be put in place, that the two sides be brought back to the negotiating table, and that an emergency humanitarian channel be established to prevent a further humanitarian disaster.

Israel's army is evacuating residents living along its northern border with Lebanon amid rising tensions there.

As Israel masses its forces around Gaza in the south ahead of an expected ground assault into the enclave, pictures yesterday and today also show a large military presence in the north near to its border with its northern neighbour.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has returned to Israel for talks on the conflict following a tour of six Arab countries, an AFP correspondent travelling with him has said.

The top US diplomat, who was in Israel on Thursday on a solidarity visit, landed back in Tel Aviv and is expected to again meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

The dead Iranian Revolutionary Guard leader Qassem Soleimani planned the Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,400 people, according to a report published by a Washington-based think tank.

• Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump in January 2020.
• It is now claimed that the assassinated leader was the man behind the mass murder plot, one previously hinted at by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
• Hamas has been accused of being a proxy for the Ayatollah regime and carrying out its wishes, an Israeli spokesman Lior Haiat told Fox News.
• There has been speculation that Iran helped plan the Hamas surprise attack - dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Flood - since the fighting first broke out.
• The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) think tank report noted a propaganda report from Khamenei.
• 'The significance is that, last year, the Leader [Khamenei] gave "The promise of the imminent conquest,' and this year he gave 'the announcement of the complete conquest,' and Operation Al-Aqsa Flood is part of this imminent conquest,' it read.
• The think tank claims the plan for mass murder was engineered by Soleimani.

Read the full story here

The Israeli military has warned the Lebanese Hezbollah terror group that it faces a 'deadly' response if it continues to attack Israel.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the US has given Israel its full backing to strike back against the Iran-backed group, which has allied itself with Hamas:

Hezbollah carried out a number of attacks yesterday in order to try to divert our operational efforts [away from the Gaza Strip], under the direction and backing of Iran, while endangering the state of Lebanon and its citizens. We have increased our forces on the northern border and respond aggressively to any activity against us. If Hezbollah dares to test us, the reaction will be deadly. The United States is giving us full backing.

The IDF is evacuating civilians from 28 communities along the Lebanese border amid on-going attacks on both sides.

The Israeli military has said 199 hostages are being held in Gaza - higher than previous estimates.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, a military spokesman, said the families have been notified.

He did not specify whether that number includes foreigners, or say who is holding them. Most are believed to be held by the Hamas militant group, which rules Gaza.

'We have updated the families of 199 hostages,' Hagari told a media briefing, revising up an earlier number of 155 captives.

Several UN-flagged trucks have been seen leaving the southern Gaza Strip in the direction of a meeting point of the Palestinian enclave's borders with Israel and Egypt, according to a Reuters TV staffer.

The trucks initially appeared to be en route to the Rafah crossing on the Gaza-Egypt border but their course later appeared to take them in the direction of Kerem Shalom, an Israeli border crossing close to the Egyptian frontier.

China's foreign minister Wang Yi on has met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Beijing today.

The pair exchanged views on the Israel-Hamas conflict, the Chinese foreign ministry said.

The urgent task is a ceasefire and building of a humanitarian aid channel, Wang said in the meeting.

He also urged China and Russia to deepen strategic mutual trust, his ministry said.

Footage has emerged of an Israeli Navy patrol boat eliminating Hamas terrorists on October 7, as the group's brutal attack unfolfed.

You can watch the dramatic video below:

Further to our update at 08:32, a Hamas terror group official has told Reuters news agency there is no truth to reports about the opening of the Rafah border crossing.

They also denied there was a temporary ceasfire in place.

Egyptian security sources had told Reuters earlier that an agreement had been reached to open the border crossing (between Gaza and Egypt) to allow aid into the enclave from 0600 GMT.

Israel's army is evacuating residents living along its northern border with Lebanon.

• An Israeli civilian and an army officer were killed Sunday in missile attacks from Lebanon, and the army carried out retaliatory strikes and attacked infrastructure of the Hezbollah terrorist group.
• The group is allied with Hamas and backed by Iran.
• The Israeli army Monday noted in a statement 'the implementation of a plan to evacuate residents of northern Israel who live in the area up to two kilometres from the Lebanese border to state-funded guesthouses'.
• The move affects thousands of people living in 28 communities, and many have already left the area after repeated cross-border fire.
• Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said his country had 'no interest in a war in the north, we don't want to escalate the situation':

If Hezbollah chooses the path of war, it will pay a very heavy price. But if it restrains itself, we'll respect the situation and keep things the way they are.

Read our full story here

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has this morning denied reports of a ceasefire in Gaza that would enable aid to enter and foreigners to flee to Egypt.

'There is currently no ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza in return for removing foreigners,' a statement from Netanyahu's office said.

• The World Health Organisation says lifesaving assistance is awaiting entry through the Rafah crossing into Gaza, which is on the southern border with Egypt.
• The crossing was closed due to Israeli airstrikes.

Good morning and welcome to MailOnline's live blog covering the unfolding conflict in Israel and Palestine on October 16, 2023.

More than one million people have fled their homes in the Gaza strip ahead of an expected Israeli ground invasion of the enclave to eradicate Hamas.

Israeli forces, with support from US warships, have positioned themselves along Gaza's border, waiting for the order to move in.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told his forces Israel is with them as the 'fateful hour' to attack Gaza Strip by land, sea and air draws near.

A week of blistering airstrikes - sparked by the terrorist group's attack on October 7- have demolished neighbourhoods but failed to stop Hamas rocket fire into Israel.

The war has become the deadliest of five Gaza wars for both sides, with more than 4,000 dead.

Here's what you need to know this morning:

• The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,670 Palestinians have been killed and 9,600 wounded.
• More than 1,400 Israelis have been killed, and at least 155 others, including children, were captured by Hamas and taken into Gaza, according to Israel.
• Water has run out in UN shelters across Gaza and doctors across the territory are struggling to care for patients. They fear many will die when generators run out of fuel.
• Israel's military said it would not target a specific route south for several hours, again urging Palestinians to leave the north en masse. The evacuation order was first given by the IDF on Friday, telling northern Gaza's 1.1 million people to flee south.
• The World Health Organization has said this as a 'death sentence' for thousands of Gazans who are being treated in hospitals.
• The WHO says lifesaving assistance, including health supplies to serve 300,000 patients, is awaiting entry through the Rafah crossing into Gaza, which is on the southern border with Egypt. The crossing was closed due to airstrikes.
• The UN's Palestinian refugee agency has said Gaza 'is being strangled' and the number of people seeking shelter at their schools and facilities in the south of the territory is overwhelming
• Meanwhile, the Israeli military has ordered people living in 28 communities near the Lebanese border to evacuate.
• The order came after an increase in cross-border fire between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah - with the terror group on Friday announcing that it was ready to get involved in the fighting on the side of Hamas.
• UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned Sunday that the Middle East is 'on the verge of the abyss'.