Good morning.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, an Israeli airstrike hit a UN school where 6,000 displaced civilians were sheltering, killing at least 33 people, and injuring dozens more. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, which runs the school, has called for an investigation into “all violations against the United Nations including attacks on our buildings”.
Israel said that it had conducted a “precise strike on a Hamas compound” that was in the al-Sardi school, and claimed to have killed 20 or 30 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters who were involved in the 7 October attack.
The strike comes at a particularly sensitive moment in the ceasefire discussions. Hours after the school attack happened, the US – alongside 16 other countries – released a joint statement urging Israel and Hamas to come to an agreement. “It is time for the war to end,” they wrote. The message comes less than a week after the US president, Joe Biden, announced a three-phase ceasefire plan that he said was made by Israel and passed through mediators to Hamas. The plan would begin with a six-week temporary ceasefire that would secure the release of the most vulnerable hostages kidnapped by Hamas, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Eventually, by phase three, there would be a total cessation of hostilities.
Israel’s government has made it clear that it will not stop fighting until it has met objectives including “destroying Hamas’s military and governing capabilities”. To many, though, this is unrealistic and unachievable. As time goes on it has become evident that Netanyahu can no longer avoid the choice that he faces between securing his political future and a ceasefire deal.
For today’s newsletter, I spoke with Guardian senior international affairs correspondent Emma Graham-Harrison, who is reporting from Jerusalem, about this stage of the war in Gaza. Here are the headlines.
Five big stories
General election 2024 | The Conservative party is facing questions over its decision to keep more than £15m given by its biggest ever donor, Frank Hester, after former employees made a series of fresh allegations. Hester is alleged to have referred to a staff member as the “token Muslim”, imitated people of Chinese descent and remarked that one individual was attractive for a black woman.
Labour | Unpaid carers being left with crippling debts and threatened with prosecution after Department for Work and Pensions overpayments is “unforgivable” and will be investigated under a Labour government, the shadow work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, has told the Guardian.
Europe | Greece has won an unlikely ally in its campaign to retrieve the Parthenon marbles from the British Museum after Turkey publicly rejected the claim that Lord Elgin had received permission from Ottoman authorities to remove antiquities from the Acropolis.
Health | Three more babies have died from whooping cough as cases continue to rise across the country, according to the UK Health Security Agency. Since January, there have been 4,793 confirmed cases, with 181 babies under the age of three months diagnosed. A total of eight babies have died from whooping cough this year.
Law | Fiona Harvey, the woman who identified herself as the inspiration behind the character Martha Scott in the Netflix hit drama series Baby Reindeer, has filed a $170m lawsuit against the streaming giant. Harvey accused Netflix of defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence and violations of her right of publicity.
In depth: ‘Israel’s goal of destroying Hamas is extremely difficult, if not impossible’
While a lot of focus has been drawn to Rafah – Gaza’s southernmost city, where Israel has been conducting a ground invasion in the face of very strong international opposition to the operation – Israel has launched a new ground and air assault in central Gaza, after having left the area months ago.
At the very beginning of the war, Biden cautioned Israel against giving in to rage and repeating mistakes that the US had made after 9/11. “It was a clear reference to what happened in Afghanistan and Iraq, where we saw the initial declaration of military success – Saddam Hussein had been toppled, the Taliban had been defeated but then there were horrific insurgencies, with the biggest tragedy for the civilians in the region,” Emma says. It was a sentiment expressed recently by the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who said Israel’s conduct has put it potentially on track to “inherit an insurgency”. In some parts of Gaza, which Israel claimed to have cleared months ago, it looks like that is already happening.
Some of the fiercest fighting in the war took place recently in Jabalia, the second most populous town in northern Gaza. Israeli military officials said forces were also operating in the far north in Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia.
After weeks of fighting, a displaced Palestinian who returned to the refugee camp described total destruction in an interview with BBC Arabic: “Even the sand beneath our feet is scorched; it’s unbearable to walk on.”
Israel said the military returned to central Gaza because Hamas fighters were carrying out operations against Israeli troops in the area. “That’s pretty interesting because it means they have survived for more than eight months and they’re still operationally successful in an area that Israel was supposed to have already moved through,” Emma says.
Israeli military spokesperson Lt Col Peter Lerner said Israeli troops were facing “guerilla warfare” in the area. Emma says: “Israel may have technological superiority, but you see here a demonstration of why many experienced people were warning from the start that its stated goal of destroying Hamas completely is going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible.”
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Ceasefire pressures
While the Israeli public is broadly still supportive of the war, there is a division between those who say the main priority is eliminating Hamas and those who believe hostage returns should come first. There is growing internal pressure from hostage campaign groups, who are gaining support from the general public. Such organisations are pushing for Netanyahu to take a ceasefire deal now to ensure the return of as many hostages as possible. At the same time, Israel’s prime minister is facing threats from the far-right faction of his government who have rejected the ceasefire deal and made it clear they are willing to topple Netanyahu’s coalition if he continues down that path. This political backdrop has not been lost on anyone, with hostage families accusing Netanyahu of prolonging the war for his own political self-preservation. Biden, Netanyahu’s closet ally, said in an interview that there is “every reason” to draw that conclusion.
More broadly, international pressure is only increasing. Spain says it will join South Africa’s genocide case in the international court of justice against Israel, joining Ireland, Turkey, Egypt and several other countries that have already done so. As the war goes on, Israel’s position on the world stage gets worse and worse.
The ceasefire is stuck between “two apparently immovable obstacles”. Emma says: “Israel says it won’t end the war until Hamas is destroyed. Hamas says they will not agree to a ceasefire unless it’s permanent. All the negotiations are an effort to thread the needle between those two positions.”
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The humanitarian crisis continues
Amid the back and forth, Palestinians in Gaza continue to face catastrophic conditions. “Every day that the war continues, it moves in a direction of people getting hungrier, more people dying and things getting worse,” Emma says.
As early as January, aid agencies said they believed there were pockets of famine in northern Gaza and, more recently, the US-based famine early warning system network (Fews Net) said it was “possible, if not likely” that famine was under way there in April. Food production systems have been obliterated and the entry of much humanitarian aid has been restricted by Israel. The UN has said 1.1 million people, nearly half the population in Gaza, face “catastrophic” levels of hunger, adding that the territory is on the brink of famine. It is important to note that famine has a precise definition – for it to be officially declared, at least 20% of families have to face an extreme lack of food, at least 30% of children must be suffering acute malnutrition, and two adults or four children per 10,000 people must die each day from hunger-related causes. “Some experts have pointed out that if you hover on the brink of famine for a long time, the scale of the damage is as bad or worse than a short duration of famine,” Emma says.
Even though a new land crossing was opened in northern Gaza, improving access somewhat to aid, it is not enough and the main crossings in the south have been obstructed or entirely closed off.
There has also been credible reporting that Israel has been prioritising commercial traffic over food aid through Kerem Shalom, meaning that a significant amount of the food that does get in is not going to the most vulnerable people as they cannot afford to buy it.
“It’s not just the hunger, people have been living in horrific conditions where diseases are spreading, and there’s a lack of sanitation and waste disposal,” says Emma. “Imagine what it’s like to be a woman trying to deal with your period, there’s little water and no way to clean yourself. Many people have moved multiple times over the last seven months and are stuck in this cycle of horror and displacement.”
What else we’ve been reading
Four weeks out from the UK election, the Guardian has assembled a panel of undecided voters to grapple with their choice in a series of pieces leading up to polling day. The seven members introduce themselves and their voting quandaries in this opening piece. Charlie Lindlar, newsletters team
It’s embarrassing the number of times a week I am in a shop picking up hyper-specific ingredients. Nell Frizzell’s piece on the superfluousness of recipes is the sign I needed to free myself from the shackles of my Mob subscription. Nimo
This long read by Stephen Buranyi investigates how steroids became “the second-most used illegal drug in the country, after cannabis” – and how easy it is for regular gym-goers to source what used to be hard-to-find drugs. Charlie
Aditya Chakrabortty on the dangers of Nigel Farage is a terrifying but necessary reminder of the power the rightwing politician holds in British politics. Nimo
Working from home has been unilaterally branded as great for workers – but who speaks for those who quietly feel they’re losing out? Jerusalem Demsas explores this in the first episode of a new Atlantic podcast, Good on Paper. Charlie
Sport
Football | Gareth Southgate has made the ruthless decision to cut Jack Grealish from England’s Euro 2024 squad and will be without Harry Maguire for the tournament because of a calf injury. The manager, who had already dropped James Maddison and Curtis Jones from his provisional 33-man squad, has also left out the goalkeeper James Trafford and two more defenders in Jarrad Branthwaite and Jarell Quansah to create a final 26.
Tennis | Iga Świątek defeated Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4 while Jasmine Paolini beat Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 6-1 in the French Open semi-finals.
Basketball | Six Boston players reached double figures as the Celtics routed the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 in Game 1 of the NBA finals at TD Garden.
The front pages
“Pressure on Tories to return £15m donations after new Hester claims” is the Guardian’s splash today. “Remember them” – the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings covers the front page of the Metro. “In the footsteps of heroes” says the Daily Telegraph below a picture of modern-day Royal Marines wading ashore carrying wreaths. “They did not flinch” – the king’s words of tribute are on the front of the Daily Express. Veterans are pictured on page one of the Daily Mail, while the lead story is “Mail health guru Michael Mosley missing in Greece”. “PM ditches D-day” – Rishi Sunak comes under fire in the Daily Mirror for departing commemorations early. “Reform surges as new polls show Farage effect” reports the i, while the Times also has a political lead: “Green antisemitism storm”. Top story in the Financial Times is “ECB cuts rates for first time in 5 years after inflation eases”.
Something for the weekend
Our critics’ roundup of the best things to watch, read and listen to right now
TV
The Wrong Man: 17 Years Behind Bars (BBC iPlayer)
Right from the start, the events that led to Andrew Malkinson’s imprisonment for rape were absurd. Yet it turned out his ordeal was even more nefarious than it first appeared – and it’s in tracing these later developments that this dignified, devastating one-off really hits its stride. Documentaries about miscarriages of justice tend to be designed to make viewers angry, and The Wrong Man certainly achieves that. Rachel Aroesti
Music
Charli XCX – Brat
The singer’s 2022 album Crash was a conceptual go-for-broke which saw her embrace slick choreo and blue-chip songwriters. Having simply decided to be successful – and having pulled it off – most artists in her position would surely keep at it. Not Charli: the sleazy grind of Brat, her superb sixth album, is the palate cleanser, albeit one that tastes like cigarettes, vodka and chemical afterburn. Laura Snapes
Film
The Dead Don’t Hurt (In cinemas today)
This sinewy, sombre, handsomely crafted western is Viggo Mortensen’s second feature as a director, an impressively authored movie in which he is also writer, composer and star. With almost anyone else that might be the recipe for narcissism, and yet the self-effacing and even reticent quality in Mortensen’s screen presence works against that danger. He is, however, certainly working within the traditional strong, silent template of the old-school western hero. Peter Bradshaw
Podcast
Memories from the Dancefloor (Widely available)
Damian Kerlin is off to Wales for a new season of the hidden history of LGBTQ+ clubbing, with evocative stories about smoky pubs and secret bars. The joyous dancefloor action is expertly put into context, with section 28, solidarity with the striking miners and the Aids epidemic among the threads running through the history. Hannah Verdier
Today in Focus
The Israeli protesters trying to stop food aid getting to Gaza
International aid organisations are warning Gaza is on the brink of famine. But since the start of the year groups of protesters have been trying to prevent food and supplies getting in. Emma Graham-Harrison reports
Cartoon of the day | Ben Jennings
The Upside
A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad
In 1998, retired US schoolteacher Arden Eversmeyer began chronicling the stories of fellow lesbian seniors. Twenty-six years on, the Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project (OLOHP) now numbers over 900 interviews, conducted by Eversmeyer and her team. Although its founder died in 2022, her project lives on. Last month, the Guardian released a documentary about the group by Brooklyn-based film-maker Meghan McDonough.
Academic Lillian Faderman was interviewed by Eversmeyer herself. “As a young lesbian, my feeling was that what happened when you reach 30 or older was that you probably died,” she says. “There were simply no role models, and I don’t think it’s quite as bad today because of social media, but for the most part, I think that young lesbians still have no notion that we don’t disappear after 30. I think it’s important for them to understand that they have a future outside of youth.”
Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday
Bored at work?
And finally, the Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until Monday.
