Israel's strikes on the Gaza Strip have led to an "unprecedented human catastrophe" in the Palestinian territory, the United Nations agency supporting Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said Sunday. UNRWAâs comments came as Gaza residents continued to evacuate to the south ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive.
12:17am: Blinken says Palestinians should not be expelled from Gaza
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has categorically rejected the idea floated of expelling Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, saying they should be able to stay as Israel battles Hamas.
Blinken is on a crisis tour of the Middle East after Hamas unleashed a brutal October 7 assault inside Israel that killed more than 1,400, mostly civilians, prompting reprisals that have killed at least 2,670 people.
With Israel telling more than one million Gazans to leave the north of the enclave ahead of a ground invasion, some Israeli politicians have proposed pushing Palestinians into neighbouring Egypt.
"I've heard directly from Palestinian Authority President (Mahmud) Abbas and from virtually every other leader that I've talked to in the region that that idea is a nonstarter, and so we do not support it," Blinken said in an interview in Cairo with the Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television network.
"We believe that people should be able to stay in Gaza, their home. But we also want to make sure that they're out of harm's way and that they're getting the assistance they need," he said.
11:32pm: Hamas' actions don't represent Palestinians, President Abbas
Mahmoud Abbas said the actions and policies of Islamist group Hamas do not represent Palestinian people, according to official news agency WAFA.
In a phone call with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Abbas also called the Palestine Liberation Organization the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people," WAFA said.
10:38pm:Â UN chief warns hostages, Gaza aid access should not be 'bargaining chips'
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed on Sunday for Hamas to release hostages without conditions and for Israel to allow rapid and unimpeded humanitarian aid access to the Palestinian Gaza Strip.
"Each one of these two objectives are valid in themselves. They should not become bargaining chips and they must be implemented because it's the right thing to do," Guterres said in a statement.
8:50pm: 'Nothing seems to stop Hamas's ability to fire rockets into Israel'
Hamas militants have continued firing rockets from the Gaza Strip even as Israeli forces pound the enclave ahead of a looming ground assault, while violence has also intensified along Israel's northern border with Lebanon, says FRANCE 24's Jerusalem correspondent Irris Makler.
"Nothing seems to stop the ability of Hamas to keep firing rockets into Israel and it's successfully doing so even as far as Tel Aviv," she said.
8:30pm:Â Hamas 'must be stopped', says US Senate leader on Israel visit
Islamist militant group Hamas "must be stopped", US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has told reporters during a visit aimed at showcasing US support for Israel.
Schumer led a five-member bipartisan Senate delegation which met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog and families of US citizens held captive in the blockaded Gaza Strip.
"We say this to the Israeli people: we have your back, we feel your pain, we ache with you, and we... will stand by you in these difficult times," Schumer told a news conference.
He vowed Washington would remain Israel's "unrelenting partner" and said that in the senators' meeting with Israeli officials, they discussed Israel's needs to "defend itself" and "extinguish the threat of Hamas", while also calling for efforts to "minimise civilians casualties".
7:54pm: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on whistle-stop Middle East tour
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday met with Egypt's president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi after arriving in Cairo, the penultimate stop of his whistle-stop tour of the Middle East.
During the tour, Arab leaders stressed that humanitarian catastrophe resulting from an Israeli ground offensive will potentially destabilise the region.
Seeking to prevent the conflict between Israel and Hamas from spreading to other countries in the region, Blinken is headed back to Tel Aviv on Monday for further consultations with Israeli leaders.Â
Please click on the video player below to watch the report.
7:40pm: Israel confirms Hamas holding 155 hostages
The Israeli military said Sunday it had confirmed 155 people were being held hostage by Hamas since the Palestinian militant group staged its deadly attack last week.
Families of "155 hostages" have been contacted by the authorities, military spokesman Daniel Hagari said, updating an earlier figure confirming 126 hostages.
7:34pm:Â France's Macron warns Iran over escalation
French President Emmanuel Macron warned his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi in phone call on Sunday against any escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Macron's office said.
"The president of the republic warned President Raisi against any escalation or extension of the conflict, especially to Lebanon," Macron's office said in a statement.
"Given its relations with Hezbollah and Hamas, Iran has a responsibility in this respect. Iran must do everything possible to avoid a regional flare-up," it added.
7:16pm: More than 1,000 people missing under rubble in Gaza, Palestinian civil defence team says
More than 1,000 people are missing under the rubble of buildings that were destroyed by Israeli air strikes in Gaza, the Palestinian civil defence team said on Sunday.
In a statement, the civil defence team said many others were pulled alive out of the rubble, 24 hours after buildings were struck.
7:03pm:Â Gaza witnessing 'unprecedented human catastrophe', UN says
Israel's strikes on the Gaza Strip have led to an "unprecedented human catastrophe" in the Palestinian territory, the United Nations agency supporting Palestinian refugees said Sunday.
"Not one drop of water, not one grain of wheat, not a litre of fuel has been allowed in the Gaza Strip for the last eight days," Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of UNRWA, told journalists.
Israel on Sunday said water had resumed to the south of the Palestinian enclave.
6:56pm:Â Death toll of French citizens in Hamas attacks rises to 19, FMÂ Catherine Colonna says
The death toll of French citizens from the Hamas attacks in Israel has risen to 19, and 13 others are still unaccounted for, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on Sunday during a visit to Tel Aviv.
6:45pm: Gaza death toll surges to 2,670, Hamas health ministry says
The death toll from Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip surged to at least 2,670 since Hamas's bloody attack on southern Israel last week, the Gaza health ministry said Sunday.
Another 9,600 people have also been injured as Israel continued its blistering air campaign on targets in the Palestinian coastal enclave, the Hamas-controlled ministry added.
6:36pm:Â UN peacekeepers say HQ struck by rocket in south Lebanon
United Nations peacekeeping force UNIFIL said on Sunday its headquarters in south Lebanon had been hit by a rocket.
"Our headquarters in Naqoura was hit with a rocket and we are working to verify from where. Our peacekeepers were not in shelters at the time. Fortunately, no one was hurt," UNIFIL said in a statement.
6:12pm: Thousands take part in pro-Palestinian rally in Turkey
Thousands turned out for a pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul on Sunday, after sustained Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip and warnings about a ground attack there.
"They've been chasing people out of their homes for years. Now they're not killing people one by one day by day, they're killing them en masse," one of the marchers, Bayram Atabey, a shopkeeper in his thirties, told AFP.
"This is what Israel is doing and we are protesting against it," he added at the rally organised by a radical Islamist group allied to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamo-conservative AKP party.
Two other large-scale demonstrations took place on Friday and Saturday on Istanbul's historic peninsula to denounce Israel's response to the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas's bloody attack on the Jewish state on September 7, the bloodiest ever committed on its territory.
5:55pm:Â Blinken trip to the Middle East: 'Last-minute shuttle diplomacy'
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on a "shuttle diplomacy tour" as he meets Egypt's president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday, FRANCE 24's Leela Jacinto said.
After travelling to six countries in the region, Blinken is set to return to Israel on Monday for further talks with Israeli leaders.
Despite the spiralling humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the US is not calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, mainly seeking to prevent the conflict from spreading, Jacinto said.
Please click on the video player below to watch the interview.
5:45pm:Â Blinken confident Rafah crossing with Gaza will open to aid
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt "will be open" for aid into the blockaded strip, he said while departing from Cairo.
"We're putting in place with the United Nations, with Egypt, with Israel, with others, the mechanism by which to get the assistance and to get it to people who need it," he told reporters.
Blinken also said that the United States had appointed an envoy, veteran former diplomat David Satterfield, to work on aid to Gaza.
5:09pm:Â Israel has 'no interest in war' on border with Lebanon, defence minister says
Israel is not interested in having a war on its northern frontier with Lebanon, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said as tensions mount between the two countries.
"We have no interest in a war in the north, we don't want to escalate the situation," Gallant said in a video released by his office, as he visited troops in the country's south.
"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, despite them being in a process of shooting from both sides."
4:59pm:Â Gaza death toll rises to 2,450, Hamas health ministry says
Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip have killed at least 2,450 people since Hamas's bloody attack on southern Israel last week, the Gaza health ministry said Sunday.
Another 9,200 people have also been injured as Israel continued its blistering air campaign on targets in the Palestinian coastal enclave, the Hamas-controlled ministry added.
4:33pm:Â Renewed water supply to parts of south Gaza agreed between Biden and Netanyahu, Israeli minister says
Israel's energy minister said on Sunday that a decision to renew water supplies to parts of southern Gaza was agreed on between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden.
Energy Minister Israel Katz said that the decision to partially renew water supplies was in line with Israeli policy, which is to tighten a blockade on the Hamas-ruled territory.
4:31pm: Over 1,400 killed in Hamas attacks on Israel, PM office says
More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel since the attack unleashed last week by Hamas militants from the blockaded Gaza Strip, the Israeli prime minister's office said Sunday.
"Over 1,400 were killed (and) over 120 Israelis were abducted by Hamas terrorists" since the October 7 attack, Tal Heinrich, spokeswoman for the prime minister's office, told journalists.
4:20pm: Horror of Hamas attacks âdoesnât mean Israel is entitled to commit a war crimeâÂ
Israel is under mounting international pressure to spare civilians in Gaza, with legal experts and human rights groups warning that Israeli forces are already committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip, where water ran out at overcrowded UN shelters on Sunday.Â
âLegally speaking, Israel is under the obligation, under international humanitarian law, to spare civilian life,â said Johann Soufi, a former international prosecutor who has lived in Gaza, speaking to FRANCE 24.Â
âAny violation of international humanitarian law could constitute a war crime and possibly a crime against humanity,â Soufi added, stressing that the horror of Hamasâs attacks last week did not give Israel the right to commit crimes of its own.Â
âRegardless of what has sparked the escalation, there is a legal duty by Israel to respect international humanitarian law,â he said. âIt is not because there was a war crime that you are entitled to commit a war crime.â
Please click on the video player below to watch the interview.
4:18pm:Â White House says Israel has announced water back on in southern Gaza
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Sunday that Israel told him it has turned the water supply back on in southern Gaza.
"I have been in touch with my Israeli counterparts just within the last hour who reported to me that they have, in fact, turned the water pipe back on in southern Gaza," Sullivan told CNN. Israel had halted the flow of water as part of its siege of the Hamas-ruled territory since the war broke out last weekend.
3:42pm:Â Israeli reaction to Hamas attack is collective punishment, Egypt's Sisi says
Egypt's president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that Israel's reaction to Hamas's attack went beyond self-defence and amounted to collective punishment.
In televised comments during a meeting with Blinken in Cairo on Sunday, Sisi also said he rejects the targeting of any civilians in the ongoing conflict.
3:35pm: Situation in south Lebanon âvery alarmingâ as Hezbollah, Israel exchange fireÂ
The Israeli army said it struck targets inside Lebanon earlier on Sunday after anti-tank missile fire towards a border community, in the latest incident of cross-border shelling that has stoked fears of a regional escalation. Â
Israel has stationed troops and tanks on its UN-patrolled northern border with Lebanon and closed a four-kilometre-wide zone there to civilians after deadly exchanges of cross-border fire with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Â
âIt still looks like neither party is aiming for a full-scale spill over of the war in Gaza,â says FRANCE 24âs Beirut correspondent Rawad Taha. Â
âBut definitely the current situation in southern Lebanon is very alarming, especially given that exchanges of fire have increased over the past two days.âÂ
3:10pm:Â Possibility of 'war on three fronts' as Iran moves equipment into Syria
Iran is moving material and equipment into Syria according to Israeli media reports, says FRANCE 24's correspondent Irris Makler reporting from Jerusalem.
This suggests the possibility of a "war on three fronts: Gaza, Lebanon and Syria", Makler says, adding that the Israeli army is on standby as it awaits the go-ahead for a ground offensive into the Gaza strip.
After ordering Gaza residents on Friday to leave their homes in the north, Israel is currently evacuating its own citizens from major border towns such as Sderot, Makler says.
Please click on the video below to watch the full report.
3:06pm:Â US focused on safe passage for American citizens out of Gaza into Egypt
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday the United States is focused on ensuring American citizens can find safe passage out of Gaza into Egypt.
The Israeli military said on Sunday it would continue to allow Gazans to evacuate south ahead of an expected ground assault by its forces on the Gaza Strip in retaliation for unprecedented attacks by Hamas militants eight days ago.
Sullivan, who spoke to CBS's "Face the Nation", also said the US is making sure the broader civilian population leaving Gaza has access to food, water, medicine and shelter.
3:00pm: White House expects new Israel and Ukraine aid to be over $2 billion
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday that a new weapons package for Israel and Ukraine will be significantly higher than $2 billion.
Sullivan, in an interview on CBS's "Face the Nation," said US President Joe Biden will have intensive talks with the US Congress this week on the need for the package to be approved.
2:45pm:Â Thousands stage largest anti-Israeli march in Morocco since normalisation
Thousands marched in Rabat on Sunday in support of Palestinians under siege in Gaza, in the biggest anti-Israeli protest since the 2020 normalisation of diplomatic relations.
At the march, organised by Islamists and leftist groups, protesters chanted: "Palestine is resisting" and "All against normalisation" as they burned an Israeli flag.
Morocco, which has a defence cooperation pact with Israel, backs a two-state solution in the Middle East and has urged peace and protection of all civilians.
2:36pm:Â Estimated one million people displaced in first week of Gaza war, UN says
An estimated one million people have been displaced in the first seven days of the conflict in Gaza, the United Nations agency supporting Palestinian refugees said Sunday.
"An estimated one million people have been displaced in the first seven days" of the war in Gaza, UNRWA Director of Communications Juliette Touma told AFP.
"The number is likely to be higher as people continue to leave their homes."
1:57pm: Blinken arrives in Cairo ahead of return to Israel Monday
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head back to Israel Monday for his second visit in less than a week following a tour of six Arab countries to discuss the crisis with Hamas, the State Department said.
"Secretary Blinken will return tomorrow for further consultations with Israeli leaders," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters Sunday as Blinken arrived in Cairo.
1:55pm: Netanyahu convenes emergency Israeli cabinet, vows to 'demolish Hamas'
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened Israel's expanded emergency cabinet for the first time on Sunday, saying the national unity on display sent a message at home and abroad as the country gears up to "demolish Hamas" in Gaza.
The meeting, held in military headquarters in Tel Aviv, began with ministers standing for a moment's silence in memory of some 1,300 Israelis killed in Hamas' shock October 7 onslaught.
1:44pm:Â Israel has 'confirmed' that 126 people are being held as hostages by HamasÂ
The Israeli military "confirmed" on Sunday that 126 people have been held as hostages by Hamas since the Palestinian militant group staged their deadly attack eight days earlier.
Authorities had initially estimated about 150 Israeli and foreign captives after Hamas launched its October 7 attack that killed at least 1,300 in Israel.Â
Israeli officials say the number of known hostages had been revised down as bodies from the Hamas attack sites in southern Israel have been found and identified.
Hecht told a briefing that 126 hostages had been "confirmed".
The figure was up from 120 reported on Saturday, and officials cautioned the number was likely to keep changing in coming days.
The military has also said its forces had found the bodies of some of the hostages in raids into Gaza, without providing a number.
Hamas has claimed that 22 hostages were killed in Israeli strikes, without providing evidence. It has warned that it will kill hostages in response to unannounced Israeli strikes on civilian targets.
1:42pm:Â Iran warns 'no one can guarantee' control of situation if Israel invades Gaza
Iran warned on Sunday that "no one can guarantee" control of the situation if Israel invades Gaza, ahead of an expected ground offensive by Israeli forces.
"If the attacks of the Zionist regime (Israel) against the defenceless citizens and people of Gaza continue, no one can guarantee the control of the situation and the non-expansion of the conflicts," Iran's foreign ministry quoted Foreign Minster Hossein Amir-Abdollahian as saying during his meeting with Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.
12:34pm:Â Israeli army awaits 'political' green light for Gaza invasion
The Israeli army is awaiting a "political decision" on the timing of a major ground offensive on the Gaza Strip, military spokesmen said Sunday as civilians stepped up desperate efforts to flee northern Gaza.
Military spokesmen Lieutenant Richard Hecht and Daniel Hagari told separate briefings on Sunday that "a political decision" will set off any action against Hamas. "We will be holding discussions with our political leadership," Hecht told one briefing.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops near the Gaza border on Saturday that "more is coming". But he did not say when any ground operation would start. Netanyahu has been holding regular security meetings with key ministers and military leaders.
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant discussed the evacuation of Gaza civilians and "humanitarian issues" in talks with US senators today, his department said.
12:33pm:Â Pope Francis calls for humanitarian corridors to help those under siege in Gaza
Pope Francis on Sunday called for humanitarian corridors to help those under siege in Gaza and renewed his appeal for the release of hostages held by militant Islamist group Hamas.
"I strongly ask that the children, the sick, the elderly, women and all civilians do not become victims of the conflict," the Pope said during his weekly address to the crowds in St. Peter's square.
"Humanitarian right must be respected, above all in Gaza."
12:26pm: French FM Colonna visits hospital in Israel's Ashkelon
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna and her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen visited the hospital in Ashkelon, some 15 km from the Gaza Strip, on Sunday to meet victims of the bloody attack launched by Hamas on October 7.
"I wanted to come to the hospital (...) because it's a way of showing France's solidarity with Israel, which has suffered a monstrous terrorist attack, and a way of saying that France shares the grief of the Israeli people, because it also knows the price of terrorism," she said, recalling that the attacks claimed 17 French victims, according to a provisional toll.
12:15pm:Â Packed Gaza hospitals warn that thousands could die as supplies run low and ground offensive looms
Medics in Gaza warned Sunday that thousands could die as hospitals packed with wounded people run desperately low on fuel and basic supplies.
Hospitals are expected to run out of generator fuel within two days, according to the UN, which said that that would endanger the lives of thousands of patients. Gazaâs sole power plant shut down for lack of fuel after Israel completely sealed off the 40-kilometer-long (25-mile-long) territory following the Hamas attack.Â
In Nasser Hospital, in the southern town of Khan Younis, intensive care rooms are packed with wounded patients, most of them children under the age of 3. Hundreds of people with severe blast injuries have come to the hospital, where fuel is expected to run out by Monday, said Dr. Mohammed Qandeel, a consultant at the critical care complex. There are 35 patients in the ICU who depend on ventilators to stay alive and another 60 on dialysis. If fuel runs out, âit means the whole health system will be shut downâ, he said.Â
âWe are talking about another catastrophe, another war crime, a historical tragedy," he said. âAll these patients are in danger of death if the electricity is cut off."
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the head of pediatrics at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, said it did not evacuate despite Israeli orders. There are seven newborns in the ICU hooked up to ventilators, he said. âWe cannot evacuate, that would mean death for them and other patients under our care.â
12:06pm:Â 'Mass displacement' towards southern Gaza, says UN
Israel's order to evacuate the northern Gaza Strip has triggered "mass displacement" towards the southern part of the Palestinian enclave, the United Nations said Sunday.
Israel has warned 1.1 million Palestinian civilians to leave northern Gaza and a steady stream of families in overloaded cars, trucks and donkey carts have since headed south.
"Mass displacement from the north to the south of the Gaza Strip has been ongoing since... Friday morning, after Israel ordered residents to evacuate the areas ahead of military operations," the UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said in an update.
"Humanitarian partners report that the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has risen significantly over the last 24 hours; however the exact number is unknown."
Beforehand, as of 11:00 pm (2000 GMT) on Thursday, there were 423,378 IDPs in Gaza, OCHA said.
Around 64 percent were being hosted by UNRWA, the UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees, in 102 premises operated as designated emergency shelters.
"Some 33,054 IDPs had taken refuge at 36 public schools," said OCHA.
"It is estimated that over 153,000 IDPs, whose homes have been destroyed or damaged, or have left their homes due to fear, are residing with relatives and neighbours, as well as in other public facilities."
11:33am: Aid for Gaza stuck in Egypt with Rafah crossing closed
Convoys of humanitarian aid stacked up near Egypt's border with the Gaza Strip on Sunday, unable to enter the Palestinian enclave being bombarded by Israel, witnesses said.
The Rafah crossing â the only passage in and out of the Gaza Strip not controlled by Israel â has been closed since Tuesday, after three Israeli air strikes on the Palestinian border post within 24 hours.
On Sunday, witnesses said concrete blocks installed by the Egyptians to fortify the border following Israel's bombings were still in place, suggesting that no passage was being considered in the immediate future.
Already, shipments of aid from Jordan, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates had arrived at El Arish airport â 50 kilometres (31 miles) west of Rafah â alongside enough medical supplies supplied by the World Health Organisation to meet the needs of 300,000 people.
Egypt itself has sent a convoy of 100 transport trucks carrying 1,000 tonnes of aid.Â
Israel, which controls the other two crossing points into Gaza, has declared a "complete siege" of the Palestinian coastal enclave, cutting off food, water, fuel and electricity supplies to the territory's 2.4 million people.
11:09am:Â Israeli army closes area near Lebanon border to civilians
The Israeli army on Sunday ordered an immediate evacuation of civilians near its frontier with Lebanon after cross-border fire killed one person.
"In accordance with the situational assessment and the recent shooting incident in northern Israel, the area up to four kilometers (2.5 miles) from the northern border with Lebanon has been closed," the army said in a statement.
10:50am:Â US to evacuate nationals from Israel by ship on Monday
The United States has organised a ship to take Americans out of Israel to Cyprus on Monday, the US embassy said.
With Israel moving toward an invasion of the Gaza Strip, the ship will leave from the Israeli port of Haifa for Limassol taking "US nationals and their immediate family members with a valid travel document", the US embassy said in a security alert on Sunday.
Tens of thousands of US passport holders live in Israel and 29 have been confirmed killed in the Hamas attacks of October 7. Another 15 are missing and believed to be among the hostages held by Hamas since the attacks.
The US embassy did not say how many people would be taken on the ship but said "boarding will proceed in order of arrival and is on a space limited basis." Boarding would start at 8:00 am (0500 GMT).
Each passenger will have to sign a document promising to repay the cost of the trip and will only be allowed to carry one suitcase. It said that some chartered flights would be arranged from Cyprus for onward travel.
10:48am: 'The humanitarian situation in Gaza is catastrophic'
Nibal Farsakh, media and information officer at the Palestine Red Crescent Society, talks to FRANCE 24 about the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave Gaza and what she would like the international community to do.
"The humanitarian situation in Gaza is catastrophic", says Farsakh, as the Al-Quds hospital and emergency medical centre in Gaza City remain "under threat of being bombed at any moment". As such, she is calling on the international community "for a second time to pressure Israel to stop the evacuation order immediately" in order to "stop the humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding" and "to hold Israel accountable" in accordance with international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention.
Click on the video player below to watch the full interview.
10:45am: Germany warns against travel to Israel, Palestinian territories and Lebanon
Germany's Foreign Ministry on Sunday warned citizens against travelling to Israel, the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, citing the risk of attack and possible further escalation of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
"Israel remains the declared target of Islamist terrorist groups," the Foreign Ministry said on its website.
10:26am:Â One killed, several injured in firing from Lebanon, says Israeli army
Anti-tank missile fire from Lebanon killed a civilian and wounded several others on Sunday in a northern Israel border community, Israel's army said.
"The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) responded with fire and destroyed Hezbollah positions and the source of the fire," an army spokesman said.
"In addition, there was fire at an Israeli military position. There were no casualties. The IDF responded with fire to the source of fire there too."
10:16am:Â Israeli military says it will continue to let Gazans evacuate southward
The Israeli military said on Sunday that it would continue enabling Palestinian civilians fleeing Gaza Strip fighting to relocate southward within the territory, adding that hundreds of thousands had already heeded Israel's evacuation order.
10:08am: Israel strikes inside Lebanon after anti-tank missile fire, says army
The Israeli army said it was striking inside Lebanon on Sunday following anti-tank missile fire towards a border community, in the latest incident of cross-border shelling.
"Following the anti-tank missile fire in the area of Shtula, the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) struck the origin of the fire with artillery fire," the army said.
"Furthermore, additional anti-tank missile fire was carried out toward an IDF military post on the Lebanese border. In response, the IDF is currently striking in Lebanese territory."
10:00am:Â Israel seals off Lebanon border, says deliberately disrupting GPS in war zones
The Israeli military declared a zone within 4km of the Lebanese border off-limits to public access on Sunday and said it was deliberately disrupting GPS services there and on the southern front with Gaza as part of its operations.
The GPS disruptions could affect the functioning of apps, chief military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said on X.
9:54am:Â Israel says Hamas militant behind kibbutz massacre killed
The Israeli army said Sunday that it had killed the Hamas commander behind one of the attacks on kibbutz communities that triggered retaliatory bombardment and preparations for a ground invasion.
Billal al-Kedra is the latest Hamas commander or official whose death Israel has announced since it began bombing Gaza Strip targets eight days ago in its campaign to crush Hamas.
Kedra was killed in an air strike on the Khan Yunis district of Gaza on Saturday night, said a military statement.
According to the army, al-Kedra "was responsible for the Kibbutz Nirim massacre" one of dozens staged when Hamas forces crossed into Israel on October 7 to gun down, stab and burn at least 1,300 people, mostly civilians.
Media reports said that at least five people were killed in their homes in Nirim where community members were besieged for nine hours before the army fought off the Hamas militants.
"Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror operatives were also killed" in the night raid by fighter jets, the military statement said.
Nirim was one of about 20 kibbutzim, traditionally agricultural communities, that Hamas attacked when they broke through the militarised security barrier around Gaza.
9:08am:Â One killed, 3 wounded in cross-border Hezbollah attack on northern Israel
Lebanese Hezbollah fighters launched a missile at an Israeli northern border village on Sunday, killing one person and wounding three others, the militant group and Israeli medics said.
The medics had initially said two people were wounded in the attack on Shtula, a farming community that abuts the border fence, opposite the Lebanese community of Ayta a-Shab.
The Israeli military said it was striking in Lebanon in retaliation.
Video from Shtula that was circulated on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, showed a soldier checking an immobile and bloodied man in civilian clothing.
FRANCE 24 could not immediately verify the footage.
8:17am:Â Hamas confirms three fighters killed while infiltrating Israel from Lebanon
Hamas claimed responsibility Sunday for two infiltrations from Lebanon to Israel that killed three of its fighters, as war rages between the Gaza-based militants and Israel.
The al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's armed wing, said its members were "able... to blow up the border fence and... go forth inside occupied Palestine", clashing with "the enemy", whose planes targeted the fighters, killing three on Saturday.
Israeli forces on Saturday had said they killed several "terrorists" trying to cross from Lebanon.
In their statement, the al-Qassam Brigades also claimed responsibility for an incident on Friday at the border when the group "advanced to go forth into occupied Palestine and was able to clash with the Zionist enemy army and withdraw peacefully", on Friday.
Two Lebanese security sources had said on Friday that Israel shelled the southern Lebanon border region, after a blast occurred on the border fence, according to the Israeli army.Â
One of the security sources said the shelling followed an infiltration attempt from the Lebanese side of the border, while the Israeli army said it was responding to a blast that caused "light damage" to the border barrier.
8:13am:Â Blinken meets Saudi crown prince on Mideast crisis tour
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a crisis tour of the Middle East, met Sunday with the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, which has put on hold normalisation with Israel.
The top US diplomat met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at his palace in Riyadh just after 7:30 am (0430 GMT) and the meeting lasted a little under an hour, a US official said. Answering a shouted question from a Reuters reporter as he returned to the hotel the US delegation was staying at, Blinken said the meeting had been "very productive".
Blinken has been touring the region since Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel on October 7 and killed 1,300 people, sparking a massive retaliatory campaign targeting the Islamist group in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 2,200 people.
Before the violence, the Saudi crown prince, known by his initials MBS, had spoken of progress in US-led diplomacy to normalise relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Saudi Arabia has put the process on hold after the violence, with some suspecting that Hamas wanted to stop normalisation for fear it would further weaken the Palestinian cause.
8:08am:Â Israeli communications minister seeks shutdown of Al Jazeera bureau
Israel's communications minister said on Sunday that he was seeking a possible closure of Al Jazeera's local bureau, and accused the Qatari news station of pro-Hamas incitement and of exposing Israeli soldiers to potential attack from Gaza.
The proposal to shut down Al Jazeera had been vetted by Israeli security officials and was being vetted by legal experts, Shloma Karhi said, adding that he would bring it to the cabinet later in the day.
Al Jazeera and the government in Doha had no immediate comment.
"This is a station that incites, this is a station that films troops in assembly areas (outside Gaza) ... that incites against the citizens of Israel â a propaganda mouthpiece," Karhi told Israel's Army Radio.
"It is unconscionable that Hamas spokespeople's message goes through this station," he said, adding: "I hope we will finish with this today." It was not clear if the latter statement referred to a cabinet discussion or implementation of a closure.
7:25am: Deadliest Gaza war for Palestinians to date as death toll climbs to 2,329, says ministry
The death toll in the Gaza Strip climbed to 2,329 Palestinians dead and 9,714 injured on Sunday morning, according to Gaza's health ministry, making it the deadliest Gaza war for Palestinians to date.Â
The latest casualty toll reflects those killed and injured by Israel since the conflict started on October 7.
7:00am: 'US is walking a really nuanced line' on Israel-Hamas war
"The USÂ is walking a really nuanced line" amid the ongoing war between the Palestianian militant group Hamas and Israel, says FRANCE 24's Washington correspondent Fraser Jackson. While it has said that it supports Israel fully, it has also said that it supports the Palestinian right to self-determination and the Palestinian Authority's wish to get humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
US Secretary Antony Blinken has been visiting numerous countries of the Middle East in the past few days with the objectives of preventing this conflict from escalating, securing the release of US hostages and opening humanitarian corridors outside of the Gaza Strip, says Jackson.Â
Click on the video player below to watch the full interview.
6:53am: Iran trying to deploy arms in or through Syria, says Israeli officialÂ
A senior Israeli official accused Iran on Sunday of trying to open a second war front by deploying weapons in or through Syria as Israel steps up a counter-offensive in Gaza to the south.
Responding to a post on the X social-media platform that posited such a scenario, Joshua Zarka, head of strategic affairs for Israel's Foreign Ministry, said: "They (Iranians) are."
6:46am: Israel acting 'beyond scope of self-defence', says China's foreign minister
Israel's actions in Gaza have gone "beyond the scope of self-defence" and the Israeli government must "cease its collective punishment of the people of Gaza", China's foreign minister Wang Yi said in remarks published Sunday.
Wang, who made the comments on a call to his Saudi Arabian counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Saturday, said "all parties should not take any action to escalate the situation and should return to the negotiating table as soon as possible", according to a foreign ministry readout.
6:42am: Pro-Palestinian rallies in Australia draw thousands
Thousands of people attended pro-Palestinian rallies in Australian state capitals on Sunday despite police threats to curb them, amid tensions after the bloody Hamas incursion into Israel eight days ago.
One of the largest rallies was in Sydney, the capital of the country's most populous state of New South Wales, where protest organiser, the Palestine Action Group, said around 5,000 attended. A Reuters witness estimated the crowd to be around 2,000.
Many rally-goers waved Palestine flags and chanted "Free, free Palestine" in Sydney's Hyde Park, as hundreds of police patrolled the area and nearby streets, and a police helicopter circled low overhead.
Pro-Palestine rallies were also being held on Sunday in state capitals Adelaide and Melbourne, where thousands protested, according to The Guardian Australia.
Organisers said they planned to march through central Sydney next weekend.
Countries across the developed world are curbing pro-Palestinian protests out of concern the Israel-Hamas conflict could trigger violence at home. France banned pro-Palestinian protests on Thursday, saying they were likely to "generate disturbances to public order".
6:26am:Â Pro-Palestinian demonstrators march outside White House
Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in the US capital on Saturday, marching past the White House to chants of "Free Palestine" as the death toll continued to climb in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
"What is happening today is just beyond the pale. It's so upsetting, we are watching people being killed by an army that this country supports," demonstrator Linda Houghton told AFP.
Across the country, Americans have held pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protests in the week since Hamas militants broke through the heavily fortified border between the Gaza Strip and Israel killed more than 1,300 people.
Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip in response has killed more than 2,200 people. As on the Israeli side, most of them were civilians.
6:01am:Â Israel readies troops for ground offensive after giving Palestinians more time to evacuateÂ
Israel pressed on Sunday with preparations for a ground offensive in Gaza, after giving Palestinians a little more time to flee northern areas it has vowed to target in response to the deadliest attack in its history.
Israel has warned around 1.1 million Gazans living in the north of the Palestinian territory to flee to the south ahead of a ground incursion which the military has indicated will focus on Gaza City, the base of the leadership of the Hamas militant group.
The military said Gaza City residents must not delay their departure but a spokesperson said late Saturday they still had time to leave and that the ground offensive would not start on Sunday.
5:45am:Â Chinese envoy to visit Middle East next week to push peace talks, says state media
Chinese envoy Zhai Jun will visit the Middle East next week to push for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict and promote peace talks, state broadcaster CCTV reported Sunday.
Zhai said in an interview with CCTV that "the prospect of further broadening and outward spillover (of the conflict) is deeply worrying", according to the broadcaster.
He met Friday with the Arab League's representatives in China and said Beijing supported the regional group "in playing an important role on the Palestine issue", according to a foreign ministry statement.
He told the bloc that Beijing would "make unremitting efforts to get the Middle East peace process back on track", the statement added.
2:30am:Â Three hundred killed, mostly children and women in Gaza on Saturday, says Palestinian health ministry
300 Palestinians were killed, mostly children and women, while 800 others were injured in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to the health ministry in the coastal enclave.
2:13am:Â Hamas, Iran leaders agree to 'continue cooperation' after attack on Israel
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh met with Iran's foreign minister on Saturday in Qatar, where they discussed the Palestinian militant group's deadly attack in Israel "and agreed to continue cooperation" to achieve the group's goals, Hamas said in a statement.
During their meeting in Qatar's capital Doha, Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian praised the rampage as a "historic victory" that had dealt a setback to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory.
1:26am: US sends second aircraft carrier 'to deter hostile actions against Israel'
The United States is sending a second aircraft carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean "to deter hostile actions against Israel or any efforts toward widening this war following Hamas's attack", Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Saturday.
The USS Eisenhower and its affiliated warships will join another carrier group already deployed to the region in the wake of a Hamas attack on Israel a week ago and Israel's ongoing response.
The deployment signals Washington's "ironclad commitment to Israel's security and our resolve to deter any state or non-state actor seeking to escalate this war", Austin said in a statement.
12:30am:Â Iran warns of 'far-reaching consequences' if Israel not stopped
Iran warned on Saturday that if Israel's "war crimes and genocide" are not halted immediately, "the situation could spiral out of control and ricochet far-reaching consequences", Tehran's mission to the United Nations in New York posted on X.
"If the Israeli apartheid's war crimes & genocide are not halted immediately, the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences â the responsibility of which lies with the UN, the Security Council & the states steering the Council toward a dead end," the post read.
12:13am:Â Five injured in Israeli strikes on Syria airport, says monitor
Israeli strikes targeted the airport of Syria's government-held city of Aleppo injuring five people on Saturday, a war monitor said, days after a similar strike hit Aleppo and Damascus airports.
The air strikes came "from the direction of the sea", Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP, without specifying whether the five injured were civilians.
Syria's defence ministry also confirmed the strikes after midnight on Sunday.
Key developments from Saturday, October 14:
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians struggled Saturday to flee from areas in Gaza targeted by Israeli bombardments after Israel warned residents in the north to evacuate ahead of an expected ground offensive.
Israeli air strikes on Gaza have killed at least 324 people over the past 24 hours, the territoryâs health ministry said. In total, 2,215 people have been killed in Gaza amid the ongoing strikes, which have followed Hamasâs October 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,300 people.
US President Joe Biden on Saturday spoke with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging the leaders to allow humanitarian aid to the region and affirming his support for efforts to protect civilians.
Read yesterdayâs blog to see how the dayâs events unfolded.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
