Evening recap

Good evening, Middle East Eye readers.

Our live coverage from Gaza will shortly be closing until tomorrow morning.

Here are some of the day's key developments

• The Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Hamas is “an idea” that cannot disappear, stating that his country’s goal to wipe the group out is unachievable, and that anyone who promises to eradicate Hamas is “misleading the public”.
• The head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah said, in a televised speech, there would be “no rules” and “no ceilings” for his group if Israel starts a “full-scale war” against Lebanon, and warned that no place in Israel would stay safe from Hezbollah’s attacks.
• Nasrallah threatened Cyprus will be part of the war if it continued to allow Israel to use its military infrastructure for drills.
• Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides responded to Nasrallah’s comments describing them as “unpleasant” and stressed that his country remains far from any “military conflicts”.
• Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said his country’s army is undergoing a “ground and air readiness” in northern Israel, following Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s televised speech. He added there would be more strengthening in intelligence systems and preparations for “all possibilities”.
• The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, Unrwa, estimates that around 65,000 displaced Palestinians are still in Rafah, southern Gaza.
• US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood said the American pier built off the coast of Gaza was never meant to be the “ultimate saviour”. His remarks follow reports about the US plan to potentially dismantle the pier, after bad weather and infrastructural issues hindered its operations.