Gaza live: Palestinian death toll passes 37,000 after brutal Israeli attack on Nuseirat

Hello MEE readers.

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

Here are the day's key developments:

• The Israeli army has killed more than 15,000 Palestinian children in its eight-month-long war on Gaza, mostly students, the Palestinian education ministry said on Tuesday.

• The Palestinian government in Gaza has accused Israel of inciting chaos after Israeli forces killed eight police officers in their latest attack

• A South African man appeared in court on Tuesday accused of stabbing to death a mother and of wounding her husband and son because of the family's pro-Palestinian views

• US President Joe Biden has told Time magazine that people have "every reason" to believe that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prolonging the war in Gaza for his reasons of self-preservation

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that 7,000 to more than 11,000 Palestinian patients need immediate medical evacuations from the Gaza Strip

• Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has called on Israel, saying that it must abide by the International Court of Justice’s order to halt the offensive on Rafah

• The Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz says hostilities on the northern border with Hezbollah will be dealt with by September “whether by [diplomatic] arrangement or [military] escalation”

• Palestinians in Gaza are increasingly resorting to desperate measures in a bid to stay alive, the regional director of the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday

• The Slovenian parliament approved the recognition of an independent Palestinian state with a majority vote on Tuesday, following in the steps of Spain, Ireland and Norway

• The House approved legislation on Tuesday seeking to sanction the International Criminal Court for its move to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for their conduct in the war on Gaza

• An independent group of experts warned on Tuesday that it's "possible, if not likely" that a famine is underway in northern Gaza

The executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Sarah Leah Whitson, called the attempt by the House to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) was “shameful attempt to obstruct justice and undermine the rule of law to shield Israeli leaders from accountability”.

The Washington, DC-based group’s advocacy director, Raed Jarrer, also said “the House bill isn’t only an attack on efforts to hold Israeli abusers accountable for their heinous crimes against Palestinians, it’s an attack on human rights, justice, and the rule of law,” he said.

The House approved legislation on Tuesday seeking to sanction the ICC for its move to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for their conduct in the war on Gaza.

Hello MEE readers.

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

Here are the day's key developments:

• The Israeli army has killed more than 15,000 Palestinian children in its eight-month-long war on Gaza, mostly students, the Palestinian education ministry said on Tuesday.

• The Palestinian government in Gaza has accused Israel of inciting chaos after Israeli forces killed eight police officers in their latest attack

• A South African man appeared in court on Tuesday accused of stabbing to death a mother and of wounding her husband and son because of the family's pro-Palestinian views

• US President Joe Biden has told Time magazine that people have "every reason" to believe that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prolonging the war in Gaza for his reasons of self-preservation

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that 7,000 to more than 11,000 Palestinian patients need immediate medical evacuations from the Gaza Strip

• Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has called on Israel, saying that it must abide by the International Court of Justice’s order to halt the offensive on Rafah

• The Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz says hostilities on the northern border with Hezbollah will be dealt with by September “whether by [diplomatic] arrangement or [military] escalation”

• Palestinians in Gaza are increasingly resorting to desperate measures in a bid to stay alive, the regional director of the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday

• The Slovenian parliament approved the recognition of an independent Palestinian state with a majority vote on Tuesday, following in the steps of Spain, Ireland and Norway

• The House approved legislation on Tuesday seeking to sanction the International Criminal Court for its move to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for their conduct in the war on Gaza

• An independent group of experts warned on Tuesday that it's "possible, if not likely" that a famine is underway in northern Gaza

The executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Sarah Leah Whitson, called the attempt by the House to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) was “shameful attempt to obstruct justice and undermine the rule of law to shield Israeli leaders from accountability”.

The Washington, DC-based group’s advocacy director, Raed Jarrer, also said “the House bill isn’t only an attack on efforts to hold Israeli abusers accountable for their heinous crimes against Palestinians, it’s an attack on human rights, justice, and the rule of law,” he said. 

The House approved legislation on Tuesday seeking to sanction the ICC for its move to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for their conduct in the war on Gaza.

The US army said that the Houthis group fired two antiship ballistic missiles from areas under its control in Yemen.

“There were no injuries or damage reported by US, coalition, or commercial ships,” the US army said.

US President Joe Biden unveiled a detailed plan to end the war in Gaza from the White House last week, but four days later, neither Israel nor Hamas have signed the plan.

The delay on Israel’s side is all the more awkward for the US because the Biden administration has cast the proposal as an Israeli proposal.

In the first of three phases, Biden laid out there would be a six-week ceasefire in Gaza and the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from all population centres.

Read more: Why the ceasefire proposal Biden announced for Gaza has stalled

An independent group of experts warned on Tuesday that it's "possible, if not likely" that a famine is underway in northern Gaza. 

The group known as the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, or FEWS NET, said that the threshold for famine in Gaza was met or surpassed in northern Gaza in April.

The group warned that famine is likely to persist through at least July "if there is not a fundamental change in how food assistance is distributed and accessed after entering Gaza".

It said people, including children, are dying of hunger-related causes across the besieged territory. 

The House approved legislation on Tuesday seeking to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) for its move to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for their conduct in the war on Gaza.

The tally was 247-155, with every Republican voting in favour of the proposal. They were joined by 42 pro-Israel Democrats. 

The legislation needs broad Democratic support if it's going through the Senate and on the US president's desk for signing. 

The ICC filed applications for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity over their conduct in the war on Gaza. 

The Slovenian parliament approved the recognition of an independent Palestinian state with a majority vote on Tuesday, following in the steps of Spain, Ireland and Norway.

Slovenia’s government proposed a motion last week to recognise a Palestinian state, and sent the proposal to parliament for final approval, which was needed for the decision to take effect.

Slovenia’s decision came only a week after Spain, Norway and Ireland recognised a state of Palestinian. Israel has lashed out at the moves taken to recoginse a Palestinian state. 

"Dear people of Palestine, today's final decision of Slovenia is a message of hope and peace. We believe that only a two-state solution can lead to a lasting peace in the #MiddleEast. Slovenia will tirelessly continue to work on the security of both nations, Palestinians and Israelis," said the ministry of foreign affairs in a post on X following the decision. 

An Israeli attack on a home near Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza has killed at least five people and wounded many others, Al-Jazeera is reporting. 

There has been a surge of Israeli attacks on central Gaza, where man many Palestinians fleeing Rafah have sought refuge.

Palestinians in Gaza are increasingly resorting to desperate measures in a bid to stay alive, the regional director of the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday. 

“There are people who are now eating animal food, eating grass, they’re drinking sewage water,” says Hanan Balkhy, as reported by AFP. 

“Children are barely able to eat, while the trucks are standing outside of Rafah,” said Balkhy, urging Israel to “open those borders".

The United Nations and human rights organisations have said that Israel has continued to block and hinder aid entering the besieged Gaza Strip, pushing the Palestinian population towards famine. 

Tunisia's Ministry of Education has banned students from wearing the keffiyeh, a distinctively black-and-white checkered scarf symbolic of the Palestinian cause, inside examination halls, citing concerns it could influence their behaviour.

In a statement released on Sunday, the ministry responded to calls for wearing the iconic scarf during secondary education exams from 5 to 12 June. The ministry warned that "wearing the Palestinian keffiyeh or any other form of clothing that influences the behaviour of the baccalaureate candidate inside the examination halls is prohibited".

"The ministry will not hesitate to implement these penalties to preserve the integrity of our educational institutions", the statement read.

The ministry condemned attempts "by some to take advantage of [the Palestinian] cause to sow disorder during national examinations or to commit concealed offences", stating that such actions would be "dealt with in accordance with the law".

Read more: Tunisia bans Palestinian keffiyeh in exam halls citing concerns over cheating

US State Department spokeswoman Matthew Miller described current tensions between Israel and Hezbollah as “extremely dangerous”.

The US is purportedly working to contain the violence between the two sides Miller said, in a bid to avoid an all-out war.

Miller said that a ceasefire in Gaza “would help us reach calm in northern Israel and southern Lebanon”. 

The current situation between Israel and Hezbollah is “untenable".

Israeli attacks on central Gaza’s Bureij and Maghazi camps have now killed at least 11 people, Al Jazeera Arabic is reporting. 

Dozens of people have also been wounded in the attacks.