Gaza live: Israel strike kills 30 Palestinians, mostly children

An Israeli military court has extended the detentions of five reserve soldiers suspected of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee, according to the Times of Israel. 

The Israeli military said the suspects will remain in custody until Wednesday for further investigation. 

The reservists stand accused of aggravated sodomy against a Palestinian man at the Sde Teiman detention facility. 

There might be a compelling thread connecting the incredible set of events that we saw unfold in July.

Former US President Donald Trump remains in the presidential race despite recent felony convictions, while Kamala Harris, one of the most insignificant vice presidents in American history, is now the Democratic Party’s candidate after the forced withdrawal of Joe Biden. 

Suddenly, Harris is being portrayed as a political genius and an elder stateswoman - although the sad reality is that she is for the Democratic Party what former President George H W Bush’s vice president, Dan Quayle, was for the Republicans in the early 1990s.

In this context, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just offered another outstanding performance of two unique political skills: his manipulation of the American political system, and his unmatched talent as the US Republican Party’s top activist and strategist. 

He entered the US Congress circus and was able, as a clever tamer, to make politicians jump up dozens of times in standing ovations, during one of the more mendacious speeches ever uttered in a political chamber.

Read more: Haniyeh killing: Why Netanyahu launched his three-pronged offensive now

Urgent calls for foreign nationals to leave Lebanon increased on Sunday, with France warning of "a highly volatile" situation as Iran and its allies prepare their response to the recent high-profile killings by Israel.

Lebanon's Hezbollah announced its fighters fired a barrage of rockets at Israel's north overnight.

The Israeli military said 30 projectiles were launched from Lebanon, most of which were intercepted.

France, Canada and Jordan joined other governments in urging their citizens to leave Lebanon. 

"In a highly volatile security context", French nationals were "urgently asked" to avoid travelling to Lebanon, and those already in the country "to make their arrangements now to leave... as soon as possible", the foreign ministry said.

The US and the UK have issued similar warnings.

Several western airlines have suspended flights to the region.

On Sunday, Qatar Airways said that "in light of recent developments in Lebanon", the Doha-Beirut route "will operate exclusively during daylight hours" at least until Monday.

The Israeli army struck a tent camp for displaced Palestinians in the courtyard of al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital early Sunday, killing five people and wounding at least 18 others, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought refuge in the hospital in Deir al-Balah, one of the few operational hospitals in central Gaza.

Footage on social media showed Palestinians rushing to rescue the wounded and extinguish the large fire caused by the attack.

“The night was relatively calm when we heard a deafening sound of an explosion. I ran to the window, thinking the strike had hit an area near the hospital. But to my shock, they [Israeli forces] had hit inside the hospital’s compound, a few metres away from us,” Ali Tawil, a doctor at al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, told Middle East Eye.

“I saw fire raging, people running in all directions, a state of hysteria and panic. I tried to compose myself quickly and rushed to the emergency room to treat people. Some had burns and others had shrapnel wounds.”

Tawil added: “The scene was horrific. It was extremely difficult.”

Read more: Five killed in Israeli air strike on tent camp in central Gaza

Several UK local authorities are continuing to maintain controversial sister city relationships with towns and cities in Israel even as campaigners they called on them to cut ties with the country over its conduct of the war on Gaza.

The port cities of Newcastle and Portsmouth both have twinning arrangements with the port of Haifa in Israel’s north, while the south coast town of Bournemouth is twinned with the Israeli resort of Netanya.

In London, the borough of Hackney is also twinned with Haifa, while Barnet is twinned with the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan.

Just north of London, the borough of Elstree and Borehamwood in Hertfordshire is twinned with the central Israeli town of Shoham.

A sister city or twinning agreement is a long-term relationship between two communities in different countries, aimed at fostering international friendship, cultural exchange and sometimes mutual economic benefit.

But a number of councils have faced calls to end the relationships amid growing outrage prompted by Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza in which more than 39,000 Palestinians have been killed and Israeli leaders face accusations of genocide and war crimes in international courts.

Read more: UK councils twinned with Israeli towns and cities stand by municipal ties

The Palestinian health ministry said on Sunday that Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 39,583 Palestinians since October 7. At least 91,398 have been injured in the besieged enclave.

Jordan's foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, will travel to Iran on Sunday in a rare visit to discuss the fallout from the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. 

Iranian state media reported that Safadi will meet his Iranian counterpart in Tehran to discuss regional developments. 

Safadi's visit follows continued diplomatic efforts by the US and its partners, including France, Britain, Italy and Egypt, on Saturday to prevent further regional escalation. 

Israeli media reported that the perpetrator of the knife attack in Holon was a 34-year-old man from Salfit, a city in the occupied West Bank. 

According to the reports, he had entered Israel without a permit. Israeli forces have closed the entrance to Salfit, a move activists and analysts say often precedes a raid on the town.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir urged Israelis to take up arms after visiting the scene of a knife attack in Holon, near Tel Aviv. 

“Our war is not only against Iran but also here… We have distributed thousands of weapons to citizens in order to use them,” said Ben Gvir.

“I call on citizens to take up arms and use them." 

A knife attack in Holon, near Tel Aviv, resulted in the deaths of two people: a woman who died at the scene and a man in his 70s who succumbed to his wounds.

Israeli police said two others are hospitalised with serious injuries. The assailant was shot by Israeli police at the scene, according to the Times of Israel.

An Israeli air strike on Sunday killed four people in a tent camp for displaced people in the courtyard of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza. 

Thousands have sought refuge in the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital complex, the main medical facility in Deir al-Balah.

The Palestinian health ministry said another Israeli strike in northern Gaza killed at least eight people, including three children, their parents and grandmother. 

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

Here are some of the day's key developments:

• The Palestinian health ministry reported that Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed 39,550 Palestinians and injured 91,280 since the conflict began on 7 October 2023

• Israeli raids on Hamama School in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood of Gaza City resulted in 17 fatalities and at least 70 people wounded

• Israel announced on Saturday that it had killed a Hamas commander in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarm, as the Israeli army continues its siege on the city

• Iran has arrested dozens of people in the wake of the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in the capital, Tehran, earlier this week

• Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed by a "short-range projectile" that was fired from outside his residence in Tehran

• Holding Palestinian flags and placards, tens of thousands of people attended a pro-Palestine march in central London to oppose Britain's continued support for Israel's war on Gaza

• On Friday, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a leading contender to be Kamala Harris' running mate, attempted to downplay his involvement in a recently resurfaced college op-ed, in which he said he was a former Israeli army volunteer and suggested that Palestinians are too focused on conflict to pursue peace with Israel

• The UK and Canadian governments have issued a warning for its citizens in Lebanon, advising them to leave the country immediately due to escalating tensions and the potential for a broader regional conflict between Israel and Hezbollah

• The Israeli negotiating delegation has returned from Cairo following a disagreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over a potential ceasefire with Hamas, according to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth

• A senior official in the Biden administration told the Israeli daily Haaretz on Saturday that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ungrateful toward the United States and overlooks the substantial aid it has provided to Israel over the past 10 months of conflict

• Jewish settlers have set fire to agricultural land near the town of Surif and thrown rocks at the Palestinian village of Al-Mughayyir in the occupied West Bank, reported the Palestinian news agency Wafa

• Israel's Channel 12 News reported on Saturday that during a conversation between President Joe Biden and the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, Biden reportedly said, "Stop bullshitting me" after Netanyahu claimed that negotiations in Israel were "progressing" and that "a delegation will depart"

• The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said “thousands of breastfeeding and pregnant women in the Gaza Strip are facing hunger and malnutrition of their children"

Canada warned its citizens to avoid all travel to Israel.

“The security situation can deteriorate further without warning,” the Canadian government says in a travel advisory issued to raise the risk level for travel to Israel.

“If the armed conflict intensifies, it could impact your ability to depart by commercial means. It may result in travel disruptions, including airspace closures and flight cancellations and diversions,” the travel advisory says.

A senior official in the Biden administration told the Israeli daily Haaretz on Saturday that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ungrateful toward the United States and overlooks the substantial aid it has provided to Israel over the past 10 months of conflict.

"Biden realised that Netanyahu was lying to him about the hostages," the official told Haaretz. "He's not saying it publicly yet, but in the meeting between them, he specifically told him, 'Stop bullshitting me.'"

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said “thousands of breastfeeding and pregnant women in the Gaza Strip are facing hunger and malnutrition of their children”.

“We need more aid to come into Gaza to support mothers and families living through war. Gaza needs a ceasefire now,” added Unrwa.