Gaza live: Israel strike kills 30 Palestinians, mostly children

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.

The UK government has 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.

Foreign Minister David Lammy said: "Tensions are high, and the situation could deteriorate rapidly."

He added, "While we are working around the clock to strengthen our consular presence in Lebanon, my message to British nationals there is clear – leave now."

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 Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair-Philadelphia) has called on Shapiro to apologise for his remarks.

In the 1993 opinion piece, Shapiro claimed that peace would "never come" to the Middle East and argued that Palestinians were unable to establish their own state, labelling them as "too battle-minded".

The executive director of Cair-Philadelphia, Ahmet Tekelioglu, expressed concern over Shapiro's comments, stating: "We are deeply disturbed by the racist, anti-Palestinian views that Governor Shapiro expressed in this article. We are also troubled by his failure to clearly apologise for those hateful comments, especially given how quickly and harshly he has targeted college students protesting the Gaza genocide for their speech."

Shapiro also sought to distance himself from the decades-old claim that he "volunteered" with the Israeli military after it resurfaced on Friday.

The Pennsylvania governor wrote a newspaper column in 1993 mentioning that he had volunteered with the Israeli army. When asked about the extent of his involvement, Shapiro's press secretary clarified that "at no time was he engaged in any military activities".

At least 24 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza since dawn today, according to reports by Al-Jazeera Arabic.

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. 

Just days after the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, protesters began their march at Park Lane amid a heavy police presence and ended it outside Downing Street.

Meanwhile, the rest of the United Kingdom has been rocked by far-right marches in town centres and outside mosques.

The Wafa news agency said the Israeli army killed four people in a second air strike on the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarm. This follows an earlier strike that killed a Hamas commander and four other Palestinians.

Citing local sources, Wafa said the Israelis hit a car near the village of Bal'a, resulting in four deaths. 

The Palestinian news agency also reported that the Israeli army blocked ambulances from reaching the scene. 

Earlier, the Israeli army announced that it had killed five Palestinians, including a Hamas commander. The army said that it killed them in a morning strike after they opened fire on Israeli forces during fighting in Tulkarm.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed by a "short-range projectile with a warhead of about 7kg, accompanied by a severe explosion from outside his room".

The IRGC said in a statement that Haniyeh's assassination was "planned and carried out by the Zionist regime" and supported by the "criminal government of the US", adding that Tehran's response will be "severe and at the appropriate time, place and manner".

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. 

This statement follows a report by the New York Times, which claimed that Haniyeh was killed by a bomb placed inside his room.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the chiefs of Shin Bet and Mossad arrived in Egypt on Saturday to discuss a ceasefire. 

The security chiefs attended these talks following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was a key figure in the ceasefire negotiations.

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

Among those arrested are senior intelligence officers, military officials and staff workers at the guest house where Haniyeh was killed.

According to sources familiar with the investigation, speaking to the New York Times, security officials have also targeted Tehran’s international and domestic airports, reviewing months of camera footage from the arrival and departure lounges and examining flight lists.

The sources said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) specialised intelligence unit for espionage is handling the investigation.

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. 

The Israeli army said it struck a Hamas cell near Tulkarm but did not provide further details.

The Palestinian news agency Wafa, citing health officials, said four men were killed in Tulkarm.

Hamas-affiliated media outlets reported that a vehicle carrying fighters had been struck, resulting in the death of one of the commanders of its Tulkarm brigades.

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.

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

Here are some of the day's key developments:

• The Israeli delegation on Gaza ceasefire talks will head to Cairo on Saturday night or Sunday, Netanyahu’s office said.
• US Pentagon said it plans to boost military assets in the Middle East and deploy ‘additional land-based ballistic missile defense’.
• The representative of Hamas in Tehran has refuted reports that Ismail Haniyeh was killed by a bomb planted in his room long before his arrival to the Iranian capital.
• Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan called his Israeli counterpart Israel Katz a “monument to insolence”, in response to Katz’s statements in which he slammed Turkey.
• Israel releases Al-Aqsa Mosque imam Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, after arresting him for ‘incitement’ as he described Hamas chief Ismail Hanyieh as ‘martyr’ in Friday prayer sermon.
• US President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a ‘tough’ phone call not to rely on Washington’s support in case a regional escalation occurred, according to Axios , citing unnamed US officials.
• The Israeli army said it destroyed launchers that fired rockets at southern Israeli towns, after it was earlier reported that 18 rockets were launched from Gaza in the span of one hour, with one intercepted and all others falling in open fields.

The Pentagon says additional fighters and Navy warships will be deployed to the Middle East, amidst rising tensions in the region, and a possible Iranian response to the assassination of Ismail Hanyieh.

In a statement, the Pentagon said it is adjusting its force posture to “increase support for the defense of Israel and to ensure the United States is prepared to respond to various contingencies”.

It added that the secretary of defense Lloyd Austin has also ordered “the deployment of an additional fighter squadron to the Middle East, reinforcing our defensive air support capability.”

“The Department is also taking steps to increase our readiness to deploy additional land-based ballistic missile defense,” the statement said.

The representative of Hamas in Tehran  Khaled Qaddoumi has refuted claims that Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed by a bomb planted in his room long before his arrival to Tehran.

Qaddoumi was quoted as saying by al-Araby al-Jaded news outlet that he was in the building where Hanyieh was assassinated on the fourth floor.

“It was clear from the appearance of the place after the attack and from the body of the martyr leader Ismail Haniyeh that the targeting was carried out by an airborne projectile,” he said.

Qaddoumi added the wall and the ceiling of Hanyieh’s room Haniyeh had shattered collapsed due to the severity of the rocket.

Earlier, The New York Times had reported, citing unnamed Middle East officials, that Haniyeh was killed by a bomb, which was implanted in his usual residence in the Iranian capital two months before his assassination.