Live: Strike announced in Israel amid mounting anger at Netanyahu

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

Here are some of the day's key developments:

• The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) reports that the 20 Palestinians killed during the occupied West Bank incursion include a person with disabilities and several children, though the exact number of children was not specified

• Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said that the violence in the occupied West Bank is "completely unacceptable" and jeopardises the two-state solution, the French Press Agency reported

• NetBlocks reports that internet connectivity in the occupied West Bank remains "limited" for the second consecutive day due to power outages that have also disrupted telecommunication services

• Finland’s foreign ministry warned that the escalating Israeli military offensives in Jenin are worsening an already fragile situation

• Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan criticised Netanyahu's government, saying: "It is endangering the future of the entire region to maintain its position. Everyone who remains silent on the Gaza issue, especially those who support Israel unconditionally, is under a burden. Israel’s barbarity must finally come to an end"

• The Israeli government has extended an order permitting the recruitment of 350,000 reservists until the end of the year, Israeli news site Haaretz is reporting

• The UK government said on Friday it was "deeply concerned" by Israel's ongoing operation in the occupied West Bank, warning that risk of instability was serious and that there was an urgent need for de-escalation

• Families of Israeli captives held in Gaza have slammed the Israeli security cabinet's latest decision to leave troops in the Philadelphi corridor between Gaza and Egypt, a move believed to be a potential dealbreaker in ceasefire negotiations

• Israel's internal intelligence agency, the Shin Bet, warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel would almost certainly face a war in the near future back in July 2023, Yedioth Ahronoth reports

• The UN's agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) suspended their services in several camps in the occupied West Bank due to continuous Israeli attacks,

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) reports that the 20 Palestinians killed during the occupied West Bank incursion include a person with disabilities and several children, though the exact number of children was not specified.

Palestinian health authorities also stated that a Palestinian doctor and two medics, who were treating patients in Jenin, were injured by Israeli fire.

Officials from the UN and its partner organizations are planning to visit affected areas in the occupied West Bank over the weekend to assess the damage to homes and infrastructure.

"They stand ready to provide a response based on what people need most," said the UN humanitarian office

Earlier the Israeli military announced the conclusion of a month-long assault in southern and central Gaza.

Some Palestinians returning to their homes found widespread devastation in parts of Deir el-Balah in central Gaza and in the southern city of Khan Younis.

In Khan Younis, 48-year-old Amal al-Astal told AFP that both his house and his neighbors' homes were destroyed. "One of our neighbors' corpses was decomposed there," he said.

In Deir al-Balah, Mohamed Abu Thuria described finding "massive destruction everywhere" upon his return to the central Gaza city.

Israel’s decision to accelerate a forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza over the summer has “exacerbated” the humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave, according to a leaked US cable circulating on social media.

The cable provides a blunt assessment of Israel’s forced displacement orders, in one case noting that at least 1.7 million Palestinians were crowded into a “safe zone” whose size is equivalent to just 70 percent of the total area of Washington’s Dulles International Airport.

The cable was reported by online news site Klip News on Wednesday. It includes an assessment by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) on the accelerated pace of Israel’s forced displacement orders between 22 July and 25 August.

“Many people have been displaced multiple times, as the IDF has issued evacuation orders under unsafe conditions in quick succession and with little warning before operations begin, heightening protection risks,” the USAID’s disaster assistance relief team said.

"In addition to displacing large swaths of the population, IDF evacuation orders and subsequent military operations further constricted humanitarian space in Gaza, compounding risks to humanitarian staff and curbing access to populations in need,” the US officials warned.

Read more: USAID warns that Israel's forced displacements could 'debilitate' Gaza aid efforts: Report

US ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield urged Israel to "take concrete actions to ensure UN personnel are fully protected", following the shooting of a World Food Programme (WFP) vehicle inside Gaza on Wednesday by Israeli forces. 

"All attacks and threatening rhetoric against the UN and humanitarian NGOs need to stop," Thomas-Greenfield wrote on X.

The WFP suspended its employee movements across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday after at least 10 Israeli bullets struck one of its clearly marked vehicles as it approached an Israeli military checkpoint. 

US officials did not condemn the shooting.

Hatred against Muslims is going through the roof. In the US, public prejudice against Muslims is highest among all religious groups, according to a new Brookings Institution poll. 

In the UK, 92 percent of Muslims surveyed said they felt less safe living in Britain after the recent riots, and one in six had personally experienced an Islamophobic or racist incident in the week after the Southport stabbings.

The drop in positive attitudes towards Muslims in the US is especially prominent among Democrats, voters who would naturally identify themselves as progressive.

The Brookings poll found that after years of improvement, favourable views of Muslims decreased overall to 64 percent from 78 percent two years earlier, but the drop was more pronounced among Democrats.

Brookings identified a number of factors in this, including a generational change, a gap between public perceptions of Judaism and Islam, race, and college education - but the most eye-catching was evidence that opinion towards Islam was being affected by the statements and positions of public leaders.

Read more: How state Islamophobia could come back to bite the West

Reporters Without Borders has called for an independent investigation into the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Ismail al-Ghoul by the Israeli military. 

Ghoul, a journalist for Al Jazeera Arabic, and cameraman Rami al-Refee were killed in a strike near the Aidia area west of Gaza City in July. 

Ghoul and Refee were wearing blue press vests when they were killed and there were identifying signs on their car when they were attacked.

The director of ambulance and emergency services at the Palestinian Red Crescent spoke to Al Jazeera about the ongoing Israeli operations and their impact on emergency response efforts.

Here is a summary of their translated comments:

• Israeli occupation forces target our crews daily in the occupied West Bank.
• The occupation forces are obstructing the work of our crews in the West Bank

According to Axios, citing Israeli officials:

During a recent meeting, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Galant emphasised the urgent need to reach an agreement. He argued that the deal is not only about captives but also represents a strategic turning point for Israel.

An unprecedented shouting match erupted between Galant and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during Thursday's meeting over the ceasefire agreement.

Galant argued that reaching an agreement could ease regional tensions with Iran and Hezbollah and allow Israel to focus on other regional threats.

While Galant does not intend to resign, this recent dispute could push Netanyahu to dismiss him.

Galant also expressed concern that passing the Security Council resolution could give Hamas leadership additional leverage in negotiations. He stressed that Israel must choose between control over the Gaza-Egyptian border and the captives, as having both was not feasible. 

The International Criminal Court is pursuing arrest warrants for Galant and Netanyahu for potential war crimes committed in Gaza.

The Palestinian health ministry in the occupied West Bank reported that an elderly man was shot and killed by the Israeli army in the besieged city of Jenin on Friday evening local time.

According to a statement by the Palestinian Red Crescent, the victim, Tawfiq Ahmad Younes Qandil, in his 80s, was shot near his home in Jenin's eastern neighbourhood.

An ambulance transporting another deceased Palestinian and a wounded individual from the same neighbourhood was fired upon by Israeli soldiers, the ministry added. 

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said that the violence in the occupied West Bank is "completely unacceptable" and jeopardises the two-state solution, the French Press Agency reported. 

This follows an "unannounced curfew" imposed on Jenin city and the Jenin refugee camp and a violent assault on other West Bank cities by Israel over the last two days.

The recent Israeli military assaults in the northern occupied West Bank are the largest and deadliest since the Gaza war began.

At least 19 Palestinians have been killed since Tuesday, bringing the estimated death toll in the occupied West Bank to 663 since October. 

NetBlocks reports that internet connectivity in the occupied West Bank remains "limited" for the second consecutive day due to power outages that have also disrupted telecommunication services.

Earlier, an "unannounced curfew" was imposed on Jenin city and the Jenin refugee camp.

The recent Israeli military assaults in the northern occupied West Bank are the largest and deadliest since the Gaza war began.

At least 19 Palestinians have been killed since Tuesday, bringing the estimated death toll in the occupied West Bank to 663 since October. 

The spokesperson of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, Muhammad Shehada, said in a post on X that "Israel is arming criminal gangs in Gaza with US-made assault rifles to sow chaos & societal collapse."

"The incident's location is confirmed to be in Dier al-Balah. The video date is August 23," said Shehada. 

In the video, several men can be seen firing American-made rifles. 

"Israel has been in touch with many criminal gangs & families in Gaza to recruit them to destabilize the enclave and/or in some cases to act substitute for the Hamas government & run neighbourhoods as warlords. Some families refused or were threatened by Hamas to back off," said Shehada.

Finland’s foreign ministry warned that the escalating Israeli military offensives in Jenin are worsening an already fragile situation.

"The expansion of settlements, along with the alarming rise in settler violence and forced evictions of Palestinians, violates international law and undermines global efforts to de-escalate the situation," the ministry told the Anadolu Agency.

"We are concerned by the increasing violence in the West Bank and are closely monitoring the situation. We urge all parties to de-escalate and avoid provocative actions and statements," it added.

 A severe escalation in Israeli attacks on the occupied West Bank has left the Palestinian Authority weakened and in a state of flux, according to analysts.

This week, the Israeli army launched its largest operation in the territory in decades. In Jenin, Tulkarm and Tubas, Israeli drones and snipers killed at least 17 Palestinians. 

Military bulldozers ploughed into critical infrastructure, cutting off communications and resources from several Palestinian cities and refugee camps. 

This is the latest move in a broader Israeli offensive, marked by almost daily arrests and killings, in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since the war on Gaza began in October 2023. 

While President Mahmoud Abbas and his Palestinian Authority (PA) administration frequently condemn Israel’s raids, they have been largely unable to counter them.

Read more: Palestinian Authority directionless in face of Israeli attacks on occupied West Bank