Rishi Sunak confirms 6 Britons dead and 10 missing after Hamas ‘pogrom’ in Israel – live
The PM’s statement will be followed by a Commons session where MPs will debate the UK’s involvement
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Rishi Sunak has provided an update on the number of Britons missing or killed as a result of the conflict in an address to Parliament today: 6 dead and ten missing.
It comes after the prime minister’s visit to a Jewish school in north London, where he repeated his belief that Israel has “every right to defend itself and its people to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again”.
He added that in his conversation with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he had also raised the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where 2,700 Palestinians have been killed and 9,700 people wounded in retaliatory airstrikes.
Mr Sunak’s statement to the Commons is expected to set out how the UK is aiding British nationals caught in the fighting and supporting Israel, as well as detailing the response to the impact on Palestinians trapped in the strip.
Hospitals across Gaza are expected to run out of fuel, while international aid is being held up in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula pending a deal to ensure its safe delivery.
Sunak says ceasefire would allow Hamas to 'entrench its position'
IDF troops fighting in the ‘heart of Gaza City'
The Israel Defence Forces are fighting “in the heart of Gaza City”, according to the head of the military’s southern command.
Major General Yaron Finkelman said the IDF was fighting in the “heart of terror” for the “first time in decades” and the operation was “complex and difficult”.
“Our actions are harming the heart of Hamas activities. We eliminated dozens of commanders, unveiled many tunnels, and we are striking the enemy hard,” he added.
A pro-Palestinian demonstration is set to go ahead on Armistice Day after the head of the Metropolitan Police said there is “no absolute power” to ban the protest.
Sir Mark Rowley resisted pressure heaped on the force by politicians including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to try to block the gathering in London on Saturday.
In a statement on Tuesday, Sir Mark said intelligence surrounding the potential for serious disorder this weekend does not meet the threshold to apply to prohibit the march.
“The laws created by Parliament are clear. There is no absolute power to ban protest, therefore there will be a protest this weekend,” Sir Mark said.
“The law provides no mechanism to ban a static gathering of people. It contains legislation which allows us to impose conditions to reduce disruption and the risk of violence, and in the most extreme cases when no other tactics can work, for marches or moving protests to be banned.”
Biden tells Netanyahu 3-day fighting pause could help secure release of hostages
US President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a call on Monday that a three-day fighting pause could help secure the release of some hostages, Axios reported on Tuesday, citing two US and Israeli officials.
Citing the US official, Axios reported that under a proposal being discussed between the US, Israel and Qatar, Hamas would release 10-15 hostages and use the pause to verify the identities of all the hostages and deliver a list of names of the people it is holding.
In a statement on Monday, the White House said Biden and Netanyahu discussed “the possibility of tactical pauses to provide civilians with opportunities to safely depart from areas of ongoing fighting, to ensure assistance is reaching civilians in need, and to enable potential hostage releases.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Axios report.
Mother reveals last thing she heard from her 12-year-old son before he was stolen by Hamas
An Israeli mother has revealed the last thing she heard from her 12-year-old son just before he was taken hostage by Hamas.
You can read about her story and her plea for her son to to return home safely here:
Mother reveals last thing she heard from 12-year-old son before Hamas stole him
Israeli mothers beg for children to be returned home after ‘monsters stole them in pyjamas from their beds’
Red Cross says humanitarian convoy came under fire in Gaza City
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said a humanitarian convoy came under fire in Gaza City on Tuesday but was able to deliver medical supplies to Al Shifa hospital.
Two trucks were damaged and a driver was lightly wounded, the organisation said.
It said the convoy included five trucks and two ICRC vehicles and was carrying “lifesaving medical supplies to health facilities including to Al Quds hospital of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, when it was hit by fire.”
The group did not identify the source of the fire.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated a call on Tuesday for Palestinian civilians to move south for their own safety as the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) are fighting “in the heart of Gaza City”.
“I’m calling on the citizens of Gaza: please go south. I know you’re already doing that. Complete the move to the south because Israel will not stop. There’s no entry of workers and there will be no ceasefire without our hostages being back home,” Netanyahu said.
In a televised statement, Netanyahu said there would be no ceasefire or fuel delivery to Gaza before Hamas released Israeli hostages.
He added that Israel‘s military was encircling Gaza City and operating inside it as it pressed on with a month-long offensive against Hamas.
Israel troops battling Hamas ‘in the heart’ of Gaza City
Israel’s defence minister has said troops are fighting in the “heart of Gaza City“ as part of its war on Hamas.
In a televised address, Yoav Gallant, said that forces were “tightening the chokehold” around the city, having surrounded it in recent days.
Read more:
Israel troops battling Hamas ‘in the heart’ of Gaza City
Israeli troops infiltrate Gaza City ‘for the first time in decades’, as minister says neither Israel nor Hamas will govern enclave once war is over
Children in Gaza hold own press conference
Children in Gaza have held their own press conference to ask for “peace” and “food”.
Halifax bank sorry for letter describing Israeli city as occupied Palestine
Halifax bank has apologised after it sent a letter to a British-Israeli man in Tel-Aviv telling him he lived in occupied Palestinian territory.
David Bender said he was “shocked” when he received the letter with his new credit card, describing the Israeli city as “Palestine Territory, Occupied” in the address line.
Mr Bender, 75, originally from Manchester, said he feared it was a “conscious and cold” act of antisemitism by someone who had access to his personal data.
Read more:
Halifax sorry for letter describing Israeli city as occupied Palestine
A letter sent by the bank to a British-Israeli man said Tel Aviv was ‘occupied’ Palestinian land
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