Gaza latest: Israel draws outrage after Al Jazeera journalists killed in ‘targeted assassination’ – UK Times

Israel has defended the killing of Al Jazeera journalists in an airstrike in Gaza.

Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif, three other journalists and a driver associated with the broadcaster were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the embattled Strip last night.

Israel’s military in a statement claimed: “Hamas terrorist Anas Al-Sharif, who posed as an Al Jazeera journalist al Sharif was the head of a Hamas terrorist cell and advanced rocket attacks on Israeli civilians and IDF [Israel Defense Forces] troops.”

“Intelligence and documents from Gaza, including rosters, terrorist training lists and salary records, prove he was a Hamas operative integrated into Al Jazeera. A press badge isn’t a shield for terrorism.”

Gary Lineker and Jeremy Corbyn have joined footballer Mohamed Salah in condemning Uefa’s tribute to the late Suleiman Al-Obeid, known as the “Palestinian Pele”.

Al-Obeid, 41, was killed when Israeli forces targeted civilians waiting for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, according to the Palestine Football Association (PFA).

In a post paying tribute to the footballer on social media platform X, Uefa said: “Farewell to Suleiman al-Obeid, the ‘Palestinian Pele’. A talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times”.

A Hamas delegation is reportedly heading to Cairo, Egypt, to renew the talks on a possible ceasefire in Gaza.

A Hamas delegation, led by the group’s Gaza leader Khalil al-Hayya, will arrive in the Egyptian capital in an effort to revive the negotiation channel to achieve a ceasefire, Qatari newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported.

A breakthrough on a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas has eluded the Donald Trump administration as humanitarian conditions worsen in Gaza. Israel has come under mounting pressure for the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza and reports of people dying from causes related to malnutrition.

The sides have held weeks of talks in Qatar, reporting small signs of progress but no major breakthroughs. Officials have said a main sticking point is the redeployment of Israeli troops after any ceasefire takes place.

“Israelis want peace. Israelis want to get out of Gaza. This is not in our name – we are not our government. Israel must be stopped.”

These are the desperate pleas of Yotam Cohen, whose younger brother Nimrod, a then 19-year-old Israeli soldier serving mandatory service, was taken captive to Gaza by Hamas militants during their deadly 7 October attack on southern Israel nearly two years ago.

This weekend, Yotam joined tens of thousands of people who marched on Israel’s military headquarters in Tel Aviv. Wielding portraits of their loved ones and banners, they urged world leaders to intervene. They protested against Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial plan to expand the devastating 22-month bombardment of Gaza, a plan he defended on Sunday, vowing in a press conference to “finish the job… finish Hamas”.

The New Zealand government said it is considering recognition of a state of Palestine.

“New Zealand has been clear for some time that our recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if,” foreign minister Winston Peters said in a statement this morning.

The minister said the cabinet will take a formal decision in September over whether New Zealand should recognise a state of Palestine.”The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is rightly at the forefront of the global agenda,” Mr Peters said.

“New Zealand, as a long-standing supporter of the two-state solution and Palestinian self-determination, is an active participant in discussions about how to broker a ceasefire and a political settlement to enable Israelis and Palestinians to live peacefully side-by-side.

“While we are a long way away from the Middle East, we will continue to ensure our voice is heard.”

Israel’s air and ground offensive has displaced most Palestinians and pushed the territory towards famine.

Two Palestinian children died of malnutrition-related causes over the weekend, bringing the toll among children to 100 since the war began.

At least 117 adults have died of malnutrition-related causes since June, when the ministry started to count them.

The hunger toll is in addition to the Hamas-run Strip’s health ministry’s war toll of 61,400 Palestinians.

Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with US president Donald Trump about Israel’s new Gaza offensive plans, the Israeli prime minister’s office said on Sunday.

“The two discussed Israel’s plans to take control of the remaining Hamas strongholds in Gaza to bring an end to the war by securing the release of the hostages and defeating Hamas,” Mr Netanyahu’s office said.

“The Prime Minister thanked President Trump for his steadfast support of Israel since the beginning of the war,” it continued.

The United States defended Israel’s controversial plan to forcibly take over Gaza.

Ambassador Dorothy Shea told the UN meeting that Washington had been working “tirelessly” to free hostages and end the war, and that the session risked undermining those efforts.

The ambassador accused members of the security council of “actively prolonging the war by spreading lies about Israel” and “handing propaganda victories to terrorists.”

“The simple truth is this war could end today if Hamas let the hostages and all of Gaza go free,” Ms Shea said.

She said that genocide accusations against Israel “are politically motivated and categorically false.”

At least 31 Palestinians were killed while trying to collect aid in Gaza on Sunday, according to hospitals and witnesses.

Reports said there was gunfire in the Israeli-controlled Morag and Netzarim corridors and the Teina area in the south, with all witnesses accusing Israeli forces of firing at crowds heading for food distributions or waiting for convoys.

Fifteen people were killed near the Morag corridor between Rafah and Khan Younis, Nasser hospital said. “The situation is a death trap,” said Jamal al-Laweh, who claimed Israeli forces opened fire there. “But I have no other choice to feed the kids.”

Six were killed while waiting for aid near the Zikim crossing in northern Gaza, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry and Shifa hospital.

In central Gaza, Awda hospital said four were killed after warning shots were followed by live fire toward crowds at a distribution site run by the Israeli-backed, US-funded Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

Another six died while trying to reach GHF sites in Khan Younis and Rafah, Nasser hospital reported.

GHF, which began operations in May as an alternative to the UN-run aid system, said there were “no incidents” at or near its sites on Sunday. The Israeli military also denied any incidents involving its troops near central Gaza aid sites.

Meanwhile, Gaza’s Health Ministry said two Palestinian children died of malnutrition-related causes on Saturday, bringing the total number of child hunger deaths to 100 since the war began. At least 117 adults have died from malnutrition-related causes since June.