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US declaring commitment to Israeli security while also working to prevent regional war, say officialsThe US is seeking to deter Iran from carrying out a retaliatory strike against Israel with concerted declarations of commitment to Israeli security, while at the same time trying to prevent the outbreak of a major regional war, officials in Washington have said.US officials still believe that a direct Iranian...

Gantz says government ‘must set a consensual date for September’ while Netanyahu’s popularity continues to decline amid the ongoing war in GazaIsraeli minister Benny Gantz, a member of the war cabinet and main rival of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has called for snap parliamentary elections in September, as pressure builds over the war in Gaza.“We must set a consensual date for the month of...

A cabinet split over military service for ultra-Orthodox Jews and large street protests demanding the release of hostages are threatening the prime minister’s grip on power. Bethan McKernan reports from JerusalemAs the war in Gaza approaches its seventh month, tens of thousands of protesters in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other cities in Israel have demanded the release of hostages held in Gaza and called...

Vermont senator makes remarks after Israeli strike kills seven aid workers, amid war that has killed more than 32,000 PalestiniansThe Vermont senator and former US presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders has a message for the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu: “Stop murdering innocent people.”Sanders delivered his blunt message in an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday, a day after seven aid workers were killed by...

Humanitarian groups say they cannot operate safely after Israeli targeting of food charity convoy prompts international outcry Gaza aid convoy strike: what happened and who were the victims?The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza seems likely to worsen after charities announced they are suspending operations in the territory in the aftermath of an Israeli drone attack which repeatedly targeted a clearly identified convoy of international aid...

The move came after Israeli lawmakers passed a new law that allows the government to temporarily shutter foreign media outlets deemed to be a risk to national security.

Demonstrators join families of hostages in cities across country and vow to persist until he is ousted as PMTens of thousands of people across Israel joined the families of hostages this weekend to protest against the government and call for the removal of Benjamin Netanyahu, as the Israeli prime minister grappled with one of the most serious threats yet to his coalition.The protesters in...

Judges issue unanimous decision and say Palestinians are in urgent need of humanitarian assistanceThe international court of justice has ordered Israel to allow unimpeded access of food aid into Gaza, where sections of the population are facing imminent starvation, in a significant legal rebuke to Israel’s claim it is not blocking aid deliveries.A panel of judges at the UN’s top court, which is already...

For years Haredi men have been allowed to continue Torah study, but proposal could force some to enlist A proposed bill to extend compulsory military service to ultra-Orthodox students, historically exempt from conscription, has ignited a fierce debate in Israel, with Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly warning that failure to pass the law could jeopardise the stability of the government.Israel has mandatory army service but for...

Israeli PM speaks via video link and answers questions after his request to talk to Democrats was turned downThe Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, virtually addressed Republican senators in Washington on Wednesday, days after the chamber’s majority leader, the Democrat Chuck Schumer, called him an impediment to peace in an unsparing floor speech.The Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, told reporters, shortly after leaving the...

PM acknowledges international pressure is increasing but says it will not stop Israel achieving its goalsBenjamin Netanyahu has vowed to press ahead with sending Israeli troops into Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, rejecting deep international concerns over the risks to more than a million Palestinians who have sought shelter there.The prime minister said no amount of international pressure would stop Israel from realising all...

President also condemns US surge in Islamophobia in comments that could portend broader shift in sentiment towards Gaza warJoe Biden on Friday said Senator Chuck Schumer made “a good speech” that reflected many Americans’ concerns when he publicly broke with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, over his handling of the war in Gaza.While the US president announced no changes in his administration’s policy...

Israeli PM’s decision may be intended to put negotiating pressure on Hamas, observers say, after his cabinet discussed truce proposal Middle East crisis – live updatesBenjamin Netanyahu has approved plans for an attack on Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza, where more than a million people displaced from elsewhere in the territory have sought shelter, officials in Israel have said.The decision was made as...

Ro Khanna, Biden campaign surrogate, believes US president should take tougher line with ‘insufferably arrogant’ Israeli PMJoe Biden has committed a “strategic mistake” by “bear-hugging” the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as he prosecutes war with Hamas, a leading congressional progressive Democrat and Biden campaign surrogate said.“The bear-hugging of Netanyahu has been a strategic mistake,” Ro Khanna said, accusing the Israeli leader of conducting...

Prime minister vows to continue offensive as Hamas delegation withdraws from ceasefire talksIsrael will not give in to international pressure to stall an attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah and will continue its bloody offensive against Hamas, said Benjamin Netanyahu.“There is international pressure and it’s growing, but … we need to stand together against the attempts to stop the war,” the prime...

Turnout was low for first ballot since Hamas’ 7 October attack, with security a high priority for votersLocal elections in Israel, delayed by the war in Gaza, have returned gains for Ultra-Orthodox and far-right parties after low turnout in most areas.The municipal votes were expected to serve as an indication of public opinion after the 7 October Hamas attack and the ensuing war in...

Details of draft truce emerged in reports hours after US president Joe Biden said ‘my hope is by next Monday we’ll have a ceasefire’Reuters is reporting that a Hamas official has told it that US president Joe Biden’s words about a halt to fighting in Gaza are premature, and do not match the situation on the ground.The official told the new agency there were...

Israel’s prime minister told US media that a deal to release hostages held in Gaza would only delay a planned assault on RafahLebanon’s Hezbollah said on Monday it had downed an Israeli Hermes 450 drone over Lebanese territory with a surface-to-air missile, the second time it has announced bringing down this type of unmanned aerial vehicle.Reuters reports:The Hermes 450 is an Israeli multi-payload drone...

China urged Israel on Tuesday to stop its military operation in the Gazan city of Rafah “as soon as possible”, warning of a “serious humanitarian disaster” there if fighting did not stop. “China follows closely the developments in the Rafah area, opposes and condemns actions that harm civilians and violate international law,” a foreign ministry […]

Politicians say Palestinians sheltering in the southern city in Gaza have nowhere else to goSee all our Israel-Gaza coverageJoe Biden has added his voice to growing international calls for Israel to drop plans for an all-out military assault on the city of Rafah, in southern Gaza, after a ferocious hostage rescue operation that killed dozens of Palestinians.Speaking after talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah at...

Failure to ensure special care for more than 1 million civilians in the area would ‘cause serious harm to Israel’s own interests’, foreign minister, Penny Wong, saysFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe Australian government has warned that Israel’s plans for a military offensive on the southern Gaza town of...

Israeli PM brushes aside warnings that assault on Gaza’s southernmost town would be a ‘human catastrophe’ Benjamin Netanyahu appears determined to push ahead with a ground offensive against Gaza’s southernmost town of Rafah but has claimed Israel will provide safe passage to the 1.3 million displaced Palestinians sheltering there.Despite mounting warnings from aid agencies and the international community that an assault on Rafah would...

UN officials and Biden have said an offensive in city, where about 1.3 million Palestinians are sheltering, would lead to a ‘bloodbath’In a call Sunday with Benjamin Netanyahu, Joe Biden told the Israeli prime minister that Israel should not launch a military operation in Rafah “without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the more than one million...

Hundreds killed and injured in central Gaza Strip while Palestinians crowd into camps and the city of Rafah• Middle East crisis – live updatesIsraeli forces struck densely populated areas across the middle and southern Gaza Strip in a midnight attack on Friday and early Saturday, killing at least 25 people amid fears of an impending push south by ground troops as pressure builds for...