Gaza live: Israel strike kills 30 Palestinians, mostly children

The New York Times recently published a viral opinion video featuring journalist Ezra Klein. Analysing Donald Trump’s political strategy, Klein suggested that not every statement the US president makes should be taken seriously. 

Trump’s approach, the video notes, relies on making a barrage of outrageous declarations designed to capture public attention, while his administration quietly advances its true agenda. 

Klein’s argument is bolstered by insights from Steve Bannon, Trump’s former senior adviser, who elaborates on the administration’s modus operandi during Trump’s first term.

Klein’s assertions reveal, almost dystopically, the liberal left’s complacency in underestimating Trump’s tangible impacts on vulnerable communities who lack political or military power. 

Trump’s first presidency demonstrated a clear seriousness in matters such as immigrant deportation, killing the Iran nuclear deal, relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and brokering normalisation agreements between Israel and Arab states. 

Read more: Trump’s Gaza ethnic cleansing plan should be taken seriously. Palestinians certainly do

Italy has welcomed 14 children from Gaza diagnosed with cancer to be treated in Rome, according to the Wafa news agaency.

It is not clear how many children have arrived, but Palestinian official Ramzi Khoury have welcomed the children and their companions in the Italian capital.

Israeli troops have arrested a child east of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, local sources told Wafa news agency.

Abduallah Manasra was reportedly arrested after his family's house was raided. His age is not yet known.

On Thursday, the Palestinian Prisoners' Society said Israel has arrested 380 Palestinians in Jenin, Tulkarem and Tubas since Israel launched an ongoing operation in the north of the occupied West Bank.

Isreal will tomorrow release 369 Palestinian prisoners, including 36 who were charged with life sentences and 333 others who were detained without charge after 7 October, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Society media office.

This comes after Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad named the three Israeli captives to be released tomorrow as part of the exchange deal.

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Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates:

• As the region braces for Iran and Hezbollah's response to Israel's major assassinations, Axios says US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told G7 counterparts that the retaliation could take place as early as Monday
• Israel continued its bombing of northern and central Gaza, hitting Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and the Nuseirat refugee camp
• US President Joe Biden is expected to speak with Jordan's King Abdullah and convene his national security team to discuss the escalating tensions in the Middle East
• An Israeli army officer and a soldier were moderately wounded in a Hezbollah rocket attack near Ayelet HaShahar in northern Israel, the Israeli military says

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

Here are some of the day's key developments:

- Israeli army says two Hezbollah operatives killed in southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah confirms and names the fighters as Muhammad Hassan Farhat and Ali Mustafa Amr.

- Turkey has issued an advisory warning against travelling to Lebanon, and has advised all its citizens there to leave amid rising tensions in the region.

- Iran’s President Pezeshkian says the assassination of  Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was “the big mistake" of the Israelis, which will not go unanswered.

- Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi concluded a rare visit to Iran to “deliver a message from His Majesty King Abdullah II to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the situation in the region and bilateral relations”.

- The Israeli Channel 12 reported that prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided not to seek normalisation with Saudi Arabia before the upcoming US presidential elections in November.

- Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described Israel’s blockage of humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza enclave as crimes against humanity and the “first phase of the genocide,” during his visit to the Egyptian al-Arish port and the Egyptian Rafah border with Gaza.

- The Palestinian Civil Defence has reported recovering at least 30 bodies from al-Nasr and Hassan Salama schools following Israeli strikes.

- The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Tel Aviv is experiencing heavy disruptions to GPS apps, likely as part of Israel's preparation for a potential attack from Iran.

-An Israeli military court has extended the detentions of five reserve soldiers suspected of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee, according to the Times of Israel.

Several Palestinian media outlets are reporting that fighting has erupted between Palestinians and Israeli forces raid in the town of Sa’ir, located northeast of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

One of the videos shared online is showing a vehicle in flames as smoke plumes in the town’s skyline.

Meanwhile, rocket sirens sound in northern Israel, according to Haaretz.

The Lebanese group of Hezbollah said two of its members have been killed, and named them as Muhammad Hassan Farhat and Ali Mustafa Amr.

The Israeli army has earlier said that it killed two Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon in two separate strikes.

Turkey has issued an advisory warning against travelling to Lebanon, and has advised all its citizens there to leave amid rising tensions in the region.

The Israeli army said it killed a Hezbollah operative in the village of Hula southern Lebanon, as he was entering a weapons depot.

It released footage in which it says it shows the operative as he enters the depot.

The Israeli army also says it killed another Hezbollah member in a drone strike in the area of Beit Lif area, also in southern Lebanon.  It reports that it launched more strikes on Aita al-Shaab to target Hezbollah infrastructure.

Iran’s President Pezeshkian says the assassination of  Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh was “the big mistake" of the Israelis, which will not go unanswered.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran expects all Islamic countries and the free people of the world to strongly condemn such crimes,” said Pezeshkian.

The Israeli Channel 12 reported that prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided not to seek normalisation with Saudi Arabia before the upcoming US presidential elections in November.

It says the decision was made after considering to wait and see whether Republican nominee and former US president Donald Trump will be re-elected or not.

The report, which does not attribute sources, comes one week after an Israeli official told reporters that a normalisation agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabic could be possible before November’s US elections, and that Netanyahu has discussed this issue with US president Joe Biden.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said he came to “deliver a message from His Majesty King Abdullah II to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the situation in the region and bilateral relations” during a rare visit he made to Iran.

In the first official visit paid by a senior Jordanian official in more than 20 years to Iran, Safady met with the Iranian acting foreign minister in Tehran Ali Bagheri Kani, and told him that he is not carrying a message to Tehran from or to Israel.

He refutes statements of an Iranian official to Al Jazeera, in which he said Safady is visiting Tehran with messages from his country, Israel and the US.

Safady said Jordan wants the escalation in the region to end.

"Jordan has always been proactive in defending the Palestinian cause and the rights of the Palestinian people. It has condemned the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories and rejected all of Israel's escalating measures that prevent achieving security, stability, and a just peace,” Safady said.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described Israel’s blockage of humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza enclave as crimes against humanity and the “first phase of the genocide”.

His statement came during his visit to the Egyptian al-Arish port and the Egyptian Rafah border with Gaza.

He called upon the international community to act against “Israel’s oppression” and exert “greater efforts” to help in facilitating continuous aid into Gaza.