Live: Netanyahu vows to 'step up' war, rejecting permanent ceasefire

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in Washington and other cities across the US to oppose President Donald Trump's policies on deportations, government firings, and the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

Outside the White House, protesters carried banners that read "Workers should have the power," "No kingship," "Stop arming Israel" and "Due process".

Several of them waved Palestinian flags and wore keffiyehs, chanting "free Palestine" and expressing solidarity with Palestinians killed in Israel's war on Gaza. 

The Trump administration has detained scores of international students and threatened to stop federal funding to universities over diversity, equity and inclusion programs, climate initiatives and pro-Palestine protests. 

Protests took place in New York City, Chicago, and dozens of other locations, marking the second day of nationwide demonstrations since Trump took office.

Unicef, the UN agency which provides aid to children worldwide, has said that paediatric hospitals in Gaza are facing severe shortages amid Israel's ongoing blockade of all aid and supplies. 

"Hospitals in Gaza treating newborns and children don’t have enough medical equipment and are operating under extremely challenging circumstances," the agency wrote on X, accompanied by a video. 

"Humanitarian aid must be allowed to enter Gaza again. A ceasefire must be reinstated. The survival of children depends on it," it added. 

Hospitals in Gaza treating newborns and children don’t have enough medical equipment and are operating under extremely challenging circumstances.

Humanitarian aid must be allowed to enter Gaza again.

A ceasefire must be reinstated.

The survival of children depends on it. pic.twitter.com/J3WwfZrikO

— UNICEF (@UNICEF) April 19, 2025

Ronen Bar, the head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service, is set to resign in May. 

Last month, Netanyahu chose to dismiss Bar over what the prime minister described as “ongoing distrust” in the wake of the events of 7 October.

But the dismissal led to large anti-government protests, with demonstrators accusing Netanyahu of undermining democracy.

Last week, the Supreme Court blocked Bar’s dismissal.

However, Israel’s Channel 12 reported on Saturday that Bar will step down in the middle of next month.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he has instructed the military to "step up the pressure" on Hamas. 

The Palestinian group has rejected an Israeli proposal for a temporary truce, and instead has demanded an end to the war in exchange for the release of all Israeli captives. 

In a late-night televised address on Saturday, Netanyahu said that Israel had "no choice but to continue fighting for our very existence, until victory."

He described Hamas' proposal for a ceasefire as a "ruse" which would "make returning to war impossible". 

"I believe that we can return our hostages without capitulating to the dictates of Hamas," the prime minister said.

Netanyahu said he had always "believed that the combination of military pressure and diplomatic pressure would lead to the release of our hostages".

He added: "Many did not believe this. But to date we have returned 196 hostages - 147 of them alive. There are still 24 living hostages held in Gaza and 35 slain hostages. The mission is not yet complete. I intend to complete it without surrendering to Hamas.

"We will step up the pressure on Hamas until we achieve all the goals of the war."

Earlier in the day, Hamas said it had recovered the body of a guard killed in an Israeli air strike this week. The guard had been holding Edan Alexander, an Israeli dual national soldier believed to be the last American citizen held alive in Gaza.

The fate of Alexander is unknown, Hamas said.

Three more Palestinians have been killed and others wounded on Saturday evening as Israeli forces continued bombing the Gaza Strip.

An Israeli air strike hit a home near al-Uruba school in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing one. 

Elsewhere, Israeli jets targeted a house in the eastern part of the al-Zaytoun neighbourhood, southeast of Gaza City. Several civilians were reportedly wounded, according to Palestinian media. 

Meanwhile, an Israeli drone targeted a home in the Qizan al-Najjar area, east of Khan Younis, killing two Palestinian residents. 

A Palestinian child, 13, has been shot and wounded by Israeli force in the town of Beit Furik, east of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, according to medics.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the child was shot in the thigh and later transferred to hospital for treatment.

It occurred during an Israeli military raid on Beit Furik, during which troops fired live bullets, rubber-coated metal rounds, stun grenades, and tear gas canisters. 

According to local media, Israeli settlers abducted three Palestinian children from the al-Dubbat neighbourhood of Beit Furik. Residents later rescued the children, finding them tied to olive trees. 

Turkey's intelligence chief has held talks with a Hamas delegation to discuss options for the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza, as Israel's blockade on the enclave continues.

Ibrahim Kalin, head of the National Intelligence Organisation, met with Muhammad Darwish, the head of Hamas’s Shura Council, among other Hamas officials, according to Anadolu agency.

As well as aid, they discussed initiatives aimed at achieving a permanent, comprehensive ceasefire.

The Iranian foreign minister said Saturday that nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States were "moving forward" after a positive meeting.

The US and Iran concluded a second round of talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme in Rome, a week after holding indirect talks in Muscat that both sides described as constructive.

Iran, which says its nuclear programme is peaceful, says it is willing to discuss limited curbs to its atomic work in return for lifting international sanctions.

Aragchi negotiated for almost four hours in Rome with Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, through an Omani official who shuttled messages between them.

Read more: Iran and US move to expert-level talks after ‘good meeting’ in Rome

An Israeli drone strike has killed three Palestinians and wounded others in northern Gaza, bringing the total number of those killed in the enclave on Saturday to 44.

Wafa news agency reported that an Israeli drone opened fire at a group of civilians east of Beit Hanoun.

In the southern Gaza Strip, an air strike hit an area sheltering displaced persons in al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younis, killing one Palestinian and wounding others. Another Palestinian was killed in a separate Israeli air strike targeting Khan Younis refugee camp.

Hamas's armed wing said on Saturday the fate of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander was unknown after the group found the guard who was holding the hostage killed.

In a series of posts on Telegram, al-Qassam's spokesperson, Abu Obaida, confirmed that Hamas had lost contact with the group of fighters tasked with guarding Alexander. 

The spokesperson also denied claims that it was mistreating prisoners and said it was "trying to protect all prisoners and keep them alive" amid continued Israeli air strikes. 

"We were able to retrieve [the body] of a martyr who was tasked with securing Eden Alexander. Eden's fate and other brothers securing him remains unknown," said Abu Obaida. 

"We are trying to protect all prisoners and to keep them alive despite the brutality of the aggression. However, their lives are in danger due to the continued air strikes carried out by the enemy [Israeli] army.

"The occupation lies in its claim of inhumane treatment of its prisoners and fabricates false testimonies from former prisoners, with the aim of spreading false propaganda against the Palestinian resistance."

What can more than 100 years of the international justice system tell us about its present and future?

World leading scholar of international criminal law and genocide, Professor William Schabas, speaks to Middle East Eye's Expert Witness. 

Schabas reflects on the challenges facing international law after Israel began its war on Gaza in 2023 and why it is guilty of genocide. 

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli forces have killed 92 people and wounded 219 others over the past 48 hours. 

The death toll in Gaza now stands at 51,157, with 116,724 others wounded and thousands who remain missing. 

Good morning,

Here is your latest update on the situation in Gaza, which continues to worsen as Israeli forces continue its bombardment of the besieged enclave.

• Medical sources are reporting that Israeli strikes have killed at least 64 people across Gaza since Friday.

• The UN World Food Programme has issued an urgent warning that "Gaza needs food now" as hundreds are at risk of going hungry.

• The Wafa news agency is reporting that Israeli troops have arrested at least eight Palestinians in the Fawwar refugee camp in southern Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

• Israeli settlers stormed the Bedouin village of Ras Ein al-Auja, north of Jericho, in the occupied West Bank. Wafa is reporting that the settlers destroyed property.

• Hezbollah said it would not disarm while Israeli troops remain in southern Lebanon.

Medical sources in Gaza are reporting that Israeli forces on Saturday have killed at least 64 people in the last 24 hours across the besieged enclave.

Early on Saturday, doctors reported that Israeli strikes injured more than 20 children in Khan Younis.

Israeli forces also fired artillery shells towards the eastern part of Gaza and the city of Rafah in southern Gaza.