Newspaper headlines: UN criticises Israel and British cargo ship sinks

UN Secretary General António Guterres drew criticism from Israel after saying the country had committed 'clear violations' of international law

The latest developments from the conflict in Gaza lead many of Wednesday's front pages.

The Times, the Daily Mail, and the Daily Express all carry pictures of 85-year-old Yosheved Lifschitz, one of two hostages released by Hamas on Monday, shaking the hand of one of her captors as she is freed.

"Peace gesture by freed hostage in the face of evil" is the Express's headline. The Times reports that Ms Lifschitz described her experience as a "nightmare we couldn't have imagined".

The Financial Times reports on comments by UN Secretary General António Guterres, who told a meeting of the body's Security Council on Tuesday that "clear violations" of international law had been committed. In further comments that the paper says sparked a "furious response" from Israeli officials, Mr Guterres also said that the Hamas attacks "did not happen in a vacuum" and came after "56 years of suffocating occupation" for Palestinians. The i and the Daily Telegraph both note that Israel has called for Mr Guterres to stand down over the comments.

The Guardian says Mr Guterres also said there should be an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to end what he called the "epic suffering" of people in the territory.

The Telegraph reports that rain coming from the "wrong direction" during Storm Babet was to blame for the chaos seen in many areas. It says Environment Secretary Therese Coffey has told MPs that most of our rain comes from the west, but that Storm Babet came from the south, meaning forecasts were less accurate. Ms Coffey, the paper reports, said her department would conduct a "rapid review" to understand what could have been done better.

The Mail is among a number of papers to report on comments by the former head of Ofsted, Sir Michael Wilshaw, in which he said it's "nonsense" that nine out of ten schools are now rated "good" or "outstanding". The paper says Sir Michael told the Commons Education Committee that the ratings are giving "false comfort" to parents and that "good" ratings allowed headteachers to relax and not address the weaknesses at their schools.

A rise in the number of people becoming vegan or vegetarian combined with the pressure on household budgets mean we are eating less meat than at any point since the 1970s, according to the Times. It reports that consumption at home fell by 12.5% in the year to March 2022 and that consumers are ditching beef, pork and lamb faster than other meats. It says that, over the past decade, consumption of these meats has fallen by 26%, while the number of people eating chicken is down by 11%.

And the Daily Mirror says says that just 22 minutes of exercise a day could reverse the effect of sitting for long periods of time. It says a study of 12,000 people over the age of 50 found that brisk daily walking, housework or jogging could offset the impact of having an office job or watching TV all night. The author of the report, Edvard Saglev of the Arctic University of Norway, said the 22 minutes "eliminated the higher risk of death from sedentary time" and of course that the more exercise that could be done "the better".

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