Sharone Lifschitz, whose parents were kidnapped by Hamas on 7 October 2023, believes ending the war is the only way to bring back the remaining hostages.

Speaking from Tel Aviv, Sharone told BBC News earlier: "Obviously we want our loved ones back home, we do not want this war. we want this war to end, for a comprehensive deal to take place.

"A partial deal has just collapsed and for the family of the hostages. This is day 674 - it is an awful long time.

"Their loved ones are in a dreadful condition and we need them back home and only a comprehensive deal ending the war will make that possible."

Sharone says there are hostages still alive and they know from last year, after hearing from hostages who have been released, that as soon as the Israeli army advances the captors will "very likely just put a bullet through their head as the army drew ... close".

Her mother Yocheved Lifschitz was one of the first hostages to be released, but her father Oded was killed and his body was returned earlier this year.

We've heard remarks through this afternoon from delegates at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in New York City today.

Watch below to hear remarks from Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations, and Israel's representative on the UNSC, Jonathan Miller.

Image source, Reuters

Families of the Israeli hostages held in Gaza and victims of the Hamas attacks on 7 October 2023 have announced they will initiate a nationwide shutdown on 17 August.

The general strike is a protest against continuing the war in Gaza and the Israeli cabinet's decision to "take over" Gaza City.

The families are calling on private companies, organisations and labour unions to take part - however at this stage it is not clear if the unions will do so.

Politician Yair Golan, leader of Israel's Democrats party, says he calls on all citizens to join the strike, external, while opposition leader Yair Lapid says he also supports the call, external for a shutdown.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
BBC Persian, World Service reporter

Iran's foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, says the country condemns “any displacement of Gazan people or occupation”. He was asked by reporters about Israel's Gaza City occupation plans earlier.

Iran's foreign ministry also said in a statement yesterday that “displacing residents” is part of a strategy to “eliminate Palestinian identity and statehood” and is a “violation of international law”.

The statement also urged the international community to prosecute Israel and “end their impunity”.

Iranian media have been in line with the government’s position, while highlighting protests in Israel against the plan as well as Hamas’s rejection of it.

Iran and Israel have been in a fragile ceasefire since late June, with both sides warning the conflict could resume.

Image source, UN

Israel's representative on the UNSC, Jonathan Miller, says there has been some "extraordinary and brazen language" used in today's meeting.

He says that Israel has no plans to permanently occupy Gaza and outlines the five principles to end the war that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described in his news conference earlier.

They are:

• The disarmament of Hamas
• Return of all hostages
• Demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip
• Israel taking "overriding security control" in Gaza
• Establishment of an "alternative civil administration" that is not Hamas or the Palestinian Authority

Miller tells the council that recent talks with Hamas fell apart on the day France announced its plans to recognise Palestine as a state.

He called for the UNSC to direct their focus on dismantling Hamas and that anything less was "not urgency but hypocrisy".

Image source, UN

Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations, has told the UNSC that it is "undeniable" that Israel does not care what UNSC members say,

He adds: "The only thing that matters now is what we do."

Mansour says that he whilst he appreciates the statements of support from fellow council members, it is "not sufficient".

"You have to act. You have to do something about it. You have to stop it", he adds.

Mansour calls for the full withdrawal of Israel from Gaza and says the Palestinian Authority should assume governmental duties with regional and international support. He adds this would mean Hamas handing over their weapons and ending the war.

Mansour says this would lead to an irreversible pathway to the establishment of a Palestinian state.

He says that that they are willing to work with partners to bring an end to the war, today, and tells the council that "your actions today will determine the fate of millions of people tomorrow."

Image source, Getty Images

Let's bring you fresh comments from US Vice-President JD Vance.

He says the Trump administration is trying to stop Hamas from "killing innocent people", secure the release of Israeli hostages and solve the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.

"What the president of the United States has said is he wants to be the president of peace," Vance tells Fox News, adding Trump is trying to "accomplish all three of those things".

"He is encouraging - through every diplomatic method possible - a rapid end to the conflict, the hostages get to come home, the people of Gaza get a free flow of humanitarian aid."

Russian Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy calls Israel's plan a "gross violation of international law".

He adds that previous "active diplomacy, rather than the reckless intensification of hostilities," led to the release of more than 140 hostages held by Hamas.

"The Israeli authorities have decided to opt for a further escalation of violence, thus jeopardising the security and lives of Israeli hostages," Polyanskiy says.

He also accuses Israel of committing crimes against humanity in Gaza: "How many more Palestinians need to die before this inhuman slaughter ends?" Polyanskiy asks.

Turning to the US, Polyanskiy says Washington is "washing its hands" and giving Israel "carte blanche to have full freedom of action in Gaza".

Fu Cong, China's ambassador to the UN, says the situation in Gaza "continues to evolve into an even more dangerous direction".

He says the UNSC "must firmly oppose any attempt to occupy Gaza" and condemns Israel's decision to renew its military offensive in Gaza City.

"Military means are not the way to solve this problem," says Fu.

He also condemns Israel's "collective punishment" of Gaza's population, and calls for "all" access points into Gaza to be opened in order for aid to be allowed in.

Let's take another look at the ongoing UNSC meeting in New York, where US Ambassador Dorothy Shea has been speaking.

Shea tells the council that the US has been "working tirelessly" to free hostages and end the war in Gaza, and says today's urgent meeting "undermines" those efforts.

Shea adds that Israel has accepted three ceasefire agreements which Hamas rejects. "This war could end today if Hamas let the hostages go", Shea tells the council.

She says that UN members "have taken advantage of today's meeting" to accuse Israel of genocide", an allegation she insists is "demonstrably false".

Shea adds that the US have been working on three points: addressing humanitarian needs, freeing the hostages and achieving peace

She accuses the security council of focusing on the first point without realising they are connected. Shea adds that the US has upped humanitarian support to Gaza alongside Israel, via the GHF.

She calls for the UNSC to demand Hamas release all of the hostages and disarm.

Netanyahu's bullish address showed no signs of compromisepublished at 16:51 British Summer Time 10 August

16:51 BST 10 August

Jon Donnison
Reporting from Jerusalem

At a rare press conference to foreign journalists in Jerusalem this afternoon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyuhu was in a bullish mood.

Speaking in perfect English and with the help of a slide show, he gave no signs of compromise and pushed back at criticism of his plan to expand the war that has come both at home and from abroad.

“This is the best way to end the war – and the best way to end it speedily,” he said.

He gave no time scale as to when the operation to capture Gaza City would start. He again flat out rejected the idea of ever accepting a Palestinian State and accused European countries such as Britain and France of bowing to public pressure to recognise such a state.

Image source, Reuters

A mother of nine says she will not leave Gaza City despite Israeli plans to launch an expanded military offensive there.

Fatma Al-Shinbary, 41, tells Reuters that she would "prefer to stay here and work", adding that "probably most of the people will stay, not everyone will be moving again."

Fatma's husband is injured, and she supports her family by baking bread on an open fire among the tents where people live in the city.

She says she has already been displaced several times during the past two years, and she is "tired of displacement."

"Death is better for us," she says. "In every area, one leaves behind our belongings, in every area, one loses many things."

Image source, EPA

As we've been reporting, thousands of protesters across Israel took to the streets last night to protest against the new plan to expand military operations into Gaza City.

And it appears that even within Netanyahu's cabinet there is some dissent against the plan.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich - who has been sanctioned by the UK for inciting violence against Palestinians - posted a video on social media last night saying that he has "lost faith" that Netanyahu can "lead the IDF to victory".

Of the new Gaza plan, Smotrich said: "The prime minister and the cabinet gave in to weakness.

"Emotion overcame reason, and they once again chose to do more of the same - launching a military operation whose goal is not decisive victory, but rather to apply limited pressure on Hamas in order to bring about a partial hostage deal, while clearly stating that if Hamas agrees to a deal, we too will agree to stop again, withdraw again, allow it to recover and re-arm," according to an AFP translation of the video.

Image source, United Nations

Let's turn back to the emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) underway in New York.

The UK requested the meeting alongside France, Slovenia, Denmark and Greece.

Ambassador James Kariuki, the UK's deputy permanent representative to the UN, says the UK urges the Israeli government to reverse its decision to expand its military offensive in Gaza.

He says the plan will "only deepen the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza".

This is a "path to more bloodshed", he adds.

A representative for Denmark says the country "condemns" the expansion and echoes the UK's call to reverse the decision.

A representative of France’s says "we needed to raise the alarm" and the plan would have "dramatic humanitarian consequences" in Gaza City and throughout the Strip. "Civilians are already living in horrifying conditions," he says.

Image source, Reuters

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed media this afternoon, in a news conference he said was aimed at "puncturing lies" about the war in Gaza.

Here's a quick look back at what he said:

• Referring to the military plan approved by Israel's security cabinet on Friday, the PM says Israel wants to "free Gaza", not to occupy it - and called the plan the "best way" to end the war
• Netanyahu outlined a three-step plan to increase aid into Gaza - including designating safe corridors for humanitarian aid distribution
• Asked for a timeline on when he wants to conclude the expansion of the new offensive, he said operations will move "fairly quickly" and safe zones will be established first
• Responding to a question on US President Trump's comments about starvation in Gaza, Netanyahu said he appreciates the president's support - adding Trump has said the hostages should be released and Hamas should not be in Gaza

We can bring you more now from Netanyahu's comments to reporters a little earlier. The prime minister was asked by journalists if Israel's 11-week blockade on aid entering Gaza played a role in the ongoing hunger crisis.

Netanyahu blames Hamas for looting supplies, and says that Hamas has created the aid crisis.

He reiterates his denial that Israel has a "starvation policy" in Gaza - but does accept that there was "deprivation" in the Strip.

Netanyahu is also asked about the Palestinians killed at GHF sites. He says "a lot of the firing was done by Hamas".

Hamas has repeatedly denied claims that it is stealing supplies destined for civilians. A recent internal analysis by the US government found no evidence of systematic theft of humanitarian supplies, Reuters and CNN recently reported.

Image source, United Nations

In New York, the UN Security Council's (UNSC) emergency meeting concerning the situation in the Middle East is underway.

Miroslav Jenča, the assistant secretary general for Europe, Central Asia and Americas, says people in the state of Palestine are in "greater peril". He adds that Israel's new five-point plan approved on Thursday is "another dangerous escalation of the conflict".

"We are already witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe on an unimaginable scale," Jenča says, as he reiterates calls for a "full and immediate ceasefire" as well as the release of all hostages.

"Palestinians have their right to have their voices heard," Jenča says, adding the UN supports a two-state solution. He also calls for fair elections.

We're following the UNSC meeting here - you can follow along by clicking watch live at the top of this page.

Netanyahu is asked how prolonging the war will help bring the hostages home. He is also asked about the timeline for establishing a new civil governance group in Gaza.

He says that if Israel "capitulated" to Hamas, they would get all the hostages back, adding that Hamas would regroup.

Netanyahu says there are "several candidates" being looked at for the establishment of a new "transitional authority".

He adds "we don't want to stay in Gaza" and that the goal is to make sure Hamas isn't there.

Asked about the timeline for the new offensive, Netanyahu says operations will move "fairly quickly".

The prime minister is then asked by a journalist if his government believes it can still get the remaining living hostages out alive.

He says his goal is to get them all out alive and recover the remains of those who have died.

"If we don't do anything, we are not going to get them out", Netanyahu says, adding that a "war of attrition won't get them out".

"The move I'm talking about has the possibility of getting them out," he says.

Families of hostages held in Gaza have decried the government's plan to expand its offensive and thousands have protested against the new military objectives.

Netanyahu is asked two questions by journalists - the first is why he is not allowing foreign journalists into Gaza.

He responds that a directive has been in place for two days which tells the military to bring in foreign journalists. He explains there are security issues, but adds "I think it can be done".

The second question relates to Trump's comments on starvation in Gaza. The prime minister says that he appreciates the US president's support.

He adds that Trump has said two things - that all 20 hostages should be released, and that Hamas should not be there. Netanyahu adds that Trump recognises the fact that the deprivation in Gaza has been caused by Hamas.