Nick Beake
Reporting from northern Israel

Image source, Reuters

Israeli media are considering the implications of Hezbollah rockets hitting the country’s third largest city, Haifa, for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Haifa - a northern port city home to more than a quarter of a million people - is far outside the zone from which residents nearer the Lebanese border began to be evacuated last year.

Some commentators are expressing concern the Iron Dome defence did not intercept two of the five rockets reported to have been launched.

Eliran Tal, spokesman for the Haifa municipality, spoke to us a short time ago.

He confirms this was the first time the city has been targeted since the 2006 Lebanese war between Israel and Hezbollah which lasted a month.

Tal says two neighbourhoods were hit with eight people suffering minor injuries.

When asked about the Hezbollah claim they were aiming for a military site south of the city he says this is "an attack on civilian population".

The spokesman estimated that 95% of the population of Haifa were staying put.

He says: "This is a complex situation and with missile threats from the north. It is not an easy period of time, but we are strong . We went through a lot of tragedy like this - and I hope the IDF and the leadership will do their best to push the enemy far from the border."

That new mission - with the ground invasion into Lebanon - is intensifying but Hezbollah is fighting and firing back.

To the north east of Haifa - where we are this morning - we’ve heard the sound of more rockets being intercepted.

We're now hearing from US President Joe Biden, who says "far too many civilians have suffered during this year of conflict", one year on from the Hamas attacks on 7 October.

In a statement released by the White House, he speaks of the "unspeakable brutality" and "the beauty of the lives that were stolen that day".

Repeating a message he gave to Israel one year ago, Biden adds: "You are not alone."

"Today and every day, I think of the hostages and their families," says Biden, before condemning "the vicious surge in antisemitism in America."

He says he will "not stop working to achieve a ceasefire deal in Gaza that brings the hostages home," and says that a diplomatic solution in Lebanon is the only path to lasting peace.

The president ends his statement by saying that "history will also remember 7 October as a dark day for the Palestinian people".

Some more updates on evacuation orders being issued for people in Gaza and Lebanon by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee says people in southern Gaza, near Khan Younis, should make their way to the al-Mawasi humanitarian zone - a narrow strip of land by the Mediterranean Sea in the Gaza Strip.

Earlier, residents in parts of northern Gaza - including Jabalia, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia - were told by the IDF to evacuate.

Away from Gaza, Adraee also issued an urgent warning to residents of more than 20 villages in south Lebanon, including Tayr Harfa and al-Mansouri.

The IDF has told evacuees to leave their homes and head “north of the Awali River”.

"Anyone who is near Hezbollah members, installations or weapons is putting his life in danger", the IDF says.

Hugo Bachega
Middle East correspondent, in Beirut

Image source, Hugo Bachega / BBC

This is a picture I took from the rooftop of a building on the outskirts of Dahieh, the area in southern Beirut where Hezbollah has a strong presence and the target of repeated Israeli air strikes.

Plumes of smoke were rising from two locations hit this morning, and a heavy smell in the air.

There was the constant buzz of a drone flying overhead, a new routine in some parts of Beirut.

And in between the buildings, we could see the destruction caused by earlier air strikes.

All around, there are broken windows, partially collapsed walls and damaged cars.

This used to be a densely populated district.

Now, there is no-one to be seen.

We can now bring you more information on the reports of an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon which has killed several firefighters, according to Lebanon's health ministry.

Authorities say they have retrieved the bodies of eight people so far, AFP news agency reports.

Lebanon's health ministry has said that the strike was carried out on a municipal building in Baraachit in the Bint Jbeil region, southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese health ministry says the removal of the rubble from the severely damaged building is ongoing as the identities of those killed is not yet known.

We're getting reports of an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon which has killed several firefighters, according to the country's health ministry.

The health ministry says a raid on a building in Baraachit killed 10 firefighters.

We'll bring you more as we have it.

Meanwhile in northern Israel, Hezbollah has recently said it launched rockets towards Haifa.

Haifa was struck by rocket fire overnight, an incident that the Iranian-backed militia group also took credit for.

Earlier, we reported ten people were injured by shrapnel and debris from the missiles.

The group also says it launched missiles towards Karmiel, a town in Beit HaKerem Valley in the Galilee region of northern Israel.

Alice Cuddy
In Jerusalem

Image source, Handout

We’ve just been speaking on the phone to 32-year-old Ashraf Eldous, who is in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.

The programmer says he could never have imagined how life has unfolded over the past year. He has now been displaced four times.

He says he was at work and had just switched on his computer when he learned of the Hamas attacks on 7 October. He had only recently returned to Gaza from living in Qatar.

"I thought it would last one or two days. One of them will hit the other and then it will finish," he says.

"A lot of friends called me to tell me to leave. I remember saying ‘I won’t leave now, give it one week and I will leave.’ I wasn’t expecting this."

That night he was playing Call of Duty at his home in Gaza City when he learned that his relatives had been killed in an Israeli strike nearby.

"I put on my clothes and I went. I saw all the building was demolished on the ground. I sat there for 30 minutes. I couldn’t do anything to help," he recalls.

Fifteen family members were killed in the strike, including 13-year-old Awni, an aspiring gaming YouTuber. He was one of the first Palestinian children to be killed in the war.

"He was a smart student. He used to contact me because his dream was to be a famous YouTuber," Ahraf says.

To some, Awni has become a kind of symbol, representing the loss of children in the Gaza Strip.

He dreamed of his YouTube channel one day reaching one million subscribers. After he died, those dreams came true - with 1.74 million subscribers today.

Contacted last year, the Israeli military would not comment on the specific strike but said Hamas had a "documented practice of operating from nearby, underneath and within densely populated areas".

It said it regretted "any harm caused to civilians or civilian property as a result of its operations".

• Read more about Awni, the Palestinian boy who found YouTube fame after death

Image source, Facebook

We're hearing now from Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, which says that 41,909 people have been killed since Israel began its offensive there following the 7 October attacks launched by Hamas.

A further 97,303 have been injured, the health ministry says, adding there have been 986 medical staff killed in the conflict.

The health ministry adds that 26 people were killed in Israeli strikes on a mosque and a former school that it says were being used to shelter displaced Palestinians on Sunday morning.

The Israeli military said it had targeted Hamas militants operating within "command and control" centres at the sites.

Rushdi Abualouf
Gaza correspondent, in London

One year on, most people I spoke to in Gaza wish a time machine would take them back to just before 7 October.

They have not been able to get over that day and what happened in the year after.

For them it’s a year of pain, horror, displacement, killing, destruction, loss and much more.

Every one of the 2.3 million people in Gaza has experienced unprecedented suffering and many of those who managed to escape the war have one answer: Yes, we are still alive, but we are not well.

One message I received this morning from someone in Gaza reflects how some there initially celebrated the actions of Hamas.

But they very quickly saw those actions turn into something which had deadly consequences for people in Gaza as well as those in Israel: "Saturday, October 7th 2023 began with joy of Hamas attacks on Israeli occupation in the morning and horror in the evening.. 365 days have passed and we are still waiting for Sunday morning to come".

Rushdi Abualouf, who has reported from Gaza for decades, left the territory with his family on 20 November for the sake of their safety.

Image source, EPA

A year on from the 7 October attacks, here's the latest developments from Israel, Lebanon and Gaza:

• Vigils, memorials and ceremonies are being held across Israel to remember the 1,200 people killed and the 251 kidnapped by Hamas gunmen one year ago today
• A new Israeli military division has been sent to southern Lebanon, one week after the Israeli military began its ground invasion against the Iran-backed Hezbollah
• Ten people have been injured by missiles fired into northern Israel by Hezbollah, who today praised the events of 7 October as "heroic" and said they are "confident" they can resist Israeli forces
• In Gaza and Lebanon, the Israeli army says it is attacking targets where Hamas and Hezbollah operate
• Four projectiles were fired towards Israel from southern Gaza, the IDF says, three of which were intercepted
• Two people have been wounded in a Hamas strike on Tel Aviv as five projectiles were fired from the Khan Younis area in Gaza

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has just warned residents in parts of northern Gaza to evacuate.

IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee says the Israeli military is operating "with great force" in areas including Beit Hanoun, Jabalia and Beit Lahia in Gaza.

He says residents should “evacuate immediately” to a newly created humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi, a narrow strip of land by the Mediterranean Sea in the Gaza Strip.

The IDF adds the humanitarian passage will be accessible between 08:00 and 17:00 local time via the Salah al-Din road.

Hamas says they are in "fierce close range clashes" with Israeli forces west of the Jabalia camp in the north of the Gaza Strip, just over 20 miles (32km) from Al-Mawasi.

The Israel Defense Forces says five projectiles have been fired at Tel Aviv from the Khan Younis area in Gaza.

Hamas has confirmed they were responsible for the attack.

On the Ayalon Highway, which runs along the eastern border of Tel Aviv, cars came to a halt, as BBC teams reported hearing explosions overhead.

The Israeli ambulance service (MDA) says that two women in their 30s were “lightly wounded” after being hit by shrapnel in central Israel.

The MDA adds the victims have been taken to hospital and are in "good condition".

Netanyahu bolsters grip on powerpublished at 10:40 British Summer Time 7 October

10:40 BST 7 October

Yolande Knell
Middle East correspondent, in Jerusalem

Image source, Getty Images

Israel’s veteran prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who branded himself as “Mr Security”, presided over the country’s worst national security failure.

But one year on, he has a strong grip on power bolstered by military and political successes over the past three months.

While Israel has not taken responsibility for all actions, top leaders of Hamas have been assassinated as has the head of Hezbollah, after highly damaging, clandestine attacks on his group. A massive Iranian missile attack was defeated last week.

On the political side, Netanyahu has kept together a fractious coalition. Early in the war, he benefitted from temporarily bringing his rival, Benny Gantz, into an emergency government. This divided the opposition.

Now the prime minister has brought another ex-rival, Gideon Saar, into his coalition, giving it four extra parliamentary seats and reducing the power of far-right ministers.

Netanyahu could now manage to stay in office until the next election due in a year’s time. Polls indicate that he has risen in popularity but that most Israelis would still like him to resign. If voting took place today, they suggest his party would have most seats, although his coalition would lose.

Image source, Reuters

A bit earlier this morning, a protest took place near Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem.

Family members of Israeli hostages, and their supporters, are calling on Netanyahu to "end the abandonment of their loved ones and to bring back all the hostages in a deal", according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

It was announced earlier today that Idan Shtivi, one of the hostages taken by Hamas from the Supernova music festival last year, was killed during the attacks, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.

Hamas kidnapped 251 people during the 7 October attacks, according to Israel’s figures.

Before Shtivi's death was announced, 117 of those taken hostage had been freed, 37 confirmed dead, and 97 remained unaccounted for, with 63 of those assumed to be alive.

We've just received an update from Hezbollah who says they have targeted Israeli soldiers with rocket missiles.

The Iran-backed militia group says in a statement that it launched rockets at Israeli army troops gathered at the Maroun al-Ras park in southern Lebanon this morning.

In a separate statement, the group goes on to say Hezbollah forces targeted another group of soldiers in Jal Al-Alam, an area further west and closer to the border with Israel.

The group has also claimed responsibility for rockets launched earlier at Kfar Vradim, a town in the north of Israel.

Nick Beake
Reporting from Karmiel

We’ve just been speaking to the mayor of Karmiel, Moshe Koninsky, after the city was hit once again by Hezbollah rockets fired from southern Lebanon.

He told us there were two direct hits overnight, which damaged more than 60 apartments, 20 cars and took five electric buses out of action.

There were no reported casualties.

We met the mayor on Saturday in person after a rocket smashed into the roof of an elderly woman's home, who survived.

The city is in the north of Israel but outside the wide area from which residents nearer the Lebanese border began to be evacuated last year.

Today, we asked the mayor if he had concerns about Israel's system of air defences after these recent strikes got through.

“There is no 100% protection," he said.

“They (Hezbollah) are firing hundreds of missiles every day. But still I’m trusting the army and the air defence.”

He said the most important thing was that residents get to shelters and safe rooms as fast as possible.

Among the other places in northern Israel targeted by the latest Hezbollah rockets is the ancient city of Tiberias on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee - not far from where we are this morning.

Fifteen rockets are said to have been fired at the city which is 65 km (40 miles) away from the border, with five of them getting through, showing once again the limitations of the extensive and sophisticated Israeli air defence system in the face of multiple, simultaneous attack.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has reported air raid sirens ringing in several parts of northern Israel, including Dovev and Misgav Am.

According to Israel's ambulance service MDA, no injuries have been reported.

When, or how, will Israel hit Iran?published at 09:01 British Summer Time 7 October

09:01 BST 7 October

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent

For days now, much of the Middle East has been metaphorically holding its breath, knowing that this could come at any time.

Almost a week has elapsed since Iran carried out a massed ballistic missile attack on Israel, in retaliation, it said, for Israel’s recent assassinations of the leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas’s political wing.

After the attack Israel immediately vowed to make the Islamic Republic "pay a heavy price".

So why the delay? And when and how will Israel strike back?

The delay is partly down to deliberations, both within the Israeli military and political establishment and also with Israel’s close ally, the US.

These are about not just the targeting – ranging from oil installations to Revolutionary Guards bases to ballistic missile factories to nuclear research facilities – but also on the likely effect and Iran’s response.

The last thing the White House wants is another full-scale war that embroils US forces just a month before a presidential election.

Nor does it want to see oil prices spike - which would not play well at the pumps with US voters.

Timing-wise, many had expected Israel’s counter-strike to happen as soon as the Jewish New Year holiday ended on Friday.

Others expect it on Monday, marking one year since Iran-backed Hamas militants carried out their raid into southern Israel. The only certainty seems to be that a strike is coming.

We've just received an update from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which says another division was deployed yesterday for "localised operations" in southern Lebanon.

The IDF states the 91st division has been active for almost a year in Gaza and northern Israel.

This is the third division-strength troop grouping used in the ground fight against Hezbollah, according to the AFP news agency. Israel announced its ground invasion of Lebanon one week ago.