Nick Beake
Reporting from Tel Aviv

At the Ministry of Defense, here in Tel Aviv, there is always a stream of young people arriving in green fatigues and armed with guns.

Military service is compulsory in Israel, which often creates a life-long bond with the army.

But now, Israelis are reporting for duty in increasing numbers at military bases across the country.

Some young people arrive in civilian clothes, accompanied by their parents, and later re-emerge in combat gear.

It is a revolving door of recruitment for what Israel says is its war effort that will ultimately destroy Hamas.

Earlier, a taxi driver who had agreed to take us out for some filming rang apologetically to say he couldn’t make it because his skills as a search and rescue specialist were needed.

Beneath a huge Israeli flag projected onto the side of a shopping centre, one woman tells us she’s desperate to be called up but has been told she’s not needed for now.

But hundreds of thousands are required - and many are now heading south to towards the much-anticipated ground operation into Gaza.

Read more about the 360,000 reservists who are joining Israel's war.

We've just had this picture of a leaflet being dropped from the sky in the city of Beit Lahia in the Gaza Strip.

It says because of Hamas's actions, the Israel Defense Force is taking action.

The leaflet warns residents to go to shelters and says buildings where Hamas are operating will be destroyed.

Umambiguous support, but with a note of cautionpublished at 13:08 British Summer Time 12 October 2023

13:08 BST 12 October 2023

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent

Antony Blinken’s message was clear and unambiguous: US support for Israel will sustain.

He spoke personally about his Jewish ancestry; his personal horror at the Hamas attacks.

There must, he said, be moral clarity about condemning Hamas’ brutality which both he, and Netanyahu, compared to that of the Islamic State group.

Blinken promised Israel more ammunition to re-stock its air defences. He promised bipartisan support in Congress for more military assistance.

But there was also a note of caution. The US Secretary of State said Israel had a right to defend itself but how it did that mattered.

He said democracies distinguish themselves from terrorists by holding themselves to different standards, holding themselves to account when they fall short.

"Our humanity, the value we place on human life and human dignity... is what makes us who we are,” he said.

"That’s why it is so important to take every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians. And that’s why we mourn the loss of every innocent life, civilians of every faith, every nationality that have been killed."

This was a clear echo of President Biden’s call yesterday for Israel to follow the rules of war as it bombards Gaza.

From Netanyahu, there was a challenge to his neighbours in the Middle East. Hamas, he said, should be treated like ISIS and “spat out from the community of nations".

The leadership of Hamas is based in several Gulf countries, most particularly Qatar.

Helen Catt
Political correspondent

The UK government has said it will arrange flights to get British nationals out of Israel.

The Foreign Office has announced it will "facilitate" commercial flights to the UK for those wanting to leave the country.

The first flight is due to depart from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv today.

A "rapid deployment team'" has also been sent to Israel to assist British citizens on the ground.

Lucy Manning
Special correspondent

Image source, PA Media

While Antony Blinken and Benjamin Netanyahu were holding their event in Israel, another news conference was taking place in London.

Two British relatives of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza called for them to be released.

Noam Sagi’s 74-year-old mother was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Saturday. Close to tears, Noam asked: “What is her crime? Why is she a hostage? For being Jewish in Israel?”

Noam said his mother, Ada, should have been coming to London today to celebrate her 75th birthday.

"This is a second Holocaust," he said. "They’ve been gassed, burned, butchered, slaughtered and killed. Mostly young kids and elderly people."

Sharone Lifschitz’s elederly parents were also taken from the kibbutz. Her mother uses an oxygen tank.

"Bring these people back home," said Sharon, also in tears.

Her parents were peace activists, she said, who had many Palestinian friends. They had visited Gaza and would collect sick Palestinians from the border to take them for medical appointments.

I met Noam at his house on Monday, two days after his mum was kidnapped. He showed me pictures of her home being attacked.

When I asked him today what the international community could do, and if it was right Israel was stopping the supply of electricity and water until the hostages are released, he said: "Lucy, you saw the pictures.

"You have been in my house and you saw everything. I ask the BBC to call it for what it is. Hamas is an organisation that came to do one thing."

As the news conference ends, it's worth highlighting one further line from Antony Blinken.

He confirms that 25 Americans are known to have died in the Hamas attacks that began on Saturday.

And he stresses that it's important to "confront what is worst among humanity with what is best".

Image source, US Pool

America's top diplomat Antony Blinken continues his speech in Israel, standing side by side with Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Anyone who wants peace and justice must condemn Hamas' reign of terror," Blinken says.

"Hamas has only one agenda - to destroy Israel and to murder Jews."

However, he warns that precautions must be taken to avoid harming civilians of every nationality.

“That’s why it’s so important to take every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians, and that’s why we mourn the loss of every civilian life," Blinken says, "civilians of every faith, every nationality have been killed."

Blinken is speaking now after sharing a handshake with Netanyahu.

He says he is grateful to be back in Israel during an "incredibly difficult" moment for the entire world.

"It's impossible for me to look at the photos of the families killed... and not think of my own children," he says.

"Babies slaughtered, bodies desecrated, young people burned alive, women raped, parents executed in front of their children, children in front of their parents.

"How are we even to understand this?" he asks.

Blinken also commends the bravery of Israeli citizens.

At the start of their joint news conference, Netanyahu thanks Blinken and the US in both English and Hebrew, before comparing Hamas to Isis.

"Biden was correct in calling it sheer evil," Netanyahu says. "Hamas will be treated the way Isis was. They should be spat out of the community of nations."

"This is a time that we must stand tall, united against evil," Netanyahu continues. "We are taking a stand. America is taking a stand."

Image source, US Pool

As we've reported, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is visiting Israel - and has just started a news conference alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

We'll keep you updated on what's said - you can also stream it live by clicking play at the top of this page.

Anna Foster
Reporting from the Israel-Lebanon border

Adeeb Mazal is part of the emergency team in his northern Israeli village, which nestles next to the border wall with Lebanon.

“We have a very small group of security men,” he tells me. “I think we need at least 20 people - because we are on the border - but we are only five.

"We ask all the time for more people and more weapons, we can’t defend the village like this. We hope the authorities will give us as many as 30 men."

The day before we meet the team had sprung into action.

“There was an infiltration of some terrorists from Lebanon and we had to go to the shelters, all of the residents," he says.

"My group and the army went to a defence post, there were some shootings and wounded on our side.

"We are now trying to keep to a regular life, but we’re asking people to always be close to a bomb shelter.

“These organisations [attacking us] do not divide between Jews and Arabs. We are Arabs, we have a mosque, and they continue to harm the village."

Earlier, we reported that the English Football Association is unlikely to light the arch over Wembley Stadium in the colours of the Israeli flag because of fears of a backlash from some communities.

This morning, the president of European football's governing body Uefa - of which Israel is a member - made his first public comments on the deadly attacks by Hamas at the weekend.

Aleksasnder Ceferin has written to the chairman of the Israeli Football Association , externalto express "profound sorrow" and "condolences" over the "tragic acts of violence".

Israel's European Championship qualifying match against Kosovo this weekend has been postponed as Israeli authorities aren't allowing the national team to travel abroad.

BBC correspondent Rushdi Abu Alouf, who lives in Gaza, has just sent this footage showing the extent of the destruction from Israeli air strikes.

He labels the post on X, external: "More driving footage, local radio playing national songs on the background."

We've just had an update from the Israel Defense Forces:

• More than 95 hostages' families have been told their relatives have been taken into Gaza
• More than 5,000 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza since Saturday
• Israel has hit more than 2,600 targets in Gaza
• At least 1,200 Israelis have been killed and more than 3,000 injured by Hamas's weekend attacks

Egypt's foreign ministry has asked Israel to stop missile attacks near the Rafah border crossing in Gaza, as strikes are making it difficult to operate.

However, Egypt says the crossing is currently open.

Earlier, we reported how the crossing into Egypt is the only way out of Gaza - but that air strikes had forced it to close yesterday. Even when open, the waiting list remains long, with daily places limited at around 400 in normal times.

At least 1,354 people have been killed in Gaza since Saturday, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, and 6,049 have been wounded.

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

During his short visit to Israel, Antony Blinken is also meeting the Israeli President, Isaac Herzog.

Earlier, Herzog said Israel would try to protect civilians in Gaza - but would also "do whatever it takes with an iron fist" to protect Israelis.

And later, during questions from journalists, Herzog reacted defiantly when asked about the scale of Israel's response to Hamas's deadly attacks.

"We are working, operating militarily according to rules of international law, period. Unequivocally! But we’re at war. We are at war!"

We've just had this short clip of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"We're here, we're not going anywhere," Blinken said.

The IAG group, which includes British Airways and Aer Lingus, has decided to "cancel operations in Israel for three weeks", Reuters reports.

Speaking at an industry briefing in Brussels, IAG's CEO Luis Gallego says the airlines will wait to see "how the situation unfolds there".

British Airways turned back one of its planes shortly before landing in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, due to security concerns.

We reported earlier a warning from International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) about hospitals running out of fuel for their generators in Gaza.

In new comments, the ICRC now says that could happen in a few hours.

Speaking to reporters, ICRC's regional director for the Near and Middle East, Fabrizio Carboni, says: "Our understanding is that there is still fuel - but probably only for a few hours - to allow generators to work."