Image source, Getty Images

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a phone call on Wednesday to discuss the Israel-Gaza conflict, state media in Tehran reported.

It marked the first known call between the leaders since China negotiated a deal between the two after seven years of hostility.

Raisi and Bin Salman discussed the "need to end war crimes against Palestine," Iranian state media reported.

The Saudi crown prince "affirmed that the kingdom is making all possible efforts in communicating with all international and regional parties to stop the ongoing escalation," Saudi state news agency SPA said.

SPA reported that the crown prince reiterated Saudi Arabia's rejection of targeting civilians in any way.

Nadine Yousif
BBC reporter, Toronto, Canada

The Canadian government says it has confirmed that two of its citizens died in Israel over the weekend, and a third is presumed to be dead.

Two of the confirmed casualties were named in local media as Ben Mizrachi, a 22-year-old from Vancouver, and Alexandre Look, a 33-year-old from Montreal.

Both were at the Supernova music festival in southern Israel on the morning of 8 October, when Hamas militants attacked the festival site.

On Wednesday, a third victim was named by the Jewish Federation of Ottawa. Adi Vital-Kaploun, 33, was reportedly killed in her home at Kibbutz Holit, about two kilometres from the Gaza Strip.

"Our family lost a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a granddaughter, a niece, a cousin," said Andrea Freedman, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, at a news conference.

"Her children are miraculously safe," she added.

Three other Canadians remain missing, according to Global Affairs Canada, and their families fear they are being held hostage in Gaza.

Lyse Doucet
Reporting from near Ashkelon, southern Israel

The edge of Israel’s closed military zone on its southern border is tense, volatile.

Today, on the fifth morning of war, the skies of Gaza, three and a half miles away, were blackened by smoke rising from this coastal strip, under non-stop bombardment.

You could hear the loud crack of Israeli artillery and buzz of surveillance drones.

By early afternoon, Hamas was returning fire, targeting areas including Ashkelon, the southernmost city.

Rockets streaked across the Israeli sky, most intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system.

The mood darkened too.

There were Israeli military shouts at journalists gathered at a junction that it was too dangerous to stay.

Police vehicles circled, their orders blaring through megaphones.

Then another command followed – down down!

Everyone was told to take to the ground, take cover, as more Hamas missiles sailed over the area.

You could taste the smoke as fields burned nearby, in the midst of this gathering storm.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

More now from Benny Gantz, who earlier said setting his political differences aside with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the right thing to do for the Israeli people.

"The government and security forces have broad and important support from the opposition parties, of which I hope some of them will join in the next few days," the main opposition leader told a news conference on Wednesday.

"The unity is what the Israeli people want and this is particularly what the Israeli people need."

Image source, Reuters

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said every Hamas fighter is "a dead man," following the first meeting of the country's new emergency government.

Mr Netanyahu and opposition figure Benny Gantz - a former army chief - formed a war cabinet on Wednesday, setting aside their political rivalry.

Mr Gantz said it was a "time for war" and the newly-formed government was ready to "wipe this thing called Hamas off the face of the Earth".

You can read more on this here.

Image source, Getty Images

US President Joe Biden stopped by a roundtable with Jewish community leaders late Wednesday afternoon, where he delivered remarks reiterating his steadfast support for Israel.

He described the actions of militant group Hamas as “sheer evil” that “in some cases exceeds the worst atrocities of ISIS”.

As he was wrapping up, Biden said that he had seen pictures of beheaded children among the casualties in Israel - a claim that has circulated around social media and in some reports, but that has not been confirmed by the Israeli Defence Forces.

“I've been doing this a long time. I never really thought I would see - have confirmed pictures of terrorists beheading children,” he said. “I never thought I'd ever … anyway."

The BBC has reached out to the White House for clarification on whether Biden had seen those images.

Also on Wednesday, the US updated its travel advisory to Israel, putting it under a Level 3 - meaning “Reconsider Travel” - due to the potential for terrorism and violent attacks.

Image source, Getty Images

As we've been reporting, the US, Israel, the UN and Egypt are holding discussions about how to allow some aid into Gaza, and some residents out.

But at the moment, no crossings into Gaza are functioning.

All the crossings into Israel have been closed since Hamas launched its deadly attack on Israel on Saturday.

Until yesterday, the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt was operating.

On Sunday, it was open for goods and about 200 trucks of food, fuel and construction materials were allowed in, according to the UN, external.

However, even when the crossing is operating, only a few hundred people are allowed to cross each day, and this is limited to those who have applied to have their names on a list.

On Monday, the UN says, about 800 people left Gaza and about 500 entered, external, but the crossing was closed for the movement of goods.

Despite the limited numbers able to use the crossing, on Tuesday morning, an Israeli military spokesman said he was "aware that the Rafah crossing was still open" and "anyone who can get out, I would advise them to get out".

And then the crossing area was hit by air strikes, officials in Gaza and Egyptian sources told Reuters news agency. Trucks were pictured apparently heading back into Egypt.

The crossing has been closed since then.

Image source, .

Image source, Family handout

Irish-Israeli woman Kim Damti, who had been missing in Israel since Saturday's attacks by Hamas, has been confirmed dead.

Ireland's foreign minister said it was devastating that the hope she might be found alive "has now been extinguished".

Kim Damti, 22, was at the Supernova music festival in Re'im in southern Israel when she was last seen.

More than 260 bodies have been recovered from the site.

Micheál Martin, who is tánaiste (deputy prime minister) as well as foreign minister, said he had spoken to Damti's family and sent them heartfelt condolences on behalf of the Irish government and people.

"We are with them in their grief," he said.

"For anyone to lose a child is devastating. To lose a child in such circumstances is indescribable," he added.

Kibbutz Be'eri was the site of one of the worst atrocities of the Hamas attack in southern Israel last Saturday.

Israeli emergency service Zaka said it found more than 100 bodies of those killed by Hamas gunmen.

These photos released today show the destruction in the small farming community.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Nomia Iqbal
Reporting from the White House

As we have been reporting, up to 150 people have been taken hostage by Hamas militants last Saturday, and some of them are believed to be US citizens.

I spoke to National Security spokesman John Kirby at the White House a little while ago. Here are his answers to my questions:

How concerned is the president that Israeli troops are going in without the hostage situation being resolved?

KIRBY: "We are concerned - the conditions, the locations they’re in - not just Americans but others too. I won’t speak for the Israelis on what they may or may not do but Gaza is already a warzone because of the strikes."

But what if some of the casualties end up being American hostages?

KIRBY: "Hostage recovery in a time of war in a warzone is dangerous business and any time you’re moving to get hostages out, there’s always the risk harm could befall them, because you’re going to get them.

"It’s a constant give and take and it’s the pros and cons when you weigh what to do.

"Let’s not assume it’s an operation to get them - it could be a negotiation. We’re exploring those options as well."

The hostages are likely to be US-Israel dual citizens - so who is ultimately responsible for their safe return?

KIRBY: "I won’t speak for Israel but for the president - if you have an American passport you’re an American and we will treat you like any other American.

"We are not shirking our responsibility to get our Americans home."

As we have been reporting, the Israeli military says it has thousands of troops ready near the border of Gaza for a potential ground invasion.

Noam Ostfeld is a former member of the Israeli Defence Force’s intelligence wing and currently works for the risk assessment company Sibylline as a Middle East analyst.

He told the BBC it appears Israel intends to target the underground tunnels that Hamas uses, which he describes as a “challenge”.

“They are very fortified, they are very narrow, often poorly lit or sometimes even no light at all.”

Another option Ostfield says is being discussed is a “commando force” to go in and rescue the more than 100 Israeli hostages.

“In general this is a very hard territory to fight in.

"Gaza is a very dense urban area. Any ground entry to Gaza would be very challenging and will probably have a lot of casualties on both sides.”

Image source, Reuters

Three Canadian citizens had been killed in Israel since Hamas attacked the country on Saturday, and three more were missing, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said earlier.

During a press conference, Joly said Canadian military planes would start flying out citizens and permanent residents from Tel Aviv to Athens as a first step.

She added that more than 4,700 Canadian citizens and permanent resident in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank had registered with the government, but did not give any details on how many of them wanted to be evacuated.

Nomia Iqbal
BBC News, Washington

Image source, Reuters

As we reported earlier, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on his way to Israel and will arrive on Thursday to show what US President Biden described yesterday as "rock solid support for Israel".

He's essentially going to be delivering that impassioned speech that we heard from Biden to the Israelis in person.

We understand that the USS Gerald Ford, the aircraft carrier, has arrived in the Mediterranean and there will be more military assistance that the Americans will be sending to Israel.

Blinken is expected to go to Jordan as part of his trip as well, to see King Abdullah.

The Kingdom has called for diplomatic efforts to be intensified over fears the conflict could create "dangerous repercussions" for the region's security.

The last time Blinken was in Israel was in January this year when there was violence in the occupied West Bank.

Thirty-five Palestinians and eight Israelis had been killed - it was incredibly tense and he'd gone to help to de-escalate the situation.

This is a whole new situation that Blinken will be entering, making this trip incredibly crucial.

Satellite images show university hit by strikepublished at 21:29 British Summer Time 11 October 2023

21:29 BST 11 October 2023

BBC Verify is continuing to monitor the impact of Israeli air strikes in Gaza.

Several videos, released by the Israel Defense Force (IDF), have shown their attacks.

One was on the Islamic University of Gaza, targeted between the 10 and 11 October.

We were able to locate the university by matching the buildings’ distinctive shapes with before and after satellite images.

For example, two of the main buildings have solar panels on their roofs.

The IDF say Hamas was using the university as a “a training camp for weapons development and military intelligence”.

That’s a claim we haven’t been able to independently verify.

Frankie McCamley and James Bryant

Israel says up to 150 people were taken captive when Hamas launched its surprise attack on 7 October.

When it comes to the hostage situation, there are changing and conflicting reports constantly coming in.

The BBC has a small team of journalists looking at what the situation is like now, and who the hostages could be.

The most reliable information is coming from videos and images posted online, with family members identifying their loved ones.

Some families are then contacting journalists as they try to find out where their loved ones could be now.

Some families managed to track phones, but signal often cuts out. So, it is very difficult to find out what has happened to people following on from videos posted online.

It is also unclear where exactly they have been taken.

It's just gone 11pm in Israel and here's a look at some of the latest developments:

• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on his way to Israel. He told reporters before getting on the plane that the US would give Israel "everything it needed"
• The US is also working with Israel and Egypt on a potential safe passage for some civilians, the White House said
• Eleven UN staff have been killed in Gaza since Saturday, United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees has said
• Gaza's only power station shut down earlier after Israel cut off electricity supplies as well as goods including medicines, food, fuel and water
• The UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has called for essential supplies of food, fuel and water to be allowed to reach civilians and said a "rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access" was needed
• The death toll in Israel from the Hamas attacks has reached 1,200 - while more than 1,100 people have been killed by Israeli air strikes on Gaza

Let's turn our attention back to the situation on the ground and hear from Dr Justin Dalby who has been working in Gaza for six months with the humanitarian charity Médecins Sans Frontières.

He tells the BBC there is "constant violence" and "destruction continues everywhere... day or night".

He says hospitals are overwhelmed: "Significantly more patients are coming in... the number of injured is just absolutely immense. There's huge numbers of patients - children, women, men - everywhere."

Medical teams are working under the sound of bombardment "which is often extremely close", he says.

Dalby says supplies are a "huge issue" as hospitals were already "chronically under-resourced" and access is urgently needed for medical supplies and personnel.

But he says the most urgent need is fuel. As we've been reporting, Gaza's only power plant shut down earlier today as fuel ran out - after Israel cut off electricity, fuel, food, goods and water supplies to the territory in response to the Hamas attack on Saturday that left 1,200 people dead in Israel.

Many of Gaza's hospitals rely on diesel to run their generators, and many "have only a few days left", Dalby says.

"If you are taking out the electricity supply of a hospital it means that lights go off, monitoring equipment, oxygen delivery, mechanical ventilators, operating theatres and surgical equipment that requires electricity will no longer be able to function," he adds.

Dan Roan
BBC sports editor

The UK government is encouraging sports governing bodies to mark the attacks in Israel this week with shows of support for the victims, the BBC has learned.

Officials from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport wrote to the major sports governing bodies on Wednesday asking them to show support for victims of the Hamas attacks referencing previous events and tragedies when sports have come together.

Football Association bosses held talks today after coming under mounting pressure to recognise victims of the violence in Israel with a show of solidarity ahead of the England friendly against Australia at Wembley on Friday.

The former FA Chairman David Bernstein - who is Jewish - told the Daily Telegraph that he was “shocked and hurt” by the governing body’s lack of response to the attacks.

On Tuesday at Uefa’s headquarters in Nyon, the FA chair Debbie Hewitt told me the FA was “certainly considering” some kind of show of support for “innocent victims” after “the horrific scenes over the weekend”.

“As we get closer to the game on Friday we will give some thought as to how best to recognise our concern,” she said.

England manager Gareth Southgate is likely to be asked about the issue when he addresses the media on Thursday.

Last year the FA lit up the Wembley arch in the blue and yellow colours of the Ukraine flag in solidarity with the country after the invasion by Russia.

However, it is understood senior officials are wary of a perception that they might be taking sides in the Middle East conflict.

Neither Uefa nor Fifa have yet issued a statement about the violence. Nor has the Premier League, which has yet to decide how it should respond, with no matches until after the international break.

Image source, PA Media

Ian Youngs & Paul Glynn
BBC News

Image source, AFP

The BBC has defended its decision not to describe Hamas militants as "terrorists" in coverage of the recent attacks in Israel.

A BBC spokesperson noted it was a long-standing position for its reporters not to use the term themselves unless attributing it to someone else.

Veteran BBC foreign correspondent John Simpson said "calling someone a terrorist means you're taking sides".

UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said the policy was "verging on disgraceful" the BBC needed to locate its "moral compass".

A BBC spokesperson said: "The BBC is an editorially independent broadcaster whose job is to explain precisely what is happening 'on the ground' so our audiences can make their own judgement."

You can read the full story here.

A British woman whose relatives were shot dead by members of Hamas in southern Israel says antisemitic violence has now killed multiple generations of women in her family.

In an interview with the BBC, author and journalist Hilary Freeman, 52, said her family history was one of “persecution”.

Freeman’s great grandmother, Geni, and her daughter and family, were killed during the Holocaust in Latvia and Auschwitz.

The surviving family fled to what was then British Mandate Palestine - the land that would become Israel.

Geni's granddaughter, Gitit, was living in Kibbutz Kfar Aza when Hamas gunmen entered on Saturday, killing whole families in their homes.

Gitit’s daughter-in-law had been visiting that weekend. She was shot dead in the kibbutz in front of her two children, aged seven and nine.

Along with her two grandchildren, Gitit and husband, Amnon, managed to escape to a safe room, where they stayed for 30 hours before being rescued.

“It’s horrific to imagine what they went through and how they’ll ever get over it. It sounds like a scene of absolute horror,” Freeman said.