Summary

  • Israel confirms that two elderly women, Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifshitz, have been released by Hamas but their husbands are still being held

  • It brings the total number of hostages released by Hamas to four. Two American-Israelis, mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan, were released from captivity on Friday

  • In its latest estimate, Israel says that more than 200 hostages are being held by Hamas after its surprise attack on Israel on 7 October

  • French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting Israel today, while China's top diplomat Wang Yi is heading to Washington this week to discuss the conflict

  • Earlier, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the blast at Gaza's Al Ahli hospital last week was likely caused by a missile fired from within Gaza

  • Hamas blamed the incident on an Israeli strike, but Israel said a misfiring Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket from within Gaza was responsible

  • More than 1,400 Israelis were killed when Hamas attacked on 7 October, while Gaza's health ministry says more than 5,000 have been killed since Israel began bombing the territory in response

  1. What's the latest?published at 06:52 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    People inspect the damage after an Israeli strike hit a compound beneath a mosque that the Israeli military said was being used by militants to organize attacks, in Jenin refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, October 22, 2023.Image source, Reuters

    If you're just joining us, welcome. Here are the latest developments on the Israel-Gaza war:

    • During the last few of hours the Israeli military said it had attacked a "terrorist compound" in Jenin in the West Bank, which allegedly included a Hamas cell within a mosque
    • Earlier on, the UN's relief and works agency for Palestine refugees in the near east (UNWRA) said an Israeli security forces operation in the West Bank's Nur Shams refugee camp killed 13 people
    • In an update just before 07:00 local time (04:00 GMT), the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) did not comment on the situation in the West Bank, but its spokesman warned that the Hezbollah militant group - Lebanon's most powerful military force - was playing a "very dangerous game" in its escalation of the conflict in Israel's border with Lebanon. Hezbollah - like Hamas - has been designated a terrorist organisation by the UK, US and other countries
    • Daniel Hagari, another IDF spokesman, told a news conference on Saturday that Israel will "deepen" and "increase" its strikes on Gaza
    • Also on Saturday, the first aid trucks were allowed to cross into Gaza from Egypt, delivering Palestinians with food, water and medical supplies - although fuel was not delivered
    • The UN called the arrival of the 20 aid trucks a "drop in the ocean" given the "catastrophic" situation in the region, but the organisation's humanitarian chief said he hopes a second aid convoy will be allowed to enter Gaza today
    • Residents in Gaza already relied heavily on humanitarian aid prior to Israel's retaliatory air strikes, which followed Hamas's unprecedented attack on 7 October
    • The Pentagon said additional US troops have been put on "prepare to deploy" orders in the region due to "recent escalations by Iran and and its proxy forces across the Middle East region"
  2. UN hopes a second aid convoy will be allowed into Gaza todaypublished at 06:22 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    The UN's humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths says he hopes a second aid convoy will be allowed to enter the Gaza Strip on Sunday.

    Griffiths said yesterday there was the possibility that another convoy would be allowed through. "Maybe even slightly bigger, 20 to 30 trucks," he said of the potential size.

    Twenty aid trucks were allowed to enter Gaza via the Rafah crossing on Saturday - which was described by campaigners as a "drop in the ocean" of what was needed.

    Those trucks were the first to arrive in the region since Israel imposed a blockade two weeks ago after Hamas's attack.

    A truck is unloaded in GazaImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Aid reached Gaza through the Rafah crossing yesterday

  3. Palestinian officials say four more people killed in West Bank by Israeli forcespublished at 05:54 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    The Palestinian health ministry says Israeli forces have killed four more Palestinians in the West Bank.

    As we've been reporting, the Israeli military said overnight it had attacked a "terrorist compound" in Jenin in the West Bank, which allegedly included a Hamas cell within a mosque.

    The most recent fatalities bring the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank since the 7 October - when Hamas attacked southern Israel - to 89 people, according to the update, external from the Palestinian health ministry.

    A map showing the West Bank in relation to Israel, and neighbouring Jordan, as well as GazaImage source, .
  4. Have questions? Send them to uspublished at 05:42 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    BBC Get in touchImage source, -

    There's no doubt this is a really complicated story, and you may have lots of questions about the conflict.

    Our correspondents will be answering your questions across BBC News on Monday - here's how you can send them in:

    Please include your name, age and location with any submission.

    In some cases a selection of your comments and questions will be published, displaying your name and location as you provide it unless you state otherwise. But don't worry, your contact details will never be published.

  5. My daughters beg for Gaza City return - but our old lives are overpublished at 05:27 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    Rushdi Abualouf
    Reporting from Khan Younis, Gaza

    The BBC's Rushdi Abualouf and his family have done what many Gazans have been told to by Israel - move from the north to the south
    Image caption,

    The BBC's Rushdi Abualouf and his family have done what many Gazans have been told to by Israel - move from the north to the south

    Two days ago, my wife and children nearly died.

    They were on the ground floor of a four-storey building in Khan Younis, Gaza, near a hospital where I'm sleeping in a tent.

    They were about to leave for the day to meet me when an Israeli drone attack punched through the top floor.

    My nine-year-old twin daughters ran out into the street screaming, separated from their mother, who was struck in the head by a piece of rubble.

    My wife's injuries were, thankfully, minor. But my daughters - who have had to leave behind everything they love in Gaza City and head south - were traumatised.

    My family now spends their nights just a few doors down from the building that was struck, not knowing if they're safe as they close their eyes.

    • To keep reading, head here
  6. Hezbollah is playing a very dangerous game, says IDFpublished at 05:12 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    It's just gone 07:00 in Israel, and we've just heard from Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Jonathan Conricus, with an operational update on Israel's northern border.

    He focuses on tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, who are based in Lebanon.

    "So far our response has been measured, tactical and confined to the areas close to the border (with Lebanon)," he explains.

    "Hezbollah is playing a very, very, dangerous game," Conricus adds. "They're escalating the situation, we see more and more attacks every day."

    The IDF spokesman says Israel has been "defending ourselves only" and "preventive steps" have been taken.

    Conricus says those closest to the border with Lebanon in northern Israel have been evacuated.

  7. In pictures: Pro-Palestinian protests in the USpublished at 04:56 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    As Israel vows to intensify its retaliatory air strikes on Gaza, thousands of people marched in American cities on Saturday to voice their support for Palestinians caught in the middle of the conflict.

    A group of people in Los Angeles attend a pro-Palestine march, holding signs and flagsImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    People gathered with Palestinian flags and placards in Los Angeles

    A man voices his support during a pro-Palestinian march in Los AngelesImage source, Getty Images
    A group of people march through Los Angeles waving flags and holding signsImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    "End your silence, speak up for the Palestinian people," one placard read during the march in LA

    A group of people attend a pro-Palestinian protestImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    People also gathered in Brooklyn, New York City

  8. US sending missile defence systems to Middle Eastpublished at 04:47 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    The Pentagon says it will send a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to the Middle East, alongside additional Patriot air defence missile system battalions.

    The THAAD system is designed to shoot down short- and medium-range ballistic missiles in the terminal phase of their flight.

    US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also said additional troops have been put on "prepare to deploy" orders in the region, though he hasn't specified how many.

    A statement from the Pentagon says this follows "recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces across the Middle East region".

    Attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria have risen since the conflict between Israel and Hamas broke out two weeks ago.

    In the wake of Hamas's unprecedented assault on Israel on 7 October, the US moved an aircraft carrier, ships and jets to the eastern Mediterranean - and pledged to give Israel additional equipment and ammunition.

    How THAAD system works
  9. Canada says Israel did not strike Gaza hospitalpublished at 04:21 British Summer Time 22 October 2023
    Breaking

    Canada's defence department, citing an analysis of open source and classified reporting, has said with "a high degree of confidence" that Israel was not behind the strike on the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza on 17 October.

    The strike was more likely caused by an errant rocket fired from Gaza, Canada's National Department of Defence said.

    Hamas has blamed Israeli forces for the strike, but Israel has repeatedly said it did not attack the hospital and blamed an errant rocket fired from within Gaza.

    Canada's assessment comes a day after French military intelligence concluded the hospital blast was probably caused by a misfiring Palestinian rocket, rather than an Israeli strike.

    The US has also assessed that Israel did not attack the Al-Ahli facility in Gaza.

    Read BBC Verify's analysis of images and other evidence from the scene here.

  10. UN agencies say 20 aid trucks a 'drop in the ocean'published at 03:34 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    A group of UN agencies has called for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.

    The World Food Programme and World Health Organization are among the UN bodies who have in a joint statement called the situation in Gaza "catastrophic".

    On Saturday, 20 aid trucks crossed from Egypt for the first time in two weeks.

    But campaigners said the aid that flowed through the Rafah crossing represented a "drop in the ocean" of what was needed.

    Before the war, about 500 aid trucks a day were entering Gaza, said a spokesman from ActionAid Palestine.

  11. In pictures: Aftermath of Jenin strikepublished at 03:01 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    These images from the Reuters news agency show the site of an Israeli air strike on Jenin a short time ago.

    People stand near a building damaged in an Israeli air strikeImage source, Reuters
    Debris from a building following an Israeli air strikeImage source, Reuters
  12. UN said earlier Israeli raid in West Bank refugee camp killed 13 peoplepublished at 02:49 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    This latest news of an Israeli strike in the West Bank comes after a separate update on the territory from the UN.

    Thirteen people - including five children - were reportedly killed in the West Bank during an Israeli security forces operation in the Nur Shams refugee camp, according to the UN's relief and works agency for Palestine refugees in the near east (UNRWA).

    In a statement issued on Saturday, , externalUNRWA said one Israeli soldier was also killed and "scores of others were injured".

    The UN agency was forced to suspend services including schools, health and solid waste collection, it said in a statement.

    The Israeli-occupied West Bank is home to three million Palestinians.

    In the past 50 years Israel has built settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, where more than 700,000 Jews now live. Settlements are held to be illegal under international law - that is the position of the UN Security Council and the UK government, among others - although Israel rejects this.

    This year has been the deadliest year on record for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. According to UNRWA, more than 270 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank so far this tear - with at least 82 of those killings taking place after Hamas's attack in southern Israel on 7 October.

    Palestinians mourn the death of relatives in the West BankImage source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
    Image caption,

    Palestinians mourn the death of relatives in the West Bank

  13. Watch: Piles of rubble after West Bank mosque hit by missilepublished at 02:45 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    Israeli missiles have hit a mosque in the West Bank city of Jenin.

    The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said their intelligence "revealed that the mosque was used as a command centre to plan and execute terrorist attacks against civilians".

    A local medic said that two people have died in the incident, according to the Reuters news agency. The BBC has not verified this information.

  14. Israel issues fresh Gaza warning and strikes West Bankpublished at 02:35 British Summer Time 22 October 2023

    If you are just joining us, welcome to our live coverage of the latest development in the Israel-Gaza war. This follows our previous page.

    • The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it attacked a "terrorist compound" in Jenin in the West Bank, which allegedly included a Hamas cell within a mosque
    • It comes after an earlier Israeli security forces operation in the West Bank's Nur Shams refugee camp killed 13 people, including five children, according to the UN
    • The IDF's spokesman, Daniel Hagari, told a news conference on Saturday that Israeli military will "deepen" and "increase" its strikes on Gaza
    • The first trucks carrying aid into the densely-populated Gaza Strip entered from Egypt on Saturday, delivering Palestinians much-needed food, water and medical supplies - but not fuel
    • The latest escalation in tensions follows Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel more than two weeks ago, which killed more than 1,400 people
    • Since then Israel has launched retaliatory air strikes. More than 4,300 people have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, according to the Hamas-run health ministry