A key element of the press conference was calls from Egypt and Jordan for an immediate ceasefire - but Blinken made it clear the US does not support this demand.

"A ceasefire now would simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat what it did on October 7," he replied to a question on the issue.

"Just a few days ago, a senior Hamas official said it was their intent to do October 7 again, and again and again. No nation, none of us can accept that."

He affirmed again "Israel's "right to defend itself but repeated "it is also important how Israel does that".

The Egyptian and Jordanian foreign ministers were asked whether there had been any discussion about a future for Gaza without Hamas.

Egypt's Sameh Shoukry said such discussion would be "premature" and the focus should remain on the current situation.

Jordan's Ayman Safadi said the focus now was on "stopping this war" and it wasn't possible to think about the future when it wasn't clear "what kind of Gaza is going to be left".

"Are we going to be talking about a wasteland? Are we going to be talking about a whole population reduced to refugees?", he asks,

Safadi was clear that a "comprehensive" look at the conflict was needed and discussions on "bringing back the two-state solution" were necessary.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said that during his talks with Antony Blinken he warned against "double standards".

He said there should not be condemnations of the targeting of civilians and violations of international humanitarian law that are not applied in the same way "when things are related to the Palestinian cause... as if Arab blood is less than the bloods of other people".

Next up is Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

He says Egypt is exerting all its efforts to deliver aid and treat wounded Gazans, adding that the country will continue its efforts.

He reissues the Arab nations' call for an "immediate and intensive" ceasefire in Gaza "without any condition".

Blinken affirms the US position that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas. But, he adds, "it must take every possible measure to prevent civilian casualties".

In so doing, he says this will prevent Hamas from further exploiting the situation and is also the "right and moral thing to do", Blinken says.

He goes on to say seeing a Palestinian child pulled from wreckage "hits me in the gut".

What we have to do is to prevent the dehumanisation of each other, Blinken tells reporters.

"When we don't do that, we do Hamas's work for them," he adds.

Blinken says the US believes all of these efforts would be facilitated by "humanitarian pauses".

He says he discussed how when and where these could be implemented and what needs to be done to make them possible with Israeli officials yesterday.

He says the US continues to believe in the two-state solution, adding that "we all recognise we can't go back to the status quo".

Antony Blinken opened his comments saying he was "grateful" for the "hospitality and for the opportunity" to speak with Arab leaders.

He said that he shares the same "interest and objective" with his counterpart, which is to end the conflict "in a way that ensures lasting peace."

He thanked Egypt for all their work in facilitating aid entering Gaza and taking in injured patients.

Blinken said that more than 100 trucks are moving towards Rafah but that more needed to be done.

He added that the focus remained on recovering the hostages still being held by Hamas.

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi says the "whole region is sinking in a sea of hatred that will define generations to come".

He said: "This is already starting to manifest itself in expressions and acts of hate in the region and, to be honest in the deplorable acts and expressions of islamophobia and anti semitism - and that's something that we all stand against unequivocally, on principal and in accordance with our human values."

He added that "this is not a religious war. It is not a war between Muslims and Jews".

He said that "all human values dictate that we all work for peace".

First up is Jordanian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ayman Safadi.

Speaking from the St Regis Hotel in Amman, Safadi begins by saying that talks between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Arab foreign ministers was "honest, direct and comprehensive".

He pointed, too, to "mutual keenness" to "stop what we can describe as a catastrophe that will haunt the region for a generation".

Safadi says that points of agreement between the US and Arab states includes the importance of delivering humanitarian assistance, protecting civilians and following international humanitarian law.

He also says they agreed on the rejection of displacement of Palestinians from their land.

All Arab countries demand an immediate ceasefire that will end this war, Safadi adds, saying they do not accept that Israel is acting out of self defence.

He said the killing of civilians, destroying of their hospitals, mosques and "cannot be justified and will not bring security to Israel or peace to the region".

The press conference in the Jordan capital has just begun.

We're expecting to hear from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, as well as Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and the Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

Stay with us and we'll bring you what they have to say.

As we've been reporting, the UN refugee agency (Unrwa) has confirmed a school that it runs in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza has been hit.

Juliette Touma, Unrwa's director of communications, has told the BBC it is "another sad day" for the agency.

The school, which like many other Unrwa facilties is currently functioning as a shelter for people fleeing fighting, has been "severely impacted due to hits it received" early this morning, she said.

Touma said according to initial reports, 20 people, believed to include children, may be among the dead with "dozens and dozens" injured.

"The school got a hit in its courtyard where there were tents for displaced families and then another hit came next to a wall of the school where women were baking bread," she said.

Asked who she believed was to blame for the hit, she said Unrwa did not know. She also said she did not know if there was any Hamas activity around the school, but stressed it is a UN facility hosting thousands of people displaced people, including woman and children.

IDF spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner, told the BBC: "We're still looking into the circumstances. I do know that there was exchange of fire and what appears to be mortar fire upon Hamas terrorists in and around that area but I can't confirm the specifics."

He said the area had seen "extensive exchanges" over the last two days.

"This is precisely the reason why for three weeks now we've been asking people to go south," he added, saying it is a situation where "terrorists have no regard" for symbols such as the UN, and trying to prevent impacts on civilians is "a huge, huge challenge".

The BBC has approached the Israel Defense Forces for a full comment - stay with us for further updates.

Anthony Zurcher
Reporting from Amman

Antony Blinken’s solo press event in Israel was a relatively quiet affair.

We're expecting him to appear soon at a joint press conference in Amman, alongside foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan. This time there is a packed house, attended by Arab press from around the region.

The media swarmed outside Blinken’s meetings earlier in the afternoon with the Jordanian foreign minster and his round-table lunch with representatives from across the region.

The hallways of the St Regis hotel in Amman are packed with diplomats, journalists and government officials - a sign of the high stakes, and high interest, in these talks.

No foreign nationals, dual nationals or injured patients have crossed over into Egypt from Gaza so far today according to Palestinian sources, BBC Arabic correspondent Alaa Ragaie reports.

She says hundreds of people with foreign passports have gone to the border but the gate has not opened today.

Ragaie says that, according to sources from the crossing authorities on the Palestinian side, movement of people with foreign passports is not being allowed until there is agreement on the safety of transferring injured patients.

We do not have the full details of the situation or an official statement, but we'll bring you more as we get it.

Back to Jordan now, where US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said in a meeting with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati that he "shared his deep concern" about exchanges of fire along Lebanon’s southern border with Israel.

Blinken also stressed the importance of ensuring the Israel-Hamas conflict does not spread elsewhere, according to spokesperson Matthew Miller.

Miller says Blinken went on to thank Mikati for his leadership in preventing Lebanon from being pulled into a war and for his efforts with regional partners to "pursue durable and sustainable peace in the region".

Blinken also discussed US efforts to secure humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza and noted that Lebanon needs to select a president "to lead the country through both the regional and domestic crises", Miller adds.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

A family of six from Blackpool who have been stuck in Gaza since the beginning of the conflict, have now managed to cross over into Egypt.

In a WhatsApp audio message sent to the BBC, Emad Abuaassi told us that he, his wife Stephanie and their four children, "are all safe" and hoping to return to the UK in the next few days.

The Abuaassi family moved from Blackpool to Gaza last year in order to be closer to Mr Abuaassi's relatives, but were forced to flee their home after Israel launched air strikes on Gaza following Hamas's attack on October 7.

Hugo Bachega
Reporting from Lebanon

The much-anticipated speech by the leader of the Lebanese Shia Islamist group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, brought relief to many in Lebanon and beyond. He did not announce an escalation of attacks against Israel, as some had feared, although he did leave the door open for further action.

A day after his address, violence along the Lebanon-Israel border continued. Hezbollah said it had launched simultaneous attacks on Israeli targets while the Israeli military said it had retaliated by striking Hezbollah positions, including an observation post.

Despite the frequent attacks, both sides have taken steps to avoid a dangerous escalation, and the fighting has been limited to the border area.

Also this morning, the Lebanese caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, met the US secretary of state, Anthony Blinken, in Amman. Mikati emphasised the importance of a ceasefire in Gaza and stopping what he described as Israeli aggression in southern Lebanon, according to a statement released by the prime minister’s office.

Mikati is in a difficult position, as he tries to prevent his country from being dragged into the conflict. He has very little – if any – influence over Hezbollah, the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon. This means that the decisions taken by the group, considered a terrorist organisation by the UK and the US, reverberate far beyond its support base.

Image source, Reuters

The UN refugee agency in Gaza (Unrwa) has confirmed to the Reuters news agency that the UN-run Al-Fakhoura school Jabalia refugee camp has been hit.

Juliette Touma, Unrwa's director of communications, said there were children among the casualties, but that Unrwa had not yet been able to verify how many people had died.

"At least one strike hit the schoolyard where there were tents for displaced families. Another strike hit inside the school where women were baking bread," Reuters cites her as saying by phone.

Earlier, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said at least 15 people were killed when Israel struck the school.

Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said at a press conference that 70 more were wounded.

The BBC is not yet able to independently verify the claims and is seeking comment from the Israeli military.

More now from US special envoy David Satterfield, who has told reporters that when the fuel runs out in Gaza there is an agreed mechanism to bring more in.

Israel has not allowed any fuel shipments to enter the Strip since the war began on 7 October, and has also cut off electricity supply - prompting calls from UN agencies for fuel supplies into Gaza to power basic services.

In a press conference last week, the head of Unrwa said there were fuel reserves left over from a previous deal Qatar and Israel struck before the conflict to bring fuel into the territory.

Philippe Lazzarini said to get access to the fuel, UNRWA needed a guarantee from the Israelis that the area around the depot was safe.

Speaking to reporters in Jordan this morning, Satterfield said: "Fuel in depots in Gaza has been accessed by Unrwa for aid trucks, desalinisation and hospitals in the south of Gaza."

He said the US had "every expectation" that fuel would be brought in when the reserves in Gaza runs out, and said there was an "agreed mechanism" to do this.

He also said that since aid trucks had begun to enter Gaza two weeks ago, there had been no reports of interference or seizure of goods.

Image source, Reuters

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has offered his condolences over the deaths of UN aid workers in Gaza who have been killed since the war with Israel began.

Speaking to journalists in the Jordanian capital of Amman, Blinken praised the "extraordinary work" of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), which he called a "lifeline in Gaza".

The agency says it is sheltering nearly 700,000 people in severely overcrowded schools and other facilities it runs in Gaza, and that 72 of its staff have been killed since 7 October.

Blinken expressed admiration at the UN workers' courage, in comments ahead of a meeting with UNRWA commissioner general Phillipe Lazzarini and a video call with his Gaza-based staff.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it will allow traffic on one of Gaza's two main north-south highways so residents in the north can flee to the south of the Strip.

Posting on X, external, formerly Twitter, the IDF's Arabic spokesperson says the Salah al-Din road will be traversable for three hours, from 13:00 to 16:00 local time (11:00 to 14:00 GMT).

The message says Hamas leaders were already taking care to protect themselves, and urged civilians to do the same by heeding instructions to move south.

The Israeli military says it has encircled Gaza City.

Image source, ..

Up to 400,000 people are still in the north of Gaza, according to US special envoy David Satterfield.

Over the last few weeks, Israel has been telling residents evacuate the north of the Strip and move south, which it designated as a so-called safe area.

Since, the north has been the target of relentless Israeli bombardment from the air and a ground offensive - though there have also been airstrikes in the south.

Speaking to reporters in the Jordanian capital Amman this morning, Satterfield said 800,000 to a million people had made the move to the south, while 350,000-400,000 remained in the north of the enclave.

A little more from Jordan now, where US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is meeting with leaders and ministers from around the Middle East.

First on the agenda was a discussion with Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who, according to his office, stressed to Blinken the importance of working towards a ceasefire in Gaza.

Image source, Reuters

He was also pictured greeting Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani.

Image source, Reuters