Israel’s war on Gaza live: Troops met with Hamas fire in Rafah operations

• Hamas fighters fire rockets and mortars at Israeli troops and tanks as they enter Gaza’s southern Rafah city with three soldiers wounded in a blast in a booby-trapped tunnel.
• An estimated 80,000 Palestinians attempt to flee Rafah as Israel shells eastern area of the besieged city sheltering some 1.5 million people.

A recap of the latest developments

Here’s what happened today:

• Israeli forces are making their way through Rafah in southern Gaza despite heavy international criticism, with Benjamin Netanyahu saying his country is ready to “stand alone” if necessary.
• Israel has allowed nothing in or out of Gaza for three days, exacerbating an already catastrophic humanitarian situation.
• Delegations from Hamas, the United States and Qatar left Egypt without reaching a ceasefire agreement after Israel “expressed reservations”.
• Armed Israelis set fire to the UNRWA headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem, forcing it to close amid a delayed response by Israeli police and firefighters.
• A decision by the administration of Joe Biden to halt a shipment of thousands of large bombs to Israel for the invasion of Rafah has angered Israel and its backers in the US, including a billionaire mega-donor.
• Tens of thousands demonstrated in Sweden’s Malmo to protest the inclusion of Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest and the war on Gaza.

Hezbollah claims seven attacks on Israeli positions

The Lebanese armed group said in its end-of-day report of border fighting with Israel that it had launched seven attacks using different weapons on Thursday.

The group also released multiple new videos of its attacks on Israeli positions, showing antitank guided missiles being launched to target gatherings of Israeli troops in buildings in border areas.

Hamas says Israel operations in Rafah definitely not ‘limited’

Israel has already defied international objections by sending in tanks and conducting what it called “targeted raids” in the east of Rafah, the city it says is home to Hamas’s last remaining battalions.

But Hamas authorities in Rafah dismissed as “nothing but lies” Israel’s description of its operation as “limited”.

Residents and medics in Rafah said an Israeli attack near a mosque killed at least three people and wounded others in the eastern Brazil neighbourhood. Video from the scene showed the minaret lying in the rubble and two bodies wrapped in blankets.

An Israeli air strike on two houses in the Sabra neighbourhood of Rafah killed at least 12 people including women and children.

Critics warn an all-out Israeli assault on Rafah will lead to a humanitarian disaster with more than one million people sheltering in the tiny territory.

UK defence minister claims British air force ‘saving lives’ in Gaza

The United Kingdom – a main ally and military backer of the Israeli army – is touting limited and heavily criticised airdrops of aid over Gaza as having an “incredible impact” on saving Palestinian lives.

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said in a post on X the British military completed 11 aid drops, delivering 111 tonnes of assistance.

The UN and international organisations say the only viable way to deliver life-saving aid to Palestinians in the besieged enclave at the level needed is through land crossings – almost all of which have now been closed by the Israeli military as it invades Rafah.

LISTEN: As Israeli tanks seize the Rafah crossing, where will Palestinians go?

Israeli forces have seized control of Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt, cutting off a vital route for humanitarian aid and potential sanctuary for civilians from an all-out attack.

What’s next for the people stranded there?

PA decries Israeli attack on UNRWA office in occupied East Jerusalem

The Palestinian Authority strongly condemned an attack by Israelis on the UN refugee agency for Palestinians’ headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem.

UNRWA was forced to shut down its office after Israelis, some of them armed, set fire to the compound’s perimeter. The attack is part of the “systematic and widespread crimes of the Israeli occupation”, the ministry said in a statement.

It is also part of the “systematic targeting of institutions” that work to fulfil the rights of Palestinians.

The Foreign Ministry called on the international community to hold Israeli “settler militias” responsible for ongoing attacks in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem and to impose “strict measures” on them.

Attacks against UNRWA, its premises, staff members and officials must stop, the ministry added.