15 dead after ambulance hit in Gaza as Blinken meets Arab leaders for talks

Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said Gaza must be part of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state once the Israel-Hamas war is over, and Ankara will not support any plans “gradually erasing Palestinians” from history.

Turkey, which has sharply escalated its criticism of Israel as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has intensified, supports a two-state solution and hosts members of Hamas, which it does not view as a terrorist organisation, unlike the US, Britain and others in the West. Turkey has called for an immediate ceasefire and offered to set up a system to guarantee it.

Speaking to reporters on a return flight from Kazakhstan on Friday, Erdogan repeated his criticism of Western countries for their support of Israel, saying Ankara’s trust in the European Union was “deeply shaken”.

“Once all of this that is happening is finished, we want to see Gaza as a peaceful region that is a part of an independent Palestinian state, in line with 1967 borders, with territorial integrity, and with East Jerusalem as its capital,” Erdogan was on Saturday quoted as saying by broadcaster Haberturk and others.

“We will support formulas that will bring peace and calm to the region. We will not be supportive of plans that will further darken the lives of Palestinians, that will gradually erase them from the scene of history.”

Antony Blinken praised the “extraordinary work” of UN aid workers in Gaza and offered his condolences to the families of two who had been killed.

The US secretary of state is currently in Amman, Jordan, for talks with the country’s leaders about a humanitarian pause to the conflict.

Speaking to reporters, he praised the “extraordinary work” of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), describin it as 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.

It says that 72 of its staff and aid workers have been killed since the war broke out on 7 October.

Up to 400,000 people remain in the north of Gaza amid intense Israeli bombing of the area, US special envoy David Satterfield has said.

Residents have been told by Israel to evacuate as the military steps up its ground and air attacks.

Satterfield, speaking in the Jordanian capital of Amman earlier this morning, said between 800,000 and a million people had fled since the fighting started.

Traffic will be allowed to flow on one of Gaza’s two main north-south highways so residents in the north can flee to the south of the Strip, Israel’s military has said.

Residents can use the Salah al-Din road from 1pm to 4pm local time on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces Arabic spokesperson has said.

“For your safety, take advantage of the next time to move south beyond Wadi Gaza,” the statement said.

“If you care about yourself and your loved ones, head south according to our instructions. Rest assured that Hamas leaders are already taking care to protect themselves.”

The Committee to Protect Journalists says the war between Israel and Hamas has become the deadliest period for journalists covering conflict since CPJ began documenting journalist fatalities in 1992, Bel Trew reports.

As of November 3, CPJ’s investigations showed at least 36 journalists and media workers were among an estimated 10,000 killed since the war began on October 7.

As of November 3 the CPJ says:

• 36 journalists and media workers were confirmed dead: 31 Palestinian, 4 Israeli, and 1 Lebanese.
• 8 journalists were reported injured.
• 3 journalists were reported missing.
• 8 journalists were reported arrested.
• Multiple assaults, threats, cyberattacks, censorship, and killings of family members.

As we’ve been reporting, a numberof British citizens remain trapped in Gaza amid the war between Hamas and Israel.

Bel Trew has this dispatch from Gaza:

Eighty-eight British citizens and their 24 Palestinian family members are approved to cross from Gaza to Egypt on Saturday according to a list shared with The Independent.

This comes as the Israeli military on Saturday said it would enable Palestinians to travel from the north to the south along the central Salahuddin road between 1pm -4pm (11 GMT and 1400). Last week video footage was shared by Palestinian journalists apparently showing an Israeli tank firing at a car trying to travel south along that road. (When asked about the strike, the Israeli military said they could not detail the location of their forces).

Civilians – including British citizens – speaking to The Independent have described chaotic scenes at the Rafah crossing with Egypt as network blackouts have meant people do not know if they are on the lists of those approved to leave. Fuel shortages and Israel’s heavy bombardment have meant getting to the crossing is almost impossible for some.

US citizens in Gaza told The Independent a group of Americans – whose name have appeared on the lists of those approved to leave – were wounded in a strike on their bus on Thursday as they tried to travel from the north to the south along the coastal road. They were attempting to get to Rafah crossing to the crossing. The Independent is trying to independently verify the claims.

The Israeli military said “We emphasize that this area is a battle zone. Civilians in the area are repeatedly called upon to evacuate southwards for their own safety.”

The army said in a social media post in Arabic on Saturday it would enable Palestinians to travel Salahuddin road. “If you care about yourself and your loved ones, heed our instruction to head south,” the statement added.

Andy Burnham has denied being disloyal to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer over his call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

When the question was put to him on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the mayor of Greater Manchester said: “No, not at all.

“I would point to the fact that the statement issued by myself, the deputy mayor of Greater Manchester Kate Green, all 10 leaders on a cross-party basis, it was a careful, considered statement that sought to reflect the views of our communities here in the city region and come to an approach which we think is the right approach.

“Of course we abhor the terrorist attacks of October 7, we recognise Israel’s right to take targeted action against Hamas. Our concern was with the widespread bombing causing such huge number of casualties — that was the point that we have made.

“Keir, in his speech earlier this week, I think made many similar points so I don’t think the difference between us is too great.

“And this issue cannot become all about the Labour Party. These are really difficult judgments that everybody is trying to make and I think Keir, the shadow cabinet, the PLP (Parliamentary Labour Party) needs to be given the space to come to those judgments.”

The death toll of French citizens killed as a result of Hamas’s terror attacks in Israel has risen to 39, with nine other French nationals still missing, the country’s foreign ministry said on Saturday.

Some of those missing have been confirmed as being held hostage by Hamas, the ministry said in a statement.

“We send our condolences to their loved ones and we are in contact with the families to provide them with our full support in this ordeal as well as with the Israeli authorities,” it said.

“As the president of the republic recalled, we are doing everything we can to obtain their release.

“We remain in constant contact with all the families of our nationals who have disappeared or been held hostage.”

No foreigners will be allowed to leave Gaza until the wounded can be evacuated from the north to the south of the strip, Bel Trew reports.

It comes after an Israeli strike on an ambulance that killed 15 people. Israel says the ambulance was being used by Hamas.

A Palestinian border official has said no foreign passport holders will be allowed to escape to Egypt until the wounded are coordinated and exited from Gaza hospitals and from the north towards the Rafah crossing.

Around 100 British citizens were expected to be able to leave Gaza for Egypt on Friday, with the in-laws of Scotland’s first minister Humza Yousaf among those permitted to leave the territory through the Rafah crossing.

Mr Cleverly welcomed the “positive news” of getting a “number” of British nationals through the crossing, telling broadcasters: “We will continue to work to keep that crossing open, to liaise directly with Israel, with Egypt to ensure that as many British nationals can leave Gaza as possible.”

Around 200 Britons in Gaza have so far registered with the authorities, and along with their dependents the total number the UK is trying to secure passage for is thought to be in the low hundreds.

Aid agencies are battling a humanitarian crisis in Gaza with limited resources, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushing back against growing US pressure for a “humanitarian pause” in the war to protect civilians and allow more aid into the area.

More than 9,000 people are reported to have been killed in the Gaza Strip since October 7, when Israel launched its military response to the atrocities committed by Hamas.