Israel-Hamas: Gaza says over 1,300 Palestinians killed as supplies cut off

The Palestinian death toll now stands at 1,354, the Gaza Health Ministry has said, as the number continues to rise.

It added that 6,049 others have been wounded in Israeli strikes since Saturday.

Israel said on Thursday there would be no humanitarian break to its siege of the Gaza Strip until all its hostages were freed, after the Red Cross pleaded for fuel to be allowed in to prevent overwhelmed hospitals from “turning into morgues”.

Israel’s Energy Minister Israel Katz said there would be no exception to the siege without freedom for Israeli hostages.

“Humanitarian aid to Gaza? No electrical switch will be lifted, no water hydrant will be opened and no fuel truck will enter until the Israeli hostages are returned home. Humanitarian for humanitarian. And nobody should preach us morals,” Katz posted on social media platform X.

A spokesperson has told of “whole families being butchered” at a press conference by British-Israelis whose parents are being held hostage by Hamas.

“In Israeli communities in south Israel they went door to door and snatched babies from their mothers and children from their beds, handcuffed them and brutally and cold bloodedly slaughtered them,” a spokesperson said in a short statement in central London. “Whole families were butchered.”

She described the Hamas terrorists as a “modern-day death squad”.

Rishi Sunak has told the Egyptian president that the UK stands ready to help keep the country’s crossing into the Gaza Strip open.

The prime minister spoke to Abdel Fattah el-Sisi this on Thursday morning, according to a No.10 read-out of the call.

The prime minister “acknowledged the challenging security situation at the Rafah border” and “offered the UK’s support to try to manage this situation and keep the route open for humanitarian and consular reasons, including for British nationals”.

Downing Street did not elaborate on what form such assistance could take.

The crossing at Rafah was disrupted by Israeli airstrikes in recent days. Egypt has urged Israel to let civilians leave Gaza through its territory to prevent an exodus of refugees into Egypt,

The No.10 spokesperson added that the PM “expressed his condolences for the Egyptians who have lost their lives, along with so many others”.

“The Prime Minister said that terrorism is an evil which must be confronted, wherever we find it. It was also important that the conflict did not spread further.

“He noted the importance of Egypt’s historic role in the region, including in seeking de-escalation.

The leaders agreed to remain in contact as the situation develops.

Jewish parents in the UK say they are “terrified” about their children’s safety as schools step up security measures in the wake of Hamas’ deadly attacks in Israel.

At least one school has warned children against wearing any identifying badges on their uniforms and a parent told the Independent her son is covering his kippah with a baseball cap out of fear of reprisals.

Sadiq Khan has written to the foreign secretary urging the UK government to join calls for humanitarian access to Gaza.

In his letter to James Cleverly the mayor of London said there was “no justification” for the “sickening terrorist attacks committed by Hamas against Israel”.

“Israel has a right to defend itself and its people against terrorism, and to target those responsible. Any response must however be proportionate, adhere to international law, and take all steps to avoid the death and suffering of innocent Palestinians,” he wrote.

“I am deeply saddened by the loss of innocent life in Gaza that has already taken place as a result of Israel’s military response, and I am calling on the UK government to urgently work with international partners to secure humanitarian access and support to and from Gaza.

Mr Khan cited United Nations estimates that Israel’s military response in Gaza has left almost 340,000 people homeless, noting that “food, fuel and medicine supplies are also being blocked by Israel, in retaliation for the attacks we saw last weekend”.

“Both the UN and the World Health Organization have now called for an urgent need to establish humanitarian access and support for unimpeded, life-saving patient referrals and movement of humanitarian personnel and essential health supplies,” he said.

“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is already of great concern, and we must recognise the implications of it deteriorating further. I urge the British government to join calls for humanitarian access to and from Gaza, which would allow essential supplies and humanitarian aid to reach those who desperately need it.”

Israeli families held funerals to bury their dead at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on Thursday 12 October, as the country reels from last weekend’s Hamas attack.

A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces said in an update on Wednesday that at least 1,200 people have died as a result of last weekend’s assault and the days-long conflict.

The nation’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has alleged that the Hamas attackers engaged in atrocities, including binding boys and girls and shooting them in the head, burning people alive, raping women and beheading soldiers.

Netanyahu joined with a top political rival on Wednesday to create a wartime cabinet to oversee Israel’s retaliation against Hamas.

“I think in the immediate term, right now, we can continue to support – with the authorities in the appropriations we have – Israel and Ukraine. But, you know, we’re … certainly running out of runway,” said John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council.