Israel-Gaza war live: Netanyahu to decide on future of war cabinet after Gantz resigns | Israel

The Palestinian Wafa news agency reports that five people were killed and 30 others injured as a result of the Israeli bombardment of Rafain the southern part of the Gaza Strip.

It also reported that at least 30 Palestinians – including a child and a woman – were arrested by Israeli security forces in occupied the West Bank during the past day. The number of Palestinians detained by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank since October 7 is reported to be over 9,000.

In addition, Wafa reports that a family in Masafer Yatasouth of Hebronwere attacked by Israeli settlers who uprooted olive and almond trees.

The claims have not been independently verified. It was not possible for journalists to verify the casualty figures published during the conflict.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Egypt. He is expected to meet the president of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo before traveling to Israel where he will meet with Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.

It is Blinken’s eighth visit to the region since October 7 and he is expected to push for the ceasefire agreement that US President Joe Biden supports.

The visit comes amid discouraging signs and after a weekend in which over 200 Palestinians were killed while Israel organized the rescue of four of the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement “We are committed to total victory” and that he was not prepared to “stop the war without achieving our goals of elimination Hamas.”

Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official said the onus was on the US to “put pressure on the occupation to stop the war on Gaza”.

Gaza’s health ministry released new casualty figures, claiming 37,124 Palestinians were killed during Israel’s military campaign, with 84,712 injured.

The claims have not been independently verified. It was not possible for journalists to verify the casualty figures published during the conflict.

Israeli Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich said the release of Palestinians held in Israeli custody in exchange for hostages could lead to “the killing of many Jews”.

Speaking at a Knesset Finance Committee session attended by family members of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip, Smotrich said Hamas demanded the release of “hundreds of murderers”.

Haaretz quoted his words:

This could lead to the killing of many Jews. When Hamas demands an end to the war while it survives in Gaza, it means that the group is arming itself, digging tunnels, buying rockets, and that many Jews could be killed and taken hostage on another October 7.

This is the dilemma we face. And that’s painful. It is our responsibility as leadership to think not only about the current situation, but also about its long-term implications.

He said the Israeli government could not agree to any action that would amount to “collective suicide.”

The meeting erupted into shouting matches, with one hostage’s family member suggesting that Smotrich offer to take their place in captivity. Another, according to the Hebrew news website Ynet, said “You will take responsibility. There are 120 kidnapped. You will replace 120 members of the Knesset with 120 abductees.

On Sunday, the former military chief Benny Gantz resigned from Benjamin Netanyahuthe US government, potentially leading to further political instability even as Israel continues its months-long campaign against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Gantz has given the prime minister a “day after” deadline for a proposal on Gaza and accused him of ignoring strategic considerations such as the hostage deal for his own political survival.

Here are some of the latest images sent to us on news channels from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balahwhere Palestinians mourn more people killed by Israeli airstrikes.

Haaretz reports that a house in the northern Israeli kibbutz of Menara caught fire after a rocket was fired from Lebanon.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese asked activists to “turn down the heat” after US Consulate in Sydney was damaged in what appeared to be an act of pro-Palestinian support.

Albanese said: “People are traumatized by what is happening in the Middle East, especially those with relatives in Israel or in the Palestinian Occupied Territories. And I’m just saying, again, I repeat my call to turn down the heat, and measures like painting the US Consulate do nothing to advance the cause of those who have committed what is, of course, a crime to damage property.

Windows are damaged and upside down red triangles are painted on the building.

The Associated Press reported that the premier of New South Wales Chris Means said: “We can express our position in this country without resorting to violence or malicious behavior.”

Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir al-Balah in central Gaza for Al Jazeera, reports that:

Israeli forces have withdrawn from the eastern part of Deir al-Balah, but the morning is very sad. Civil Defense teams managed to bring the bodies of five people who were killed in the area. We expect them to bring more bodies from the eastern part of Deir al-Balah. There were several airstrikes in the area after Israeli forces withdrew.

Last month, the Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu banned Al Jazeera from operating in Israel. An Israeli court recently upheld the decision.

Reuters reports that ahead of Anthony Blinken’s visit to the region, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri called for US pressure Israel to end the war in Gaza.

“We call on the US administration to put pressure on the occupation to stop the war on Gaza and Hamas the movement is ready to deal positively with any initiative that ensures an end to war,” he said.

Neither Hamas nor Israel have been able to reach a ceasefire or hostage deal since December.

The Palestinian news agency Wafa reports a wide-scale bombing of The Gaza Strip continues, with Israeli artillery shelling multiple areas. It said “several citizens were killed and others were left with various injuries,” without providing specific numbers.

It reported: “Two citizens were killed and others sustained various injuries as a result of the bombing of a house by the occupation aircraft in Shujaya district, east of Gaza City.”

Wafa also reports that in the West Bank, a 15-year-old child was killed by Israeli forces near Tubes and a 21-year-old student was killed by Israeli forces near Tulkarm.

The claims have not been independently verified.

Anthony BlinkenToday’s expected visit to the Middle East is the eighth time the US secretary of state has visited the region since the October 7 surprise attack in the south Israel from Hamas.

Blinken will meet with the Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo before traveling to Israel where he will meet with Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.

Hello and welcome to our continuing live coverage of the Middle East crisis. The future of Israel’s military cabinet, formed after the October 7 Hamas attacks, is uncertain after the former defense minister Benny Gantz resigned in protest in Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza.

Gantz, leader of the center-right National Unity party, said: “Netanyahu is preventing us from progressing to a real victory” and called for new elections after setting a June 8 deadline for the prime minister to present concrete “day after” plans for the Gaza Strip .

The upheaval in Israeli politics comes amid international anger against scale of devastation in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza as a result of the operation to rescue four Israeli hostages. EU Foreign Minister Josep Borrell condemned the attack as a “massacre” of Palestinian civilians and called for a ceasefire, saying: “The bloodbath must end immediately.”

• Hamas warned that conditions would worsen for the remaining Israeli prisoners after the weekend attack in which at least 274 Palestinians were reportedly killed by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. The ministry also said around 700 people were injured in the operation that took place focused on Nusseirat a refugee camp in central Gaza. The operation resulted in the rescue of four Israeli hostages who had been held captive since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

• Noah Argamani, Almog Meir, Andrei Kozlov and Shlomi Ziv were released during the operation. Israel has used its army to return seven hostages since the outbreak of war, with more than 100 believed to remain in Gaza, many of whom are believed to be dead.

• Hamas claims three Israeli hostages were killed in the rescue operation, including a US citizen. No evidence was provided and the Guardian could not independently verify the claims. Hamas released a video showing three unidentified corpses with censorship bars over their faces.

• US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken returns to the Middle East on Monday to push a cease-fire planbut political unrest in Israel and the silence of Hamas have raised further questions about whether he can succeed.

• Israel continued to attack central Gaza on Sunday. Reuters reported that separate Israeli airstrikes on houses in Deir al-Balah and in loved ones Al-Burayj killed three Palestinians each earlier today as tanks shelled parts of nearby al-Maghazi and al-Nuseirat.

• Israeli tanks also entered two new areas of the southern town of Rafah. This appears to be an obvious effort to complete the encirclement of the entire eastern part of the city.

• The aid was delivered in Gaza from a recently repaired pier built by the Americans after it suffered storm damage. In a post on social media, US Central Command confirmed that the aid was delivered to Gaza via the jetty on Saturday morning.