07:28 GMT — UN urges warring sides to exercise restraint amid escalating tensions on Israel-Lebanon border
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) urged conflicting sides to exercise restraint to prevent further escalation of tensions on the Lebanon-Israel border.
“We urge everyone to exercise restraint and make use of UNIFIL’s liaison and coordination mechanisms to de-escalate to prevent a fast deterioration of the security situation,” the UN force said on X.
The UNIFIL said it is in contact with authorities on both sides, at all levels, “to contain the situation and avoid a more serious escalation.”
“Our peacekeepers remain in their positions and on task. They continue to work, some from shelters for their safety,” it added.
07:13 GMT -- Palestine requests urgent Arab League meeting over Israeli escalation
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested an emergency ministerial-level meeting of the Arab League over the latest Israeli escalation.
In a statement, the ministry said it had directed “its permanent delegation to the Arab League to request an emergency meeting of the League Council at the ministerial level.”
This comes in light of “the escalation of the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people,” it said.
06:28 GMT — Hamas's armed wing has said that its fighters are still engaged in fierce clashes in several sites inside Israel.
The statement by Qassam Brigades said fighting continues in several areas bordering Gaza strip, including Ofakim, Sderot, Yad Mordechai, Kfar Azza, Be'eri, Yatid and Kissufim.
Gun battles were still raged between Israeli forces and hundreds of Hamas fighters in multiple locations.
05:23 GMT — Hezbollah owns up to attack on Israeli-occupied land
Lebanon's Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a rocket and artillery attack on the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms, saying it was "in solidarity" with the Palestinian people.
The group said in a written statement that the attack targeted three posts including a "radar site" in the Shebaa Farms, a slice of land occupied by Israel since 1967 that Lebanon has claimed as its own.
Israel responded with artillery fire on southern Lebanon
01:00 GMT — China calls for truce as Israel bombs mosques, home in Gaza
China has said it was "deeply concerned" by the weekend's dramatic escalation of violence between Israel and the Palestine, urging all sides to show "calm".
"China is deeply concerned about the current escalation of tension and violence between Palestine and Israel," Beijing's Foreign Ministry said, adding it "calls on all parties concerned to remain calm and exercise restraint, cease fire immediately, protect civilians and prevent further deterioration of the situation".
23:30 GMT — Israel launches new air strikes in Gaza
Israeli warplanes have launched new airstrikes in Gaza amid rising tensions following a surprise Hamas attack into Israeli towns.
Anadolu Agency citing an Israeli military statement said fighter jets struck two Hamas control rooms in Gaza. "Two operational infrastructures" inside mosques were also attacked by planes.
Another strike targeted a house in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, the military said.
23:00 GMT — Fighting against Hamas ongoing in Israel
The Israeli military is still engaged in fighting with Hamas in some parts of southern Israel and the situation in the country was not totally under control, an Israeli army spokesperson has said.
In a briefing on social media, the spokesperson also said that the high number of civilian and military personnel taken hostage by Hamas in Saturday's surprise attack on illegal settlements and Israeli towns near Gaza would shape the future of the war and what Israel would do against Hamas.
Meanwhile, Israeli PM Netanyahu said security cabinet has approved decisions to destroy military and governmental capabilities of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
His office said Israel will stop supplying electricity, fuel and goods to blockaded Gaza as Israel stepped up its bombardment of the tiny Palestinian enclave.
Separately, Israeli media reported that there are at least 100 Israeli prisoners who were captured by Hamas and transferred into besieged Gaza.
22:00 GMT — Israeli troops kill 6 Palestinians in occupied West Bank
Six Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank cities of Ramallah, Jericho, Qalqilya and Hebron by Israeli soldiers, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Among the dead were Ahmed Abdunnasir er Rabi, 3 and Basim Hamis, 18.
The Palestinian Red Crescent announced that teams assisted 92 people who were wounded in occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
It was reported that the Israeli military used live ammunition and tear gas canisters against Palestinians.
21:19 GMT — Number of Israelis taken prisoner 'several times greater' than dozens: Hamas
The total number of Israelis captured by Hamas was "several times greater" than dozens, a spokesperson for the armed wing of Hamas said in a recording aired shortly after midnight.
The spokesperson said those taken captive were spread throughout all areas of besieged Gaza.
21:13 GMT — Palestine blames new escalation on Israeli aggression
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has spoken on the telephone with French President Emmanuel Macron and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken amid escalating tension in the region.
"Abbas emphasised that the current escalation in the region is a result of the political impasse, the denial of the Palestinian people's legitimate right to self-determination and the establishment of their independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, their land, and their sacred sites, and the continued terrorism of Israeli settlers," Palestine’s official WAFA news agency said about the call.
Abbas "highlighted the international community's silence, which has encouraged the Israeli occupation to commit more crimes, as witnessed in Gaza, the [occupied] West Bank, including Jerusalem, where hundreds of Palestinian civilians have lost their lives, thousands have been injured, and many have been taken captive," it said.
The Palestinian president also urged Macron "to urgently intervene to halt the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people by Israeli occupation forces and extremist settler groups." Abbas spoke separately with Blinken.
"I spoke with Palestinian Authority President Abbas to discuss the terrorist attacks against Israel," Blinken wrote on X. "I urged that all leaders in the region must condemn these appalling acts of 'terrorism'."
21:08 GMT — Netanyahu tells Palestinians to leave Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked Palestinians to leave besieged Gaza and said the army would turn Hamas sites "into rubble."
"We will turn all the places in which Hamas is based … all the places Hamas is hiding in, acting from into rubble," Netanyahu said in a televised address to the nation.
He called on Palestinians in the area to "leave now."
"This war will take time, it will be difficult. Challenging days are ahead of us," he said.
21:00 GMT — Blinken urges Palestinian leader Abbas to condemn attack
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas, urging him to condemn the Hamas attack on Israeli settlements and towns.
Fatah dominates the Palestinian Authority, based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, while Hamas governs Gaza.
In the call, Blinken "called on all leadership in the region to condemn" the Hamas assault on Israel, the US State Department said in a statement.
20:00 GMT — Ukraine calls for world solidarity with Israel
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on world leaders to show solidarity and unity in supporting Israel and condemning the attack by Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
Zelenskyy, whose army has been fighting a war Russia launched against it 19 months ago, said that Israel — just like Ukraine — has "every right" to protect itself.
20:00 GMT — Saudi foreign minister talks to Blinken, urges halt to violence
Saudi Arabia has said its foreign minister had told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the kingdom rejects the targeting of unarmed civilians "in any way".
Prince Faisal bin Farhan also called for "concerted efforts to calm the situation and avoid further violence," the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
20:00 GMT — 300 Israelis, 232 Palestinians killed so far
Israeli air strikes on besieged Gaza launched after a surprising Hamas offensive have killed at least 232 Palestinians, the territory's Health Ministry said.
In an update on its Facebook account on Saturday, the ministry said 1,697 Palestinians were also wounded.
The ministry added that its medical teams were working at full capacity "to save dozens of serious and critical cases in operating rooms and intensive care units."
At least 300 Israelis have also been killed in an escalation with Hamas, Anadolu Agency reported.
Among those killed in Israeli settlements was Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Steinberg, a senior officer who commanded the military's Nahal Brigade, a prominent infantry unit.
Israeli Army Radio said the number of wounded exceeded 1,000.
"The fighting in southern Israel is still ongoing," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said, adding that security forces are "securing areas which are under attack by Hamas."
Hospitals across Israel are handling hundreds of wounded patients, with over 460 people currently receiving medical treatment.
The Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba said it is treating at least 280 casualties, with 60 in serious condition.
The Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon, near Gaza, reported treating 182 wounded people, including 12 in critical condition. The civilian death toll is expected to rise.
19:00 GMT — US says working with others to prevent Gaza conflict from spreading
The United States is working with other governments to make sure the crisis does not spread and is contained to Gaza following a deadly Hamas attack in Israel, a senior Biden administration official said.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said the US did not have any information at the moment to determine that Iran was involved in the "specific" assault in Israel, even though Tehran's long-standing support for Hamas was well known.
The official said the US was looking closely at the issue.
