Israel-Palestine live: Biden urges Egypt, Qatar to press Hamas for hostage deal

The British government is facing a legal challenge from a British-Palestinian man whose parents live in northern Gaza, over the UK's ongoing decision to pause funding for Unrwa, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees.

On Wednesday, the UK-based Bindmans law firm sent a pre-action letter on his behalf to the Foreign Office, threatening a judicial review if the government does not announce the restoration of Unrwa funding by next Tuesday.

Lawyers representing the man said the UK had failed to provide an adequate explanation as to why it had withdrawn its funds, a move that it said had - along with the withdrawal of support from other countries - a "profound impact" on the agency's capabilities in Gaza.

The parents of the man, whose name has not been released publicly, are completely reliant on Unrwa aid and have reported major shortages of food, water and other essentials. Experts have said a famine may already be happening in north Gaza.

Alice Hardy, a partner at Bindmans working on the case, said the UK government's strategy focuses on providing life-saving humanitarian assistance and working to prevent the worst forms of human suffering.

“Given the catastrophic situation in Gaza, including an impending, man-made famine, the ongoing decision to cease funding to Unrwa is not only morally wrong but flies in the face of that strategy," Hardy said.

"Canada, Sweden, Australia and the EU are satisfied with the measures that have been taken. The immense suffering of the Gazan people makes it imperative to reinstate funding to Unrwa as quickly as possible.”

Middle East Eye has asked the Foreign Office and Department for Business and Trade for comment.

Quoting Egyptians officials who are in contact with Israeli army officials, Lebanon's pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper said that Israel is not willing to make any new concessions to Hamas following the latest roadblock in ceasefire negotiations.

It is now reportedly planning its invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah for after Eid al-Fitr, the three-day Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan and expected to end on 12 April.

Al-Akhbar says that Israel expects the operation to last between four and eight weeks, and that it would evacuate all civilians from the city into specific inner parts of Gaza in advance. The evacuation would supposedly be monitored by Israel to make sure no Hamas fighters or hostages are hiding among the civilians, according to the Egyptian officials.

The Lebanese newspaper says that Egyptian officials are concerned that this operation will lead to a wider escalation in the entire region, and says Egyptian President al-Sisi refused a request from Israeli prime minister Netanyahu for a direct line to remain in contact.

The fate of a 94-year-old Palestinian woman in Gaza remains unknown after the Israeli army stormed her home and ordered her family to evacuate, leaving her behind.

Naifa Rizq al-Sawada, who suffers from Alzheimer's and is unable to walk or speak, was in her home in the vicinity of the al-Shifa Medical Complex in the west of Gaza City on 21 March when the Israeli military invaded the area post-midnight and forcibly evicted its residents at gunpoint.

Her family fears that she might be kept in the building before it is bombed or used as a human shield by the Israeli army inside the al-Shifa Hospital.

Her daughter, Maha al-Nawati, recounted to Middle East Eye the events that took place on Thursday.

READ MORE: Israeli army forces family to leave 94-year-old grandmother behind

Samer Abed, an eyewitness who preferred not to share his full name, spoke to Middle East Eye's correspondent in Gaza City about the Israeli army's destruction of homes and buildings around al-Shifa Medical Complex.

Abed, who is currently staying around 400 metres away from the hospital, said he and his brothers started receiving calls from the Israeli army roughly a week after the start of their raid on al-Shifa.

The man on the phone instructed them to get residents out of buildings in the vicinity they were about to blow up, and send them to the south of the Gaza Strip.

Prior to that, Abed said buildings would be blown up without prior warning.

The army would give them a certain amount of time before starting to bomb the area.

“The bombs go down and don’t care about us," he said.

While the residents in Abed's area were mostly unharmed, save for a few injuries, others, particularly those closer to the hospital, were not so lucky.

Some buildings were blown up with their residents inside, killing scores and leaving many under the rubble. The strike on the Abu Hasira home, near the hospital, killed at least 30 people.

MEE's correspondent says the Israeli army strike levelled almost every single building in al-Shifa's vicinity.

The Israeli army then reportedly retreated from certain areas, including al-Shati camp's Aidiya street, following heavy clashes. They are now positioned roughly 200 metres away from al-Shifa.

Reporting by Mohammed al-Hajjar.

Gaza's heatlh ministry said that 76 Palestinians were killed in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll of Israel's war on Gaza to 32,490.

An additional 102 were wounded by Israeli attacks, bringing the total to 74,889.

Izzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas's political bureau, said on Telegram that his group have "no trust" in Israel's claim regarding the killing of Marwan Issa, believed to be the armed group's third-most senior figure.

“The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades [the military wing of Hamas] have the final say on the issue,” he added.

He claims that Israel is using this story to cover up on Netanyahu's crisis and the army's "failure to achieve its goals."

Responding to Israel's deadly strike on an emergency health centre in al-Habbariyeh, Lebanon's health ministry said that the attack "violates international laws and the Geneva Convention".

"We put the Israeli enemy's attacks at the disposal of the international community and international humanitarian organisations," the ministry added.

In a letter signed by over 130 parliamentarians, British MPs and peers are saying that continuing arms business with Israel is "totally unacceptable" as UK-made arms are being used by the Israeli army in Gaza.

The letter, coordinated by Labour MP Zarah Sultana, sites a case where a fighter jet made with UK parts was probably responsible for bombing British doctors in the Palestinian enclave.

The parliamentarians also refer to other countries, most recently Canada, who have halted exports sales to Israel over concerns over its actions in Gaza.

The letter comes after a UN Security Council resolution which called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza for the remainder of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Israel seemed undeterred by the resolution, as it continued its relentless bombing and military operations in the enclave with the civilian death toll continuously rising.

Israeli forces continued their raid and attacks on Gaza City's al-Shifa Medical Complex for the tenth consecutive day, as images started emerging from the hospital showing the destruction.

The Israeli army says it killed "dozens" of Hamas and Islamic Jihad gunmen in the past day, but Hamas denies having any of its fighters inside the hospital.

Palestine's Wafa News Agency reports that three people have now been killed in Israel's latest raid on Jenin, occupied West Bank, as an Israeli drone strike killed two young Palestinian men and injured seven others.

Israeli forces shot and killed a 19-year-old youth in Jenin earlier on Wednesday.

Haaretz reports that one 25-year-old man was killed by Hezbollah's barrage of rockets on Kiryat Shmona this morning.

Hezbollah's attack came in retaliation to Israel's strike on a health centre operated by al-Jamaa al-Islamiya in south Lebanon overnight, killing seven medical volunteers.

Israeli media reported on Tuesday that Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy has been dismissed from his position following a prior suspension.

The report claims that his dismissal is due to a "series" of diplomatic incidents, most prominently a post on X in response to statements by British Foreign Secretary David Cameron.

Cameron had urged the Israeli government to send more aid into the Gaza Strip, to which Levy replied claiming Israel was not limiting aid into the Palestinian enclave.

Israel's Channel 12 said the UK's Foreign Office contacted the Israeli government, asking if Levy's posts that "actually attack the position of foreign minister Cameron" reflected their official position, causing Levy's suspension.

Levy was reportedly already on "thin ice" due to his auditioning for Israel's version of Dancing With The Stars without confirming it with his supervisors, and for posting a fake video on X months ago. His spat with Cameron, however, was "the straw that broke the camel's back".

Lebanese armed group Hezbollah said it fired a barrage of rockets into the largely evacuated town of Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel in retaliation for Israel's overnight strike on an emergency health centre in al-Habbariyeh, south Lebanon, that killed seven rescuers.

The centre is affiliated with Lebanese Sunni group al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, which is allied with Hezbollah in its ongoing border clashes with Israel.

Israel says it killed a "key member" from the group in its attack on the centre "along with other terrorists who had been in the building."

The Israeli army reported that at least 30 rockets were just fired into Kiryat Shmona, as some injuries have been reported.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates:

• Israel targeted an emergency health centre affiliated with Lebanese political and armed group al-Jamaa al-Islamiya in al-Habbaryieh, south Lebanon, reportedly killing seven rescuers. Israeli claims the strike killed a key member of the group
• Israeli morning strikes on two homes in Rafah killed three people
• One 19-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli forces in Jenin, occupied West Bank as heavy clashes are reported in the area
• Jordanian police beat and arrested several protesters near the Israeli embassy in Amman
• Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant said a "local alternative" must be found in Gaza as he believes it should not be governed by Israel or Hamas

Hello MEE readers. A day after the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, Israel's war on the enclave continues.

Despite that resolution, truce talks between Israel and Hamas have not progressed, with the Israeli negotiating team leaving Doha, blaming Hamas for what it described as a "dead end" in the current discussions.

And Israel's military has continued to bomb the Gaza Strip despite the international call for a cessation of hostilities. The latest Palestinian health ministry death toll in Gaza stands at 32,414.

Here's what else you need to know from Tuesday's developments:

• Israel claimed that it killed top Hamas military leader Marwan Issa in a strike earlier this month. Hamas officials said there was no confirmation of this, and said Israel was waging an information war.

• Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has threatened to cut diplomatic ties with Israel if the country doesn't comply with the UN Security Council's ceasefire resolution.

• Yemen's Houthi movement said that it carried out six operations, including attacks on four ships and attacks on two US destroyers. One attack, however, was denied by the vessel's company.

• A series of air strikes targeted the eastern province of Deir el-Zour in Syria, killing more than a dozen people, including an Iranian advisor and a member of the World Health Organisation.

• Thirty Palestinians have been detained by Israeli forces in mass arrests across the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Society.

• Unrwa said it has sufficient funds to keep its operations going until the end of May.

• The US Treasury Department has announced sanctions against finance and trade facilitators for Yemen's Houthi rebels, the Lebanese group Hezbollah and Iran's Quds Force.