Live: 54 Palestinians killed, 831 wounded in 24 hours

Good morning Middle East Eye readers.

Here are the most recent key developments:

• Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says his government will recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.

• Israel has claimed responsibility for the assassination of journalist Anas al-Sharif in a statement, "falsely claiming" that al-Sharif led a unit of Hamas’s armed wing, Al Jazeera said.

• The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says it is “appalled” by Israel’s killing of Al Jazeera journalists Anas al-Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Moamen Aliwa and Mohammed Noufal and its "pattern of labelling journalists as militants without providing credible evidence".

• Following the Israeli military's statement claiming the killing of Anas Al-Sharif, Hamas called the assassination "a barbaric crime that surpasses all limits of fascism and criminality".

• New Zealand is considering recognition of a Palestinian state, the Cabinet will make a formal decision on the matter in September, foreign minister Winston Peters said.

Our live blog will shortly be closing until tomorrow morning.

Here are the day's key developments:

• Israeli forces assassinated two of Gaza’s leading journalists and their entire crew on Sunday night, signalling the likely start of a major assault on Gaza City.

• The director of Gaza’s Al Shifa Medical Complex confirmed that Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqea died when Israeli forces struck their tent, in what he said appears to have been a deliberate attack on media workers.

• Cameramen and photojournalists Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Mosaab Al Sharif were also killed.

• Gaza’s health ministry chief told Al Jazeera Arabic that the Strip lacks wheelchairs and prosthetic limbs to support disabled people.

• Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has called on the government to "dismantle" the Palestinian Authority. 

• James Kariuki, the UK's deputy permanent representative to the UN, has accused Israel of "inhumanity" at the Security Council meeting in New York.

• Fu Cong, China’s permanent representative to the UN, addressed the emergency Security Council session, firmly opposing any Israeli attempt to “occupy” Gaza.

• Israel has “effectively agreed” to let the US lead negotiations with Qatar and other mediators on a comprehensive deal to end the war, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority has reported.

A source at Gaza’s Baptist Hospital told Al Jazeera Arabic that five Palestinians were killed when Israeli forces bombed a house in the Al-Sabra neighbourhood, south of Gaza City.

Israel has “effectively agreed” to let the US lead negotiations with Qatar and other mediators on a comprehensive deal to end the war, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority has reported.

The outlet said the matter was raised in talks between the Israeli and Qatari prime ministers, as well as in a meeting between an Israeli envoy and US envoy Steve Witkoff in Spain.

Channel 12 reported that Israel and Hamas could return to negotiations soon. It said Hamas leaders in Turkey are expected to move to Egypt’s Cairo and Qatar’s Doha, quoting a senior Shin Bet official as saying the group is ready to “show flexibility” under pressure from Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Hamas has not commented on the reports but has previously stated it supports a deal to end the war and bring humanitarian aid into Gaza,

Israeli forces detained 662 people in raids across the occupied West Bank last month, the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society has reported. The group said the arrests included 39 minors and 12 women.

According to its figures, more than 18,500 people have been arrested in the West Bank since Israel's war on Gaza began in October 2023, among them over 1,500 minors and 570 women. The tally does not account for the thousands believed to have been detained in Gaza.

Egypt's support for calls to disarm Hamas has reignited tensions with the Palestinian movement and stalled ceasefire negotiations, Egyptian and Palestinian sources told Middle East Eye.

The rift emerged after Cairo relayed messages to Hamas leaders in Doha in late April, demanding the group surrender its weapons and withdraw fighters from Gaza - a position Hamas firmly rejects.

The push for disarmament reflects mounting pressure from the United States and key Arab states.

On 29 July, Egypt joined Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the Arab League in endorsing the New York Declaration on a two-state solution, which calls on Hamas to relinquish control of Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority.

According to Egyptian sources, Cairo had initially resisted linking disarmament to ceasefire negotiations.

Read more: Egypt-Hamas tensions at all-time high over demand to disarm and leave Gaza

Fu Cong, China’s permanent representative to the UN, addressed the emergency Security Council session, firmly opposing any Israeli attempt to “occupy” Gaza.

“Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people. It is an integral part of the Palestinian territory. Any action that seeks to alter its demographic and territorial structure must be met with utmost rejection and resistance,” he said.

Fu urged abandoning the “illusion of military supremacy” and called for an immediate ceasefire as the only way to save lives and secure hostages’ release. “Continually escalated military offensives in Gaza will only lead to more killings and deaths,” he warned.

Fu condemned the “weaponisation” of humanitarian aid and the “collective punishment” of Palestinians in Gaza as “unacceptable.” He added that attacks on civilians and aid workers seeking supplies are equally intolerable.

He concluded by emphasising the need to revive the two-state solution, describing it as the only viable route to resolving the Palestinian issue and achieving peaceful coexistence.

Gaza’s health ministry chief told Al Jazeera Arabic that the Strip lacks wheelchairs and prosthetic limbs to support disabled people.

There are currently no wheelchairs or artificial limbs available in Gaza to aid those with disabilities, the Ministry of Health’s director-general confirmed.

The Israeli human rights organisation B’Tselem has published new footage showing settler Yinon Levi shooting and killing Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen in the occupied West Bank. The video was recorded by Hathaleen himself.

Levi was freed just days after the killing of the 31 year-old and was later spotted back at the scene near the Umm al Kheir community centre in the occupied West Bank.

Incidents of Israeli settlers attacking Palestinians across the occupied territory are documented almost daily. These assaults frequently occur with the support of Israeli soldiers.

The Israeli military has killed at least five Palestinians seeking aid near the Morag Corridor in southern Gaza, according to local media reports.

Israeli attacks have killed at least 52 Palestinians on Sunday so far.

James Kariuki, the UK's deputy permanent representative to the UN, has accused Israel of "inhumanity" at the Security Council meeting in New York.

"Expanding military operations will do nothing to bring an end to this conflict," he said.

"It will not secure the release of the hostages. It will only deepen the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza."

Kariuki said Israel's plan to occupy Gaza City "is a path to more bloodshed".

France's deputy permanent representative Jay Dharmadhikari added that the French government "condemns in the strongest possible terms" the plan, which he said would lead to "further violations of international law of an extreme severity".

"The images of children dying of hunger or civilians being targeted as they tried to find food are unbearable," he said.

Ramesh Rajasingham, the head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, has told the UN Security Council session on Gaza that there is "no longer a looming hunger crisis", rather "this is starvation, pure and simple".

He said the humanitarian system has "effectively collapsed", and that "doctors have been killed or detained, and facilities are working without sufficient medical supplies, water and sanitation infrastructure".

"The UN has a plan and the systems in place to respond," Rajasingham said.

"We've said this before, and we will say it again and again: let us work."

The countries that called today's UN Security Council emergency session, which is due to start shortly, have issued a joint statement.

Britain, France, Greece, Denmark and Slovenia have said Israel's plan to occupy Gaza City risks "violating international humanitarian law" and will endanger civilians in Gaza.

"We call on Israel to urgently reverse this decision," the countries said.

They added that mass starvation in Gaza is a "man-made crisis" and that "urgent action is needed to halt starvation and to surge aid into Gaza".

"We have a clear message for Israel: lift restrictions on aid delivery to allow the UN and established humanitarian partners to operate safely and at scale, in line with the principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will take over "security control" of Gaza in a press conference, confirming his intention for an Israeli occupation of Gaza.

The leader, who faces an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes, called for the demilitarisation of Gaza and for Hamas to disarm.

At least 450 people were arrested at a rally in London on Saturday against the proscription of Palestine Action, it has emerged.

Hundreds gathered in support of the group, which was proscribed as a terrorist organisation after members broke into an RAF base and spray-painted two planes.

At least 450 people were arrested at a rally in London on Saturday against the proscription of Palestine Action.

Hundreds gathered in support of the group, which was proscribed as a terrorist organisation after members broke into an RAF base and spray-painted two planes. pic.twitter.com/4IsnkOiDIt

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