Israel-Palestine live: Unicef says over 13,000 children killed in Gaza

China's foreign minister Wang Yi on Thursday called Israel's war on Gaza a "disgrace for civilisation" and reiterated Beijing's calls for an "immediate ceasefire".

"It is a tragedy for humankind and a disgrace for civilisation that today, in the 21st century, this humanitarian disaster cannot be stopped," Wang told journalists at a press conference.

Beijing has been calling for an immediate ceasefire since the start of the current war in October last year.

China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and supportive of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

And President Xi Jinping has called for an "international peace conference" to resolve the fighting.

"No reason can justify the continuation of the conflict, and no excuse can justify being desperately killed," Wang said. 

"The international community must act urgently, making an immediate ceasefire and the cessation of hostilities an overriding priority, and ensuring humanitarian relief an urgent moral responsibility."

Beijing's top diplomat also said China supports "full" United Nations membership for a Palestinian state.

"We support Palestine becoming a formal member of the United Nations," Wang said.

"The catastrophe in Gaza once again reminded the world that the fact that the Palestinian territories have been occupied for a long time can no longer be ignored," he said.

"The long-cherished wish of the Palestinian people to establish an independent country can no longer be evaded, and the historical injustice suffered by the Palestinian people cannot continue for generations without being corrected," he added.

Reporting by AFP

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, 

It's 7:52 am (5:52 GMT) in Palestine and Israel. Here are the latest developments on day 153 of Israel's war on Gaza: 

• Israeli air strikes in the central Gaza Strip killed at least 17 Palestinians overnight, according to local media. 

• The New York Times reported that hope is dimming to reach a truce deal before Ramadan starts next week, as Israel refuses to commit to a permanent ceasefire.  

• The US military said it conducted strikes against two unmanned aerial vehicles in Yemen after a Houthi missile attack on a vessel killed three crew members. 

• Manila said two of those killed were Filipino citizens. 

Good evening Middle East Eye readers,

The Palestinian health ministry said that the death toll from malnutrition and dehydration in Gaza has risen to 18.

Israeli government ministers also announced that a planning body advanced permits for 3,500 new West Bank settlement homes near Jerusalem.

In other developments:

British Foreign Minister David Cameron expressed his horror at the deaths of two seafarers who were killed in a Houthi missile strike on a Red Sea merchant vessel on Wednesday.

"Appalled to hear about the deaths of MV True Confidence international crew members in a Houthi attack in the Red Sea. Our thoughts are with their families," Cameron said in a post on X.

"We condemn the Houthis' reckless & indiscriminate attacks on global shipping & demand they stop. We will continue to stand up for freedom of navigation and back our words with actions."

South Africa is requesting that the International Court of Justice (ICJ issue new additional provisional measures against Israel in light of reports of widespread starvation.

According to the document from South Africa, the country wants the Court to indicate further provisional measures and/or to modify its provisional measures to “ensure the safety and security of 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, including over a million children”.

“Palestinians in Gaza are no longer at ‘immediate risk of death by starvation.’ 11 At least 15 Palestinian children- including babies- in Gaza have already died of starvation in the past week alone, with the actual numbers believed to be much higher,” South Africa wrote.

The country added that Palestinian children are starving to death as a direct result of the “deliberate acts and omissions of Israel- in violation of the Genocide Convention and of the Court’s Order”.

“This includes Israel’s deliberate attempts to cripple the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (‘Unrwa’), on whom the vast majority of besieged, displaced and starving Palestinian men, women, children and babies depend for their survival.”

British Foreign Minister David Cameron said that on Wednesday he discussed with Benny Gantz, a member of Israel's war cabinet, regarding Israel's obligation to deliver aid to Gaza and Britain's apprehension about the possibility of a military operation in Rafah.

"I made clear the steps Israel must take to increase aid into Gaza, and the UK's deep concern about the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah," Cameron said.

"These are tough but necessary conversations."

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday that approximately 250 aid trucks passed into Gaza through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom border crossings on Tuesday.

He noted an improvement in aid distribution, yet added that the quantity of aid reaching Gaza remains insufficient.

"We need to see dramatically more go in," Miller said.

On Wednesday, Germany urged the Israeli government to immediately withdraw its authorisation of additional settlements in the West Bank, stating that the construction of settlements in occupied Palestinian territories constituted a grave breach of international law.

Regarding the approval by Israel's Supreme Planning Authority of plans to build approximately 3,500 new housing units in the West Bank settlements of Maale Adumim, Kedar, and Efrat, the ministry stated: "We strongly condemn the approval of further settlement units in the West Bank."

A US official confirmed that a Houthi attack on the freighter True Confidence in the Gulf of Aden resulted in the deaths of at least two sailors.

According to the BBC, the Barbados-flagged True Confidence was drifting with a fire on board after being hit at about 09:30 GMT on Wednesday. Some crew abandoned the ship and others were reported missing after the missile attack. 

Prior to Wednesday's incident, the True Confidence was intercepted by a group identifying as the "Yemeni navy", which instructed the vessel to alter its course, according to maritime security firm Ambrey, BBC reported.

Yemen's Houthi movement has not yet commented.

Iraq has pledged a $25m donation to the UN Palestinian refugee agency (Unrwa), according to statements from government officials to Reuters on Wednesday.

They did not say when Baghdad would pay the sum, Reuters reported.

This morning, Qatar also pledged $25m to Unrwa.

Qatar's permanent representative to the UN, Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani, said her country will provide additional financial aid to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa), worth $25m; to help in "unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip”.

She condemned “the systematic targeting campaign aimed at dismantling Unrwa, and expresses its regret over the suspension of some donor countries’ funding allocated to the agency,” saying there is no alternative to the agency to help Palestinian refugees.

An Israeli air strike has hit the town of Yaroun, in southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh governorate, according to the Israeli army and the Lebanese state news agency NNA.

The Israeli army said it brought down an explosive drone launched by Hezbollah and infiltrated Metula, a northern Israeli town.  

The attack comes hours after Hezbollah announced it hit Metula, in northern Israel.  It has also said that it has used "approporiate weapons" to hit the Avivim settlement in northern Israel.

The UN agency for Palestine refugees (Unrwa) has warned that a man-made famine looms in Gaza. In a post on X, Unrwa called for immediate, unimpeded access to all of the besieged enclave, stating that "hunger is everywhere".

It said that the supplies allowed into the Strip are not sufficient to feed all Gazans. 

In the southern city of Rafah, children have protested against the severe lack of food and water in Gaza, with less than one week from the month of Ramadan. They called upon Arab countries and the international community to take action against the dire situation in the Strip.

Many held banners saying "Stop our daily death," while others were seen carrying body bags on stretchers, as a sign of those who died of starvation. 

Earlier, health authorities in Gaza confirmed there had been 18 deaths resulting from malnutrition and dehydration in the besieged enclave.

The grand opening of the first Shake Shack location in Tel Aviv has sparked backlash, as it coincides with growing famine in Gaza as a result of Israel stopping aid. 

According to Haaretz, groups of young people lined up for the opening.

However, online, many social media users have called for a boycott of the fast-food giant. 

“Shake Shack has opened in Israeli territory in a time of genocide. Shut its branches in the Arab world!” one social media user said. 

Others suggested alternatives to the chain. 

“If you're in Kuwait, try the awesome Kuwaiti burger shop "Fat Cap" and you'll thank me later,” another said.