Live: Six more Palestinians die of famine as Israel blocks Gaza aid

The US State Department has dismissed a press officer after he resisted pro-Israel language on the occupied Gaza and the West Bank.

• Shahed Ghoreishi, an American contractor, was terminated over the weekend after challenging policy directives that favoured Israel’s hardline positions.

• He angered embassy officials in Jerusalem and aides to Secretary of State Marco Rubio by drafting a response to an AP query that included: “the US does not support the forced relocation of Gazans”. The line was struck out by the embassy.

• Ghoreishi also objected to the embassy’s description of the occupied West Bank as “Judea and Samaria,” terminology promoted by Israel’s far-right leaders and repeatedly used by US Ambassador Mike Huckabee and that seeks to erase Palestinian ownership of the land.

• His dismissal comes as Washington faces condemnation for aligning with Israel’s settlement agenda and military operations in Gaza.

• After being sacked, Ghoreishi was targeted by right-wing commentator Laura Loomer, who accused him of not fully backing Trump’s Middle East policies.

• The State Department declined to address the specifics, calling it an internal matter.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has demanded that Israel scrap its decision to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning the plan violates international law.

The proposal, approved this week by an Israeli Defence Ministry body, would slice through the West Bank and sever it from East Jerusalem. Guterres called the project “illegal” and urged Israel to reverse course.

Speaking in Japan, where he is attending the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, the UN chief also appealed for an immediate truce in Gaza. His remarks came as Israel began the first stage of a military push into Gaza City.

“It is vital to reach immediately a ceasefire in Gaza,” Guterres said, stressing it was needed “to avoid the death and destruction that a military operation against Gaza City would inevitably cause.”

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, 

Here are the latest updates from the Israeli war on Gaza, now in its 684th day: 

• Israeli forces killed at least 81 Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday, launching what its military terms the initial phase of a planned assault on Gaza City. 

• Three more Palestinians died from starvation on Wednesday, raising the official death toll from malnutrition and dehydration to 269. This figure includes 112 children.

• Israeli troops shot and killed a prominent former Palestinian national basketball player, Mohammed Shaalan, at an aid distribution point in southern Gaza. The incident forms part of a wider pattern of violence targeting aid seekers, with at least 30 killed in such circumstances on Wednesday.

• Israel has approved a contentious construction plan for the E1 area of the occupied West Bank, a move critics say aims to bisect the territory and undermine a future Palestinian state. British Foreign Minister David Lammy condemned the decision, saying, if implemented, it would "mark a flagrant breach of international law and critically undermine the two-state solution".

• The United States is imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court officials, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced. The sanctions target prosecutors involved in seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes in Gaza.

• A new Reuters/Ipsos poll indicates that 58 percent of Americans believe every country should recognise Palestine. The findings reveal significant public support on the issue of Palestinian statehood.

Good evening Middle East Eye readers, 

At least 81 Palestinians were killed by Israel's genocide in Gaza on Wednesday, as Israel said it was entering the first phase of its assault on Gaza City. Meanwhile, Hamas said Israel's offensive on the urban centre showed a  “blatant disregard” for efforts by Egypt and Qatar to broker a ceasefire. The group accepted a 60 day ceasefire this week. 

Here is what else you need to know:

• The New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) said that it filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for its failure to comply with a Freedom of Information Act (Foia) request demanding the financial records of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)
• A US-Palestinian advoacy group has condemned the Trump administration's decision to sanction ICC judges and prosecutors as a "disgrace"
• Israeli media on Wedneday reported large-scale fighting between Hamas's armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, and Israeli soldiers in Gaza 
• Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs and close advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Ron Dermer, met on Wednesday with senior Qatari officials in Paris to discuss a Gaza ceasefire deal, according to a report by Axios

A US State Department contractor who currently served as the top press officer for Israel-Palestinian affairs has been fired after clashing with officials over how to describe Israel's genocide in Gaza.

Shahed Ghoreishi was fired on Monday after an internal debate about whether the State Department should issue a public statement saying it rejected a forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, the Washington Post reported.

Senior State Department officials told Ghoreishi to delete any condemnation of forced displacement to be shared with media outlets, the Post said. Ghoreishi, who worked as a State Department contractor, was fired on Monday.

Ghoreishi had previously irked senior State Department officials with the Trump administration for lobbying to issue a statement expressing condolences for the death of journalists in Gaza after Israel killed Al Jazeera reporter Anas al-Sharif and several other journalists in Gaza City earlier this month. 

The senior officials rejected his suggestion to make the statement, the Post reported. 

Hamas on Wednesday said that Israel’s military plans to conquer Gaza City reveal its “blatant disregard” for efforts to broker a ceasefire. 

"Today's announcement by the terrorist occupation army of the start of an operation against Gaza City and its nearly one million residents and displaced persons... demonstrates... a blatant disregard for the efforts made by the mediators," Hamas said in a statement.

Hamas accepted a 60-day ceasefire proposal put forward by Qatar and Egypt earlier this week. Israel has not responded to the proposal. 

The New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) said on Wednesday that it filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for its failure to comply with a Freedom of Information Act (Foia) request demanding the financial records of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). 

"Today's lawsuit seeks records that could shed light on not only the decision-making process... but also on the creation of GHF, its funding and how it plans to use" a US government grant, CCR said.

"The Center for Constitutional Rights is particularly interested in information that could reveal whether the administration's distribution of funds has any link to President Trump's 'Gaza Riviera' plan, which would cleanse the area of Palestinians and redevelop it for investors," the statement said.

Since GHF began its food parcel distribution operations in southern Gaza in May, its funding sources have been shrouded in mystery. The scandal-plagued aid scheme saw its first CEO resign because of human rights concerns, before over 1,000 Palestinians were killed by Israeli soldiers at its now four locations in the enclave. 

Read More: Lawsuit demands Trump administration reveal Gaza Humanitarian Foundation funding

A US-Palestinian advoacy group has condemned the Trump administration's decision to sanction ICC judges and prosecutors as a "disgrace."

"When the US punishes judges for daring to pursue justice for Palestinian victims, it confirms what so many of us already fear — that international law doesn’t apply to the powerful, regardless of the gravity of their crimes,"  Sandra Tamari, Executive Director of Adalah Justice Project, told Middle East Eye. 
 
“Palestinians turned to the ICC because every other door was slammed in our faces. And now, even that door is being torched. These sanctions are not just political; they are moral failure. If genocide and apartheid can't even be investigated without retaliation, then what justice is left for our people?” she added. 

The death toll from Israel's genocide in Gaza rose to 81 people since dawn on Wednesday according to Al Jazeera. 

Israel is escalating its attacks on the enclave despite Hamas agreeing to a 60 day ceasefire earlier this week. 

The death toll from Israel's genocide in Gaza rose to 76 on Wednesday according to Al Jazeera, as Israel escalated its attacks across the enclave. 

Israel is preparing for a widescale assault on Gaza City and continues to kill Palestinians seeking aid at US and Israeli run food distribution sites. 

Al Jazeera reported that at least 15 people were killed and 105 injured seeking aid since dawn. 

Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs and close advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Ron Dermer, met on Wednesday with senior Qatari officials in Paris to discuss a Gaza ceasefire deal, according to a report by Axios. 

Dermer told the Qatari officials that Israel wants all the Israeli captives in Gaza released and Hamas's "defeat." Axios did not specify what the Israeli demand means in practice. 

Hamas on Wednesday demonstrated its ability to launch a relatively large, sophisticated attack on Israeli troops after 22 months of Israeli assaults.

Hamas accepted a 60 day ceasefire put forward by Qatari and Egyptian mediators earlier this week.

The deal would see half the Israeli captives in Gaza exchanged for Palestinian prisoners and a halt in Israel's genocide in Gaza. 

Israel has not responded to the proposal. 

At least 72 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's genocide in Gaza since dawn according to Al Jazeera. 

The rising death toll includes 27 Palestinians killed while trying to seek aid. 

Of those killed at least 12 died in Israeli strikes near the Zikim crossing in northern Gaza.

UK foreign minister David Lammy said on Wednesday that Israel's planned settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank would constitute a breach of international law and risk dividing a future Palestinian state if implemented. 

Israel's sprawling E1 project is designed to bisect the occupied West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem. It received final approval from a defence ministry planning commission on Wednesday. 

"If implemented, it would divide a Palestinian state in two, mark a flagrant breach of international law and critically undermine the two-state solution," Lammy said in a post on X. 

At least 64 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's genocide in Gaza since dawn on Wednesday, according to Al Jazeera. 

At least 19 of those killed by Israel were trying to receive aid from US and Israeli run food distribution sites. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) runs the sites. 

Israel is planning to escalate its genocide with a new assault on Gaza City despite Hamas agreeing to a 60 day ceasefire earlier this week. Israel has not responded to the proposal offered by Qatari and Egyptian mediators. 

Israel has entered the first stages of its planned attack on Gaza City, Israeli military spokesman Effie Defrin said on Wednesday.

Israel announced on Wednesday it plans to call up an additional 60,000 reservists for the assault.

Israel has escalated its genocide on Gaza with airstrikes across the enclave in recent days.