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

Hospitals in Gaza say at least 35 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks since dawn.

Medical sources told Al Jazeera that among those killed were 10 people who had gathered in search of aid.

US President Donald Trump has hailed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “war hero”, despite the fact that the Israeli leader is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

Speaking to the controversial pro-Israel conservative radio host Mark Levin, Trump said: “He’s a good man. He’s in there fighting … He’s a war hero, because we worked together. He’s a war hero. I guess I am, too.”

The president dismissed attempts to prosecute Netanyahu, claiming “they’re trying to put him in jail”. It was not clear if he was referring to the ICC case or Netanyahu’s ongoing corruption trial at home.

He also said he “worked hard” to free Israeli captives in negotiations with Hamas, insisting: “I’m the one that got all the hostages back … I’ve had so many letters from parents and from the kids themselves and the people that got out … none of these people would have been back, but I got them back.”

Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has signed off on a military plan to take Gaza City and authorised the mobilisation of about 60,000 reservists, his ministry has confirmed.

A spokesperson for the ministry told AFP the reports, first published in Israeli media, were accurate.

Australia has pushed back against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after he called the country's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese “weak”.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke told the ABC on Wednesday that Netanyahu was confusing strength with violence. “Strength is not measured by how many people you can blow up or how many children you can leave hungry,” Burke said.

His remarks came a day after Netanyahu launched a fierce social media attack on Albanese, accusing him of betraying Israel and abandoning Australia’s Jewish community.

Burke described the criticism as part of Israel’s “lashing out” at governments that have chosen to recognise Palestine.

Burke praised Albanese’s approach, saying the prime minister was direct with Netanyahu about policy decisions before announcing them publicly. “He has the conversation, he says exactly what we’re intending to do, and has the chance for the objections to be made person to person. And then having heard them, makes public announcement and then does what needs to be done,” Burke said.

British MPs have warned that the government must not allow British nationals to fight in the Israeli military after it emerged that Israel is mulling the recruitment of Jewish youths from abroad to fight in its army due to severe manpower shortages.

Middle East Eye asked the Home Office and the Foreign Office what the government's stance on UK nationals enlisting in the Israeli military is.

The Home Office declined to comment and referred MEE to the Foreign Office. The Foreign Office declined to comment and referred MEE to the Home Office.

Scottish National Party MP Chris Law told MEE: "The UK government must warn against enlistment and ensure that anyone who ignores these warning and does enlist is subsequently held accountable to international law."

Army Radio reported this week that the Israeli government was looking at a possible campaign to reach out to the diaspora to fill vacancies within the ranks of the military.

Read more: UK declines to share stance on Britons fighting for Israeli army

Hospitals in Gaza have told Al Jazeera Arabic that at least 31 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks across the Strip since dawn.

Medical officials confirmed that eight of those killed were waiting for aid near the Netzarim junction in central Gaza.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, 

Here are the latest updates from the Israeli war on Gaza, now in its 683rd day: 

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused French President Emmanuel Macron of fuelling “the anti-Semitic fire” in France. The accusation follows President Macron's plan to formally recognise Palestinian statehood.

• Israeli strikes across Gaza killed at least 51 people on Tuesday, according to local reports. Among the dead are seven individuals who were waiting to collect food aid.

• Mediators confirm that Hamas has approved a proposal for a ceasefire deal. They state that Israel has not yet issued an official response to the terms of the agreement.

• Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, asserts that “the ball is in Israel’s court”. He is calling for increased international pressure on Israel to accept the current ceasefire proposal.

• The White House reports that US officials are actively discussing the ceasefire proposal.

Good evening Middle East Eye readers,

Israel escalated its genocide in Gaza on Tuesday despite Hamas agreeing to a 60 day ceasefire. At least 51 Palestinians were killed by Israel across the enclave by Israeli strikes. 

Here is what else you need to know:

• A Palestinian father and his son were attacked on Tuesday in eastern Hebron in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa 
• Egypt said that it is now Israel's responsibility to agree to a 60-day ceasefire proposal after Hamas accepted the deal
• Unrwa said that Israel's relentless attacks on UN schools housing forcibly displaced Palestinians have turned them into a "place of death." 

At least two girls were killed and several people were injured on Tuesday by an Israeli stike on a house in Khan Younis, according to the Nasser Hospital in Gaza. 

The strike comes as several Palestinians were also injured in what Al Jazeera Arabic reported was an Israeli drone strike on a tent housing forcibly displaced people in  al-Mawasi camp.

A Palestinian national basketball team player was killed by Israel while seeking food for his family in Khan Younis, Arabic media reported on Tuesday. 

Mohammed Shaalan, a famous Palestinian player who earned the nickname “The Earthquake,” was targeted by Israeli gunfire while trying to obtain food for his children at an American and Israeli food distribution site. 

Shaalan was desperate to bring food back to his daughter who suffers from Kidney failure, Arabic media reports said. 

Palestinians have been attacked by US mercenaries and Israeli soldiers while trying to take meager food supplies from sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). 

At least one Palestinian was injured by Israeli gunfire during a raid on the city of Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa. 

Israeli soldiers stormed the eastern part of Tulkarm and attacked Palestinian men as they searched vehicles and fired live ammunition. 

One young man was shot in the foot, according to Wafa. 

Israel launched fresh attacks on Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.

Israel launched "fire belts" on the town, according to Arabic media reports, meaning it unleashed heavy, repeated strikes in specific locations in Jabalia. 

At least 18,885 children are among the more than 62,000 Palestinians who have been killed by Israel's genocide in Gaza since October 2023, according to the Gaza Government Media Office. 

The death toll comes as Israel escalates its attacks, including on UN schools turned into shelters. 

The UN said earlier today that Israel has turned schools in Gaza into a "place of death."

A Palestinian father and his son were attacked on Tuesday in eastern Hebron in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa. 

Shaker Hamed al-Zaro told Wafa that settlers assaulted him and his son Faraj while they were inspecting their agricultural land near the Kiryat Arba settlement.

Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. 

Zaro said he and his son suffered injuries to their heads, limbs, and chests.

The Zaro's land has decayed as settlers and the Israeli military prevent them from accessing it regularly. 

The White House on Tuesday said it is "discussing" a 60 day ceasefire proposal in Gaza that Hamas has agreed to. 

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said US officials are engaging with the proposal put forward by Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt.

Hamas accepted the 60 day ceasefire on Monday but Israel has yet to respond. It has accelerated its genocide in Gaza.