Live: Hamas agrees to release 10 Israeli captives

Israeli air strikes in the late hours of Saturday into Sunday have killed at least 17 Palestinians in different areas in Gaza.

An Israeli bombing on a house sheltering displaced Palestinians in Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood of northern Gaza City killed at least 12 people, while many remain missing.

Separately, another three Palestinians were also killed in an Israeli attack on the Tuffah neighbourhood of Gaza City, according to a source at al-Ahli Arab Hospital.

In another incident in southern Gaza, an Israeli drone attack on a tent housing displaced people killed two people and injured others in al-Mawasi area.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates on Israel's war on Gaza and developments in the occupied West Bank:

• At least 12 people were killed on Saturday night into Sunday in an Israeli attack on a house sheltering displaced Palestinians in al-sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, located north of Gaza City.

• Israel has rejected Hamas's amendments to the Qatari ceasefire proposal, and said they were “unacceptable”. Despite rejecting the changes, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to move forward with negotiations.

• The Israeli army said late Saturday that it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen, after air raid sirens sounded in several areas.

• Another two people were killed and others injured late Saturday in an Israeli air strike on a tent housing displaced people in al-Mawasi area, south of Gaza, according to medical sources at Nasser Medical Complex.

• An Israeli bombing on a building located in al-Tuffah neighbourhood, east of Gaza City, killed three Palestinians.

• Israeli forces raided in the late hours of Saturday several towns in the occupied West Bank, including the towns  of al-Khader and Tuqu in Bethlehem and the town of Beit Ummar, located in the north of Hebron.

Our live coverage from Gaza will shortly be closing until tomorrow morning.

Here are some of the day's key developments:

• At least 78 people have died in Israeli air strikes since midnight on Saturday, hospital sources in Gaza have said.

• At least 23 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes and more than 54 wounded in aid-related attacks in the past day, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza.

• The total death toll since 7 October has now climbed to 57,338, with 135,957 people wounded, according to official figures.

• Between 18 March when Israel broke the ceasefire with Hamas and 5 July 2025, at least 6,780 Palestinians were killed and 23,916 wounded.

• Lebanon said one person was killed and six wounded on Saturday in a series of Israeli strikes in the south despite a ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah.

• US President Donald Trump said Saturday that it was a “good thing” that Hamas has responded in “positive spirit” on a US-brokered ceasefire proposal.

• Israeli media report that Israel is preparing to dispatch a negotiating team to Qatar, possibly as early as tomorrow, to finalise a ceasefire agreement.

• The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late on Saturday that the amendments proposed by Hamas to the Qatari ceasefire framework were "not acceptable to Israel", reported the Israeli daily Haaretz.

• English rock legend Roger Waters has publicly declared his support for the recently banned direct-action group Palestine Action, calling the UK government’s decision to proscribe it as a “terrorist organisation” a betrayal of justice and democracy.

A consulting firm involved in the scandal-plagued Gaza Humanitarian Foundation entered into a multimillion-dollar contract to develop the initiative and modelled a plan to "relocate" Palestinians from Gaza as part of its work, a Financial Times investigation has revealed.

The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) helped design and run the US and Israeli-backed scheme which aimed to supplant United Nations-led aid coordination mechanisms in Gaza.

The chaotic roll out of the programme has seen 600 Palestinians killed and another 4,000 wounded by Israeli forces while attempting to access aid.

The firm has disavowed its involvement in the project, claiming in a statement in June that it had initially provided "pro bono support" for the project, but two senior partners that led the work "failed to disclose" its full nature and had subsequently carried out "unauthorised work" on the project.

It said that the partners have since been fired and an investigation has been launched into the firm's involvement in the scheme.

Read more: US consultancy firm involved in GHF aid scheme modelled plans to 'relocate' Palestinians

English rock legend Roger Waters has publicly declared his support for the recently banned direct-action group Palestine Action, calling the UK government’s decision to proscribe it as a “terrorist organisation” a betrayal of justice and democracy.

Speaking in a video recorded on 5 July, Waters, co-founder of Pink Floyd, accused the UK Parliament of being “corrupted by agents of a genocidal foreign power,” referencing Israel.

“This is Independence Day, July the fifth, 2025. I declare my independence from the government of the UK,” said Waters, criticising the decision to criminalise support for Palestine Action. “They are nonviolent. They are absolutely not terrorist in any way.”

Palestine Action was officially designated a terrorist organisation by the British government on Saturday, a move that has drawn condemnation from human rights groups and activists. The group has targeted arms manufacturers linked to Israel, most notably Elbit Systems, which produces weapons used in Israel’s military operations in Gaza.

Waters defended the group’s tactics as peaceful and justified, saying: “They are a nonviolent protest organisation protesting the presence in the UK of Elbit Systems, an Israeli arms manufacturing organisation… I support Palestine Action and I always will because that is the right thing to do.”

Referencing journalist George Monbiot’s call for public defiance, Waters echoed the rallying cry: “This is the ‘I am Spartacus’ moment… Good on everybody who is standing up everywhere and saying, ‘I am Spartacus.’ We will not be rolled over by this appalling Labour government in the United Kingdom.”

The musician concluded with a stark message: “Palestine Action is not a terrorist organisation. They are lying… that’s all I have to say."

Waters has long been outspoken on Palestinian rights and has previously faced backlash for his criticism of Israeli policies. His latest comments have further amplified calls for scrutiny over the UK’s crackdown on pro-Palestine activism.

As Brics gears up for its annual summit in Rio de Janeiro next week, the group's reluctance to mobilise against Israel's war on Gaza has left a gaping hole in its credibility as an institution purportedly meant to represent the Global South, experts and scholars have said.

The failure of Brics to take a bold stance and build consensus in addressing a perilous global climate involving multiple wars and an escalating crisis in the Middle East - including Israel's unprovoked attack on Iran, a member of Brics - illustrates the limitations of the grouping and a structural inability to pose a serious challenge to the US-led world order, the scholars said.

Since its inception in 2009, Brics has been touted as an attempt to consolidate economic cooperation as well as reform the international system to better serve the interests of developing economies.

Its success has been, at best, patchy, with the group being dogged by internal contradictions and competing member interests that have only appeared to deepen over the past decade. 

Next week's summit in Rio, starting on 6 July, is already a diluted affair, with both Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping expected to skip the event for reasons that perfectly encapsulate the ambivalence surrounding both the efficacy as well as the political posturing of the bloc itself.

Read more: Israel's war on Gaza has exposed 'deep divide' within Brics, experts say

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late on Saturday that the amendments proposed by Hamas to the Qatari ceasefire framework were "not acceptable to Israel", reported the Israeli daily Haaretz.

Despite rejecting the changes, Netanyahu has agreed to move forward with negotiations. Israeli officials are expected to travel to Qatar on Sunday to continue talks aimed at reaching a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun met with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in Beirut, following Lammy’s visit to Syria, the presidency said on Saturday.

During the talks, Aoun stressed that the current regional tensions require the continued presence of Unifil in southern Lebanon to help implement UN Resolution 1701.

“The continued Israeli occupation of the five hills, its repeated aggressions, and its failure to release prisoners make it difficult for the state to fully impose its authority, protect its citizens and enforce its decisions, including the exclusive possession of weapons,” the presidency said.

Aoun also noted that the army will soon deploy 10,000 troops to southern Lebanon, with only legitimate security forces and UN peacekeepers allowed to operate in the area.

Lammy reportedly reaffirmed the UK’s support for the Lebanese military and said London is closely monitoring the developments in the country

Two journalists from the German state broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) were attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in the occupied West Bank, the outlet said on Saturday.

The correspondent and cameraman came under assault on Friday in the Palestinian village of Sinjil, north of Ramallah. They were covering a planned protest against mounting settler violence when a group of settlers hurled stones at them and chased them from the scene.

The DW crew managed to escape without physical injury, but the cameraman’s vehicle was severely damaged. According to DW, other international journalists present during the attack were also forced to flee after coming under a barrage of stones.

DW director Peter Limbourg condemned the assault, calling for immediate accountability.

"This attack cannot be justified by anything, and we demand quite clearly: the Israeli government must guarantee the safety of all journalists in the West Bank," he said in a statement.

Read more: Israeli settlers attack German journalists reporting on West Bank violence

Israeli media report that Israel is preparing to dispatch a negotiating team to Qatar, possibly as early as tomorrow, to finalise a ceasefire agreement.

The Israeli Broadcasting Authority said the cabinet will review Hamas’s response to the ceasefire proposal tonight and has not dismissed it, viewing it as a basis for further discussion.

Axios global affairs correspondent Barak Ravid tweeted that an Israeli official confirmed Prime Minister Netanyahu’s decision to send negotiators to Doha, departing either tonight or tomorrow.

The team aims to hold “proximity talks” with Hamas to resolve outstanding issues and agree on the final terms regarding the Gaza hostage situation and ceasefire deal.

At least 23 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes and more than 54 wounded in aid-related attacks in the past day, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza.

The total number of Palestinians killed while trying to access food or supplies has now risen to 743, with over 4,891 injured.

Gaza's Ministry of Health said at least 70 people were killed and 332 wounded in the past 24 hours, as Israel’s assault on the besieged enclave grinds on.

Rescue efforts remain hampered, with many victims still trapped under rubble or lying in streets unreachable due to ongoing bombardment.

The total death toll since 7 October has now climbed to 57,338, with 135,957 people wounded, according to official figures.

Between 18 March and 5 July 2025, at least 6,780 Palestinians were killed and 23,916 wounded, highlighting the intensifying toll of recent months.

Two Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli drone strike targeting the town of Bani Suhaila, located east of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, according to medical officials.

Nasser Medical Complex confirmed the deaths, reporting that the victims were brought in following the aerial attack.

Lebanon said one person was killed and six wounded on Saturday in a series of Israeli strikes in the south despite a ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah.

An "Israeli enemy drone strike on a vehicle" in the town of Bint Jbeil "killed one person and wounded two", Lebanon's health ministry said in a statement carried by the official National News Agency (NNA).

The Israeli military said in a statement that its forces "struck and eliminated" an operative from Hezbollah's elite Radwan force in the area.

The health ministry also reported one person wounded in a drone strike on another car in the same town, and two others seriously wounded in a similar raid on a vehicle in nearby Shaqra.

Reporting by AFP.