Live: Israeli soldiers kill unarmed Palestinians as they surrender in Jenin

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates from Gaza, 23 days after a fragile ceasefire ended Israel's two-year genocidal war: 

• Israeli warplanes targeted the eastern areas of Gaza City early morning on Monday morning. 

• Israeli forces killed another Palestinian man in Gaza City, as the death toll since the ceasefire rises to at least 236.

• Israeli forces stormed the city of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, launched raids and arrested several citizens.

• Israeli authorities say the remains of captives handed over by Hamas will be examined at Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv, and that the identification process could take up to two days.

• US President Donald Trump said one of the bodies was that of American-Israeli soldier Omer Neutra. The New York native’s parents have confirmed the identification. 

• Israeli Army Radio said that "the family of Israeli prisoner Amir Nawtra announced that his body was returned to Israel yesterday".

• Turkey is set to host a meeting on Gaza with the participation of several countries, including Egypt and Qatar. Discussions are expected to include the proposed "international stabilisation force".

• Palestinian media reported that the Israeli forces are carrying out demolition operations on residential homes in southern Gaza.

Our live blog will shortly be closing until tomorrow morning.

Here are the day's key developments:

• The death toll in the Gaza Strip since the start of Israel's genocide in October 2023 has risen to 68,865, the Palestinian health ministry announced. The majority of victims are women and children. The ministry added on Sunday that the number of wounded had increased to 170,670. 

• It said the bodies of seven victims arrived at hospitals in the Gaza Strip over the last 24 hours, including three recently killed Palestinians, three recovered from under the debris, and one who succumbed to their wounds. Since the ceasefire took effect on 11 October, 236 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and at least 600 others wounded.

• Israeli forces launched attacks on Gaza and carried out home demolitions on Sunday despite the ongoing ceasefire agreement. 

• An Israeli air strike killed a Palestinian man in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian health authorities said.

• Gaza’s Health Ministry says the bodies of 500 Palestinians have been pulled from the rubble since Israel’s assault supposedly paused under a US-brokered ceasefire.

• The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society has confirmed the death of 63-year-old Mohammed Hussein Ghawadra from Burqin, near Jenin, who died today while being held by Israeli authorities.

• Israeli forces detained at least 21 Palestinians during raids across the occupied West Bank on Sunday, including children.

• Israel has warned that its military will step up attacks in southern Lebanon, a day after four people were killed in an Israeli air strike. Despite a November 2024 ceasefire with Hezbollah, Israel maintains troops in five areas in southern Lebanon and has carried out near-daily attacks.

• Israel’s prime minister’s office has confirmed that the bodies of three deceased Israeli captives have been handed over via the Red Cross and returned to Israel.

The Israeli military is set to appoint a new advocate general after a scandal forced the resignation of its top lawyer, who admitted to leaking footage apparently showing soldiers raping a Palestinian detainee.

Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi stepped down on Friday after confirming her involvement in leaking surveillance video from the notorious Sde Teiman detention camp during Israel's genocidal war on Gaza.

The footage, published in August last year, purportedly showed a group of soldiers at Sde Teiman gang-raping a Palestinian detainee while forming a human barrier around him.

The leak came amid backlash from ultranationalist Israelis over a military investigation into the assault. 

Tomer-Yerushalmi said the video was released to the press to counter pressure from far-right groups attacking the military advocate general's office.

Read more: Israel to appoint new army lawyer after Palestinian prisoner rape scandal

German leader Friedrich Merz said on X that he and the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “agreed that the ceasefire in Gaza must hold.”

“People there need safe humanitarian access, and Hamas must finally return the remains of the last hostages,” he wrote.

Germany has remained one of Israel’s staunchest allies throughout its genocidal war on Gaza, shielding Tel Aviv diplomatically as it continues its genocide of Palestinians under the guise of “self-defence.”

Lebanon’s National News Agency has reported that an Israeli drone launched three missiles near the Zefta–Nmeiriyeh junction in the Nabatieh area of southern Lebanon.

The strike hit a road close to a butcher shop, though no injuries were immediately reported.

Israel continues to violate its ceasefire with Hezbollah, carrying out relentless attacks across southern Lebanon. Dozens of people - including medics, journalists, and civilians - have been killed in Israeli strikes since the truce was agreed last November.

Despite its claims of “self-defence,” Israel’s repeated bombardments have drawn growing condemnation for fuelling instability and targeting non-combatants.

Israel’s prime minister’s office has confirmed that the bodies of three deceased Israeli captives have been handed over via the Red Cross and returned to Israel.

It said the victims’ families have been informed and that they will be honoured in a military ceremony.

Under the ceasefire terms, Israel is required to return the bodies of 45 Palestinians held in its custody, 15 for each Israeli captive received.

While Israel insists on full military honours for its dead, it continues to withhold the remains of countless Palestinians, using them as bargaining chips in a policy long condemned by rights groups as a violation of international law and basic human dignity.

The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society has confirmed the death of 63-year-old Mohammed Hussein Ghawadra from Burqin, near Jenin, who died today while being held by Israeli authorities.

Ghawadra, detained since August 2024, was denied essential medical treatment despite suffering from chronic illnesses, the group said. His death, it added, exposes Israel’s “systematic crimes” against Palestinian detainees, including routine medical neglect and physical and psychological abuse.

According to the organisation, Ghawadra’s death raises the number of Palestinian prisoners killed in Israeli custody since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza to 81. Since 1967, at least 318 Palestinians have died behind Israeli bars.

Ghawadra was the father of administrative detainee Sami Ghawadra, who remains imprisoned without charge or trial, and of Shadi Ghawadra, who was released and exiled to Egypt earlier this year as part of a prisoner exchange with Hamas.

Rights groups have repeatedly accused Israel of turning its prisons into “slow-death chambers,” where Palestinian detainees are subjected to brutal interrogation, starvation, and denial of medical care.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says the bodies of 500 Palestinians have been pulled from the rubble since Israel’s assault supposedly paused under a US-brokered ceasefire.

The ministry also confirmed that Israeli forces have continued their attacks, killing at least 236 Palestinians and wounding more than 600 since the truce began, exposing what Palestinians describe as a “ceasefire in name only.”

A US federal court has raised "serious questions" about the legality of detaining pro-Palestine British journalist Sami Hamdi, according to a legal advocacy group.

The court has blocked the Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency from transferring Hamdi out of California. Meanwhile, his case proceeds, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) said on Saturday.

Cair added that the court recognised that Hamdi's lawyers "raised serious questions regarding whether his detention was retaliation for protected speech under the First Amendment".

The advocacy group described the ruling as "an important first step".

"The court has recognised that this case raises serious constitutional concerns and has acted to ensure Sami cannot be quietly moved away from his lawyers," said Hussam Ayloush, the executive director of Cair's southern California chapter.

"The fight continues for his freedom and for the protection of free speech for everyone."

Earlier, Hamdi's family reported that he had been suffering from severe pain on his left side while in detention. He was later given on-site medical treatment.

Read more: US court questions legality of pro-Palestine British journalist's detention

"I don't believe in videos."

Israeli settler leader Daniella Weiss made the controversial remark during an ITV News interview with reporter James Smith after he offered to show her evidence of the latest attack on Palestinians by illegal Israeli settlers.

Weiss closed her eyes… pic.twitter.com/Qtk70mFkRs

— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) November 2, 2025

An Israeli air strike killed a Palestinian man in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian health authorities said.

Al-Ahli Hospital said one man was killed in the air strike near a vegetable market in the Shujaiya suburb of Gaza City. His identity was not immediately known.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said on Saturday that its troops were attacked by fighters in Gaza.

Hamas did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In a separate statement, it listed a series of Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreed in October, which have killed more than 200 people.

At least 236 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire took effect, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Three Israeli soldiers have been killed by Palestinian fighters in the same period, according to the Israeli military.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel would respond to any attempts to harm its troops in Gaza.

"There are still Hamas pockets in the areas under our control in Gaza, and we are systematically eliminating them," Netanyahu said.

Hamas said the United States was not doing enough to ensure Israel abides by the ceasefire agreement.

Reporting by Reuters 

The Israeli military is set to appoint a new advocate general after a scandal forced the resignation of its top lawyer, who admitted to leaking footage apparently showing soldiers raping a Palestinian detainee.

Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi stepped down on Friday after confirming her involvement in leaking surveillance video from the notorious Sde Teiman detention camp during Israel's genocidal war on Gaza.

The footage, published in August last year, purportedly showed a group of soldiers at Sde Teiman gang-raping a Palestinian detainee while forming a human barrier around him.

The leak came amid backlash from ultranationalist Israelis over a military investigation into the assault. 

Tomer-Yerushalmi said the video was released to the press to counter pressure from far-right groups attacking the military advocate general's office.

At least nine Israeli soldiers were questioned over the assault in late July, sparking widespread anger across Israel. 

Only five were indicted for "severe abuse" of the detainee, but not for rape. The trial remains ongoing.

On Sunday, the accused soldiers called for the case to be dropped.

Read more: Israel to appoint new army lawyer after Palestinian prisoner rape scandal