Live: Gaza death toll nears 50,700

The World Food Programme’s director in Palestine has sounded the alarm over Gaza’s deepening hunger crisis, telling Al Jazeera that more than 90 percent of the population is now food insecure.

“We have some aid, but it is of very poor quality,” he said, highlighting the dire conditions. The lack of cooking gas remains a major obstacle, further crippling efforts to provide meals.

He also called for urgent measures to protect aid workers and demanded an end to the blockade choking off essential supplies.

Israeli settlers have stormed the Ras al-Ain area of Qusra, a town south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, Quds Press Agency reports.

Under the watch of Israeli forces, settlers have stepped up their raids, terrorising Palestinian communities with impunity.

Hamas insists Israel’s targeted killings of its leaders will not weaken the movement or break its will.

Suhail al-Hindi, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, condemned the assassination of Abdul Latif al-Qanou, calling it a “failed Israeli attempt to assassinate the voice of truth".

Despite the attacks, Hamas says negotiations are ongoing, with shuttle diplomacy continuing “around the clock".

Al-Hindi expressed hope for a ceasefire in the coming days, insisting the group remains flexible in talks to halt the war, end the occupation, and lift Israel’s siege on Gaza.

The US State Department may have revoked more than 300 visas, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Rubio on Thursday said the Trump administration was looking every day for "these lunatics" after federal immigration authorities detained and revoked the visa of a Turkish student.

The announcement is sure to send shockwaves through the international student community.

"It might be more than 300 at this point. We do it every day. Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas," Rubio said during a press conference in Guyana, as reported by Reuters.

"At some point, I hope we run out because we've gotten rid of all of them, but we're looking every day for these lunatics that are tearing things up."

Read more: US: Rubio says he may have revoked 'more than 300' visas over pro-Palestine campus activism

Lawyers for Mahmoud Khalil are set to appear in a New Jersey court today, fighting for his release from federal custody.

The 30-year-old pro-Palestinian student activist has been detained in Louisiana since his arrest in New York on 8 March under a Trump-era policy targeting foreign students who support Palestinian rights.

Khalil, a legal US resident married to an American citizen, has seen his case transferred from New York to New Jersey, though the government is pushing to move it again to Louisiana, where he remains in detention.

His ordeal reflects a broader crackdown, with students and academics across the US facing arrests, visa revocations, and deportations for their pro-Palestinian views.

The United Kingdom and France have urged the UN Security Council to meet on Friday to address the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the growing attacks on aid workers.

“Humanitarians are increasingly unable to operate in Gaza and last week a UN compound was hit. This is unacceptable,” the UK’s Mission to the UN posted on X.

Their demand comes just a day after an Israeli airstrike killed yet another aid worker from the humanitarian group World Central Kitchen, underscoring the relentless assault on those trying to deliver life-saving assistance.

Good morning, Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest updates from the Israeli war on Gaza, now in its 539th day:

• Gaza under fire: Israeli air strikes pounded Gaza overnight with one attack flattening a home in Gaza City—killing at least eight, mostly women and children.

• Diplomatic moves: The UK and France demand an urgent UN Security Council meeting Friday to address Gaza’s "humanitarian crisis and aid worker safety."

• US hits Yemen again: American fighter jets blasted over 40 Houthi targets overnight, wounding at least seven, as Washington escalates its campaign in the region.

• Aid blocked at scale: A shocking UN report reveals Israel obstructed 82 percent of Gaza aid convoys last week (March 18–24), strangling relief efforts.

• US cracks down on activists: Trump’s administration detained Alireza Doroudi, an Iranian student at the University of Alabama, and revoked his visa—the latest move silencing pro-Palestine voices on campuses.

Good evening Middle East Eye readers,

At least 39 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip with Israel attacking Gaza City, Khan Younis and other locations.

Meanwhile, the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees, or Unrwa, said Gaza is now enduring the longest siege by Israel since the war began on 7 October 2023.

"During the ceasefire, 500–600 trucks arrived daily. Now, nothing," Philippe Lazzarini, the chief of Unrwa said.

Here is what else you need to know:

• US Senator Bernie Sanders said on Thursday that he plans to force votes to block an $8.8bn arms sale to Israel next week on the Senate floor
• US President Donald Trump withdrew the nomination of Republican congresswoman Elise Stefanik as UN ambassador
• Trump's administration is discussing plans to block certain colleges from having any foreign students if it decides too many are "pro-Hamas", Axios reported
• Egyptian mediators are traveling to Doha, Qatar for ceasefire talks, Reuters reported

At least three Palestinians were killed and dozens more were wounded by an Israeli strike targeting a house in the Zeitoun neighborhood east of Gaza City, according to Al Jazeera Arabic. 

The strike is the latest in a deadly day for the Gaza Strip, with Israel attacking across the enclave. 

Israel launched strikes targeting a house in the Zeitoun neighborhood southeast of Gaza City on Thursday, according to Al Jazeera Arabic. 

Israeli strikes have killed at least 36 people in Gaza on Thursday. 

Israeli soldiers have denied Palestinians in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron access to the Ibrahimi Mosque and its facilities, courtyards and gates for the fourth day, blocking a landmark Islamic place of worship during Ramadan, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The mosque was the site of a brutal Israeli settler attack in 1994 that killed 29 Palestinian worshipers. After that,  Israel divided the mosque, allocating 63 percent of the area to Jews and just 37 percent for Muslims.

Egyptian mediators are traveling to Doha, Qatar for ceasefire talks, Reuters reported on Thursday. 

A January ceasefire in Gaza backed by the US, Egypt and Qatar imploded in March when Israel resumed unilateral attacks on Gaza.

Reuters reported that Egypt received "positive indications" from Israel over a new ceasefire proposal that would include a transitional phase.

The proposal would see Hamas release five Israeli captives each week.

Meanwhile, the AFP reported on Thursday that the talks could see a "truce" during the Eid al-Fitr and the Jewish Passover holidays.

A Palestinian source told AFP, “A prisoner exchange and ceasefire agreement are possible, but their success depends on [Israel’s] approval and its willingness not to obstruct the process."

An Israeli strike killed a volunteer of the World Central Kitchen and wounded several other people in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, the charity group said.

"Our hearts are heavy today as we mourn the loss of one of our volunteers in Gaza. Israeli strikes hit near one of our WCK-supported community kitchens just as meals were being distributed. Jalal was tragically killed and six other people were injured," WCK said. 

Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip killed several WCK employees in 2024. 

US President Donald Trump's administration is discussing plans to block certain colleges from having any foreign students if it decides too many are "pro-Hamas", Axios reported on Thursday.

The Trump administration has used the term "pro-Hamas" to label students who have been critical of Israel or express pro-Palestinian sentiment.

Axios cited senior Justice and State Department officials as saying that the Trump administration could use the Student and Visitor Exchange programme to decertify schools from receiving student visa holders. It has been used on schools where the federal government says they are accepting students who are enrolled just to live and work in the US.