Live: Gaza death toll nears 50,700

In a statement issued in the early hours of Friday, Hamas said the "massacres" Israel is carrying out in Gaza are a responsibility for the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic States (OIC) to step up and stop.

"We call on our Arab and Islamic nation and the free peoples of the world to move in all arenas to pressure the occupation and its supporters," Hamas said.

#حماس: مجازر الاحتلال الصهيوني أدت إلى استشهاد نحو 600 من أبناء شعبنا في #غزة منذ الثلاثاء معظمهم أطفال ونساء، وندعو أمتنا العربية والإسلامية وشعوب العالم الحرة للتحرك في كل الساحات للضغط على الاحتلال وداعميه#حرب_غزة pic.twitter.com/gsDBcNZQ37

— قناة الجزيرة (@AJArabic) March 20, 2025

The Canadian government on Thursday announced the allocation of nearly $70 million dollars (or $100 million Canadian) for humanitarian efforts in the West Bank and Gaza via international institutions like the UN, World Bank, and Red Cross. 

According to a statement from Global Affairs Canada, the funding is set to include:

- $13.9 million to restore essential services, particularly in the health sector, and foster resilience among vulnerable communities
- $17.1 million to support the provision of life-saving assistance, including food, protection and shelter
- $17.3 million in peace and security programming to support mine action and related activities
- $21 million to strengthen economic recovery, social resilience, and governance in the West Bank by supporting the Palestinian Authority’s role in stabilization and reconstruction efforts

"The current humanitarian situation it not sustainable," the statement said.

"Canada reiterates its call to allow the free flow of humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in need. International humanitarian law must be respected, including the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers."   

Since 7 October 2023, Canada has allocated $167.5 million for aid in the West Bank and Gaza.

The United States and Israel will hold high-level talks on Iran's nuclear programme at the White House early next week, a person familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The planned meeting follows US President Donald Trump's letter to Iran's leadership earlier this month in which he warned Tehran that it had the choice of either striking a nuclear deal with the US or facing possible military action.

The Israeli delegation will be led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and national security advisor Tzachi Hanegbi and will meet with senior Trump advisors, the Washington-based source told Reuters.

The two teams are expected to discuss the potential for US-Iran nuclear talks and regional issues related to Tehran, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Axios was the first to report on the scheduled meeting in Washington.

- Reporting by Reuters

The Reuters news agency is reporting that the Israeli military has begun a ground offensive into  a neighbourhood in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip. 

This comes as the military also confirms it is continuing its incursions into the north and central areas of the Strip late on Thursday. 

On the evening of 17 March, masked federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) surrounded Badar Khan Suri in Rosslyn, Virginia, just as he returned home from opening his fast.

Suri, an Indian citizen and a post-doctoral scholar at Georgetown University, was told that his student visa had been revoked and that he faced imminent deportation.

Suri's wife, Mapheze Saleh, a Palestinian with American citizenship, watched as the masked agents took him and his passport and drove off.

Read more: Post doctoral scholar becomes the latest to face the threat of deportation for pro-Palestine views

United Nations assistant secretary-general for the Middle East Khaled Khiari said on Thursday that the return to hostilities in Gaza threatens all civilians, including the remaining Israeli captives held there.

"With every passing day, we move further away from the objective of returning the remaining hostages safely to their homes," Khiari told a Security Council briefing.

Acting US Representative to the UN Dorothy Shea blamed Hamas for the resumption of hostilities by "refusing time and time again to accept proposals to extend the ceasefire".

"President Trump has been clear: Hamas must release all 59 hostages immediately - including American citizens - or pay a steep price," she said. "We continue to stand with Israel as they defend themselves and push to secure the release of all hostages from Hamas captivity."

European leaders on Thursday issued the following statement on the return to war in Gaza, with no mention of Israel:

"The European Council deplores the breakdown of the ceasefire in Gaza, which has caused a large number of civilian casualties in recent air strikes. It deplores the refusal of Hamas to hand over the remaining hostages."

The European Council works within the European Union to define the alliance's political direction.

Al-Araby TV's Jerusalem correspondent is reporting a grounding of flights at Ben Gurion airport after the Houthis in Yemen launched ballistic missiles toward Israel. 

Sirens sounded across Jerusalem on Thursday evening local time but all three ballistic missiles detected were intercepted by Israel's iron dome, Al-Araby TV's correspondent said. 

The Palestinian Ministry of Health has produced an infographic breaking down the number of dead and wounded since Israel resumed its full-scale war on Gaza on 18 March 2025.

At least 506 Palestinians have been killed since Tuesday, the vast majority of them children. At least 909 others have been wounded. 

The largest number of deaths and injuries is in north Gaza, specifically in Gaza City. 

To date, 49, 617 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, with thousands presumed dead under Gaza's rubble.

The new Palestinian ambassador to Mexico, Nadya Rasheed, has presented her Letters of Credence to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, after which both of them posed for a photo that was posted to the Palestinian embassy's account on X. 

British Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis has become the latest prominent figure to drop out of an Israeli government-backed conference on antisemitism after invites were given to far-right European politicians.

The event, sponsored by Israel's diaspora affairs ministry, is set to be held on 26 and 27 March in Jerusalem. 

Conference invitees include Jordan Bardella, the president of the right-wing National Rally party in France, which was founded by Holocaust denier Jean-Marie Le Pen.

It also includes politicians from European far-right parties including the Sweden Democrats and Hungary's Fidesz party. 

The chief rabbi's office said that he had been "made aware of the attendance of a number of far-right populist politicians" and would "no longer be attending".

Read more: UK chief rabbi drops out of Israeli antisemitism conference over far-right attendees

“The government calls for a transparent investigation and for those responsible to be held to account.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced that a British aid worker was amongst those wounded in a strike on a UN compound in Gaza on Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/VGM4iSBiC7

— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) March 20, 2025

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has condemned Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz for threatening Palestinians in Gaza with "total devastation" in remarks widely seen as inciting genocide.

Katz said in a video message aimed towards residents of Gaza on Wednesday: "The first Sinwar destroyed Gaza, and the second Sinwar will bring its complete ruin.

"Soon, the evacuation of the population from combat zones will resume, and what follows will be far more severe - you will pay the full price.

"Return the hostages and remove Hamas - the alternative is total devastation."

Labour MP Stella Creasy asked the foreign secretary to be "clear, for avoidance of doubt, that we do not agree, that we condemn the words of Israel Katz, as they are not going to bring forward the ceasefire. They are not going to uphold international law if they are left unchallenged."

Lammy responded: "I do condemn those words, and I would ask minister Katz who's very experienced to withdraw them."

Read more: David Lammy condemns Israeli minister's threat to bring 'total devastation' to Palestinians

With the resumption of deadly strikes on Gaza on Tuesday, the Israeli army issued expulsion orders for many Palestinians, primarily those living in towns along the eastern and northern borders with Israel.

Ahmed Mosleh, a Palestinian resident of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, told Middle East Eye that conditions in the area were extremely difficult.

"The shootings and strikes from yesterday have not stopped," he said, explaining that even before the ceasefire, the area was considered a battlefield.

"When the ceasefire began, we returned with hope for peace in our land, but we found our homes destroyed. So, we set up tents and tried to rebuild what we could, exhausting ourselves... but today, we are faced with the same issue," he lamented, referring to the expulsion orders.

He says they are caught between a rock and a hard place, torn between fleeing the area and facing displacement once again, or staying in their dangerous hometown, where ongoing shelling and the looming threat of army raids make survival uncertain.

"We want to stay for as long as possible, but if danger gets too close to our homes, we have no choice but to protect our lives."

Read more: Palestinians displaced again as Israel resumes bombing

An Israeli air strike targeted a house in the town of Abasan al-Kabira, east of Khan Younis, killing at least six Palestinians. Dozens of others were wounded, according to the Wafa news agency on Thursday.

Meanwhile, a Palestinian man, his wife and several of their children were killed when Israeli warplanes targeted their home in the Armaida area, east of Khan Younis.

Elsewhere, a man was killed after Israeli forces opened fire on him in the al-Shaboura area in the centre of Rafah.