Live: At least 75 killed in Israeli strikes on second day of Eid al-Adha

Pope Leo XIV appealed on Wednesday for Israel to open Gaza’s borders to humanitarian aid, describing the situation in the Palestinian territory as “deeply worrying and heartbreaking.”

During his weekly general audience at St Peter’s Square, the pope emphasised the urgent need to stop hostilities, warning that the gravest suffering falls on children, the elderly and the sick.

“I renew my plea … to allow for the entry of fair humanitarian help and to bring to an end the hostilities,” he said, calling for an immediate halt to the violence that continues to devastate the enclave.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health reports that Israeli air strikes have killed 52 people in Gaza since early this morning.

Palestinian playwright and author Ahmed Masoud has told Middle East Eye that he lost his sister-in-law and nephew in Israel's latest assault on Gaza.

Speaking to Middle East Eye late last week, Masoud, who is based in the UK, said: "My sister-in-law Ibtisam was volunteering with a local organisation to teach kids maths. Her son was in high school too and was going to be at the lesson.”

A friend of the late Palestinian writer Refaat Alareer, Masoud also lost his brother in an Israeli drone strike in January 2024. In total, he has lost 25 relatives, including cousins, during Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which began in October 2023.

Masoud's latest work, Application 39, is a satire that imagines the Olympic Games being held in the besieged Palestinian territory a century after the Nakba ("catastrophe" in English) when around 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes by Zionist militias to make way for the creation of Israel in 1948.

A new Channel 13 survey has revealed that over half of Israeli respondents - 53 percent - oppose allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, even as conditions in the besieged enclave continue to deteriorate and the UN warns of deepening famine in the strip.

The poll also included Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up more than 20 percent of the country’s population, suggesting the number of Israelis opposing aid into Gaza could be much higher.

Reacting to the findings, Ayman Odeh, a Palestinian-Israeli parliamentarian, expressed deep concern.

“I don’t want to imagine the outcome without the Arab citizens. I don’t want to explain the survey results to my children,” he wrote on X.

In recent years, Israel’s defenders have increasingly pointed to the significant presence of “Arab Israeli” doctors and their integration into the country’s healthcare system as evidence against accusations of apartheid. 

They highlight examples, including Jewish patients treated by Arab doctors, to promote a narrative of equality and coexistence. But for those familiar with the lived realities of being a Palestinian citizen of Israel - and particularly how it manifests within the healthcare system - this narrative is deeply misleading.

In the weeks following the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023 and Israel’s ensuing genocidal war on Gaza, hundreds of Palestinian healthcare workers have been subjected to harassment, disciplinary summonses, suspension or dismissal - often for simply acknowledging or expressing sympathy for the suffering of civilians in Gaza. Actions as minor as liking a post, or the rediscovery of old content, have triggered punitive measures. 

In a recent study I conducted for the Haifa-based Mada al-Carmel, the Arab Center for Applied Social Research, I gained a profound and intimate understanding of the daily realities faced by nine Palestinian physicians working in hospitals and health clinics across diverse geographical areas in Israel. 

Read more: Gaza genocide: How Israel's healthcare system became an instrument of state violence

In a rare and controversial move, Israeli forces have again demolished the home of a Palestinian man accused of killing an Israeli soldier in 2023 - months after the family rebuilt it.

Troops raided the city of Hebron overnight to destroy the home of Abdelqader Qawasmeh, who Israel says was among three Hamas fighters involved in a November 2023 attack at an Israeli occupation checkpoint south of Jerusalem.

Israel routinely razes the homes of Palestinians accused of deadly attacks, claiming the practice deters future violence. However, rights groups have long criticised the policy as a form of collective punishment that targets families and communities rather than individuals.

Re-demolitions of rebuilt homes are exceedingly rare and likely to spark further condemnation.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong has urged Israel to stop the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, warning that thousands of babies face death if food and medical aid remain blocked.

“The Israeli Government cannot allow the suffering to continue,” Wong said in a post on X, echoing the UN’s dire warning that famine could soon claim the lives of infants.

She added that “Australia joins international partners in calling on Israel to allow a full and immediate resumption of aid to Gaza,” and condemned “the abhorrent and outrageous comments made by members of the Netanyahu Government about these people in crisis.”

Unlike the UK, France and Canada, however, Australia has not announced any concrete steps to pressure Israel into action - raising questions about the strength of its response as Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe deepens.

An Israeli drone strike has killed one person in the southern Lebanese town of Ain Baal, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Health.

The attack targeted a vehicle in the area, which lies near the coastal city of Tyre.

Far-right Israeli politician Moshe Feiglin has sparked outrage after declaring that "every child, every baby in Gaza is an enemy" during an interview on Israeli TV Channel 14.

Feiglin, a former member of Israeli parliament, made the remarks in a live appearance on the network’s morning show, doubling down on his extremist stance.

“The enemy is not Hamas, nor is it the military wing of Hamas” he said.

Feiglin then reiterated: “Every child in Gaza is the enemy. We need to occupy Gaza and settle it, and not a single Gazan child will be left there. There is no other victory.”

Washington is assessing fresh intelligence that points to Israel preparing for a possible attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, according to a report by CNN, which cited several US officials familiar with the matter.

While it's unclear whether Israeli leadership has made a final call, officials reportedly remain divided over whether a strike will actually happen.

CNN quoted one source saying the likelihood of such an operation “has gone up significantly in recent months”. That probability, the source added, could increase if the United States reaches a deal with Tehran that fails to fully eliminate Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile.

The Israeli military has confirmed the death of an Israeli soldier during combat operations in the southern Gaza Strip.

At least 38 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air raids across the Gaza Strip since dawn, according to the territory’s health ministry.

Khan Younis, in the south of Gaza, bore the brunt of the bombardment, with 24 people killed there alone.

Popular children’s educator and YouTube figure Ms Rachel has delivered a tearful message to world leaders, calling on them to act before thousands of babies die under Israel’s ongoing blockade of Gaza.

“You can’t be about to let 14,000 children starve,” she said in an Instagram video, responding to the UN’s warning that children in Gaza could die within 48 hours if the siege continues.

“Whatever is keeping you from standing up for these kids, who don’t have food and medical care and who have had amputations without anaesthesia, whatever is keeping you from saying it, it’s not greater than your humanity,” she added.

Ms Rachel - whose educational content has racked up more than 10 billion views on YouTube - has faced criticism from pro-Israel groups for speaking out. But she continues to raise her voice as the humanitarian crisis deepens.

The US private military contracting firm set to oversee Gaza aid distribution on Israel's behalf is actively hiring for positions on LinkedIn, according to job postings shared with Middle East Eye by current and former US officials.

The firm, Safe Reach Solutions, or SRS, says it is actively looking for “Humanitarian Liaison Officers” who will “serve as vital connectors between our operational teams and the broader humanitarian community,” according to one job description.

Another position on offer a week ago but has since closed is for a “Team Deputy/Manager” to support “day-to-day management, planning, and mission execution”.

A liaison officer position appears to be analytically focused. It says that hires will “advise on best practices for engaging with affected populations, local authorities, and community-based organizations” while monitoring developments that could impact “operational posture”.

Read more: Mercenary firm set to oversee Gaza aid for Israel goes on LinkedIn hiring spree

At least 24 Palestinians have been killed in a fresh wave of Israeli air and ground assaults on Gaza since the early hours of Wednesday, according to Al Jazeera’s reporting from the ground.