Israeli army says evacuation of Gaza City is 'inevitable' | LIVE

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For Iran, return of IAEA inspectors does not mark complete resumption of cooperation

The return to Iran of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) does not mark a full resumption of cooperation on Tehran's nuclear program, suspended in July, Iran's diplomatic chief said on Wednesday.

“No definitive text has yet been approved concerning the new framework for cooperation with the IAEA, and exchanges of views are ongoing,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi clarified on Wednesday, quoted by state television, reports AFP.

IAEA boss Rafael Grossi announced that a team from the agency had returned to Iran, despite Tehran's suspension of cooperation with the U.N. body in the wake of the 12-day war triggered on June 13 by an Israeli attack on Iranian soil.

Gaza: At UN, Save the Children describes slow agony of children who can no longer cry

The starving children of Gaza “have reached their breaking point, where is yours?” the head of Save the Children told the U.N. Security Council, describing in detail the slow agony of children who can no longer even cry.

Invited to speak at a Council meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Inger Ashing insisted that the famine declared in Gaza last week by the U.N. was not just a "technical term."

"When there isn't enough to eat, children suffer from severe malnutrition, and then they die slowly and painfully. That, in simple terms, is what starvation is,“ she continued, reports AFP, before describing the stages of this wasting away in a matter of weeks, the body ”consuming itself,“ ”eating muscles and vital organs," until the last breath.

"And yet, our clinics are almost silent. The children no longer have the strength to speak or cry in agony. They just lie there, emaciated, literally wasting away at sight, their tiny bodies overcome by hunger and disease," she recounted.

“We told you loud and clear that this was coming,” she said. “Everyone in this room has a legal and moral responsibility to act to stop this atrocity,” she concluded.

South Lebanon: Lebanese Army reportedly completes 85 percent of its missions south of the Litani River

The Lebanese Army has reportedly confirmed to the U.S. delegation, visiting Lebanon since Tuesday, that it has completed 85 percent of its missions south of the Litani River, according to an anonymous source speaking to the Saudi channel Al-Arabiya.

Under the terms of the cease-fire agreement signed on Nov. 27, 2024, between the Lebanese state and Israel, and inspired by U.N. Resolution 1701, the Lebanese Army must deploy south of the Litani River, from which Hezbollah must withdraw its forces and dismantle its infrastructure. The latter point is being enforced by the Lebanese Army, with the help of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Gaza: Israel demands withdrawal of UN-backed report declaring famine in enclave

Israel has announced that it is demanding the withdrawal of the U.N.-backed report declaring famine in Gaza, according to an Israeli Foreign Ministry official.

“Israel demands that the IPC immediately withdraw its fabricated report,” Israel's Foreign Ministry Director General Eden Bar Tal told reporters, claiming that the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) was “a politicized research institute,” AFP reports.

Gaza: 'The time has come to act,' says European Commissioner

European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid Hadja Lahbib has called on the 27 member states to have “the political courage to find a strong voice” on the war in Gaza, at a time when member states are divided on the attitude to adopt towards Israel.

“We are at a turning point and the time has come for the EU to act in a manner befitting its international stature,” she said in an interview with several journalists, including AFP. “The time has come for Europe to speak with one voice on Gaza.”

"What is happening there haunts me and should haunt us all. Because it is a tragedy and we will be judged by history and by our grandchildren,“ she said, according to AFP. ”We cannot stand idly by and simply watch innocent civilians, humanitarian workers, and journalists being killed and starving to death."

Israel to add two aid centers in south Gaza as starvation deaths rise

The Israeli military announced Wednesday it will open two new humanitarian aid distribution centers in southern Gaza, preparing for an expected influx of Palestinians displaced by its planned takeover of Gaza City. The new centers will replace the one in Tel al-Sultan and bring the total to five.

Meanwhile, Gaza’s health ministry reported 10 more deaths from malnutrition and starvation, bringing the total to 313, including 119 children, since the war began nearly two years ago.

The Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee has said residents of Gaza City, which Israeli military plans to seize, will inevitably be forced out.

He identified al-Mawasi, where there have been near-daily attacks, as one of the southern areas residents could move to.

In a post on X, Adraee claimed families forced southward will receive “the maximum humanitarian assistance."

“The evacuation of Gaza City is unavoidable,” Adraee said.

Gaza’s death toll rises: At least 75 Palestinians, including 18 aid seekers, have been killed and 268 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza in the past 24 hours, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.

One body was also recovered from the rubble of previous Israeli attacks, the ministry said.

The latest count brought the total death toll in Israel’s war on Gaza to 62,895, with 158,927 injured, the statement said.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is the latest world leader to condemn the Israeli attack on Nasser Hospital that killed 21 people, including five journalists, on Monday, Reuters reports.

“It is an unacceptable attack on press freedom and on all those who courageously risk their lives to report on the tragedy of war,” Meloni said during a conference in the beach town of Rimini.

During her remarks, Meloni also called on Israel to end its military occupation of Gaza, to allow aid into the Palestinian enclave and for a halt to the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Syria reports eight soldiers killed in drone strikes near Damascus

Syria’s Foreign Ministry has updated the death toll from Tuesday’s drone strikes in the southern Damascus suburb of Kiswah to eight soldiers, according to the Associated Press.

In an official statement, the ministry condemned the attack as “a grave violation of international law” and “a clear breach of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

The statement also accused Israel of pursuing repeated aggressive policies aimed at undermining regional security and stability.

So far, the Israeli military has not commented on the strikes.

The return of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to Iran does not signal a full resumption of nuclear cooperation, Iran’s foreign minister said.

“No final agreement has been approved yet regarding a new cooperation framework with the IAEA, and discussions are still ongoing,” said Abbas Araghchi, as quoted by state TV, following IAEA chief Rafael Grossi’s announcement of the inspectors’ return.

Iran suspended all cooperation with the IAEA in July under a new law, following Israeli and then U.S. strikes on its nuclear facilities in June.

Syria condemns Israeli strikes that killed six soldiers

Syria has condemned Israeli airstrikes that killed six soldiers near Damascus, calling the attack a violation of its territorial integrity, according to AFP.

Since a coalition of Islamist rebels overthrew Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Israel has launched hundreds of strikes in Syria, even as it begins a rare dialogue with the country’s new leadership.

In a statement, Syria’s Foreign Ministry “strongly condemned the aggression carried out by Israeli occupation drones that killed six soldiers” in the Kesweh area, west of Damascus, on Tuesday.

“This attack is a blatant violation of international law and the U.N. Charter, and a clear infringement on Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the statement added.

⚡Gaza: Israeli army says evacuation of Gaza City is 'inevitable'

An Israeli army spokesperson has said that the evacuation of Gaza City is "inevitable" as military operations continue in the Palestinian territory, according to AFP.

“The evacuation of Gaza City is inevitable, every family that relocates to the south will receive the most generous humanitarian aid possible,” wrote Avichay Adraee, the army's Arabic-language spokesperson, on X.

However, many humanitarian organizations have called the plan both unrealistic and dangerous.

The U.N. estimates that nearly one million people currently live in the Gaza governorate, which includes Gaza City and surrounding areas in the north of the territory, devastated by nearly two years of war.

Testimony from Zahra Kassem, age 7:

"I'm here to chase Tom Barrack away. They killed my grandfather during the war. I don't want his killers to come," says the young girl, whose relative, Ismail Lakkis — a Hezbollah member — was killed in an airstrike on the village of Shehabieh.

'I came to support the people of the South': Testimony from a Lebanese-American journalist in Sour

"I'm not at all worried about joining a protest against the United States. Why should I be afraid to speak the truth?" said Noura Dakka, a Lebanese-American journalist from Aitit.

"I came here to show solidarity with the people of South Lebanon. I had hoped to meet Tom Barrack and tell him what the people here — those who lost their families during the war and the occupation — really think," said Dakka, who gained social media attention for a video in which she confronted UNIFIL troops.

"There’s nothing pathetic about Sheikh Naim Qassem’s speech," she added, referring to a comment by U.S. Deputy Envoy Morgan Ortagus.

Dozens of Israeli soldiers and armored vehicles in Nablus amid ongoing raids and expulsions

The Israeli army launched a large-scale operation before dawn in the Old City of Nablus in the northern West Bank, deploying dozens of troops and armored vehicles, according to witnesses and Palestinian officials.

"This assault is an unjustified show of force," Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas told AFP.

The Israeli military confirmed it was carrying out an operation but did not disclose its purpose.

👉More details here.

A child holds up a Hezbollah resistance poster during a protest in Sour against Tom Barrack's planned visit to South Lebanon, Aug.27, 2025. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient Today.)

Three daughters of Hezbollah member Ismail Lakkis, who was killed, spoke to L'Orient Today about the toll the violence has taken on their family.

“Our father was killed. Two of our sisters lost their homes. We lost the Sayyed,” they said, referring to a key figure in the movement, Hassan Nasrallah.

“But even after all this, we still reject humiliation — and we stand firmly with the resistance.”

'If Sheikh Naim tells us to go to war, we will': Testimony from a pager attack survivor

“If Sheikh Naim tells us to go to war, we will,” says Mohammad Abed, who was injured in the pager attack in Lebanon.

Beside him, a representative of the families of Hezbollah’s “martyrs” is visibly furious.

“We will prevent any American envoy from entering the city of Sour, even if we have to block them with our own bodies. These people who have sacrificed their sons and their land will never accept their killer setting foot in this city,” he told L’Orient Today.

“We are the resistance. We tell the President: don’t fall into the American trap and don’t confront the people. Where are you going? Tell them ‘no’,” said Raja Chaar. “They want to pit the people of South Lebanon against the army,” he added.

Families of Hezbollah members killed during the war joined the protest, wearing the party’s scarves and carrying portraits of their fallen relatives.

Testimony from Em Kassem, whose son was killed fighting with Hezbollah in Khiam during the war:

“My son was killed defending Lebanon against the occupiers. His blood is sacred, this land was protected by sacred blood — not for Barrack the Zionist to set foot on it,” she told our reporter on site.

Around her, relatives of fallen Hezbollah fighters held up photos of the victims and waved the party’s flags. They chanted: “we are at your service, Nasrallah. We reject humiliation.”

Dozens of protesters began gathering near the port of Sour in South Lebanon to denounce the planned visit of U.S. envoy Tom Barrack, which was ultimately cancelled.

“America is the mother of terrorism,” read placards held by demonstrators, according to our reporter on the ground, Ghadir Hamadi, while excerpts from speeches by former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah were being broadcast.

Protesters removed their shoes and chanted: “He’ll get a shoe to the head if he dares come,”— referring to Barrack.

“Americans have no right to set foot on this sacred land — land we paid dearly to protect,” said one protester, speaking to us anonymously. He said he had been wounded in last year's beeper attack in Lebanon.

Sit-in held in Khiam against Tom Barrack’s visit to South Lebanon. (Credit: Muntasser Abdallah.)

Residents of Khiam and several nearby villages in South Lebanon held a sit-in protesting the planned visit of U.S. envoy Tom Barrack to the border town, according to our correspondent in the South.

Protesters wrote slogans on the ground denouncing remarks Barrack had made the previous day to journalists in Baabda, and waved Hezbollah and Amal flags, along with photos of fighters killed in Israeli strikes and of the group’s former leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

The Lebanese Army had earlier deployed in the area and set up roadblocks, according to reports. Many in South Lebanon — where Hezbollah maintains a strong presence — have rejected the visit, as it comes amid U.S. proposals tied to a work plan approved by the Lebanese government on Aug. 7.

The plan includes the disarmament of Hezbollah among a series of measures, in exchange for an Israeli withdrawal from still-occupied positions in South Lebanon — one of which is located near Khiam, on a hill known as Tallet el-Hamames.

Gaza’s Health Ministry announced that ten Palestinians, including two children, have died from malnutrition in the past 24 hours in the Gaza Strip.

This brings the total number of Palestinians who have died of hunger in the enclave to 313, including 119 children, since October 2023, as Israel continues to severely restrict humanitarian aid from entering the besieged territory.

Tom Barrack’s tour of Sour and Khiam in South Lebanon has been cancelled, according to information from our correspondent.

Hospitals in Gaza report that at least 21 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli army fire since dawn on Wednesday.

According to local sources cited by Al Jazeera Arabic, four of the victims were attempting to receive humanitarian aid at the time they were killed.

Israeli opposition leader: Mediators confused by Netanyahu’s silence on cease-fire proposal

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid says top-level mediators involved in cease-fire negotiations are puzzled by the Israeli government's lack of response to the latest proposal.

“In recent days, I spoke with the highest-level mediators in the negotiations,” Lapid told Army Radio, “and they said, ‘We don’t understand what happened — Hamas accepted the conditions Netanyahu himself set.’”

Lapid added that the mediators even contacted him directly to ask if he knew why Netanyahu hasn’t responded.

Iranian forces have killed 13 militants in a raid in the restive south-east, state media reported on Wednesday, adding they were members of a group suspected of a recent deadly attack on police, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.

“So far, 13 terrorists have been killed and a number of others arrested” in Sistan-Balochistan province, the Revolutionary Guards said in a statement carried by state television.

West Bank: Israeli police seize nearly €400,000 over alleged terrorism financing

Israeli police announced they had seized around 1.5 million shekels (over €385,000) in an operation in the occupied West Bank, claiming the funds were linked to terrorism financing, AFP reports.

"Border Police forces in the West Bank [Magav] and the Israeli army seized approximately 1.5 million shekels originating from terrorism financing," said the police in a statement.

They added that part of the amount was confiscated in foreign currencies, including U.S. dollars and Jordanian dinars.

Nuclear: IAEA inspectors 'back in Iran,' says agency chief

Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are “back in Iran,” announced the agency’s chief, marking the first team to return since Tehran suspended cooperation with the U.N. body in early July, following the war launched by Israel, AFP reports.

“Now, the first IAEA inspection team is back in Iran, and we are about to resume inspections,” said Rafael Grossi in an interview aired Tuesday on Fox News.

He emphasized that Iran is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and is therefore required to allow inspections. Grossi noted that many nuclear facilities exist in Iran, some of which have been attacked, while others have not.

“So we are discussing the kind of practical arrangements that can be put in place to facilitate the resumption of our work there,” he added during the interview.

South Lebanon: Israeli leaflets dropped Over Adaisseh

Israeli drones dropped leaflets this morning over the town of Adaisseh (Marjayoun district), threatening figures linked to Hezbollah, according to our correspondent.

The leaflets urge residents to distance themselves from these individuals, who are considered potential targets by the Israeli army.

'Major Meeting' at the White House on Gaza Post-War Plan

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff announced yesterday that "a large meeting in the White House tomorrow, chaired by the president, and it's a very comprehensive plan we're putting together on the next day."

In an interview with Fox News, Witkoff said that a deal for the release of ten live hostages had been on the table in recent weeks, but Hamas had slowed the process. He added that Hamas now accepted the deal, likely due to “intense pressure” from Israel.

Tel Aviv has not yet responded to the mediators' proposal, which was submitted early last week, and is preparing to take control of Gaza City.

This meeting will coincide with a separate meeting also scheduled Wednesday in Washington between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.

Witkoff also noted that Israel remains open to continuing discussions with Hamas.

Israeli army says it intercepted missile fired from Yemen

The Israeli army announced that it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen, three days after Israel bombed Houthi targets in the Yemeni capital.

“Following sirens sounded in several parts of Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted by the Israeli Air Force,” the army stated on Telegram.

According to an AFP reporter, sirens were heard in Jerusalem.

In response to previous attacks, Israel said on Sunday it struck Houthi military sites, including the presidential palace and a fuel storage facility in Sanaa.

The Houthis said the strikes hit a petroleum company station and a power plant, reporting 10 dead and 96 wounded.

Israeli army destroys buildings in Kfar Kila

At dawn, the Israeli army blew up several buildings in Kfar Kila (Marjayoun district) along the border after infiltrating Lebanese territory, reports our correspondent in the South.

Additionally, overnight, four small Israeli all-terrain vehicles were spotted on Lebanese soil near the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil district).

Tom Barrack visits South Lebanon

U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has just arrived in South Lebanon, landing by helicopter at the François al-Hage military base in Marjayoun, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA.)

The Lebanese Army is deployed in the area and at the northern entrance to the town of Khiam to secure his visit, amid calls for protests against the U.S. envoy's tour. A sit-in is planned in Sour at noon.

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of developments in the Middle East:

In Gaza, where the Israeli army continues its bloody offensive and prepares to occupy the main city,, in Lebanon, where Israel continues its bombardments and targeted strikes, as well as in Iran and Syria.

Catch up on what you missed yesterday and what to look out for today by reading our 👉 Morning Brief.