Netanyahu calls on Gaza City's population to 'leave now' | LIVE

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Nuclear Iran: IAEA hopes to resume inspections soon

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said he hoped to reach an agreement to fully resume nuclear inspections in Iran "in the coming days," emphasizing that "time is of the essence," AFP reported.

"I sincerely hope that in the coming days it will be possible to reach a successful conclusion" to the discussions "in order to facilitate the resumption of our vital work with Iran," Grossi said during a quarterly meeting of the IAEA's board of directors.

While he considered that "progress has been made," the official emphasized that the "modalities" were still being negotiated. "There is still time, not much, but always enough if good faith and a clear sense of responsibility are present," he said.

In late August, a team of IAEA inspectors briefly returned to Iran to oversee the fuel replacement at the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Iran's only nuclear power plant.

Gaza: Israeli army announces death of 4 soldiers in northern Gaza Strip

The Israeli army announced that four soldiers were killed in combat on Monday in the northern Gaza Strip, where the army is intensifying its offensive around Gaza City. The army only provided the names of three of the dead soldiers, specifying that the publication of the identity of the fourth had not yet been authorized, according to AFP.

Haaretz reports that, according to a preliminary investigation by the Israeli army, the soldiers were attacked in the Jabalia area by Hamas fighters while returning from a nighttime operation.

Netanyahu calls on Gaza City residents to 'leave now'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on residents of Gaza City to evacuate the Palestinian territory's main urban center, where the army is intensifying its offensive, AFP reports.

"In two days, we have destroyed 50 terrorist towers, and this is only the beginning of the intensification of ground operations in Gaza City. I say to the residents: You have been warned, leave now!" Netanyahu said in a video.

The Lebanese presidency indicated on X that President Joseph Aoun "continued his contacts regarding the Israeli attacks in the Bekaa region and strongly condemned the strikes targeting the Hermel outskirts, which left several dead and injured."

The Lebanese Health Ministry confirmed in a preliminary report that Israeli strikes in the Bekaa killed five people and injured five.

Israel-Spain tensions: Madrid recalls ambassador to Israel

The Spanish Foreign Ministry announced it has recalled its ambassador to Tel Aviv for consultations, after Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Madrid of waging "an anti-Semitic campaign," Reuters reports.

These accusations come in the wake of Spain's new measures against ships and planes bound for Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza. In a statement, Saar further stated that these measures were aimed at diverting public attention from the corruption scandals targeting the Spanish government.

Mahmoud Abbas to meet Keir Starmer in London on Monday evening

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on Monday evening, as Starmer reiterated in July that he was considering recognizing the State of Palestine in September.

According to AFP, citing the British prime minister’s office, the bilateral meeting is part of Starmer’s “efforts to find a political solution” to the Gaza war and to “establish lasting peace and security for both Palestinians and Israelis.” The meeting will take place at Downing Street, the official residence of the UK prime minister.

Starmer announced in late July that the UK would recognize the State of Palestine in September unless Israel made a series of commitments, including a cease-fire in Gaza. The announcement was strongly condemned by Israel.

Israeli strikes in the Bekaa kill five

Israeli strikes in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley today killed five people, our correspondent in the region reports.

UNIFIL: Lebanese Army redeployed to 120+ positions in the South

UNIFIL announced that with its support, the Lebanese Army had redeployed to “more than 120 positions in southern Lebanon,” even as the Israeli army continues to occupy points in the area in violation of the Nov. 27, 2024 cease-fire agreement.

Israeli gunfire on Kfar Shuba outskirts

The Israeli army fired medium machine-gun rounds from its Roueisat al-Alam position on the disputed Kfar Shuba heights, our South Lebanon correspondent reports.

Israeli drone strikes in South Lebanon: shepherd injured

A Lebanese shepherd, Ghassan Hajj, was wounded in the head when an explosive device dropped from an Israeli drone struck near him while he was tending his flock in Debsh, west of Mais al-Jabal (Marjeayoun district), our South Lebanon correspondent reports. He was taken to the headquarters of the Nepali battalion of UNIFIL, where he received first aid.

Later, a drone dropped a stun bomb on the town of Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil district), causing no injuries.

Israeli army bombs office building in Gaza City

The Israeli army said it bombed and collapsed the Al-Roya office building in western Gaza City, claiming Hamas had used it for intelligence purposes.

The building housed several media offices, including those of the Qatari channel Al Araby. It was the fourth such attack on an office building in as many days.

UAE condemns Jerusalem 'terrorist' shooting

The United Arab Emirates condemned the “terrorist” shooting in East Jerusalem. In a statement, the Emirati foreign ministry rejected “all forms of terrorist violence that aim to disrupt security and stability.” It offered condolences to the victims’ families and to the State of Israel.

Abu Dhabi, a signatory of the Abraham Accords, normalized relations with Israel in 2020. Last week, the UAE warned Israel against government plans to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, calling it a “red line” for the future of the Accords.

Shin Bet announces arrest linked to Jerusalem attack

The Shin Bet said it has arrested a man suspected of driving the shooters to the scene of the attack at the Ramot Junction in Jerusalem.

According to security sources, the suspect is an East Jerusalem resident known for transporting Palestinians without residence permits into Israeli territory.

Three drones launched from Yemen were intercepted within half an hour, the Israeli army announced, after sirens sounded in northern Israel.

Israeli strikes on the Anti-Lebanon mountains left several people wounded, though the number and condition were not immediately clear, our correspondent reports. Rescue teams were heading to the scene.

Israeli FM accuses Spain of antisemitism after Sanchez announces Gaza measures

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Spain of antisemitism after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez unveiled nine measures to stop what he called “the genocide in Gaza.” Saar called Sanchez’s stance a cover for corruption scandals and said Spain’s deputy PM Yolanda Diaz would be barred from entering Israel.

Speaking in Budapest, Saar also denounced Spain and France, saying “if they are so enthusiastic to establish a Palestinian state, they have huge territories they can do that in their own territory.”

Sanchez’s measures include an arms embargo on Israel and a ban on vessels carrying fuel for the Israeli military from using Spanish ports, Al Jazeera reports.

Israeli army says it struck Hezbollah’s ‘al-Radwan unit camps’ in the Bekaa

In a statement released by its Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, the Israeli army said it had targeted “Hezbollah sites” in the Bekaa, including “camps” of its elite al-Radwan unit, “where Hezbollah members were spotted and which were used to store weapons.”

“Hezbollah used these camps to train and prepare terrorists with the aim of planning and carrying out attacks against the IDF and the State of Israel,” the army alleged, once again accusing Hezbollah of violating the cease-fire.

The Israeli army has once again called on Gaza City residents to evacuate a building and its surroundings

In a message posted on X, the army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, urged people in a building marked in red on a city map — on Gamal Abdel Nasser Street — “as well as in the tents surrounding it” to leave the area ahead of an imminent strike. The army said that “Hamas terrorist infrastructure” is located in or near the building.

The Israeli army has repeatedly bombed towers in Gaza City in recent days, and on Sunday announced it was expanding operations in the city as it seeks to take control.

The strikes targeting northeastern Lebanon hit the Hermel heights in the Anti-Lebanon range, reaching the outskirts of Halbta, Hrebta, Zeghrin, and Sherbin, our correspondent reports.

Drones continue to fly over the bombed areas.

⚡Israeli strikes hit Hermel heights in northeast Lebanon

The Israeli army has carried out a series of strikes on the Hermel heights in northeastern Lebanon, our Bekaa correspondent reports.

A video from local residents shows at least four plumes of smoke rising over the arid Anti-Lebanon heights, on the border with Syria, following the strikes.

Spanish PM accuses Israel of 'genocide' in Gaza

Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has escalated his criticism of Israel’s campaign in Gaza, accusing Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of “exterminating a defenseless people” through hospital bombings and “killing innocent boys and girls with hunger,” The Guardian reports.

Speaking on Monday, Sánchez said that while Spain supports Israel’s right to exist and to defend itself, it is compelled to act to “stop a massacre.” He stressed: “Protecting your country and your society is one thing, but bombing hospitals and killing innocent boys and girls with hunger is another thing entirely.”

According to The Guardian, Sánchez argued that what Netanyahu initially presented in October 2023 as a response to Hamas’s terrorist attacks had become “a new wave of illegal occupations and an unjustifiable attack against the Palestinian civilian population — an attack that the U.N. special rapporteur and most experts already describe as genocide.”

Hadassah hospital confirms sixth person killed in Jerusalem shooting

Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital has confirmed the death of a sixth victim following the shooting at the Ramot junction, Haaretz reports.

Jerusalem attack: Security officer and civilian killed gunmen, police say

A security officer and a civilian shot and killed the perpetrators of the attack that left five people dead in East Jerusalem, Israeli police said.

According to police, the attackers arrived in a vehicle at the Ramot Junction and opened fire at a bus station.

Al Jazeera reports that the shooting has also left at least 11 others wounded, some in serious condition, citing Israeli emergency services.

The Israeli army announced it was carrying out searches in the Jerusalem area and had encircled parts of the Ramallah region in the occupied West Bank, following the shooting at the Ramot junction.

In a statement, the military said soldiers “have been deployed and are searching for suspects in the area, in cooperation with the police.”

Jerusalem shooting: Hamas hails attack, calls to 'intensify confrontation' with Israel

In a statement, Hamas praised the Jerusalem attack, describing it as “heroic” and saying it was a “natural response to the crimes of the [Israeli] occupation and the war of extermination in Gaza.”

The Palestinian movement added that the assault sends a message that Israel’s plans to occupy and destroy Gaza City “will not pass without punishment.”

Hamas also praised the “steadfastness and resistance” of its young fighters in the occupied West Bank and called to “intensify the confrontation” with Israel and “defy its criminal army.”

Peports five dead and 11 wounded.

According to the Israeli daily, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was scheduled to testify in a corruption trial, will not appear in court due to the shooting.

The provisional death toll from the Jerusalem attack rises to five, according to Israeli media.

Israel: Fifteen wounded in Jerusalem shooting, five seriously

Around fifteen people were injured in a shooting at the Ramot junction in Jerusalem, including “five seriously and three in critical condition,” according to Israel’s official emergency service Magen David Adom, affiliated with the Red Cross, as cited by Haaretz.

Police said the two attackers were shot dead at the scene, and an investigation is underway, the newspaper added.

Trump: 'I will answer later' on Hezbollah disarmament

Asked Sunday evening by MTV about Hezbollah’s refusal to hand its weapons over to the Lebanese state once he leaves the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump only said he would “answer later” to that question.

'Today, a powerful hurricane will strike Gaza City’s skies,' Katz warns

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote in Hebrew on X: “Today, a powerful hurricane will strike Gaza City’s skies and the roofs of the towers of terror will tremble.”

He added: “This is a final warning to Hamas murderers and rapists, in Gaza and in luxury hotels abroad: release the hostages and lay down your arms — or Gaza will be destroyed and you will be annihilated.”

While Israel’s security establishment continues to advise the government against a major operation in Gaza City — fearing risks to soldiers’ and hostages’ lives and preferring an agreement — Katz insisted that the army “is proceeding with its plan as scheduled and preparing to expand the maneuver to decisively take control in Gaza.”

On Friday, Katz had already written: “The lock has now been lifted on the gates of hell in Gaza.”

South Lebanon: Gunfire and helicopter overflights in Kfar Shuba

On Sunday evening and into the night, Israeli machine-gun fire targeted the outskirts of Kfar Shuba, according to our correspondent.

At around 8:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., sweeping fire hit areas near the village in Hasbaya district, from Israeli positions in Roueisat al-Alam and Samaka on the disputed Kfar Shuba heights.

Israeli army helicopters also repeatedly flew over the Kfar Shuba heights and the Shebaa Farms.

At least 15 Palestinians killed in Gaza since dawn

Israel continued bombing the Gaza Strip overnight, killing at least 15 Palestinians since dawn, according to medical sources cited by Al Jazeera.

The previous day, at least 65 people were killed, including 49 in Gaza City, under relentless Israeli fire. The army has stated it intends to take control of the urban center and empty it of its population.

Trump’s 'final warning' to Hamas

Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had sent a “final warning” to Hamas regarding the return of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, stressing he had “warned the movement of the consequences in case of refusal.”

Speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One, Trump said a cease-fire and hostage release deal could be reached “very soon,” calling the war “a problem we want to solve for the Middle East, for Israel, for everyone. But it’s a problem we are going to resolve.”

He reiterated that, in his view, fewer than 20 Israeli hostages remain alive in Gaza: “Even if they are mostly young people. Young people don’t die, young people stay alive. But in this situation, they tend to die.” He added: “Let’s say we have 20 people and 38 bodies. I think we will recover them all.”

Hamas 'ready to immediately sit at the negotiating table' for Gaza truce

On Sunday evening, Hamas said it was ready to “immediately” resume negotiations after receiving a new proposal from Washington.

“We have received, via mediators, some ideas from the Americans to reach a cease-fire and Hamas affirms its readiness to immediately sit at the negotiating table,” the movement said in a statement.

According to Al Jazeera, the plan involves the immediate release of all remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza in exchange for 2,000–3,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, along with a cease-fire in the Strip.

Welcome to our live coverage of the Middle East.

We will be following developments in Gaza, where the Israeli army is relentlessly targeting Gaza City in a bid to take control, as well as in South Lebanon, which continues to be struck almost daily by Israeli fire.

We will also cover news from Syria, Iran, and other countries in the region.

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