Jerusalem, Oct 14 (AP) Israel's military ordered hundreds of thousands of civilians living in Gaza City to evacuate ahead of a feared Israel ground offensive.
The directive came Friday on the heels of what the United Nations said was a warning it received from Israel to evacuate 1.1 million people living in northern Gaza.
Palestinians and some Egyptian officials fear that Israel ultimately hopes to push Gaza's people out through the southern border with Egypt.
Currently:
1. People are scrambling to evacuate northern Gaza even as Hamas told Palestinians to stay home
2. No decision on a ground offensive has been announced, although Israel has been massing troops along the Gaza border
3. An Israeli shell landed in a gathering of international journalists covering clashes on the border in southern Lebanon on Friday, killing one and wounding six
4. The war has claimed at least 3,200 lives since Hamas launched an incursion on Oct. 7
5. United States Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has assured Israel: “We have your back”
Here's what's happening in the latest Israel-Hamas war:
THOUSANDS TURN OUT IN LONDON IN SUPPORT OF PALESTINIANS
Thousands of demonstrators marched through central London on Saturday to show their support for Palestinians and demand that Israel stop bombing civilians in the Gaza Strip as the latest Israel-Hamas war heightens tensions around the world.
Protesters waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Free Palestine” and “Stop the bombing” crowded into the streets outside the headquarters of the BBC for a 1 1/2-mile (2.4 kilometre) march that was scheduled to end at about 3 pm near the prime minister's residence at 10 Downing Street.
The Metropolitan Police Service deployed more than 1,000 officers to police the event after an increase in both anti-semitic and Islamophobic incidents since Hamas militants attacked Israel last weekend.
Police have restricted marchers to a designated route through central London, warning that anyone who strays from it will be arrested. Similar precautions are in place near the Israeli Embassy.
IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER CALLS ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR IS SYMBOL OF POWER OF ISLAM
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Saturday the recent attack on Israel will lead to victory for the Palestinians, the official IRNA news agency reported.
“Part of the currents is indication of incredible power of Islam in Palestine and God willing, the move that began in Palestine will move forward and will be lead to full victory of Palestinians,” he said.
Speaking in a meeting with visiting leader of Nigeria's Shia community Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, Khamenei called the ongoing war in Gaza “one of symbols of power of Islam.”
Khamenei urged world of Islam to help the Palestinians.
Earlier on Tuesday Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, rejected allegations about his country's role in Hamas' attacks against Israel and vowed to continue supporting the Palestinian territories.
THAI DEATH TOLL IN HAMAS ATTACKS RISES TO 24
Officials in Thailand say the death toll of Thai nationals killed in Hamas' attack in southern Israel has increased to 24, after the Israeli authorities reported three additional fatalities.
Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kanchana Patarachoke said at a press briefing Saturday that the number of known injured Thais has climbed to 16 with the number of those believed held hostage remaining at 16.
The number of victims from Thailand is relatively high because there are about 30,000 Thai workers in Israel, mostly employed as agricultural labourers. Some 5,000 have been working in the area affected by the violence.
The Thai Foreign Ministry says 7,058 nationals have registered for voluntary repatriation back home while 83 have indicated their intention to remain in Israel.
BLINKEN HAS SOUGHT CHINA'S HELP TO PREVENT SPREAD OF ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR, STATE DEPARTMENT SAYS
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to seek China's help in preventing the Israel-Hamas war from spreading.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Blinken called Wang on Saturday from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to ask China to use whatever influence it has in the Middle East to keep other countries and groups from entering the conflict.
Miller would not say which countries and groups the US believes Beijing has influence with but China is known to have close trade and political ties with Iran, which in turn supports Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah group.
Miller declined to characterize Wang's response, but said the US believes it and China have a shared interest in Middle East stability.
RUSSIAN DEATH TOLL IN ISRAEL RISES TO 16
Russia's embassy in Israel said Saturday that the number of Russian citizens killed since Hamas launched its attacks against Israel a week ago had risen to 16.
Eight Russian citizens are missing, according to embassy press secretary Marina Ryazanova.
“According to the Israeli side, as of 13:00 on October 14, the number of dead citizens of the Russian Federation who also had Israeli citizenship increased to 16 people, Ryazanova said.
“The updated lists of missing persons provided by the Israeli side include eight Russian citizens.”
At least one Russian citizen is being held hostage in the Gaza Strip, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported.
UN SAYS THE PAST WEEK WAS THE DEADLIEST IN THE WEST BANK SINCE 2005
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance, or OCHA, confirmed to The Associated Press that this week was the deadliest in the West Bank since the UN started recording in 2005.
In the week since Hamas launched its attack on Israel last Saturday, 54 Palestinians have died in the West Bank with 16 killed on Friday.
The UN says attacks by Israeli settlers have surged there since the Hamas assault. (AP) FZH