Hezbollah leader Nasrallah reportedly targeted in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut; two killed and dozens injured – Middle East crisis live

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Here are some of the latest images from the newswires from Beirut, where Lebanon’s health ministry says at least two people were killed and 76 others wounded in an Israeli airstrike on Friday.

Updated at 7.02pm BST

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As we reported earlier, the Pentagon has said that the US did not have advance warning of the Israeli strike on Beirut.

Israel notified the US only moments before the strike, CNN reported, citing several sources.

According to one US official, Israel informed Washington they were taking military action once the operation was already under way and Israel had planes in the air. CNN cited the official as saying:

We had no foreknowledge of this and that does not qualify as a heads up.

A Pentagon spokesperson said the US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin , was talking on the phone with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, as the operation was under way.

Updated at 6.54pm BST

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Lebanon’s health minister, Firass Abiad, said there had been a “complete decimation” of four to six residential buildings as a result of the Israeli strikes on Beirut on Friday.

Abiad told the New York Times that the number of casualties in hospitals was low so far because people were still trapped under the rubble. He said:

They are residential buildings. They were filled with people. Whoever is in those buildings is now under the rubble.

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An Israeli official has told NBC News that Israel expects Hezbollah will attempt to mount a “major retaliatory attack” after the Israeli military said it struck the Lebanese militant group’s headquarters in Beirut on Friday.

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Two killed, 76 injured in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut, says Lebanon's health ministry

Two people were killed and 76 injured in the Israeli airstrikes on Dahiyeh, the southern suburbs of Beirut today, according to Lebanon’s ministry of health on Friday night.

The death toll is expected to rise as rescue crews continue to clear rubble from the buildings collapsed in the strike.

Updated at 6.41pm BST

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US had no advance warning of Israeli strike in Beirut, says Pentagon

The Pentagon’s spokesperson, Sabrina Singh, said the US did not have advanced warning of the Israeli strike in Beirut. She told reporters:

The United States was not involved in this operation and we had no advanced warning.

The US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, as the Israeli operation was ongoing, Singh added.

She declined to say what Gallant told Austin about the operation and whether it had targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as reported by Israeli media.

Updated at 6.46pm BST

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At least one person was killed and 50 others wounded in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut’ s southern suburbs on Friday, Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV is reporting.

Updated at 6.51pm BST

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UN says it is watching Israeli strikes on Beirut with 'great alarm'

The UN’s spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said the organisation is watching the Israeli strikes on a “densely populated” area in the southern suburbs of Beirut “with great alarm”.

Dujarric added:

Anyone who looks at the pictures of smoke billowing from a densely populated area should be alarmed.

He added that the UN is “trying to gather more information as we speak”.

Updated at 6.20pm BST

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The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu , will return tonight from New York to Israel, his office said.

Netanyahu will take off from New York today at 8pm ET, it said. He was originally scheduled to leave on Saturday.

The Israeli leader earlier today addressed the UN general assembly, where he told world leaders that Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah would continue.

6.09pm BST

The office of Benjamin Netanyahu has released a photo that it said showed the Israeli prime minister approving the airstrike on Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut.

The photo appears to show Netanyahu at his hotel in New York.

Israel’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant, posted a photo that he said showed him observing the strike from the Israeli air force’s underground command room.

The photo shows Gallant alongside the chief of the general staff of the Israel Defense Forces, Herzi Halevi , and head of the Israeli air force, Tomer Bar.

Updated at 6.10pm BST

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Here are some of the latest images from Dahiyeh in southern Beirut, where Israeli strikes on Friday shook the Lebanese capital and sent thick clouds of smoke over the city.

Updated at 6.04pm BST

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Nasrallah alive and 'fine' after Israeli strike in Beirut – reports

The leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, is alive, Reuters is reporting, citing a source close to the group, after Israeli media reports that Nasrallah was the target of an Israeli strike in Beirut on Friday.

A senior Iranian security official earlier told Reuters that Tehran is checking the status of Nasrallah.

A source close to Hezbollah said Nasrallah is “fine”, AFP is reporting.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it carried a “precise strike” on the Hezbollah headquarters in the Lebanese capital.

Updated at 5.54pm BST

5.41pm BST

The Lebanese Red Cross says it has dispatched 10 teams to the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh after Israeli airstrikes.

There was no immediate word on casualties from the strikes. Friday’s strikes were the most powerful yet seen in the Lebanese capital the past year.

According to the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV, four buildings in the Haret Hreik neighbourhood of Dahiyeh were destroyed by the airstrikes.

A source close to Hezbollah said the Israeli strikes “levelled six buildings”, AFP reported.

5.36pm BST

Najib Mikati , the caretaker prime minister of Lebanon, said the Israeli attack on Beirut shows that Israel “does not care” about global calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon.

The statement, reported by Reuters, was released while Mikati is in New York for the UN general assembly.

5.27pm BST

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah reportedly targeted in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut

Israel carried out what it said were multiple airstrikes on the main military headquarters of Hezbollah in the southern suburbs of Beirut, with Israeli media claiming that the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, was present at the time of the strike – though the Guardian could not verify this claim.

It was not immediately clear if Nasrallah was killed in the strike or not. If true, the targeting of Nasrallah would be a large escalation in fighting between Hezbollah-Israel, already teetering on the precipice of a full-scale war.

According to Israeli spokesperson Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military targeted the Hezbollah headquarters, which was built “under residential buildings in Beirut in order to use them as human shields”.

Israeli media further claimed the army used bunker busters – large bombs capable of penetrating deep into the earth before exploding – in the attack.

The strikes were the largest against Beirut since the beginning of fighting nearly a year ago. The explosions rocked the capital city, heard across the city. There were multiple large plumes of smoke billowing from the strike sites, seen as far as the city of Batroun, an hour’s drive north of the capital city.

According to the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV, four buildings were destroyed by the airstrikes.

Videos showing the site of the airstrike showed several buildings that had completely collapsed, with fires burning under the rubble. Pictures showed a car swallowed by a hole in the ground, while rubble and dust made the asphalt street unrecognizable.

The sound of ambulances rushing to the scene were heard across Beirut, but reports of casualties had yet to emerge.

Friday’s airstrike was the fifth time that Israel hit the capital city in a week, and came off the back of a week of an intensified aerial campaign against Lebanon. Israel said that it bombed more than 2,000 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, killing at least 700 and wounding more than 1,835.

Updated at 5.33pm BST

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According to Israeli media, Israel is checking if Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was at the group’s headquarters in Beirut when it was hit by an Israeli strike.

From the Times of Israel’s Emanuel Fabian:

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A number of well-connected Israeli correspondents were briefed by Israeli security sources in the minutes after the strike that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was the target.

Updated at 5.24pm BST

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We reported earlier that Fox News claimed that the target of the Israeli strike on Beirut was the head of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah.

Axios is also reporting that the target of the attack was Nasrallah, citing an Israeli source.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is checking to see if Nasrallah was injured, it reports.

Updated at 5.17pm BST

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The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has posted a full statement by its spokesperson, Rear Adm Daniel Hagari, who said the Israeli military had carried out a “precise strike” on Hezbollah ’s central headquarters in Beirut.

Hagari said the Hezbollah central command centre was embedded deep within civilian areas in the heart of Dahiyeh, in the Lebanese capital’s southern suburbs.

The headquarters “served as the epicentre of Hezbollah’s terror”, he said.

Updated at 5.42pm BST

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Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah targeted in Israeli strike on Beirut – report

Fox News is reporting that the target of the Israeli strike on Beirut on Friday was the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah.

The Guardian has not yet been able to verify this report.

As we reported earlier, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed it targeted Hezbollah’s central command in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that the IDF strike on Beirut flattened six buildings.

Updated at 5.06pm BST

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Israel says it carried out an airstrike against Hezbollah military HQ in Beirut suburbs

Israel carried out what it said was a strike against Hezbollah ’s main military headquarters in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Friday afternoon, in what were the largest airstrikes carried out on Beirut since the beginning of fighting nearly a year ago.

According to Israeli spokesperson Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military targeted the Hezbollah headquarters, which was built “under residential buildings in Beirut in order to use them as human shields”.

The airstrikes rocked Beirut, with the series of explosions heard across the city and multiple large plumes of smoke billowing from the strike sites. The smoke could be seen from the city of Batroun, an hour’s drive north of the capital city.

According to the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV, four buildings were destroyed by the airstrikes.

Videos showing the site of the airstrike showed several buildings that had completely collapsed, with fires burning under the rubble. Emergency responders arrived on the scene, but reports of a death toll had yet to emerge.

Updated at 5.06pm BST

4.57pm BST

Israel bombed Dahiyeh, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, late Friday afternoon local time, with at least six loud explosions heard across the city.

Multiple large plumes of smoke billowed above the southern suburb of Beirut, visible from the city of Batroun, an hour’s drive away.

Israel said it conducted an airstrike against Hezbollah’s military headquarters in the area. It was the largest bombing of Beirut since hostilities broke out nearly a year ago. It was the fifth time that Israel struck Beirut in a week.

Updated at 5.48pm BST

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Lebanon’s health minister, Firass Abiad , has said the death toll in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since the early hours of Friday was 25. One attack killed nine members of a family, including four children, in the border town of Shebaa, mayor Mohammad Saab told Reuters.

More than 700 people in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli attacks since Monday, according to a tally of official tolls.

The shops behind us were hit. The young boy who was with me was martyred [killed], and I’m still alive,” said 13-year-old Syrian Abdallah Tawfik Al-Hamid, lying in a hospital bed in southern Lebanon following an airstrike.

Hezbollah said it had fired rockets into Israel on Friday at Kiryat Ata near the city of Haifa some 20 miles from the border, and at the city of Tiberias, declaring the attacks a response to Israeli strikes on villages, cities and civilians.

Though Israeli air defences have shot down many of Hezbollah’s rockets, limiting damage, the attacks have displaced tens of thousands and shut down normal life across much of northern Israel as more areas fall into its crosshairs.

Updated at 4.51pm BST

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Fresh explosions rock southern Beirut

A series of powerful explosions shook Beirut a little earlier today and thick clouds of smoke reportedly rose over the city.

Witnesses told the news agency Reuters of what appeared to be a fresh round of bombing on the outskirts of the Lebanese capital.

Lebanese media said there were a series of Israeli airstrikes on the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of the city.

Israel’s foreign minister yesterday rejected global calls for a ceasefire with the Iran-backed Hezbollah group and continued airstrikes that have killed hundreds of people in Lebanon this week and heightened fears of a regional war.

Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV said four buildings had been destroyed in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital.

Updated at 4.52pm BST

4.31pm BST

Back on the ground in Lebanon, there are fresh reports of air strikes on the capital.

Massive, thick clouds of smoke were seen rising from Beirut today after multiple explosions were heard, according to Reuters witnesses.

We await further details.

Updated at 4.40pm BST

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Summary of the day thus far

• Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the UN’s general assembly, where he said his country is winning. He declared that there is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach and called for a peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

• Speaking of Hezbollah, Netanyahu said “enough is enough” and that “we won’t rest until our citizens can return safely to their homes.”

• The Israeli leader also criticised the United Nations and the ICC prosecutor, and said that no army has done what Israel is doing to minimise civilian casualties.

• Earlier, the prime minister said in a statement that Israeli teams had meetings to discuss the US ceasefire proposals on Thursday and will continue discussions in the days ahead. “Israel shares the aims of the US-led initiative of enabling people along our northern border to return safely and securely to their homes,” the statement said.

• UK defence secretary John Healey is looking at a rumoured Israeli ground invasion into Lebanon “really carefully” and that airstrikes and rocket fire exchanged between Israel and Hezbollah present a “risk that this escalates into something that is much wider and much more serious”.

• The Lebanese health minister, Firass Abiad , said 25 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since the early hours of today. Nearly 700 people have been killed in Lebanon this week, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

• Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said they had targeted Tel Aviv and Ashkelon with a ballistic missile and a drone.

• The UN said on Friday that a “catastrophic” intensification of Israeli attacks targeting Hezbollah militants had left Lebanon facing its deadliest period in years, with its hospitals overwhelmed by casualties.

• The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said that more than 30,000 people, mainly Syrians, have crossed into Syria from Lebanon in the past 72 hours.

• Australia suggested the world set “a clear timeline for the international declaration of Palestinian statehood” in a sign of increasing frustration about the stalled peace process.

• Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip shot and killed an aid worker from a US-based charity, firing on her car in what officials said was a case of mistaken identity.

Updated at 4.25pm BST

3.39pm BST

The American embassy in Beirut has said that it “is not evacuating U.S. citizens at this time”.

“There is a commercially available flight that U.S. citizens who expressed interest in departing Lebanon will have to book and pay directly with the airline,” it said.

Updated at 4.10pm BST

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Number of diplomats leave UN general assembly chamber for Netanyahu speech

Here’s footage of diplomats leaving the chamber ahead of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’s speech at the UN general assembly in New York.

Updated at 6.32pm BST

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Netanyahu also criticised the United Nations, referring to it as a “swamp of antisemitic bile”.

“Until Israel, until the Jewish state, is treated like other nations, until this antisemitic swamp is drained, the UN will be viewed by fair-minded people everywhere as nothing more than a contemptuous farce.”

He also took aim at the international criminal court’s prosecutor.

Updated at 4.11pm BST

3.18pm BST

In his speech at the UN general assembly, Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that Israel doesn’t want to see a single innocent person die.

“No army has done what Israel is doing to minimise civilian casualties: we drop fliers, we send text messages, we make phone calls by the millions to ensure that Palestinian civilians get out of harm’s way,” he said.

Updated at 3.26pm BST

3.15pm BST

Outside the luxury Loews Regency hotel on Park Avenue, a small group of anti- Benjamin Netanyahu protestors gathered across the street. Some waved Israeli flags while others held signs with Netanyahu’s face imprinted with a red handprint.

One protestor, Yehuda Cohen, 55, condemned Netanyahu’s speech at the UN.

“While there is intense war in Israel, he’s dealing with himself … he thinks he’s the great speaker, he will save Israel by speaking, he’s actually destroying Israel. He’s responsible for the events of 7th of October,” Cohen said.

“He must put everything aside, stop the war and go for a hostage deal. I want my son back home. I sent my son to the army so he can protect Israel. On the 7th of October, they were outnumbered, he was neglected and kidnapped … The Israeli government, it’s not that they’re doing nothing for a hostage deal, they’re doing everything to prevent a hostage deal,” Cohen added.

Updated at 4.12pm BST

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Netanyahu calls for peace agreement with Saudi Arabia

Netanyahu also stressed the need to achieve a peace agreement with Saudi Arabia, citing the experience of the Abraham accords.

“I say to you, what blessing such a peace with Saudi Arabia would bring – it would be a boon to the security and economy of our two countries, it would boost trade and tourism across the region, it would help transform the Middle East into a global juggernaut,” he said.

“Such a peace, I’m sure, would be a true pivot of history: it would usher in a historic reconciliation between the Arab world and Israel, between Islam and Judaism, between Mecca and Jerusalem,” the Israeli leader said.

“One of the best ways to foil Iran’s nefarious designs is to achieve the peace,” he added.

Updated at 4.15pm BST

3.01pm BST

'We won’t rest until our citizens can return safely to their homes', Netanyahu says

Speaking of Hezbollah, Benjamin Netanyahu said the group has murdered the citizens of many countries and attacked Israel unprovoked.

“Enough is enough,” he said. “We won’t rest until our citizens can return safely to their homes,” he added. “We will not accept a terror army perched on our northern border, able to perpetrate another 7 October-style massacre,” he said.

Updated at 4.16pm BST

2.58pm BST

“Hamas has got to go,” Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu said at the UN general assembly.

Israel seeks a demilitarised and deradicalised Gaza, he stressed.

The hostages must be returned to their families, he said.

Updated at 3.00pm BST

2.50pm BST

'We are winning', Netanyahu says, warning Iran that there's no place Israel cannot reach

“There is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that’s true of the entire Middle East,” Netanyahu said at the UN general assembly.

“We are winning,” he declared, showing a map he termed “the curse” of Iran’s influence and another which he described as a blessing.

Netanyahu also called for an end to the “appeasement” of Iran. Everything must be done to ensure Iran doesn’t get nuclear weapons, the Israeli leader added.

Updated at 2.56pm BST

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In a speech at the UN general assembly, Benjamin Netanyahu , the Israeli prime minister, said his country will not rest until the remaining hostages are brought home.

Updated at 2.48pm BST

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Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu is speaking of the “curse” of 7 October and the atrocities committed that day.

Updated at 4.15pm BST

2.43pm BST

Benjamin Netanyahu , the Israeli prime minister, says at the UN general assembly that he didn’t intend to come this year, but after he heard the “lies and slander” levelled at Israel he decided to come and “set the record straight”.

“Israel seeks peace, Israel yearns for peace,” he said, adding that Israel must defend itself against “savage murderers”.

Updated at 4.16pm BST

2.42pm BST

Benjamin Netanyahu , the Israeli prime minister, is about to speak at the UN general assembly. The chair is calling for order in the chamber.

2.15pm BST

Yoav Gallant , the Israeli defence minister, has said that Israel will continue to use all means at its disposal to return the north’s residents to their homes safely.

1.56pm BST

UK defence secretary John Healey is looking at a rumoured Israeli ground invasion into Lebanon “really carefully”, reports the Press Association (PA).

Healey said on Friday airstrikes and rocket fire exchanged between Israel and Hezbollah present a “risk that this escalates into something that is much wider and much more serious”.

The PA reports that Healey faced questions about a possible ground invasion after Israeli army chief Lt Gen Herzi Halevi told troops on Wednesday that ongoing airstrikes were “to prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah”.

Speaking to broadcasters, Healey said his “first concern remains the safety of British nationals in Lebanon”.

He added:

The travel advice remains the same – don’t go to Lebanon. If you are in Lebanon, then get out and there are still commercial flights leaving so people can do that.

But I left Labour conference earlier this week to chair a Cobra committee in government because we are making the preparations you’d expect of government ahead of any potential developments in the future.”

The PA news agency understands the UK government has successfully asked airlines to increase capacity on routes out of Lebanon, with foreign office teams in Beirut to support British consulate services.

It is thought they are ready to facilitate evacuations by sea or air, which could be triggered if the security environment degrades further and British nationals are no longer able to leave the Middle East through other routes.

Asked about the rumoured ground invasion, the PA reports Healey as replying:

We’re watching this really carefully. That will be a matter for the Israelis.

At the moment, it’s airstrikes. At the moment, there are missiles from the Lebanese Hezbollah directed at Israel. This conflict serves no one.”

The defence secretary said Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu would “hear about the calls from many countries led by the United States and Britain for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon – 21 days in which the fighting should stop on both sides” when he attends the UN general assembly in New York on Friday.

“That gives everyone a chance to concentrate on the peace plan that is on the table, that the Israelis themselves say would allow them to get their citizens back into northern Israel and the Lebanese to return to their homes in southern Lebanon,” he added.

Updated at 4.17pm BST

1.41pm BST

Lebanon facing deadliest period 'in a generation', says UN official

The UN said on Friday that a “catastrophic” intensification of Israeli attacks targeting Hezbollah militants had left Lebanon facing its deadliest period in years, with its hospitals overwhelmed by casualties, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

“The recent escalations in Lebanon are nothing short of catastrophic,” said Imran Riza , the UN’s humanitarian coordinator in Lebanon.

“We are witnessing the deadliest period in Lebanon in a generation, and many express their fear that this is just the beginning,” Riza told reporters in Geneva via video link from Beirut , reports AFP.

He pointed out that on Monday alone, the death toll was equal to around half of the 1,200 killed during 34 days of war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

“The level of displacement, the level of trauma, the level of panic, has been huge,” he said. At the same time, Riza warned that Lebanon’s “health sector is completely overrun”.

“The events of last week, including the explosions of communication devices, have nearly depleted health supplies,” he said. Riza added: “With the recent escalations and hospitals reaching capacity, the system is struggling with limited resources to meet the growing demands.”

The hospitals in Lebanon “are overwhelmed”, agreed Margaret Harris , spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) .

She pointed out that the pager and walkie-talkie blasts had caused large numbers of serious injuries, especially to eyes and hands, which require specialised treatment.

A full 777 injured remain in hospitals after those blasts, “and 152 of those are critical cases”, Harris said, according to AFP. “That means they’re not leaving the hospital for quite some time, and so every day of bombing and blasts fills up beds that can’t be unfilled.”

At the same time, she said, 37 health facilities had been closed across Lebanon due to events. Harris stressed that aid agencies had done a lot to prepare for possible mass-casualty events in Lebanon in case the past year of cross-border fire were to escalate.

The WHO had helped “train most of the health workers in most of the hospitals for mass casualty”, she said. But “in our planning scenarios, we didn’t have anything like the numbers that have actually been affected”.

“It was way beyond anything that normal planning, even for a horrific event like this, would have expected.”

Updated at 4.18pm BST

1.20pm BST

Australia has suggested the world should set “a clear timeline for the international declaration of Palestinian statehood” in a sign of increasing frustration about the stalled peace process.

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong , will float the idea in a speech to the UN general assembly in New York on Saturday Australian time (Friday US time). Benjamin Netanyahu was also due to address the gathering amid mounting concern about an escalating regional war .

Wong will tell the general assembly that “every country in this room” must abide by the rules of war, and Israel “must comply with the binding orders of the international court of justice”, according to speech remarks distributed to media in advance.

Wong will say the Hamas -led attacks on Israel nearly one year ago “cannot and should not be justified” and the group must release all Israeli hostages.

But she will say 11,000 Palestinian children have been killed and two million people in Gaza face acute food insecurity in the resulting war. “This must end,” Wong will say.

“All lives have equal value.”

One of the most significant parts of Wong’s speech is her offer for Australia to “contribute to new ways to break the cycle of conflict”.

She will say Australia “shares the frustration of the great majority of countries” about a lack of progress, more than 77 years after UN general assembly resolution 181 outlined “a plan for two states side by side”.

You can rerad the full piece here:

Related: ‘Clear timeline’ for Palestinian statehood needed: Penny Wong escalates language in UN speech

1.02pm BST

Gunmen shoot and kill aid worker in Gaza, charity and family say

Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip shot and killed an aid worker from a US based charity, firing on her car in what government officials told her family was a case of mistaken identity, reports Reuters.

The car in which Islam Hijazi , Gaza programme manager at Heal Palestine , was travelling was intercepted on Thursday in the area of Khan Younis in the south of the Gaza Strip. Gunmen riding in three cars sprayed the vehicle with dozens of bullets, according to residents and the woman’s family.

“She was the mother of two small children and a humanitarian with the highest ethics and professionalism,” Heal Palestine, posted on its Facebook page. “HEAL Palestine is more dedicated than ever to serving Gaza, in her honor. Ceasefire now,” it added.

Reuters reports that her family issued a statement on Friday, saying they were told by government parties at the hospital where her body was taken that she was killed by mistake. Her killers, whose identity was not immediately clear, had failed to identify the vehicle she was driving, they said.

There has been no immediate comment from Hamas, according to Reuters.

“That was a bigger shock … How would an innocent soul be wasted and 90 bullets fired at her car just for mistaken identification?” the family said in a statement published by Palestinian media. Reuters was not able to verify the number of bullets fired.

The incident highlights growing chaos and anarchy in Gaza almost a year into Israel’s military offensive, which has weakened the ability of Hamas-run security services to police the streets, according to the group.

Updated at 4.19pm BST

12.52pm BST

Yemen's Houthis say they attacked Israel's Tel Aviv and Ashkelon

Yemen ’s Iran -aligned Houthis said on Friday they had targeted Israel ’s cities of Tel Aviv and Ashkelon with a ballistic missile and a drone in support of Gaza and Lebanon , reports Reuters.

The Israeli army said it had intercepted a missile that was fired from Yemen after sirens and explosions were heard early in the day.

The Houthi’s military spokesperson said their operations will not halt in the coming days until Israel’s offensives in Gaza and Lebanon stop.

“We will carry out more military operations against the Israeli enemy in victory for the blood of our brothers in Palestine and Lebanon,” Yahya Sarea said in a televised speech.

Israeli strikes have killed more than 600 people in Lebanon since Monday, with the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah at its most intense in more than 18 years.

Hezbollah has been firing rockets into Israel for almost a year in support of its ally Hamas , which is fighting Israel in Gaza.

12.32pm BST

Reuters reports that Lebanese health minister Firass Abiad said 25 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since the early hours of Friday.

No further details were provided.

Updated at 4.20pm BST

12.22pm BST

Yemen ’s Iran -aligned Houthis said on Friday they will soon issue a statement related to a military operation deep inside Israel, reports Reuters.

The Israeli army said it intercepted a missile that was fired from Yemen after sirens and explosions were heard early on Friday.

12.11pm BST

Saudi Arabia forms global alliance to push for Israeli-Palestinian two-state solution

Saudi Arabia has formed a global alliance to push for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the country’s foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said on Thursday on the sidelines of the UN general assembly meeting in New York .

The alliance includes a number of Arab and Muslim countries and European partners, the Saudi state news agency reported, without specifying which countries had committed to join.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on X that the first meetings would be in Riyadh and Brussels .

After the eruption of the Gaza war last October between Israel and Hamas that rules Gaza, Saudi Arabia put on ice US -backed plans for the kingdom to normalise ties with Israel, two sources familiar with Riyadh’s thinking said earlier this year, according to Reuters.

“Implementing the two-state solution is the best solution to break the cycle of conflict and suffering, and enforce a new reality in which the entire region, including Israel, enjoys security and coexistence”, bin Farhan was quoted as saying, reported Reuters.

Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman said last week the kingdom would not recognise Israel without a Palestinian state and strongly condemned the “crimes of the Israeli occupation” against the Palestinian people.

11.48am BST

UK PM calls on Israel and Hezbollah 'to stop the violence' and 'step back from the brink'

Before a meeting with Donald Trump , the UK prime minister gave a speech at the UN general assembly where he told world leaders that Britain will approach international relations with less “paternalism” than before while listening more and speaking less.

He also pleaded with Israel and Hezbollah to step back from the brink of a wider war “that no one can control”.

“I call on Israel and Hezbollah: stop the violence, step back from the brink. We need to see an immediate ceasefire to provide space for a diplomatic settlement and we are working with all partners to that end,” he said.

Related: Keir Starmer meets with Donald Trump in push for good relationship

11.35am BST

More than 30,000 people have crossed into Syria from Lebanon in last 72 hours, says UNHCR

More than 30,000 people, mainly Syrians , have crossed into Syria from Lebanon in the past 72 hours, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.

In a post on X the UNHCR also shared a video of the UN high commissioner for refugees, Filippo Grandi, calling for a ceasefire.

Updated at 4.31pm BST

11.19am BST

Extra commercial flights have been scheduled this weekend to allow Britons and other foreign nationals to evacuate from Lebanon while Israel’ s offensive against Hezbollah continues, mostly by Lebanese carrier Middle East Airlines .

Official estimates are that there are 5,000 British citizens, single and dual nationals, and immediate family members who would be a priority for any emergency evacuation. Of those, several hundred are thought to be single nationals resident in the country.

Britain, along with other western nations, has been urging its citizens to leave Lebanon since early August, while commercial flights are available, though back-up evacuation plans were stepped up this week when 700 UK troops were moved back into the region.

Ministers are closely monitoring the status of Beirut ’s international airport, and if it closes because of Israeli bombing near the capital, that is likely to be a trigger to launch an international rescue to allow foreign nationals to escape the hostilities.

However, with the summer holiday season over, the number of Britons leaving in recent days has been relatively modest, suggesting those remaining have close ties with Lebanon. Officials are monitoring closely how much demand there is for people to fly out this weekend, to assess the level of remaining need.

10.56am BST

Japan to dispatch military planes for possible Lebanon evacuations

Japan is urging its citizens to leave Lebanon and has decided to prepare military flights for their possible evacuation, the government said on Friday.

Israeli bombing has killed hundreds of people this week in Lebanon, particularly in Hezbollah strongholds while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages.

“We’re currently checking the safety of Japanese citizens living in Lebanon, as well as urging them to leave the country while regular commercial flights remain in operation”, chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Friday morning, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Hours later, the defence ministry said air force planes had been ordered to go to Jordan and Greece to be on stand-by in case Japanese nationals need to be transported out of the region.

The C-2 transport aircraft would be used to evacuate about 50 Japanese citizens currently in Lebanon, media outlets including Kyodo News said, citing unnamed government sources.

Yoko Kamikawa , Japan’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that Tokyo is “strongly concerned about the escalation of tensions between Israel and Hezbollah”.

Japan, she added, “strongly urges” all parties to “exercise the utmost restraint to avoid further escalation”.

10.38am BST

As the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu , arrived in New York on Thursday ahead of his address to the United Nations general assembly , scheduled for Friday morning, protesters opposed to the war in Gaza gathered near UN headquarters .

One group of people who waved Israeli flags and campaign banners described themselves as an informal coalition of Jewish and Israeli-led organisations taking an anti-occupation and anti-war stance in relation to the Palestinian territories . They assembled close to the UN building in Manhattan to protest against Netanyahu’s arrival after he flew in from Israel overnight.

As it began to drizzle, a speaker addressed the crowd of about 50 people, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and telling those gathered that “Netanyahu will lie to the world” on Friday, just “like he lies to us Israelis”.

“Stop killing children, end the war, sign the deal, bring the hostages home,” the speaker continued. “There is no military solution.”

More protests are planned for Thursday evening, Friday and Saturday.

People carried signs reading “bring the hostages home” and “end the war”, and when Netanyahu’s name was mentioned in a speech, the crowd chanted “shame, shame, shame”.

Phylisa Wisdom , the executive director of the New York Jewish Agenda , one of the groups organising the protest, said the coalition was coming together to call on Netanyahu to reach a deal to end the war in Gaza, and bring out the remaining Israeli hostages taken in the Hamas -led attack on southern Israel on 7 October last year.

“There is no solution but a diplomatic solution, and we’re making sure that this message cuts through and gets to Netanyahu, to our government, and to all allies of peace who care about Israeli and Palestinian lives,” Wisdom said. She added that the groups were also planning on protesting outside Netanyahu’s hotel.

Related: ‘Stop killing children’: protests as Netanyahu arrives for UN address

Updated at 10.39am BST

10.09am BST

Nearly 700 people killed in Lebanon this week, says health ministry

Nearly 700 people have been killed in Lebanon this week, according to Lebanon’s health ministry, reports the Associated Press (AP).

Israel has dramatically escalated strikes, saying it is targeting Hezbollah ’s military capacities and senior Hezbollah commanders.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated that more than 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel in October, in support of Hamas .

The US , France and other allies jointly called for a 21-day ceasefire to try to avoid an all-out war. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is striking Hezbollah “with full force” and will not stop until its goals are achieved.

9.52am BST

Philippines says it will evacuate thousands from Lebanon if Israel invades

The Philippines said on Friday it will evacuate 11,000 citizens from Lebanon the moment Israeli forces cross the border to launch a ground offensive against Hezbollah , reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Israeli bombing of Iran -backed Hezbollah strongholds around neighbouring Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week, while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages.

Israel has rejected a US -backed 21-day ceasefire call, and its military chief has told soldiers to prepare for a possible ground offensive.

“A ground invasion will lead to mandatory repatriation,” foreign undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said at a press conference in Manila , adding the plan was to move thousands out of the country via the sea. He did not provide other details, according to AFP.

Manila had earlier urged Filipinos to leave Lebanon before airlines stopped flying to Beirut but most of its citizens did not heed the call, Filipino diplomats said.

Millions of Filipinos work overseas – with large numbers concentrated in the Middle East – due to limited job opportunities at home. About 90% of those working in Lebanon are women migrant domestic workers, reports AFP.

“To some of them, getting killed in war is preferable to starving to death,” de Vega said, adding there have so far been no Filipino casualties from the Israeli air campaign against Hezbollah.

After Israel’s war with Hamas erupted last year following the group’s 7 October attack, Manila began voluntary repatriations of its citizens from the areas affected by the fighting.

So far, only 500 Filipinos have taken up the government’s offer to leave Lebanon, De Vega said.

Filipino ambassador to Beirut Raymond Balatbat said 196 Filipinos have fled southern Lebanon, where the Israeli campaign has been concentrated. Most Filipinos working in the country are based in central Lebanon around Beirut, he added.

Anthony Mandap , consul general at the Philippine embassy in Tel Aviv , said there are no plans as of now to repatriate 30,000 Filipinos working in Israel, reports AFP.

Updated at 9.55am BST

9.35am BST

The Israeli military said drones and rockets crossed into Israeli territory from Lebanon on Friday, as Lebanon’s Hezbollah claimed a rocket attack on the Israeli city of Tiberias ( see 9am BST ).

The drones infiltrated the coastal area of Rosh HaNikra and were intercepted by the military’s defences, the Israeli military said, adding several rockets were also intercepted.

9.23am BST

Israel strike kills 5 Syrian soldiers near Lebanon: state media

An Israeli airstrike on Friday killed five Syrian soldiers near the border with Lebanon , the Syrian state news agency, Sana, reported, citing a military source.

“The Israeli enemy carried out an aerial attack … on one of our military positions near Kfar Yabus on the Syrian-Lebanese border,” Sana quoted the source as saying, adding that five Syrian soldiers were killed and one was wounded.

The raid came a day after the Israeli army said its warplanes struck “infrastructure along the Syria-Lebanon border used by Hezbollah to transfer weapons from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon”.

According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said Israeli warplanes targeted a crossing that links Syria’s Qusayr area to Lebanon, causing “a number of wounded”.

The UK -based monitor, which relies on a network of sources on the ground, said it was the first such strike on Syria since Israel intensified its attacks on Lebanon’s Hezbollah this week.

9.00am BST

Lebanon ’s Hezbollah militant group said its forces fired a salvo of rockets at the Israeli city of Tiberias on Friday, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

In a statement, Hezbollah said it was responding to Israel’s “savage” strikes on Lebanese towns and civilians. The Israeli military said drones and projectiles had crossed its territory from Lebanon.

8.46am BST

Here are some of the latest images coming in on the newswires:

8.28am BST

Ten global unions have filed a complaint urging Israel to pay back wages for more than 200,000 Palestinian workers deprived of salaries since the start of the war in Gaza .

The complaint, lodged at the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Friday, seeks unpaid wages and withheld benefits for workers employed in Israel before the 7 October attacks there by fighters from Palestinian militant group Hamas .

According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the unions cited “millions of dollars of lost income, causing severe financial insecurity … and widespread hardship for the affected workers and their families, who have no access to judicial remedies”.

Israel has ratified the ILO convention on the protection of unpaid wages, which is legally binding on signatories.

According to the complaint, 13,000 workers from the Gaza Strip have not been paid for work done before 7 October.

In addition, nearly 200,000 Palestinian workers from the West Bank have not been allowed to enter Israel since the war erupted nearly one year ago and have not been paid for work done before it began, reports AFP.

The ILO estimates average daily wages for Palestinians employed in Israel under regular work permits at $79 a day, while for informal workers, weekly pay ranged from $565 to $700.

“These workers have experienced widespread wage theft due to the suspension of work permits and the unilateral termination of their contracts,” the unions said.

They include the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) , the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers’ Associations (IUF) and the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) .

AFP reports that the ILO can decide to name a committee to review the complaint and the Israeli government’s response, or in serious cases form an investigative committee.

8.14am BST

Nine people killed in Israeli strike on Shebaa town in southern Lebanon, mayor says

An Israeli strike at about 3am local time on Friday killed nine people from the same family in the southern Lebanese border-town of Shebaa, including four children, mayor Mohammad Saab has told Reuters.

No further information was provided.

Updated at 8.14am BST

8.03am BST

The House of Commons foreign affairs committee chairwoman has warned a ground invasion by Israel into Lebanon could favour Hezbollah and its legitimacy, reports the Press Association (PA).

Asked about escalating conflict in the Middle East , Emily Thornberry told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:

I think that we need to be aware that we have perhaps more clout than we have done recently, and I think we’re in a fairly unique position, so … we are in a position to be able to pull people together.

I think that the UN general assembly meeting at this time means that many other nations can be pulled behind the declaration that has been made, and that will make it stronger.

We don’t know whether or not Israel is bluffing about a ground war. We do know that in 2006 that they got very bogged down, that at the moment they may be ahead because they’re using air power and surprise, but a ground war may well be different.

And actually, the poor Lebanese, who you know many of whom do not want Hezbollah in the bottom of their country, certainly don’t want to have the Israelis. And Hezbollah may well end up with more legitimacy as a result of that ground invasion.”

7.51am BST

Israeli teams will continue meetings on US ceasefire proposals, Netanyahu says

Israeli teams had meetings to discuss the US ceasefire proposals with Lebanon on Thursday and will continue discussions in the days ahead, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday, adding that he appreciated the US efforts.

“Our teams met (Thursday, 26 September) to discuss the US initiative and how we can advance the shared goal of returning people safely to their homes. We will continue those discussions in the coming days,” he said in a statement, reports Reuters.

The comments came after Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz said on Thursday there would be no ceasefire in the north, where Israeli jets have been carrying out the heaviest bombardment against the Iranian -backed Hezbollah movement in decades.

On Thursday, after Netanyahu left for New York where he is attending the UN general assembly , his office issued a statement saying the prime minister had ordered Israeli troops to continue fighting with full force in Lebanon.

Reuters reports that Netanyahu’s statement made no reference to the comments of Katz and other Israeli politicians, who have also rejected a ceasefire, saying only that there had been “a lot of misreporting around the US-led ceasefire initiative”.

“Israel shares the aims of the US-led initiative of enabling people along our northern border to return safely and securely to their homes,” the statement said.

“Israel appreciates the US efforts in this regard because the US role is indispensable in advancing stability and security in the region,” it said.

Israeli strikes over the past week have hit hundreds of targets in southern Lebanon and much deeper into the country, killing more than 600 people, reports Reuters.

At the same time, Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets and missiles at targets in Israel, including one fired at Tel Aviv. Israel’s air defence systems have intercepted many of the missiles, ensuring the damage has been relatively limited.

7.40am BST

Australian PM urges Netanyahu to 'listen to the international community' amid fears of escalating conflict with Hezbollah

The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese , has urged his Israeli counterpart to “listen to the international community” amid fears of an escalating conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon .

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong , also declared that the world “cannot allow any party to obstruct” peace in the Middle East as she pressed for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon.

Speaking hours after the Israeli government rejected growing international calls to agree to a three-week ceasefire with Hezbollah , Albanese had a sharp message for Benjamin Netanyahu .

“I say to prime minister Netanyahu that he needs to listen to the international community, just like the other players in that region need to listen to the international community,” he told reporters in Melbourne .

“The calls are very clear when you have the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, other nations all calling for a de-escalation of this conflict.”

In New York , Wong addressed the UN security council and emphasised the urgent need for “de-escalation” and “dialogue”.

“Hezbollah are terrorists that have not complied with security council resolution 1701, but Lebanese civilians should not pay the price,” Wong said.

“Lebanon cannot become the next Gaza. Just as in Gaza, Australia calls for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon .”

In a pointed message to Israel , Wong said: “War has rules – even when confronting terrorists; even when defending borders.”

Related: Israel ‘needs to listen’ to international community, Albanese says as Wong calls for Lebanon and Gaza ceasefires

7.26am BST

Israeli and US officials meet to discuss US-backed ceasefire proposal with Hezbollah

Israeli and US officials have met to discuss a US-backed ceasefire proposal with Hezbollah , the office of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late on Thursday.

The meetings – which happened in New York on the sidelines of the UN general assembly – would continue in the days ahead, Netanyahu’s office said, adding that they appreciated the US efforts.

The statement came after Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz said on Thursday there would be no ceasefire in the north, where Israeli jets have been carrying out the heaviest bombardment against the Iranian -backed Hezbollah movement in decades.

On Thursday, after Netanyahu left for New York where he is attending the UN general assembly, his office issued a statement saying the prime minister had ordered Israeli troops to continue fighting with full force in Lebanon .

More on that in a moment, but first here is a summary of the day’s other main events:

• Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel “will not stop” its attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon despite calls from the US, France and other allies for an immediate three-week ceasefire. The Israeli prime minister told reporters that his government’s policy was clear as he landed in New York on Thursday. “We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force, and we will not stop until we reach all our goals,” Netanyahu said.

• The US and France called for a 21-day temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah to make way for broader negotiations. A joint statement calling for “a diplomatic settlement” of the crisis was also endorsed by the UK, Australia, Canada, the European Union, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. It called for an urgent cessation of hostilities, which presented “an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation”.

• Lebanon’s minister for foreign affairs, Abdallah Bouhabib , has said his country is enduring a crisis that “threatens its very existence”. Speaking at the UN general assembly, he has said that his government welcomed yesterday’s ceasefire plan raised by the US and France – and demanded it be implemented.

• US officials hope to persuade Netanyahu to accept the ceasefire proposal by the time he addresses the UN general assembly on Friday. They argue that a pause in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah could also provide a breathing space in which to revive long-stalled negotiations with Israel and Hamas over the release of Israeli hostages in return for a truce in Gaza. Hezbollah has yet to respond to the call for a truce, although it and its backer, Iran, have previously insisted it would halt its strikes only if there is a ceasefire in Gaza.

• Israeli airstrikes continued in Lebanon on Thursday, in which health authorities said 92 people had been killed. Two people were killed and 15 others injured, including a woman in critical condition, after an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on Thursday, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Israel said it carried out a strike that it said killed one of the heads of the Hezbollah air force unit, Mohammad Surur. Hezbollah later confirmed his death.

• Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement said it had targeted the northern Israeli town of Safed with dozens of rockets on Thursday in response to Israeli attacks on Lebanon. Later on Thursday, air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and across central Israel. The IDF said the sirens were triggered by a missile fired from Yemen, which it said was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defence system.

Updated at 4.28pm BST