Israel-Hamas highlights: Biden calls Netanyahu, emphasises on increasing Gaza aid

"Residents said some were local settlers dressed in army uniforms who have regularly harassed the village, while others wore civilian clothing, with army and police vehicles also at the scene", the report claimed.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said that it had received warnings from Israeli authorities to immediately evacuate al-Quds hospital in the Gaza Strip. The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that the Palestinian Red Crescent report was "deeply concerning", adding it was impossible to safely evacuate hospitals full of patients.

Pope Francis called for a ceasefire in Gaza saying, “Let’s continue to pray for Ukraine and for the serious situation in Palestine and Israel and for other regions with wars. In particular, in Gaza, leave space to guarantee humanitarian aid. And let the hostages be freed immediately. Let no one abandon the possibility to stop the arms. Cease fire.”

Norway’s prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre told public broadcaster NRK in an interview, “It says in international law that (reaction to such an attack) must be proportionate. Civilians must be taken into account, and humanitarian law is fully aware of that. I believe that the line has now been far exceeded by Israel."

"The Palestinian Red Crescent report of evacuation threats to Al-Quds hospital in Gaza is deeply concerning," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote X.

Gazans struggled to find their loved ones and heard news of family members killed as communications gradually returned to the enclave after a near total blackout. The United Nations warned that Palestinians were desperate for food and that civil order was breaking down.

"Israel cut us off from the world in order to wipe us out, but we are hearing the sounds of explosions and we are proud the resistance fighters have stopped them at meters distance," Shaban Ahmed, a public servant who stayed in Gaza City despite an Israeli warning to evacuate south, said as per news agency Reuters.

More than 1,400 people have been killed on the Israeli side, the vast majority civilians killed by Hamas in its October 7 incursion into Israel.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres reiterated his appeal for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza. Condemning the “appalling attacks perpetrated by Hamas”, he said “there is no justification, ever, for the killing, injuring and abduction of civilians.”

“I have always been consistent in my call for strict compliance of the well-established principles and rules of international humanitarian law. The protection of civilians is paramount,” he said, adding, “The laws of war establish clear rules to protect human life and respect humanitarian concerns. Those laws cannot be contorted for the sake of expediency. The world is witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe taking place before our eyes."

The total death toll in Gaza rose to 8,005 people, a statement released by the health ministry in Gaza said.

The Israeli military said that it had struck over 450 militant targets over the past 24 hours, including Hamas command centers, observation posts and anti-tank missile launching positions. It said more ground forces were sent into Gaza overnight.

The head of the World Health Organization said that they managed to communicate with the agency’s team in Gaza after internet and phone connectivity in the enclave were gradually restored.

“They said the last two nights were extremely tense with a lot of airstrikes - without fuel, water, electricity, connectivity and safe shelter to evacuate to,” Tedros Adhanom wrote on X.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett suggested the war plan should include establishing a 2-kilometer (1.2 mile) permanent buffer zone inside Gaza. This will suffocate Hamas inside the territory’s tunnels, Bennett, who is not part of Netanyahu’s so-called war cabinet, said in a post on X.

UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that an immediate ceasefire was needed in Gaza to ensure that civilians and civilian institutions are not targeted as per international humanitarian law, international treaties for the protection of civilians and human rights.

An official said as per news agency Reuters, "In the coming week we were planning to increase dramatically the amount of assistance" headed for Gaza from Egypt. Colonel Elad Goren of Cogat said, “We have mrked a humanitarian zone in the southern Gaza Strip in the Khan Younis area ... we still recommend that the civilian population that evacuated will go to this zone.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “The situation in Gaza is growing more desperate by the hour. I regret that instead of a critically needed humanitarian pause, supported by the international community, Israel has intensified its military operations.”

UN official said as per news agency AFP, “Supplies on the market are running out while the humanitarian aid coming into the Gaza Strip on trucks from Egypt is insufficient. The needs of the communities are immense, if only for basic survival, while the aid we receive is meagre and inconsistent.”

The Palestinian Red Crescent said that it has received warnings from Israeli authorities to immediately evacuate al-Quds hospital in the Gaza Strip.

"Since this morning, there has been raids 50 meters away from the hospital," it said as per news agency Reuters.

Thomas White, the agency's Gaza director, said that the break-ins were “a worrying sign that civil order is starting to break down after three weeks of war and a tight siege on Gaza. People are scared, frustrated and desperate."

The Israeli army raised the number of troops fighting inside the Gaza Strip, a spokesman said. "Overnight we increased the entry of IDF forces into the (Gaza) Strip, and they joined the forces already fighting there," Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari informed.

Israeli forces killed three Palestinians across the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said, as violence surges across the territory.

UN says thousands of people broke into Gaza aid warehouses to take food and other ‘basic survival items’, reported AP.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari urged civilians residing in the northern regions of Gaza and Gaza City to temporarily relocate to the safer South, where they can access essential supplies such as water, food, and medicine.

“The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is expanding its operations. We are moving to the next phase of our war against Hamas in Gaza, from the air, land, and sea. On October 7, Hamas committed a crime against humanity. Israel is in a war, it did not start, and it did not sink. Hamas is attacking Israeli civilians while firing from among dozen civilians. These are both war crimes. Our fight is with Hamas. Not with the people of Gaza,” Hagari said in a video posted to the IDF's profile on 'X'.

Israeli warplanes carried out airstrikes early Sunday near Gaza's largest hospital, which is packed with patients and tens of thousands of Palestinians seeking shelter, report AP quoting residents.

In a powerful display of solidarity with the Palestinian people, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan denounced the ongoing offensive in Gaza while addressing a protest rally in Delhi.

"The support being extended to Israel by the government of India in blatant violation of time-tested policy of solidarity with the Palestinian people who fight for their own land. It is really shocking that the government has gone to the extent of abstaining from discussion of the UN resolution, supporting Israel and the US."