Israel flattens Gaza City residential tower after ordering civilians to leave

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Israeli attacks have now killed at least 58 Palestinians since Saturday as Israel continues its war on the Gaza Strip, Gaza hospitals told Al Jazeera.

The toll includes 16 aid seekers and 37 killed in Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip.

At least one child in Gaza is killed every hour on average, Save the Children has said.

"This is a shameful statistic – a horrific new low in a war characterised by a constant stream of them," Save the Children's regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, Ahmad Alhendawi, said.

"Worst of all, we saw this coming. Systematic attacks on children's homes, playgrounds, schools and hospitals, starvation by design – the world is doing nothing to stop it."

At least 20,000 children have been killed since October 2023. This is about 2 percent of Gaza's child population.

Hamas has condemned Israel's strike on the al-Soussi residential tower in Gaza City, saying Israel's actions were a "continuation of forced displacement", calling on the United Nations to "immediately" stop Israel's attacks on Gaza City.

Cycling team Israel-Premier Tech removed their name from their kit at the Vuelta a Espana on Saturday after pro-Palestine protests aimed at them during the race.

"In the interest of prioritising the safety of our riders and the entire peloton, in light of the dangerous nature of some protests at the Vuelta, Israel-Premier Tech has issued riders with team monogram-branded kit for the remainder of the race," said the team on social media network X.

"The team name remains Israel-Premier Tech but the monogram kit now aligns with the branding decisions we have previously adopted for our vehicles and casual clothing."

The three week grand tour has been hit by protests, with organisers pressuring Israel-Premier Tech to pull out for safety reasons, which they refused to do.

Four Palestinians were killed after Israeli airstrikes targeted Khan Younis, Wafa reports.

Three Palestinians were killed after a drone targeted a group of civilians on Jamal Abdel Nasser Street in central Khan Younis, while another was killed after a vehicle was targeted in the al-Mawasi area.

Israel's continuing attacks on the Gaza Strip have now killed at least 41 Palestinians since Saturday, medical sources tell Al Jazeera.

The toll includes six Palestinians who were seeking aid.

British police arrested dozens more people on Saturday under anti-terrorism laws for demonstrating in support of Palestine Action, a pro-Palestinian group banned by the government as a terrorist organisation.

On Saturday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered near parliament in central London to protest against the ban on Saturday, with many holding up signs that said: "I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action."

London's Metropolitan Police said officers had begun arresting those expressing support for Palestine Action. Police did not say how many arrests were made, but a Reuters witness said dozens of people were detained.

Protesters have rallied in London, one in a march calling for a Free Palestine, while a group has gathered in Parliament Square demanding that the ban against Palestine Action be lifted.

Photos and videos show protesters waving Palestine flags and banners calling for the UK to stop arming Israel.

A majority of the protesters in the square are estimated to be over the age of 50.

At least 23 Palestinians seeking aid have been killed over the past 24 hours as Israel continues to target Palestinians in desperate need of humanitarian supplies.

A total of 2,385 aid seekers have been killed since May.

Gaza's Government Media Office has refuted Israel's claims that the residential building targeted by the army was used by Hamas.

"We refute, in full and in detail, the lies and allegations propagated by the Israeli occupation to justify its barbaric aggression," the GGM said in a statement.

"We affirm unequivocally, based on the testimony of the residents of these towers, that they are under surveillance, and only civilians are permitted to enter them."

The office said the claims are "part of a systematic policy of deception used by the occupation to justify the targeting of civilians and infrastructure".

An Israeli strike on Saturday destroyed a second high-rise in Gaza City in as many days, witnesses reported.

The Israeli army claims, without providing evidence, that the residential building sheltering displaced Palestinians was being used by Hamas.

Witnesses identified the building as the Sussi Tower, with videos shared online showing the 15-storey structure collapsing. Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X that "we're continuing", posting a clip of the tower being hit.

Medical sources reveal that at least 68 Palestinians have been killed and 362 have been injured over the past 24 hours as Israel continues its war on the Gaza Strip.

Over 64,368 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023, while 162,367 have been wounded.

At least eight Palestinians were killed after an Israeli strike targeted a house in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood of Gaza City as Israel continues its attacks on the region, Al Jazeera reports.

At least one Palestinian body has been recovered after Israeli forces targeted the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City.

At the same time, at least six Palestinians were injured by an Israeli drone attack in Khan Younis. The group had returned to the Amal neighbourhood to inspect their damaged homes, Al Jazeera reports​​​​​​.

Israeli attacks on Gaza have killed at least 21 Palestinians since Saturday, including 13 in Gaza City.

At least six Palestinians have died from starvation as Israel continues to prevent aid from entering the Gaza Strip.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said on Saturday that describing the displacement of Palestinians as voluntary is "nonsense".

Israel earlier called on Gaza City residents to leave for the south, as its forces advance deeper into the enclave’s largest urban area.

Hezbollah official Mahmoud Qmati told Reuters on Saturday that the group considered Friday's cabinet session on an army plan to establish a state monopoly on arms "an opportunity to return to wisdom and reason, preventing the country from slipping into the unknown".

Lebanon's cabinet on Friday welcomed a plan by the army that would disarm Hezbollah and said the military would begin executing it, without setting a timeframe for implementation and cautioning that the military had limited capabilities.

But it said continued Israeli military operations in Lebanon would hamper the army's progress. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Lebanese information minister Paul Morcos stopped short of saying the cabinet had formally approved the plan.

Qmati told Reuters that Hezbollah had reached its assessment based on the government's declaration on Friday that further implementation of a US roadmap on the matter was dependent on Israel's commitment. He said that without Israel halting strikes and withdrawing its troops from southern Lebanon, Lebanon's implementation of the plan should remain "suspended until further notice."

At least six Palestinians, including aid seekers, were killed by Israeli gunfire and ongoing attacks in Gaza City and Khan Younis, Wafa reports.

A child and an elderly man were killed by Israeli fire in two separate incidents. At the same time, two Palestinians were killed after Israeli soldiers opened fire on civilians at a humanitarian aid distribution point in Wadi Gaza, and three more aid seekers were killed near an aid centre in Khan Younis.

At least 1,034 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank have been killed since October 2023, as Israel continues its campaign of bombardment in the region, Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office (ASRA) revealed.

The toll includes 210 children.

The Israeli military on Saturday is forcing Palestinians in Gaza City, the enclave's largest urban area, to leave for the south, warning that the army was operating throughout the city.

Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on X that residents should leave the city for a designated coastal area of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

On Thursday, the military said it had control over almost half of the city. It says it controls about 75 percent of all of Gaza.