Israeli strikes kill 32 in Gaza, Tel Aviv says not involved in Iran blasts

British human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has been arrested by London police during a pro-Palestine march after displaying a placard bearing the slogan “globalise the intifada”, according to his foundation.

In a statement shared with media outlets, the 74-year-old described the arrest as “an attack on free speech”, adding that he had been taken to a police station in south London.

“The police claimed the word intifada is unlawful. The word intifada is not a crime in law. The police are engaged in overreach by making it an arrestable offence,” the statement said. “This is part of a dangerous trend to increasingly restrict and criminalise peaceful protests.”

Tatchell had earlier posted a photograph on X showing himself on the protest route holding a placard featuring several slogans, including “Globalise the intifada”.

#Palestine march London

"Globalise the intifada: Non-violent resistance. End Israel's occupation of Gaza & West Bank"

Palestinians have a right to resist Israeli terrorism

Jewish settlers are terrorising #WestBank villagers: beating them & burning their homes, cars & crops pic.twitter.com/NmHeHWnO2H

— Peter Tatchell (@PeterTatchell) January 31, 2026

Israeli forces have detained two Palestinians in the village of Kharsa, southwest of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, according to Wafa news agency.

The arrests reportedly took place after Israeli military vehicles rammed the car the men were travelling in.

President Donald Trump on Saturday said Iran was negotiating with the United States, even as the Islamic republic's army chief warned Washington against launching military strikes.

"(Iran is) talking to us, and we'll see if we can do something, otherwise we'll see what happens...We have a big fleet heading out there," he told Fox News.

"They are negotiating," Trump said.

Trump added that US allies in region were not being told of plans for possible strikes due to security reasons. He has threatened to intervene in Iran in the wake of a deadly crackdown on anti-government protests.

"Well, we can't tell them the plan. If I told them the plan, it would be almost as bad as telling you the plan -- it could be worse, actually," he said.

Washington has deployed a naval strike group led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier off Iran's shores.

Qatar has condemned Israel’s latest ceasefire violations, warning that continued breaches risk derailing international efforts to restore stability in Gaza.

In a statement, Qatar’s foreign ministry criticised Israel for its “repeated” violations and urged it to fully comply with the terms of the US-backed peace plan to allow the agreement to move forward into its second phase.

The ministry also called on “all parties to exercise maximum restraint and refrain from any steps that would undermine” Gaza’s stability and long-term recovery efforts.

Egypt has criticised Israel’s latest attacks on Gaza and called on all sides to uphold the fragile, US-brokered ceasefire ahead of the planned reopening of the Rafah border crossing.

In a statement, Egypt’s foreign ministry condemned Israel’s “repeated violations” of the truce and urged all parties to “exercise the utmost restraint”.

The ministry warned that continued escalation risks undermining efforts to stabilise the ceasefire at a critical moment.

According to Palestinian health officials, at least 509 Palestinians have been killed and 1,405 wounded by Israeli forces since the ceasefire was agreed in early October.

The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees has criticised Israel’s latest attacks on Gaza, saying the current truce amounts to “a ceasefire in name only”.

In a post on X, the UNRWA chief said a true ceasefire should see fighting come to a halt and create space for efforts to end the war, noting that hundreds of people have been killed since the truce began in early October.

“A ceasefire means guns fall silent and give way to efforts to end the war,” he wrote.

“People in Gaza deserve a genuine ceasefire – a much overdue ceasefire.”

A ceasefire in name only.

Another dark day with 30 people reportedly killed only today.

Nearly 500 people have been killed since the ceasefire has been in place, among them more than 100 children according to @UNICEF.

A ceasefire means guns fall silent & give way to efforts…

— Philippe Lazzarini (@UNLazzarini) January 31, 2026

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told his Egyptian counterpart on Saturday that Tehran was not seeking a conflict with the United States and any clash would do neither side any good.

According to a statement from the Iranian presidency, Pezeshkian held a call with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a Washington ally who has been invited to join US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace".

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has never sought, and in no way seeks, war and it is firmly convinced that a war would be in the interest of neither Iran, nor the United States, nor the region," he said.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has said that US President Donald Trump will keep his promises to the people of Iran, amid ongoing protests over economic hardship and government repression.

Speaking to Israel’s Channel 12 in an interview aired on 31 January 2026, Huckabee said Trump would not “disappoint” Iranians who have taken to the streets in recent years.

"This is a president who has made many promises — and you’ll be hard-pressed to find one he hasn’t kept,” Huckabee said. “He doesn’t make empty threats."

Addressing the Iranian public directly, he added: "Pay close attention to what the president says and take him at his word. He will keep his promise."

Huckabee also stressed that no final decision has been taken on a potential US military strike against Tehran, saying Trump continues to favour a peaceful resolution in which Iran halts its threats against Israel and the United States and abandons its nuclear programme.

"I would say that the decision still needs to be made,” he said. “President Trump is always hopeful for the best outcome. Let’s not forget, he is the author of The Art of the Deal. If he can achieve that, it’s ideal."

However, Huckabee warned that Trump would not hesitate to act if diplomacy fails, pointing to last summer’s US operation against Iranian nuclear sites as evidence of his willingness to use force if necessary.

Senior Iranian security official Ali Larijani wrote on X on Saturday: "Contrary to the artificially constructed media war narrative, the formation of a framework for negotiations [with the United States] is progressing."

US President Donald Trump predicted on Friday that Iran would seek to negotiate a deal rather than face American military action, despite Tehran warning that its arsenal of missiles would never be up for discussion.

Washington also wants Tehran to dismantle its nuclear programme, something Iran has also refused to do.

Asked if he had given Iran a deadline to enter talks on its nuclear and missile programmes, Trump said "yeah, I have," but refused to say what it was.

An Israeli strike on south Lebanon killed one person on Saturday, Lebanese authorities said, as the Israeli army said it targeted an operative from the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

Lebanon's health ministry said one person was killed in a strike on the village of Rub Thalatheen, close to the Israeli border.

The state-run National News Agency reported a man was killed in the strike while "carrying out repair work on the roof of a house".

The Israeli army said in a statement that it killed a Hezbollah operative "who took part in attempts to re-establish Hezbollah terror infrastructure in the Markaba area", adjacent to Rub Thalatheen.

Qatar on Saturday condemned Israel for its repeated violations of a fragile US-brokered ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, after the Palestinian territory's civil defence agency reported 32 people killed in Israeli strikes.

"The State of Qatar expresses its strong condemnation of the repeated Israeli violations of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip... in a dangerous escalation that will inflame the situation and undermine regional and international efforts aimed at consolidating the truce," the Qatari foreign ministry said.

An explosion reported on Saturday at a residential building in the southern Iranian city of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf coast was the result of a gas leak, according to the local fire chief.

"The initial cause of the building accident in Bandar Abbas was a gas leak and buildup, leading to an explosion. This is the initial theory," Mohammad Amin Lyaghat said, in comments broadcast on state television.

Separate incidents were reported elsewhere in Iran on Saturday but media outlets quickly dismissed any connection to an attack or potential sabotage, with tensions high as US President Donald Trump intensifies threats of military strikes against the Islamic republic.

Egypt condemned Israel's latest strikes in Gaza on Saturday and urged all parties to respect a fragile US-brokered ceasefire ahead of the long-awaited reopening of the territory's Rafah border crossing.

In a statement from its foreign ministry, Egypt condemned Israel's "repeated violations" of the truce and demanded all parties "exercise the utmost restraint", after Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed 28 people on Saturday.

Israeli forces are due to allow the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza to reopen on Sunday on a trial basis and to allow only the "limited movement of people", not aid shipments.

Israel is not involved in a series of blasts that occurred in Iran on Saturday, two Israeli officials told Reuters. 

Turkish authorities have blocked a convoy carrying aid to Kobane, a predominantly Kurdish town in northern Syria encircled by the Syrian army, NGOs and a Turkish MP said on Saturday.

They said the aid was blocked before it reached the Turkey-Syria border, despite an agreement announced on Friday between the Syrian government and the country's Kurdish-led forces.

Twenty-five lorries containing water, milk, baby formula and blankets collected in Diyarbakir, the main city in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast, "were prevented from crossing the border", said the Diyarbakir Solidarity and Protection Platform, which organised the aid campaign.

Four people were killed after a gas explosion at a residential building in Iran's Ahvaz, the state-run Tehran Times reported citing the head of the city's fire department.

An explosion took place on Saturday at a building in the Iranian city of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf coast, state media reported, though the cause of the blast was as yet unknown.

State television said the explosion occurred at an eight-storey building, "destroying two floors, several vehicles, and shops" in the area of Moallem Boulevard in the city. Rescue and firefighting teams were on site to provide assistance, it added.

The official IRNA news agency quoted the director general of crisis management in Hormozgan province, Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, as saying the cause of the explosion was under investigation.

"Those injured in the incident are being transferred to hospital by emergency responders," he added, without reporting any fatalities.

Director General of Crisis Management of Hormozgan Province said: This incident involved an explosion at a residential house on Moallem Boulevard in Bandar Abbas.https://t.co/wYurukt2y5 pic.twitter.com/rpojgJOY0W

— Tehran Times (@TehranTimes79) January 31, 2026

An international humanitarian organisation has warned that supplies are running out at a camp in northeast Syria housing thousands of people linked to the Islamic State group, as the country's government fights to establish control over an area formerly controlled by Kurdish fighters.

Save the Children said that "critical supplies in al-Hol camp are running dangerously low" as clashes are blocking the safe delivery of humanitarian aid.

It added that last week’s clashes around the camp forced aid agencies to temporarily suspend regular operations at al-Hol. It added that the main road leading to the camp remains unsafe, which is preventing humanitarian workers from delivering food and water or running basic services for children and families.

"The situation in al-Hol camp is rapidly deteriorating as food, water and medicines run dangerously low," said Rasha Muhrez, Save the Children Syria country director. "If humanitarian organizations are unable to resume work, children will face still more risks in the camp, which was already extremely dangerous for them before this latest escalation."

Muhrez added that all parties to the conflict must ensure a safe humanitarian corridor to al-Hol so basic services can resume and children can be protected. "Lives depend on it," she said.

Iranian army chief Amir Hatami on Saturday warned the United States and Israel against an attack, saying his country's forces were on high alert following Washington's heavy military deployments in the Gulf.

He also insisted Iran's nuclear expertise could not be eliminated, after Trump said he expected Tehran to seek a deal to avoid US strikes.

"If the enemy makes a mistake, without a doubt it will endanger its own security, the security of the region, and the security of the Zionist regime," Hatami said, according to the official IRNA news agency.

He noted that Iran's armed forces were "at full defensive and military readiness".

Israeli forces arrested 15 Palestinians, including a girl, during pre-dawn raids on Saturday in various areas of the occupied West Bank, with the campaign concentrated in the village of Azzun in the north.

Local sources reported that Israeli forces detained 13 Palestinians in Azzun after raiding several homes and vandalizing their contents, before transferring the detainees to a military camp surrounding the village.

In the northern West Bank city of Jenin, Israeli forces arrested Manar Massmar during a raid in the Jabal Abu Dhahir area, and also detained Ibrahim Abu Al-Shami from his family home near Ibn Sina Hospital in the city centre.

The Israeli army typically does not announce the reasons for such arrests, which are often carried out as part of what Tel Aviv describes as "security operations" targeting "wanted" individuals.

Palestinians view these arrests as punitive measures targeting activists, former prisoners, students, and political figures, aimed at weakening any form of organisational or on-the-ground activity in the West Bank.

A series of intense Israeli airstrikes rocked towns in the Zahrani area of southern Lebanon Friday evening, as the Israeli army claimed it was targeting infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah militant group.

The raids struck the valley between the villages of Msayleh, Tefahta, and Najjariyeh. The strikes also reportedly targeted heavy equipment in the village of Daoudiyeh.

The main Msayleh road was cut off in both directions because of the strikes, and a complete power outage was reported in neighbouring villages. The sound of more than ten powerful strikes was heard as far as Sidon.

The Israeli army announced it had "carried out attacks on infrastructure and engineering equipment belonging to Hezbollah, which were being used to rehabilitate infrastructure in Lebanon, specifically in the area of the Daoudiyeh farm in southern Lebanon."

سلسلة غارات على بلدات قرى الزهراني جنوبي لبنان pic.twitter.com/9Q7D8N09Iu

— Annahar النهار (@Annahar) January 30, 2026

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that U.S., Israeli and European leaders had exploited Iran's economic problems, incited unrest and provided people with the means to "tear the nation apart” in recent protests.

The U.S., Israeli and European leaders tried to "provoke, create division, and supplied resources, drawing some innocent people into this movement," Pezeshkian said in a live state TV broadcast.

Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Europeans "rode on our problems, provoked, and were seeking — and still seek — to fragment society," said Pezeshkian.

"They brought them into the streets and wanted, as they said, to tear this country apart, to sow conflict and hatred among the people and create division," Pezeshkian said.