Joe Biden says Hamas assault on Israel is ‘act of sheer evil’ as death toll exceeds 1,000

US President Joe Biden has called the slaughter of hundreds of Israelis by Hamas an “act of sheer evil”.

In an address at the White House on Tuesday, Mr Biden said at least 14 Americans have been killed in the violence in Israel which erupted at the weekend.

It came after explosions were heard in the Israeli city of Ashkelon following a warning to residents from Hamas to to evacuate by 5pm local time (3pm BST).

Air raid sirens sounded in the coastal city and across the country as fierce fighting continued between Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israel’s military.

The Israel Defense Forces say more than 4,500 rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel since Saturday, when Hamas launched its sudden, multi-pronged attack.

A military official said the death toll from the surprise attack over the weekend has now risen above 1,000.

Israel is pressing ahead with a fierce offensive of airstrikes in Gaza that has claimed 830 lives on the other side and caused widespread destruction.

Key Points

• Hamas has ‘nowhere to hide’ says Israel as total siege ordered of Gaza

• Humanitarian corridor needed for civilians in Gaza amid siege, says WHO

• Palestinian militants threaten to kill hostages in response to airstrikes

• Bodies of 1,500 Hamas fighters found in Israeli territory

US President says Hamas do not represent Palestinian people

19:42 , John Dunne

“Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people,” Biden says. “They used Palestinian people as human shields.”

“Sadly for the Jewish people, it’s not new,” he continues. “It’s brought to the surface painful memories” of antisemitism over the last century.

The US president shares examples of some of the horrific stories coming out of the region: “Parents butchered using their bodies to protect their children... Reports of babies being killed... Women raped and paraded as trophies.”

“We stand with Israel, we stand with Israel,” Biden says.

Biden: Hamas attack is ‘sheer evil ... we stand by Israell’

19:36 , John Dunne

President Joe Biden said his government would help in the efforts to release hostages kidnapped by Hamas.

He said: “Our hearts may be broke but our response is clear.”

He said Hamas had killed babies and victims of all ages in an act of “sheer evil.”

The President said: “We condemn the indiscriminate evil.”

Two senior Hamas officials killed in Gaza according to Israeli military

17:13 , John Dunne

Two senior Hamas officials have been killed in air strikes in Gaza, the Israeli military claims.

Zakaria Abu Muammar and Jawad Abu Shamal, members of the Hamas political bureau, died after a raid in Khan Yunis early this morning, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) has sias.

An IDF spokesman says Shamal was Hamas’s economy minister, and was involving in the “funding of terrorism inside and outside the Gaza Strip” as well as leading operations targeting Israeli citizens.

Muammar was the head of Hamas’s international relations office.

The Israeli’s allege he was involved in the planning of “numerous terrorist activities”, the IDF alleges.

Hamas has not confirmed the two men’s deaths, and the BBC has not been able to independently verify the Israeli claims.

US families appeal to bring loved ones home after Hamas seize hostages

16:53 , John Dunne

One father said he had not heard from his 19-year-old son since Saturday.

Itay Chen is serving in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and had to work last weekend so he could join his family in New York for his brother’s bar mitzvah this coming weekend.

He was last active and in communication for a while at the weekend, his father Ruby Chen said. “Since then: silence.”

“The IDF say he is defined as missing in action. No-one has been able to physically locate him - he is not in hospital, not on the deceased list,” he told a press conference in the US.

“We want him home as soon as possible,” he said, urging the US “not to take a back seat” in helping establish his son’s whereabouts.

Gaza health ministry says 830 Palestinians confirmed dead in Israeli air strikes

16:47 , John Dunne

Gaza’s health ministry says 830 Palestinians are known to have been killed in Israeli strikes since Saturday.

Antisemitic incidents soar in UK after start of conflict in Israel

16:29 , Sami Quadri

Reports of antisemitic incidents in Britain have tripled compared to the same period last year following the outbreak of violence in Israel over the weekend, a Jewish charity said on Tuesday.

The Community Security Trust (CST), which advises Britain's estimated 280,000 Jews on security matters, did not provide exact numbers but said further incidents could be reported in the coming days.

"We don't have firm numbers yet as we are still logging and verifying everything that has come in, which also means that the number is likely to rise further, but the current rate is roughly triple what it was for the same period last year," a spokesperson said.

The death toll from Hamas' attack on Israel has risen above 1,000, an Israeli military official has said

16:04 , Sami Quadri

An Israeli military official says the death toll from Hamas' surprise attack over the weekend has now risen above 1,000.

General Dan Goldfus announced the figure during a briefing with reporters on Tuesday. He spoke as Israel was pressing ahead with a fierce offensive of airstrikes in Gaza that has claimed 830 lives on the other side and caused widespread destruction.

"We are going to go on the offense and attack the Hamas terrorist group and any other group that is in Gaza," he said. "We will have to change the reality from within Gaza to prevent this from happening again."

The surprise Hamas incursion is the deadliest militant attack in Israeli history.

Rockets fired from south Lebanon towards Israel

15:52 , Sami Quadri

A salvo of rockets were fired on Tuesday from southern Lebanon towards Israel, three security sources told Reuters, in the third consecutive day of violence along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

One security source said the bombardment was carried out by Palestinian factions. A second source said shelling was hitting the southern area from which the rockets were launched.

Norwegian Air cancels flights to and from Tel Aviv until December

15:51 , Sami Quadri

Norwegian Air is cancelling its flights from Copenhagen and Stockholm to Tel Aviv, as well as return flights, until December 19.

“We are canceling until December 19 inclusive,” said a company spokesperson.

On Monday, the company had said it was cancelling its flights to and from Israel scheduled to depart this week.

Rockets fired towards Ashkelon

15:23 , Josh Salisbury

A large barrage of rockets has been fired towards the Israeli town of Ashkelon, close to the border with Gaza.

Hamas militants had earlier told residents of the town to leave by 5pm local time (3pm BST).

Footage posted online appeared to show a significant number of rockets heading towards the town.

Home Secretary says police should consider whether ‘river to sea’ chant is an offence

15:17 , Josh Salisbury

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has urged police to consider whether pro-Palestinian chants could in some contexts be an offence.

In a letter to chief constables, Ms Braverman said officers should be “alert and ready” to respond to potential offences, which she said may not solely be pro-Hamas slogans or symbols, a banned terror group in the UK.

She said: “I would encourage police to consider whether chants such as "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" should be understood as an expression of a violent desire to see Israel erased from the world, and whether its use in certain contexts may amount to a racially aggravated section 5 public order offence.

She added: “Behaviours that are legitimate in some circumstances, for example the waving of a Palestinian flag, may not be legitimate such as when intended to glorify acts of terrorism.

“Nor is it acceptable to drive through Jewish neighbourhoods, or single out Jewish members of the public, to aggressively chant or wave pro-Palestinian symbols at them.”

Babies among those massacred by Hamas at kibbutz, says Israeli army

14:57 , Josh Salisbury

Israeli citizens including babies were massacred by Hamas militants in a kibbutz near to Gaza, the Israeli military said.

Israeli Defence Forces recovered bodies from the grounds of the Kfar Aza kibbutz near Sderot on Tuesday, one of the hardest-hit areas by Hamas militants.

“You see the babies, the mothers, the fathers, in their bedrooms, in their protection rooms and how the terrorist kills them. It’s not a war, it’s not a battlefield. It’s a massacre, it’s a terror activity," Israeli Major General Itai Veruv told media.

“It is something that I never saw in my life. It’s something that we used to imagine from our grandfathers, grandmothers in the pogrom in Europe and other places. It’s not something that happens in new history."

Israeli troops were going house to house to retrieve civilian bodies in body bags. It remains unclear how many civilians were killed.

‘Action by Hamas does nothing for Palestinians’, Starmer says

14:27 , Miriam Burrell

Action taken by Hamas militants “does nothing for Palestinians”, Labour leader Keir Starmer has said, adding that “Israel must always have the right to defend itself”.

Mr Starmer said he is “shocked and appalled” by the violence that has erupted in Israel during a keynote speech at the Labour conference in Liverpool.

More than 1,000 Israelis killed

14:10 , Miriam Burrell

More than 1,008 people in Israel have now been killed and more than 3,418 injured, the Israeli embassy to the US has reported.

Pictured: Devestation in Ashkelon

13:57 , Miriam Burrell

Israeli air strike ‘kills Hamas officials in Gaza'

13:50 , Miriam Burrell

An Israeli air strike has killed two senior Hamas officials in Gaza, according to an official.

Meanwhile Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport was continuing operations on Tuesday, a spokesperson said, denying a Hamas statement that it had hit the airport with rockets from the Gaza Strip.

Sirens heard in Tel Aviv

13:47 , Miriam Burrell

Sirens have been heard in Tel Aviv, with warning of possible incoming rockets, the Israeli minitary has said.

Hamas warns residents of Israeli town to leave by 5pm

13:29 , Josh Salisbury

Hamas’s armed wing has warned residents of the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon to leave by 5pm local time - 2pm GMT.

The town was earlier hit by Hamas rocket fire, with residents evacuating affected areas.

A Hamas spokesperson said: “In response to the enemy’s crime of displacing our people and forcing them to flee their homes in several areas of the Gaza Strip, we are giving the residents of the occupied city of Ashkelon a deadline to leave it before five o’clock this evening, and those who were warned have been excused.”

The town is close to the northern border with Gaza.

Germany opens probe into ‘Germans kidnapped by Hamas’ in Israel

13:20 , Josh Salisbury

German prosecutors are investigating after German citizens were apparently kidnapped in the attack by Hamas on Israel.

The federal prosecutor's office said that the investigation of unknown members of Hamas on suspicion of hostage-taking, murder and membership in a foreign terrorist organization was opened on Tuesday.

The German Foreign Ministry has said it has to assume that an unspecified number of German-Israeli dual citizens were among those kidnapped by Hamas on Saturday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Tuesday that Germany is working closely with Israel to determine how many citizens were kidnapped and how they might be freed.

US security assistance on its way to Israel - White House

13:03 , Josh Salisbury

The first tranche of US security assistance is on its way to Israel and more assistance is to come, the White House has said.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby told MSNBC: “The president is going to be addressing the American people today, he is going to talk about how we’re going to continue to solidy stand behind Israel.

“There’s a fresh trance of security assistance on its way to Israel right now. He’ll talk about the importance of making sure we continue to find out as much as we can about American citizens that are in Israel.

“Sadly we know that eleven were killed, we expect that number to go north, sadly.”

Anti-semitic incidents reported triple since Hamas attack on Israel - charity

12:45 , Josh Salisbury

Reports of anti-semitic incidents have tripled since Hamas launched its attack on Israel, a charity has said.

Community Security Trust, which logs anti-semitic incidents, said the number of reports has tripled  from what it would normally expect from Saturday to Monday, and the real total could be higher.

Speaking to the Jewish News, director of policy Dave Rich said: “The rise in anti-semitic incidents is deeply troubling, but sadly not unexpected.

“We encourage everyone to report incidents to us and, importantly, to the police, and we are working flat out to support everyone who gets in touch.”

Calls for national unity government in Israel after attacks

11:40 , Josh Salisbury

Members of Prime Minister’s Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition called on Tuesday for opposition politicians to be brought into a national unity government as part of efforts to stabilise Israel as it wages war on Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza.

Justice Minister Yariv Levin said a “national emergency government needs to be established immediately”.

He said: “These are difficult days which require unity, resilience and for us to limit our declarations.”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the right-wing Religious Zionist Party, added: “An emergency unity government now!"

Mr Netanyahu has urged the opposition to join a national unity government with “no preconditions,” as was the case on the eve of the 1967 Six Day War.

Palestinian death toll rises to 770, says health ministry

11:19 , Josh Salisbury

At least 770 Palestinians have been killed and 4,000 wounded in Israeli air strikes on the blockaded enclave since Saturday, Gaza's Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

At least another 18 people were killed and 100 injured in the West Bank since Saturday, the ministry added.

More than 900 Israelis were killed when Hamas launched its attack over the weekend.

Israeli couple murdered by Hamas save twins by hiding them

11:17 , Josh Salisbury

A “heroic” Israeli couple murdered by Hamas militants in their home managed to save their twin babies by hiding them in a concealed shelter.

Itay and Hadar Berdichevsky had just seconds to react when they heard gunmen trying to smash down their front door. The couple, both 30, fought with them but were shot dead during the assault.

Gali Dagan, the Israeli ambassador to Colombia, revealed the 10-month-old twins were miraculously found and rescued by Israeli soldiers after being left alone for more than 12 hours.

Read more here.

Humanitarian corridor needed for Gaza amid siege, WHO urges

10:27 , Josh Salisbury

The World Health Organization has called for a humanitarian corridor out of Gaza amid a blockade of the strip by Israeli forces in response to Hamas’ attack.

Around 2.2million civilians live in the Gaza Strip, one of the most densely-populated areas in the world, raising fears of civilian casualties.

Israel has launched air strikes into Gaza, while the borders with both Israel and Egypt are closed, leaving civilians with few options to flee the fighting.

“WHO is calling for an end to the violence... A humanitarian corridor is needed to reach people with critical medical supplies," WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told a press briefing in Geneva.

On Monday, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant said the “complete siege” would include halting the admission of food, electricity and fuel.

‘Significant’ number of Brits involved in Israel-Gaza conflict

10:18 , Josh Salisbury

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has suggested that a “significant number" of British-Israeli dual nationals have been caught up in the conflict in Israel and Gaza.

He declined to confirm reports about the numbers affected, telling LBC: “The situation is fast-moving. It is complicated. I'm uncomfortable giving numbers. Even from the Israeli government, a lot of the figures about the casualties and fatalities are as yet to be fully confirmed.

“So I don't really want to speculate but we do know that a significant number of British-Israeli dual nationals have been in some way involved in the terrorist atrocities.”

Israel rules out air incursion at northern border with Syria and Lebanon

09:57 , Josh Salisbury

The Israeli military has ruled out an aerial infiltration from Syria or Lebanon after scrambling forces in response to a report it had received.

Israel is on high alert for any spread of its Gaza war to the north, where on Monday it repelled a Lebanese border incursion.

Iran denies involvement in Hamas attack

09:47 , Josh Salisbury

Iran has denied involvement in the Hamas attack on Israel, but praised those behind it.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised speech: “We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime.”

Iran has long backed the Hamas group, which controls the Gaza Strip and rejects Israel's right to exist. The claim not to have been invovled is widely doubted by Western intelligence and experts.

The United States said on Monday Iran was complicit in Hamas’ assault on Israel, though it said it had no intelligence or evidence pointing to Tehran’s direct participation.

Israeli airstrikes have killed civilians in Gaza, claims UN human rights chief

09:39 , Josh Salisbury

Israeli air strikes have levelled residential buildings across Gaza, resulting in civilian casualties, the United Nations Human Rights chief said on Tuesday.

"International humanitarian law is clear: the obligation to take constant care to spare the civilian population and civilian objects remains applicable throughout the attacks," Volker Turk said in a statement.

His office said Israeli air operations have also hit schools and premises of the UN relief and works agency.

In response to Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant's announcement of a tightened blockade for the Gaza strip, Mr Turk said that “sieges" that endanger the lives of civilians are prohibited under international law.

He added that he “deeply shocked and appalled by allegations of summary executions of civilians, and, in some instances, horrifying mass killings by members of Palestinian armed groups.”

Israel responds to report of 'suspected intrusion’ into its northern airspace

09:24 , Josh Salisbury

Israel’s military has said it has received reports of a possible aerial infiltration from Syria or Lebanon into Israeli airspace.

“A report was received of a suspected intrusion into the airspace of the Golan Heights and the Upper Galilee,” said an air force spokesperson on Twitter.

“IDF forces are accompanied by Air Force aircraft deployed and scanning the area. More details follow.”

Officials had earlier said there was no “unusual” occurences at its northern land border with Syria and Lebanon.

Hamas ‘has nowhere to hid’ says Israel amid airstrikes

09:08 , Josh Salisbury

Hamas operatives have “nowhere to hide in Gaza,” the Israeli military said, adding that the air force was carrying out unprecedently intensive air strikes in the Palestinian enclave in waves every four hours.

“We will reach them (Hamas) everywhere," chief military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a briefing.

Officials added that there were no “unusual” occurences at Israel’s northern border with Lebanon and Syria. On Monday, Israeli forces said it had fought off gunmen crossing the border at Lebanon, raising the prospect of another front in the fighting.

France and Spain oppose withdrawing EU aid from Palestinian territories

09:00 , Josh Salisbury

Both Spain and France have said they oppose a proposed suspension of European Union aid to the Palestinian territories.

The European commission said on Monday it had put its development funding to the Palestinian territories under review after Hamas’s attack on Israel.

But both France and Spain have opposed withdrawing aid, set to be discussed at a meeting later Tuesday. “We are not in favour of suspending aid that directly benefits the Palestinian people, and we made this clear to the European Commission yesterday,” said the French foreign ministry in a statement.

Spanish Acting Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares added: “This cooperation must continue, we cannot confuse Hamas, which is in the list of EU's terrorist groups, with the Palestinian population.”

Rocket sires sound in southern Israel

08:36 , Josh Salisbury

Rocket sires are sounding again in southern Israel, according to the Israeli army.

The sirens warn of a possible rocket attack.

Israel drafts in reservists from Europe for Gaza war

08:14 , Josh Salisbury

Israel's air force has said it had sent transport planes to Europe to fly back hundreds of Israelis there who will serve as military reservists in the Gaza war.

In a social media post, the corps said its Hercules planes had taken part in the emergency airlift. It did not elaborate on where in Europe the reservists had come from.

Eli Cohen, Israel’s foreign minister, earlier said officials had received “many requests” from Israelis “all over the world” to facilitate returns as soon as possible.

Israel has already called up a record 300,000 reservists in response to Hamas’s attack.

More than 187,000 displaced in Gaza amid airstrikes, says UN body

07:50 , Josh Salisbury

More than 187,500 people have been displaced in Gaza since the beginning of the conflict, according to a report from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, is hosting more than 137,000 people in schools across the territory. The report says Israeli airstrikes have razed 790 housing units and severely damaged 5,330 in the territory of 2.3 million people.

OCHA said damage to water, sanitation and hygiene facilities in Gaza has disrupted service for more than 400,000 people.

Pause pro-Palestine demonstrations, Foreign Secretary urges

07:38 , Josh Salisbury

Further comments now from the Foreign Secretary, who has urged supporters of Palestine to stay at home, after protests in London.

James Cleverly said: “There is no need, there's no necessity for people to come out. It causes distress. This is a difficult, delicate situation.

He said that the protests were causing concern in the Jewish community, “who have often been on the receiving end of prejudice and threats of violence".

“There's no need for this at all. I would encourage them just to pause."

UK supports Israel’s right to defend itself, says Foreign Secretary

07:28 , Josh Salisbury

The UK will support Israel’s right to defend itself against a “brutal terrorist attack”, British Foreigh Secretary James Cleverly said.

Speaking in a new clip released on Tuesday morning, Mr Cleverly said: “Israel has a right to defend itself against attack. The UK completely supports Israel’s right to defend itself proportionately.

“The truth of the matter is that this was a terrorist attack, perpetrated by Hamas, who are embedded in Gaza, shielding themselves amongst the Palestinian people in Gaza.

“And we will continue to support Israel as it seeks to defend itself against this brutal terrorist attack initiated by Hamas.”

Israel revises recommendation Gaza refugees head to Egypt

07:22 , Josh Salisbury

The Israeli military has rolled back on its recommendation that Palestinians fleeing its air strikes in the Gaza Strip head to Egypt, because the border is closed.

Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Hecht had said he would advise Palestinian refugees to £get out" through the Rafah crossing on Gaza's southern border with Egypt.

His office later said: “Clarification: The Rafah crossing was open yesterday, but now it is closed.”

On Monday evening, Egyptian officials said operations at Rafah had been disrupted by what they described as a strike on the Gaza side.

Bodies of 1,500 Hamas militants found in Israel - IDF

07:16 , Josh Salisbury

About 1,500 bodies of Hamas militants have been found in Israeli territory, according to military officials.

It was not immediately clear if those numbers overlapped with deaths previously reported by Palestinian authorities.

IDF spokesperson Richard Hecht said no Hamas fighters have crossed into Israel since last night, although infiltrations could still be possible.

Israel has previously reported 900 soldiers and civilians killed, and Palestinian authorities have reported about 700 deaths in Gaza and the West Bank.

Recap: The key developments overnight

07:09 , Josh Salisbury

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the latest from Israel after Saturday’s unprecedented attack by Palestinian militants. Some of the key developments overnight are:

• The Israeli death toll stands at more than 900 killed by militants.

• In Gaza, more than 680 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, as the Israel Defence Forces have announced that more than 200 targets have been struck overnight.

• Israel has retaken control of Gaza border fence, reporting no new infiltrations by militants since Monday.

• Hamas and other militants say they are holding more than 130 soldiers and civilians snatched from inside Israel, and have threatened to kill some in response to Israeli airstrikes.