Middle East

At least 27 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire as they attempted to collect aid near a distribution site in Gaza, local officials say. Civilians were fired upon by tanks, quadcopter drones, and helicopters near the al-Alam roundabout, about 1km (0.6 miles) from the aid distribution centre, a spokesman …

Caroline Hawley Diplomatic correspondent Free Alaa Laila Soueif’s daughter, Sanaa, described the situation as “very scary” Laila Soueif’s body is becoming weaker and weaker. Doctors have warned her that – after eight months on hunger strike – she’s now at risk of sudden death. But the strength of her resolve …

The BBC has again accused Iran of escalating a campaign of intimidation against its Persian journalists and increasingly targeting the relatives of staff inside the country. The British broadcaster said on Monday that its BBC Persian journalists were witnessing “a disturbing rise in the persecution of their family members”. People …

Getty Images Dr Hamdi al-Najjar – pictured here being visited by his niece – died from his wounds on Saturday, health officials said A Palestinian doctor whose children were killed in an Israeli air strike in Gaza on 23 May has died from injuries sustained in the same attack, health …

At least 15 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli tank shelling and gunfire near an aid distribution centre in Rafah in southern Gaza, according to medics and local residents. Mohammed Ghareeb, a local journalist in Rafah, told the BBC that thousands of Palestinians had gathered near a US-funded humanitarian aid …

The US has sent Iran a proposal for a nuclear deal between Tehran and Washington, the White House confirmed on Saturday. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he had been presented with “elements of a US deal” by his Omani counterpart Badr Albusaidi during a short visit to the Iranian …

Hamas responded to a US ceasefire proposal by saying it is prepared to release 10 living Israeli hostages and 18 dead hostages in exchange for a number of Palestinian prisoners, while requesting some amendments to the plan. The group repeated its demands for a permanent truce, a complete Israeli withdrawal …

Parham Ghobadi BBC Persian EPA Iran has further stepped up its production of highly enriched uranium, according to the UN nuclear watchdog. In a confidential report seen by the BBC, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran now possesses over 400kg of uranium enriched to 60% purity – well …

Free Alaa Laila Soueif has been admitted to hospital, her daughter Mona Seif said The mother of a British-Egyptian activist imprisoned in Cairo has been admitted to hospital for the second time, a week after resuming a full hunger strike to campaign for his release, her family says. Laila Soueif, …

The UN’s humanitarian chief has said people in Gaza are being subjected to forced starvation by Israel. In an interview with the BBC, Tom Fletcher said he believed this had led to a change in the international response to Gaza. Asked if his assessment of forced starvation amounted to a …

Israeli ministers say 22 new Jewish settlements have been approved in the occupied West Bank – the biggest expansion in decades. Several already exist as outposts, built without government authorisation, but will now be made legal under Israeli law, according to Defence Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. …

The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, has said that “Israeli strikes in Gaza go beyond what is necessary to fight Hamas” as the death toll there continues to mount. Kallas also said that the EU did not support a new aid distribution model backed by the US and Israel which …

Frances Mao & Natasha Preskey BBC News Getty Images Aftermath of an Israeli strike at Fahmi Al-Jarjawi School in Gaza City on 26 May Hundreds of lawyers have called on the UK government to use “all available means” to stop the fighting in Gaza, including reviewing trade ties with Israel …

Thousands of Gazan’s stampede towards a food distribution centre Crowds of Palestinians have overrun an aid distribution site in Gaza set up by a controversial US and Israeli-backed group, a day after it began working there. Videos showed thousands of people walking over torn-down fences and earth berms at the …

This article contains distressing descriptions of death Swedish authorities have charged a convicted terrorist over the 2015 killing of a Jordanian pilot who was burned to death in Syria. Osama Krayem, 32 – a Swedish citizen – was on Tuesday charged with war and terrorism crimes relating to the death …

A controversial new aid distribution group backed by the US and Israel has begun working in Gaza. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) said lorry loads of food had been delivered to secure sites and that it had begun distribution to people. It did not say where or how much aid …

The BBC was given rare access to an operation by French troops, part of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon known as Unifil, as they searched for positions that were used by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah to carry out attacks against Israel. As part of a ceasefire reached in …

Video footage shared online shows six-year-old Ward Jalal Al-Shaikh Khalil escaping a blaze at a Gaza City school following overnight Israeli air strikes. Among the 35 Palestinians reported to have been killed at the the Fahmi Al-Jargawi School were Ward’s mother and two siblings. Her father is in intensive care …

The head of an organisation set up to distribute aid in Gaza as part of a controversial Israel-backed plan has resigned, saying it could not work in a way that adhered to “humanitarian principles”. Jake Wood quit the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) late on Sunday, saying it would not be …

Rushdi Abualouf Gaza correspondent EPA Rubble pictured in a separate area of central Gaza on Sunday At least 24 Palestinians have been killed in two separate Israeli air strikes overnight, including a strike on a school sheltering displaced families in central Gaza, according to medics and civil defence officials. The …