What happened in Gaza overnight? Bodies of missing Israelis recovered with 120 still held captive
Israeli troops have recovered the bodies of some of the hostages kidnapped by Hamas during last weekend’s attack, it has been reported.
The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) carried out a number of raids in Gaza on Friday night and remains were found, a spokesperson told Haaretz newspaper.
However, more than 120 civilians are still being held captive, the IDF has said, as it prepares for a ground invasion expected imminently.
Why are Gazans fleeing south?
Israel previously warned civilians in the north of Gaza – estimated to be more than one million people – that they had 24 hours to evacuate the area.
The demand was condemned by aid charities, politicians with the UN saying such an evacuation would have calamitous humanitarian consequences.
Although no precise timings were issued, the 24-hour warning was expected to expire early on Saturday morning. Now, Gazans still in the north are being told they have between 10am and 4pm local time to head south “without harm”.
However, the UN said overnight it believes “tens of thousands” of people in Gaza have now left.
In an update posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday morning, IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said Israel believes there has been “a significant movement of Palestinian civilians towards the south.”
However he claimed that Hamas has been trying to stop people leaving.
“Extremely sad and worrying to see is the fact that Hamas actively undermines and has stopped Palestinian civilians from evacuating that area, both via text messages and also check points and stops on the ground,” he said.
“Hamas holds civilians as its human shield.”
Are there evacuations to the UK?
Meanwhile, the UK Foreign Office confirmed that a Government-chartered flight left Israel on Friday night.
A statement from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “A UK government charter flight has now left Israel (October 13), with further flights expected to leave in the coming days while commercial options are limited.”
According to details on FlightRadar24, an RAF A400M left Tel Aviv at around 10pm last night, heading to an airbase in Cyprus.
The Ministry of Defence and the Foreign Office would not confirm if the A400M flight was the charter flight.
Two previous attempts by the Foreign Office to organise planes this week have apparently failed – one suggestion is airlines struggled to get insurance.
The death toll from the war is now said to have reached around 3,000 people.
Israel says at least 1,300 civilians died when thousands of Hamas militants breached the border last Saturday and began killing civilians indiscriminately.
The Palestinian Health Ministry says at least 1,500 Palestinians have been killed as a result of Israel’s retaliatory air strikes, including 500 children.
What is happening in the UK today?
Pro-Palestine marches are due to take place across the UK on Saturday – including a large-scale event in London – with police forces on high alert for a potential terror attack.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the UK was doing “everything we can to ensure the security of British citizens” after the Defence Secretary said it seemed “very likely” that there are British hostages in Gaza.
Three Britons are confirmed to have lost their lives during the weekend’s assault on Israel, but reports have suggested at least 17 could be among the casualties.
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf called for an end to deaths in Gaza and for the international community to “step up”, amid the evacuation orders.
Mr Yousaf said there was “no justification for the death of innocent men, women and children”.
His in-laws are trapped in Gaza, and his wife Nadia El-Nakla has spoken of her torment at the prospect of her relatives living in a refugee camp with no food or water.
The march in London on Saturday follows calls from Mr Sunak on Israel to “protect ordinary Palestinians and facilitate humanitarian aid” and from the Archbishop of Canterbury for a Gaza humanitarian corridor.
Justin Welby said in a statement: “I plead that the sins of Hamas are not borne by the citizens of Gaza, who themselves have faced such suffering over many decades.
“The price of evil cannot be paid by the innocent. Civilians cannot bear the costs of terrorists.”
A Section 12 will be in force from midday covering the demonstration route, which starts at Portland Place and finishes in Whitehall.
Met Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor told a press briefing on Friday: “Whilst people have the right to protest, they do not have the right to incite violence, they do not have the right to incite hatred and they do not have the right to commit criminal offences and we will robustly police that situation.”
Waving a proscribed flag in support of Hamas or other proscribed organisations at the protest will be an offence.
At the same briefing, Mr Taylor told of a “massive increase” in antisemitic crime and incidents since the Israel-Hamas conflict.
He said the force has seen an increase in Islamophobic incidents as well, “but nothing like the scale of the increase in antisemitism”.
Mr Sunak condemned the “disgusting rise” in antisemitism.
The Prime Minister said intimidating behaviour and inciting violence or hatred will not be tolerated and will instead be met “with the full force of the law”.
No 10 announced that £3 million in extra funding will be given to provide the Jewish community with additional protection, with strengthened security at schools and synagogues.
A small number of schools in north London were closed due to safety fears.
Contractors working at Ateres Beis Yaakov primary school in Hendon, which was closed on Friday, said they had been asked to “raise the fence” to make it harder for people to “reach over”.
Gates were locked at Menorah High School and Torah Vodaas Primary School in Barnet on Friday, with no staff or pupils seen on site.
