Israel-Hamas war – live: US sends nuclear submarine to Middle East as IDF claims ‘significant’ move in Gaza

Hundreds of demonstrators stopped traffic for more than an hour as they staged a sit-in at the corner of Oxford Circus and Regent Street during the shopping district’s busiest hours.

It came ahead of a huge protest in another part of central London which police believe attracted around 30,000 people. A total of 29 arrests were made in the capital, including two people on suspicion of breaching the Terrorism Act over the wording of banners at the event.

A man suspected of making anti-Semitic comments in a speech was also arrested suspicion of inciting racial hatred, while three others were arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken visited the West Bank on Sunday as he claimed the ruling Palestinian Authority (PA) should play a central role in the future of the Gaza Strip.

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Police are considering whether to ban a controversial pro-Palestinian march in London planned for Armistice Day.

Scotland Yard said it would use “all powers and tactics” at its disposal to prevent disruption, including Section 13 of the Public Order Act 1986, which allows the banning of a procession when there is a risk of serious disorder.

Four weeks after the Hamas attack on Israel, peace is as far away as ever. Humanitarian support must be allowed into Gaza to limit the damage to innocent people. Read our editorial here:

Sir Keir has instead joined the UK and the US in urging a humanitarian “pause”, short of a full-scale ceasefire, in Gaza.

Asked if he accepted Mr Sarwar’s criticism that Sir Keir’s approach had caused hurt to Muslim voters, Mr Healey told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I accept that it’s caused hurt to many people and Keir Starmer would do that as well.

The daughter of an Irish national believed to have been killed in the Hamas attacks of 7 October reportedly could be still alive and being held hostage.

Emily Hand, eight, was feared dead after the assault on Kibbutz Be’eri.

Hamas killed more than 100 people in the kibbutz, with dozens more missing following the violence.

The girl’s father, Thomas Hand – who is originally from Dublin, gave an emotional media interview after being informed she had likely been murdered in the attack.

Israeli media reported on Sunday that the family has been informed Emily may be alive and being held hostage in Gaza. The Israeli Defence Forces told them of this possibility on 31 October, the reports said.

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Six people have been charged following instances of public disorder and anti-social behaviour during a pro-Palestine march in London on Saturday, the police have said.

A police statement said “the vast majority of people demonstrated peacefully” but there were multiple reports of criminal behaviour.

The Metropolitan Police said they arrested 29 people throughout the day, as well as one further person on Sunday morning, and have since charged six people.

Israeli warplanes yesterday struck two refugee camps, killing at least 53 people and wounding dozens in central Gaza, the zone where Israel’s military had urged Palestinian civilians to seek refuge, health officials said.Israel said it would press on with its offensive to crush Hamas, despite US appeals for brief pauses to get aid to desperate civilians.

Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry said more than 9,700 Palestinians have been killed in nearly a month of war in Gaza, more than 4,000 of them children and minors. That toll likely will rise as Israeli troops advance into dense, urban neighbourhoods.

Airstrikes hit the Maghazi refugee camp, killing at least 40 people and wounding 34 others, the Health Ministry said. An AP reporter at a nearby hospital saw eight dead children, including a baby, brought in after the strike. A surviving child was led down the corridor, her clothes caked in dust.

Arafat Abu Mashaia, who lives in the camp, said the Israeli airstrike flattened several multistorey homes where people forced out of other parts of Gaza were sheltering.“It was a true massacre,” he said. “All here are peaceful people. I challenge anyone who says there were resistance (fighters) here.”There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

Another airstrike hit a house near a school at the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Staff at Al-Aqsa Hospital told the AP at least 13 people were killed. The camp was struck on Thursday as well.

Despite appeals and overseas protests, Israel has continued its bombardment across Gaza, saying it is targeting Hamas and accusing the militant of using civilians as human shields. Critics say Israel’s strikes are often disproportionate, considering the large number of civilians killed.

On the ground, Israeli forces in Gaza have reported finding stashes of weapons, at times including explosives, suicide drones and missiles.

Gaza lost communications yesterday in its third total outage of the Israel-Hamas war.“Today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters, calling it a “significant stage” in Israel’s war against the Hamas militant group ruling the enclave.

Israeli media reported troops were expected to enter Gaza City within 48 hours. Strong explosions were seen in northern Gaza after nightfall.

The “collapse in connectivity” across Gaza, reported by internet access advocacy group NetBlocks.org and confirmed by Palestinian telecom company Paltel, made it even more complicated to convey details of the new stage of the military offensive.“We have lost communication with the vast majority of the UNRWA team members,” UN Palestinian refugee agency spokesperson Juliette Touma told The Associated Press.

The first Gaza outage lasted 36 hours and the second one for a few hours.

US vice president Kamala Harris will discuss the Biden administration’s efforts to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas conflict with foreign leaders during a phone conversation on Monday, her office said.