Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri has accused Netanyahu of “manoeuvring to conduct more crimes of genocide”.

      The United Nations, Germany and the Netherlands are among those warning Israel against a Rafah attack. The US has also struck a cautious tone.

      Netanyahu has described the latest Hamas ceasefire proposal as “ridiculous” – though a delegation led by Mossad’s spy chief is heading to Qatar for truce talks.

      At least 31,490 Palestinians have been killed and 73,439 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attack stands at 1,139 with dozens taken captive.

    Children, pregnant women killed in Nuseirat attack: Gaza authorities

    The government media office in Gaza has said the majority of the 36 people killed in the previously reported attack on a family home close to the Nuseirat refugee camp were children.

    The media office added that pregnant women were among the dead in the house, which was located in the west of the camp located in central Gaza.

    “We hold the American administration, the international community and the ‘Israeli’ occupation fully responsible for the escalation of these crimes and massacres against defenceless civilians,” the statement on Telegram said.

    A recap of developments

    It’s about 7am (05:00 GMT) in Gaza.

    If you’re just joining us here’s a brief update on developments so far this Saturday morning.

•     Hamas has proposed terms for a new ceasefire. While Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed them, Israel’s delegation will join the latest round of talks in Doha.
•     Israel has continued its attacks on the Gaza Strip with reports of at least 36 people killed after a house near the Nuseirat refugee camp was struck. Rescuers are searching the rubble for survivors.
•     Netanyahu said a military plan for a ground invasion of Rafah city, where about 1.5 million Palestinians are trapped, had been approved. United Nations as well as countries including Germany and the Netherlands have warned Israel against going ahead with the plan. The US has also struck a cautious tone.
•     The Open Arms, which set sail from Cyprus on Tuesday with 200 tonnes of aid, has started unloading its cargo in Gaza.

    Rights advocates condemn ‘systemic abuse’ in Israeli prisons

    Several Israeli NGOs have warned the United Nations that the war in Gaza is contributing towards a “crisis” in Israeli prisons.

    Advocates say there are a record number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, where they face “systemic abuse” and torture.

    “We are extremely, extremely concerned,” Tal Steiner, the executive director of the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), was quoted as saying in an interview with the AFP news agency. “What we’re looking at is a crisis.”

    She said nine people had allegedly died in prisons since Hamas’s October 7 attack.

    And “there are almost 10,000 Palestinians in Israeli custody right now, … a 200-percent increase from any normal year”.

    Miriam Azem of the Adalah legal centre said the deepening problem was not getting enough attention.

    Her organisation had managed to document “19 clear cases” of torture within the Israeli prison system since October 7, including sexual violence, she told AFP.

    The crisis “requires the immediate intervention of the international community”, she said.

    The Israeli Prison Service told the news agency that all prisoners were “detained according to the law” and it was “not aware of the claims” against it. A spokesperson added that any complaints filed by detainees would “be fully examined and addressed by official authorities”.