Morning recap

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, 

Here are the latest updates from the Israeli genocide in Gaza, now in its 678th day: 

• Gaza deaths mount: Israeli attacks killed at least 32 people on Thursday, including 13 seeking aid, Palestinian health officials say. Four more died from malnutrition as starvation spreads in the Israeli besieged enclave.

• Israeli aid obstruction: Over 100 humanitarian groups accused Israel of blocking critical aid, leaving supplies stranded in Jordan and Egypt while Gaza faces famine.

• Protests in Israel: Demonstrators blocked Tel Aviv’s Ayalon North highway, demanding captive returns and opposing expanded military action in Gaza

• West Bank settlement plan sparks outcry: Israel’s government is set to approve new settlements in the E1 area next week, a move that would sever the northern and southern West Bank.

• Bury idea of a Palestinian state: Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated the plan "buries the idea of a Palestinian state, because there's nothing to recognise and no one to recognise it."

• Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told Newsmax: Granting Palestinians a state with border control, airspace access, and regional ties would be "suicidal from the point of view of Israel."