Hamas attacks on Israel had echoes of Nazi massacres, says Antony Blinken

At press conference with Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, US secretary of state says America will always be by Israel’s side

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has said the attacks by Hamas on Israel on Saturday had “harrowing echoes” of Nazi massacres, as he stood alongside the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in Jerusalem in an act of public solidarity.

Blinken, who is Jewish, vowed that the US would stand for ever alongside Israel, and said he would use his tour of the region to urge all parties, especially Hezbollah, not to broaden the conflict or open a second front.

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US CEOs urge Harvard to name students in groups behind letter blaming Israel for Hamas attacks

Several chief executives called for names to be made public so that they, and others, could know not to hire the students

A group of US business leaders has demanded that Harvard University release the names of students who were part of organizations that signed a letter blaming Israel for deadly attacks by Hamas that triggered a severe escalation of violence across Israel and Gaza.

Several chief executives called for the names to be made public so that they, and others, could know not to hire the students once they leave Harvard.

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How Israel-Hamas war disinformation is being spread online

Case of footage from set of Palestinian film being repurposed to make false claims is far from one-off

The video shows a young boy in a black T-shirt apparently lying in a pool of blood on the ground. Above him is a camera, with a man shouting directions near him. Two men in kippahs, the Jewish skull caps, and men in green military fatigues similar to Israel Defence Forces (IDF) uniforms are gathered around him.

The clip has been viewed about 2m times on X, formerly known as Twitter. It was shared by a verified user with the caption: “Video showing Israel attempting to create fake footage of deaths.”

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‘Together we will win’: Israelis fearful but defiant in face of uncertainty

Overwhelming response to call-up as country prepares for ‘retaliation like never before’ against Hamas

Avi Solomon cannot serve in Israel’s armed forces because he is blind, but he has about 20 close relatives who have been called up to fight. They include four brothers and more than a dozen nephews and cousins, and he accepts that they may not all come back.

“We feel like zombies anyway,” said the 39-year-old, an athlete and supermarket worker. “If we can’t feel safe in our own houses, if we can’t promise a future for our children, if any terrorist can come here and do the same thing to us, there is no point to be some kind of living dead.”

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‘Pacifist at his core’: Britons missing and feared dead in Hamas attacks

Seventeen British nationals, including children, have died or are missing after atrocities in Israel

Seventeen British nationals, including children, are feared dead or missing in Israel after attacks by Hamas, the Guardian understands. The atrocities have so far claimed at least 2,100 lives.

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Australians ‘hold you in our hearts’, Anthony Albanese tells Jewish community

Amid rising tensions between supporters of Israel and Palestinians, the prime minister says Jewish people will be protected from any antisemitic threat

Anthony Albanese has told Australian Jews that his government is committed to keeping them safe amid rising inter-community tensions following the Hamas attack on Israel and the prospect of all-out war in the Middle East.

As thousands of people gathered in Sydney on Wednesday night to commemorate the deaths of civilians and show support for Israel, the prime minister addressed the Jewish community at St Kilda Shule in Melbourne.

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Lula urges end to ‘insanity of war’ as Latin Americans killed in Hamas attack

Brazil president calls for humanitarian aid to protect Israeli and Palestinian citizens, while Latin Americans also taken hostage

The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has called for an end to “the insanity of war” as it emerged that more than a dozen Latin Americans were killed during Hamas’s assault, with citizens of Brazil and Argentina taken captive in the Gaza Strip.

By Wednesday morning, Latin American government and media reports had confirmed the deaths of seven Argentinians, two Brazilians, two Peruvians, one Colombian and one Paraguayan. At least 15 Argentinians, three Peruvians, two Mexicans and one Brazilian remain missing.

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Governments scramble to evacuate citizens from Israel amid pleas for help

Countries including Canada, Germany and Australia organise evacuation flights while the US and UK insist commercial options still available as Israeli forces gather near Gaza

Countries around the world have been scrambling to evacuate their citizens from Israel after the deadly attack launched by Palestinian militants at the weekend, while some foreigners, faced with cancelled flights, have pleaded for help from their governments.

People from the US, Australia, Argentina, Cambodia, Canada, Nepal, Thailand, Russia, the UK, Ukraine and France and elsewhere are confirmed to be among those killed in the violence.

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Gaza attacks: US holds talks on safe passage as Israel forces gather around Hamas-run enclave

US national security adviser says it is discussing option with Israel and Egypt amid heavy airstrikes on Gaza and amassing of 300,000 reservists close to border

The US is discussing the possibility of creating a safe passage for Gaza’s civilians as Israel’s air force continued to pound the enclave and the Israeli death toll from the Hamas offensive – the deadliest militant assault in its history – reached 1,200.

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday talks on safe passage were being held with Israel and Egypt. “We are focused on this question, there are consultations going on. But the details of that are something that are being discussed among the operational agencies and I don’t want to share too much of that publicly at this time.”

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Israel-Hamas war likely to result in increased cyber-attacks, Australia told

Cybersecurity organisation CyberCX says groups previously focused on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are refocusing on Israel-Hamas war

The Israel-Hamas war is likely to result in Australian organisations being targeted online by ideologically motivated threat actors, a leading cybersecurity organisation has warned.

CyberCX’s intelligence update on 10 October states that analysis of the activity of threat groups since Israel formally declared war on 8 October had noted at least 30 groups ideologically aligned with Russia, Ukraine, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh had shifted their messaging on social media.

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Israeli troops mass on Gaza border as death toll from Hamas attack passes 1,000

Hundreds of thousands of reservists head for units amid mounting expectation of large-scale ground invasion

A massive Israeli military buildup was continuing along Gaza’s border on Tuesday, as the country’s military confirmed the death toll from Saturday’s Hamas attack – the deadliest militant assault in its history – had passed 1,000 and wave after wave of airstrikes hit the militant-controlled territory.

Amid mounting expectations that Israel would launch a ground invasion of Gaza within days, Israeli soldiers were still collecting bodies of the dead four days after Hamas rampaged through southern Israeli towns in the deadliest terrorist attack in the country’s history.

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Humza Yousaf calls for UK to push for Gaza humanitarian corridor

Scottish first minister says he has made contact with his wife’s parents who are trapped in besieged enclave after Hamas attack

Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, has called on the UK foreign secretary to push for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians from Gaza.

Yousaf revealed on Monday that his wife Nadia’s parents, who live in Dundee, are trapped in Gaza and struggling to find safe passage.

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‘Here he had nobody’: strangers bury young Briton in quiet, jittery Jerusalem

As Nathanel Young, 20, was buried, the streets of the divided city remained uneasily empty with both sides fearing reprisals

On a hillside in Jerusalem, hundreds of people stood in near silence at the funeral of a lone soldier. Speaking only in whispers or exchanging glances they crammed on to the stone walls that overlooked the line of white gravestones in Israel’s national cemetery on Mount Herzl.

A fearful quiet had descended on the city, with the line of cars snaking up the hillside and the crowds of people finding their way to the cemetery marking the only crowds in a place normally teeming with life.

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Israel declares siege of Gaza as Hamas threatens to start killing hostages

Hamas says Israeli strikes have killed some captives and it will kill another if bombing without warning continues

Israel has declared a “complete siege” of Gaza, cutting off water, food and power supplies, as Hamas militants threatened to start killing Israeli civilian hostages if the bombing of civilian areas in the enclave continued without prior warning.

Palestinian militants abducted more than 100 people during a surprise multi-front attack in which they killed more than 700 – making Saturday the deadliest day in Israel’s history. Israeli media said on Monday the death toll had climbed to 900.

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At least 11 US citizens killed in Hamas attacks on Israel, Biden says

Death toll up to 800, including French, Argentinian, Thai and Nepalese, with at least 10 UK citizens reportedly dead or missing

At least 11 US citizens were among those killed in the Hamas onslaught on Israel at the weekend, Joe Biden said on Monday, as the death toll in Israel rose above 800.

As it became clear that the dead included people from different backgrounds and originally from countries other than Israel, the BBC reported that at least 10 British citizens were dead or missing. France confirmed the deaths of two of its citizens, and there were reports that as many as nine French people were missing, dead or taken hostage. German citizens are also thought to have been killed or kidnapped.

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EU appears to backpedal on freezing of Palestinian aid payments

Earlier announcement by Olivér Várhelyi had prompted surprise from member states including Ireland and Spain

The EU has been plunged into a diplomatic row after an announcement that it was to suspend “all payments” to Palestinians as a result of Hamas’s attacks on Israel led to clashes with several member states including Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands.

After six hours scrambling for an explanation, the European Commission appeared to backpedal on an announcement made by the commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, saying: “There will be no suspension of payments.” But it muddied the waters by saying there were “no payments foreseen”.

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Oil price leaps and airline shares fall after Hamas attack on Israel

Investors predict more instability in Middle East, as some flights to Tel Aviv are suspended

Oil and gas prices rose on Monday and airline shares fell amid widespread flight cancellations as markets reacted to the surprise attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas.

Investors appeared to be pricing in the prospect of more instability in the Middle East, given the warning from the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that his country was embarking on a “long and difficult war”. The death toll has passed 1,100 since fighting started on Saturday and is rising.

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Rishi Sunak says UK is ‘poised’ to offer Israel military help if required

UK prime minister will chair Cobra meeting as death toll continues to rise after Hamas’s surprise attack

Rishi Sunak has pledged to provide diplomatic, intelligence or security support to Israel if requested after attacks by Hamas, as he chaired an emergency meeting of Cobra.

No 10 said the UK stood “poised” to help Israel militarily if it asked for assistance and is not ruling out evacuating some British citizens from affected areas, saying keeping them safe was the “utmost priority”.

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X criticised for enabling spread of Israel-Hamas disinformation

Elon Musk endorsed users who have posted ‘wrong and unverifiable things’ while paid-for accounts spread fake news

X’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict has come under scrutiny after a “deluge” of fake posts and Elon Musk’s recommendation of war coverage from accounts that have made false claims or antisemitic comments.

The owner of X, formerly Twitter, recommended two accounts on Sunday. He wrote: “For following the war in real-time, @WarMonitors and @sentdefender are good. It is also worth following direct sources on the ground. Please add interesting options in the replies below.”

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Monday briefing: Death toll rises to more than 1,100 after weekend of conflict in Israel and Gaza

In today’s newsletter: Thousands of Israelis and Palestinians have been wounded and killed since Saturday morning, with Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning of a ‘long and difficult war’ after Hamas attack

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Good morning.

At about 6:30am local time on Saturday, Hamas, the Palestinian para-military group, launched an unprecedented, surprise attack by land, air and sea, firing thousands of rockets from Gaza and launching an incursion into southern Israel taking over several Israeli towns. The offensive, which Hamas have called “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”, took place a day after the 50th anniversary of the 1973 Yom Kippur war and caught the Israeli government and military completely off guard. It has been described as an “intelligence failure for the ages”.

Germany | Germany’s opposition conservatives have held ground in the key states of Hesse and Bavaria in elections that highlighted discontent with Olaf Scholz’s centre-left government amid worries about economic slowdown and migration.

Labour | Rachel Reeves will announce today that a Labour government would create a powerful Covid corruption commissioner to help recoup billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money that has been lost to waste, fraud and flawed contracts during the pandemic.

Health | Mental healthcare in England has become “a national emergency”, with “overwhelmed” services unable to cope with a big post-Covid surge in people needing help, NHS bosses say.

Conservatives | Working-class people who were a key part of the coalition of voters that delivered the Conservatives’ 2019 general election win have been deserting the party in droves under Rishi Sunak’s leadership, polling by YouGov has found. Only 44% of working-class voters who voted for the Tories in 2019 say they will back the party next time.

Spain | Tens of thousands of people have joined conservative and far-right Spanish political leaders in Barcelona to protest against the Socialist party’s decision to consider an amnesty for those involved in the failed, unlawful and unilateral push for Catalan independence six years ago.

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