Israeli air strikes are pounding the Gaza Strip for a sixth consecutive day as fears of a humanitarian disaster in the besieged Palestinian enclave mount.
Israel said on Friday morning it has dropped 6,000 bombs weighing 4,000 tonnes on Gaza in the past six days, killing more than 1,400 people.
On the Israeli side, at least 1,300 people have been killed since the armed Palestinian group Hamas attacked southern Israel and took at least 100 people captive on Saturday.
Israel has imposed a complete siege of Gaza, cutting access to food, water, medicines and fuel, as its forces prepare for a possible ground assault.
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Here is a recap of the latest developments:
The United Nations humanitarian office said Israeli bombardment of Gaza has levelled more than 1,000 homes since Saturday while another 560 housing units have been severely damaged and rendered uninhabitable.
More than 12,600 homes have sustained damage due to Israeli air strikes, said the agency, called the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
It said the reduction in water supplies due to Israel tightening its siege on the strip has resulted in dire water shortages for more than 650,000 people.
Sewage systems have been destroyed, OCHA added, sending fetid wastewater into the streets and posing a health hazard.
Israeli air strikes have made cemeteries in Gaza dangerous to reach so mourning families are burying their dead in informal graveyards dug in empty lots, reports said.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says that the continuation of crimes against Palestinians will receive a response from “the rest of the Axis” and Israel will be responsible for the consequences.
‘Some Western officials have questioned if there is an intention to open a new front against the Zionist entity. Of course, in light of the continuation of these circumstances that are war crimes,’ he adds, speaking through a translator, on television upon his arrival in Beirut.
The Iranian minister said the displacement of Palestinians and cutting water and electricity to the Gaza Strip are considered war crimes.