Houthis invite pro-Palestine protesters to study in Yemen

Pro-Palestinian protesters who have taken over US campuses this week have been invited by the Houthis to study in Yemen’s Sana’a University

Sana’a University, which is run by the Iran-backed Houthis, issued a statement on Friday applauding the “humanitarian” position of students in the US who have occupied university campuses.

The statement included an email address for any students who wished to enquire about transferring.

“We are serious about welcoming students that have been suspended from US universities for supporting Palestinians,” an official at Sana’a University said.

“We are fighting this battle with Palestine in every way we can,” the official added.

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03:10 PM BST

Today’s live coverage has ended

Today’s live coverage has ended. Here is a roundup of the day’s main events:

• Britain has imposed new sanctions on extremist Israeli individuals and groups accused of inciting and perpetrating violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

• The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor’s office called for an end to what it says are attempts to intimidate its staff, amid fears from some that the court is preparing arrests warrants for senior Israeli figures.

• The Houthi rebels invited pro-Palestine US students to study in Yemen.

• An Israeli military operation in Rafah could be a “slaughter”, the UN warned.

• Hamas would consider a proposed peace deal with Israel if changes are made to the original stipulations.

03:01 PM BST

Watch: Israeli air strike on Hezbollah position

02:48 PM BST

Houthis ‘will attack any Israel-bound ship’

Yemen’s Houthi rebels will target any ships heading to Israel that are within range, military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a televised speech on Friday.

“We will target any ships heading to Israeli ports in the Mediterranean Sea in any area we are able to reach,” he said.

The Iran-aligned group has launched repeated drone and missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandab strait and the Gulf of Aden since November, in what it says is a show of support for Palestinians in Gaza.

02:16 PM BST

Rocket salvo fired from Lebanon strikes Israeli mountain, IDF says

At least 10 rockets fired from Lebanon struck the Mount Meron area of Israel on Friday, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said.

No injuries or damage were reported, the IDF added.

Mount Meron is the site of an Israeli air force base and is located around 5 miles from the Israel-Lebanon border. It has been targeted several times since Hezbollah began attacks on Israel in response to the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.

01:32 PM BST

Britain sanctions Israeli extremists

Britain has imposed new sanctions on extremist Israeli individuals and groups accused of inflicting violence on Palestinians in the West Bank.

The new sanctions package, which will include financial and travel restrictions, was announced following an increase in settler violence over the last year, the Foreign Office said.

Hilltop Youth, one of the groups sanctioned, is a hard-Right movement accused of setting up illegal settler outposts across the West Bank. In December, the Israeli military halted the operations of a unit known to recruit from the group.

Lehava, another sanctioned ultra-nationalist group, campaigns against relationships between Jews and non-Jews and is opposed to Christian presence in Israel. Israeli media has reported that Lehava’s leader, Benzi Gopstein, is a close ally of Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s national security minister.

Lord Cameron, the foreign secretary, warned that the UK “will not hesitate to take further action if needed” and that Israeli authorities “must clamp down on those responsible”.

01:05 PM BST

Americans trust Trump more than Biden on Israel, poll suggests

Americans trust Donald Trump more than Joe Biden when it comes to handling the Israel-Hamas War, a poll commissioned by ABC News has suggested.

The poll found that 37 per cent of Americans trust the former US president more than the incumbent on the issue, while 28 per cent trust Biden more. However, 33 per cent of Americans do not trust either Mr Biden or Mr Trump to handle American policy towards the conflict.

Furthermore, fewer than half of Americans say that the Israel-Hamas War will be an important issue to them in the November US presidential election.

12:33 PM BST

ICC prosecutor warns against attempts to intimidate court, amid fears of arrest warrants for Israeli officials

The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor’s office has called for an end to what it says are attempts to intimidate its staff.

In a statement posted on social media, the prosecutor’s office said all attempts to “impede, intimidate or improperly influence its officials must cease immediately”.

The statement, which named no specific cases, comes after reports that American officials had attempted to dissuade the court from ordering arrest warrants against senior Israeli figures, including Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister.

11:26 AM BST

Watch: French riot police storm pro-Palestine sit in

French police have intervened after students at the Sciences Po university in central Paris organised a pro-Palestine ‘sit in’.

In a video posted on social media, the force, who appear to be riot-equipped, are seen entering the main building of the university in large numbers.

A student inside the university confirmed that the police were closing in on the protestors. It was not immediately clear if the police were attempting to evacuate the site.

11:11 AM BST

Israeli Rafah operation could be a ‘slaughter’, UN says

An Israeli military operation in Rafah could endanger the lives of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and risk disrupting the supply of humanitarian aid to the enclave, the UN has warned.

“It could be a slaughter of civilians and an incredible blow to the humanitarian operation in the entire strip because it is run primarily out of Rafah,” Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the United Nations humanitarian office, said in a press briefing.

“Aid operations out of Rafah include medical clinics and food distribution points, including centres for malnourished children,” Mr Laerke added.

More than a million Palestinians have taken refuge in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Israel has reportedly approved plans for an offensive in the area, despite US warning that it would not support the move.

10:41 AM BST

Suspended US students can continue studies in Yemen, Houthis say

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have offered US students suspended for anti-Israel protests places at a university in the civil-war ravaged country.

“We are serious about welcoming students that have been suspended from US universities for supporting Palestinians,” an official at Sana’a University, which is run by the Houthis, said.

“We are fighting this battle with Palestine in every way we can,” the official added.

The offer has been mocked on Yemeni social media, with one user posting a photograph of two Westerners chewing Yemen’s widely-used narcotic leaf khat.

10:19 AM BST

Turkey says trade with Israel halted until permanent Gaza ceasefire secured

Turkey will not resume trade with Israel, worth around £5.5 billion, until a permanent ceasefire in Gaza is secured, Omer Bolat, the Turkish trade minister, has warned.

Israel’s “uncompromising attitude” and the “worsening situation” in Gaza informed the decision, Mr Bolat said in a speech in Istanbul on Friday.

Israel Katz, Israel’s foreign minister, said the move was “how a dictator behaves”, while Hamas praised the decision as “brave” and “supportive of Palestinian rights”.

Turkish exporters with firm orders from Israel are considering using third countries to send goods to the country, export industry sources have said.

09:55 AM BST

Pictured: People in Jerusalem walk near posters demanding the release of Israeli hostages

09:41 AM BST

Israeli kibbutz confirms death of Gaza hostage

An Israeli kibbutz has confirmed the death of a hostage held in Gaza since the October 7 Hamas attacks on southern Israel.

Dror Or, 49, was killed during the Hamas rampage before his body was taken to the enclave, the Be’eri kibbutz, where Mr Or lived, said in a statement.

Mr Or was killed along with his wife Yonat during the initial attack, while two of their children, Noam and Alma, aged 17 and 13, were abducted and then freed in November as part of a prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas.

During the October 7 attacks, the family were forced out of their safe room and captured after Hamas terrorists set fire to the house, the Times of Israel reported.

09:20 AM BST

How Barclays became a lightning rod for Gaza activists

Read the full report by Michael Bow, here. 

09:08 AM BST

Israeli vote on banning Al Jazeera postponed until Sunday

Israel’s security cabinet postponed a vote planned for Thursday on closing the Qatari news channel, Al Jazeera, in Israel, until it meets on Sunday, according to Israeli media reports.

The postponement is an attempt by Israel to encourage Qatar to pressure Hamas to agree to a hostage release deal, Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper, reported.

The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, approved a bill allowing foreign networks considered a threat to national security to be banned on April 1.

Israeli officials have complained about Al Jazeera’s coverage, which they say is heavily influenced by Hamas and has endangered Israeli troops fighting in the Gaza Strip.

08:48 AM BST

Iran releases crew of seized container ship, foreign minister says

Iran has released the crew of a seized Portuguese-flagged ship linked to Israel, but remains in control of the vessel itself, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the Iranian foreign minister, said.

“The seized ship, which turned off its radar in Iran’s territorial waters and jeopardized the security of navigation, is under judicial detention,” Mr Amir-Abdollahian said, according to an Iranian foreign ministry post on social media.

Iranian commandos seized the container ship MSC Aries, with a crew of 25, in the strait of Hormuz on 13 April, days after Tehran vowed to retaliate for a suspected Israeli strike on its consulate in Damascus, Syria.

08:35 AM BST

No indication Hamas planning attack on American troops in Gaza, US defence secretary says

Lloyd Austin, the US defence secretary, has said that he did not see any indication that Hamas is planning an attack on US troops in Gaza, but added that security measures were being put in place.

“I don’t discuss intelligence information at the podium. But I don’t see any indications currently that there is an active intent to do that,” Mr Austin said during a press briefing.

“Having said that ... this is a combat zone and a number of things can happen, and a number of things will happen,” he added.

A maritime pier constructed by the US military to speed the flow of humanitarian aid in Gaza should be open within a matter of days, the White House said on Thursday.

08:31 AM BST

Hamas will consider peace deal ‘if changes are made’

A senior Hamas official has said that the terror group will examine a proposed peace deal with Israel if changes are made to the original stipulations.

Osama Hamden, a Hamas spokesman in Lebanon, told Lebanese television: “We have already said explicitly — our position regarding the proposal is negative. It does not give us what we want. But if changes are made in accordance with our comments, we will examine them.”

“If Israel launches an attack in Rafah — we will stop the negotiations. We will not conduct it under fire,” he added.

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