Dozens of British nationals unable to return home amid Israel-Iran conflict
Bella, 15, travelled to Haifa with her mother for a family bar mitzvah but is now unable to come home due to the missile strikes.
Bella's father, Leslie Baker, said his daughter should be sitting her GCSE mock exams, but is instead experiencing air raid sirens and hiding in a bomb shelter.
The Foreign Office has advised against all travel to Israel and urged British nationals to follow local authorities' advice, but with the airspace closed, some are considering land crossings to escape the conflict.
Other British nationals are also stranded and calling for UK government repatriation flights.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
12 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Israel calls up 60,000 troops as defence minister approves plans to seize Gaza City
Israel 's defence minister has approved a plan for the conquest of Gaza City and authorised the call-up of around 60,000 reservists to carry it out, his ministry confirmed on Wednesday. Defence Minister Israel Katz's move, confirmed by a spokesperson, piled pressure on Hamas as mediators pushing for a ceasefire in the nearly two-year war in Gaza awaited an official Israeli response on their latest proposal. While mediator Qatar had expressed guarded optimism over the latest proposal, a senior Israeli official said the government stood firm on its call for the release of all hostages in any agreement. The framework that Hamas had approved proposes an initial 60-day truce, a staggered hostage release, the freeing of some Palestinian prisoners and provisions allowing for the entry of aid into Gaza. Israel and Hamas have held on-and-off indirect negotiations throughout the war, resulting in two short truces during which Israeli hostages were released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The latest truce proposal came after Israel's security cabinet approved plans to conquer Gaza City, despite fears it will worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian crisis. Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States, have mediated the frequent rounds of shuttle diplomacy. Qatar said the latest proposal was 'almost identical' to an earlier version agreed by Israel, while Egypt said Monday that 'the ball is now in its (Israel's) court'. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has yet to publicly comment on the plan, but said last week that his country would accept 'an agreement in which all the hostages are released at once and according to our conditions for ending the war'. Senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi said on social media that his group had 'opened the door wide to the possibility of reaching an agreement, but the question remains whether Netanyahu will once again close it, as he has done in the past'. The latest truce proposal came as Netanyahu faces increasing pressure at home and abroad. In Gaza, the civil defence agency reported Israeli strikes and fire killed 48 people across the territory on Tuesday. Agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP the situation was 'very dangerous and unbearable' in the Zeitoun and Sabra neighbourhoods of Gaza City, where he said 'shelling continues intermittently'. The Israeli military declined to comment on specific troop movements, saying only that it was 'operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities' and took 'feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm'. The military later said a strike in Khan Yunis overnight targeted a Hamas militant. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing swathes of the Palestinian territory mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency or the Israeli military. In the Zikim area of northern Gaza on Tuesday, an AFP journalist saw Palestinians hauling sacks of food aid along dusty roads lined with rubble and damaged buildings. Gazan Shawg Al-Badri said it took 'three to four hours' to carry flour, what she called 'white gold', back to her family's tent. 'This bag is worth the whole world,' she said. Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Israel's offensive has killed at least 62,064 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, which the United Nations considers reliable.
Times
17 minutes ago
- Times
Israel approves Gaza City invasion despite ceasefire talks with Hamas
The Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, has approved a military plan to invade Gaza City. Israel convened a council of war on Tuesday night to approve an operation named Gideon's Chariots II despite discussion of a ceasefire with Hamas. Katz authorised the call-up of about 60,000 reservists to carry out the takeover, his ministry confirmed on Wednesday. Hamas has accepted a deal for a 60-day ceasefire to release half the living hostages alongside provisions to negotiate a permanent end to the war, seemingly under threat of a full occupation and heavy pressure from mediators including Qatar, Egypt and Turkey. It had previously rejected the proposal. Israel is insisting that Hamas release all the hostages at once. However, Hebrew-language media reports suggest that it has not outright rejected the 60-day proposal, which is based on the American formula put forward by Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy. Before a premeditated move into Gaza City — the last area in the Palestinian territory to be occupied by the Israeli military — earlier this month, Israel outlined five goals of the war that included a comprehensive deal for all the hostages. Israel had accepted a deal, reported to be based on the same provisions Hamas has now accepted, in July. It is expected to give an official response this week. Binyamin Netanyahu, the country's prime minister, who said on Monday that it was clear Hamas was under 'immense pressure', appears to be maintaining ambiguity after his hardline coalition partners, who are pushing for a total takeover of Gaza, threatened to leave the government should Israel make the deal. Meanwhile, families of the hostages held by Hamas have led efforts to mobilise the public to pressure the government to end the war, including calling for a nationwide strike scheduled next Sunday, in the second such strike. On Tuesday evening, Israel announced the death of Jihad Kamal Salem Najjar, described by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) as a member of Hamas's military wing who took part in the kidnapping of Yarden Bibas from the Nir Oz kibbutz in southern Israel. Bibas, the father of two red-headed children who were murdered in Hamas captivity along with his wife, Shiri, said a small part of his closure had taken place. 'A small part of my closure happened today. Thank you to the IDF, the Shin Bet, and everyone who took part in the elimination of one of the terrorists who kidnapped me on October 7,' he said in a statement. 'Thanks to you, he will not be able to harm anyone else. Please take care of yourselves, heroes.' Bibas called for 'full closure' in the return of the 48 hostages, including friends from his kibbutz, which was so heavily damaged on October 7 that its residents have not yet returned. In France, President Macron described accusations levelled by Netanyahu — accusing the French president of fuelling antisemitism — as 'abject' and 'erroneous'. Adding to a long-running feud between the two leaders, Macron's office said that France 'protects and will always protect its Jewish citizens', adding that a letter from Netanyahu containing his allegation 'will not go unanswered'. On Monday Netanyahu addressed reports Hamas had accepted a ceasefire deal in a video statement saying: 'You can get the impression of one thing — that Hamas is under immense pressure.' He appeared undeterred with his plans to expand Israel's operation in Gaza, adding that earlier in the day he had met the military's top brass to discuss the takeover of Gaza City and 'the completion of our missions'. • Netanyahu says Gaza takeover 'best way' forward as anger grows at home The latest deal proposed by mediators requires the Palestinian militant group to release ten living hostages and 18 dead hostages in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire with Israel. In return, Israel would withdraw its troops from north and central Gaza and allow more humanitarian aid to be delivered via the United Nations and the Red Crescent. Egypt has taken a more prominent role in the talks in Cairo than in previous rounds, which were held in Qatar using American-backed proposals. The Egyptian government is said to be more focused on the logistical aspects of the truce, which is said to include a phased ceasefire with the eventual withdrawal of Israeli troops to a security border. Negotiations to secure even a temporary truce in the 22-month war have gathered pace since Netanyahu declared that the IDF would soon move to occupy Gaza City and most of the remaining territory, in an attempt to finally eradicate Hamas. Katz said that for the first time in weeks Hamas was 'willing to discuss a deal for the release of hostages, only because of its fear that we seriously intend to conquer Gaza City'. Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, the head of the IDF, presented the military's 'plan for the next stage of the war' on Sunday after visiting troops in Gaza. According to sources, the plan avoids moving troops inside the central refugee camps, where the hostages are thought to be held, but prepares for a 'long-term' seizure of the city that would further entrench Israel's occupation. Now that Katz and the wider security cabinet have signed off on the plan, the army is set to issue evacuation orders to residents via leaflets, statements and social media instructing residents to leave block by block and head south. Inside Gaza City, thousands of Palestinians have already fled the southern Zeitoun neighbourhood after relentless and intensified Israeli bombardment. Residents gathered on Monday to protest against the displacement in Zeitoun, with signs promising not to 'relinquish the north [of Gaza]', and 'we will not leave Gaza City'. The Palestinian Red Crescent, part of the Red Cross movement and the main provider of healthcare and emergency medical services in Gaza, has also said it would not leave, despite an order to evacuate the al-Quds hospital in Gaza City. A large-scale demonstration against the proposed offensive was also held in Tel Aviv on Sunday. Many Israelis believe the army's entry into Gaza City endangers the remaining hostages and will pull Israeli soldiers into a heavily booby-trapped urban area where they will be vulnerable to guerrilla warfare tactics. The UN has condemned the plan and the forced displacement of a million Gazans, while several countries including the UK, France and Canada have moved to recognise a Palestinian state should Israel and Hamas fail to agree to a ceasefire. In response, Israel has threatened to close the French consulate in Jerusalem. Israel says it has full US backing for its war in Gaza. On Monday President Trump said that the remaining hostages would only be released 'when Hamas is confronted and destroyed'. Writing on his Truth Social site, he added: 'The sooner this takes place, the better the chances of success will be.' Nearly 62,000 Palestinians have died, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, since the group started the war by killing 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023 and taking more than 200 hostages. The Israeli military has largely relied on reservists to fight the war and its ranks are now fatigued and depleted after almost two years of fighting. Ultra-orthodox Jews have refused to enlist, putting a heavy strain on the present reservists amid a shortage of soldiers. According to a report on Israeli Army Radio, the military is now seeking to recruit soldiers from Jewish communities abroad, in particular in America and France.
Daily Mirror
41 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Kneecap's Mo Chara court LIVE: Musician appears in court over terror offence
Kneecap member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, known as Mo Chara, is appearing at Westminster Magistrates Court today. The Kneecap star, 27, is facing an investigation after allegedly supporting a proscribed terror organisation. In November last year, at a gig in London, he was accused of displaying a flag in support of the terror group Hezbollah. The group have continuously denied the allegations that Óg Ó hAnnaidh is facing. Demonstrations to support the musician have been arranged outside of Westminster Magistrates, as well as in Dublin, Ireland. London's Metropolitan Police have since imposed conditions, limiting where demonstrations can take place outside of the court, stating that they need to "prevent serious disruption." The rap trio have branded the move "a calculated political decision designed to try and portray support for Kneecap as somehow troublesome." They added: "There is no basis for this, our last hearing was entirely peaceful and a loving show of solidarity with the most disruptive attendees the right wing media." They said in a statement: "We know all of our supporters will be, but please go out of your way to be compliant with all instructions issued, irrespective of how pitiful." It was previously heard that Óg Ó hAnnaidh is "well within his rights" to voice his opinions on the Israel-Palestine conflict, but the alleged incident at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, was described as a "wholly different thing". Óg Ó hAnnaidh is yet to enter a plea to the charge. We will be bringing you live updates throughout the case. 08:51Daniel Bird Metropolitan Police statement The Met have confirmed that there is a Public Order Act in place today. In a statement shared on X, formerly Twitter, the force said: "We've imposed Public Order Act conditions to prevent serious disruption being caused by a protest outside Westminster Magistrates' Court tomorrow. "Protest in support of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh and aligned causes must remain in the red area. Any stage must be erected in the green area." 08:33Daniel Bird Supporters arrive at London court Fans of the band have already started arriving at Westminster Magistrates' Court to show their support, with placards and some waving Palestinian flags. One sign said: "Kneecap rap for what is right." While another read: "Hands off Mo Chara." 08:30Daniel Bird Demonstrations to take place Kneecap fans have been asked to support Óg Ó hAnnaidh outside of Westminster Magistrates Court, as well as outside Connolly Books in Temple Bar, Dublin. 08:29Daniel Bird Kneecap's statement ahead of Óg Ó hAnnaidh's appearance in court Taking to Instagram on Tuesday following a statement from the Met, who have imposed a Public Order Act, the band said: "We massively appreciate the support of what we know are the majority of the public, who can see this farce for what it is. It is distraction from war crimes that the British state support. "In our view this police action is designed to try and portray support for kneecap as somehow troublesome. It is a calculated political decision the night before Mo Chara's court appearance. "There is no basis for this, our last hearing was entirely peaceful and a loving show of solidarity with the most disruptive attendees the right wing media. We know all of our supporters will be, but please go out of your way to be compliant with all instructions issued, irrespective of how pitiful. "Free Palestine."
