More than 100 aid agencies, including Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children and Oxfam, say ‘our colleagues and those we serve are wasting away’
Updated 3d ago
- Here is a summary of today’s events so far:
- Irish deputy PM calls Gaza starvation ‘an affront to our collective humanity’
- Israeli government says it is not responsible for ‘famine’ in Gaza
- France says Gaza famine ‘result of’ Israel blockade
- Summary of the day so far
- Civil defence agency says 17 killed from Israeli strikes
- Health ministry records 10 new deaths from malnutrition in Gaza
- Israeli strikes kill at least 21 people in Gaza, health authorities say
- Opening summary
- More than 100 aid organisations warn of ‘mass starvation’ in Gaza
Charlie Moloney (now) and Joe Coughlan (earlier)Wed 23 Jul 2025 19.08 CESTShareNewestPrevious2 of 4NextOldest
Iranian forces confronted a US destroyer in the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday, warning it to stay out of waters claimed by Tehran, state television reported Thursday – a month after US strikes on the Islamic republic, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.
An Iranian army helicopter flew over the USS Fitzgerald at about 10.00am (06.30am UK time) after the vessel “attempted to approach the waters under the supervision” of Iran, the broadcaster said.
The destroyer issued threats of its own, state TV said, adding however that “the Iranian pilot firmly continued the mission and reiterated the warning to stay away from Iranian waters”.
Iranian forces then urged the US ship to “alter its course southward”, forcing it to “give in” and turn away.
There was no immediate comment from the US Navy.
Iranian forces have a history of confronting US forces in the Gulf.
The latest confrontation comes after US strikes on 22 June targeted Iran’s nuclear sites during a 12-day war with Israel.Share
Here are some of the latest photos of Gaza coming to us through the wires:
Share
Tunisian president Kais Saied presented US counterpart Donald Trump’s senior Africa adviser with photographs of starving children in Gaza, an official video of their meeting posted late Tuesday showed, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.
Saied told US envoy Massad Boulos, who is also the father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany, that “it is time for all of humanity to wake up and put an end to these crimes against the Palestinian people”.
“I believe you know these images well,” Saied was seen telling the envoy as he showed a photograph of what he described as “a child crying, eating sand in occupied Palestine”.
Saied showed Boulos several more images, saying that Palestinians in Gaza were subjected to crimes against humanity.
“It is absolutely unacceptable,” Saied was heard saying as Boulos stood silently, occasionally nodding. “It is a crime against all of humanity.”
After his visit to Tunisia, Boulos flew on to the Libyan capital Tripoli on Wednesday, Tunisian media reported.Share
France says Gaza famine ‘result of’ Israel blockade
France has said the risk of famine in Gaza is a “result of” Israel’s blockade, in a statement.
“France strongly condemns the extension of the Israeli offensive to the centre of Gaza, where evacuation orders have led to the displacement of tens of thousands of people in Deir el-Balah and are hampering the work of numerous United Nations agencies and international NGOs,” the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“France condemns in the strongest possible terms the Israeli shootings targeting Palestinians in Gaza attempting to obtain humanitarian aid, which have killed more than 1,000 people in the past two months, according to the UN,” it said.Share
Updated at 15.01 CEST
An Iranian satellite will be launched into space on Friday on a Russia Soyuz rocket from the Vostochny cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East, semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday.Share
An official familiar with ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas said a top adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Ron Dermer, was travelling to Rome to meet US special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday to discuss the state of the talks.
The official spoke to AP on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive negotiations.
US officials said Witkoff planned to head to Europe this week. The State Department spokesperson said he was headed to the Middle East in a sign that momentum may be building toward a deal.
Share
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed 59,219 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war, resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.Share
Summary of the day so far
- More than 100 aid organisations warned on Wednesday that “mass starvation“ was spreading in Gaza. A statement with 115 signatories, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Save the Children and Oxfam, warned that “our colleagues and those we serve are wasting away”. The groups called for an immediate negotiated ceasefire, the opening of all land crossings and the free flow of aid through UN-led mechanisms.
- Israeli strikes in Gaza killed at least 21 people late Tuesday and early Wednesday. More than half of those killed were women and children, health authorities said. Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed 17 people in the Palestinian territory on Wednesday alone.
- Hospitals in Gaza have recorded 10 new deaths on Wednesday due to famine and malnutrition in the past 24 hours, according to the territory’s health ministry. It said in a statement on Telegram that the total number of deaths due to famine and malnutrition in Gaza had now risen to 111.
- The US said on Tuesday that a top envoy will travel to Europe for talks on a ceasefire and finalising an aid “corridor” for war-ravaged Gaza, where authorities said people are dying of starvation. Steve Witkoff, president Donald Trump’s globe-trotting negotiator, will head this week to a European destination for talks on Gaza, according to US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.
- Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday condemned Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels for deadly attacks that sank two commercial vessels this month, calling them violations of the laws of war. The Houthis struck the Magic Seas and Eternity C cargo ships in the Red Sea, part of a campaign against maritime traffic they accuse of having links to Israel, launched over the Gaza war.
- News agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) has called on Israel to allow the immediate evacuation of its freelance contributors and their families from the Gaza Strip, a day after they warned that they were struggling to work due to starvation. In a statement, the French news agency said its freelancers faced an “appalling situation” in Gaza. A 21-month war with Israel has devastated the territory, a conflict triggered by Hamas’s deadly attack on Israel in October 2023.
Share
In case you missed it, the Guardian published an article yesterday on the journey Palestinians face when attempting to receive aid in Gaza.
Hundreds of people have died while seeking food since delivery was taken over by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in May. But Palestinians facing extreme hunger have no choice but to take the risk.
You can read the full article here: Eleven-minute race for food: how aid points in Gaza became ‘death traps’ – a visual story
Eleven-minute race for food: how aid points in Gaza became ‘death traps’ – a visual storyRead moreShare
Civil defence agency says 17 killed from Israeli strikes
Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed 17 people in the Palestinian territory on Wednesday, as Israel’s military said it was pressing on with its operations against Hamas militants, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.
Agency spokesperson Mahmud Bassal told AFP that eight people, including a pregnant woman, were killed in a single strike at 2.00am (11.00pm UK time on Tuesday) in Gaza City’s Tel Al-Hawa neighbourhood.
Two others died in separate strikes in the city, three in the southern town of Bani Suheila, and four near a food distribution centre in central Gaza, he added.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency and other parties.