Updates: Israel demands ‘demilitarisation’ of Gaza; Arab leaders adopt plan

Before you go, you can read about how Hezbollah grapples with its new relationship to the state in post-war Lebanon, here.

You can watch Inside Story discussing how Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war, here.

And you can learn what Oscar-winning documentary film No Other Land is about, here.

We will be closing this live page soon. Here is a recap of today’s main news:

• Arab countries have unanimously agreed on a scheme for Gaza’s reconstruction in an emergency summit in Cairo.
• Hamas has welcomed the gathering and the adoption of the Egyptian-proposed plan for reconstruction.
• Israel claims the result of the summit “fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7, 2023″.
• UN chief Guterres says that “commitments must be upheld and implemented in full”,  regarding the Gaza ceasefire deal.
• The Palestinian Civil Defence says it recovered 48 bodies in an ad hoc mass grave near Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza.

Ayoub Maarouf and his family broke their fast on the rubble of their home in northern Gaza’s Jabalia in this year’s holy month of Ramadan.

He recalls watching his children suffer from hunger, forced to eat grass, before the ceasefire.

Now, he fears that famine will return.

Watch our interview below:

Al-Baqa’a ash-Sharqiya has been stormed by Israeli troops, the Wafa news agency reports.

Local sources told the agency that soldiers deployed in the streets, specifically in the Ras al-Zard neighbourhood, and searched vehicles, without any arrests being reported.

Drones were heard flying at low altitude over the community, Wafa added.

A statement by the group comes after a man was shot dead by Israeli forces near the illegal Israeli settlement of Homesh in the occupied West Bank yesterday.

The group called Ahmed Mufid al-Kilani, 18, “a heroic martyr”, saying that the attempted attack confirmed that “resistance will not stop until we achieve our goals”.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said al-Kilani was killed near the Homesh checkpoint between the cities of Nablus and Jenin.

The group says in a statement on Telegram that the bodies were discovered in an ad hoc mass grave near Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza.

The grouping includes 22 unknown bodies, the rescue organisation said, adding that all of them will be buried in the Salateen Cemetery in Beit Lahiya.

“Additionally, our teams have recovered the remains of a martyr from beneath the rubble of a house belonging to the Khateeb family near the Islamic University in western Gaza City,” the statement added.

Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara has highlighted that the core issue in the Middle East is not a “Palestine problem” but an “Israel problem”.

Bishara suggested that the real “elephant in the room” is a “white elephant”, a concept referring to a losing investment.

Watch his comments below:

Troops have stormed the town, which is located in the west of Ramallah, and assaulted the participants of a football match at night, according to the Wafa news agency.

The agency said the military attacked a football match organised as a Ramadan event.

It added that troops used bullets and tear gas, targeting the audience and participants, and forced them to leave the field.

According to Wafa, no casualties have been reported in the incident.

The White House says it welcomes input from Arab nations, but that Hamas can not remain in power in the Strip.

“President Trump has been clear that Hamas cannot continue to govern Gaza,” White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said.

“While the President stands by his bold vision for a post-war Gaza, he welcomes input from our Arab partners in the region. It’s clear his proposals have driven the region to come to the table rather than allow this issue to devolve into further crisis.”

Trump’s proposal, which has been roundly rejected by the international community, called for Palestinians to be permanently removed from Gaza and for the development of the territory into a “Riviera” resort.

On Sunday, Israel once again cut off much-needed food, medicine and fuel into Gaza.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government says the move is meant to pressure Hamas into accepting a new set of ceasefire terms, in Israel’s favour.

But despite Israel’s clear intent to use starvation as leverage, the global response has largely been muted.

While Arab countries have condemned the blockade, the US and Europe do not appear willing to hold Israel to the terms of the original agreement.

Watch Inside Story below:

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani made a statement on X following the Arab summit in Cairo.

“The establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital is the basis for stability and peace in the Middle East,” he said.

“We look forward to concerted efforts and intensified collective action and coordination with all brothers to support the brotherly Palestinian people in achieving their full legitimate rights in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy,” the emir added.

The memo was released following the conclusion of the emergency summit held earlier on the reconstruction of Gaza.

Here are the most notable quotes from the communique:

• The summit reaffirms the Arabs’ “strategic choice for achieving a just and comprehensive peace that fulfills all Palestinian rights, particularly the right to freedom and an independent, sovereign state based on the two-state solution, with the right of return for Palestinian refugees”.
• Arab leaders say they “express our readiness for immediate engagement with the US administration and all international partners to resume peace negotiations aimed at ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a sovereign Palestinian state”.
• This entails “rejecting any form of Palestinian displacement, whether within or beyond their land, under any pretext or justification”.
• Leaders “call for full financial, material, and political support for this plan and urge international donors to contribute”.
• The plan will stress “prioritising the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, including its second and third phases”, including a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
• The plan also supports “Palestine’s decision to form an interim Gaza administration under the Palestinian government, composed of competent Gaza-based officials, as a transitional step towards reinstating the Palestinian Authority in Gaza”.
• Arab leaders call on the UN Security Council to deploy international peacekeeping forces in the West Bank and Gaza to safeguard security for Palestinians and Israelis.

The Israeli foreign ministry has claimed that the statement issued at the summit in Cairo “fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7th, 2023, remaining rooted in outdated perspectives”.

Israel criticised the gathering for not mentioning the attack or condemning Hamas.

The statement also claimed, “With President Trump’s idea, there is an opportunity for the Gazans to have free choice based on their free will. This should be encouraged!”

“Instead, Arab states have rejected this opportunity, without giving it a fair chance, and continue to level baseless accusations against Israel,” the ministry also said, repeating that Hamas “can’t be left in power” in Gaza.

The statement urged regional states “to break free from past constraints and collaborate to create a future of stability and security”.

The group says in a statement that it welcomes the convening of the emergency summit in Cairo and the adoption of the Egyptian-proposed plan for Gaza reconstruction.

“The convening of the Arab summit today inaugurates an advanced stage of Arab and Islamic alignment with the just Palestinian cause,” Hamas said

It also said that it supports “building Palestinian national institutions”, and for legislative and presidential elections “as soon as possible”, indicating that the group may be OK with being sidelined from its current governance role in Gaza.