James Mackenzie

The strike further tests a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Israel has proposed an extended truce in Gaza in exchange for the return of about half the remaining hostages, Israeli officials said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated a demand on Sunday for Hamas to disarm and for its leaders to leave Gaza.

Israel on Friday carried out its first major airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs in months, retaliating for an earlier rocket launch from Lebanon in the most serious test of a shaky ceasefire deal agreed in November.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned against "the fires of antisemitism" in Western Europe at a conference on Thursday overshadowed by a boycott by several Jewish speakers over the presence of a number of right-wing and far-right European politicians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet approved a no confidence motion against the attorney general on Sunday, in its latest move on officials deemed hostile to the government, defying protesters who took to the streets for a sixth day.

Israel will keep striking Hamas targets in Gaza to ensure the return of hostages, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday, as European countries called for a ceasefire and access for aid supplies.

The Israeli military said on Wednesday its forces resumed ground operations in the central and southern Gaza Strip, as a second day of airstrikes killed at least 48 Palestinians, according to local health workers.

Angry protesters accused the government of continuing the war for political reasons.

Israel's chief military spokesperson, one of the main public faces of the war in Gaza who faced criticism from Defence Minister Israel Katz, will step down from his post and retire, the military said on Friday.