UN warns half of Gazans starving, as Israeli hostage confirmed dead

We're pausing our live coverage of developments in the Middle East now. But before we do, here are some of the main updates from today:

The UN has warned that half of the population in the Gaza Strip is starving. A World Food Programme official also said nine out of 10 people in the Palestinian territory could not eat every day, as a result of the Israeli siege. Israel said it was doing everything it could to get more aid in
The director of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis told the BBC that his team had “lost control” in the face of a high numbers of dead and injured arriving. Khan Younis - the largest city in southern Gaza - is surrounded on two fronts by Israeli tanks, which have been moving towards one of its main streets. Israel says it's fighting house to house in the city
Israel accused Hamas of using a UN-run school and a mosque in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza to fire at its forces; a claim that the UN said it couldn't verify due to constant bombing in the area
The death of another Israeli hostage – Sahar Baruch, 25 – has been confirmed by his kibbutz and a hostages’ group. It comes a day after Hamas released a video claiming to show the aftermath of a failed Israeli rescue operation in Gaza
Hamas attacked Israel nine weeks ago to the day - killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages, some of whom were released during a short-lived truce
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza today gave an update to its own toll - saying Israel had killed more than 17,700 people in its retaliatory campaign, including more than 7,000 children.

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