- Live Reporting (active)
Summary
Iran vows to avenge the killing of Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who died in an overnight air strike in Tehran, according to Iranian media
Hamas and Iran blame Israel for the strike - Israel hasn’t commented but has previously vowed to eliminate the group’s leaders. Haniyeh, 62, is the most senior leader to be killed since the 7 October attacks
The killing, hours after an Israeli strike on the Lebanese capital Beirut, heightens fears of wider conflict in the Middle East
Hezbollah confirms its commander Fuad Shukr was killed in that strike, which Israel described as being "targeted"
In a televised statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his country is "prepared for any scenario" and stands "determined against any threat"
Live Reporting
Edited by Brandon Livesay
We're pausing our live coveragepublished at 23:48 31 July
23:48 31 July
With the end of the UN SecurityCouncil emergency meeting, we will now pause our live coverage.
It's been a day where fears ofan all-out war in the Middle East reached new highs, as the region watches for areaction to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh’s assassination in Tehran.
You can read a full wrap of thesituation here, and click here foranalysis on what Israel's killing of Haniyeh might mean for ceasefire prospects inGaza.
Here's some of the key pointsfrom today:
- Calls to de-escalate the situation and show restraint in response to Haniyeh’s killing have come in from across the world, with the EU calling for “maximum restraint”
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatar's PM spoke about continuing work towards a ceasefire in Gaza.
- It was confirmed that senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr was killed in Israel’s strike on Beirut yesterday evening
- And after its strike on Beirut, Israel now says a full-scale war with Hezbollah could be prevented if UN resolution 1701 - which bans armed groups being near the border - is enforced
Haniyeh's death makes Israel-Hamas negotiations 'more challenging' - US lawmakerpublished at 23:39 31 July
23:39 31 July
Cai Pigliucci
Reporting from Washington DCChairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ben Cardin has said the death of Hamas' political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran makes negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian group more difficult.
His comments - made to reporters during a meeting on Capitol Hill on Wednesday - came after the State Department and the White House earlier declined to comment on how the killing could affect the region.
Cardin acknowledged that Haniyeh was involved in Gaza ceasefire negotiations, saying his death "makes it much more challenging right now in regards to the hostage negotiations".
"It makes a hot situation even hotter," he added.
Cardin also reiterated that the United States had no advance knowledge of the killing of Haniyeh, which diplomats and the White House have also said.
He said the US didn't have any specific information yet, so he couldn't speak to the details while developments were still unfolding.
When asked by the BBC about Iran’s accusations that the US bears some responsibility for the attack - which Iran and Hamas have blamed on Israel - Cardin said he would not put a lot of confidence in what Iran says "being (anything) other than their own propaganda".
Cardin also added that the US "would be very reluctant to get engaged in any type of complicity in any type of military operation into a sovereign country".
LISTEN: The Assassination of Hamas's Political Leaderpublished at 23:29 31 July
23:29 31 July
The latest episode of Newscast is up. In it, Adam Fleming is joined by Lyse Doucet and Jeremy Bowen to discuss who Ismail Haniyeh was, and what his death means for the Middle East.
You can listen to the podcast here, or wherever you find your podcasts.
UN Security Council meeting endspublished at 23:17 31 July
23:17 31 July
The council's meeting has now finished.
We heard statements from Israel, Lebanon, Iran, Palestinians as well as global powers the US, China, Russia and the UK.
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23:11 31 July
We've just heard from a representative from Lebanon. They told the UN Security Council that Lebanon condemned the "aggression" that targeted a suburb in Beirut, and called it a "clear violation" of humanitarian law.
Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr was killed in the Israeli strike on southern Beirut yesterday, which you can read about here.
The representative for Lebanon said he believed this was the most dangerous chapter of the conflict so far.
Israel addresses Security Councilpublished at 23:00 31 July
23:00 31 July
Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan has been speaking about the dangers of Fuad Shukr, a top Hezbollah commander who was killed earlier this week in an Israeli strike in Beirut.
The ambassador described Shukr as a senior terrorist with the blood of Israelis and many others on his hands, which he says included American soldiers.
Shukr allegedly played a "central role" in the 1983 bombing of a US Marines barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 US military personnel.
Erden continued by calling the world to support Israel, and critiqued the amount of weapons and support Iran has provided to Hezbollah.
He told the Security Council that leaders in Iran are working to bring the end of Israel and the Jewish people.
Palestinian representative calls on council to actpublished at 22:45 31 July
22:45 31 July
Palestinian representative Feda Abdelhady has been speaking at the Security Council, where she called for a halt to what she described as "horrific" Israeli actions.
She told the council that violence and terror are Israel's only currency, citing the "brazen" attack on Beirut.
"There is no red line for Israel," she said, claiming there was nothing Israel did not view as targets.
She called on the Security Council to act.
"Do not let Israel drag us to the brink of abyss," she said.
We're about to hear from Israel's ambassador next.
Iran addresses Security Councilpublished at 22:29 31 July
22:29 31 July
Image source, ReutersIranian ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani has just spoken. He called the killing of Hamas' political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who died in an overnight air strike in Tehran, a "heinous crime".
He described it as an "act of terror" by Israel and he also blamed the US, claiming the attack would have needed US "authorisation".
Just moments ago, US ambassador Robert Wood said the US was not aware of or involved in the death of Haniyeh.
The Iranian ambassador went on to say the UN Security Council had "failed".
Russia warns the Middle East could be on the brink of warpublished at 22:16 31 July
22:16 31 July
Dmitry Polyanskiy, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, has just finished speaking
He expressed his concern about the situation turning into an "all out war".
Polyanskiy called for a full cease-fire and reiterated his support for the two-state solution.
He said the killing of Haniyeh was dangerous for the entire region.
Nations call for restraint in Middle Eastpublished at 22:05 31 July
22:05 31 July
Image source, Getty ImagesWe've been hearing from representatives at the UN Security Council as they speak about the killing of Hamas's political leader, Ismail Haniyeh.
The representative from France said they were alarmed by the rise in tensions. They said Iran muststop supporting destabilising actors, and called for restraint in the region.
The representativefrom Algeria said "Weare on the precipice of catastrophe", and labelled the killing of Haniyeh was an "act of terror" by Israel.
Guyana called on all parties to show "maximum restraint" and said recent attacks could harm Gaza ceasefire negotiations.
The Republic of Korea also warned that escalations "negatively impacted" a ceasefire in Gaza.
Mozambique condemned the air strike in Iran. The representative called on all parties to use restraint.
The representative from Japan said: "We fear that the region is at the brink of all-out war".
Switzerland's representative said: "We reject this spiral of violence" and urged all actors involved, and those who have sway over them, to show restraint.
UK 'deeply concerned' about escalationpublished at 21:51 31 July
21:51 31 July
UK Representative Barbara Woodward has been speaking about the ongoing escalation, which she described as deeply concerning.
"Escalation and a cycle of endless violence is in no one's interest," she said.
She urged immediate restraint and claimed that Iran was destabilising the region using Hezbollah as a proxy.
"Long term peace will not be secured by bombs and bullets," she said.
US says diplomatic solution is still possiblepublished at 21:47 31 July
21:47 31 July
US Ambassador Robert Wood has been speaking at the UN Security Council. He urged the council to consider additional measures to hold Iran accountable for actions from Hezbollah and Hamas, and called on leaders to stop arming and advising Iran.
Wood said there was no doubt, "aboslu*tely none", that Hezbollah was responsible for the rocket strike in Golan Heights, and the US ambassador said an Iranian rocket was used in the deadly strike. Twelve young people died when the strike hit a football pitch.
He reiterated US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's earlier comments that the US was not aware of or involved in the death of Ismail Haniyeh.
And Wood cautioned that it was best not to speculate on the effect of these back-to-back killings in the region, noting "a broader war is neither imminent nor inevitable".
"We believe there is still time and space for a diplomatic solution."
China UN representative warns of 'bigger crisis'published at 21:23 31 July
21:23 31 July
China's UN Security Council representative begins by speaking about the killing of Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Ambassador Fu Cong says China firmly opposes and strongly condemns the killing.
China is deeply concerned about the exacerbation of upheaval in the region and what it may trigger, he says.
The representative said military means offer "no solutions" and "will only lead to a bigger crisis".
UN Security Council emergency meeting beginspublished at 21:14 31 July
21:14 31 July
An emergency United National Security Council meeting has just started.
Representatives will discuss the killing of Ismail Haniyeh, a Hamas political leader.
We'll bring you the latest from the meeting, stay with us.
Airlines cancel flightspublished at 20:44 31 July
20:44 31 July
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has left the region with a growing list of cancelled flights.
United, Delta and British Airways are expected to suspended flights to Tel Aviv beginning Wednesday evening.
That follows a slew of airlines cancelling flights to Beirut in the past few days.
Greece's Aegean Airlines and Germany's Condor cancelled flights to Beirut on Tuesday.
And Air France and Lufthansa announced flight cancellations to Beirut on Monday.
UN Security Council emergency meeting scheduledpublished at 20:26 31 July
20:26 31 July
Iran has requested an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting to talk about the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, one of Hamas' political leaders.
The meeting is scheduled for 16:00 EDT (21:00 BST).
The Iranian request was supported by representatives from Russia, China and Algeria.
US warns its citizens against travelling to Lebanonpublished at 20:09 31 July
20:09 31 July
Because of recent escalations in the region, the US has issued a new advisory, external to its citizens on Wednesday, urging them to avoid travelling to Lebanon.
"Do Not Travel to Lebanon due to rising tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," the travel advisory says.
"If you are in Lebanon, be prepared to shelter in place should the situation deteriorate."
The advisory urged US citizens who are still in the country - especially in southern Lebanon near the border with Syria or in refugee settlements - to leave.
US offers condolences for killed journalistspublished at 19:53 31 July
19:53 31 July
Following questions on reports of two journalists killed in Gaza, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel offered condolences for Palestinian journalists killed during the Israel-Hamas war.
Al Jazeera said two of its journalists - reporter Ismail al-Ghoul and camera operator Ramy El Rify - were killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza City on Wednesday.
During a press briefing, Patel told journalists that the State Department has asked counterparts in the region for additional information regarding their deaths.
"We offer our deep condolences to the many Palestinian journalists killed or injured during this war," he says.
"We believe journalists have been integral to shedding a light on the dire circ*mstances in the Gaza Strip right now."
US says work on a cease-fire deal ongoingpublished at 19:27 31 July
19:27 31 July
Image source, Getty ImagesWe've just had two briefings from the US. One from the State Department - which you can read about here. And one from the White House, where spokesperson John Kirby has been talking.
Kirby says that cease-fire negotiations have always been "complicated", and it is too soon to tell how recent events in the Middle East will impact the ability to reach a deal.
"That doesn't mean we're going to stop working on it," Kirby says. "In fact, we have a team in the region working on it as we speak."
He adds the US is still focused on preventing escalation in the region.
Kirby made the comments to reporters at a routine White House briefing.
US State Department stays tight-lipped on Haniyeh deathpublished at 19:12 31 July
19:12 31 July
US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel just spoke to reporters in Washington DC, including about the developments of the last 24 hours in the Middle East.
He did not offer new information, but reiterated earlier remarks from Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the US was not involved in the operation that killed Ismail Haniyeh.
Patel repeated multiple times that he wouldn't speculate on diplomatic matters.
US commitment to Israel is "iron-clad", Patel added.
