Israel-Hamas conflict: Former footballer Sonny Bill Williams sparks fury with X post

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has made a surprise high-security visit to the West Bank, meeting with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.

Meanwhile, an Israeli model has spoken of hiding under her boyfriend’s body for hours in the wake of a terrorist massacre at a music festival on 7 October.

And former footballer turner champion boxer Sonny Bill Williams has been accused of “inciting hatred” with a post about the conflict.

Follow on for our latest updates throughout the day.

Sonny Bill Williams sparks fury

Former footballer Sonny Bill Williams has been accused of “inciting hatred” against Jewish popular after sharing a fiery social media post about the Israel-Hamas conflict.

The champion boxer, who converted to Islam 15 years ago, took to X at the weekend where he slammed the bombing of a major hospital in Gaza, describing Israelis as “Zionist cowards”.

“Wallahi [I swear to God] where is our Ummah [Muslim community]?” Williams wrote, alongside a clip of the aftermath of an air strike on a hospital.

“Where are the so called men entrusted to stand up and fight for our voiceless – if this footage is too gruesome for you REMEMBER these are the same people that certain parts of the media DEHUMANISE so you think this genocide is warranted.

“All you Zionist cowards wouldn’t last a day fighting real men face-to-face. Allahu Akbar [God is great]!!”

Last month, the 38-year-old sparked outrage after sharing an X post describing Hamas terrorists as “freedom fighters”.

Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said Williams’ latest remarks are “reckless, dangerous and clearly uninformed”.

“But to his many fans and followers, they will sound compelling and will serve to incitement hatred and further destabilise our fragile social cohesion,” Mr Ryvchin told The Daily Telegraph.

“I’m sure Sonny Bill doesn’t want to do this and I would be willing to meet with him to discuss our perspectives and build bridges rather than making enemies.”

Israel unleashes on Gaza

A major military operation is underway in Gaza, with a series of huge explosions rocking the region as communications are severed once again.

The Israeli Defence Forces launched multiple air strikes on various targets and is reportedly preparing for ground troops to enter Gaza City within in the next 48 hours.

Journalists in the border city of Sderot say “intense” strikes are visible.

IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the “extensive” operation is targeting Hamas infrastructure, including underground tunnels where senior militants are believed to be hiding.

Telecommunications and internet connections are down again, with humanitarian groups saying they can’t contact workers on the ground.

It marks the third time Israel has severed services to Gaza since 7 October.

Israel bombs two refugee camps

The Israeli Defence Forces has launched air strikes on two refugee camps in Gaza, killing at least 53 people and injuring scores more.

Hamas-controlled Palestinian Health Ministry officials said recuse workers are searching for survivors in the rubble at the Maghazi camp and the Bureij settlement after “direct” bombing.

“All night I and the other men were trying to pick the dead from the rubble,” Saeed al-Nejma told media.

“We got children, dismembered, torn-apart flesh.”

Authorities say most of the bodies recovered so far belong to women and children.

Hospital workers say the air strike on Bureij, inhabited by an estimated 46,000 people, hit a house near a school.

The IDF said it’s investigating the claims.

Anthony Blinken’s surprise West Bank visit

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has made a high-security surprise visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank, meeting with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.

The top US diplomat met with Abbas in Ramallah as global concern grows over rising violence in the occupied territory in tandem with the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Mr Blinken has visited Israel since the start of the war, but this was his first trip to the West Bank.

He met with Israeli officials on Friday and said he heard “a clear commitment from the government to deal with extremist violence in the West Bank, to condemn it, to take action to prevent it, to take action against those who perpetrate it”.

“This is important, and we will be looking closely to ensure that our friends make good on that commitment,” he said.

Model ‘hid under boyfriend’s body’ at festival

A 27-year-old Israeli model who survived the Hamas festival massacre has recounted how she was forced to hide under her dead boyfriend‘s body in the back of a bin.

Noam Mazal Ben-David said she played dead for two hours surrounded by a pile of corpses, after her partner David Neman and dozens of others were gunned down by Hamas terrorists.

She was losing blood rapidly after being shot in the foot and hip but remained silent to stay alive.

“They surrounded us and they just kept shooting, non-stop,” she said.

“I heard one girl scream ‘Please don’t take me. Just leave me alone’. But they still kidnapped her. They did terrible, terrible things to her.

“As the Hamas gunmen approached, David took me and threw me to the back of the container telling me to get as deep as I could and to hide. One of them jumped inside and yelled ‘Allahu Akbar’ and a bomb went off, and they started shooting non-stop.

“It was Russian roulette as to who would get a bullet.”

The massacre occurred during the Supernova Festival in southern Israel, which was initially billed as a celebration of “friends, love, and infinite freedom”.

Netanyahu in hot water again

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in hot water again with remarks suggesting protests by soldiers against his government contributed to the Hamas attacks of 7 October.

It comes a week after Mr Netanyahu deleted a post on X attacking security chiefs for failing to warn of the massacres carried out by terrorists, which saw political colleagues brand him “psychotic”.

This latest domestic upset prompted senior minister Benny Gantz to hit back.

“Over 100% enlistment in reserves and extraordinary mobilisation by all Israeli society are the decisive response to our enemies,” Mr Gantz wrote in a post on X.

“Evading responsibility and mud-slinging in a time of war harm the country. The prime minister must clearly and unambiguously retract his words.”

Quotes in Hebrew media outlets attributed to the PM called for the Israeli Defence Forces to investigate “insubordination” among reservist soldiers that in part inspired Hamas to attack.

“In contrast to reports, the prime minister never said in any manner that insubordination is what led Hamas to attack Israel,” a statement from his office read.

“The prime minister said before the war that our enemy must not mistake us, because at the moment of truth everyone will enlist, as indeed happened.”

ScoMo’s bizarre Israel jaunt

Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison has made a surprise visit to Israel alongside ex-British leader Boris Johnson.

The bizarre trip amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza was described as a “demonstration of solidarity”.

“’It is an opportunity to understand first hand what is occurring on the ground, honour those who have been lost, show support to those who have suffered and are now engaged in this terrible conflict and discuss how to move forward,” Mr Morrison said.

He is the first politician to visit Israel since the 7 October massacres that sparked the Israel-Hamas conflict.

“I am thankful for the opportunity to join former Prime Minister Johnson to come to Israel as a demonstration of solidarity with the people and State of Israel and the Jewish community throughout the world,” he said.

Mr Johnson and Mr Morrison toured the kibbutz Kfar Aza, where militants killed 57 Israelis and kidnapped 17 people.

“You can’t help but be overwhelmed by the sense of that where we’re standing was once, a month ago, a place of innocence and now has been desecrated beyond comprehension,” Mr Morrison said.

Islamic preacher labels Australians ‘hypocrites’

An Islamic preacher in Sydney has urged Muslims to wage “jihad”, calling Australians “hypocrites” for “forgetting its dark past”.

Speaking at Al Madina Dawah Centre in Southwest Sydney, the man known as ‘Brother Ismail’ took aim at Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the Federal Government and intelligence services, and Islamic leaders who had criticised Jihad fighters overseas.

He declared the Hamas members who attacked Israelis on 7 October were not terrorists and instead “freedom fighters” and “warriors”.

“There is no other way to defend Muslims … they are so thrilled and looking forward to joining the Mujaheddin,” he said, first reported by The Australian.

“That hypocrite Albanese when he came and stepped and dirtied one of the mosques saying and claiming and putting the mouth of hypocrisy and lies to the Muslims, that we love Muslims and respect them. Not long after Allah exposed his lies when he (Albanese) said Israel has the right to defend itself, when he labelled Hamas as terrorists.

“We say to every individual who said Hamas were terrorists, did you (Australia) really forget your dark history.

“Did you really forget what your ancestors did to the native people in this country, how they killed them, how they chained them like dogs … did you forget that you celebrate every year a massacre you did to the native people. You want to come and teach us about morals?”

He went on to claim “Jihad is the solution” and ridiculed ASIO for “wanting to deport me”.

“If the Australian government or ASIO like it or not, if they want to deport me or not, the Jihad is the solution for the Ummah (the Islamic community) … There is no other way but fighting in the sake of Allah.”

Dozens of UN sites bombed

The United Nations says 48 of its installations across Gaza have been damaged in Israeli air strikes since the conflict with Hamas began a month ago.

UNRWA, the agency for Palestinian refugees, said nearly 1.5 million people have been displaced across the region since 7 October.

And almost half of those people are sheltering in installations controlled by the UN, it added.