FirstFT: Israel prepares for ground invasion of Gaza

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Israel is preparing for a ground invasion of Gaza as the region’s bloodiest war for decades heads into its fifth day.

The Israeli military said it had hit more than 2,300 “Hamas targets” in response to Saturday’s deadly incursion by the militant group, while more than 4,500 rockets had been fired from the Hamas-controlled enclave.

Israel said it had found the bodies of “dozens” of civilians, including infants and children, at a kibbutz near the Gaza border in the south of the country. An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson described the Kfar Aza site as “a massacre: children, women and elderly . . . were butchered”.

The Jewish state has called up 60,000 reservists in addition to a record 300,000 already mobilised, and deployed 35 military battalions and four divisions as it builds up “an infrastructure for future operations” in apparent preparation for a widely expected land attack on Gaza.

More than 2mn people live in the enclave and at least 200,000 have already fled their homes to seek shelter from Israeli strikes, according to the UN.

US president Joe Biden said yesterday that Israel had both the “right” and the “duty” to respond to the incursion, and confirmed that Americans were among those killed and held hostage. Describing the attacks by Hamas as “sheer evil”, Biden vowed that the US would “stand with Israel” and called on Congress to bolster aid as needed.

The death toll stands at more than 1,200 Israelis, according to the IDF, while Palestinian authorities said at least 900 of their citizens had been killed. Here are the latest updates on the war.

• Unity government: Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition has given the green light to negotiations on forming a unity government with the opposition.

• ‘Nothing is normal’: Hamas’s assault has completely reshaped daily life in Israel, with mass mobilisation, closed schools, panic buying and trauma.

• Hostage dilemma: The abductions of dozens of civilians presents Israel with risky options when it comes to retaliation or a prisoner swap.

• Spillover fear: The crisis in Gaza has heightened Egypt’s long-running concerns that Israel wants to push its troubles with the enclave on to its Arab neighbour.

Here’s what else I’m keeping tabs on today:

• Meetings: Nato defence ministers will convene in Brussels while Russian president Vladimir Putin and Iraqi prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani will participate in an energy forum in Moscow.

• Economic data: Germany and Russia are to publish consumer price indices.

• Birkenstock: The German sandal maker has been valued at $8.6bn after pricing its shares at $46 in an initial public offering ahead of its first day of trading today.

• US politics: Republicans in the House of Representatives plan to vote for their party’s nominee for speaker, following the unprecedented ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy last week.

• Results: Bang & Olufsen, Marston’s and PageGroup report.

Five more top stories

1. Sir Keir Starmer has promised to “bulldoze” the planning system and unleash a “big build” across the UK by working with the private sector to accelerate housebuilding. If it returns to power, Labour will build new towns and “speed ahead” on the transition to a low-carbon economy, the opposition leader said yesterday. Here are more details from the party’s conference in Liverpool.

2. Elon Musk’s X is grappling with a wave of misinformation about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, prompting fresh scrutiny from European regulators and new concerns from global advertisers. Viral posts with doctored photos and fictitious video have racked up millions of views and shares on the social media site formerly known as Twitter. Here’s how this is testing Musk’s “free speech” vision for the platform.

3. Exclusive: The UK tax authority’s dispute with brokerage platforms could threaten the holdings of young investors who are using their Individual Savings Accounts to buy fractional shares in otherwise expensive stocks. HM Revenue & Customs held a meeting with industry figures and Treasury officials last week, maintaining that this type of investment could not be held within the tax-free account.

4. Exclusive: Suppliers to Taiwan’s world-leading chipmaker are plotting an entry into Europe. LCY Group, which supplies cleaning agents and solvents to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, said it is “planning investments in Germany”, while three other TSMC suppliers are also weighing investments in Europe. Here’s why they are eyeing the continent’s market.

5. Despite recent leadership turmoil, BP’s commitments to cutting oil and gas production remain “unchanged”, interim chief Murray Auchincloss said yesterday. The energy group sought to reassure investors after the departures of chief executive Bernard Looney and Dave Lawler, BP’s top US executive. But here’s why analysts think their exits could still overshadow the company’s message.

The Big Read

The feud between Jarosław Kaczyński, Poland’s de facto leader, and arch rival Donald Tusk, a former president of the European Council and now opposition party leader, has grown more vicious and personal over time. In the lead up to this Sunday’s election, the two men have branded each other as evil, trading accusations of authoritarianism, cronyism, treason and spying. Here’s how the polls could redefine the country’s role within the EU.

We’re also reading . . . 

Chart of the day

With Covid-19, Russia’s war on Ukraine and now the unfolding Israel-Hamas conflict, the world continues to be beset by huge shocks. While the global economy has proved resilient, performance has deteriorated in the longer term, writes Martin Wolf.

Take a break from the news

The real star of Succession, Homeland and The Menu is the Zalto Universal wine glass. With its wide bowl and aroma-focusing straight sides made from handblown glass of hair-raising fragility, the £50 glass allows oenophiles to get intimate with their wine like never before. Is this the finest wine glass ever made?

Additional contributions from Benjamin Wilhelm and Gordon Smith