Good afternoon

Welcome back to our live coverage of developments in the Middle East.

Israel has passed a law banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, from operating in the country, a move the organisation’s chief says will “deepen the suffering of Palestinians, especially in Gaza”.

The law passed in the Knesset yesterday banned the agency from having any ties to Israeli officials and stripped its staff of their legal immunities.

We’ll bring you more on that and the global reaction to this story in a moment.

We’ll also bring you the latest on the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, where the country’s health ministry says at least 60 people were killed yesterday in Israeli raids.

Elsewhere, the office of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has said Israel has not received a temporary ceasefire proposal from Egypt, as had been suggested.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi proposed on Sunday an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners.

Mr Netanyahu’s office said that the Israeli leader would have accepted such a proposal “immediately” if it had been raised.

At least 55 killed in Israeli strike in Gaza – reports

At least 55 people have been killed in Gaza after an Israeli strike on the town of Beit Lahiya, according to reports. 

The Palestinian news agency Wafa and Hamas media both reported the attack on the town in northern Gaza. 

Many of those killed in the strike were women and children, Wafa reported, citing medics. 

The Gaza civil service says the strike hit a residential building. 

We’ll bring you more on this breaking story as we get it.

Lebanon says at least 60 killed in Israeli strikes across eastern valley region

We mentioned in our good morning post reports from Lebanon’s health ministry that at least 60 people were killed yesterday in Israeli attacks on several areas in the eastern Bekaa Valley.

It said the deaths came in 16 areas, most of them in the Baalbek region, which is a Hezbollah stronghold.

The ministry said 58 people were wounded and that rescue efforts were ongoing across the area. 

The region’s governor, Bachir Khodr, called the attacks the “most violent” in the area since Israel invaded Lebanon last month, targeting what it says are Hezbollah’s operatives, infrastructure, and weapons in the country.

The Israeli military has not yet commented.

Hezbollah appoints new leader

Hezbollah has appointed the group’s deputy secretary-general Sheikh Naim Kassem as its new leader.

He will succeed Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in Beirut in an Israeli airstrike in September.

Mr Kassem has been Hezbollah’s acting leader since the death of Nasrallah. 

Who is Sheikh Naim Kassem?

Born in 1953 in Beirut, Mr Kassem has been a senior figure in Hezbollah for more than 30 years.

He was appointed deputy chief in 1991 and remained in his role when Hassan Nasrallah became leader a year later.

Mr Kassem was the first member of Hezbollah’s top leadership to make televised remarks after Nasrallah was killed last month.

He said Hezbollah would choose a successor to its slain leader “at the earliest opportunity” and would continue to fight Israel in solidarity with Palestinians.

This month, he said the group supported the efforts of Lebanon’s parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, to secure a ceasefire in the country.