In the days since a fragile ceasefire took hold in the Gaza Strip, Israel has launched a major military operation in the occupied West Bank and suspected Jewish settlers have rampaged through two Palestinian towns.

Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa), said the implementation of a ban on the agency's operations inside Israel would cripple its ability to work in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, where a fragile ceasefire currently remains in place.

Once the details are received, a team from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sets off in vehicles marked with the humanitarian organisation's logo to pick up the hostages in Gaza. Israeli military and medical personnel are also assembled at several different locations,