Jerusalem, Nov 3 (AP) Here's what is happening in the latest Israel-Hamas war:

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HEZBOLLAH LEADER GIVES FIRST SPEECH SINCE START OF ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR

Beirut: Celebratory gunshots rang out over Beirut as thousands packed into a square in the capital's southern suburbs to watch a televised speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, his first since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war.

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The speech came a day after the most significant escalation in clashes between Hezbollah and Israeli forces on the border since Oct 7 and on the same day as a visit to Israel by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

It has been widely anticipated throughout the region as a sign of whether the Israel-Hamas conflict would spiral into a regional war.

Since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct 7, triggering the war, Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, had taken calculated steps to keep Israel's military busy on its border with Lebanon, but not to the extent of igniting an all-out war.

US USING DRONES IN AN ATTEMPT TO LOCATE HOSTAGES

Washington: The United States is flying MQ-9 drones over Gaza to gather intelligence and help Israel locate more than 240 hostages taken into the territory by Hamas during its Oct 7 attack on Israel, a US official said on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing operations.

Since the attacks, families of the hostages have increased pressure on the Israeli and US governments to find them and bring them home before Israel carries through with any large-scale ground operations. The drone use was first reported by Reuters.

IN-LAWS OF SCOTLAND'S FIRST MINISTER PERMITTED TO LEAVE GAZA

London: Scotland's first minister, Humza Yousaf, said Friday his in-laws have managed to leave Gaza for Egypt as part of the limited evacuations of foreign nationals from the besieged territory.

The parents of his wife, Nadia El-Nakla, had been trapped inside Gaza since Oct 7, when Hamas launched its incursion into Israel and killed more than 1,400 people. They were in Gaza visiting relatives.

Her parents, Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla, were among the 100 or so British nationals permitted to pass through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt on Friday morning.

Yousaf, who has regularly shared updates on his in-laws' plight, including that they had to drink sea water, spoke of the “deep personal relief" felt by his family.

He said the last four weeks have been “a living nightmare” and that he and his wife will continue to call for an immediate cease-fire in the conflict.

“Although we feel a sense of deep personal relief, we are heartbroken at the continued suffering of the people of Gaza,” the couple said in a statement.

UN WARNS THAT SITUATION IN THE WEST BANK IS ALARMING AND URGENT

Geneva: Alongside the blistering Israeli military campaign in Gaza, the UN human rights office warned Friday that the situation in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is “alarming and urgent” because of “multi-layered human rights violations of Palestinians” there.

Large-scale raids overnight by Israeli forces in the West Bank killed seven Palestinians, Palestinian health officials said, raising the death toll to 144 since the Oct 7 attack by Hamas militants in Israel left at least 1,400 people dead.

Spokesperson Liz Throssell said Israeli forces have increasingly used military tactics and weapons in law enforcement operations, and settler violence “which was already at record levels” has escalated.

“We have serious concerns that the principles of distinction and proportionality are not being respected by both sides,” Throssell said at a news briefing in Geneva. “We strongly urge Palestinian armed groups to immediately stop launching inherently indiscriminate rockets into Israel.”

FRANCE TO SEND 2 FLIGHTS TO EGYPT WITH AID FOR GAZA CIVILIANS

Paris: France is sending two new flights to Egypt with aid for Palestinian civilians in Gaza and is seeking to augment its military deployment in the area to provide medical support, the defense minister said Friday.

Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu told BFM television that the new flights would leave Friday and Sunday. France sent an initial flight last week with 54 tons of aid, and is urging the creation of a humanitarian corridor that would allow Palestinian civilians to flee Gaza and for aid to be brought in.

Lecornu spoke from a French helicopter carrier sent to the eastern Mediterranean to serve as a mobile hospital for people from Gaza.

"While Israel should defend itself and should ensure that Hamas can no longer inflict harm...the civilian populations of Gaza must be preserved and the best way to protect them is to give them medical care," he said.

Two French children have been killed in northern Gaza and their mother and another sibling were injured, according to the French Foreign Ministry.

They are among more than 30 French citizens who have been killed since the conflict began Oct 7, most in the initial Hamas attacks. Nine remain missing, including some believed held hostage by Hamas, according to the government.

Five French citizens were evacuated from Gaza this week, and the French government is demanding safe passage out for the remaining French citizens in Gaza -- around 50 people, the ministry said. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)