a senior un official has warned that half of population of gaza are now starving, as israel continues its assault on the territory. the world food programme s deputy director, carl skau, says nine out of ten people are not eating every day. israeli tanks are reported to be advancing slowly towards the centre of khan younis, as intense battles continue in southern gaza. there are reports of house to house fighting in the city. it comes amid fierce criticism of the us, for vetoing a united nations security council draft resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the israel gaza war. the palestinian president mahmoud abbas says the veto makes the us complicit in what he describes as war crimes against palestinians. in a statement, he condemns the american position as a flagrant violation of all humanitarian principles and values, and he holds the us responsible for the bloodshed of palestinian children, women and elderly people in the gaza strip. the us envoy
fighting in the city. there s also fighting in the north. these are the latest pictures from the israel defense forces, showing gun battles in the jabalia refugee camp, which remains surrounded by israeli tanks. people there say they ve been without food and clean water for several days. earlier, the hamas run health ministry in gaza reported the death toll since the conflict began now stands at 17,700. from jerusalem, our middle east correspondent, lucy williamson, reports. buried by the war, but still alive, dug from the rubble of their homes in deir al balah after an israeli strike this morning. more than 20 members of the salman family and their neighbours. their faces, like their lives, made unrecognisable. six others were killed, they say. the frantic race to hospitals is gaza s new daily routine. health care in the north has collapsed. here, further south, doctors say the situation is catastrophic. there aren t the resources to treat all the wounded, much less to comfo