Israel will eliminate Hamas leaders and end war 'in months', says Netanyahu

Good evening. Benjamin Netanyahu has promised Israel will eliminate Hamas leaders and end the war in “months”.

Elsewhere, detectives hunting for the chemical attack suspect Abdul Ezedi have arrested and bailed a 22-year-old man on suspicion of assisting an offender.

Israel will eliminate Hamas leaders and end war ‘in months’, says Netanyahu

The Israeli prime minister told a faction meeting of his party Likud: “Our goal is a complete victory over Hamas. We will kill the Hamas leadership, therefore we must continue to act in all areas of the Gaza Strip”. The pledge comes as the Israeli leader is facing major questions over whether the IDF can complete its goals of defeating Hamas in Gaza.

Clapham attack latest: Man arrested on suspicion of assisting offender

Detectives hunting for the chemical attack suspect have arrested and bailed a 22-year-old man on suspicion of assisting an offender. Investigators are trawling through hundreds of hours of CCTV and have tracked Ezedi’s movements on the Tube network via his bank card, with the latest sighting now on Southwark Bridge at 9.50pm on Wednesday.

Dad’s Army star Ian Lavender dies aged 77

Lavender, the last surviving main cast member of Dad’s Army, played Private Pike in the BBC series. Jon Petrie, the BBC’s director of comedy, said: “Ian was a much-loved actor and will be sorely missed by all those who knew him”. You can read his obituary here.

Evening Briefing: Today’s essential headlines

Economy | Lockdowns threaten to stunt global growth for decades because of the lasting impact of pandemic school closures on children’s learning and job prospects, according to the OECD.

Comment and analysis

Alan Cochrane | Labour must stop dancing to the SNP’s tune

Tim Stanley | What my operation taught me about ‘our’ NHS

Richard Tice | Asylum is open to abuse and our elites don’t care

Ross Clark | The heat pump climb down is another nail in the Net Zero coffin

Andrew Orlowski | Nonsensical jargon means the success of online advertising is impossible to determine

World news: Tucker Carlson says Russia is doing ‘very well’ during Moscow visit

Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News host, said Russia is “doing very well” during a visit to Moscow but remained coy about whether he will interview Vladimir Putin. Mr Carlson said in late September 2023 that he had attempted to interview the Russian leader, but that the US government had blocked the move.

Feature of the day

Bryony Gordon: TikTok may have banned ‘legging legs’ but ‘thinspiration’ is alive and well

Dangerous body image content is rife on social media, but activewear marketing has never been concerned for women’s health.

Business news: Asda to open 110 convenience stores in battle for market share

Britain’s third-largest grocer is aiming to reach a total of 1,000 stores in the hopes of catching up with Sainsbury’s, the second largest. One hundred and nine of the sites are former convenience stores acquired by Asda from The Co-op, of which it bought 138 in 2022 in a £438m deal, alongside one brand new store.