Israeli politicians have called for the "immediate cancellation" of a UN report accusing Israel of war crimes in Gaza after its Jewish author retracted his "libel".

"No sovereign state can tolerate having rockets fired at its people.

Scottish MSPs have launched a fundraising drive at the Scottish Parliament for a "Scottish ship to Gaza".

The appeal is for £500,000 to buy a vessel, a project co-ordinated by Glasgow Labour MSP Pauline McNeill, the convenor of the Scottish Cross-Party group on Palestine.

Violence continued to escalate at the Gaza border this morning as two more rockets and ten mortar shells were fired by Hamas terrorists into residential areas in the south of Israel, in Beersheva and Ashdod.

A 56-year-old man was injured in one attack, while three others were treated by doctors following the blasts.

Britain’s Foreign Office minister for the Middle East has condemned Hamas for sending more than 50 mortars into Israel in just a few hours, and called on the terrorist organisation to immediately halt its behaviour.

Alistair Burt said that the barrage from the Gaza Strip – the heaviest in two years – by a group allied to Hamas was “unacceptable”.

The weapons on board a ship seized near to the Gaza Strip this morning were “destined for terrorist forces”, Israel’s Prime Minister has said.

A freighter carrying a significant amount of weaponry believed to be for use by terrorists in the Gaza Strip has been intercepted by the Israeli navy.

The Victoria, which set sail from Syria and went via Turkey, was bound for Egypt but intelligence suggested it was carrying weapons from Iran for Hamas to smuggle across the border.