(NEW YORK) -- The temporary cease-fire between Hamas and Israel ended early Friday, and Israel has resumed its bombardment of Gaza.
The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Here's how the news is developing:
Dec 09, 3:14 PM EST
Biden administration approves emergency tank ammunition sale to Israel
The Biden administration approved the possible sale of tank ammunition to Israel through an emergency order, circumventing Congress.
In a release, the State Department notified Congress about the emergency sale on Friday.
"The Secretary of State determined and provided detailed justification to Congress that an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel of the above defense articles and services in the national security interests of the United States, thereby waiving the Congressional review requirements under Section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act, as amended," the release states.
The sale -- of 120mm tank cartridges and related equipment -- is estimated to cost $106.5 million.
-ABC News' Davone Morales and Shannon Crawford
Dec 09, 12:12 PM EST
Yemen says no ships bound for Israel will pass Red Sea
All ships bound for Israel, notwithstanding their nationality, will be stopped from passing through the Red Sea and become "a legitimate target" until more aid is delivered to Gaza on these ships, a Yemeni Armed Forces spokesperson said.
"The Yemeni armed forces announce the prohibition of the passage of ships bound for the Zionist entity of any nationality, if they do not enter the Gaza Strip with the food and medicine they need and it will become a legitimate target for our armed forces," according to a statement.
Dec 09, 11:55 AM EST
Turkish president denounces UN Security Council after US vetoes ceasefire resolution
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced the United Nations Security Council after the U.S. vetoed a ceasefire resolution for Gaza. He called the international body the "Israel protection council," according to the Times of Israel.
"Since October 7, the Security Council has become an Israel protection and defense council," Erdogan said, according to the Times.
"Is this justice?" Erdogan asked, adding that “the world is bigger than five,” a reference to the five veto-wielding nations in the U.N. Security Council, according to the Times.
U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood told the council on Friday that the resolution "was divorced from reality" and "would not move the needle forward on the ground in any concrete way" in explaining why the U.S. could not support it.
Dec 09, 12:35 PM EST
Blinken speaks with International Committee of the Red Cross president
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with International Committee of the Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger on Friday to "emphasize the importance of the ICRC's humanitarian response to the conflict in Gaza," a statement from the agency said.
Blinken thanked the ICRC for delivering "life-saving assistance and protection of civilians," according to the statement.
"The Secretary and ICRC President also discussed efforts to strengthen civilian protections and expand the flow of humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza. The Secretary reiterated the call for the immediate release of all hostages and highlighted the need for the ICRC to be granted access to the remaining hostages," Blinken said.
Dec 09, 12:38 PM EST
Gaza Strip is the most dangerous place to be a child: UNICEF
As the death toll continues to climb, UNICEF called the Gaza Strip the most dangerous place in the world for children.
"The Gaza Strip is the most dangerous place in the world to be a child. Scores of children are reportedly being killed and injured on a daily basis. Entire neighborhoods, where children used to play and go to school have been turned into stacks of rubble, with no life in them," UNICEF said in a statement.
Close to 1 million children in Gaza have been "forcibly displaced from their homes," according to UNICEF.
"They are now being pushed further and further south into tiny, overcrowded areas without water, food, or protection, putting them at increased risk of respiratory infections and waterborne disease. Their lives are further threatened by dehydration, malnutrition and disease," UNICEF said.
"UNICEF and other humanitarian actors have been ringing the alarm for weeks. Our team on the ground describe meeting children with missing limbs and third-degree burns, and children left shell-shocked by the continuing violence that surrounds them," UNICEF said.
UNICEF called for an immediate ceasefire.
"An immediate, long-lasting humanitarian ceasefire is the only way to end the killing and injuring of children, the only way that civilians can be protected, and the only way to enable the urgent delivery of desperately needed lifesaving aid," UNICEF said.
Dec 09, 7:25 AM EST
Families confirm death of hostage
The death of Sahar Baruch was confirmed in a statement by Kibbutz Be'eri and the families of the hostages. Baruch, 25, was from kibbutz Be'eri and abducted by Hamas from his home on Oct 7.
The statement does not mention the circumstances of Baruch's death, but his name and images were mentioned in the Hamas statement and video announcing his death following the failed special ops raid.
Dec 08, 6:15 PM EST
US vetoes UN Security Council resolution calling for cease-fire in Gaza
The United States vetoed Friday a United Nations Security Council draft resolution that would have demanded an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza and the immediate and unconditional release of hostages.
Thirteen other members voted in favor of the resolution, while the United Kingdom abstained.
U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood told the council the resolution "was divorced from reality" and "would not move the needle forward on the ground in any concrete way" in explaining why the U.S. could not support it.
He also said the U.S. could not understand why the resolution's authors did not include language condemning "Hamas' horrific terrorist attack" against Israel on Oct. 7 and had argued an unconditional cease-fire would leave Hamas able to attack again.
The resolution, which was put forward by the United Arab Emirates, was not adopted due to the U.S. veto.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian U.N. ambassador, called the outcome "disastrous."
"Millions of Palestinian lives hang in the balance, every single one of them is sacred and worth saving," he said.
Israeli U.N. ambassador Gilad Erdan thanked the U.S. "for standing firmly by our side and said it was a "distorted resolution that will enable Hamas' terrorists to stay in power in Gaza."
"A ceasefire will be possible only with the return of all the hostages and the destruction of Hamas," Erdan said in a statement following the vote.
Dec 08, 2:56 PM EST
Another US military aircraft lands in Egypt with 57,000 pounds of food, water, medicine
Another U.S. military aircraft landed in Egypt on Friday with 57,000 pounds of food, water and medicine to aid people in Gaza, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
"We're mindful of the extreme humanitarian suffering inside Gaza and we're doing everything we can to help alleviate that," he said.
Kirby also said the administration is "very grateful" that the Israelis agreed to open the Kerem Shalom crossing at the Israel-Gaza-Egypt border, saying it was "very much at our request" that they did so. He said it had been a point of discussion between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“It's good news, but we're just at the beginning of this process," he said of the Kerem Shalom crossing opening. "The first step is to set up an inspection regime, sort of akin to what's going on down in Rafah [at the Gaza-Egypt border crossing], so that the Israelis can have a measure of satisfaction that what's getting in [to -ABC News' Justin Ryan Gomez
Dec 08, 1:47 PM EST
IDF confirms it failed to rescue hostages in special operation
The Israel Defense Forces said it conducted a hostage rescue operation overnight in the Gaza Strip that failed to rescue any hostages.
Two IDF soldiers were severely injured in the operation while "numerous" Hamas terrorists who "took part in the abducting and holding of hostages were killed," the IDF said.
"The IDF continues to operate in a variety of operational and intelligence methods, together with security organizations, in order to release the hostages, and to collect relevant information," the IDF said.
Dec 08, 12:16 PM EST
Society in Gaza on 'brink of full-blown collapse,' UNRWA warns
"Civil order is breaking down in Gaza" and "society is on the brink of full-blown collapse," warned Thomas White, director of UNRWA affairs in Gaza.
"The streets feel wild, particularly after dark," White wrote Friday on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
He said some aid convoys have been looted and some U.N. vehicles were stoned.
With Gaza under "constant bombardment" and food and supplies limited, the "UNRWA’s ability to assist and protect people is reducing fast," Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the UNRWA, said in a letter to the president of the U.N. General Assembly.
“In my 35 years of work in complex emergencies, I would never have expected to write such a letter, predicting the killing of my staff and the collapse of the mandate I am expected to fulfill," Lazzarini said. "I urge all member states to take immediate actions to implement an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, enforce international law including the protection of civilians, U.N. staff, U.N. premises including shelters, medical facilities and all civilian infrastructure and protect the prospects for a political solution vital to peace and stability and the rights for Palestinians, Israelis, the region and beyond."
Dec 08, 8:26 AM EST
What we know about the conflict
The Israel-Hamas war has now passed the two-month mark.
In the Gaza Strip, at least 17,177 people have been killed and more than 46,000 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to figures released by Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health and the Hamas government media office.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 257 Palestinians in the territory since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian health authorities.
Dec 08, 5:46 AM EST
IDF says 450 targets struck in Gaza over past day amid 'extensive battles with terrorists'
The Israel Defense Forces said Friday morning that it has struck approximately 450 targets in the Gaza Strip over the past day from the air, sea and ground amid "extensive battles with terrorists."
"The troops continue to operate to locate and destroy underground tunnel shafts, weapons, and additional terror infrastructure," the IDF said in a statement.
During operations in Gaza’s southern city of Khan Yunis, Israeli ground troops directed fighter jets "to kill numerous terrorists in a two-hour series of precise strikes," according to the IDF.
Overnight, Israeli warships "used precise ammunition to strike dozens of terror infrastructure sites used by the Hamas naval forces in the central and southern Gaza Strip," the IDF said.
-ABC News' Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Dec 08, 4:47 AM EST
Israeli kibbutz confirms death of resident initially thought to be hostage
The remains of an Israeli citizen thought to be kidnapped by the militant group Hamas were identified overnight, ABC News has learned.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced Friday morning that the the number of hostages currently held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip is 137, down from 138.
Be'eri, a kibbutz in southern Israel near the border with Gaza, confirmed Friday morning the death of one of its residents, Dror Kaplun, who was initially believed to be a hostage but was actually killed in the Oct. 7 terror attack. His wife, Dr. Marcel Freilich Kaplun, was also killed in the attack, according to the kibbutz.
-ABC News' Anna Brund, Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Dec 07, 8:19 PM EST
Video, images show detained Palestinian men stripped down to their underwear
Photos and video circulating online Thursday show dozens of Palestinian men being detained by the Israeli military, many stripped down to their underwear, in the streets of a city in northern Gaza.
In one of the images, dozens of men are lined up against a wall while kneeling with their hands behind their backs and stripped down to their underwear. The same image shows dozens of other men in an Israel Defense Forces truck. ABC News geolocated a sign for a pharmacy captured in the image to the city of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.
A video of the same scene shows a long line of men in their underwear sitting and standing in a line, surrounded by IDF personnel.
When asked about the images and video, the IDF told ABC News that its troops "apprehended hundreds of terror suspects" in Shejaiya, Jabalya and Khan Yunis.
Hamas said in a statement in response to the images that the men were unarmed civilians.
Hani Almadhoun, director of philanthropy for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, told ABC News that several of his family members were detained by the IDF, including his 72-year-old father, brother and 13-year-old nephew.
"They just want the job to feed to provide for their families to make a buck here and there live in a nicer home. That's all not happening now for them," he said. "Now they've been dubbed as operatives and combatants when they were napping in their homes in the safety of their homes with their kids."
Almadhoun, who is based in D.C., said he hasn’t heard from them since and doesn't know how to go about finding information on their whereabouts.
-ABC News' Emmanuelle Saliba, Kerem Inal, Layla Ferris, Helena Skinner and Victoria Beaule
Dec 07, 6:30 PM EST
Hamas official in Lebanon warns chances of hostage release 'dwindling'
A senior Hamas official in Lebanon warned Thursday that the chances of another hostage release are "dwindling" and that the detainees will not be returned until "the aggression stops."
"The chances of their return diminish with the length of the aggression, and their impact may be lost forever," the official, Osama Hamdan, said in a statement. "The possibilities of their return are dwindling as the aggression goes on and maybe there will be no trace of them forever."
Nearly 140 hostages are believed to still be held by Hamas, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Dec 07, 4:51 PM EST
White House: Hamas' refusal to release young women ended cease-fire
During President Joe Biden's call Thursday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the president noted that "it was Hamas’s refusal to release young women civilian hostages that led to" the end of the multiday cease-fire, according to a White House readout of the leaders' call.
Biden "reiterated that the [International Committee of the Red Cross] must be permitted to access remaining hostages held by Hamas terrorists," the White House said, and Biden and Netanyahu "agreed to remain deeply engaged to pursue every possible opportunity to free the remaining hostages."
Biden also stressed the importance of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Biden "welcomed the recent Israeli decision to ensure that fuel levels will meet requisite needs, but stressed that much more assistance was urgently required across the board," the White House said.
Biden again noted the need to separate civilians in Gaza from Hamas, the White House said, and the president reiterated his concern about the "extremist violence committed against Palestinians and the need to increase stability in the West Bank."
-ABC News' Fritz Farrow
Dec 07, 2:40 PM EST
White House: Reports Hamas sexually assaulted hostages are 'believable'
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said he could not confirm reports that Hamas has sexually assaulted hostages, but he said the reports are "believable."
"I can't confirm these individual reports and stories," Kirby said, calling them "horrific."
"Sadly, because of who we're dealing with, we certainly aren't in a position to disabuse these reports," Kirby continued. "And the truth is, they're believable, just on the face of it, because of who these guys are, and what they believe. And because we have heard other accounts from other survivors that have come back and other hostages."
According to Israeli officials, 138 people are still being held hostage by Hamas. Over 100 women and children have been released.
"We know that Hamas is holding some additional women and children," Kirby said. "Let's get the remaining women and children out and get them out from under the jackboot of Hamas and potential sexual violence."
-ABC News' Fritz Farrow
Dec 07, 2:27 PM EST
Parties 'not close' to deal for additional pauses, Kirby says
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told ABC News on Thursday that involved parties are "not close" to a deal for additional pauses to secure the release of hostages.
"Talks are still ongoing, discussions are happening. … I wish I had specific progress to speak to -- I don't," Kirby said.
"We're not close to inking another deal on a humanitarian pause," he said, "nor do I have any news to break here today about the return of hostages."
"We’re still trying to get as much information as we can about the hostages being held," Kirby said. "We have some information, as I said before on some of the hostages, because their families are talking to us, and that's been a terrific source of information and context."
"We have less information on others," Kirby added. "But not for lack of trying."
-ABC News' Fritz Farrow
Dec 07, 1:59 PM EST
'Promising signs' in talks to open new Gaza crossing: UN
There are "some promising signs" in the negotiations to open the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel into Gaza for humanitarian access, according to Martin Griffiths, the United Nation's under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator.
"There are promising signs now that that may be able to open soon," Griffiths said. "If we get that, well, it would be the first miracle we've seen for some weeks, but it would be a huge boost to the logistical process and logistical base of a humanitarian operation. It doesn’t mean to say that it will solve the security problems … but it will change the nature of humanitarian access."
Aid trucks are still crossing daily through the Rafah border crossing from Egypt into Gaza as Gaza's humanitarian crises worsens, Griffiths said, but many roads along that route have been destroyed, making access difficult.
Dec 07, 11:00 AM EST
More dead than injured arriving at Gaza hospital
For the first time, more dead than injured arrived at Gaza's Al-Aqsa Hospital on Wednesday, according to Doctors Without Borders.
The hospital has been receiving approximately 150 to 200 injured people per day over the last week. Now, 115 arrived dead at the hospital in 24 hours, Doctors Without Borders said.
"The hospital is full, the morgue is full," Doctors Without Borders said. "We call on Israeli Forces to stop the indiscriminate bombing of the Gaza Strip and protect civilians and civilian infrastructure. We need a cease-fire now."
Dec 07, 10:43 AM EST
Egypt intensifies efforts to reinstate truce
Egypt is intensifying efforts with all parties to reinstate the truce between Hamas and Israel as soon as possible, Diaa Rashwan, the head of Egypt's State Information Service, said Thursday.
Dec 07, 9:00 AM EST
350 killed in Gaza in past day, health ministry says
Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health said Thursday that 350 people have been killed there in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll since Oct. 7 to over 17,000.
Dec 07, 6:28 AM EST
IDF says it's fighting Hamas throughout Gaza, from Khan Yunis to Jabalya
The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday morning that its "troops killed Hamas terrorists and struck dozens of terror targets" during operations in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip over the past day.
"IDF troops engaged with a terrorist cell that exited from a tunnel shaft, killed two terrorists in combat and struck the shaft," the IDF said in a statement.
Israeli troops also "conducted a targeted raid on a military compound belonging to Hamas' Central Jabalya Battalion" during operations in Jabalya in northern Gaza, according to the IDF.
"A number of terrorists were killed as part of the activity," the IDF added. "Furthermore, the forces located a network of underground tunnels that lead out of the compound, as well as a training area and weapons storage facility in the area of the compound."
In addition to the ground operations in Gaza, Israeli warships over the past day "struck Hamas military compounds and infrastructure using precise ammunition and firing shells," according to the IDF.
Dec 06, 9:44 PM EST
Over 80% of people in Gaza have inadequate food consumption, WFP report says
Around 83% of households in southern Gaza suffering from inadequate food consumption, according to a new report from the World Food Programme.
The organization also reported Wednesday that 97% of households in northern Gaza have inadequate food consumption.
As a result, 95% of households are adopting extreme food consumption strategies to cope with food shortages in northern Gaza, the report said, with 82% of households doing the same in southern Gaza.
Dec 06, 5:25 PM EST
US, G7 partners call for opening of Gaza crossings into Israel
The United States and its Group of Seven allies called for crossings from Gaza into Israel to be opened for the transfer of humanitarian aid in a statement released Wednesday evening following a virtual meeting.
“The population is increasingly vulnerable, and with winter approaching, we must continue to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza to meet fully the needs on the ground, including by opening additional crossings,” the G7 leaders said in the statement.
Only the Rafah crossing into Egypt is open, while all of the other crossings into Gaza border Israel and have been closed. The White House provided its readout of the meeting but did not mention this joint call for the opening of additional crossings.
The White House said the leaders "expressed deep regret that Hamas refused to release all of its women hostages and military operations resume."
"Hamas offers nothing but suffering to the Palestinian people, and it is an obstacle to a better future for them and for the region. We will continue to coordinate our efforts to isolate Hamas and ensure it cannot threaten Israel," the G7 leaders said in its statement.
Dec 06, 2:26 PM EST
Kids in Gaza share their experiences through art
Children in Gaza are sharing their traumatic experiences from the war through drawings.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it organized the event to help children process their complicated feelings.
The art was displayed in the rubble of a bombed house.
The children's art included portraits of families and drawings of homes. One showed an injured person in a hospital bed, and another depicted a journalist's camera and bulletproof vest.
Dec 06, 2:15 PM EST
Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis
Israeli soldiers are fighting for the first time in the heart of Khan Yunis, a city in southern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces said.
"The city of Khan Yunis is a terrorist stronghold," the IDF said. "The entire leadership of the Hamas terrorist organization -- both military and political -- proliferated in the area of Khan Yunis."
Israeli troops have eliminated terrorists and their infrastructure in the area, the IDF said. One strike was on a mosque that the IDF said was being used to store weapons.
Dec 06, 1:22 PM EST
UN secretary-general invokes Article 99, calls for humanitarian cease-fire
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said Wednesday that he's invoked Article 99 of the U.N. Charter for the first time in his six years as leader.
Article 99 says that the secretary-general "may bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security."
"Facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system in Gaza, I urge the Council to help avert a humanitarian catastrophe & appeal for a humanitarian cease-fire to be declared," Guterres said in a post on X.
In a letter to the U.N. Security Council president, Guterres said, "The situation is fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole and for peace and security in the region. … The international community has a responsibility to use all its influence to prevent further escalation and end this crisis."
Dec 06, 12:41 PM EST
IDF encircling Hamas leader's house: Netanyahu
Israeli forces are now "encircling" the house belonging to Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
"It's only a matter of time until we catch him," Netanyahu said.
The prime minister also said Israel is exerting pressure to allow Red Cross workers to visit the more than 100 hostages still being held by Hamas.
Dec 06, 11:24 AM EST
Biden calls reports of Hamas' sexual violence against Israeli women 'appalling'
Editor's note: This report contains graphic descriptions of sexual violence.
President Joe Biden has blamed Hamas' refusal to release civilian female hostages for the end of a temporary cease-fire and called reports of women allegedly sexually assaulted by Hamas "appalling."
"We had a report in the earliest days that Hamas used rape to terrorize women and girls during the attack on October the 7th in Israel," Biden said, according to pool reports of his remarks Tuesday at a closed-door fundraiser.
"Over the past few weeks, survivors and witnesses of the attacks have shared the horrific accounts of unimaginable cruelty," he said. "Reports of women raped -- repeatedly raped -- and their bodies being mutilated while still alive -- of women corpses being desecrated, Hamas terrorists inflicting as much pain and suffering on women and girls as possible and then murdering them. It is appalling."
It's on all of us -- government, international organizations, civil society and businesses -- to forcefully condemn the sexual violence of Hamas terrorists without equivocation -- without equivocation, without exception," Biden said.
ABC News' Libby Cathey
Dec 06, 9:02 AM EST
IDF says it struck 250 targets in Gaza over last day amid 'intensive battles'
The Israel Defense Forces said Wednesday morning that its aircraft had bombed "approximately 250 terror targets in the Gaza Strip" over the last day amid what it described as "intensive battles."
"During these strikes, terrorists from the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations were eliminated, and a number of terrorist infrastructure were destroyed," the IDF said in a statement.
Israeli soldiers also located "one of the largest weapons depots" in Gaza "near a clinic and a school" in the northern part of the Hamas-controlled territory, according to the IDF.
"The depot contained hundreds of RPG missiles and launchers of various types, dozens of anti-tank missiles, dozens of explosive devices, long-range missiles aimed at central Israel, dozens of grenades and UAVs," the IDF added. "All of the terrorist infrastructure was found close to civilian buildings in the heart of a civilian population. This is additional proof of Hamas' cynical use of the residents of the Gaza Strip as human shields."
Hamas has denied Israel's claims that it deliberately shelters behind civilians in Gaza.
Dec 06, 7:37 AM EST
US believes eight American hostages remain in Gaza, Kirby says
The United States believes eight Americans are still being held hostage by militants in the war-torn Gaza Strip, according to White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
"We think there's about eight hostages that are Americans. We know of at least one woman in that group," Kirby told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview Wednesday on Good Morning America.
"We're doing everything we can to try to get them released," he continued. "We're constantly engaged with our partners in the region to try to get this humanitarian pause back in place, so that the flow of hostages can renew."
Although a temporary cease-fire between Israel and Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, ended last week, the U.S. is "still flowing in humanitarian assistance" to civilians in Gaza, according to Kirby.
"And we're trying to get it up to the level that it was during the pause," he noted.
When asked about what Israel's "endgame" might be in its war against Hamas as Israeli troops expand their offensive across all of Gaza, Kirby said: "That's really something for the Israeli's to speak to."
"We obviously want to see Hamas eliminated as a threat to the Israeli people," he added. "That hasn't been achieved yet. They're going after the leadership as best they can. They believe they need to operate in the south. We've told them you know we’ll continue to support their military operations but we want to make sure that as they do that they're factoring in those innocent civilian lives as much as possible."
Dec 06, 7:16 AM EST
Gaza hospital says it's 'besieged' by Israeli forces
Al-Awda Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip is "besieged" by Israeli forces, a spokesperson said Wednesday.
There are currently 95 employees and 38 patients inside the hospital in the city of Jabalia, north of Gaza City, according to the spokesperson.
Just four hospitals remain operational in the north, according to the Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
Dec 06, 5:32 AM EST
Gaza hospital receives scores of dead, wounded in past 24 hours
A hospital in the Middle Area of the Gaza Strip has seen an influx of dead and wounded arrive at its doors over the last day, according to Palestinian health officials.
Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health said Wednesday morning that the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital has received 73 dead and 123 injured patients in the past 24 hours amid intense bombardment by the Israeli military.
Dec 05, 6:12 PM EST
Over 1,000 Americans and family members seeking to depart Gaza: State Department
More than 1,000 Americans and their family members are still stranded in Gaza, more than a month after the Rafah border crossing first opened to outbound traffic, according to the State Department.
"We know of approximately 1,050 individuals (about 350 U.S. citizens, plus lawful permanent residents and family members of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents) who we are in touch with and who are seeking to depart Gaza," a State Department spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News, adding it "remains a fluid and quickly evolving situation."
These figures come a day after State Department spokesperson Matt Miller told reporters that the number of American citizens trying to exit the area stood at 220, and that there were 750 individuals eligible to leave Gaza who had not yet been able to depart.
Dec 05, 3:48 PM EST
State Dept. imposes visa restrictions on individuals 'undermining peace' in West Bank
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new visa restriction policy on Tuesday "targeting individuals believed to have been involved in undermining peace, security or stability in the West Bank."
The policy includes those "committing acts of violence or taking other actions that unduly restrict civilians' access to essential services and basic necessities," Blinken said in a statement.
The State Department has already started pursuing initial action against individuals and will designate others "in the coming days," spokesperson Matt Miller told reporters Tuesday.
The department expects the policy will impact "dozens of individuals and potential their family members," he said.
During a visit to Israel last week, Blinken said he "made clear that the United States is ready to take action using our own authorities" and that Israel must "take additional measures to protect Palestinian civilians from extremist attacks."
He added that the U.S. would also continue to engage with the Palestinian Authority to stress that it needed "to do more to curb Palestinian attacks against Israelis."
ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford
Dec 05, 3:26 PM EST
Netanyahu says Gaza must be demilitarized through 'sheer force'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an address Tuesday that Gaza must be demilitarized and that he is not ready to accept an international force being responsible for Gaza post-war.
"Gaza must be demilitarized and the only country that can do this and ensure it lasts is Israel," Netanyahu said. "I’m not ready to close my eyes and accept any other arrangement."
The prime minister said half of Hamas' battalions have already been "destroyed."
Netanyahu also said a tactic of sheer force made sense for bringing home the remaining hostages.
"The only way to bring home the rest of the hostages is through massive military force in Gaza and that’s what we are doing," he said.
He also criticized those calling for a short war, saying, "I say to our friends who call for a short war, the only way for the war to end quickly is by applying sheer force. So I say stand with us. Stand with Israel. Stand with civilization."
Dec 05, 1:14 PM EST
State Dept. imposes visa restrictions on individuals 'undermining peace' in West Bank
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new visa restriction policy on Tuesday "targeting individuals believed to have been involved in undermining peace, security or stability in the West Bank."
The policy includes those "committing acts of violence or taking other actions that unduly restrict civilians' access to essential services and basic necessities," Blinken said in a statement.
During a visit to Israel last week, Blinken said he "made clear that the United States is ready to take action using our own authorities" and that Israel must "take additional measures to protect Palestinian civilians from extremist attacks."
He added that the U.S. would also continue to engage with the Palestinian Authority to stress that it needed "to do more to curb Palestinian attacks against Israelis."
ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford
Dec 05, 10:43 AM EST
IDF says it has 'hundreds of testimonies of rape and sex crimes' from Oct. 7
Israeli authorities say they have collated "hundreds of testimonies of rape and sex crimes" they claim was committed by Hamas militants during the Oct. 7 terror attack.
A document from the Israel Defense Forces details allegations of sexual violence, with "almost all of the testimonies" coming from eyewitnesses and first responders who were present at the scene during or after atrocities, the document states. This is because "virtually all" of the victims of sexual violence were also murdered on Oct. 7, according to the document.
The IDF said the document offers "only a small part of an immense body of information of evidence of Hamas' sex crimes" and said the evidence "proves beyond all doubt that Hamas and other … terrorists used rape and sexual violence systemically against Israeli women and children," according to the IDF.
One IDF volunteer quoted in the document described seeing many young women "in bloody, shredded rags, or just in underwear."
"Our team commander saw several (female) soldiers who were shot in the crotch and intimate areas," the IDF volunteer said, according to the document.
The IDF alleges that some members of Hamas who were captured and then interrogated also gave testimony that women were sexually abused on Oct. 7.
An Israeli paramedic quoted in the document said they inspected the bodies of two teenage girls who had been murdered. One of the girls "had her pants pulled down towards her knees ... and there's the remains of semen on the lower part of her back," the document states.
A survivor of the Oct. 7 attack, Gad Liebersohn, quoted in the document said that "for two hours I'm hiding and hearing people getting kidnapped and women getting raped ... begging for their lives."
Hamas, the militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, has denied the allegations that its fighters committed sexual violence during the Oct. 7 attack on neighboring southern Israel.
Cochav Elkayam-Levy, the head of Israel's Civil Commission on Oct. 7 Crimes by Hamas Against Women and Children, has described what she called "widespread rape evidence."
ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge
Dec 05, 8:57 AM EST
At least two injured after rocket hits Israeli residential building, authorities say
Rocket fire struck a residential building in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Tuesday afternoon, according to Israel's emergency medical service MDA.
At least two people -- a 67-year-old and a 60-year-old -- were wounded by shrapnel while standing in the parking lot next to the building's entrance, according to MDA, which said its staff provided treatment on site and transported the two victims to a nearby hospital.
Dec 05, 6:55 AM EST
Hospital in northern Gaza under siege, health ministry says
Another hospital in the northern Gaza Strip is under siege by Israeli troops, Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health said Tuesday.
Israeli tanks and snipers have surrounded Kamal Adwan Hospital, where more than 7,000 displaced people are sheltering, according to the health ministry. Israeli troops are allegedly firing at "anyone who moves," the health ministry said.
The power was also cut from the hospital, according to the health ministry.
Dozens of wounded people as well as the bodies of at least 108 who have died are currently inside Kamal Adwan Hospital, according to the health ministry.
There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.
Just four hospitals remain operational in northern Gaza, according to the health ministry, as medical services in the besieged enclave struggle to deal with the mounting casualty toll.
Dec 05, 6:28 AM EST
At least 30 killed in airstrike on school in southern Gaza, hospital says
Dozens of people were killed or wounded in an Israeli airstrike that allegedly targeted a school housing displaced families in the city of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning, according to local medical staff.
A spokesperson for Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis told ABC News that it had received scores of patients from the scene, including 30 who had died and dozens who were injured.
There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.
The strike came on the heels of the IDF's announcement that it would be expanding its offensive on Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, across the entire strip.
Dec 05, 1:38 AM EST
'Nowhere is safe in Gaza': WHO
The World Health Organization painted a bleak picture of the situation in Gaza on Monday night and called for Israel "to take every possible measure to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, as per the laws of war."
According to the latest information from the WHO, there are only 18 functioning hospitals in Gaza, with three only providing first aid and the remainder just partial services.
With an increasing number of Palestinians displaced as the war continues, the WHO says, "syndromic surveillance has noted increases in infectious diseases, including acute respiratory infections, scabies, jaundice, diarrhoea, and bloody diarrhoea. Shelters in the south are also reporting cases of acute jaundice syndrome, a worrisome signal of hepatitis."
The WHO previously said, "syndromic surveillance systems seek to use existing health data in real-time to provide immediate analysis and feedback to those charged with investigation and follow-up of potential outbreaks."
The WHO warned thousands are likely to be cut off from health care services due to increased ground operations by Israel in southern Gaza. The open hospitals are operating beyond capacity, with the bed occupancy rate at 171% and intensive care units at 221%, the WHO said, based on data from the Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
WHO workers called the situation at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis "catastrophic, with the building and hospital grounds grossly overcrowded with patients and displaced people seeking shelter."
The WHO said in a statement Monday night it has recorded 203 "attacks on hospitals, ambulances, medical supplies, and the detention of health-care workers attacks on hospitals, ambulances medical supplies" between Oct. 7 and Nov. 28.
"This is unacceptable," the WHO's statement read. "There are means to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, and they should be instituted."
(GAZA) -- Muhammad Alyan said he and his family were forced to flee the northern Gaza Strip last month, heeding evacuation orders by the Israeli military. He said they left their home in Gaza City and traveled south on foot to Khan Yunis, some 15 miles away, where they sheltered in a school with scores of other displaced families.
But Khan Yunis, like other areas in southern Gaza where civilians were told to go, is no longer safe as the Israeli military expands its offensive across the entire 140-square-mile enclave.
"There's nowhere left to go," Alyan told ABC News on Dec. 5 as he and his family left Khan Yunis. "Two days ago, they dropped papers from the sky on Khan Yunis saying that we must evacuate and head to the south, meaning where should we go?"
Alyan and his family are among the more than 1.8 million people who are internally displaced in Gaza -- about 80% of the population -- amid Israel's ongoing war against the territory's militant rulers, Hamas, according to data from the United Nations. More than 17,000 people have been killed by Israeli forces there since the war began two months ago, according to figures released by Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health and the Hamas government media office.
"They want people to die," Alyan said of the Israeli military's additional evacuation orders. "What is happening to us is not war on the resistance, but a war on people, a war on citizens."
It's the latest outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, sparked by an unprecedented incursion of Hamas militants and other Palestinian militant groups from Gaza into neighboring southern Israel on Oct. 7. More than 1,200 people were killed in the terror attack and over 200 others were taken hostage back to Gaza, according to numbers released by the Israel Defense Forces and the Israeli Prime Minister's Office.
A seven-day truce at the end of last month saw a hostage-prisoner exchange between the sparring sides as well as the delivery of some humanitarian aid into war-torn Gaza. But since fighting resumed on Dec. 1, Israel has vowed to pursue Hamas wherever the militants are, bombing hundreds of targets each day in both the north and south of Gaza, with a particular focus on Khan Younis, according to the IDF. There are no air raid sirens or bomb shelters in the besieged territory.
Many of Gaza's residents who had sought safety in Khan Younis have now moved to Rafah, about 6 miles away, which is as far south as they can go. But even areas there have been bombed by the IDF in recent days, officials said.
"Israeli forces' bombardment is ongoing following another evacuation order to move people from Khan Younis into Rafah. The order created panic, fear and anxiety," Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said in a statement on Dec. 4. "We have said it repeatedly. We are saying it again. No place is safe in Gaza, whether in the south, or the southwest, whether in Rafah or in any unilaterally so-called 'safe zone.'"
The IDF maintains it is only targeting Hamas and other militants in Gaza and alleges that Hamas deliberately shelters behind civilians, which the group denies.
Earlier this week, scores of people were seen traveling from Khan Younis to Rafah in cars, on horse-drawn carts and by foot, carrying as many belongings as they could from bags of clothes to mattresses.
"There is no safe area," one man, who did not give his name, told ABC News on Dec. 5. "Wherever you go, there is bombing."
Another fleeing resident, who also did not give his name, told ABC News: "I moved from Karama to Deir al-Balah to Khan Yunis and now, I’m going to Rafah and got nowhere after that."
Some have chosen to stay behind in Khan Younis, knowing that they face the same risks wherever they go.
"I went to the market today to buy a bag of tomatoes and some vegetables for my family, but I did not find anything," Hamza Ibrahim told ABC News on Dec. 5. "We die every day because there is no food. And if there is food, it will be many times more expensive than the previous price."
"There is no safe place here, even in Rafah and Khan Younis, in the middle and from north to south," he added. "We either stay in our house and die hungry, or go out and die by indiscriminate bombing."
The city of Rafah is nestled along Gaza's southern frontier with Egypt, which so far has not fully opened its border to fleeing Palestinians. Gaza is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians who have lived under a blockade imposed by Israel and supported by Egypt since Hamas, which the United States has designated a terrorist organization, came to power in 2007. Human rights organizations have long described the densely populated strip as the world's largest open-air prison, due to Israel's generalized ban on travel for Gaza residents as well as Egypt's restrictive policies at its shared border.
Now, as Israel's war rages on and Gaza's already fragile health care system grapples with the mounting casualties, organizations are urging the international community to act. In a Dec. 6 letter to the 15-member U.N. Security Council, which has yet to adopt a resolution calling for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the "situation is fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole and for peace and security in the region."
"Nowhere is safe in Gaza," Guterres wrote.
Earlier in the war, Israeli aircraft dropped leaflets over northern Gaza urging civilians to evacuate and head south to safety. More leaflets have fallen over southern Gaza this week, but with some delivering a different message.
The leaflets, which the IDF confirmed it had distributed, were all written in Arabic and included the emblem of the IDF as well as a Star of David. Some that arrived in Khan Younis on Dec. 8 quoted a verse from the Quran: "Soul for a soul, eye for an eye."
On Dec. 5, leaflets landed along the outskirts of Khan Younis in a graveyard where those killed in the war continue to be buried. Those leaflets cited another Quranic verse: "The flood took them as they were cruel."
The gravedigger there, Yousef Tafash Abu Hatab, said he has never had to bury so many families at a time and people of all ages, from infants to the elderly. But even laying the dead to rest is considered a luxury when bombs are raining down from the sky.
"We do not want to build buildings -- all buildings have been destroyed," Hatab told ABC News. "We want to bury our dead."
(LONDON) -- A 46-year-old woman has been arrested and charged with murder after a 4-year-old child reportedly drowned in a backyard pool following a two-year investigation into his suspicious death, police say.
The investigation began when police in Mackay, Australia -- located in the territory of Queensland approximately 600 miles north of Brisbane -- were called to a home on Munbura Road on Aug. 29, 2021, to reports that a 4-year-old had drowned in a backyard pool, according to a statement from the Queensland Police Service.
However, now more than two years after the child’s death, the unnamed 46-year-old woman has been charged with murder after “extensive investigations.”
“After extensive investigations through Operation Tango Anise, detectives will now allege the 4-year-old child died before entering the pool,” said the Queensland Police Service. “Today, December 8, detectives from the Mackay Child Protection and Investigation Unit (CPIU) arrested the woman at a South Mackay address.”
Authorities did not disclose the child’s cause of death but alleged that the pool had nothing to do with how the child died.
The 46-year-old woman was arrested on Friday and has now been charged with one count of murder (domestic violence offence) and one count of misconduct with corpse by interference, according to the Queensland Police Service.
She is expected to appear before the Mackay Magistrates Court later Friday, police said.
The investigation into the child’s death is currently ongoing.
(WASHINGTON) -- In an historic move, the Justice Department on Wednesday announced it is unsealing war crimes charges against four Russia-affiliated military personnel with disturbing details of their alleged torture and inhumane treatment of a U.S. national in Ukraine following Russia's invasion of the country last year.
This is the first time ever that the department has filed charges under the U.S. war crimes statute.
The charges allege that Suren Seiranovich Mkrtchyan, Dmitry Budnik, Valerii (last name unknown) and Nazar (last name unknown) detained, severely beat and tortured an American citizen they had allegedly abducted from his home in the village of Mylove after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
"As the world has witnessed the horrors of Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine, so has the United States Department of Justice," Attorney General Merrick Garland said during a news conference announcing the charges Wednesday. "That is why the Justice Department has filed the first ever charges under the U.S. war crimes statute against four Russia-affiliated military personnel for heinous crimes against an American citizen."
In an interview with U.S. officials last year, the U.S. national detailed how the Russian soldiers stripped him naked, threw him on the ground and tied his hands behind his back before they severely beat him -- including with the stocks of their guns. The soldiers then allegedly took the man to a Russian military compound and held him for 10 days.
While in captivity, the U.S. national said he was subjected to two brutal interrogation sessions in which he was tortured by the four defendants named in the charges. He said he was stripped naked, photographed and one of the defendants even staged a mock execution. One of the soldiers reportedly asked the U.S. national for his last words, after which he put a gun near the back of his head before pulling the trigger and shooting a bullet that missed him by inches.
"Again and again, he believed he was about to die," Garland said.
The defendants are charged with three war crimes including unlawful confinement, torture and inhumane treatment, as well as one count of conspiracy to commit war crimes. The charges have a max sentence of life in prison, but it's unclear whether any of the defendants will ultimately see the inside of a U.S. courtroom.
"The Justice Department will work for as long as it takes to pursue accountability and justice for Russia's war of aggression," Garland said.
"Our work is far from done," Garland added.
While Garland said this is the first time charges have been brought under the war crimes statute, he said he expects more to come.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said the FBI will continue to work with international law enforcement to hold criminals accountable for their actions.
"We will work relentlessly to bring criminals to justice," Wray said.
Editor's note: This report contains graphic descriptions of sexual violence.
(WASHINGTON) -- President Joe Biden has blamed Hamas' refusal to release civilian female hostages for the end of a temporary cease-fire, and he called reports of women allegedly sexually assaulted by Hamas "appalling."
"We had a report in the earliest days that Hamas used rape to terrorize women and girls during the attack on October the 7th in Israel," Biden said, according to pool reports of his remarks Tuesday at a closed-door fundraiser in the Boston area.
"Over the past few weeks, survivors and witnesses of the attacks have shared the horrific accounts of unimaginable cruelty," he said. "Reports of women raped -- repeatedly raped -- and their bodies being mutilated while still alive -- of women corpses being desecrated, Hamas terrorists inflicting as much pain and suffering on women and girls as possible and then murdering them. It is appalling."
Biden spoke about the reported assaults amid controversy over what critics said was a failure by the United Nations, women's rights organizations and a Democratic lawmaker who has criticized Israel to quickly and flatly condemn the alleged attacks.
"Ending violence against women and sexual assault has been one of the causes of my life. … But the world can't just look away at what's going on. It's on all of us -- government, international organizations, civil society and businesses -- to forcefully condemn the sexual violence of Hamas terrorists without equivocation. Without equivocation, without exception," Biden said.
On CNN's State of the Union Sunday, anchor Dana Bash challenged Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who strongly supports Palestinian rights, on why progressive leaders, Bash said, had been silent about what she called Hamas using rape as a weapon of war.
"I said it's horrific," Jayapal said. "And I think that rape is horrific. Sexual assault is horrific." I think that it happens in war situations. Terrorist organizations like Hamas obviously are using these as tools."
"However, I think we have to be balanced about bringing in the outrages against Palestinians," she continued, adding, "Fifteen-thousand Palestinians have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, three-quarters of whom are women and children."
More than 16,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, while 1,200 have been killed in Israel, according to the Israeli prime minister's office.
Shortly after Biden spoke Tuesday, Jayapal issued a statement on X attempting to clarify her remarks.
"Let me be completely clear that I unequivocally condemn Hamas' use of rape and sexual violence as an act of war," she said, in part.
"My comment abut balance was not about rape, and not intended to minimize rape and sexual assault in any way, she added.
Biden spoke about the same time Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a news conference and the Israel Defense Forces released a document detailing what it said was evidence and eyewitness testimony of sexual violence and other atrocities committed by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7.
"I have heard, and you have also heard, about sexual abuse and cases of rape that are brutal like none other," Netanyahu said.
"But I must say that until a few days ago, I did not hear the human rights organizations, I did not hear the women's organizations, I did not hear the United Nations. I did not hear their cry. And I say to them: 'Where are you? Are you silent because these are Jewish women?" he asked.
"I say to the women's rights organizations, to the human rights organizations, you've heard of the rape of Israeli women, horrible atrocities, sexual mutilation," he continued. "OK -- where the hell are you? I expect all civilized leaders, governments, nations, to speak up against this atrocity."
Hamas put out a statement rejecting Israel's claims.
"We categorically reject the false allegations of rape propagated by the occupation, aimed at distorting the resistance and deflecting attention from the humane and ethical treatment accorded to released detainees," the statement said.
In recent days, the United Nations Secretary-General and U.N. Women -- the arm of the organization responsible for promoting gender equality -- have issued calls for all acts of gender-based violence committed on or after Oct. 7 to be investigated and prosecuted.
An ongoing U.N. commission of inquiry probing alleged war crimes on both sides of the conflict is also set to include a focus on Hamas’ alleged use of sexual violence. But so far, Israel has not cooperated with the investigation, claiming the council leading it harbors an anti-Israeli bias.
When speaking about the remaining female hostages Biden did not address suggestions made by State Department spokesman Matt Miller on Monday that Hamas was holding them to keep them from talking about sexual violence.
"It seems that one of the reasons they don't want to turn women over that they've been holding hostage -- and the reason this pause fell apart -- is that they don't want these women to be able to talk about what happened to them during their time in custody," Miller said, later adding it was not a "definitive assessment."
"These are civilian women, mostly between the ages of 20 and 39, whom Hamas has refused to let go under the deal that paused the fighting, which I helped negotiate with the Qataris," Biden said. "I spent hours with the Qataris and others to broker, sustain and extend that deal. I got more than 100 hostages out."
"Let me be crystal clear: Hamas' refusal to release the remaining young women is what broke this deal and ended the pause in the fighting," he said.
"These women and everyone still being held hostage by Hamas need to be returned to their families immediately," he said. "We're not going to stop -- we're not going to stop until we bring every one of them home and it's going to be a long process."
(NEW YORK) -- Irael's war with Hamas in the neighboring Gaza Strip is expected to continue at its current intensity for two more months, followed by what Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called multiple months of "mop up" operations that would see the country's military "taking out pockets of terrorist resistance."
Gallant made the comments during a briefing with ABC News over the weekend, where, in light of multiple warnings by top U.S. officials about soaring civilian casualties in Gaza, he insisted: "Israel is not fighting the Palestinian people."
"We are fighting the Hamas terrorist organization," he added, echoing a message the Israel Defense Forces have delivered since the current conflict began with the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left 1,200 dead, most of the civilians.
According to Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health, nearly 16,000 people have been killed there since the IDF launched a counteroffensive on the heels of the terrorist rampage, with the death toll rising daily. Gaza, a 140-square-mile territory, is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians who have lived under a blockade imposed by Israel and supported by Egypt since Hamas, a Palestinian militant group that the United States has designated a terrorist organization, came to power in 2007.
Last week, a seven-day truce between Israel and Hamas -- mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the U.S. -- ended with both sides accusing each other of violating the terms of the deal that had called for a temporary cease-fire.
Nevertheless, the truce saw the release of more than 100 Hamas-held hostages -- mostly women and children, and a handful of male foreign nationals -- in exchange for over 200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees who were being held in Israel, all women and teens: some of whom Israeli courts had convicted of violent crimes, and others who had been charged with more minor offenses, and some held without any charges.
During the briefing, Gallant said Israel will not return to negotiations unless Hamas fulfills the original terms of the agreement. That would mean the release of 15 more women and two children.
The hostages need to be released "with no preconditions and nothing in return," he told ABC News.
The two Israeli children are 11-month-old Kfir Bibas and his 4-year-old brother, Ariel Bibas, whose kidnap by gunmen was one of the first videos to go viral on Oct. 7. Just a few days into the hostage-release deal, and after renewed media focus on the Bibas family, in particular Kfir, Hamas said the boys and their mother, Shiri Bibas, were killed in an Israeli airstrike that also killed their captors. The Israel Defense Forces, however, said it continues to investigate the claim.
Gallant and other Israeli military and political leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, heralded last week's return of 110 hostages as a significant and surprising success during a press conference over the weekend.
Speaking to ABC News over the weekend from his office overlooking the Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Gallant said he is committed to bringing all the hostages home. But, he said, "the only way with Hamas is to use force," and then, "eventually, they will give you something."
He also said Hamas, which Israel has vowed to eliminate, "has two options" in the war -- "to die in the tunnels or on the surface or surrender with no conditions."
This stance means it's extremely unlikely talks will resume in the foreseeable future. Salah Al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas' political bureau in Doha, recently told Al Jazeera that Hamas would not negotiate for the release of hostages until the end of the war.
Multiple Israeli security sources told ABC News they estimated Hamas' pre-Oct. 7 strength at 30,000 fighters. The sources said they believe that 6,000 of them have since been killed, including over 1,000 on Oct. 7.
Gallant claimed Israeli forces had killed roughly 40% of Hamas' brigade and battalion-level commanders in Gaza, captured hundreds of fighters and seized hundreds of terabytes of data from laptops. While he acknowledged that Israel cannot kill all Hamas fighters, he said his country's objective is to incapacitate the organization to the extent that it will "no longer function as a military organization that can launch organized attacks against Israel."
"We need to break the chain of command," Gallant told ABC News, adding that a goal of the Israeli military operation is to kill Hamas' Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, the former prisoner who Israel claims is the architect of the Oct. 7 attack.
Already looking to the future, Gallant said there are multiple groups in Israel's security establishment working on "the day after," which includes planning how to rehabilitate Gaza and which authority might control it.
Gallant said the only candidates that will not run Gaza in the future are Hamas and Israel. He and his government have insisted on severing all the infrastructural connections, including water and electricity, that until the Oct. 7 attacks, bound Israel with Gaza. This included allowing Palestinian workers into Israel. Israel had occupied the Gaza Strip from 1967 until August 2005, when it evacuated its settlements and military posts inside the strip.
While Israel's ground forces are heavily committed in Gaza, moving more operations into the southern part of the enclave in recent days, most of the country's air force is focused on the Hezbollah militant group in neighboring Lebanon, which has voiced support for Palestinians in besieged Gaza and has been clashing with Israeli troops along the Israel-Lebanon border in recent weeks.
The majority of the Israeli Air Force, Gallant said, is on constant standby for a Hezbollah attack, with only a small portion focused on Gaza. Israel's military jets bomb unopposed over Gaza, but the Iran-armed Hezbollah in Lebanon is known to have sophisticated surface to air missiles that would pose a significant threat to Israel's air force, according to multiple Israeli security sources. The Israeli military has increasingly come to see the cataclysmic destruction in northern Gaza as a deterrent to the rest of the Arab world.
Gallant, who on Oct. 11, according to a report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz, called for Israel to launch a preemptive attack against Hezbollah, told ABC News over the weekend, "We do not want a war with Hezbollah," which is a far more formidable foe than Hamas.
(LONDON) -- The Nigerian Army mistakenly killed at least 88 people in a military drone strike on a religious festival in the country's Kaduna State, local officials said.
Officials announced that what they described as an accidental strike had occurred on Sunday night in the village of Tudun Biri, Kaduna State, where civilians had gathered to observe a Muslim holiday celebrating the birthday of Prophet Muhammad, Mawlid al-Nabi.
"Following the two airstrikes, about 88 people died while no fewer than 68 people sustaining various degrees of injuries," Nigeria's National Emergency Management Agency announced in a statement. They called it a "tragic accident".
"It is worthy of note that the casualties ranged from children, women and the elderly," the agency said.
The victims were from four different communities, who had gathered in the village for the religious celebration.
An eyewitness to the incident described events to BBC Hausa, saying: "The aircraft dropped a bomb at the venue, it destroyed and killed our people including women and children."
"The second bomb was dropped on some of us who went to bring dead bodies of the victims of the first blast. We lost about 34 people in my family, and we have 66 injured people in the hospital," the eyewitness said.
The Nigerian Army "expressed regret" for the mistaken bombing, saying in a statement that troops "wrongly analysed and misinterpreted" activities.
"Troops were carrying out aerial patrols when they observed a group of people and wrongly analysed and misinterpreted their pattern of activities to be similar to that of the bandits, before the drone strike," the army said.
Nigeria's army said that in the recent past areas of Tudun Biri and villages nearby had been "infested with armed bandits who terrorised communities."
On Tuesday, Nigeria's chief of army staff paid a condolence visit to the affected Tudun Biri, to convey the army's "sincere regrets and unreserved apologies" to the community.
Injured civilians have been evacuated to Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital, where they are receiving necessary medical attention, Kaduna State's Governor Dr. Jadiza Balarabe announced.
Anger has mounted in Nigeria, with some Nigerians taking to social media questioning how the error could have occurred.
"How does the Nigerian Army keep murdering civilians with air strikes and later claiming it to be an error?" asked one user.
"This is hard to understand" wrote another.
In a statement issued by the Nigerian State House, President Bola Tinubu sent his condolences to the families of victims of the "bombing mishap," describing the incident as "very unfortunate, disturbing and painful."
"The president directs a thorough and full-fledged investigation into the incident and calls for calm while the authorities look diligently into the mishap," the statement said.
According to research firm SB Morgen, Nigerian geopolitical intelligence platform, at least 300 people have been killed in accidental military strikes since 2017.
Kaduna State government has announced it has established a commission of enquiry to investigate the incident.
(WASHINGTON) -- A federal grand jury returned a 15-count indictment against former U.S. ambassador and accused Cuban spy Manuel Rocha on Tuesday, charging him with a range of crimes varying from conspiracy, acting as illegal foreign agent, wire fraud and false statements.
The 32-page indictment offers further details into how Rocha -- over more than four decades -- rose through the ranks of the State Department and U.S. foreign policy establishment all while allegedly concealing his status as an agent for Cuba's intelligence services.
The indictment also details how Rocha allegedly spoke about another unnamed Cuban agent who he said was also a U.S. government employee -- though he said that agent was "betrayed."
"A huge betrayal," Rocha said in a Feb. 17, 2023 conversation with an undercover FBI agent. "Sadly she would have done much more had she not been betrayed."
Prosecutors allege it was in Chile "in or around 1973" -- the year of the military overthrow of the socialist government led by Salvador Allende -- when Rocha became a "great friend" of Cuba's intelligence services.
Eight years later, he applied for an appointment with the U.S. State Department, affirming that he was not acting as an agent of a foreign government -- his first of many lies that would continue for decades, prosecutors say.
Rocha, who was born in Colombia and was raised in New York, started in 1981 in lower-level postings in U.S. embassies in the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Mexico before being elevated to serve in the National Security Council. That later led to assignments in Havana, Cuba, followed by serving as deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Argentina and later his appointment as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia between 1999 and 2002.
The indictment unsealed Tuesday adds several charges of wire fraud against Rocha -- noting how he sought to "unlawfully enrich himself while furthering the intelligence interests" of Cuba by repeatedly lying to attain and maintain his employment at the State Department -- including annual annuity retirement payments after leaving office.
An attorney for Rocha did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment on the indictment.
(IDLIB, Syria) -- The Orontes River in northwestern Syria has long been a lifeline for farmers, including 50-year-old Bahjat al-Bakru, who have used it to irrigate their nearby crops.
But since the start of the year, al-Bakru said, about 70% of his fruit trees have died because an invasive flower now covers the entire surface of the river in front of his land, choking off the only natural water source in Idlib province.
"Agriculture is my only source of livelihood and I lost most of my trees," al-Bakru told ABC News. "The spread of the Nile flower in the river reduced the water level and blocked it completely. It became difficult to water my trees."
The water hyacinth, nicknamed the Nile flower, is a free-floating perennial aquatic plant native to parts of South America that has emerged as a major weed in dozens of countries in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Although its large purple blooms and thick green leaves may be appealing to the eye, the Nile flower has been identified as one of the most aggressive invasive species and one of the worst weeds in the world due to its ability to grow and spread rapidly, according to the United Nations Environmental Programme and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The plant has already ravaged river ecosystems and local economies, and experts warned that without intervention it could completely consume waterways like the Orontes River in northwestern Syria.
It's unclear exactly when or how the Nile flower was introduced to the Orontes River, which flows through Lebanon, Syria and Turkey before draining into the Mediterranean Sea. Currently, the invasive plant extends for 34 miles across the surface of the river in Syria's Idlib province, covering a vast majority of the water, according to a survey conducted by Idlib-based agricultural engineer Musa al-Bakr. The dense vegetation blocks the flow of the water by spreading in the river basin, lowers river levels by absorbing large amounts of water and suffocates the aquatic ecosystem by blocking out light and oxygen. As a result, the livelihoods of local communities are at risk.
"The drying up of water resources, the death of fisheries and the decline of cultivated areas as a result of drought will push the region toward further desertification," al-Bakr told ABC News. "We have lost control of this plant to the point that we no longer see bodies of water, but rather we see green bodies of the Nile flower."
Moreover, research suggests that global warming will be favorable to the survivability and growth of the Nile flower. In a 2013 report, the U.N. Environmental Programme expressed concern that "climate change may allow the spread of water hyacinth to higher latitudes."
"According to recent climate change models, its distribution may expand into higher latitudes as temperatures rise, posing problems to formerly hyacinth free areas," the organization wrote. "Given the complexity of control options and the potential for climate change to assist the spread of water hyacinth, it is critical to develop comprehensive management strategies and action plans."
The spread of the Nile flower has been managed in neighboring countries like Egypt using various techniques, such as spraying a certain type of pesticide that eliminates the plant and mechanically removing the vegetation from the water with special boats. However, neither of those methods are available in Syria's Idlib province.
For years, Idlib and other opposition-held areas of northwestern Syria have been under heavy bombardment by the Syrian military and allied Russian forces. The conditions have made it difficult for local authorities to address the issue of the Nile flower.
"We are in an area witnessing bombing, our capabilities are limited and we have hundreds of thousands of displaced people in the camps," Mohammed Amhan, deputy director of water resources in Idlib province, told ABC News. "The spread of the plant is very large and needs a large financial cost that exceeds our ability. We ask the relevant international organizations to provide assistance to us so that we can combat this plant before it is too late."
Local farmers, like al-Bakru, try on their own to protect their land and stop the Nile flower from spreading, but their efforts are ultimately in vain.
"Every day, I have to go down to the water to remove and remove this plant that now surrounds my trees," al-Bakru said. "The control efforts are individual and this plant cannot be controlled. It is growing very fast and is creeping into agricultural land and destroying it."
Another farmer in Idlib province, 60-year-old Hassan Skaif, said he has lost more than a dozen dunums of his trees on the banks of the Orontes River due to the spread of the Nile flower.
"This pest is spreading massively and if support is not provided in combating it, we will lose all our trees within several years," Skaif told ABC News.
Just as farmers are suffering, so too are fishermen like 55-year-old Nafia Sattouf, who has been fishing in the Orontes River in Idlib province for 30 years but is now unemployed.
"I used to catch more than 30 kilos of fish of different sizes and weights per day, but now I barely get one or two fish and its size does not exceed the size of my palms," Sattouf told ABC News. "This plant is a wonder like I have never seen in my life. It started with small seedlings on the sides of the river and within a few months, it covered the entire surface of the river."
(NEW YORK) -- Hospitals in central and southern Gaza are at a "breaking point" and struggling to care for the influx of patients amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Doctors Without Borders and the World Health Organization say.
Two hospitals -- Al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza and Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza -- are overwhelmed and are being forced to prioritize those with life-threatening conditions, according to Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which has staff working at both medical centers.
"We hear bombing around us, day and night," Katrien Claeys, an MSF team leader in Gaza, said in a press release Monday. "In the last 48 hours, over 100 dead and over 400 injured people arrived at the emergency room of Al-Aqsa Hospital. Some patients were taken for surgery right away."
"We see patients with signs of infection and necrotic tissue, as they have not received a change of wound dressing in days and sometimes weeks," she said.
MSF said Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, where many patients with trauma and burn injuries go, is facing a never-ending flow of patients and is "now at breaking point."
"The hospital has been receiving multiple severely injured patients nearly every hour," Chris Hook, MSF medical coordinator in Khan Younis, said in the press release. "There is no available space anymore -- it really is a terrible situation. Everyone is genuinely worried about what will come next."
The WHO said medical staff are caring for two to three times as many patients as the hospitals are designed to hold. The agency described a "catastrophic situation" at the Nasser Hospital with an overflowing emergency department, patients being treated on the floor and a shortage of health workers.
A temporary cease-fire between the Hamas terrorist organization and Israel ended early Friday, and Israel resumed its bombardment of Gaza. The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Since Friday, Israeli forces have closed in around Khan Younis, and ground forces are now operating "in and around" the key southern Gaza city, an Israeli military official confirmed to ABC News.
Meanwhile, at least 16,248 people have been killed -- including 1,240 since the temporary cease-fire ended Friday -- and 42,000 have been injured since Oct. 7, according to Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health and the Hamas government media office. In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured, according to the Israeli prime minister's office.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, wrote Tuesday on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the agency moved medical supplies to a warehouse in Rafah, which is located at the Egypt border crossing.
Tedros said this delayed the delivery of medication and other supplies to MSF and United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) facilities, where they are caring for patients.
"The movement has already been delayed and will continue to challenge our deliveries to hospitals in Gaza, amid widespread armed conflict and limited staff on the ground," he wrote. "We need a sustained and safe flow of medical aid to provide care to people in Gaza."
This comes just one day after the WHO released a statement calling for the protection of health systems in Gaza, recalling what the WHO called a "dire and perilous" situation when the Al-Shifa and Al-Quds hospitals in the north were both forced to stop operations last month amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
"We have seen what happened in northern Gaza. This cannot be the blueprint for the south. Gaza cannot afford to lose another hospital as health needs continue to soar," the WHO statement from Monday read. "Intensifying military ground operations in southern Gaza, particularly in Khan Younis, are likely to cut thousands off from health care -- especially from accessing Nasser Medical Complex and European Gaza Hospital, the two main hospitals in southern Gaza -- as the number of wounded and sick increases."
The number of functioning hospitals in Gaza has fallen from 36 to 18, according to the WHO. Of those hospitals, the WHO said three are only providing basic first aid and the remaining 15 are providing partial services.
(NEW YORK) -- An American woman has been killed by a shark while paddleboarding in the Bahamas, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force.
The woman was paddleboarding with a male relative near the back of the Sandals resort, about three-quarters of a mile out to sea, when she was attacked, police said.
A lifeguard responded on a rescue boat, police said. CPR was administered but the injuries to the right side of her body were too severe, police said.
The woman was identified Tuesday as 44-year-old Lauren Erickson Van Wart of Massachusetts, police said.
Five people were killed worldwide in unprovoked shark attacks last year: one in the U.S., two in Egypt and two in South Africa, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File.
Sandals said in a statement, "We are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of a guest while on a paddleboarding activity nearly a mile from the shore. We wish to express our heartfelt condolences to the guest’s family and loved ones. We remain in close contact with them and are providing all support possible during this difficult time."
ABC News' Will Gretsky contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) -- After seven days without bombardments, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip woke up to the familiar sound of airstrikes in the early morning of Dec. 1.
"The war is back," Shaimaa Ahmed, a 20-year-old engineering student, told ABC News.
"We woke up to the sound of gunfire. Ship fire. Tank fire. They're firing from everywhere. It's continuous and strong," Ahmed, who had already fled her house on Oct. 31 following the orders of Israel to evacuate northern Gaza, said. "I feel like I'm being suffocated again."
Israel resumed its retaliatory military operations in Gaza last week after the collapse of a temporary cease-fire as part of a broader hostage-prisoner exchange with Hamas. With thousands forced to flee again, some Palestinians told ABC News the war has resumed at an unprecedented pace and intensity.
New evacuation orders on Sunday left thousands to face another displacement in a desperate search for safety.
"The roads leading south towards Rafah [on the border with Egypt] are clogged with cars and donkey carts packed with people and their meager possessions," the director of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency Affairs, Thomas White, wrote on X.
Almost two months in, the Israel-Hamas war has left at least 15,899 killed and 42,000 wounded in the Gaza Strip, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health. In Israel, at least 1,200 have been killed and 6,900 injured, with 136 Israeli hostages still in Gaza, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
As the IDF moves forward with a ground operation in southern Gaza in what Israeli Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari defined "a new phase in our war against Hamas," Palestinians said there is nowhere to go for safety. Some 1.9 million are currently displaced and moving across the Strip, according to UNRWA.
"What's the next step? Is it Sinai or is it heaven? I have no idea," 21-year-old Tala Herzallah told ABC News as she prepared to flee again on Saturday, after having evacuated her home in Gaza City a few weeks ago.
The IDF leaflets dropped in Khan Younis during the weekend warned people to leave the area and a QR code map showed the zones designated as safe by the IDF.
“We want civilians not to be in the area where we are fighting,” Israeli Lt. Col Jonathan Conricus told ABC News Monday. “We want to focus our firepower on Hamas and Hamas only.”
"Where to go after Khan Younis? There is only one place and it's Rafah and it cannot include 2 million people," 24-year-old Younes El-Hallaq told ABC News. "And more importantly, Rafah itself is being targeted."
In the four days following the end of the cease-fire, 746 have been killed in the strikes, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, with victims in Rafah, too.
"Even in Rafah where people are being forced to flee the sound of airstrikes punctuate the day," White wrote on X Monday.
While many have relocated over the weekend, others have decided to stay where they are either by choice or forced to do so by illnesses, disabilities or lack of accommodation and transport options.
"Since the beginning of the war, I have been displaced three times, and now I may go to another place," Rasmiya Rabie, 51, from the town of Al-Qarara, north of Khan Yunis, told ABC News.
Rabie said her family received many calls from the Israeli army telling them to move to different areas.
"We are a large number and we cannot displace again," she said.
Then, two days ago, a night of severe bombardment changed their mind.
"It was very difficult and that's why we thought about moving for the third time. Now I am trying to find a place to go to," Rabie said.
With a 75-year-old father and a 72-year-old mother, as well as two young children to care for, Nima Ashour, 43, said she could not leave even if she wanted to. Her family is also out of fuel and money, having evacuated from Al Rantisi Pediatric hospital two weeks ago. Ashour was in the hospital caring for cancer patients from newborns to 12 years old as a pediatric coordinator.
"What will we do? We will not do anything. My family has decided to stay at our place," Ashour told ABC News.
"Even if you move, we do not believe that we are going to be safe. It's the same situation we have faced in Gaza and now in Khan Younis. And for sure if we move anywhere, we'll have the same destruction, the same bombing, the same targeting. At last, we have to face our destiny," Ashour said.
With the reprisal of the bombing, a sense of fear and defeat has spread widely across the strip, where a severe humanitarian crisis is worsening by the day, representatives of Amnesty International, Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders told ABC News.
The aftermath of the end of the cease-fire also saw the first anti-government protest held in Tel Aviv since Oct. 7, shortly after the publication of a report by The New York Times claiming Israel partially knew about the plans for Hamas' Oct. 7 assault more than a year before the terror attack but dismissed it as aspirational.
"For the last 57 days, we saw that the government has been doing exactly the opposite of what they need to do," the organizer of the protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Moshe Radman, told ABC News.
"We understand this will be a long war, so we have to do it now, because every week that we are not protesting, Israel is becoming less and less attractive to its citizens," he added.
(NEW YORK) -- A kangaroo that escaped from a zoo has been found and safely captured by authorities after a four-day search, police say.
Police officers for the Durham Regional Police in Ontario, Canada, were on what authorities called a “roo-tine” patrol when they received a report of a kangaroo sighting in Oshawa -- approximately 43 miles northeast of Toronto.
The kangaroo initially went missing from a nearby zoo at the end of last week and the search for the missing marsupial continued through the weekend until authorities -- ironically the same ones who initially received the missing kangaroo report -- were deployed for the rescue mission after it was spotted, police said.
“Once officers located the kangaroo, they followed her to the area of Wilson Rd N and Winchester Rd E when it appeared the kangaroo stopped to take a little break,” said the Durham Regional Police in a statement following the animal rescue. “While doing so, the officers managed to sneak up behind her and grab her tail.”
The officers were briefed prior to the rescue on “safe kangaroo capture techniques” and were informed that the safest way to catch a kangaroo is to grab the animal by the tail.
“The kangaroo gave up and surrendered peacefully to police officers,” police said. “She then received a ride in one of our K9 kennels back to the zoo where she is being examined. Her four day adventure has come to an end and she will continue on with her journey to Quebec in the near future.”
The marsupial will be safely returned to her enclosure which will, most likely, have added security to prevent her from escaping again.
Said the Durham Regional Police: “Thank you to the community and all the volunteer networks that have come together over the last few days to bring this situation to a happy conclusion.”
(YAKUSHIMA, Japan) -- Wreckage and remains were discovered from the CV-22 Osprey that crashed last week off the shore of Yakushima Island, Japan, the U.S. Air Force said Monday.
The remains of five crew members were found, but have not yet been identified, in the vicinity of Yakushima, the Air Force said. U.S. and Japan are working together to recover the remains of the Nov. 29 crash.
"Currently two crew members of the five located today have been successfully recovered by the attending teams," the Air Force said Monday. "There is an ongoing combined effort to recover the remaining crew members from the wreckage."
The identities of those found on Monday "have yet to be determined and will be released at a later date," officials said.
Eight crew members were onboard when the aircraft crashed. The remains of U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jacob "Jake" M. Galliher, 24, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, were recovered on Dec. 1.
The other seven crew members were last in DUSTWUN status, meaning "duty status-whereabouts unknown."
"The main priority is bringing the Airmen home and taking care of their family members. Support to, and the privacy of, the families and loved ones impacted by this incident remains AFSOC's top priority," Air Force officials said in a press release.
ABC News' Chad Murray and Kevin Shalvey contributed to this story.
(NEW YORK) -- The temporary cease-fire between Hamas and Israel ended early Friday, and Israel has resumed its bombardment of Gaza.
The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Here's how the news is developing:
Dec 04, 4:41 PM EST
Israeli ground forces working to 'encircle' key southern city in Gaza
Israeli ground forces are now operating "in and around" the key southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, an Israeli military official confirmed to ABC News.
The official said the IDF's "intention" was to "encircle" the city and "eradicate Hamas strongholds within it."
-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge
Dec 04, 4:01 PM EST
US still working with counterparts to secure release of hostages
National security adviser Jake Sullivan said the U.S. is still having "intensive discussions" with "Israel, Qatar and Egypt about how to best get traction on a strategy that will get all the hostages out."
“The President and I, along with Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken and [CIA] Director [William] Burns, will stay in touch with our Israeli and Qatari counterparts, as well as our Egyptian counterparts, to press Hamas on this issue," Sullivan said. "Right now, Hamas is refusing to release civilian women who should have been part of the agreement. And it is that refusal by Hamas that has caused the end of the hostage agreement, and therefore, the end of the pause in hostilities."
Over 100 people remain hostage in Gaza. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Sunday the U.S. thinks "about eight" Americans remain hostage.
"Of course, for the United States, the paramount priority is getting the American hostages out and we are talking to the president about all of his options in terms of securing the release of American hostages," Sullivan said. "Beyond that, I'm not going to comment because we need to be able to have those sensitive, diplomatic discussions behind closed doors."
Dec 04, 3:18 PM EST
State Department: No evidence Israel is deliberately targeting civilians
In a heated exchange with a reporter, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that while it's proven Hamas deliberately targeted civilians to kill, he said he has not seen evidence that Israel is deliberately killing civilians.
"I'm surprised I don't hear more people saying, 'Why doesn't Hamas lay down its arms? Why doesn't Hamas move out of schools?'" Miller said.
At a different point in the briefing, Miller said Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israeli officials during his recent trip to Israel that the U.S. would like to see more precision and restraint in Israel's operations in southern Gaza, compared to the initial bombardment in northern Gaza, to limit civilian casualties.
"We've seen a much more targeted request for evacuations here, where the Israeli Defense Forces have identified specific neighborhoods where they plan to conduct military operations, and urged in advance of those operations that people in those neighborhoods to move, rather than telling an entire city or an entire region to vacate their homes. So that is an improvement on what's happened before," he said.
Miller added, "They have instructed them to move to areas that we know are deconfliction zones. It's one of the things we discussed with them last week."
-ABC News' Matt Seyler
Dec 04, 3:10 PM EST
Doctor describes conditions of Hamas hostages
The women and children freed from captivity in Gaza all lost between 10% to 15% of their body weight, according to Dr. Yael Moze from the Schneider Children's Medical Department.
One family took three showers during their 54 days held hostage, while one child hostage took no shower during all 54 days in captivity, Moze said.
Hostages also suffered psychological abuse, Moze said, recalling one teenager who was allegedly told he'd be held hostage for at least a year.
Dec 04, 2:53 PM EST
All telecommunications knocked out in Gaza
As Israel steps up its bombing campaign again, all telecommunications have been knocked out in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestine Telecommunications Company, or Paltel.
"We regret to announce that all telecom services in Gaza Strip have been lost due to the cut off of main fiber routes. Gaza is blacked out again," Paltel said.
Dec 04, 9:14 AM EST
Israeli defense minister expects at least 2 more months of war at this intensity
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told ABC News this weekend that he predicts the war in its current intensity will last at least another two months.
After that, Gallant thinks Israel will be fighting in Gaza for multiple months doing mop-up operations and "taking out pockets of terrorist resistance."
Gallant said the only way Israel would consider resuming any negotiation talks with Hamas is if "Hamas fulfills the original agreement and returns the 15 women and two children it is still holding" hostage, with no preconditions and nothing in return.
Gallant said he's committed to bringing home the rest of the more than 100 people who remain hostage in Gaza.
He added, "The only way with Hamas is to use force. Eventually they will give you something. … Hamas has two options: to die in the tunnels or on the surface, or surrender with no conditions.”
Gallant said Israel's goals for the war are to kill Hamas’ Gaza leader and Oct. 7 architect Yehye Sinwar, "break [Hamas'] chain of command" and ensure Hamas will “no longer function as a military organization that can launch organized attacks against Israel."
-ABC News' Matt Gutman
Dec 04, 8:34 AM EST
Journalists witness one of the heaviest bombardments of Gaza since war began
Journalists on the ground in southern Israel witnessed an incredibly heavy and constant barrage of artillery fire and airstrikes in the neighboring Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon.
From their position in the southwestern Israeli city of Sderot, which overlooks Gaza, the ABC News team could feel nearby residential buildings shake when the heaviest strikes occurred. Loud bangs were also heard overhead as a barrage of militant rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel and intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system.
Other journalists who have been living in Sderot since the war began almost two months ago told ABC News that the Israeli bombardment in Gaza on Monday was one of the heaviest they have heard or seen there thus far. Monday's strikes were far more intense than at the same time on Sunday and Saturday.
The heavy bombardment coincides with the Israeli military's announcement that its ground forces are now operating in all areas of Gaza and that it is "pursuing Hamas," the Palestinian militant group that rules the strip, in both the north and south.
-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge
Dec 04, 7:33 AM EST
IDF expands ground offensive to all of Gaza in 'new phase' of war
The Israel Defense Forces said Monday that it is expanding its ground offensive to the entire Gaza Strip amid its ongoing war against Hamas.
"We have entered a new phase in our war against Hamas," IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said in a video statement. "We pursued them in northern Gaza. We're now pursuing Hamas in southern Gaza, too."
"As we expand our operation in Gaza, we remain committed to our goals: secure the release of our hostages and dismantle Hamas," he continued. "We will operate in maximum force against Hamas terrorists and infrastructures while minimizing harm to the civilians that Hamas places around them as shields."
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza, which is home to 2.3 million people, has denied Israel's claims that it deliberately shelters behind civilians by hiding its fighters, infrastructure and weapons in hospitals, schools and other areas populated by civilians.
Hagari said the IDF used the seven-day pause in hostilities with Hamas last week "to increase readiness, review intelligence and refine operational procedures."
"We are implementing lessons learned for the new phase of this war, improving the efficiency and precision of our operations on the ground," he added. "We are pursuing Hamas wherever Hamas is hiding, in the north and in the south. Every rocket launcher, weapons depot, command and control center, senior commander, underground infrastructure and any hideout where our hostages may be held."
Hagari maintained the Israel's "war is against Hamas, not against the people of Gaza" and that "every civilian death is a tragedy -- a tragedy that the IDF does not want and is taking extensive measures to avoid." More than 15,500 people have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to figures released by Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health and the Hamas government media office.
The IDF is "dropping leaflets with QR codes that opens a map guiding Gazans to safer areas," according to Hagari. However, the Israeli bombardment has disrupted telecommunications in Gaza and a majority of the population does not have access to internet or phone service.
"The map is divided into neighborhood numbers indicating where civilians in a specific area should go to avoid being in the crossfire," he said. "We call on international organizations in Gaza to assist us with this effort. It can help save lives."
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Dec 04, 5:59 AM EST
IDF says it struck 200 Hamas targets in Gaza overnight, including school
The Israel Defense Forces said Monday morning that its aircraft bombed "approximately 200 Hamas terror targets" in the Gaza Strip overnight as troops continued operations on the ground.
Israeli ground troops struck "terror infrastructure" that was located inside a school in Gaza’s northeastern city of Beit Hanoun, while Israeli fighter jets struck "military infrastructure" as well as "vehicles containing missiles, mortar shells, and weapons," according to the IDF.
Israeli ground troops also directed an aircraft to bomb a "cell of terrorists" and a "weapons storage facility from which the terrorists exited," the IDF said.
Meanwhile, Israeli warships struck "a number of Hamas terror targets" overnight, including "observation posts belonging to the Hamas naval forces and terrorist infrastructure at the Gaza harbor" as well as "Hamas military compounds," according to the IDF.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Dec 03, 2:46 PM EST
Hundreds of Americans, Canadians approved to leave Gaza
Over 600 foreign passport holders -- nearly half of whom are Americans and Canadians -- were on a list of people approved to leave Gaza on Sunday. Some 566 foreign passport holders, whose nationalities were not released, later exited the Gaza Strip through Egypt’s Rafah border crossing on Sunday, crossing spokesman Wael Abu Omar told ABC News.
Thirteen wounded Gaza residents and 11 of their family members also left Gaza and entered Egypt on Sunday, the spokesman said.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Dec 03, 2:29 PM EST
Israel says it's started 'powerful' ground operation in southern Gaza
The Israel Defense Forces has started a ground operation in southern Gaza that "will be no less powerful than" the operations in northern Gaza, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said.
"We have the capabilities to do it in the most thorough way, and just as we did it with strength and thoroughly in the north of the Gaza Strip, we are also doing it now in the south of the Gaza Strip, and we also continue to deepen the achievements in the north of the Gaza Strip," Halevi said.
The IDF said it's carried out 10,000 airstrikes in the Gaza Strip since fighting began.
"The forces ‘closed circles’ and thwarted terror cells, terror infrastructure, operational apartments, tunnel shafts, weapons warehouses and more,” the IDF said in a statement.
-ABC News' Dana Savir
Dec 03, 10:15 AM EST
'About 8' Americans remain hostage: Kirby
With the temporary Israel-Hamas cease-fire now over, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told ABC News' "This Week" that the U.S. is "working at this literally by the hour … if we can get these discussions back going" to get a new pause in place.
Kirby said the Israel-Hamas agreement "fell apart because Hamas was unwilling and refused to come with additional [hostage] lists of women and children -- which we know they are holding -- and put them on the list so that Israel can evaluate that and we can get them exchanged."
Kirby said the U.S. thinks "about eight" Americans remain hostage.
He added, "We don’t have perfect visibility on where they all are, we certainly don’t have perfect visibility on their physical or mental condition."
When asked Sunday about The New York Times report alleging Israel knew about Hamas' attack plan a year in advance, Kirby said the U.S. had no knowledge of the Hamas planning document.
He added, "The focus has got to be on making sure Israel has what it needs to go after Hamas leadership."
Dec 03, 9:47 AM EST
Record amount of fuel enters Gaza
The United Nations said 138,000 liters of fuel entered Gaza on Saturday -- the highest amount in one day since the Israel-Hamas war began.
Trucks with food, water, medicine and medical supplies also entered Gaza on Saturday, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Dec 02, 5:05 PM EST
1st anti-government protest since Oct. 7 held in Tel Aviv
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered on Saturday at the first anti-government protest held in Tel Aviv since Oct. 7.
"We don't want a radical government. We didn't want it before, and we don't want it now," Moshe Radman, who helped organize the protest, told ABC News. "We are telling them we want a new government as soon as possible."
Radman says people were scared to protest in the early days of the war -- but that things have changed in the last few weeks. He predicts the demonstrations will grow.
"We gave them 57 days, and week after week we saw that they are not doing the right thing. And I think we understand that we are headed towards a long war, so we have to do it now," he said.
Protesters Sharon and Eyal Eshel said their 19-year-old daughter Roni, an Israel Defense Forces soldier, was killed in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants while stationed at the Nahal Oz kibbutz. Her family said they have yet to receive a single phone call from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"We are looking for answers, we want answers from the IDF, we want answers from the government. And we want the man who is in charge, we need him to take responsibility," Sharon Eshel told ABC News.
"It's not the time to say, 'It's not the time,'" Eyal Eshel told ABC News, calling on Netanyahu to sit down with him and answer his questions. "Enough is enough."
In response to criticism and pool polling numbers, Netanyahu has previously said he has no plans of stepping down.
-ABC News' Dragana Jovanovic, Dorit Long, Kuba Kaminski and Ines De La Cuetara
Dec 02, 4:38 PM EST
Sec. Austin calls on Congress to pass Israel, Ukraine aid
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin called on Congress to pass aid to Israel and Ukraine during a keynote speech Saturday at the Reagan National Defense Forum in California.
He said support for Israel's security is "non-negotiable."
"We still urgently need bipartisan support in Congress to pass the supplemental to rush security assistance to our partners in Ukraine, in Israel and elsewhere," he said.
Austin said peace is "not self-executing" and that America should remain involved and in leadership.
"From Russia to China, from Hamas to Iran, our rivals and foes want to divide and weaken the United States -- and to split us off from our allies and partners," he said. "So at this hinge in history, America must not waver."
-ABC News' Kelly Livingston
Dec 02, 3:08 PM EST
Kamala Harris meets with Arab leaders to discuss Israel-Gaza at COP28
While in Dubai for the COP28 meetings, Vice President Kamala Harris met with Arab leaders -- United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, Jordan's King Abdullah, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani -- to discuss what Gaza will look like once the fighting stops.
"We all want this conflict to end as soon as possible, and to ensure Israel's security, and ensure security for the Palestinian people, we must accelerate efforts to build an enduring peace," Harris said.
In addition to the five principles in President Joe Biden's Washington Post op-ed, the Vice President laid out three new focus points she discussed to ensure the success of long-lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians, which will also require "regional consensus and support" to accomplish.
"One, reconstruction. The international community must dedicate significant resources to support short- and long-term recovery in Gaza," Harris said.
"Second, security. The Palestinian Authority security forces must be strengthened to eventually assume security responsibilities in Gaza. Until then, there must be security arrangements that are acceptable to Israel, the people of Gaza, the Palestinian Authority, and the international partners," Harris said.
"Third, governance. The Palestinian Authority must be revitalized, driven by the will of the Palestinian people, which will allow them to benefit from the rule of law and a transparent responsive government," Harris said.
Harris refused to go into details but remains hopeful for another pause. Harris also said that Israel must limit as many civilian casualties as possible.
"As Israel defends itself, it matters how. The United States is unequivocal; international humanitarian law must be respected. Too many innocent Palestinians have been killed. Frankly, the scale of civilian suffering, and the images and videos coming from Gaza are devastating," Harris said.
-ABC News' Tia Humphries
Dec 02, 11:15 AM EST
Israel plans to put 'security arrangements' along fringes of Gaza Strip
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's advisor, Mark Regev, told reporters at a briefing Saturday that they plan to put in place "security arrangements" along the fringes of the Gaza strip to ensure that Hamas could not threaten Israel again.
"Call it what you want," Regev told ABC News in an interview after the briefing. "Israel will have to have a security envelope."
Regev told reporters that Israel does not plan to take territory from Gaza or occupy the strip, but he spoke about establishing "security zones."
"There will have to be security arrangements on the ground to prevent future attacks," Regev told the briefing.
-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge and Angus Hines
Dec 02, 9:51 AM EST
Israel recalls its negotiation team from Qatar
After reaching an "impasse" in negotiations with Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered Israel's negotiation team to return from Doha, Qatar, Israeli officials said.
"The terrorist organization Hamas did not fulfil its part of the agreement, which included the release of all children and women according to a list that was forwarded to Hamas and approved by it. The head of the Mossad thanks the head of the CIA, the Egyptian Minister of Intelligence and the Prime Minister of Qatar for their partnership in the tremendous mediation efforts that led to the release of 84 children and women from the Gaza Strip in addition to 24 foreign citizens," according to a statement issued on behalf of Israel's Intelligence and Special Tasks Agency.
-ABC News' Edward Szekeres
Dec 01, 2:54 PM EST
Kirby says humanitarian aid will be going back into Gaza
Following the end of the temporary cease-fire, humanitarian aid stopped flowing into Gaza through the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby confirmed Friday.
But Kirby added, "I just saw some reporting that looks like a spokesman for the Israelis have now said that the trucks were going to be allowed into Gaza at our [U.S.] request, and certainly with the approval of their government."
"They [Israel] stressed that all the trucks going in, of course, had to be done with this inspection regime in Israel before entering Gaza," he said. "That looks like a good sign going forward."
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said earlier Friday that Israel was not letting aid pass through Rafah to Gaza.
"Israeli occupation forces informed all organizations and entities operating at the Rafah border crossing that the entry of aid trucks from the Egyptian side to the Gaza Strip is prohibited, starting from today until further notice," the Palestine Red Crescent Society said.
Dec 01, 2:50 PM EST
White House says it can't 'verify' New York Times reporting
Pressed about The New York Times report alleging Israel knew about Hamas' attack plan a year in advance, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told ABC News that the U.S. "can't verify the reporting."
Kirby did not provide any details when asked if President Joe Biden had seen the report, if the Biden administration has or will raise the document with the Israelis or if this report strains trust with the Israelis.
"I’m just not gonna go into more details than what I did before,” Kirby said. "We can’t verify the reporting … and I’m just going to leave it at that."
A U.S. official said "there are no indicators at this time that the [U.S.] Intelligence Community was provided" the document referenced in The New York Times report.
When asked about a possible timeline to resume the pause in fighting, Kirby said, "We are working at this literally by the hour to try to see if we can get [the temporary cease-fire] restored."
"We have every expectation that another pause could be executed," he said.
-ABC News' Selina Wang
Dec 01, 2:35 PM EST
Gaza death toll rises as war resumes
At least 178 people died and another 589 were wounded in the Gaza Strip on Friday, according to Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health, as Israel resumed its bombardment of the war-torn territory, after a cease-fire with Hamas ended.
"Medical teams are dealing with large numbers of wounded with the end of the truce and renewed bombing of civilians this morning," health ministry spokesperson Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra said in a statement. "The wounded are lying on the ground in emergency departments and in front of operating rooms as a result of the accumulation of cases."
"The health situation in Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip is extremely disastrous as a result of major hospitals being out of service," he added. "Medical and clinical capabilities in Gaza and the north are very limited. The three remaining hospitals in Gaza and the north are small and not qualified to receive large numbers of wounded."
More than 15,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war broke out on Oct. 7, according to the health ministry.
-ABC News' Nasser Atta, Emma Ogao and Morgan Winsor
Dec 01, 12:43 PM EST
Red Cross ready to help with hostages if Israel, Hamas reach more agreements
International Committee for the Red Cross Director-General Robert Mardini said the Red Cross "offered our role of neutral intermediary to facilitate any negotiated release of hostages," and that "offer still stands."
"We hope that the parties will reach more agreements to free hostages on one side and Palestine detainees on the other," Mardini said.
As the fighting between Israel and Hamas resumes, he stressed that hospitals should be spared.
"It is very unfortunate what we were seeing over the past weeks -- hospitals becoming battlegrounds, fighting happening inside and around hospitals. And this is why we keep and we will keep on repeating … that hospitals should be preserved," he said.
Dec 01, 10:57 AM EST
IDF says they killed 1 of the Jerusalem bus stop shooting victims by mistake
When Hamas militants opened fire at a Jerusalem bus stop Thursday morning, Hamas killed three of the victims, and an Israeli Defense Forces soldier at the scene mistakenly shot and killed the fourth victim, the IDF said.
The deadly incident unfolded around 7:40 a.m. local time when a pair of heavily armed assailants drove up to the bus stop, got out of their vehicle and opened fire on civilians, killing three and injuring others. Both gunmen were killed by two off-duty Israeli soldiers and armed Israeli civilian Yuval Doron Castleman who were near the scene, according to Israeli police.
Israeli police identified the two suspects as brothers in their 30s from the Sur Baker neighborhood of East Jerusalem. Both Israeli police and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the gunmen as "terrorists."
Hamas claimed responsibility for the deadly shooting, saying in a statement that the attack was in response to Israel's "unprecedented crimes" including "brutal massacres" in Gaza and the killing of children in the occupied West Bank.
The IDF said Friday that, during the attack, one of the IDF soldiers at the scene "mistakenly suspected" that Castleman, the armed Israeli civilian "who acted bravely and courageously to neutralize the terrorists," was a third terrorist.
"The same soldier also fired at him which led to his serious injury and tragic death," the IDF said.
The investigation of the attack continues," the IDF said. "We share in the grief of the family members of the late Yuval who acted bravely and saved lives, and in the grief of other families murdered in the attack and wish for the speedy recovery of the injured."
Dec 01, 10:48 AM EST
Blinken on New York Times report: 'There will be accountability looking at what led up to Oct. 7'
As Secretary of State Antony Blinken left Israel on Friday, he was asked about a report by The New York Times alleging Israel knew about Hamas' attack plan a year in advance.
"There's going to be plenty of opportunity for a full accounting of … looking back to see what happened [and] who knew what, when -- Israel has been very clear about that," Blinken said.
"Right now, the focus is on making sure that [Israel] can do everything possible to ensure that it doesn't happen again, make sure that civilians are protected, and that humanitarian assistance gets in, and as I said, to also look at what happens once this conflict is over -- what happens in Gaza, what happens more broadly getting us on a path to lasting security," Blinken continued. "So we're focused on on all of that. I think there'll be time, and I know this will happen -- there will be accountability, looking at what led up to Oct. 7."
ABC News' Nate Luna
Dec 01, 9:55 AM EST
'Children lying on the floor with limbs missing' in Gaza: UNICEF
As fighting between Israel and Hamas resumes, Israel's "relentless bombardment" in Gaza on Friday has been "utterly terrifying" -- and has had an immediate impact “on the faces of children," UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told ABC News.
"I feel I was starting to see childhood return when you chat to them -- that’s been replaced by fear again," Elder said. "There’s a trauma which returns very quickly."
Elder described seeing "children lying on the floor with limbs missing." He said some children who had already been injured were being moved around hospitals to make room for other casualties to come in.
He said sanitation "has broken down" and Gaza’s hospitals are now "on life support."
“Disease threatens just as many children" as the bombings, he said.
Over the last seven days, aid has been reaching Gaza, he said, but, "seven days was never ever enough.”
Elder said he’s "terrified" that if the fighting continues for even another couple of weeks, “many, many more thousands of people" could be killed.
-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge, Zoe Magee, Angus Hines and Nicky De Blois
Dec 01, 9:40 AM EST
Israel, Hamas trade blame for reigniting the war
As a truce ended between Israel and Hamas on Friday, both sides traded blame for reigniting the war.
Israel accused Hamas of violating the cease-fire by firing rockets toward Israeli territory just after 7 a.m. local time, as negotiations failed to further extend the truce. The Israeli military has since resumed combat in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, with ground, air and naval forces striking more than 200 "terror targets" in the north and south thus far, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Meanwhile, Hamas accused Israel of "persistently rejecting" all its offers to release more hostages in Gaza amid negotiations to extend the cease-fire agreement on Thursday night. Hamas alleged that it had offered to hand over more Israeli detainees, including the elderly, as well as the bodies of those who have died in captivity, which the militant group claimed was a result of previous Israeli bombings.
"However, the [Israeli] occupation, driven by a predetermined decision to resume criminal aggression, remained unresponsive," Hamas said in a statement.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Dec 01, 8:51 AM EST
Israeli kibbutz confirms deaths of 3 Hamas-held hostages in Gaza
An Israeli kibbutz confirmed Friday the death of three of its residents who were taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack.
Kibbutz Nir Oz announced that 85-year-old resident Aryeh Zalmanovich has died in Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip. Zalmanovich was one of the founders of the kibbutz, which is located in southern Israel near the border with Gaza.
“Father of two sons and grandfather of five grandchildren. Aryeh was a man of the land all his life who was engaged in agriculture and field crops,” the kibbutz said in a statement. “A man of books and has a wide knowledge of history and knowledge of the country.”
Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, released a video in mid-November that appeared to show Zalmanovich looking ill. The group claimed he had later died.
Kibbutz Nir Oz also announced that 54-year-old resident Ronen Engel has died in Hamas captivity in Gaza. The kibbutz described Engel as a "photographer, MDA volunteer and motorcycle enthusiast." His wife and two daughters were also kidnapped to Gaza on Oct. 7 and released this week, according to the kibbutz.
A third resident of kibbutz Nir Oz, 56-year-old resident Maya Goren, was also confirmed to have died in Hamas captivity in Gaza. Her husband was among those killed on Oct. 7, according to the kibbutz.
"Maya was a hardworking and dedicated kindergarten teacher, and gave loving care to the kibbutz children for many years," the kibbutz said in a statement.
-ABC News' Yael Benaya and Morgan Winsor
Dec 01, 8:50 AM EST
Gaza death toll rises as war resumes
More than 100 people were killed in the Gaza Strip on Friday as Israel resumed its bombardment of the war-torn territory, after a cease-fire with Hamas ended.
Within hours of the truce ending on Friday morning, at least 32 people were killed by Israeli strikes. That number had increased to at least 109 by Friday afternoon and hundreds more were wounded, according to Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
"Medical teams are dealing with large numbers of wounded with the end of the truce and renewed bombing of civilians this morning," health ministry spokesperson Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra said in a statement. "The wounded are lying on the ground in emergency departments and in front of operating rooms as a result of the accumulation of cases."
"The health situation in Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip is extremely disastrous as a result of major hospitals being out of service," he added. "Medical and clinical capabilities in Gaza and the north are very limited. The three remaining hospitals in Gaza and the north are small and not qualified to receive large numbers of wounded."
More than 15,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war broke out on Oct. 7, according to the health ministry.
-ABC News' Nasser Atta, Emma Ogao and Morgan Winsor
Dec 01, 8:22 AM EST
Israel will no longer hold fire amid negotiations, source says
Israel will no longer hold fire as negotiations with Hamas progress, an Israeli security source told ABC News on Friday.
The source said Israeli forces will only cease-fire for 24 hours if Hamas sends a list of at least 10 hostages to be released, the list is approved by Israel and everyone on that list is safely returned home.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman
Dec 01, 7:38 AM EST
UN human rights chief says war in Gaza is 'beyond crisis point'
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk warned Friday that the resumption of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip is "catastrophic," with the situation now "beyond crisis point."
"I urge all parties and states with influence over them to redouble efforts, immediately, to ensure a ceasefire -- on humanitarian and human rights grounds," Turk said in a statement.
-ABC News' Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Dec 01, 5:27 AM EST
Qatar says efforts to renew Israel-Hamas truce 'are continuing'
Qatar announced Friday morning that efforts to renew a truce between Israel and Hamas "are continuing," despite the resumption of Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip.
Qatar, along with Egypt and the United States, have mediated the talks between Israel and Hamas.
"The State of Qatar expresses its deep regret at the resumption of the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip following the end of the humanitarian pause, without reaching an agreement to extend it," the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that negotiations between the two sides are continuing with the aim of returning to a pause. It also clarifies that the State of Qatar is committed, along with its mediation partners, to continuing the efforts that led to the humanitarian pause, and will not hesitate to do everything necessary to return to calm."
"The Ministry stresses that the continued bombing of the Gaza Strip in the first hours after the end of the pause complicates mediation efforts and exacerbates the humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip, and in this context calls on the international community to move quickly to stop the violence," the statement continued. "The State of Qatar reiterates its condemnation of all forms of targeting civilians, the practice of collective punishment, and attempts to forcibly displace and displace citizens of the besieged Gaza Strip, and its demand for an immediate ceasefire and to ensure the continuous and unhindered flow of relief convoys and humanitarian aid, in a way that meets the actual needs of the residents of the Strip."
-ABC News' Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Nov 30, 5:11 PM EST
Death toll rises to 4 in shooting at Jerusalem bus stop
Four people have died from a shooting at a Jerusalem bus stop Thursday morning, according to the Shaaeri Tzedek hospital.
The death toll initially stood at three. The fourth death was reported Thursday night.
The deadly incident unfolded around 7:40 a.m. local time when a pair of heavily armed assailants drove up to the bus stop, got out of their vehicle and opened fire on civilians. Both gunmen were killed by two off-duty Israeli soldiers and a civilian who were near the scene, according to Israeli police.
Israeli police identified the two suspects as brothers in their 30s from the Sur Baker neighborhood of East Jerusalem. Both Israeli police and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the gunmen as "terrorists."
"The quick reaction of two fighters and a civilian who eliminated the terrorists prevented an even more serious attack. I salute them," Netanyahu wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "The government headed by me will continue expanding the distribution of weapons to citizens. This is a measure that proves itself time and time again in the war against murderous terrorism."
Hamas claimed responsibility for the deadly shooting, saying in a statement that the attack was in response to Israel's "unprecedented crimes" including "brutal massacres" in Gaza and the killing of children in the occupied West Bank.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Jordana Miller, Joe Simonetti and Morgan Winsor
Nov 30, 4:42 PM EST
Blinken: Death, destruction in northern Gaza cannot be repeated in southern Gaza
At a news conference in Israel on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated that "Israel has the right to do everything it can to ensure that the slaughter Hamas carried out on Oct. 7 can never be repeated."
"Hamas cannot remain in control of Gaza," Blinken said, but he reiterated Israel’s obligation to minimize civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.
He said he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Netanyahu's war cabinet that it's imperative that "the massive loss of civilian life and displacement of the scale that we saw in northern Gaza not be repeated in [southern Gaza]."
"We made clear the imperative that before any operations go forward in southern Gaza, that there'd be a clear plan in place that puts a premium on protecting civilians, as well as sustaining and building on the humanitarian assistance that's getting into Gaza," Blinken said. "And the Israeli government agrees with that approach.”
-ABC News' Nate Luna
Nov 30, 4:36 PM EST
6 more Israeli hostages released
Six more Israeli hostages were released Thursday evening and are back in Israel, according to the Israeli prime minister's office.
They were identified as: 29-year-old Shani Goren, 41-year-old Nili Margalit, 30-year-old Ilana Griczewski Kimchi, 29-year-old Sapir Cohen, 18-year-old Bilal Elziadna and 17-year-old Aisha Alziadna.
This comes hours after two other Israeli hostages were released: 21-year-old Mia Schem and 40-year-old Amit Sosna.
In exchange for the eight hostages released Thursday and two Russian citizens who were released Wednesday, Israel will release 30 Palestinian prisoners -- 23 minors and seven women -- on Thursday, according to the Qatari foreign minister.
Nov 30, 4:27 PM EST
Israel prepared to strike at any hour: IDF
Amid the cease-fire, the Israeli military is prepared to continue the war and forces are prepared to strike at any hour, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said.
Israel insisted on continuing the cease-fire -- which was extended by one day early Thursday morning -- "to bring back the hostage women and children, and this is what we will do [Thursday night] for tomorrow, as well," Hagari said in Hebrew.
"The mediators, Qatar and Egypt, are also obligated to carry out the set agreement in order for the pause to continue," he said.
Nov 30, 4:20 PM EST
6 more Israeli hostages in Red Cross custody: IDF
Six more Israeli hostages are in Red Cross custody and are on their way to Israel Thursday evening, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
This comes hours after two other Israeli hostages were released: 21-year-old Mia Schem and 40-year-old Amit Sosna.
In exchange for the eight hostages released Thursday and two Russian citizens who were released Wednesday, Israel will release 30 Palestinian prisoners -- 23 minors and seven women -- on Thursday, according to the Qatari foreign minister.
Nov 30, 2:49 PM EST
US doesn't know where last unaccounted for American woman is: Kirby
The U.S. does not know where the last unaccounted for American woman is or what her condition is, according to National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
Since the cease-fire began several days ago, only one American woman and one American child have been released by Hamas.
Asked by ABC News if the U.S. believes Hamas does not know where all the hostages are -- or if they're propagating that information as a delay tactic -- Kirby said even though some other groups also took hostages, "That’s not to say that Hamas doesn’t have visibility on that, or doesn’t have a way to find out about it."
Kirby said Israel has made clear that "when these pauses are over, they intend to go back at it."
"And as they make that decision, they’ll continue to find support from the U.S. in terms of tools and capabilities, the weapons systems they need, as well as the advice and the perspectives that we can offer in terms of urban warfare," Kirby said.
He added that he believes the U.S. approach has had a "practical effect" on the way Israel is conducting its operations. Kirby said the U.S. shared experiences with urban warfare in places like Fallujah and Mosul in Iraq, and that the Israelis were "receptive" to those lessons learned.
-ABC News' Selina Wang
Nov 30, 2:40 PM EST
Kirby: Jerusalem attack does not 'technically' violate cease-fire agreement
Thursday morning's shooting carried out by Hamas at a Jerusalem bus stop did not violate the cease-fire agreement because "this attack happened in Jerusalem" and "the pause is in the fighting more specific to Gaza," National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
"It didn't technically violate the deal that was in place, but obviously it's a stark reminder of who they’re facing and what kind of enemy they’re opposing," Kirby continued.
"If anybody's guessing and wondering whether Hamas still has murderous intentions against the Israeli people, just look at what happened in Jerusalem," Kirby said.
At least three people were killed and six others were injured in Thursday's shooting. The two gunmen were killed by two off-duty Israeli soldiers and a civilian who were near the scene, according to Israeli police.
Hamas claimed responsibility, saying the shooting was in response to Israel's "unprecedented crimes" including "brutal massacres" in Gaza and the killing of children in the occupied West Bank.
-ABC News' Fritz Farrow
Nov 30, 10:55 AM EST
Gaza families brace for winter
About 80% of Gaza’s population is now homeless, with many people forced to live in make-shift shelters, largely exposed to the elements, according to the United Nations.
The bad weather is compounding an already difficult situation, several Gaza residents told ABC News in interviews conducted during the last two weeks. People living in tents are struggling to make them watertight. They are patching them up as best they can with tarpaulin. The rainy season in Gaza usually begins in late November or early December and temperatures can get as low as 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
"At 6 in the morning, we woke up to rain falling and the place was soaked with water," Iqbal Saleh Mohsen Abu Al-Saud, one resident, told ABC News, when the winter rains first came to Gaza last week.
"We are 30 people in this tent,“ he explained. "We were displaced from Gaza City from the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood. We went from home to schools, then to tents, from place to place. Without food or shelter, we only left our homes because of the bombing."
Nov 30, 10:36 AM EST
2 more Israeli hostages released in Gaza, IDF says
Two Israeli hostages released in the Gaza Strip -- 21-year-old Miya Shem and 40-year-old Amit Sosna -- have been transferred to the Red Cross and are now on their way to Israel, the Israel Defense Forces said Thursday evening.
More hostages are expected to be released in the coming hours, according to the IDF.
Nov 30, 10:08 AM EST
427 attacks on health care in Gaza, West Bank since Oct. 7: WHO
The World Health Organization said Thursday that it has documented 427 attacks on health care in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank since Oct. 7.
Those attacks have resulted in 566 fatalities and 758 injuries, according to the WHO.
“Health care and civilians must be actively protected,” the WHO wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
ABC News’ Nasser Atta and Morgan Winsor
Nov 30, 9:36 AM EST
Video shows fatal shooting of two Palestinian children in West Bank
Video has emerged purportedly showing the moment two Palestinian children were shot dead in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said two children -- identified as 8-year-old Adam Samar Al-Ghoul and 15-year-old Basel Sulaiman Abu Al-Wafa -- were gunned down by Israeli soldiers in the city of Jenin.
The Israel Defense Forces said its troops had killed two terrorists during a counter-terror raid in Jenin, including a senior member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group whom the IDF identified as Muhammad Zubeidi.
When asked about reports that two children were also killed, the IDF told ABC News that during the raid its soldiers had also shot suspects who threw explosive devices toward them.
Surveillance video from the scene reviewed by ABC News appeared to show one of the boys was holding a small object before the pair were fatally shot. The other didn't appear to be holding anything. The children are not seen throwing anything in the video, which begins only a few seconds before the shooting.
Video also showed IDF troops in armored vehicles on the street adjacent to the location of the shooting.
Nov 30, 6:41 AM EST
More Israeli hostages, Palestinian prisoners to be released Thursday
Ten Israeli hostages and 30 Palestinian prisoners are expected to be freed on Thursday as part of the extended truce between Hamas and Israel, according to Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt's State Information Service.
Rashwan said Egyptian-Qatari mediation efforts are ongoing with the aim of further extending the truce by another two days to allow for a longer cease-fire and the release of more hostages and prisoners.
An Israeli political source told ABC News that at least eight hostages are expected to be freed by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday.
Nov 30, 6:39 AM EST
Three killed, six injured in shooting in Jerusalem, police say
At least three people were killed and six others were injured in a shooting at a bus stop in Jerusalem on Thursday morning, Israeli authorities said.
The deadly incident unfolded around 7:40 a.m. local time when a pair of heavily armed assailants drove up to the bus stop, got out of their vehicle and opened fire on civilians. Both gunmen were killed by two off-duty Israeli soldiers and a civilian who were near the scene, according to the Israel Police.
Israeli police identified the two suspects as brothers in their 30s from the Sur Baker neighborhood of East Jerusalem. Both Israeli police and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the gunmen as "terrorists."
"The quick reaction of two fighters and a civilian who eliminated the terrorists prevented an even more serious attack. I salute them," Netanyahu wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "The government headed by me will continue expanding the distribution of weapons to citizens. This is a measure that proves itself time and time again in the war against murderous terrorism."
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that rules the nearby Gaza Strip, later claimed responsibility for the deadly shooting in Jerusalem, saying in a statement that the attack was in response to Israel's "unprecedented crimes" including "brutal massacres" in Gaza and the killing of children in Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
The shooting, which Israeli police said remains under investigation, occurred amid surging violence between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank while Israel is at war with Hamas.
Nov 30, 12:34 AM EST
Cease-fire between Israel and Hamas extended
The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas has been extended, the Israel Defense Forces announced early Thursday morning.
In a post on X, the IDF said that due to the work of the mediators, who are continuing to work on deals to get the hostages released, the cease-fire would "continue."
Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson also confirmed the news, saying in a statement, “The Palestinian and Israeli sides have reached an agreement to extend the humanitarian truce in the Gaza Strip by an additional day (today, Thursday) under the same previous terms, which are a ceasefire and the entry of humanitarian aid."
In a statement to state news agency QNA, the spokesman affirmed mediators continue to "intensify efforts with the aim of reaching a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip."
Nov 29, 5:54 PM EST
American-Israeli hostage 'safe' in Egypt, Biden says
President Joe Biden said Liat Beinin Atzili, an American-Israeli dual national who was one of 16 hostages released from Gaza on Wednesday, is "safe" in Egypt and that he has spoken to her parents.
"I've got some very good news to report. Liat Beinin is safe in Egypt. She's crossed the border," Biden told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One in Pueblo, Colorado.
"I talked with her mother and father and they're very appreciative and things are moving well," Biden said. "She'll soon be home with her three children. That's all I have to say for right now."
The president did not respond when asked for an update on other Americans who might be released.
Nov 29, 4:54 PM EST
16 hostages released Wednesday including American-Israeli woman
Ten hostages in Gaza were released Wednesday night in exchange for 30 Palestinian prisoners, according to the Qatari foreign minister. This comes hours before the truce is set to expire.
Among the 10 hostages exchanged was 49-year-old Liat Atzili, an American-Israeli dual national.
In addition, two Russian-Israeli citizens and four Thai citizens were also handed over to the Red Cross outside the framework of the agreement, the Qatari foreign minister said.
According to officials, 145 people remain hostages.
Nov 29, 4:17 PM EST
US envoy to UN hopeful truce can be extended: 'All in the hands of Hamas'
Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. representative to the United Nations, said the U.S. is "hopeful" that the truce between Israel and Hamas -- set to expire Wednesday night -- will be extended.
Another extension "is all in the hands of Hamas," she said. "The Israelis have said if they continue to release 10 hostages a day, they will extend by a day. So it truly is … it is in their hands. But I do think there is a potential for that, and we're actively working to extend the deal."
"We will not rest until all hostages are free," she continued. "And if Hamas chooses to continue to release hostages, then Israel is prepared to continue the pause in the fighting."
Nov 29, 3:44 PM EST
Palestinian dad awaits daughter's release: 'I'm looking forward to hugging her again'
Dania Hanatsheh's name is on a list of 30 Palestinian women, girls and teenage boys expected to be released Wednesday as part of another exchange of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
The family said Hanatsheh, 21, was arrested on Nov. 21 when Israeli soldiers raided their home in the West Bank.
The Israeli Justice Department said Hantsheh is accused of "supporting terrorism."
Hantsheh's father, Saqer, believes his daughter was arrested because of her social media posts.
"I am proud of my daughter," he told ABC News. "When she posted asking people to stand with Gaza, I support her with that because it's her right to do that."
He said he's looking forward to "hugging my daughter again."
But his happiness is tinged with sadness for the suffering in Gaza.
"The prisoners are getting released, but the price of this is the blood of women and kids in Gaza," he said.
-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge
Nov 29, 3:39 PM EST
Families of American hostages demand increased transparency
Eight relatives of American hostages spoke to reporters in Washington, D.C., before they address the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday afternoon and meet with national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday.
Ronen Neutra, the father of 19-year-old hostage Omer Neutra, said he wants more pressure for soldiers and men held hostage to be released. Omer Neutra is a Long Island native and Israel Defense Forces soldier. His mother, Orna Neutra, said he was pulled from his IDF tank by Hamas and taken into Gaza.
Ruby Chen, father of missing IDF soldier Itay Chen, said having no knowledge of his son's condition is a living hell.
Liz Naftali, relative of 4-year-old Israeli-American hostage Abigail Edan who was released this week, said the families' approach to their meeting with Sullivan is not going to be advising the administration on how to conduct hostage negotiations, but instead to consult with them.
"Abigail coming home is proof that it works -- proof that if we hope, we pray, and we do all the work, these hostages come home," she said. "But we still have a lot of work to do. And we hope that you all will leave here and continue to be partners in this incredibly challenging work."
-ABC News' Noah Minnie and Elizabeth Landers
Nov 29, 1:23 PM EST
2 Russian-Israeli hostages released by Hamas
The Israel Defense Forces said two Israeli-Russian hostages were released by Hamas on Wednesday and are on their way to Israel. The hostages, 50-year-old Yelena Trupanob and her mother, 73-year-old Irena Tati, were released in addition to the list of abductees scheduled to be released Wednesday, the IDF said.
The mother and daughter, who had emigrated from Russia to Israel, were kidnapped from their home at the Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7. Trupanob's husband was killed and her son, 28, and his girlfriend, 29, are still being held hostage, the IDF said.
Hamas officials said on Wednesday that they've released two female Russian hostages.
"They were handed over to the Red Cross a short while ago as a prelude to handing them over to representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry," Hamas said in a statement via Telegram.
Nov 29, 12:25 PM EST
'All my dreams were shattered,' bride in Gaza says
A young couple from southern Gaza planned to marry on Oct. 8 -- but the Israel-Hamas war changed all that.
The house they were going to live in was destroyed by Israeli bombs.
The couple -- not yet married -- spoke to ABC News as they sifted through the rubble, trying to salvage whatever they could.
"How do I feel? Sad. I wanted to be like any bride, to have a house," Heba Abu Taima told ABC News. "Everything was beautiful before the 7th of October. After the 7th of October, everything ended."
"All my dreams were shattered," she continued. "Everything in the house is gone, the house in which we planned to have a sweet and happy life is gone."
"I dreamed of beautiful things, for example, children," said her fiancé, Saif Abu Taima. "I used to say, 'Boy,' and she used to say, 'No, girl.' And we also used to go out and [I'd] tell her, 'We will live a beautiful life and achieve our beautiful dream.'"
She added, "We desperately want to live in safety like other countries. To have a good life, to live freely and in peace."
ABC News' Sami Zayara
Nov 29, 11:59 AM EST
UN calls for 'irreversible' move toward 2-state solution
Tatiana Valovaya, director-general of the United Nations at Geneva, is calling for an "irreversible" move toward a two-state solution.
"We must be united in demanding an end to the occupation and the blockade of Gaza," Valovaya said. "It is long past time to move in a determined, irreversible way towards a two-state solution, on the basis of United Nations resolutions and international law, with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side in peace and security, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states."
Nov 29, 11:54 AM EST
Hamas says it released 2 Russian female hostages
Hamas officials said on Wednesday that they've released two female Russian hostages.
"They were handed over to the Red Cross a short while ago as a prelude to handing them over to representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry," Hamas said in a statement via Telegram.
Nov 29, 11:39 AM EST
Hamas claims 3 hostages, including 10-month-old, were killed by previous Israeli strikes on Gaza
Hamas' military wing al-Qassam Brigades alleged Wednesday that three hostages have died as a result of the Israeli military's previous bombings in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement posted on a Telegram channel associated with the al-Qassam Brigades, the slain hostages were identified as Shiri Silverman Bibas, Kfir Bibas and Ariel Bibas. It was unclear when the trio had allegedly died and ABC News was unable to verify the claim.
Several members of the Bibas family, including 32-year-old Shiri, her 4-year-old son Ariel and her 10-month-old son Kfir, were kidnapped from their kibbutz in southern Israel during Hamas' attack on Oct. 7 and taken hostage to Gaza, according to relatives and Israeli authorities.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed in a statement Wednesday that it is investigating the reports of their deaths.
"IDF representatives spoke with the Bibas family following the recent reports and are with them at this difficult time. The IDF is assessing the accuracy of the information," the IDF said. "Hamas is wholly responsible for the security of all hostages in the Gaza Strip. Hamas must be held accountable."
In a statement obtained by ABC News, the Bibas family said Wednesday that they are "updated on the latest Hamas publication."
"We are waiting for the news to be confirmed or hopefully refuted soon by military officials," the family added. "We thank the people of Israel for the warm embrace but ask to maintain our privacy at this complex time."
ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Anna Brund, Jordana Miller, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 29, 11:31 AM EST
Returned hostages not in immediate danger: Israel hospital director
Itai Pessach, director of Edmond and Lily Safra Children's Hospital at Sheba Medical Center, praised the newly released hostages who arrived at the hospital Tuesday, calling them "extraordinary women" who "endured the hardships of their captivity in a remarkable fashion."
"Some of them had complex underlying illnesses and some suffered injuries when they were abducted or during their time in captivity," Pessach said. "They will need further medical treatment and attention, but there's no immediate danger to any of them."
Twelve hostages were released on Tuesday in the most recent prisoner swap: 10 Israelis and two foreign nationals from Thailand. Nine of the Israelis were women. One was a 17-year-old girl, Maya, and her dog, Bella.
Pessach called Maya "a very brave young woman. "
"Bella also was examined last night by the veterinarian service of the Sheba Medical Center, and she's also fine, and she would stay with Maya for as long as she needs while they are still here," Pessach said.
Nov 29, 10:37 AM EST
Hamas claims 3 hostages, including 10-month-old, were killed by previous Israeli strikes on Gaza
Hamas' military wing al-Qassam Brigades alleged Wednesday that three hostages have died as a result of the Israeli military's previous bombings in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement posted on a Telegram channel associated with the al-Qassam Brigades, the slain hostages were identified as Shiri Silverman Bibas, Kfir Bibas and Ariel Bibas. It was unclear when the trio had allegedly died and ABC News was unable to verify the claim.
Several members of the Bibas family, including 32-year-old Shiri, her 4-year-old son Ariel and her 10-month-old son Kfir, were kidnapped from their kibbutz in southern Israel during Hamas' attack on Oct. 7 and taken hostage to Gaza, according to relatives and Israeli authorities.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed in a statement Wednesday that it is investigating the reports of their deaths.
"IDF representatives spoke with the Bibas family following the recent reports and are with them at this difficult time. The IDF is assessing the accuracy of the information," the IDF said. "Hamas is wholly responsible for the security of all hostages in the Gaza Strip. Hamas must be held accountable."
ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Jordana Miller, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 29, 9:17 AM EST
Israel receives list of hostages to be released Wednesday, notifies families
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office confirmed that it has received the list of hostages due to be released by militants in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.
The families of the hostages on Wednesday's list have all been notified, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said.
The truce between Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, and Israel is set to expire on Thursday morning, but the possibility of extending it further is reportedly under negotiation.
Nov 29, 9:04 AM EST
Israeli forces allegedly kill two Palestinian children in West Bank
Two Palestinian children were allegedly gunned down by Israeli soldiers operating in the militant stronghold of Jenin in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Wednesday, according to Palestinian health officials.
The Palestinian Authority, the Fatah-led governing body that oversees parts of the West Bank, identified the two victims as an 8-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy who it said "were killed by occupation bullets in Jenin."
The Palestine Red Crescent Society confirmed that its crews had transported the younger child from Jenin's al-Basateen neighborhood before he was pronounced dead.
Surveillance footage reviewed by ABC News purportedly shows the moment both boys were shot, but the perpetrators were out of sight.
ABC News has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment.
The alleged incidents occurred as the Israeli military carried out hourslong raids on the Jenin refugee camp.
Deadly violence has surged in the West Bank since Hamas, the rival Palestinian faction that governs the Gaza Strip, carried out an unprecedented attack on neighboring Israel on Oct. 7, prompting Israeli forces to retaliate.
Nov 29, 7:23 AM EST
Cease-fire is 'matter of life or death' for 1.3 million displaced in Gaza, WHO warns
Approximately 1.3 million people are currently living in shelters in the war-torn Gaza Strip, according to the head of the World Health Organization, who warned Wednesday that "a sustained ceasefire" between Israel and Hamas is "a matter of life or death for civilians" in Gaza.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said "overcrowding and lack of food, water, sanitation and basic hygiene, waste management and access to medication are resulting in a high number of cases of" various contagious diseases, including 111,000 cases of acute respiratory infections, 12,000 cases of scabies, 11,000 cases of lice, 75,000 cases of diarrhoea, 24,00 cases of skin rash, 2,500 cases of impetigo, 2,500 cases of chickenpox and 1,100 cases of jaundice.
"On top of all this: heightened risk of disease outbreaks," Tedros wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
"Given the living conditions and lack of health care, more people could die from disease than bombings," he added. "We need a sustained ceasefire. NOW. It's a matter of life or death for civilians."
Gaza, a 140-square-mile territory governed by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, is home to more than two million people.
Nov 29, 5:32 AM EST
Israel says 161 hostages, including children, remain in Gaza
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said Wednesday that 161 hostages are still being held in the Gaza Strip.
Of the 161 remaining hostages, 126 are male and 35 are female. Among them are 146 Israelis and 15 foreigners, including Americans. Ten of them are age 75 and older, four are 18 or 19, and four are under the age of 18, according to the Israeli Prime Minister's Office.
So far, 86 hostages -- 66 Israelis and 20 foreigners -- have been freed since last Friday in exchange for the release of dozens of Palestinians from Israeli prisons as part of a cease-fire agreement between Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, and Israel. Another prisoner swap is expected to take place Wednesday.
Nov 29, 4:28 AM EST
America's top hostage negotiator travels to Israel
The United States' Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, often referred to as the country's top hostage negotiator, will travel to Israel on Wednesday, according to a senior official in the U.S. Department of State.
The official said that Carstens "will support Secretary Blinken's visit to the region, meet with Israeli government counterparts and visit the families of Americans held hostage in Gaza."
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to arrive in Israel on Wednesday night.
It will be Carstens' first known trip to Israel since Oct. 7, when Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on southern Israel and took hundreds of people hostage back to the neighboring Gaza Strip. Carsten's deputy, Steven Gillen, visited Israel shortly after the war broke out and has spent a substantial amount time in the region during the weeks that followed, largely coordinating with Israeli officials on efforts to free the hostages.
Earlier this month, Carstens met with family members of some of the hostages in Washington, D.C.
Nov 28, 6:47 PM EST
Kirby: No indication Hamas using American hostages as leverage
White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby said there's no indication that Hamas is trying to keep Americans as hostages in order to use them as leverage.
"There's no indication that Hamas is trying to play some sort of game here in terms of the Americans," Kirby told reporters Tuesday.
He added that the first test case of getting hostages out involved two Americans, including a teenager from the Chicago area, and that 4-year-old American-Israeli hostage Abigail Idan was released over the weekend.
In the latest exchange on Tuesday, 12 hostages -- 10 Israelis and two foreign nationals from Thailand -- were released, the Israeli government said.
Kirby reiterated that the pool of American hostages is "pretty small, and the pool of Americans that qualify right now, women and children, is smaller still."
He also noted that there are issues locating the hostages, who may be held by various groups.
The U.S. believes there are eight or nine Americans still being held in Gaza, Kirby said on Monday.
Nov 28, 6:18 PM EST
Hostage release to be 'prime' focus of Blinken's Middle East trip, Kirby says
Releasing more hostages will be a "prime" focus of Secretary of State Antony Blinken's latest trip to the Middle East, the White House said.
"We're up around 70 or so hostages out so far, which is good. It's a good start, but it's just a start. There are many more," White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Tuesday. "We want to get them all back."
Blinken will also meet with his Israeli counterparts to reassure them of U.S. support and talk about getting humanitarian assistance to Gaza, Kirby said.
This week's trip will be Blinken's fourth to the region since the Oct. 7 attack.
Nov 28, 5:30 PM EST
White House: Over 54K pounds of aid delivered to Egypt for Gaza on 1st of 3 flights
The United States delivered more than 54,000 pounds of medical and food aid for Gaza in a flight to Egypt earlier Tuesday, according to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Two more planes are set to make deliveries in the coming days, he said.
"The ongoing humanitarian pause has enabled the international community to surge significant additional assistance as part of that effort, providing urgently needed relief to civilians in Gaza," Sullivan said in a statement.
"The humanitarian needs in Gaza demand that the international community do much more," Sullivan continued, adding that the U.S. is committed to keeping that aid up.
-ABC News' Cheyenne Haslett
Nov 28, 2:31 PM EST
4-year-old American-Israeli released from hospital
Abigail Idan, the 4-year-old American-Israeli hostage who was released by Hamas on Sunday, has been discharged from Schneider Children's Medical Center, hospital officials said.
"Since her arrival, the medical and psychosocial team at Schneider accorded her all-embracing medical and emotional care," officials said.
President Joe Biden said Monday that he "spoke with Abigail’s family following her release, and we are working closely with our Israeli partners to ensure she gets the care and support she needs as she begins to recover from this unspeakable trauma."
Nov 28, 2:13 PM EST
12 hostages released in latest exchange: IDF
Twelve hostages are back in Israeli territory in the latest exchange, according to the Israeli government.
The hostages include 10 Israelis and two foreign nationals, both from Thailand, officials said.
The Israeli citizens were identified as Tamar Metzger, 78; Ditza Hayman, 84; Norlin Babdila, 60; Ada Sagi, 75; Ophelia Edith Roitman, 77; Rimon Kirsht, 36; Merav Tal, 53; and the Leimberg family -- Gabriella Leimberg, 59, Mia Leimberg, 17, and Clara Marman, 63.
The IDF said the hostages were taken through Egypt before heading to a meeting point in Kerem Shalom, in Israel. Families of the hostages are being updated on the latest available information, Israel said.
Thirty Palestinian prisoners were released in exchange for the hostages, according to Qatari officials.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Nov 28, 12:45 PM EST
IDF, Hamas accuse each other of violating cease-fire
Hamas and the Israel Defense Forces have accused each other of violating the cease-fire agreement.
The IDF said three explosives have been detonated near Israeli troops in two different locations in the northern Gaza Strip, leaving Israeli soldiers "lightly injured."
The IDF said terrorists opened fire in one of the locations, and the Israeli army fired back in response.
Hamas said in a statement, "As a result of a clear violation by the enemy of the truce agreement in the northern Gaza Strip today, field friction occurred and our mujahideen dealt with this violation."
Hamas said it calls on the mediators to pressure Israel to adhere to the truce.
Nov 28, 12:39 PM EST
US aid for Gaza arrives in Egypt
A Department of Defense plane carrying humanitarian aid -- including health supplies and winter clothes -- has arrived in Egypt to help the 1.8 million displaced residents in Gaza.
"More is on the way," USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance said.
Nov 28, 12:23 PM EST
Gaza residents return home for 1st time
The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas has allowed some residents of Gaza to return home for the first time to survey what was left.
"I said I would go back to my house and tidy it up and sweep ... but I came and found it destroyed. I am very shocked by what I saw," Um Raed Al-Najjar told ABC News.
Another resident, Muhammad Al-Najjar, said his 80-year-old cousin lost his two-story house.
"His life's work was gone," he said.
"We are civilians and have nothing to do with anything," Muhammad Al-Najjar continued. "This whole street has nothing to do with anything 'political.'"
Muhammad Al-Najjar added, "We were all waiting for the truce because we were psychologically tired -- we became mentally ill. The majority of people will lose their minds. … What is the fault of a child who is 2, 4 or 3 years old? Did he participate in the war?"
Nov 28, 11:39 AM EST
5th hostage transfer begins, Israeli source says
The process of transferring a fifth group of Hamas-held hostages has begun, an Israeli political source told ABC News on Tuesday evening.
It was unclear how long the process would take to be completed. The hostage transfer on Monday night took about an hour.
ABC News' Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 28, 10:51 AM EST
All 50 hostages part of original agreement have been released: Netanyahu
All 50 women and children hostages who were in the original swap agreement have been released, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
"We are obliged to complete this outline and bring about the release of all our abductees -- women and children and later, everyone -- without exception," he said.
Nov 28, 9:46 AM EST
IDF says it's 'prepared to continue fighting'
The Israel Defense Forces "is prepared to continue fighting" in the Gaza Strip and is "using the days of the pause as part of the framework to learn, strengthen our readiness and approve future operational plans," according to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.
"The return of the hostages is a bright light for us all," Halevi said in a statement on Tuesday. "It is also further evidence of the results of significant military pressure and resolute ground operations, which created the conditions for the return of our civilians home."
Halevi vowed "to apply the same strength" if needed in northern Israel, where he said some residents have been evacuated from their homes amid clashes along the border between Israeli forces and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
"The IDF's ground operations in Gaza City, a dense and complex area, aim to achieve a worthy and necessary goal," he said. "We know, if required, how to apply the same strength in the north, in order to return you safely to your communities, cities and this beautiful and important region of the country."
Nov 28, 9:21 AM EST
Over 80% of Gaza residents are displaced: UN
About 1.8 million Gaza residents -- over 80% of the population -- are now displaced, according to the United Nations.
Nearly 1.1 million of those displaced residents have sought shelter from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
But the shelters are so overcrowded that they may have just one toilet for every 125 people and one shower for every 700 people, the U.N. said.
Instead of staying at the shelters, many residents are instead camping at the sites of their destroyed homes, the U.N. said.
Nov 28, 8:50 AM EST
French warship to serve as hospital for wounded Palestinians off coast of Egypt, source says
A French warship has arrived in Egypt's norther port city of El-Arish, near the border with the war-torn Gaza Strip, to serve as a hospital for wounded Palestinians, a diplomatic source told ABC News on Tuesday.
The Dixmude, the first Western military ship to dock in Egypt, has around 40 hospital beds and two surgical operation rooms. The vessel is expected to remain in El-Arish for about a month, the source said.
The ship carries military medics as well around two dozen civilian pediatricians and surgeons. Patients with permits are expected to leave Gaza for Egypt through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing, before being transported to the Dixmude for medical treatment, according to the source.
From there, patients should be transferred to Egyptian hospitals for later stages of treatment, the source said, but French officials have not yet reached an agreement with Egyptian authorities on that.
Nov 28, 8:31 AM EST
Israeli woman speaks about young family still held hostage in Gaza: 'It's psychological torture'
Yifat Zailer, a relative of one of the youngest Israeli hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip, said Tuesday that she has yet to hear whether her missing family members will be among those released by Hamas as part of the truce.
"The pain of not having them back yet is incredible. Tomorrow is the last day of this deal of cease-fire and we are very concerned," Zailer told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview on Good Morning America.
Zailer said there has been no word from Israeli officials or others on whether her loved ones will be included in the prisoner swap with Hamas. The last thing she heard about her missing relatives was in a recent statement released by the Israel Defense Forces that stated there was a possibility of another Palestinian militant group holding them hostage.
"We are completely at loss," she said. "We don't know about their condition, we don't know if they're still alive even and it’s unbearable. They promised in this deal they signed, all the sides, that all mothers and children are supposed to be released."
"Prisoners are being released," she noted. "Where's my family?"
Four of Zailer's relatives -- her 32-year-old cousin Shiri Babas, Shiri's 34-year-old husband Yarden and the couple's children, 4-year-old Ariel and 10-month-old Kfir -- were kidnapped from their kibbutz in southern Israel during Hamas' attack on Oct. 7 and taken hostage to Gaza. Zailer said she doesn't understand why they -- especially the baby -- are still being held hostage and wondered whether it was for "leverage."
"Kfir is going to be 11 months [old] soon. He was kidnapped when he was 9 [months old]. We don't know how he's being fed," she told ABC News. "Why aren't they on any list? Every night we receive that phone call that they're not coming back tomorrow is torture -- it's psychological torture."
When asked whether she would support a deal for Israel to release all of its Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostages in Gaza, Zailer said: "That's a really hard question, but I must say I am."
"All those hostages are fathers, mothers, injured people and, of course, my family members as well among them," she continued. "So there's no price for our loved ones."
Zailer said she wants the world to know that her captive relatives "are and always were people of peace" and "innocent civilians."
"My uncle raised his daughter to love who's different from her," she added. "She's an incredible mother, her husband is an incredible father."
Nov 28, 7:43 AM EST
More Palestinians detained than released during truce, rights group says
The Palestinian Prisoners Society, a local nongovernmental rights group, said Tuesday that Israeli forces have detained 168 Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since last Friday, when the truce with Hamas went into effect.
During that same period, 150 Palestinians have been released from Israeli jails as part of the cease-fire agreement, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society.
Nov 28, 7:09 AM EST
CIA director returns to Qatar for meetings on Israel-Hamas war
A U.S. official confirmed to ABC News on Tuesday that CIA Director Bill Burns is in Qatar's capital for meetings regarding the Israel-Hamas war that include discussions on hostages.
The CIA has not officially commented on the director's schedule.
Burns was previously in Doha for similar meetings earlier this month.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have mediated the talks between Israel and Hamas.
Nov 28, 6:47 AM EST
Talks underway to further extend truce, Israeli source says
Israel is open to extending the cease-fire with Hamas even further, as long as the militant group can free at least 10 Israeli hostages per day, an Israeli political source told ABC News on Tuesday.
The source confirmed that talks are underway on the Israeli side to further extend the truce, which went into effect last Friday and was set to expire Tuesday but both sides agreed to extend it by two days.
Nov 28, 5:35 AM EST
Israel adds 50 more Palestinian prisoners to list of possible releases
Israel announced Tuesday morning that it has agreed to possibly release more Palestinian women from its prisons over the next two days amid an extended truce with Hamas.
"The government has approved the inclusion of 50 female prisoners in the list of possible prisoners for release, given that additional Israeli abductees will be released," the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.
Nov 28, 5:00 AM EST
US to send relief flights to Egypt with aid for Gaza
The United States will send three relief flights into Egypt on Tuesday to keep up the flow of humanitarian aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip, which has reached its highest levels as officials take advantage of the current humanitarian pause.
"The movement over the last four or five days of assistance has been so significant in volume that a backfill in El Arish [International Airport in Egypt] is now needed, and these planes are part of that backfill," a senior Biden administration official told reporters during a telephone call on Monday afternoon.
Some 800 trucks carrying aid have crossed into Gaza during the first days of the pause, officials said, which is a huge increase from the days prior. So far, a total of about 2,000 aid trucks have entered Gaza since Oct. 7, meaning that 40% of them had gone in in just the last four days.
The planes on Tuesday will be carrying medical aid urgently needed in Gaza as well as food, particularly for children, and winter clothing as the rainy season begins, according to officials.
The aid will be delivered by the United Nations to civilians.
Two more planeloads are expected to follow in the coming days, officials said. Previously, there were also five commercial flights of aid coordinated by the U.S. government, according to officials.
The officials emphasized this aid as part of U.S. President Joe Biden’s commitment to helping the Palestinian people, saying that he has made sure America is the largest single donor both to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and to Palestinian territories.
Going forward, the officials said the goals for humanitarian aid in Gaza will be expanding access, pushing for restoration of essential services, especially water, and keeping civilians out of harms way.
"The president has also consistently stressed the importance of ensuring military operations are conducted in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law, including with respect to the protection of civilians," the senior Biden administration official told reporters.
Officials did not offer any new information on the hostage negotiations between Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, and Israel but reiterated that they hope to see Americans released in the coming days.
Nov 27, 9:27 PM EST
Former hostages in 'stable condition,' children's hospital director says
The 11 former hostages who were released by Hamas on Monday are all in stable condition following an initial medical evaluation, Prof. Dror Mandel, director of Dana-Dwek Children's Hospital at Ichilov Medical Center in Tel Aviv, Israel, told media early Tuesday morning local time.
Mandel said staff will continue to conduct medical evaluations of the nine children and two mothers, who are currently spending time with their families "in a quiet environment."
Nov 27, 4:39 PM EST
Gaza is 'complete and utter carnage'
In Gaza, where the humanitarian crisis is worsening by the day, 68% of the people killed are women and children, while four out of five residents are displaced, according to U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths.
"I don't think I've seen anything like this before. It's complete and utter carnage," he told CNN on Sunday.
"Nobody goes to school in Gaza. Nobody knows what their future is. Hospitals have become a place of war, not of curing," Griffiths said.
"It's not just a crisis about Gaza. It's a crisis about humanity," Griffiths said. "War has become the option of the day, and the suffering that comes from it is astronomical."
Nov 27, 4:13 PM EST
11 more hostages, including 2 toddlers, released
Eleven more hostages who were abducted from Israel on Oct. 7 have been released and are in the custody of the Red Cross, an Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson said.
The 11 hostages released from Gaza Monday were dual citizens -- from Israel as well as France, Germany and Argentina -- while the 33 released Palestinians are comprised of 30 minors and three women, Qatari officials said.
Israel identified the returned hostages as 12-year-old Eitan Yahami, 51-year-old Karina Engelbert, 18-year-old Mika Angle, 12-year-old Yuval Engel, 34-year-old Sharon Aloni-Kunyo, 3-year-old Yuli Konyo, 3-year-old Emma Kunio, 16-year-old Sahar Calderon, 12-year-old Erez Calderon, 16-year-old Or Yaakov and 12-year-old Yigil Yaakov.
11 more hostages released from Gaza in exchange for 33 Palestinians
Nov 27, 3:39 PM EST
11 more hostages released
Eleven more hostages were released from Gaza on Monday in exchange for 33 Palestinians held in Israel, Qatari officials said.
The 11 hostages released from Gaza Monday included three French citizens, two German citizens and six Argentinian citizens, while the 33 released Palestinians are comprised of 30 minors and three women, Qatari officials said.
No Americans are being released Monday, according to National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
Nov 27, 2:44 PM EST
Pause allowed record amounts of aid to reach Gaza: Kirby
The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas "has allowed for a surge of humanitarian assistance into Gaza," National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby noted.
Two-hundred trucks were dispatched to Gaza on Sunday -- the biggest convoy of aid since Oct. 7, Kirby said. Over 2,000 trucks have now entered Gaza, he said.
With two more days now added to the cease-fire, there's "the chance for dozens more trucks, and tens of thousands of more gallons of fuel, that can get into Gaza to people in need," Kirby said. "We're going to take advantage of every hour of every day that there's a pause to try to help the people of Gaza."
ABC News' Cheyenne Haslett
Nov 27, 2:34 PM EST
Biden: 'We will not stop until all of the hostages … are released'
President Joe Biden touted the extension of the humanitarian pause in Gaza, saying in a new statement that he has "remained deeply engaged over the last few days to ensure that this deal -- brokered and sustained through extensive U.S. mediation and diplomacy -- can continue to deliver results."
Fifty-eight hostages -- 40 Israelis and 18 foreign citizens -- have been released so far, including 4-year-old American-Israeli Abigail Idan. Abigail was released on Sunday, two days after her 4th birthday.
Biden said he "spoke with Abigail’s family following her release, and we are working closely with our Israeli partners to ensure she gets the care and support she needs as she begins to recover from this unspeakable trauma."
Biden also noted, "We are taking full advantage of the pause in fighting to increase the amount of humanitarian aid moving into Gaza, and we will continue our efforts to build a future of peace and dignity for the Palestinian people."
The president thanked leaders from Israel, Qatar and Egypt for their continued work, and vowed, "We will not stop until all of the hostages held by Hamas terrorists are released."
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 27, 1:30 PM EST
Hamas benefitting from cease-fire is a 'real risk': Kirby
While the cease-fire extension is expected to bring the release of additional hostages, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby acknowledged there's a "real risk" that Hamas could benefit the longer the cease-fire continues.
"Without getting into intelligence issues," Kirby said, "any pause in the fighting could benefit your enemy in terms of time to refit, to rest your fighters, to rearm them, reequip them."
Kirby said the cease-fire is a "calculated risk" that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to take to get hostages out, and that military operations will resume against Hamas leadership.
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 27, 1:21 PM EST
8 to 9 Americans still believed to be held: Kirby
The U.S. believes there are eight or nine Americans still being held in Gaza, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said, adding that the U.S. does not have "solid information on each and every one of them."
Asked if Americans were expected to be released in the coming days, Kirby said the administration "certainly hope[s] so," but did not say more.
"I mean, we're going to watch this very, very closely. We're certainly hoping that another batch of hostages gets released today as part of the fourth and final day of the original agreement. We’re going to be watching closely to see if any Americans are in that group," Kirby said.
"We don't really know until you get into the end game who's going to be actually on that list and then, even then, you got to watch closely [to see] if who's on the list is folks that actually come out," he said.
Kirby was asked specifically about the two American women who were expected to be part of the first round of releases, and he reiterated his hope they would be released Monday.
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 27, 12:51 PM EST
3 Palestinian women, 30 kids expected to be released from Israel: Hamas
Hamas officials said they've received a list of Palestinian prisoners who are expected to be released from Israel on Monday in exchange for hostages. The list includes three women and 30 children, Hamas officials said.
Nov 27, 12:02 PM EST
Palestinians return home during cease-fire to find destruction
Muhammad Ibrahim Asfour was among the Gaza residents who returned home during the cease-fire to find destruction where homes used to be.
"I was shocked, and when I saw the house I started crying," Asfour told ABC News. "There were 50 people in the building here -- all of my brothers and father were living here."
"The situation here is more difficult than you can imagine," Abdelkader Darma told ABC News. "When I came home I was shocked."
"People do not know where to go," Darma said. "I and six other people slept on two mattresses and two pillows, which means you do not know how to sleep. They sleep three against three, and you find his feet in front of your face."
“I hope the truce will be extended and a solution will be found because it is enough. People are sleeping in the street," Darma said. "How can you bear it?"
ABC News' Zoe Magee and Sami Zayara
Nov 27, 11:24 AM EST
Agreement reached to extend truce for 2 more days: Qatar foreign minister
Majed Al-Ansari, spokesperson for Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said an agreement has been reached to extend the humanitarian truce between Israel and Hamas for two more days.
Hamas said this truce is "under the same conditions as the previous truce."
Diaa Rashwan, chairman of Egypt's State Information Service, said earlier on Monday that the deal would involve the release of 10 Israeli women and children being held hostage by Hamas in exchange for 30 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons each day of the extension.
Nov 27, 11:06 AM EST
84-year-old Israeli hostage who was freed remains in critical condition
Alma Avraham, an 84-year-old Israeli hostage freed by Hamas on Sunday, remains hospitalized in critical condition, Israeli officials said Monday.
She suffers from preexisting conditions and was receiving regular medication before she was kidnapped, said Dr. Tzachi Slotsky, deputy administrator of Soroka Medical Center.
"If she hadn’t been transferred to us yesterday, or any other delay in her transfer, it would’ve worsened her condition even more," Slotsky said. "She is intubated and sedated at the emergency room and her life is still in danger."
Without care, she soon would have died, said Avraham's daughter, Tali Amano.
"My mother did not deserve to return this way -- my mother was medically neglected," Amano said. "She didn’t get any of her medication."
"The only reason we are standing here today ... is to save those who are left there [in Gaza]," Amano said.
ABC News' Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 10:56 AM EST
1st photo released of 4-year-old hostage Abigail Idan after her return home
The family of 4-year-old hostage Abigail Idan has released the first photo of the little girl following her return home from Gaza.
Abigail, an American-Israeli citizen, had been held hostage by Hamas since Oct. 7. She was released on Sunday, two days after her 4th birthday.
Abigail Idan’s aunt, Ella Mor, said in a video Sunday, "She just landed in the hospital and she’s being checked and taken care of."
"I'm so happy that she's here," Mor told ABC News. "The people of Israel are amazing … everybody's so happy like she's their own little girl."
Israel has taken issue with the list of hostages that Hamas said it would release on Monday because it includes children without their mothers, an Israeli source told ABC News.
However, the source said there is optimism that the issue will be resolved by Monday night and an extension to the four-day truce, set to expire Tuesday morning, will be approved.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office confirmed in a statement that negotiations with Hamas on Monday's hostage list "are continuing."
ABC News' Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 9:49 AM EST
Egypt says Israel, Hamas are close to reaching deal on truce extension
Egypt's State Information Service (SIS) announced Monday that Egyptian-Qatari mediation between Israel and Hamas is close to reaching an agreement to extend a four-day truce by two days.
The deal would also involve the release of 10 Israeli women and children being held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip in exchange for 30 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons each day of the extension, totaling 20 Israeli hostages and 60 Palestinian prisoners, according to SIS chairman Diaa Rashwan.
A cease-fire, the halt of air raids as well as the entry of aid and fuel into war-torn Gaza would continue during the additional two days of the truce, Rashwan said.
Rashwan also said that the fourth group of releases Monday would include 11 Israelis and 33 Palestinians.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy and Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 9:15 AM EST
Israel says negotiations on Monday's hostage list 'are continuing'
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced Monday afternoon that negotiations with Hamas "on the list of those slated to be released under the framework of the hostages release outline are continuing."
"We are aware of the tension in the families and will release additional information when possible," the office said in a statement. "We request to refrain from disseminating rumours and unreliable information."
A fourth prisoner swap between the warring sides was expected to take place Monday between 4 and 6 p.m. local time on the final day of the agreed upon cease-fire, which is set to expire Tuesday at 7 a.m. local time.
-ABC News' Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 9:09 AM EST
84-year-old Israeli hostage who was freed remains in critical condition
Alma Avraham, an 84-year-old Israeli hostage freed by Hamas over the weekend, remains hospitalized in critical condition, Israeli officials said Monday.
Avraham was one of more than 200 people who were abducted from southern Israel during Hamas' attack on Oct. 7 and taken back to neighboring Gaza. After being released in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, she was transported to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, Israel, with very low vital signs, according to Israeli officials.
During a press briefing at the hospital on Monday afternoon, officials said Avraham's life was still in danger.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 8:26 AM EST
Kirby talks possible release of more American hostages in Gaza
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Monday that an estimated seven to 10 American hostages remain in the war-torn Gaza Strip.
"We know that there are other Americans being held hostage. We're certainly going to do everything we can hour by hour to get them released," Kirby told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview on Good Morning America.
"We know that there were 10 unaccounted for, missing Americans," he added. "We think that the large majority of them are in this hostage population. But we don't have great fidelity past that."
Kirby noted that it’s also "difficult to know" exactly how many total hostages are in Gaza and which groups are currently holding them.
"We have to assume there are a couple hundred or so," he said. "We also have to assume, George, that Hamas isn't holding all of them -- that the other groups, potentially the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, for instance, another radical extremist terrorist group there operating out of Gaza, could be holding some. But it's going to be up to Hamas now to track all them down and see if we can arrange for their exchange."
With a four-day cease-fire between Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, and Israel set to expire Tuesday morning, a fourth and final prisoner swap is expected to take place Monday between 4 and 6 p.m. local time, according to Israeli authorities.
"We're into day four now and so our hope and expectation is yet another instalment of hostages will get released sometime later today," Kirby told ABC News. "There have been delays in the past couple of days. We'll see if we have to work through any delays today."
"We would very much like to see this pause continue and more hostages exchanged as a result," he continued. "Isreal has said they're willing to do that. It's really going to be up to Hamas now to determine whether they're willing to come up with more hostages in coming days."
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Nov 27, 5:48 AM EST
Sources say there are 'problems' with Monday’s hostage list
Discussions are being held on a list that was received overnight regarding the final group of hostages who are expected to be released by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Monday, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office.
The office said in a statement on Monday morning that the list "is now being evaluated in Israel" and "additional information will be issued when possible."
Sources told ABC News that there are "problems" with the current list for Monday.
Monday's prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel -- the fourth round amid a four-day cease-fire -- is expected to take place between 4 and 6 p.m. local time.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 26, 6:14 PM EST
Israel’s President Herzog to meet with Elon Musk Monday
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog is set to meet with Elon Musk on Monday afternoon, his office said Sunday.
"Against the background of the ongoing war with Hamas, President Isaac Herzog will tomorrow (Monday), meet with businessman Elon Musk, who is visiting Israel," the president's office said in a statement Sunday evening.
"[R]epresentatives of the families of hostages held by Hamas, who will speak about the horrors of the Hamas terror attack on October 7, and of the ongoing pain and uncertainty for those held captive," the statement continued. "In their meeting, the President will emphasize the need to act to combat rising antisemitism online."
The meeting will be closed to the media.
The Tesla boss also owns social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Nov 26, 11:27 PM EST
Abigail Idan’s aunt asks for privacy for the family as they reunite
Abigail Idan’s aunt, Ella Mor, has asked for privacy for the family as they reunite with the 4-year-old, who was released earlier Sunday after being held hostage since Oct. 7 by Hamas.
“She just landed in the hospital and she’s being checked and taken care of,” Mor said in the video. “I want to thank everybody for all of your love and support. It’s amazing, and thank you so much.
“I just want to say she has family, and we’re taking care of her, so don’t worry about it, and it’s very important to let her be now with the family, and no press and photographs and paparazzi,” she continued. “It’s very important for her safety and health right now, so thank you so much.”
Nov 26, 4:10 PM EST
Hamas says it would be willing to extend truce
"The Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas is seeking to extend the truce after the end of the four-day period, by seriously considering increasing the number of released detainees as stated in the humanitarian truce agreement," Hamas said in a statement Sunday.
The AFP news agency reported that a source close to Hamas said the group also informed mediators of its willingness to extend the current truce.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 25, 4:45 PM EST
17 hostages transferred to Egypt, IDF says
According to the Israel Defense Forces, Red Cross representatives have transferred 17 hostages to Egypt -- including 13 Israeli detainees and four foreigners.
Qatar had previously said seven foreigners would be released Saturday, though has also since updated that figure to four.
The released hostages' convoy is currently making its way through Egypt to the meeting point with IDF soldiers in Kerem Shalom, where the IDF will verify the list, the military said.
The families of the hostages are being updated by IDF representatives with the latest available information.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 25, 3:54 PM EST
'Significant progress' in Saturday's hostage release, IDF says
Following a delay by Hamas, there has been "significant progress" in the efforts to release the hostages from the Gaza Strip Saturday night, an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson said.
"The effort to return the hostages is our moral and ethical duty. We are determined to fulfil this in any way," the spokesperson, Daniel Hagari, said at a press briefing Saturday evening. "The effort tonight is progressing and we will inform the families and the public when things happen. Patience is required."
"There is significant progress," he continued, though noted that "nothing is final until it actually happens."
Hagari said Israel will "go back to fighting" if the hostage agreement is not fulfilled.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 25, 2:23 PM EST
Deal is back on: 13 Israeli Detainees, 7 foreigners to be swapped for 39 Palestinians
After Hamas' armed wing announced that it will be delaying the scheduled release of hostages, it said it is going ahead following mediation by Qatar and Egypt. Hamas also released a list of the Palestinians set to be released -- six women and 33 teenagers.
"Hamas has responded to the Egyptian and Qatari efforts made throughout the day to ensure the continuation of the temporary truce agreement after they affirmed the occupation’s commitment to all terms set out in the agreement," the terrorist group said Saturday.
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the swap will happen Saturday night.
"After a delay in implementing the release of prisoners from both sides, the obstacles were overcome through Qatari-Egyptian communications with both sides, and tonight 39 Palestinian civilians will be released in exchange for the release of 13 Israeli detainees from Gaza in addition to 7 foreigners outside the framework of the agreement," Majed Al Ansari, the Qatari MFA spokesperson, said in a statement on X on Saturday.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman and Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 25, 2:04 PM EST
Biden administration says it is 'working' on implementation of deal after hostage release delay
In response to news that Hamas will delay the release of hostages, with the terrorist group accusing Israel of violating the cease-fire agreement, the Biden administration said it is working on the implementation of the deal.
"We are working with Qatar, Egypt, and Israel on implementation of the deal," a senior administration official told ABC News.
Nov 25, 2:01 PM EST
Doctors Without Borders says 4-day cease-fire is not 'nearly enough'
Doctors Without Borders released a statement calling for an extension for a sustained ceasefire, saying that four days is not enough.
"After being under relentless bombing for more than six weeks, any respite for the people in Gaza is welcome, especially if it allows them to have access to medical supplies, food, and water," Doctors Without Borders said in a statement.
"Four days, however, is not nearly enough to organize a delivery of aid that can measure up to the immense needs. We remain deeply concerned at the prospect that after a short-lived relief, people will fall back into a sealed-off complete war zone," it added. "We continue to call for a sustained ceasefire as the only way to stop indiscriminate killings and civilian harm and allow the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid on a meaningful scale."
-ABC News' Zoe Magee
Nov 25, 1:59 PM EST
IDF troops won't leave Gaza until all hostages released, Israeli defense minister says
Israeli Defense Forces' Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said the military will immediately return to striking the Gaza Strip once the ceasefire with Hamas ends. Halevi told soldiers the ceasefire and hostage deal would not have happened without the IDF’s pressure on Hamas.
"We do not intend, do not want, and are not ready to stop this effort before we return all the hostages… it is our moral duty to bring them back,” he said. adding the IDF will use the pause in fighting to "study, to better prepare our abilities and also to rest a little."
"And we will return immediately at the end of the ceasefire to attacking Gaza, to maneuver in Gaza. We will do it to dismantle Hamas and also to create great pressure to return as quickly as possible and as many hostages as possible, down to the last one of them," he said. "We have an obligation to fight and also to risk our lives so that [Israeli citizens] can return to live in safety, and we have hostages that we will do everything to bring them home."
As he toured the Gaza Strip Saturday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Israeli commanders and soldiers that its forces will not leave the Gaza Strip until all of the hostages are returned to Israel, and any future negotiations with Hamas will be carried out amid the fighting.
"We will not leave Gaza until all the hostages are brought back home. We will find the opportunity to bring [home] additional hostages; any negotiation will be held under fire," he said. "We cannot leave Gaza and stop the war until we reach a situation in which we bring back all the hostages -- because we have many more [held captive]."
Nov 25, 1:13 PM EST
Hamas delays release of hostages over alleged 'violations' of cease-fire agreement
Hamas announced that it will be delaying the release of Israeli hostages, accusing Israel of violating the cease-fire agreement regarding aid trucks and the agreed-upon terms for the release of Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
The Al-Qassam Brigades -- the armed wing of Hamas -- said it had decided to delay Saturday's scheduled second round of hostage releases until Israel committed to allowing aid trucks to enter northern Gaza. Hamas was expected to release 13 Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of 39 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel on Saturday, sources told ABC News.
"The Al-Qassam Brigades decides to delay the release of the second batch of hostages until the occupation adheres to the terms of the agreement regarding the entry of relief trucks into the northern Gaza Strip, and due to its failure to adhere to the agreed-upon criteria for releasing prisoners," Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement.
Hamas leader Osama Hamdan, who is based in Lebanon, said relief trucks that arrived in northern Gaza today were half of the number that was agreed upon.
"There are violations committed by the Israelis in implementing the terms of the truce, some of which occurred yesterday and were repeated today," Hamdan said Saturday, adding that another issue at stake was the reported shooting of two Palestinians on Friday as they tried to reach northern Gaza.
A senior Israeli political source told ABC News that Israel did not violate the agreement. The IDF said about 200 trucks carrying humanitarian aid are expected to enter Gaza today, after 200 trucks with aid entered Gaza yesterday via the Rafah crossing and delivered their cargo to international aid organizations.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said 61 trucks carrying food, water and medical supplies headed to northern Gaza on Saturday, the largest aid convoy to reach the area since the start of the war.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Nasser Atta, Jordana Miller
Nov 25, 11:29 AM EST
Americans held among hostages not expected to be released Saturday, US official says
American citizens are not expected to be among the hostages released Saturday, according to a U.S. official. No Americans were released Friday in the first group.
A senior administration official said they are still "hopeful" that three Americans will be released in this four day pause.
"The president secured the release of two American citizens as the pilot to this larger release of hostages. We are early in the process that will see at least 50 women and children released during the first phase of the agreement. We are hopeful that will include three dual national women and children, who are American citizens. This will unfold over the coming days. We will not comment on individual cases as the process is underway," the official said
A mother and daughter from Illinois, Judith and Natalie Raanan, were released last month after almost two weeks in captivity.
On Friday, President Joe Biden said it’s his "hope and expectation" that Americans will be released soon. But the president said he doesn’t know the condition of all the American hostages.
-ABC News' Justin Gomez and Selina Wang
Nov 25, 7:13 AM EST
13 Israeli hostages, 39 Palestinians expected to be released Saturday
Hamas is expected to release 13 Israeli hostages in exchange for Israel freeing 39 Palestinian prisoners Saturday as part of an ongoing swap during a four-day cease-fire, sources told ABC News.
Egyptian officials have released the same numbers, saying Egypt has received a list of 13 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and 39 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel planned to be released Saturday.
Egypt is currently holding intensive talks with the Palestinian and Israeli sides to "secure the release of a larger number" of captives in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners, the head of the State Information Service Diaa Rashwan said.
Earlier, the Israel Prison Service said that it received a list of 42 Palestinian prisoners to be released today -- as part of the agreement between Israel and the Hamas terror group, three prisoners are to be freed for each Israeli let go. Israel said Friday it received the list of abductees who are to be released today following the schedule.
It was not immediately clear if any non-Israeli captives may also be released Saturday.
Nov 24, 5:02 PM EST
Israel gets new list of hostages to be released Saturday
A new list of hostages to be released on Saturday was handed over to the Israel Defense Forces and Mossad, Israel's intelligence agency, Israeli officials said.
The number of hostages to be released was not disclosed. Israeli officials said the list follows the schedule negotiated for freeing the captives in groups over a four-day cease-fire.
On Friday, 24 hostages, including 13 Israelis, were released by Hamas.
Lt. Col. Gal Hirsh, appointed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure the release of Israeli captives in Gaza, has shared the list with family members of the hostages set to be released, Israeli officials said.
Israeli security officials are checking the list, officials said, adding that more information will be released as needed.
-ABC News Matt Gutman
Nov 24, 4:24 PM EST
151 more patients evacuated from Al-Shifa Hospital: WHO
At least 151 patients at the Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza, which has been under siege for days, have been transferred to other medical facilities, the World Health Organization said Friday.
The mission to transfer the patients occurred on Wednesday, according to a statement from WHO.
It was the third mission undertaken in less than a week to move patients, including 31 infants, according to WHO.
The Israel Defense Forces, which raided the hospital last week, claimed Hamas was using the hospital to conceal its military operations and to hold hostages.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society joined WHO in carrying out the transfer of patients, according to the WHO statement.
Most of the patients were transferred to the European Gaza Hospital, according to WHO.
The patients moved in the latest mission included 73 severely ill patients, 18 of whom are dialysis patients, 26 with serious spinal injuries and eight with severe chronic conditions, according to WHO.
The evacuation was described by WHO as a "high-risk mission," saying it occurred over a 20-hour period as intense fighting and shelling continued in proximity of the hospital.
About 100 patients remain at the hospital, according to WHO.
-ABC News' Eric Strauss
Nov 24, 3:39 PM EST
Biden says release of hostages 'just the beginning'
President Joe Biden said Friday that the release of 24 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza is "just the beginning" of a plan to free 50 of the more than 230 captives over four days.
“It's only a start, but so far it's gone well,” Biden said in a televised address from Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he and first lady Jill Biden are vacationing.
He said Friday's hostage release is part of a deal "reached by extensive U.S. diplomacy, including numerous calls I've made from the Oval Office to leaders across the region," including calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the emir of Qatar.
“All of these hostages have been through a terrible ordeal, and this is the beginning of a long journey of healing for them,” Biden said. “Today has been a product of a lot of hard work and weeks of personal engagement.”
Biden said that under the deal, more hostages would be released over the next three days with 50 being "our goal." But he added, "We also will not stop until we get these hostages brought home and an answer to their whereabouts.”
The president said U.S. officials do not know when Americans -- including two women and 4-year-old Abigail Edan, whose parents were killed by Hamas terrorists -- will be among those that are released or their conditions. He added, “We expect it to occur” and that it’s his “hope and expectation” that it “will be soon.”
Biden said the four-day cease-fire that was negotiated for the release of the hostages will allow time to "accelerate and expand humanitarian assistance going into Gaza."
Speaking of the children freed on Friday, one just 2 years old, Biden said, “The teddy bears waiting to greet those children at the hospital are a stark reminder of the trauma these children have been through at such a very young age.”
-ABC News' Justin Gomez
Nov 24, 3:24 PM EST
200 trucks enter Gaza with humanitarian aid during pause: UN
There were 200 trucks carrying aid that entered Gaza through the Rafah border crossing on Friday -- the first day of the humanitarian pause.
Of those 200 trucks, 137 unloaded goods at the reception point for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, the aid organization said. It was the largest single-day delivery of aid since Oct. 7, the agency said.
Also, 129,000 liters of fuel and four trucks of gas crossed into Gaza through the border, the U.N. said. President Joe Biden said Friday both fuel and cooking gas were delivered to Gaza.
Twenty-one critically injured patients from northern Gaza were also evacuated through the border.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Nov 24, 2:39 PM EST
Released hostages flown by helicopter to Israel hospitals
Twenty-two of the 24 Israeli and foreign citizens released by Hamas on Friday were first taken to the Hatzerim Air Force base in Israel before being transferred by military helicopters to hospitals, where they are to be reunited with their families, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Two Israeli citizens were taken directly to hospitals by ambulance, the IDF said.
The returning hostages were escorted by IDF personnel, including medical personnel, the IDF said. IDF representatives were with the family members of the hostages to give them regular updates on the release of their loved ones, the IDF said.
Israeli Air Force helicopters were waiting at Hatzerim base to fly the returnees to the hospitals, according to the IDF.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman
Nov 24, 1:47 PM EST
Israel releases info on freed Palestinian prisoners
Thirty-nine Palestinian prisoners were released Friday evening in accordance with the deal between Hamas and Israel to free hostages in Gaza.
"Tonight we finished the first day of our mission to bring the abductees home," Rabbi Gondar Cathy Perry, commissioner of prisons, said in a statement. "We will continue in the coming days to act as much as is required of us in order to support the national effort."
Those who were released included female security prisoners and minor security prisoners, according to the Israel Prison Service.
They were released from three prisons: Damon, Megiddo and Ofer. Perry visited the prisons to oversee the operations, according to the Israel Prison Service.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Nov 24, 1:43 PM EST
IDF releases video of moment hostages reached Israeli territory
The Israel Defense Forces has released a video of the exact moment vehicles returned the group of hostages freed Friday back to Israeli territory.
BREAKING: IDF releases video showing the moment Israeli hostages released by Hamas amid cease-fire cross into Israeli territory.
The group of Israeli hostages, held for 47 days in Gaza, crossed into Egypt from Gaza via the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing. They will be transported to hospitals in Israel, sources told ABC News.
Nov 24, 1:14 PM EST
Names released of the freed Israeli hostages
The Israeli government released the names of the Israeli hostages released on Friday by Hamas.
All of the hostages released Friday were abducted from the Nir Oz kibbutz, according to a spokesperson.
The freed hostages, according to the Israeli Office of the Prime Minister, are:
Doron Katz-Asher, 34, and her children, Raz Asher, 4, and Aviv Asher, 2;
Daniel Aloni, 45, and her 5-year-old daughter, Amelia;
Ruth Munder, 78, and her 54-year-old daughter, Keren Monder, and Karen's 9-year-old son, Ohad Monder;
Adina Moshe, 72
Hana Katzir, 76
Margalit Mozes, 77
Hanna Perry, 79
Yaffe Adar, 85
The government together with all the security forces will accompany them and their families.
Nov 24, 12:46 PM EST
Netanyahu confirms return of first group of hostages
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed in a statement that the transfer to Isreal of the first group of hostages has been completed.
"We have now completed the return of the first of our abductees. Children, their mothers and other women. Each and every one of them is a whole world," Netanyahu said in his statement.
Netanyahu emphasized to the families of the hostages and to all Israeli citizens, "We are committed to the return of all our abductees."
"This is one of the goals of the war and we are committed to achieving all the goals of the war," Netanyahu said.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman
Nov 24, 12:18 PM EST
Freed hostages in hands of IDF Special Forces in Israeli territory
The released hostages have now been transferred to Israel Defense Forces Special Forces inside Israeli territory, an IDF spokesperson said.
IDF Special Forces and ISA Forces are currently with the released hostages, who underwent an initial medical assessment inside Israeli territory, according to the IDF. The released hostages will continue to be accompanied by IDF soldiers as they make their way to Israeli hospitals, where they will be reunited with their families, Israeli officials said.
The IDF, together with the entire Israeli security establishment, will continue operating until all the hostages are returned home, Israeli officials said.
An IDF spokesperson reiterated the importance of demonstrating patience and sensitivity during this time out of respect for the released hostages and their families.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman
Nov 24, 11:46 AM EST
Hamas releases total of 24 hostages on Friday as part of truce
A total of 24 hostages were freed by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Friday as part of a temporary truce with Israel, ABC News has learned.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which is facilitating the release and transfer of the hostages, issued a statement confirming "the safe release of 24 hostages."
"We have facilitated this release by transporting them from Gaza to the Rafah border, marking the real-life impact of our role as a neutral intermediary between the parties," the ICRC added.
Qatar, which along with Egypt and the United States mediated the negotiations between Hamas and Israel, also issued a statement from its foreign ministry confirming that the hostages who were released on Friday "include 13 Israeli citizens, some of whom are dual citizens, in addition to 10 Thai citizens and one Filipino citizen."
"We also confirm the release of 39 women and children detained in Israeli prisons accordance with the terms of the first day of the agreement," a spokesperson for the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Earlier, Thailand said 12 of its nationals held by Hamas were freed on Friday.
All 24 hostages crossed into Egypt from Gaza via the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing. They will be transported to hospitals in Israel, sources told ABC News.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Will Gretsky, Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 11:28 AM EST
1st group of Israeli hostages released by Hamas reach Egyptian soil
The first group of Israeli hostages released by Hamas in the Gaza Strip are now on Egyptian soil and in the custody of Israeli security services, two sources in the Israeli prime minister's office with direct knowledge of the operation told ABC News on Friday evening.
Israel's emergency medical service, Magen David Adom, also confirmed with the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is facilitating the release and transfer of hostages, that they have crossed into Egypt from Gaza.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Will Gretsky, Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 11:18 AM EST
12 Thai hostages released by Hamas enter Israel
Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Friday that 12 of its nationals who were held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip have entered Israel.
The 12 Thai hostages crossed into Egypt from Gaza via the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing before being taken to Israel, according to the Thai foreign ministry.
"They are being transported to the processing point at Hatzerim Air Force Base," the ministry said in a statement. "At this time, the gender and names of these Thais are not known."
The Thai nationals will be transferred to Shamir Medical Center southeast of Tel Aviv, where they will be met by Thai embassy officials
"They are required to be under medical supervision for a period of 48 hours, without access to outsiders," the ministry said, adding that it "will do all possible to expedite their return to Thailand."
-ABC News' Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 11:03 AM EST
Red Cross confirms start of prisoner exchange between Hamas, Israel
The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed Friday that its teams have begun "carrying out a multi-day operation to facilitate the release and transfer of hostages held in Gaza and of Palestinian detainees to the West Bank."
The operation, which is taking place during a four-day cease-fire between Hamas and Israel, will also "include the delivery of additional, much-needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza," according to the ICRC.
"In its role as a neutral intermediary, the ICRC over several days will transfer hostages held in Gaza to Israeli authorities and ultimately their families, and transfer Palestinian detainees to authorities in the West Bank, to be reunited with their families," the organization said in a statement. "The ICRC will also bring in additional medical supplies to be delivered to hospitals in Gaza, reinforcing the aid deliveries the ICRC has already carried out."
The ICRC urged both sides in the war to treat all hostages and detainees "with humanity" and to respect "humanitarian principles ... at all times, including during the releases and transfers."
"The parties to the conflict agreed to the details of the operation, including who would be released and when," the organization added. "The ICRC was not involved in the negotiations, and its role is to help facilitate the agreement as a neutral intermediary."
-ABC News' Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 9:44 AM EST
1st group of Israeli hostages freed by Hamas in Gaza, sources say
The first group of Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross, two sources briefed on the matter told ABC News.
The sources said the Red Cross has the hostages and that the "operation" to get them home has begun.
It was expected that 13 Israeli hostages would be freed by Hamas near Gaza's border with Egypt on Friday in a prisoner exchange deal. But it was unclear exactly how many were handed over to the Red Cross.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 9:36 AM EST
Thailand says 12 of its nationals were released in Gaza
Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced Friday that 12 Thai hostages have been released in the Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt and will be picked up by Thai embassy officials.
"It has been confirmed by the Security Department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that there are 12 Thai hostages already released. Embassy officials are on their way to pick them up in another hour. Their names and details should be known. Please stay tuned," Thavisin wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Egyptian authorities confirmed earlier that 12 Thai nationals held by Hamas in Gaza would be freed at the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing on Friday, in addition to 13 Israeli hostages.
There was no immediate confirmation from Israel on whether any of its nationals were released alongside the 12 Thai hostages.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 9:16 AM EST
12 Thai nationals to be freed alongside 13 Israeli hostages on Friday, Egypt says
Twelve Thai nationals held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip will be released on Friday in addition to 13 Israeli hostages, according to Egypt's State Information Service.
The Israeli hostages will be freed by Hamas at the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, and they will be received by Egyptian authorities before being transferred to Israel, the State Information Service said.
The State Information Service credited "intense Egyptian efforts" for resulting in the agreement with Hamas to release 12 Thai nationals on the sidelines of the prisoner exchange deal between Gaza's militant rulers and Israel.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 24, 8:07 AM EST
Scores of Palestinians move north in Gaza despite Israel's warning
Scores of Palestinians who had fled to the southern Gaza Strip amid Israeli bombardment were seen trying to return to the north on Friday, following the start of a four-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
This came despite a warning from the Israeli military not to head toward the main combat zone in northern Gaza and there are Israeli checkpoints in place to prevent people from doing so.
"The northern Gaza Strip area is a dangerous war zone and it is forbidden to move around," the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Friday morning. "For your safety, you must remain in the humanitarian zone in the south of the Strip. It is only possible to move from the north of the Strip to its south via Salah al-Din Road."
-ABC News' Nasser Atta, Morgan Winsor and Sami Zayara
Nov 24, 7:24 AM EST
Aid trucks arrive in Gaza via Egypt
Footage from the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing showed aid trucks entering the war-torn Gaza Strip on Friday morning.
Egypt's State Information Service said earlier Friday that 200 trucks transporting humanitarian aid, four trucks carrying gasoline and 130,000 liters of diesel would be allowed to enter Gaza via the Rafah border crossing during each day of the agreed upon cease-fire between Hamas and Israel.
That would be an increase from an initial average of around 70,000 liters of diesel that Israel agreed to deliver into Gaza over the past week to meet humanitarian needs set by the United Nations, but would still be well below what aid organizations say is required for daily critical needs.
Egypt will also allow hundreds of Palestinians stranded in the country to re-enter Gaza for the first time since the war broke out, according to the State Information Service.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 7:06 AM EST
Israel says transfer of Palestinian prisoners has begun
The transfer of 39 Palestinian inmates from Damon and Megiddo prisons to the Ofer camp in the West Bank has begun, a spokesperson for the Israel Prison Service told ABC News on Friday afternoon.
Once in the West Bank, the Palestinian prisoners will be released within two hours after the confirmation that 13 Israeli hostages were freed by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and returned home, the spokesperson said.
-ABC News' Yael Benaya and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 5:51 AM EST
Israel details protocol for hostage release in Gaza
Thirteen people are on a list of hostages who are expected to be released by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Friday amid a temporary cease-fire, but it remains unclear exactly how many the militant group will free, according to Israel's Government Press Office.
During a press briefing on Friday morning, the Israeli Government Press Office said that the hostages who are released will be received by staff from the International Committee of the Red Cross, who will then take the hostages across the border and hand them over to the Israeli military. It was unknown which of Gaza's borders the hostages would cross -- either into Egypt or Israel.
From there, the Israel Defense Forces will identify each hostage who was released and the individuals will undergo medical examinations. Then they will be allowed to speak with their families via telephone, according to the Israeli Government Press Office.
The hostages will be transferred to one or more of five designated hospitals, depending on their medical needs. They will be physically reunited with their families at the hospitals, the Israeli Government Press Office said.
Among the freed hostages, children will not be debriefed by Israeli authorities but their mothers and other women who are capable will be, according to the Israeli Government Press Office.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 24, 3:53 AM EST
4-day cease-fire begins Friday morning
The first pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas in nearly seven weeks came into effect on Friday morning.
The four-day cease-fire started slightly later than the planned 7 a.m. local time, as the Israeli military carried out last-minute airstrikes on the war-torn Gaza Strip.
The Israel Defense Forces released a statement announcing the completion of "its operational preparations according to the combat lines of pause." Amid the early morning hours in the area of Gaza's largest hospital, Al-Shifa, Israeli troops destroyed a "route of underground tunnels and a number of tunnel shafts" that the IDF alleged was used by Hamas, which rules the enclave.
"The war is not over yet," the IDF added. "The suspension of fires for humanitarian purposes is temporary. The northern Gaza Strip area is a dangerous war zone and it is forbidden to move around."
"For your safety, you must remain in the humanitarian zone in the south of the Strip," the IDF continued. "It is only possible to move from the north of the Strip to its south via Salah al-Din Road. The movement of residents from the south of the Strip to the north will not be allowed in any way."
The release of some hostages being held by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups in Gaza, in exchange for the release of some Palestinian prisoners in Israel, is expected to begin at 4 p.m. local time.
-ABC News' Bruno Nota, Joe Simonetti and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 11:21 AM EST
Gaza to receive medical supplies, fuel during cease-fire
All areas of the Gaza Strip will receive medical supplies and fuel and cooking gas during the cease-fire, according to Hamas.
In a statement, Hamas said Israeli planes will stop flying over the southern Gaza Strip entirely during the cease-fire. Planes will stop flying over the northern Gaza Strip for six hours a day during the cease-fire.
Israel confirmed that it has received a list of hostages who will be released and officials are in contact with the hostages' families.
Nov 23, 9:36 AM EST
Qatar says cease-fire to start Friday at 7 a.m. local time
The Qatar Foreign Ministry announced that the cease-fire will begin on Friday at 7 a.m. local time and will last for four days.
The first hostages will be released at 4 p.m. local time, according to Dr. Majid bin Mohammed Al Ansari, the Qatar Foreign Ministry's spokesperson. Thirteen women and children from the same families will be among the first to be released.
Fifty hostages will be released over four days, Qatar said.
Nov 23, 8:58 AM EST
Palestinian Red Crescent accuses IDF of arresting ambulance service director in Gaza
The Palestine Red Crescent Society has accused Israeli authorities of arresting the head of an ambulance service in the Gaza Strip, among other medical staff, during the evacuation of patients and the injured from Al-Shifa Hospital.
"We are deeply concerned about our colleague Awni Khattab, director of the Khan Yunis Ambulance Center, who was arrested yesterday evening and taken to an unknown destination, while a convoy evacuating the wounded from Al-Shifa Hospital passed through the barrier that separates the northern Gaza Strip from its southern one," the PRCS said in a statement on Thursday.
"We hold the [Israeli] occupation authorities fully responsible for the safety of our colleague Khattab, and we demand the immediate release of him and all the medical teams who were detained," the PRCS added. "We call on the international community to provide urgent protection for medical personnel, in accordance with international humanitarian law, as humanitarian and medical personnel must not be a target under any circumstances."
There was no immediate confirmation or comment from the Israel Defense Forces, which has been conducting a ground raid of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for days. However, the IDF confirmed earlier Thursday that the director of Al-Shifa Hospital, Dr. Muhammad Abu Salamiya, was apprehended for questioning amid accusations that “there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity” at Gaza's largest medical complex while “under his management” -- claims which Hamas denies.
ABC News' Nasser Atta and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 8:07 AM EST
Israel confirms arrest of Al-Shifa Hospital director in Gaza
The Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Securities Authority has confirmed the arrest of the director of Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip.
"The director of the Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip was apprehended and transferred for ISA questioning following evidence showing that the Shifa Hospital, under his direct management, served as a Hamas command and control center," the IDF and the ISA said in a joint statement on Thursday. "The Hamas terror tunnel network situated under the hospital also exploited electricity and resources taken from the hospital. In addition, Hamas stored numerous weapons inside the hospital and on the hospital grounds."
The IDF and the ISA alleged that Hamas militants "sought refuge within the hospital, some of them taking hostages from Israel with them," in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack. The IDF and the ISA also claimed that a "pathological report" confirms 19-year-old Israeli soldier Noa Marciano, who was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, was killed on the premises of Al-Shifa Hospital.
"In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity," the IDF and the ISA said of the Al-Shifa Hospital director, Dr. Muhammad Abu Salamiya. "Findings of his involvement in terrorist activity will determine whether he will be subject to further ISA questioning."
Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, has denied Israel's allegations that it has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in the enclave and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians.
ABC News' Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 6:41 AM EST
Hamas accuses IDF of arresting Al-Shifa Hospital director, staff in Gaza
Hamas has accused the Israeli military of arresting the director of Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip, along with several other staff members "who remained at the facility to help patients and wounded evacuate."
"We see this move by Israel as nothing less than despicable, lacking any sense of humanity and morals," Hamas said in a statement on Thursday morning. "It is also a flagrant violation of international norms and charters, given obligations to ensure that medical personnel are never harmed, including in times of war."
Hamas noted that Al-Shifa Hospital's director, Dr. Muhammad Abu Salamiya, was in contact with International Committee of the Red Cross and the World Health Organization "to evacuate the remaining patients and wounded." The militant group, which rules Gaza, called on the ICRC, the WHO and other international bodies "to exert pressure on the Israeli occupation army to secure his release, along with the medical personnel who were arrested simply for continuing to fulfil their humanitarian duty."
In a separate statement on Thursday, Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health said the arrests occurred Wednesday as the United Nations and its health arm, the WHO, led a convoy of evacuated patients and medical staff from Al-Shifa Hospital. Israeli soldiers "stopped the convoy at a checkpoint separating the northern and southern Gaza Strip for seven hours" before arresting the hospital director and other staff members, according to the health ministry.
"The [Israeli] occupation bears full responsibility for the lives and safety of detained colleagues," the ministry added. "The United Nations bears full responsibility for what happened, and we await measures on their part to address this. We decided to stop coordination with the World Health Organization until a report on what happened was submitted and all detainees were released."
There was no immediate confirmation of the event or comment from the U.N. or the WHO.
There was also no immediate confirmation of the arrests or comment from the Israel Defense Forces, which has been conducting a ground raid of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for days.
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
ABC News' Nasser Atta and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 6:25 AM EST
IDF says it struck more than 300 Hamas targets in Gaza over past day
The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday morning that it has carried out airstrikes on more than "300 Hamas terror targets" in the Gaza Strip over the past day.
The targets that were struck included Hamas "military command centers, underground terror tunnels, weapon storage facilities, weapon manufacturing sites, and anti-tank missile launch posts," according to a statement from the IDF.
ABC News' Jordana Miller and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 5:33 AM EST
Start of cease-fire to be 'announced within the next few hours,' Qatar says
The Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, announced Thursday morning that the talks between Israel and Hamas on the details of the implementation plan for the humanitarian pause deal in the Gaza Strip "are continuing and progressing positively."
"Dr. Al Ansari affirmed that the start of the pause agreed upon will be announced within the next few hours," a statement from the ministry read. "Work continues with both parties, and with our partners in the sisterly Arab Republic of Egypt and the United States in order to ensure rapid start of the pause and provide what is necessary to ensure the parties adherence to the agreement."
The temporary truce was expected to begin Thursday morning, while a prisoner swap was to start no earlier than Friday. But a senior Israeli official told ABC News late Wednesday that neither will happen before Friday.
The deal between Israel and Hamas, reached Wednesday morning, was mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the U.S.
ABC News' Zoe Magee and Morgan Winsor
Nov 23, 12:45 AM EST
Doctor in Egypt says some of evacuated Gaza premature babies are in 'critical' condition
A doctor at Al-Arish Hospital in Egypt shared an update on the condition of the premature babies evacuated from Gaza earlier this week, saying about 10% of them are in "critical" condition.
"When the babies arrived at our hospital … they were facing a lot of bad conditions during transfer, taking their medical history, not accompanying families for them, so you are dealing with … very critical conditions for them," Dr. Ahmed Mahdy told ABC News Wednesday.
Sixteen premature babies were brought to Al-Arish Hospital in Egypt near the border after Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza ran out of fuel to run their incubators and came under attack by IDF forces. Dr. Mahdy said they all had low weight when they arrived at Al-Arish, ranging from 1-2.3 kilograms (2.2 lbs – 5 lbs).
Dr. Mahdy said some of the babies "are very critical," estimating about 10% of them are in that condition. The other infants are "less critical."
One of the struggles doctors at Al-Arish Hospital have run into is that there aren't families or mothers with most of the babies to ask about their history or the mother's history during her pregnancy. Out of 16 babies, only three mothers are accompanying four babies. Still, the doctors persevere to treat the infants.
"They may be at risk, but we are doing our best for them," Dr. Mahdy said. "We are giving them the medications they need, the feeding. You know, the babies need feeding, feeding assessment and feeding progress."
Nov 22, 4:57 PM EST
No Israeli hostages will be released before Friday, Israel says
The cease-fire is expected to begin Thursday at 10 a.m., Israeli National Security Minister Tzachi Hanegbi said.
No Israeli hostages will be released before Friday, Hanegbi said.
Nov 22, 2:57 PM EST
Israeli cabinet has list of hostages expected to be released
The Israeli cabinet now has the list of hostages expected to be released, according to an Israeli official.
Hamas and Israel agreed to a cease-fire lasting for at least four days to allow the release of at least 50 hostages -- women and children -- captured by Hamas from Israel on Oct. 7, in exchange for at least 150 Palestinians -- women and teenagers -- currently being held in Israeli prisons.
It is expected that the cease-fire and the prisoner swap will begin Thursday morning.
Families of the hostages held by Hamas will only be notified after the hostages are in Israeli hands, the Israeli official said.
Nov 22, 12:12 PM EST
Israeli Supreme Court rejects appeal against hostage deal
Israel's Supreme Court rejected the only appeal submitted thus far against the hostage deal, clearing the way for the deal to go through.
Israeli law requires a 24-hour waiting period after the vote before the agreement can be put into action.
It is expected that the cease-fire and the prisoner swap will begin Thursday morning.
Nov 22, 11:44 AM EST
Families of American hostages speak out
The families of American hostages said they are "thrilled" 50 hostages are expected to be released, but added, "We are not going to rest until every single hostage is returned"
The families also said they "request an immediate update on whether our family members are alive and well."
The families thanked President Joe Biden for his work on the hostage deal, adding, "We call on all world leaders to continue prioritizing this goal."
The whereabouts of nine U.S. citizens and one U.S. permanent resident are unknown, according to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. He said it's unclear whether they were among the hundreds of people who were taken hostage by Hamas.
"We don't know for certain that all 10 are still alive and we’ve been honest about that -- what we know and what we don't know," Sullivan told ABC News' "Good Morning America" on Wednesday. "We know that among those 10, three are women and children -- two women one child. And we believe that those three will be among the 50 who are released."
"Until we actually see them come out, be in the arms of their loved ones, get home safely, we cannot be fully confident," he added.
Nov 22, 11:30 AM EST
75 women among Palestinian prisoners in Israel: Advocacy group
Approximately 75 Palestinian women, five teenage girls and 200 boys -- mostly teenagers -- are detained in Israel, according to a spokesperson for Addameer, a group which monitors the treatment of Palestinian prisoners.
Before the Israel-Hamas war broke out on Oct. 7, about 150 Palestinian boys, as well as 30 women and girls, were in Israeli prisons, the spokesperson said.
According to the newly brokered deal, 150 Palestinian prisoners would be released by Israel in exchange for at least 50 hostages released by Hamas. The deal also includes a four-day pause in hostilities.
Nov 22, 11:00 AM EST
Norwegian Refugee Council: 4-day pause not enough
Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, said in a statement that the planned four-day pause in hostilities "is not enough time to address the immense needs after six weeks of fighting, bloodshed, and destruction."
Egeland said the pause "must pave the way for a lasting cease-fire."
"Small shelters have housed scores of people, with little food and water and mounting health hazards. Children are traumatized, and many face a future without their parents and siblings," Egeland said. "They need urgent, long-term help. This can only happen through a sustained cease-fire."
Nov 22, 10:39 AM EST
Israeli Hostage Center: 'No victory until every last hostage returns home'
In the wake of the approved hostage deal, in which Hamas would release 50 of the approximately 236 people taken hostage from Israel, the Israeli Hostage Center said in a statement, "There is no victory until every last hostage returns home."
The release of the at least 50 hostages would come over the course of a four-day pause in hostilities, Israel's prime minister said, and as a part of this deal, 150 Palestinian prisoners will also be released by Israel.
The hostage center said it demands "the current cease-fire terms ensure both security and welfare for remaining hostages held by Hamas, including the promised Red Cross visits."
Nov 22, 7:54 AM EST
IDF continues to bombard Gaza despite reaching deal on truce, hostages
Despite reaching an agreement with Hamas on a temporary cease-fire in exchange for the release of dozens of hostages, the Israeli military continued to bombard the Gaza Strip on Wednesday morning.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed in a statement that it "is continuing to operate in the Gaza Strip, including striking terrorist infrastructure, killing terrorists, and locating weapons."
"This morning, IDF troops neutralized a terror tunnel shaft from which a Hamas terrorist exited and fired at the soldiers," the IDF said. "Moreover, IDF troops identified terrorists and located weapons in a structure used by the Hamas terrorist organization. The troops killed the terrorists and destroyed the structure."
Nov 22, 7:45 AM EST
White House official talks 'key' moment that led to 'breakthrough' in hostage deal
The "key" to securing the hostage deal between Israel and Hamas "was bearing down on both sides" to "get specific" on the details, according to U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
The agreement that was reached on Wednesday was mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.
"The big move happened late last week when [U.S.] President [Joe] Biden spoke first with [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and then with the emir of Qatar to say, how many hostages, for how any days in return for how many Palestinian prisoners," Sullivan told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview Wednesday on Good Morning America.
"And it was really the work to refine those details that finally produced the breakthrough that we now see resulting in the announcement of a pause of hostilities and the first return of prisoners, of hostages," he added.
Nov 22, 7:37 AM EST
US 'very hopeful' but 'cannot be fully confident' in hostage deal, official says
The United States is "very hopeful" in the hostage deal between Israel and Hamas but "cannot be fully confident" until the abductees return home safely, according to White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
"You can never have full confidence until you actually see hostages back in the arms of their families," Sullivan told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos in an interview Wednesday on Good Morning America.
"But I am very hopeful that there will be a pause, these hostages will begin to be released," he continued, "and then I am hopeful that we can build on the release of this initial 50 to get more hostages home so that every last person currently being held by the terrorist group Hamas gets home safely to their family."
The whereabouts of nine U.S. citizens and one U.S. permanent resident, or green card-holder, remains unknown in the wake of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel, according to Sullivan, who said it's unclear whether they were among the hundreds of people who were taken hostage and brought back to the neighboring Gaza Strip.
"We don't know for certain that all 10 are still alive and we’ve been honest about that -- what we know and what we don't know,” he added. "We know that among those 10, three are women and children -- two women one child. And we believe that those three will be among the 50 who are released."
But Sullivan cautioned: "Until we actually see them come out, be in the arms of their loved ones, get home safely, we cannot be fully confident. So we are going to wait as the families are waiting with bated breath until they come but and then until every last American comes out."
Nov 21, 11:42 PM EST
Biden confirms four-day pause 'should bring home additional American hostages'
President Joe Biden released a statement Tuesday night thanking Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar and President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt for their "critical leadership and partnership" in helping to broker a deal between Hamas and Israel over the release of hostages.
Biden also thanked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his commitment to the temporary pause ensuring the deal can be carried out and "bring home additional American hostages." Biden said he "will not stop until they are all released."
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he was "pleased and relieved" over being "close" to seeing the release of the first 50 out of 240 hostages.
Schumer said he will continue working for the release of the remaining hostages, and called it a "positive development" that the pause in fighting will allow aid to flow to Palestinians in Gaza.
Biden said as president he has "no higher priority than ensuring the safety of Americans held hostage around the world."
Nov 21, 9:50 PM EST
Three Americans expected to be part of initial group of released hostages: US official
Three Americans are expected to be part of the initial group of hostages that will be released as part of a deal negotiated between Hamas, Israel, Qatar and the United States, according to a senior administration official.
They include 3-year-old Abigail Mor Idan, who was orphaned by the Oct. 7 attack and whose birthday is on Friday, the official said.
The deal will see the release of 50 hostages -- women and children -- over the course of several days.
Officials would not get into specifics about the number of additional Americans believed to be held hostage -- only reiterating that there are 10 unaccounted-for Americans.
Nov 21, 9:55 PM EST
Israel's Cabinet votes to approve deal for hostage release
Israel's Cabinet has approved a deal that would allow for the release of at least 50 hostages over the course of a four-day pause in hostilities, Israel's Prime Minister said early Wednesday morning. As a part of this deal, 150 Palestinian prisoners will also be released by Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a release the “Israeli government has approved the outline to the first phase” of bringing hostages home, with at least 50 being released over the course of the four-day pause in fighting.
The Government of Israel, the IDF and the Israeli security forces will continue to fight the war for the return of all hostages, the elimination of Hamas and to ensure that Gaza will not pose a threat to Israel, according to Netanyahu.
Earlier, sources told ABC News 42 hostages would be released.
A short while later, Hamas released its own statement early Wednesday morning local time, which had some of the same terms announced by Netanyahu.
Hamas confirmed via Telegram a temporary cease-fire of four days, with the release of 50 women and children who’ve been held hostage.
In exchange, Hamas said Israel agreed to release 150 Palestinian women and children. Hamas said the juveniles released would be under 19 years old.
Nov 21, 4:04 PM EST
3-year-old Israeli-American may be among hostages freed: US official
The U.S. expects that Abigail Edan, an orphaned 3-year-old Israeli-American who was kidnapped by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, would be among the hostages released as part of any initial deal between Israel and Hamas, according to a U.S. official familiar with negotiations. However, the Biden administration hasn’t received any reliable guarantee that she or any of the missing Americans will be freed in the arrangement, the official said.
The official said there are many significant concerns surrounding the hostages' passage out of Gaza, and that moving the hostages out of the enclave as quickly as possible would be necessary for their protection and to facilitate ongoing talks.
While American negotiators are currently zeroed-in on securing an initial deal -- rather than focusing on subsequent swaps that might happen in exchange for a longer pause -- Hamas is expected to provide information about the conditions of hostages that will remain in custody, which could be critical in shaping the strategy going forward, the official said.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Nov 21, 3:30 PM EST
Netanyahu: War against Hamas will not stop after cease-fire
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking ahead of Tuesday's cabinet meeting and vote on a potential hostage deal, said Israel's war against Hamas will not stop after a cease-fire.
He said the war will continue until Hamas is destroyed and all hostages are brought home.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant added that without the continuation of Israel's operations in Gaza, there'd be no chance of bringing home more hostages.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Nov 21, 1:38 PM EST
Kirby: 'Could take hours, if not days' for hostage release to be complete
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby remained tightlipped on the possible hostage deal, telling reporters Tuesday, "We're all hopeful, but we won't say and do not want to say, anything in these delicate hours that could put a deal at greater risk."
If a deal is reached, Kirby said the first step would be to secure safe passage for the hostages into Israel, where many would likely need immediate medical attention before they return to their home countries.
Pressed by ABC News about how long it could take for the safe passage to be secured and hostages released after a deal is reached, Kirby said, "Depending on if we get a deal, depending on how many hostages are arranged for, depending on where they are, depending on their physical condition and their mobility, I think we all need to be humble in terms of the appropriate amount of time it could take to physically move them to safety."
"Some of these people could be in pretty rough shape. I think we all need to be prepared for the fact that it could take hours, if not days, to complete their release," he said.
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 21, 1:33 PM EST
3 doctors killed in strike at Al-Awda Hospital
Three doctors were killed in a strike at northern Gaza's Al-Awda Hospital, according to Doctors Without Borders.
The hospital said only medical personnel, patients and the injured were inside the facility at the time.
Hospital officials called on the international community to provide a safe corridor for the evacuation of patients and medical staff.
"We mourn the loss of our colleagues," Doctors Without Borders said in a statement. "We condemn this strike in the strongest terms, and call yet again for the respect and protection of medical facilities, staff and patients. We reiterate our call for an immediate cease-fire to prevent more deaths in Gaza."
Nov 21, 12:23 PM EST
Israel hopes 50 hostages will be released within 4 days: Senior official
Israel hopes to secure the release of at least 50 hostages within four days, according to a senior Israeli official with knowledge of the negotiations.
The official told ABC News on Tuesday that all Israeli security forces and agencies are in favor of the proposed deal with Hamas, which was brokered by Qatar.
For two weeks, Israel was against accepting Qatar's original offer, the official said. Among other things, the government did not want to allow people to return to northern Gaza during the cease-fire period, the official said. Israel also wanted to limit the entry of fuel into Gaza to only the days of the cease-fire, according to the official.
ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 21, 12:09 PM EST
Hostage deal would involve pause in fighting lasting 4 or 5 days: US official
A U.S. official told ABC News the hostage deal would involve Hamas releasing 50 women and children in exchange for a pause in fighting that would last four or five days. The deal would also involve the release of three Palestinian prisoners for each Israeli hostage, the official said.
The official cautioned that the deal is not done. President Joe Biden has been personally involved in the negotiations, urging the emir of Qatar to press Hamas to accept the deal and urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the deal, according to the official.
ABC News' Selina Wang
Nov 21, 11:24 AM EST
'We're now very close' on hostage deal, Biden says
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that "we're now very close" on a deal to release the hostages being held by Hamas, but the president did not discuss more details.
"We could bring some of the hostages home very soon, but I don't want to get into the details of things because nothing is done until it's done. And when we have more to say we will, but things are looking good," Biden said.
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 21, 10:57 AM EST
WHO says it's planning to evacuate 3 hospitals in Gaza
The World Health Organization said Tuesday that at least three hospitals in the war-torn Gaza Strip have requested help with evacuating patients.
Speaking at a press briefing in Geneva, WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said planning was underway to evacuate Al-Shifa Hospital, Indonesian Hospital and Al-Ahli Hospital in northern Gaza, but that such an event was a last resort.
"It's robbing the entire population of the north of the means to seek health [care]," Lindmeier told reporters.
ABC News' Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Nov 21, 10:49 AM EST
Israeli strikes reportedly kill 2 journalists, 1 civilian in southern Lebanon
Two journalists were killed by Israeli bombing near the Lebanon-Israel border on Tuesday, according to Al-Mayadeen, the Beirut-based television channel they worked for.
Al-Mayadeen confirmed that reporter Farah Omar and photojournalist Rabie Al-Maamari were both killed near the southern Lebanese town of Tir-Harfa, about a mile from the Israeli frontier.
"The occupation targeted the Al-Mayadeen team directly and definitely intentionally," the channel said in a statement on Tuesday. "I tell the Israeli enemy that you will not be able to silence the voices of Al-Mayadeen. We will remain and continue our coverage and our honorable journalistic work, whose priority is covering the crimes of the occupation in Gaza, the West Bank, Palestine and Lebanon."
The Lebanese National News Agency reported that a civilian -- an 80-year-old woman -- was also killed by an Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese village of Kafr Kila, about 35 miles northwest of Tir-Harfa.
Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which has voiced support for Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip and has been clashing with Israeli forces along the Lebanon-Israel border in recent weeks, released a statement on Tuesday "strongly condemning" the deaths.
"This aggression and the accompanying martyrdom of other citizens will not pass without a response from the fighters of the Islamic Resistance who are fighting in the field," the group added.
ABC News' Ghazi Balliz, Marcus Moore, Bruno Roeber and Morgan Winsor
Nov 21, 9:17 AM EST
Israeli government to vote on hostage deal on Tuesday night, source says
Israel’s government will begin voting to approve a hostage deal with Hamas on Tuesday, an Israeli senior political source told ABC News.
Voting will likely be completed on Wednesday, according to the source.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday that, "in light of the developments regarding the release of our abductees," Netanyahu will convene the war cabinet at 6 p.m. local time, the political-security cabinet at 7 p.m. local time and the full government at 8 p.m. local time.
Both cabinets would have to approve a hostage deal before it could be brought to the full government for a final vote.
Earlier Tuesday, while visiting Israeli troops, Netanyahu told reporters that his government was "making progress" on an agreement with Hamas.
"I don't think it's worth saying too much, not even at this moment,” he added, "but I hope there will be good news soon."
Nov 21, 9:04 AM EST
Hostage negotiations in 'critical and final stage,' Qatar says
Negotiations to free some of the people who were taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel are closer than they have ever been before, according to Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari.
"Mediation has reached a critical and final stage and has gone past key issues. What remains are limited issues and therefore we are the closest we have come to reaching an agreement since the beginning of this crisis," Al-Ansari said during a press briefing in Doha on Tuesday, adding that "we hope and seek to make this happen soon."
Al-Ansari noted that it is very important to "choose the right time to announce the details" of Qatar's mediation efforts in the latest outbreak of war between Israel and the Gaza Strip's militant rulers, Hamas.
A Hamas leader in Beirut, Osama Hamdan, told ABC News on Tuesday morning that they are "waiting for the Israeli side to accept the deal." However, he added a caveat: "Many times in the past, we were close to a deal and Netanyahu undermined the deal. By the end of the day things will clear and we will see what the results of it."
Hamdan would not expand on details of the deal, including how many hostages would be released, telling ABC News: "No specifics on the numbers but it's around what the media is talking about, which is around 50. But nothing is final."
Meanwhile, there will likely be three separate steps of approval for an agreement to go through on the Israeli side. The Israeli government will announce that a deal has been reached that needs to be voted on. Then, Israel's security cabinet will vote to approve said agreement. Finally, Israeli law requires a 24-hour waiting period during which time the Supreme Court of Israel may need to be involved, to defend the deal from anyone who attempts to contest it.
Sources have told ABC News that a potential deal would involve the release of around 50 hostages, all women and children, in exchange for a five-day cease-fire, the release of dozens of Palestinian women and children from Israeli prison and a large influx of humanitarian aid into Gaza, including fuel. It may take multiple days for hostages to be released because they are not all being held together and some are held by splinter groups, according to sources.
Nov 21, 7:56 AM EST
Hundreds trapped in Gaza's Indonesian Hospital amid fierce fighting
Hundreds of patients are trapped inside another major hospital in the Gaza Strip amid fierce fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas militants, as fears grow that the situation could turn into a repeat of what happened at Al-Shifa Hospital.
The Indonesian Hospital is located in the northern edge of north Gaza, right on the frontline of Israel's advance. Al Jazeera reported that there are 700 people currently stuck inside the besieged hospital, including medical staff and wounded civilians.
At least 12 people, including patients and their companions, were reportedly killed on Monday when the Indonesian Hospital came under fire, according to the World Health Organization, which said it was "appalled by the attack." Doctors in the hospital told Al Jazeera that the facility was hit by artillery shells, while others suggested an Israeli tank may have fired at it.
"Health workers and civilians should never have to be exposed to such horror, and especially while inside a hospital," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Dr. Marwan Al-Sultan, director of the Indonesian Hospital, told BBC News that Israeli troops were only about 20 meters (66 feet) away. The Israeli military said its forces targeted "terrorists" who had opened fire at them from within the hospital, according to BBC News.
ABC News has not confirmed that Israeli troops were responsible for strikes on the Indonesian Hospital. The Israel Defense Forces said it was operating in specific areas outside the hospital due to enemy fire and that no shells were launched toward the facility.
Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health said 200 patients were evacuated from the Indonesian Hospital by bus to southern Gaza and that the International Committee of the Red Cross was trying to coordinate the evacuation of the remaining 400 patients, according to BBC News.
Video purportedly taken inside the Indonesian Hospital shows injured people and others sheltering on the floor. Additional footage appears to show damage to the hospital and heavy bombardments landing close to the facility in recent days.
Nov 20, 3:45 PM EST
Over 1,200 Americans and relatives trying to leave Gaza: State Department
A little more than 1,200 Americans and their eligible family members are waiting to leave Gaza, according to State Department spokesperson Matt Miller.
About 800 Americans and eligible family members have already left Gaza, Miller said.
Since the Israel-Hamas war broke out on Oct. 7, another six Americans have died: one was an Israeli national police border officer and five were members of the Israel Defense Forces, Miller said. At least 33 Americans were killed in Israel on Oct. 7 during Hamas' attack, according to American officials.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Nov 20, 2:43 PM EST
Biden says he believes hostage deal is near
President Joe Biden said Monday he thinks negotiators are close to reaching a deal to release hostages from Gaza.
When asked at the White House turkey pardon if a deal is near, Biden responded, "I believe so, but I’m not prepared to talk to …"
"You believe so?" reporters followed up, cutting off Biden's initial comment. Biden replied, "Yes," before holding up crossed fingers.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters Monday, "We believe we’re closer than we’ve ever been, so we’re hopeful. But there’s still work to be done, and nothing is done until it's all done, so we’re gonna keep working on this."
Kirby wouldn't say if the deal was focused on securing the release of women and children and wouldn't discuss a potential timeframe the administration was looking at for a deal to be announced.
"I think the less said the better as we get into ... what we hope is the end game here on negotiations. It's probably safer if I don’t go into much speculating," Kirby said.
-ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 20, 11:44 AM EST
Israeli forces will be operating in southern Gaza soon: Source
While southern Gaza is deemed safer than northern Gaza, Israel will be operating in southern Gaza soon, according to an Israeli official.
The official said operations in southern Gaza will be more "targeted."
The official said the actual "safe" zone would be in the sparsely populated Muwassi area in southwest Gaza.
But the official said Israeli forces would still strike there if need be.
Nov 20, 11:36 AM EST
Al-Qaida calls for attacks against US, Israeli targets
Al-Qaida, citing Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital, 9/11 and Benghazi, released a new statement calling for its followers to attack U.S. and Israeli targets, especially embassies, and to attack where they are without warning.
Nov 20, 11:11 AM EST
More aid passes through Rafah crossing
About 40 trucks carrying equipment for a Jordanian field hospital crossed from Egypt into Gaza via the Rafah border crossing on Monday, a border official told ABC News.
The convoy included 180 medics and nurses.
Health officials said the hospital will be set up in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
Nov 20, 6:17 AM EST
28 premature babies to be transported from Gaza to Egypt
Dozens of premature babies are expected to be transported from the war-torn Gaza Strip into neighboring Egypt on Monday to receive emergency medical treatment.
The babies arrived on Gaza's side of the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing on Monday afternoon. Egyptian television footage showed Egyptian doctors moving the babies from Palestinian ambulances into mobile incubators. The infants will then be taken via Egyptian ambulances to nearby hospitals in the North Sinai province of northeastern Egypt, which shares a border with Gaza.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society confirmed that its ambulance teams had transferred 28 premature babies to Egyptian medics at the Rafah border crossing on Monday afternoon. The process was done in coordination with the World Health Organization and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.
At least 12 of the babies who are said to be in deteriorating condition will be airlifted to Egypt's capital, Cairo, according to Egyptian media.
Earlier Monday, Egyptian TV footage showed medics with incubators at the Rafah border crossing as they prepared to receive the tiny patients. Egypt's heath minister was also seen on site inspecting the preparations.
The babies were evacuated on Sunday from Gaza's largest medical complex, Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, and brought to Emirati Hospital in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza close to the border with Egypt.
Like many hospitals in Gaza, Al-Shifa has been struggling to function with a lack of electricity as well as limited fuel and medical supplies amid Israel's continued bombardment of the territory. In recent days, Israeli ground troops have been carrying out a raid at Al-Shifa Hospital, searching for evidence that Gaza's militant rulers, Hamas, were using the complex as a command center. The WHO described Al-Shifa Hospital as a "death zone" and urged a full evacuation after leading an assessment mission there on Sunday.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Guy Davies and Morgan Winsor
Nov 20, 5:27 AM EST
Israel claims to have killed 3 more Hamas commanders
The Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Securities Authority announced in a joint statement Monday that their troops have killed three more Hamas commanders while continuing ground operations in the Gaza Strip.
"IDF fighter jets, directed by IDF and ISA intelligence, killed three additional Hamas company commanders," the statement read in part. "In addition, IDF troops identified a terrorist cell as they entered a nearby building. As a result of the strike carried out by an IDF aircraft, the terrorists were killed and a weapons depot in which they hid was struck."
There was no immediate confirmation or comment from Hamas.
-ABC News' Dorit Long and Morgan Winsor
Nov 19, 2:37 PM EST
IDF says it exposed tunnel under Shifa Hospital
Israel Defense Forces troops exposed a 180-foot tunnel 32 feet deep underneath the Shifa Hospital, the IDF and Israel Securities Authority (ISA) said in a joint statement Sunday.
"A deep staircase leads to the entrance of the tunnel shaft, which consists of various defense means including a blast-proof door and a firing hole," the statement continues. "This type of door is used by the Hamas terrorist organization to block Israeli forces from entering the command centers and the underground assets belonging to Hamas. The tunnel shaft was uncovered in the area of the hospital underneath a shed alongside a vehicle containing numerous weapons including RPGs, explosives and Kalashnikov rifles.
"IDF and ISA forces are continuing to uncover the route of the tunnel," the statement adds.
The IDF said it expects to find more tunnels and underground facilities, and that the operation is ongoing and will take some time. About 300 people remain in the hospital, according to the IDF.
-ABC News' Yael Benaya
Nov 19, 12:13 PM EST
31 premature babies evacuated from Al-Shifa Hospital: WHO
The World Health Organization confirmed earlier claims by the Palestinian Health Ministry that 31 "very sick" babies were safely transported from Al-Shifa Hospital to another hospital in southern Gaza on Sunday.
The premature infants were evacuated to the Emirates Hospital in Rafah, WHO officials said.
The babies were "clinging to life," the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) said in a statement, and their "condition was rapidly deteriorating."
The babies are expected to be transferred to another hospital in Egypt, said Dr. Ashraf al Qwadwa, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Health Ministry. He said nine premature babies have died since the start of a fuel crisis in Gaza prompted by the ongoing conflict.
Six health workers at the Al Shifa Hospital and 10 family members of staff there were also evacuated on Sunday along with the babies, according to the WHO statement, adding that further missions are planned to "urgently transport" the remaining patients and health staff out of the hospital.
-ABC News' Nasser Atta
Nov 18, 10:18 AM EST
IDF denies it ordered evacuation of Al-Shifa hospital amid exodus of patients
The IDF denied Saturday that it ordered an evacuation of Al-Shifa's patients, claiming the hospital's director requested to allow people in the hospital to leave and that the IDF agreed and offered to assist.
The director of the Gaza Health Ministry -- who said he is leading the exodus of patients -- said in an interview with Al Jazeera that Israel issued the order and that Israel refused to allow ambulances to assist in the evacuation.
The IDF said Saturday it "acceded to the request of the director of the Shifa Hospital to enable additional Gazans who were in the hospital, and would like to evacuate, to do so via the secure route. At no point, did the IDF order the evacuation of patients or medical teams and in fact proposed that any request for medical evacuation will be facilitated by the IDF. Medical personnel will remain in the hospital to support patients who are unable to evacuate."
However, another spokesman, Lt. Col Elad Goren, in his evening briefing Friday night said the IDF was urging anyone left in Al-Shifa to leave and that it hoped it would take place in the "next few hours."
Officials and doctors at Al-Shifa hospital say almost all patients and civilians there have been forced to leave the hospital this morning, after Israeli forces gave them one hour to get out.
Dr. Munir Al Barsh, director general from the Gaza Health Ministry, told Al Jazeera, he and hundreds of patients, many seriously injured, were now on the road on foot, making their way south.
He said around 450 patients and wounded had left following the Israeli order. He painted a harrowing picture, saying many patients have open wounds, are missing limbs, some are still in beds and wheelchairs.
According to Al Barsh, around 120 patients who are unable to move are still in the hospital, including the nearly three dozen premature babies. Five medical staff have remained to care for them.
He said the column of hundreds of patients are now trying to make their way to the first hospital they can find on route.
-ABC News' Patrick Reevell
Nov 17, 4:32 PM EST
Telecom services partially restored in Gaza
Telecommunications services have been partially restored in Gaza thanks to fuel reaching the region, the Palestinian Authority Communications Ministry said.
About 17,000 liters of diesel entered Gaza on Friday via the Egypt-Gaza Rafah border crossing, according to border crossing spokesman Wael Abu Omar.
Two fuel trucks are expected to enter Gaza daily beginning on Saturday, according to Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories.
Nov 17, 1:45 PM EST
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, has passed the one-month mark.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured since Oct. 7, according to Israeli officials. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 12,000 people have been killed and over 30,000 have been injured, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel's call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself -- a right the United States endorses.
Nov 17, 1:13 PM EST
Fuel 'used as a weapon of war,' UN Gaza relief agency says
The Israeli government said Friday that it will allow two fuel trucks per day to enter Gaza. But no fuel was delivered Friday due to the latest communications blackout, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said.
Juliette Touma, spokeswoman for UNRWA, told ABC News that fuel has been "used as a weapon of war" since the Israel-Hamas conflict began.
“Seventy percent of people do not have clean drinking water because there is no fuel. … Sewage is starting to overflow in some parts of Gaza. It's a disaster," she said. "[We] should not be forced to beg for fuel just to be able to do our work. It's unacceptable."
UNRWA's shelters are currently housing 800,000 people, which Touma said is "way over the capacity."
"We planned for less than one quarter of what we have," she said. "And with the restrictions that we have on fuel and the little aid that has been coming in that we are not able to even collect or pick up, the situation is becoming tragic by the hour."
ABC News' Patrick Reevell
Nov 17, 8:44 AM EST
UNRWA says no fuel delivered to Gaza on Friday due to blackout
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) confirmed that no fuel was delivered to the Gaza Strip on Friday due to the latest communications blackout.
The agency said it was forced to suspend its operations there after telecommunications companies ran out of generator fuel, plunging the war-torn territory into another blackout on Thursday afternoon.
"We are unable to operate due to the lack of communications," an UNRWA spokesperson told ABC News in a statement on Friday afternoon. "We have no communications with Gaza. Transport of aid trucks, water desalination and pumping and sewage treatment activities have been halted."
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy and Zoe Magee
Nov 17, 8:26 AM EST
Israel says it will allow 2 fuel trucks per day to enter Gaza
The Israeli government announced Friday that it will allow two fuel trucks per day to enter the war-torn Gaza Strip.
The Israeli War Cabinet said in a statement that it has "unanimously approved a joint recommendation" of the Israel Defense Force and Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency "to comply with the U.S. request and allow the entry of two diesel tankers a day for the needs of the U.N. to support water and sewer infrastructure."
The trucks will pass through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing with the help of the United Nations, delivering the fuel to civilians in southern Gaza, "provided that it does not reach Hamas," according to the Israeli War Cabinet.
"This action allows Israel the continued international maneuvering space necessary to eliminate Hamas," the cabinet said. "This action is intended, among other things, to minimally support water, sewage and sanitation systems, in order to prevent the outbreak of epidemics that could spread throughout the entire area, harm both the residents of the Strip and our forces, and spread even into Israel."
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 17, 8:44 AM EST
UNRWA says no fuel delivered to Gaza on Friday due to blackout
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) confirmed that no fuel was delivered to the Gaza Strip on Friday due to the latest communications blackout.
The agency said it was forced to suspend its operations there after telecommunications companies ran out of generator fuel, plunging the war-torn territory into another blackout on Thursday afternoon.
"We are unable to operate due to the lack of communications," an UNRWA spokesperson told ABC News in a statement on Friday afternoon. "We have no communications with Gaza. Transport of aid trucks, water desalination and pumping and sewage treatment activities have been halted."
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy and Zoe Magee
Nov 17, 8:26 AM EST
Israel says it will allow 2 fuel trucks per day to enter Gaza
The Israeli government announced Friday that it will allow two fuel trucks per day to enter the war-torn Gaza Strip.
The Israeli War Cabinet said in a statement that it has "unanimously approved a joint recommendation" of the Israel Defense Force and Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency "to comply with the U.S. request and allow the entry of two diesel tankers a day for the needs of the U.N. to support water and sewer infrastructure."
The trucks will pass through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing with the help of the United Nations, delivering the fuel to civilians in southern Gaza, "provided that it does not reach Hamas," according to the Israeli War Cabinet.
"This action allows Israel the continued international maneuvering space necessary to eliminate Hamas," the cabinet said. "This action is intended, among other things, to minimally support water, sewage and sanitation systems, in order to prevent the outbreak of epidemics that could spread throughout the entire area, harm both the residents of the Strip and our forces, and spread even into Israel."
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 17, 7:33 AM EST
Hostage negotiations are ongoing and fluid, sources say
Negotiations for a hostage deal with Hamas are still ongoing, Israeli and U.S. sources told ABC News on Friday.
The potential agreement would involve Hamas releasing a certain number of hostages in exchange for a pause in fighting of some length of time in the Gaza Strip. But many of the details are still up in the air, according to U.S. sources.
The discussions are intense and remain fluid, according to an Israeli source. A disagreement has unfolded inside Israel’s defense cabinet with some ministers wanting to accept a deal to free about 50 women and children, while other ministers want all of the women and children as well as their family members released -- about 80 hostages in total, ABC News has learned.
Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, took more than 200 people hostage -- including Americans -- while carrying out an unprecedented attack on neighboring Israel on Oct. 7, according to Israeli and U.S. authorities.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford and Matt Gutman
Nov 17, 5:46 AM EST
150,000 liters of fuel for hospitals reportedly entering Gaza
An additional 150,000 liters (40,000 gallons) of fuel will be delivered to the Gaza Strip on Friday, according to Egyptian media.
The fuel, which is earmarked for Gaza's hospitals, will enter the war-torn enclave from neighboring Egypt through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing, according to Egyptian state-allied television channel Al-Qahers News.
Al-Qahers News reported that "Egyptian pressure on all parties have succeeded in increasing the volume of aid" and "restoring the flow of fuel" to Gaza.
World Health Organization spokesperson Tarik Jašarević had said last month that 150,000 liters of fuel are required to offer basic services in Gaza's five main hospitals.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 16, 7:58 PM EST
Discussions over release of hostages remain fluid, source says
Many details remain up in the air regarding a deal to release the Hamas-held hostages in exchange for a pause in fighting in Gaza, according to U.S. officials.
One of the biggest sticking points is the number of hostages that will be released, according to an Israeli source.
Israel wants all the children, their mothers and all of their family members released, the source said. If you count just women and young children, that's about 50 hostages; if you add the family members, you get up to about 80 hostages, according to the source.
The discussions remain fluid, the source said.
It's too soon to tell if a deal will come together, but people participating in negotiations have yet to throw in the towel, the U.S. officials said.
Asked about the deal by "World News Tonight" anchor David Muir on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. is focused "intensely" on bringing hostages home.
"But having said that, honestly the less that I say the better at this moment because we don't want to jeopardize anything that we're doing to try to bring people home," he said. "I'm hopeful that we can bring people home."
-ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford and Matt Gutman
Nov 16, 6:32 PM EST
Discussions over release of hostages remain fluid, source says
Many details remain up in the air regarding a deal to release the Hamas-held hostages in exchange for a pause in fighting in Gaza, according to U.S. officials.
One of the biggest sticking points is the number of hostages that will be released, according to an Israeli source.
Israel wants all the children, their mothers and all of their family members released, the source said. If you count just women and young children, that's about 50 hostages; if you add the family members, you get up to about 80 hostages, according to the source.
The discussions remain fluid, the source said.
It's too soon to tell if a deal will come together, but people participating in negotiations have yet to throw in the towel, the U.S. officials said.
-ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford and Matt Gutman
Nov 16, 4:29 PM EST
State Department: 'Impossible' to safely evacuate patients from Al-Shifa Hospital
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller, who said earlier that the U.S. supported evacuating patients from Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital and was liaising with partners who could potentially carry that out, said Thursday the conditions in Gaza wouldn't allow for it.
"There are third parties that have expressed an interest to do so," he said, however, "it’s been impossible to ensure that they could move safely to conduct these evacuations."
He later specified that "the problem has been Hamas."
Miller again expressed confidence in U.S. intelligence supporting the assertion that Hamas was using Al-Shifa Hospital as cover for a command-and-control center.
Miller disagreed with the assertion that the evidence supplied by the Israel Defense Forces -- like weapons recovered from the hospital -- was not compelling.
“I saw a host of assault rifles," Miller said. "I’m not aware that there’s a sort of acceptable threshold level for assault rifles held in hospitals -- that’s not general humanitarian practice."
Miller later added, "It is an ongoing operation. I think people should wait until the operation is finished to draw their own conclusions.”
About 300 American citizens as well as approximately 600 legal, permanent U.S. residents and their eligible family members remain in Gaza, Miller said.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Nov 16, 2:07 PM EST
Body of 65-year-old hostage found near Al-Shifa Hospital, IDF says
The body of Yehudit Weiss, a 65-year-old woman who was abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7, was found at a "structure adjacent" to Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital, the Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement Thursday.
Her body was "extracted" and "transferred to Israeli territory," the IDF said.
"In the structure in which Yehudit was located, military equipment including Kalashnikov rifles and [rocket-propelled grenades] were also found," the IDF said.
"For us, it is too late," Weiss' daughter-in-law told The Times of Israel. "But it is important for us to support all the families of the hostages, and to tell the world -- bring them home now."
Nov 16, 1:19 PM EST
IDF says it found Hamas intelligence material, information on hostages at Al-Shifa Hospital
The Israel Defense Forces said it's still operating at Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital, searching the hospital floor-by-floor as doctors and patients remain sheltered inside.
The IDF said during its searches at the hospital forces have found Hamas intelligence material, weapons and information about the hostages.
Nov 16, 12:21 PM EST
Kirby says US 'still convinced of the soundness' of intelligence on Al-Shifa Hospital
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby reiterated that the U.S. is "still convinced of the soundness" of its intelligence that Hamas is using Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital as a command center.
"We have our own intelligence that convinces us that Hamas was using Al-Shifa as a command-and-control node, and most likely as well as a storage facility," Kirby said. "And they were sheltering themselves in a hospital, using the hospital as a shield against military action and placing the patients and medical staff at a greater risk. We are still convinced of the soundness of that intelligence."
ABC News' Molly Nagle
Nov 16, 12:11 PM EST
70% of people in southern Gaza have no clean water
Seventy percent of the population in southern Gaza had no access to clean water as of Wednesday, Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, told Al Jazeera.
He said raw sewage is "starting to flow in the streets," and if fuel isn't brought into Gaza soon, he warned, "We run the risk to have to suspend the entire humanitarian operation."
Nov 16, 11:54 AM EST
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, has passed the one-month mark.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured since Oct. 7, according to Israeli officials. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 11,320 people have been killed and another 29,200 have been injured, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel's call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself -- a right the United States endorses.
Nov 16, 10:53 AM EST
Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital 'a disaster,' doctor says
Dr. Sara Al Saqqa, a surgeon at Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital, fled the hospital complex several days ago "because everything was pretty horrific and terrifying," she told ABC News.
She said most of her colleagues and patients evacuated the hospital, where Israeli troops are carrying out a dayslong raid, but she said nearly 100 doctors remain there, along with more than 700 patients and thousands of people seeking refuge.
"The situation now is a disaster at Al-Shifa," she said. "Israeli occupational forces have invaded Shifa Hospital with their tanks and destroyed most of the medical equipment there. … They shot a lot of people and they arrested more."
The Israeli army alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the U.S. has intelligence that Hamas has used Gaza's hospitals, including Al-Shifa, to support its military operations and hold hostages.
Progress being made on deal to free at least 50 Hamas hostages: officials
The IDF's operations at the hospital are ongoing Thursday.
The Israelis said that they found explosives inside the medical complex, but Al Saqqa said the Israelis "didn't find the things that they are looking for because there is no military activity inside the hospital. And this is something that's obvious to all of us, the ones working there for several years."
Nov 16, 9:41 AM EST
Clashes intensify along Israel-Lebanon border amid fears of wider war
The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday that its "soldiers struck a terrorist cell in Lebanon that attempted to launch anti-tank missiles toward Israeli territory."
"In addition, terrorists attempted to carry out a number of launches toward the area of Misgav Am in northern Israel, as well as IDF posts in the areas of Metula and Yiftah," the IDF said in a statement. "No injuries were reported."
"In response, IDF soldiers are striking with artillery fire toward the sources of the launches," the IDF added.
In recent weeks, there have been continued exchanges between Israeli forces and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. Although the clashes remain within the notional 10-kilometer corridor along the shared border, they are now a daily occurrence and have intensified in recent days, which raises the potential for escalation as each side responds to the other's strikes.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has been walking a delicate line with regard to the group's response to the latest outbreak of war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. In remarks made a couple weeks ago, Nasrallah effectively distanced himself from Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel, saying it was wholly a Palestinian conceived, planned and undertaken operation. At the same time, he has pledged support to the Palestinians in their struggle amid Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip. He also said that Hezbollah had joined the fight against Israeli forces from Oct. 8 with strikes across the border, but ruled out a full-scale war at this time.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has been scrupulously issuing regular statements taking responsibility for strikes on northern Israel and providing precise details.
The types of ordinance used in these cross-border strikes are also ramping up. The Lebanese Armed Forces recently posted on their official Facebook page "general guidelines for avoiding the dangers of phosphorus munitions." Lebanon has repeatedly accused Israel of using incendiary and phosphorus munitions in their attacks.
But Hezbollah's leader made clear in his speech last Saturday that the group does not want a war with Israel right now. Acting Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati has indicated the same and has praised the patriotism and restraint of Hezbollah.
For now, there appears to be a slow-burn battle between Israel and Hezbollah but within the 10-kilometer corridor of the border and therefore contained. It's unclear how long that will last.
Nov 16, 8:52 AM EST
US 'hopeful' in securing release of remaining hostages, Kirby says
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told ABC News on Thursday that "there's still working going on, literally by the hour," to secure the release of the remaining hostages being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
"We've got folks on the ground. We've been talking to them, our negotiators are talking to their negotiators and we're working on this really, really hard," Kirby said during an interview on ABC News' Good Morning America.
"I don't have an announcement to make today," he added. "But, as the president said yesterday, we're hopeful that we can actually get a good result here."
Nov 16, 8:48 AM EST
US maintains Hamas is using Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital
During an interview Thursday on ABC News' Good Morning America, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby was asked whether Israel's raid on the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip was justified.
"Well, the raid, they're going in on the ground here. They're not bombing it," Kirby said. "They're going after the Hamas leadership that is there. This presents a real dilemma for them."
"Hamas is using that hospital as a command and control mode and as a way to store weapons, and even house their fighters. Israel has to do something about that threat," he continued. "But they also have an added burden of protecting the civilians, the medical staff, the doctors and the patients that are at that hospital. And they are trying hard to strike that balance."
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
Kirby told a press gaggle on Tuesday that the U.S. has intelligence that Hamas has used Gaza's hospitals, including Al-Shifa, to support its military operations and hold hostages.
Nov 16, 6:39 AM EST
IDF raid on Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital continues for second day
Israeli ground troops continued to carry out a raid on the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip for a second day.
A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces told ABC News that, as of 1 p.m. local time on Thursday, soldiers were still inside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, some 34 hours after launching the raid.
The IDF spokesperson also confirmed that they found explosives inside the medical complex.
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
Nov 15, 5:46 PM EST
Negotiations progressing in hostage release deal, officials say
Negotiations are progressing towards a U.S. and Qatari-brokered hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas, according to multiple officials in the U.S. and Israel.
The potential deal could see Hamas free dozens of Israeli hostages taken on Oct. 7 in exchange for Israel's release of jailed Palestinians and occur during a multi-day cease-fire in Gaza, the officials said.
The contours of that deal are still being worked out, including how many Israeli hostages would be released and how long a cease-fire would last.
Multiple officials in the U.S. and Israel told ABC News that the current figure is at least 50 Israeli hostages -- women, children and the elderly -- would be released, though the exact number is not yet final. This would likely take place in batches, with hostages released in exchange for a yet unspecified number of Palestinian women and minors held in Israeli jails, the officials said.
The cease-fire could last between three and seven days though the length is being negotiated and remains a sticking point, the officials said.
There would be other Israeli concessions as well, potentially including the delivery of fuel into Gaza, according to the officials.
Two U.S. officials told ABC News that an agreement seems to be within reach, but that multiple similar proposals have fallen apart just before reaching the finish line in recent weeks.
-ABC News' Matt Gutman, Jordana Miller and Shannon K. Crawford
Nov 15, 5:03 PM EST
1st fuel truck enters Gaza
A fuel truck crossed the Rafah border crossing from Egypt into Gaza on Wednesday, marking the first time fuel entered Gaza since Oct. 7, a spokesman for the Palestinian Crossings Authority said, according to The Associated Press.
Fuel has been drying up in Gaza as the war continued.
Smoke from shelling rises above the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Nov. 15, 2023.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine said their trucks -- which deliver aid from Egypt to Gaza -- ran out of fuel Tuesday.
In hospitals, a lack of fuel has prevented doctors for running incubators for babies.
And without fuel, many residents of Gaza have been trapped, unable to drive south toward the Egyptian border.
Nov 15, 3:39 PM EST
43 patients died in Al-Shifa Hospital as ICU oxygen ran out, doctor says
At Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital, 43 out of the 63 intensive care patients have died as oxygen in the intensive care unit runs out, according to Dr. Ahmed Mokhallalati, head of the hospital's plastic surgery department.
Mokhallalati told ABC News the mission of burying bodies is ongoing as more people die inside and outside the hospital.
Mokhallalati said he could still hear the Israeli tanks at the hospital gates Wednesday night.
Nov 15, 2:42 PM EST
Over half of Gaza's hospitals are non-functional: WHO
Twenty-two of Gaza's 36 hospitals are now "non-functional," the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
The "14 hospitals remaining open have barely enough supplies to sustain critical and lifesaving surgeries and provide inpatient care," the WHO warned.
The organization in a statement reiterated its calls for a cease-fire, protection of civilians and "respect for international humanitarian law."
Nov 15, 2:01 PM EST
Operation at Al-Shifa hospital complex ongoing, IDF says
The Israel Defense Forces said its operation at Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital complex is ongoing.
The IDF said its forces "engaged with" and killed "a number of terrorists" when entering the hospital complex.
Following searches in the hospital, the IDF said its troops "located a room with technological assets, along with military and combat equipment used by the Hamas terrorist organization."
Palestinian journalist Khadr al Zanoon, who is at the hospital, told ABC News no fighting has taken place inside, but he can hear tanks outside.
He said Hamas fighters are not in the hospital but are in the area around it and are fighting with Israeli forces.
He said Israeli forces have detained some Palestinians who were inside the hospital.
The raid on Al-Shifa Hospital began early Wednesday around 3 a.m. local time, after Israeli forces had moved closer to the medical complex for several days.
Thousands of civilians, along with hundreds of patients -- most of whom are seriously ill -- have been sheltering at Al-Shifa, according to hospital staff and Gaza health officials.
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
Nov 15, 12:46 PM EST
Kirby says US did not give 'OK' on Israel's hospital operation
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby on Wednesday denied that the U.S. gave any "OK" for the Israeli operation at Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital.
"These are Israeli military operations that they plan and they execute on, you know, in accordance with their own established procedures, that the United States is not, was not, involved in," Kirby said.
He also denied that the U.S. confirming intelligence that Hamas uses the hospital as a control center had anything to do with the timing of the Israeli military operation at the hospital, which began only hours after Kirby's announcement.
Kirby also said Israel's hospital operation was "not a focus" of President Joe Biden's Tuesday night conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and would not say if the U.S. got a heads up about the operation.
"Again, we don't expect the Israelis to advise us or inform us when they are going to conduct operations," Kirby said. "We talked to them routinely every day, and certainly we talked to them about our continued concerns over civilian casualties and sharing our perspectives on the best way to minimize, but these are their operations."
ABC News' Sarah Kolinovsky
Nov 15, 12:12 PM EST
Israeli forces have left Al-Shifa hospital complex, hospital director says
The director of Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital said Israeli forces have now left the hospital complex following an hourslong raid, but said "tanks and forces are completely stationed in its surroundings."
The raid on Al-Shifa Hospital began early Wednesday around 3 a.m. local time, after Israeli forces had moved closer to the medical complex for several days.
Thousands of civilians, along with hundreds of patients -- most of whom are seriously ill -- have been sheltering at Al-Shifa, according to hospital staff and Gaza health officials.
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims that the militant group denies.
Nov 15, 10:01 AM EST
Al-Shifa Hospital doctor describes Israeli raid: 'They told us no one should look through the windows'
As Israeli ground forces continue to carry out an hour-long raid on the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, staff there told ABC News that none of the patients have been moved out.
There are about 600 patients admitted to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, many of whom are seriously ill or wounded. Thousands of other people have been sheltering in the vast medical complex amid Israel's bombardment of the area.
Speaking to ABC News via telephone from inside the hospital, Dr. Ahmed Mokhallalati described the moment Israeli troops arrived at the complex before dawn on Wednesday.
"They told us no one should look through the windows," said Mokhallalati, who is the head of the hospital's plastic surgery department.
"The whole situation is really horrible," he added. "They are just scaring everyone here."
ABC News' Dragana Jovanovic
Nov 15, 8:06 AM EST
IDF suggests it has not yet encountered Hamas fighters inside Al-Shifa Hospital
A senior Israeli defense official said Wednesday that so far Israeli troops have not engaged in combat inside Al-Shifa Hospital itself and suggested they have not yet encountered Hamas fighters within the vast medical complex, the largest in the Gaza Strip.
However, the Israel Defense Forces' ground operation at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City is ongoing and they have allegedly found evidence -- specifically weapons -- that Hamas, the militant group that rules the strip, is operating inside there, according to the official. More details will be revealed later Wednesday, the official said.
Hamas has since released a statement calling Israel's claim that it found weapons inside Al-Shifa Hospital "a blatant lie."
The senior Israeli defense official told reporters that Israeli soldiers went into Al-Shifa Hospital to destroy Hamas infrastructure, not to go after Hamas leaders.
The official noted that four Hamas fighters were killed near the medical complex as Israeli troops approached, but said they are still investigating if they came from inside the hospital.
The official said Israeli forces are currently operating only in "one area" of the hospital but warned that they will enter other areas as needed. The IDF has "no intention" of sending its soldiers to fight "among the patients or the active personnel of the hospital," according to the official.
The official told reporters that the hospital's youngest patients -- dozens of premature babies -- are in a building of the complex not where Israeli troops are currently operating. Israeli soldiers delivered incubators and baby food at the front gate of the hospital in hopes that the staff there would take them, according to the official.
The official declined to say where exactly Israeli forces were operating within the complex, citing operational security.
Al-Shifa Hospital was designed by Israeli architects decades ago and the IDF knows its layout well.
Nov 15, 5:50 AM EST
UN official 'appalled' by Israeli raid on Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital
The head of the United Nations' humanitarian relief operations condemned on Wednesday the Israeli military’s ongoing raid on the Gaza Strip's largest hospital, saying he is “appalled” by the reports of the operations.
"I'm appalled by reports of military raids in Al Shifa hospital in #Gaza. The protection of newborns, patients, medical staff and all civilians must override all other concerns. Hospitals are not battlegrounds," U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Nov 15, 5:23 AM EST
IDF continues hourslong raid on Gaza's Al-Shifa Hospital
The Israel Defense Forces said Wednesday morning that its ground troops are continuing to carry out "a precise and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area" of the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip.
"The activity in this specified area is based on operational necessities, as well as intelligence information that indicates Hamas terrorist activity is being directed from the area," the IDF said in a statement. "Prior to their entry, the IDF troops encountered explosive devices and terrorist cells, and an engagement began in which terrorists were killed."
The raid on Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City began after midnight local time, after Israeli forces had moved closer to the medical complex for several days. Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health said gunfire was heard on the hospital grounds and Israeli troops entered through the main building and the emergency department.
Thousands of civilians, along with hundreds of patients -- most of whom are seriously ill -- have been sheltering at Al-Shifa, according to hospital staff and Gaza health officials.
The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers under Al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims which the militant group denies.
The IDF said Wednesday that its troops "are conducting searches for Hamas terror infrastructure and weapons" at Al-Shifa Hospital. They also "delivered humanitarian aid to the entrance of the hospital," according to the IDF.
Doctors at Al-Shifa Hospital have been warning of its imminent collapse due to a lack of electricity as well as limited fuel and medical supplies.
Nov 14, 7:19 PM EST
IDF says it's carrying out 'targeted operation' in Al-Shifa Hospital
The Israel Defense Forces said they are carrying out a "precise and targeted operation against Hamas" in an area in the Al-Shifa Hospital.
"The IDF forces include medical teams and Arabic speakers, who have undergone specified training to prepare for this complex and sensitive environment, with the intent that no harm is caused to the civilians being used by Hamas as human shields," IDF said in a statement.
IDF called upon Hamas militants in the hospital to surrender.
The operation comes after IDF called for military activities in the hospital to "cease within 12 hours," IDF said, adding: "Unfortunately, it did not."
Nov 14, 6:35 PM EST
IDF says it will storm Al-Shifa Hospital soon, Gaza Health Ministry says
The Israel Defense Forces have informed the Gaza Health Ministry that they will storm the Al-Shifa Hospital in several minutes, Dr. Ashraf al Qadra, spokesman of the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, said on Al-Jazeera TV.
-ABC News' Nasser Atta
Nov 14, 5:53 PM EST
State Department grappling with dissent over US handling of conflict: Sources
State Department employees have sent multiple internal communications in recent days expressing concerns over the administration’s approach to the Israel-Hamas war, including at least one dissent cable, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The dissent channel is a system that allows diplomats to confidentially register their opposition to specific policies with department leadership, but employees can also formally express their disagreement to high-level officials through other avenues.
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller confirmed Tuesday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent a department-wide email on Monday where he noted the tensions and different views among employees.
"He did address in that email...all the issues underlying our policy and made clear people understood what our policy is, just as he has done in meetings he’s had with a number of employees in the department," Miller told reporters.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Nov 14, 4:29 PM EST
Nearly 1,000 Americans and family members still possibly waiting to leave Gaza: State Department
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Tuesday that just under 1,000 Americans and their family members may be waiting to leave Gaza, as hundreds have left so far through the Rafah border crossing.
"There are now over 600 American citizens and lawful permanent residents and their family members who have departed Gaza through Rafah gate," Miller said during a briefing. "There are a little under 1,000 that we know of that are left now whose departure we hope to facilitate over the coming days should they wish to depart."
The number of eligible individuals who may be looking to leave the enclave is higher than previously anticipated, based on previous State Department figures. Before the Rafah gate opened to outbound traffic, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said some 400 Americans and roughly 600 of their eligible family members were in contact with the department about leaving Gaza.
-ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford
Nov 14, 4:11 PM EST
Israel claims Hamas has 'lost control of Northern Gaza'
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said during a briefing Tuesday that "Hamas has lost control of Northern Gaza."
"We control Northern Gaza, especially Gaza City," Gallant said.
Gallant said the Israel Defense Forces have uncovered 500 tunnels, including in schools, mosques and hospitals, as it seeks to remove Hamas' leadership and military from Gaza.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 14, 2:56 PM EST
Breakthrough in hostage deal could come in next 48-72 hours: Israeli source
A senior Israeli political source said Tuesday that progress has been made on a hostage deal and a breakthrough could come in the next 48-72 hours.
The Israeli War Cabinet is meeting Tuesday night to discuss the deal, the source said.
Israeli officials have said as many as 239 Israelis are being held captive by Hamas in Gaza.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller
Nov 14, 2:55 PM EST
US intelligence shows Hamas using hospitals to support military operations, hold hostages: Kirby
The U.S. has intelligence that shows Hamas has used hospitals in Gaza to support its military operations and hold hostages, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby confirmed Tuesday.
"I can confirm for you that we have information that Hamas, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, used some hospitals in the Gaza Strip -- including Al-Shifa -- and tunnels underneath them to conceal and to support their military operations and to hold hostages," Kirby said during a gaggle on Air Force One.
Kirby said Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad operate a command and control node from Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City where "they have stored weapons there, and they're prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against that facility."
Kirby said the information comes from a "variety" of intelligence sourcing.
He cautioned again that these actions by Hamas "do not lessen Israel's responsibilities to protect civilians in Gaza."
"This is something that we obviously are going to continue to have an active conversation with our counterparts about," he said.
During a Pentagon briefing Tuesday, deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh described the information as an independent U.S. intelligence assessment and "newly downgraded information that we felt was important to get out today because there have been a lot of questions about the hospital and how Hamas operates."
Singh did not go into specifics on the intel but said "we feel very confident in our sourcing and what the intelligence community has gathered on this topic."
-ABC News' Justin Gomez and Luis Martinez
Nov 14, 2:42 PM EST
Fuel shortage stalls aid deliveries from Egypt into Gaza Strip, official says
A fuel shortage has stalled aid deliveries from Egypt into the Gaza Strip, a Rafah border crossing official told ABC News on Tuesday.
"No aid got in today because [the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees] trucks have no fuel," Wael Abu Omar, the Palestinian spokesman for the Rafah border crossing, said.
The UNRWA, which is responsible for receiving and distributing humanitarian aid coming from Egypt in Gaza, said Monday its trucks ran out of fuel and it would not be able to to receive aid coming through Rafah on Tuesday.
Tuesday marks the first day no aid trucks crossed into Gaza through Egypt since Oct. 21 amid the war.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said it received the last convoy of trucks from Egypt on Monday, including 155 trucks, following the UNRWA's announcement.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 14, 12:28 PM EST
Mass grave dug inside Al-Shifa Hospital, official says
A mass grave has been dug inside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza to bury dozens of corpses after Israeli forces banned the Red Cross from collecting the bodies, according to Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, the director general of the Palestinian Health Ministry.
"There are approximately 100 corpses lying on the hospital courtyard that have rotted and decomposed," Al-Bursh told Al-Hadath TV on Tuesday, speaking from inside the hospital, the largest in Gaza. "We are walking on worms and we fear there will be an epidemic."
Medical staff and people sheltering inside the medical complex have dug a "large hole" to bury the dead bodies, he said. Dozens of other bodies stored in refrigerators at the facility will also be buried in the mass grave, he said.
"Israel tanks are at the gates of the hospital and we are burying bodies under gunfire and with tanks around," Al-Bursh said.
The hospital ceased to function on Saturday after it ran out of fuel, and staff and health ministry officials inside say the facility has been under siege by Israeli forces for five days, with drones and snipers firing into it.
"We are trying to dig a mass grave to bury the martyrs inside Al-Shifa Hospital. Our efforts to remove the bodies of the martyrs from Al-Shifa complex have failed," said Dr. Youssef Abu Al-Rish, undersecretary of the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.
Israeli officials have said Hamas is operating a command center from under the hospital, something denied by Hamas.
-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy and Morgan Winsor
Nov 14, 11:31 AM EST
Humanitarian corridor in Gaza is less than 1.5 miles long, Israeli officer says
One of two humanitarian corridors that the Israeli military has temporarily opened in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday is less than 1.5 miles long, according to an executive officer of an Israeli battalion in charge of the route.
The officer told ABC News that the corridor is a 2-kilometer stretch of Salah al-Din, the main highway connecting the north and south of Gaza. He said his troops have come under sniper fire and that "there were casualties."
The Israeli military has distributed leaflets directing civilians in the north to routes that take them to the corridors, offering safe passage to evacuate to the south of the war-torn enclave within a designated window of time on Tuesday.
ABC News' Matt Gutman, Becky Perlow and Juan Rentaria
Nov 14, 7:53 AM EST
IDF says it's offered to transfer incubators to Gaza
The Israel Defense Forces announced Tuesday morning that it "is in the process of coordinating the transfer of incubators from a hospital in Israel to Gaza."
"We are doing everything we can to minimize harm to civilians, assist in evacuation, and facilitate the transfer of medical supplies and food," the IDF wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "Our war is not with the people of Gaza."
It was unknown whether the process to transfer incubators was underway and there was no confirmation of Israel's offer from health officials or medical staff in the Gaza Strip. It was also unclear how the incubators would be powered at Gaza's hospitals with little to no electricity and fuel.
The announcement came amid worldwide calls to save dozens of premature newborn babies at Gaza's second-largest hospital.
Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City had been struggling to run with limited fuel for days as doctors warn of its imminent collapse. On Friday, fighting in the area intensified and a strike hit the courtyard outside the hospital.
Three of the 39 babies that were being cared for in Al-Shifa's neonatal unit have died since their incubators stopped working on Saturday, according to the hospital's head of plastic surgery, Dr. Ahmed Mokhallalati. The hospital staff has been trying their best to look after them, swaddling them and using what power is left to heat the room they are in.
In recent days, several hospitals across Gaza said they have been under attack as heavy fighting occurs between Israeli troops and the militant group that rules the enclave, Hamas. The IDF alleges that Hamas has placed its command centers in tunnels under hospitals in Gaza and is deliberately sheltering behind Palestinian civilians -- claims which the group denies.
Nov 14, 5:11 AM EST
IDF announces two evacuation corridors open in Gaza on Tuesday
The Israel Defense Forces announced Tuesday the temporary opening of evacuation corridors in the war-torn Gaza Strip to allow more people in the north of the Hamas-run enclave to move south.
A "safe passage" will be open "for humanitarian purposes" via the Salah al-Din highway toward the area south of Wadi Gaza on Tuesday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. local time, according to the IDF.
The IDF said it will also temporarily suspend military activities "for humanitarian purposes" in the neighborhoods of Al-Daraj and Al-Tuffah on Tuesday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. local time.
"Please, for your safety, join the hundreds of thousands of residents who have moved south in recent days," the IDF said in a statement. "We encourage you to seize the time and move south!"
The IDF also urged Gaza residents to "not surrender to Hamas," alleging that the militant group "has lost control over the northern Gaza Strip area and is trying to do everything it can to prevent you from moving south and protect yourselves."
Nov 13, 8:36 PM EST
Israel claims to have evidence of Hamas headquarters at hospital
Israeli military officials brought several journalists, including ABC's Matt Gutman, into the Al-Rantisi Hospital inside Gaza, which had been hit with artillery.
The hospital, Gaza's sole children's hospital, was allegedly a Hamas command center, Israel’s chief military spokesperson Daniel Hagari, who led the tour, claimed.
The hospital was surrounded by Israeli tanks from Thursday into Friday, the director of Al-Rantisi Children’s Hospital said on Friday.
Inside the basement of the hospital, which officials said has been evacuated, were abandoned AK-47s, grenades and what Hagari said were suicide vests. In another room of the basement was a chair where Hagari claims a hostage was kept.
The spokesperson said the Israeli military was set to detonate the grenades and vests they claim they found inside and a forensic team was going to probe the hospital for more evidence.
The tour came after the hospital's resources deteriorated due to nearby attacks, according to UNICEF.
The hospital’s operations almost ceased between Thursday and Friday, according to UNICEF.
By Friday, Al-Rantisi Hospital had only a small generator powering the intensive care and neonatal intensive care units, UNICEF said.
