Friday marks the seventh day since the start of the Israel–Hamas war. At least 2,800 lives on both sides of the border have been taken since the Hamas terrorist group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
The Israeli military said early Friday that more than 1,300 people, including 222 soldiers, have been killed in Israel, and more than 3,000 have been injured.
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-backed health ministry reported late Thursday that 1,500 have been killed in Gaza, with over 6,600 injured, due to Israeli precision airstrikes on Hamas targets in Gaza in response to Hamas’s attack. Israel has estimated that hundreds of Hamas terrorists are among the deaths in Gaza.
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Jill Biden Exchanges Letters With Sara Netanyahu Amid Israel–Hamas War
First Lady Jill Biden and Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, exchanged heartfelt letters expressing their solidarity and support amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group.The office of the Israeli Prime Minister made the letters available to the public, describing them as “personal and moving.”
In a letter addressed to Ms. Netanyahu, the first lady expressed her deep concern for the people of Israel in the face of what she described as an “unconscionable terrorist attack.”
The conflict, which has seen over 2,800 deaths reported on both sides of the conflict, has evoked heartfelt empathy from the first lady.
Asian Nationals Evacuate From Israel
A South Korean military plane evacuating 220 South Korean and other Asian nationals from Israel has departed Tel Aviv and was expected to land in South Korea later Saturday, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said.The people transported on the KC-330 military transport plane included 163 South Koreans, 51 Japanese nationals and six Singaporean nationals, the ministry said.
South Korea had also sent a civilian plane earlier this week to evacuate 192 South Korean nationals. About 470 South Koreans remain in Israel, most of them long-term residents who have chosen to stay.
No South Korean casualties have so far been reported from the violence in Israel and Gaza.
16 Palestinians Killed in West Bank, Health Ministry Says
The Palestinian Health Ministry reported 16 Palestinians killed Friday in the West Bank, bringing to 51 the total number of West Bank Palestinians killed since Hamas waged its brutal assault on Israel last Saturday.Relatives of Abducted Israelis Plead for World’s Help
Relatives of Israelis abducted during Hamas terrorists’ attack last weekend pleaded at the U.N. on Friday for the world’s help getting their loved ones home.Speaking by video from Israel, Yoni Asher told diplomats at an Israel-organized event that he hasn’t slept or eaten since his wife and two small daughters vanished Saturday while visiting his mother-in-law in the country’s south.
His wife called to tell him that they were locked in a safe room after people came into the house and she heard gunshots, Asher said. He said he later saw a video of his wife and daughters, who are under 5 and 3, being loaded into a vehicle, and he tracked his wife’s phone to Gaza.
“I don’t know if I got any more tears left,” he said. “I’m exhausted, and I just want to approach whoever can hear me in the international community. Please bring back my baby girls.”
Hamas fighters took 150 hostages during Saturday’s surprise assault. Alana Zeitchik said a half-dozen of her cousins were snatched from a kibbutz. They were known to be alive as of Friday morning, she said.
“We don’t want more bombs or rockets or blood or tears,” said Ms. Zeitchik, who lives in New York. “We want our family back immediately. And we want peace.”
Biden Says Addressing Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza Is a Priority
President Joe Biden said Friday that it’s a priority of his administration to address the unfolding humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.Speaking at an event in Philadelphia to promote a $7 billion program to kickstart development and production of hydrogen fuel in the U.S., Mr. Biden paused to note the deteriorating situation for Palestinians as Israel continues to bombard the strip in retaliation for last weekend’s attacks on Israel.
Mr. Biden said he’s directed his team to work with the governments in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and other Arab nations and the United Nations to surge humanitarian relief to those impacted by the war.
“We can’t lose sight of the fact that the overwhelming majority of Palestinians had nothing to do Hamas,” Mr. Biden said. “And they’re suffering as a result as well.”
Mr. Biden again lashed out at Hamas, saying the militant group in control of Gaza makes the terrorist group Al-Qaida “look pure.”
UN Security Council Meeting Behind Closed Doors
The U.N. Security Council met behind closed doors on Friday to discuss the Israel-Hamas war as Palestinians stream out of northern Gaza on orders from the Israeli military.Friday’s meeting was scheduled before the evacuation order, which added still more urgency to the discussion. The U.N. has said the order affects about half Gaza’s population and could turn an already dire humanitarian crisis into a calamity.
“Moving more than 1 million people across a densely populated war zone to a place with no food, water, or accommodation, when the entire territory is under siege, is extremely dangerous—and, in some cases, is simply not possible,” Secretary-General António Guterres said, heading into the meeting.
He implored all parties “and those with influence over them” to do their utmost to enable humanitarian access to the besieged Gaza Strip, to release all hostages immediately and to protect civilians.
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Netanyahu Vows to Destroy Hamas, Says Gaza Offensive in Early Stages
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to destroy Hamas as the army prepares for an expected ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.Mr. Netanyahu delivered the threat in a nationally televised address late Friday.
Israel has been pounding Gaza with airstrikes since Hamas terrorists carried out an unprecedented cross-border attack last Saturday, killing over 1,300 people in a brutal rampage. Early Friday, Israel ordered half of Gaza’s population to evacuate their homes.
“This is just the beginning,” Mr. Netanyahu said. “We will end this war stronger than ever.”
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Reuters Journalist Killed, 6 Wounded, in Shelling Near Israel-Lebanon Border
At least one journalist was killed, and six others were injured when Israel Defense Forces (IDF) artillery shells struck a gathering of international journalists covering clashes on the Israel-Lebanon border.The Reuters news agency confirmed in a statement on Friday that the reporter who died was Issam Abdallah, a videographer who was working for the agency in southern Lebanon to provide a live video signal.
“We are deeply saddened to tell you that our videographer, Issam Abdallah, has been killed,” Reuters said. “We are urgently seeking more information, working with authorities in the region, and supporting Issam’s family and colleagues,” it added.
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Syria Calls on World to Stop Israel’s ‘Crimes’ Against Palestinians
Syria’s president on Friday called on countries of the world to stand together to stop “the crimes that Israel is committing against the Palestinian people.”Bashar Assad made his comments during a meeting in Damascus with Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who is on a regional tour that has taken him to Baghdad and Beirut.
Mr. Assad said the reason behind the latest wave of violence is that the Palestinian people have been prevented by Israel and Western countries from setting up their own state.
Mr. Assad said Syria stands by the “legitimate” rights of the Palestinian people.
Mr. Amirabdollahian later told reporters that Israel should stop the “war crimes it is committing before it’s too late.”
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Pro-Palestinian Students Briefly Clash With Police at Rally in Rome
A few hundred pro-Palestinian students clashed briefly with police in Rome on Friday as they tried to detour from a rally route that had been approved by authorities.____
Schumer Leading Bipartisan Group of Senators to Israel to Show ‘Unwavering’ US Support
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is headed to Israel this weekend to discuss what resources the United States can provide for its war against Hamas.Mr. Schumer (D-N.Y.) is leading a bipartisan group of senators to the country “to show the United States’ unwavering support for Israel,” his office said. Mr. Schumer is the first Jewish majority leader of the Senate and the highest-ranking Jewish elected official in the United States.
The visit comes as Congress is considering how much money and equipment to send to Israel and as two other high-ranking officials, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretry Lloyd Austin, have visited in recent days.
Mr. Schumer’s office said he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and senior opposition figure Benny Gantz, who are part of a newly formed wartime cabinet in Israel. His office has not released the names of the senators who will be traveling with him.
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Israeli Military Launches Drone at Hezbollah Targets
The Israeli military has announced that an Israeli drone is currently striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.____
Israeli Military Says It Has Carried Out Small Raids Into Gaza Strip
The Israeli military says for the first time that ground troops have been operating inside the Gaza Strip.In a statement Friday, the army said troops had entered Gaza to battle terrorists, destroy weapons, and search for evidence about the missing hostages held by Hamas.
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White House Meets Virtually With Families of Missing Americans
The White House hosted a virtual conversation on Friday with family members of 14 Americans who are unaccounted for after the Hamas attacks on Israel.____
Israel Military Denies Allegations It Used White Phosphorus in Gaza
The Israeli military denied accusations Friday that it has used white phosphorus as a weapon in Gaza, after Human Rights Watch published a report alleging that Israel had deployed it several times in the recent Israel–Hamas war.“The current accusation made against the IDF is unequivocally false,” a statement from the military said. “The IDF has not deployed the use of such munitions.”
UN Security Council to Discuss Israel–Hamas War on Friday
The U.N. Security Council is set to meet behind closed doors Friday afternoon to discuss the Israel–Hamas war as Palestinians stream out of northern Gaza on orders from the Israeli military.Friday’s council meeting was scheduled before the evacuation order was issued and added still more urgency to the discussion. The U.N. has said the order affects 1.1 million people, about half of Gaza’s population, and could turn an already dire humanitarian crisis into a calamity.
The council emerged without any collective message or action from another closed-door meeting Sunday on the Israel-Hamas fighting. At that meeting, the United States pressed unsuccessfully for a strong condemnation of Hamas from all 15 members of the U.N.’s most powerful body, where divisions have sharpened amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Egypt Calls on UN Security Council to Stop Evacuation in Gaza
In a statement Friday, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli army’s decision to tell some 1 million people in Gaza to evacuate toward the southern part of the besieged territory.It said the move “constitutes a grave violation of the rules of international humanitarian law, and will expose the lives of more than a million Palestinian citizens and their families to the dangers of remaining in the open without shelter.”
The evacuation order comes ahead of an expected ground invasion, hiking fears of a massive influx of refugees across the heavily fortified border into its territory.
In the statement, Egypt called on the United Nations Security Council, which is scheduled to meet Friday, to stop the evacuation.
Evacuating Northern Gaza in 24 Hours Is ‘A Tall Order,’ White House Official Says
Warnings from Israel’s military that more than 1.1 million civilians in northern Gaza should evacuate “southwards” in the next 24 hours are a “tall order,” National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby said, while avoiding criticism of the Israeli Defense Forces.“We understand what they’re trying to do: They’re trying to move civilians out of harm’s way and giving them fair warning. Now it’s a tall order. It’s a million people and very urban, dense environment. It’s already a combat zone. So I don’t think anybody’s underestimating the challenge here of effecting that evacuation,” Mr. Kirby told CNN Friday.
The UN said the order for the mass evacuation was “impossible” without major humanitarian consequences.
US Defense Secretary: ‘This Is No Time for Neutrality, or for False Equivalence’
A forceful U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin pledged unwavering U.S. support to Israel in the wake of the deadly Hamas attack, stressing that “this is no time for neutrality, or for false equivalence or for excuses for the inexcusable.”“In times like these, sometimes the best thing that a friend can do is just to show up and to get to work,” said Mr. Austin emphatically offering full U.S. support to Israel at a joint news conference.
The defense secretary, who is traveling to Israel today, offered a soft reminder to the Israelis that “this is a time for resolve and not revenge” as the IDF is under scrutiny for causing civilian casualties in Gaza in response to the Hamas attack.
Gaza Death Toll Rises to 1,799, Health Ministry Says
At least 1,799 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza from Israeli strikes, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.The death toll includes 583 children and 351 women, according to the ministry.
An additional 7,388 people have been injured, including 1,901 children and 1,185 women, the ministry added.
Abbas Says Displacement of Palestinians Would Amount to ‘Second Nakba’
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is currently in Jordan, emphasized his “complete rejection” of displacing people from Gaza, saying it would amount to a “second Nakba,” or catastrophe. That’s the term Palestinians use to describe their mass displacement from what is now Israel during the 1948 Mideast war surrounding its creation, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven out.The fate of the refugees and their descendants, who now number nearly 6 million and are scattered across the Middle East, is one of the thorniest issues in the conflict.
Hamas Says It’s Launched 150 Rockets Toward Ashkelon and Sderot
A Hamas official said Friday that Hamas had launched 150 rockets toward the southern cities of Ashkelon and Sderot. Israel’s rescue service reported no major injuries.Biden to Speak With Families of US Hostages Held by Hamas
U.S. President Joe Biden told CBS’ “60 Minutes” that he would speak Friday to families of U.S. hostages held by Hamas.“They have to know that the president of the United States of America cares deeply about what’s happening. Deeply,” President Biden said. “We have to communicate to the world this is critical. This is not even human behavior. It’s pure barbarism. And we’re going to do everything in our power to get them home if we can find them.”
The meeting is expected to take place virtually.
Israel Urges Civilians to Flee Gaza City and Move South
Israel’s military early Friday called for all civilians of Gaza City—more than 1 million people—to relocate south within 24 hours.
The Israeli military said it would operate “significantly” in Gaza City in the coming days as part of its full military retaliation against Hamas, and civilians would only be able to return when another announcement was made.
“Civilians of Gaza City, evacuate south for your own safety and the safety of your families and distance yourself from Hamas terrorists who are using you as human shields,” the military said in a statement.
“Hamas terrorists are hiding in Gaza City inside tunnels underneath houses and inside buildings populated with innocent Gazan civilians.”
IDF spokesman Jonathan Conricus said in a military operations update Friday morning that the Israeli military’s intention “is to take all of Hamas’s military capabilities and strip them away.”
“Our intention is that Hamas will no longer have any ability to strike harm kill any Israeli civilians,” he said.
Hamas Tells Gaza Residents to Stay Home as Israel Ground Offensive Looms
Mosques called on residents of the Gaza Strip not to leave their homes on Friday after Israel’s military told all civilians, more than 1 million people, to relocate south ahead of an expected ground invasion that risks high casualties.
This may be the pivotal moment in fighting between the Israeli military and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, which on Saturday launched the bloodiest attack on the country since the 1973 Arab–Israeli war.
As a ground invasion appears imminent, with Israeli tanks amassed near the border, both sides are engaging in psychological warfare.
“Civilians of Gaza City, evacuate south for your own safety and the safety of your families and distance yourself from Hamas terrorists who are using you as human shields,” the military said.
Eyad Al-Bozom, spokesman for the Hamas Interior Ministry, urged Arabs everywhere, and especially in countries that have borders with Israel, to support the people of Gaza.
“We tell the people of northern Gaza and from Gaza City, stay put in your homes, and your places. By carrying out massacres against the civilians, the occupation wants to displace us once again from our land,” he said.
“The 1948 displacement will not happen. We will die and we will not leave,” he said at a news conference held in Shifa hospital in Gaza City.
Hezbollah Legislator Says They Have Maintained Deterrence With Israel Despite Clashes
Hezbollah legislator Hassan Fadlallah said that the deterrence between the terrorist group and Israel has been maintained since a month-long war in 2006 that ended in a draw, despite clashes over the past week.
Mr. Fadlallah’s comments came minutes after Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian held separate meetings with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and key ally Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Lebanon’s caretaker Information Minister Ziad Makari said the Lebanese government is committed to supporting the Palestinians in Gaza but maintaining calm along the southern border with Israel to avoid a new war.
“At the same time, the government will study the possibility of being ready for—God forbid—a deterioration of the situation,” Mr. Makari said.
Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged shelling since Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel almost one week ago, but the clashes have remained limited and contained thus far.
Israeli Military Denies Killing Hostages Held by Hamas
Top Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari denied that they have killed hostages held by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.“We have our own information and do not believe the lies of Hamas. We have verified information that reaches us,” Mr. Hagari said in an interview on Al Jazeera Arabic television. He denied that Israel has targeted civilian infrastructure, saying Hamas used hospitals and United Nations buildings as command centers by digging tunnels.
Putin: Civilian Toll From Israeli Ground Attack in Gaza Would Be Unacceptable
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday an Israeli ground offensive in Gaza would result in a level of civilian casualties that would be “absolutely unacceptable.”
Mr. Putin was speaking after Israel’s military called for all civilians of Gaza City to relocate south within 24 hours, as it amassed tanks ahead of an expected ground invasion.
Mr. Putin said that using heavy weaponry in residential areas was “fraught with serious consequences for all sides.”
“And most importantly, the civilian casualties will be absolutely unacceptable. Now the main thing is to stop the bloodshed,” he said, speaking at a summit in Kyrgyzstan with other countries that were once part of the Soviet Union.
Mr. Putin said, however, that Israel had the right to defend itself after being subjected to “an attack unprecedented in its cruelty.”
He called for collective efforts to secure an early ceasefire and stabilize the situation on the ground.
Israel Says ‘Deeply Disappointed’ Over Lack of China Condemnation of Hamas Attack
Israel’s foreign ministry on Friday said it expressed “deep disappointment” in a call with the Chinese envoy to the Middle East over China’s lack of condemnation of Hamas’s weekend attack.“The ambassador expressed Israel’s deep disappointment with Chinese announcements and statements about the recent events in the south, where there was no clear and unequivocal condemnation of the terrible massacre committed by the terrorist organization Hamas against innocent civilians and the abduction of dozens of them to Gaza,” the statement said.
US Secretary of State Blinken Meets Jordanian King in Amman
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday met with Jordanian King Abdullah in Amman, the second stop of his most extensive Middle East tour yet as Israel prepares for a sweeping ground offensive in Gaza, and he urged people in Gaza city to evacuate to the south.
His demand, which the United Nations said would be impossible to carry out “without devastating humanitarian consequences,” comes a day after Mr. Blinken visited Israel and held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the conflict.
U.S. President Joe Biden dispatched his top diplomat to the region, engulfed in its most serious escalation in years.
Hamas Armed Wing Says 13 Captives Killed in Israeli Strikes on Gaza in Last 24 Hours
Hamas armed wing Al Qassam Brigades said in a statement that 13 captives were killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza in the last 24 hours.The statement said six of the hostages were killed in strikes on two separate locations in the Northern district and seven more died in strikes that hit three locations in the Gaza district.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Warns War Could Spread if Israeli Bombardment of Gaza Continues
Iran’s foreign minister warned Friday that if Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip don’t stop immediately, the violence could spread to other parts of the Middle East.
Hossein Amirabdollahian is on a tour that took him to Baghdad before Beirut, and later in the day he is scheduled to travel to the Syrian capital, Damascus. Iran heads the so-called “axis of resistance” that includes powerful terrorist groups in the region, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq.
Mr. Amirabdollahian spoke to reporters in Beirut after a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart, during which the two officials called for an end to Israel’s attacks on Gaza. He also met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the speaker of Parliament.
He warned that “if these organized war crimes that are committed by the Zionist entity don’t stop immediately, then we can imagine any possibility.” He did not elaborate but it was an apparent hint that Iran-backed groups could join the war.
After meeting Mr. Mikati, Mr. Amirabdollahian said the aim of his visit to Beirut is to preserve security in Lebanon amid regional tensions. “What is important for us is security in Lebanon and how to preserve calm,” Mr. Amirabdollahian said.
Israeli Embassy Staffer Assaulted in Beijing: Israel Foreign Ministry
A staffer at the Israeli embassy in Beijing was assaulted on Friday, Israel’s foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that the person was in a stable condition and is being treated in hospital.The attack did not happen within the embassy compound itself, the statement said, which is just one embassy over from that of the United States and in an area with a number of other embassies and a heavy police presence.
An investigation into the attack is underway, the statement said.
Israelis Describe Hellish Scenes in Communities Attacked by Hamas
An Israeli emergency responder with two decades of experience in recovering bodies said he found it difficult to deal with what he witnessed in communities ravaged by the onslaught of Hamas terrorists, a picture that could only be described as hellish.
“Do you want me to tell you about the hardest sights? Bodies of babies tied up,” Mendy Haviv, a commander of non-governmental rescue and recovery organization ZAKA, told Epoch Israel.
Mr. Haviv and his ZAKA volunteers entered Be‘eri, a kibbutz near Israel’s border with Hamas-controlled Gaza. Home to more than 1,000 people before Hamas unleashed attacks that Israeli officials characterized as the “worst since the Holocaust,” Be’eri is now a place marked by horror and inhumanity.
“At the end of the kibbutz, in a house that was completely destroyed, they [the babies] are sitting on a fence outside of the house,” Mr. Haviv recalled. “Their bodies are burned. Their parents, sitting in front of them, are slaughtered.”
He moved on to describe even more harrowing scenes.
Summary of Events So Far
The Israel–Hamas war has claimed at least 3,200 lives on both sides as of late Oct. 13.
On Oct. 11, Israel established an emergency government and a special war cabinet to oversee its military response—to eliminate the Hamas terror group so it can never again attack Israel. It has also recruited some 360,000 army reservists who are now amassing along the Gaza border.
Israel has cut off supplies of food, fuel, electricity, and medicine into Gaza. Gaza civilians were in near-total darkness overnight after the only power station ran out of fuel and shut down. Hospitals’ supplies of medicine and fuel for emergency generators are also expected to run out within days.
Hamas terrorists in Gaza are holding an estimated 100 to 150 hostages taken from Israel, and on Oct. 9, threatened to kill the hostages if Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza civilians “without warning.” The IDF noted on Oct. 10 that Hamas terrorists have embedded themselves in civilian buildings, thus making those structures valid military targets.
At least 27 Americans have died since the start of the war, and that 14 Americans are unaccounted for, Mr. Kirby confirmed on Oct. 12. President Joe Biden on Oct. 11 said the U.S. government is working with the Israelis to rescue the Americans taken hostage by Hamas.
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