The war that began on Oct. 7 has become the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides.
Here are the latest updates on the Israel–Hamas war:
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US Pushing for UN Resolution Condemning Attack on Israel, Violence Against Civilians
The U.N. Security Council’s monthly meeting on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict on Tuesday is turning into a high-level event, with ministers flying to New York and the United States pushing for adoption of a resolution that would condemn the Hamas attacks on Israel and violence against civilians, and reaffirm Israel’s right to self-defense.
The new U.S.-drafted resolution was still being negotiated late Monday afternoon, but a recent draft obtained by The Associated Press also demands the immediate release of all hostages, urges respect for international laws on conducting war and protecting civilians, urges all countries to intensify efforts to prevent a spillover, and demands immediate humanitarian access to Gaza.
A resolution proposed by Russia, which called for a “humanitarian ceasefire” and would strongly condemn all violence and acts of terrorism, didn’t mention the Hamas attacks. It failed to get the minimum nine “yes” votes needed for approval by the 15-member council.
U.S. diplomats said their issue with Russia’s proposal was the demand for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza without recognizing Israel’s right to self-defense.
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Islamic Resistance in Iraq Says They Attacked 2 US Bases in Syria
Iran-backed militias in Iraq on Monday said they attacked two U.S. bases in eastern Syria, their fourth attack in one day.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iranian-backed militias, said two drones attacked U.S. military bases by the Al-Omar oil field in Deir el-Zour province and in al-Shaddadi further north. Officials in Washington did not immediately comment on the attack.
The attack came hours after the group claimed responsibility for drone attacks on the al-Tanf garrison near the Jordanian and Iraqi borders, and a stone’s throw away from the desert Rukban camp home to tens of thousands of Syrians.
There have been a string of similar attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq and Syria over the past week. In one attack, the same group attacked two U.S. bases in Iraq with drones, causing minor injuries among U.S. forces.
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Red Cross Confirms Release of 2 More Hostages
The International Committee of the Red Cross says two more hostages have been released from the Gaza Strip, without mention of the Hamas terrorist group that was holding them captive.
It was the second time the group has freed hostages seized in its bloody Oct. 7 cross-border incursion into Israel.
The hostages were identified by Israeli media as Yocheved Lipshitz, 85, and Nurit Cooper, 79, of the Israeli kibbutz of Nir Oz. However, their 83-year-old and 85-year-old husbands are still being held hostage by Hamas.
In a statement, Hamas said it released them for humanitarian reasons.
Israel has demanded the unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas in exchange for its help with aid to the Gaza Strip.
The Hamas terrorist group is believed to be holding around 200 people, including an unconfirmed number of foreigners and dual nationals.
Hamas released two other hostages—an American mother and daughter—on Friday.
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Hamas Says It Has Released 2 Female Hostages
The armed wing of the Palestinian Hamas terrorist group said on Monday it had released two female civilian captives in response to Egyptian–Qatari mediation efforts.
Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the group’s armed wing, said on Telegram it had secured the release of the detainees “despite the enemy’s refusal to accept them since last Friday and their neglect of the issue of our prisoners.”
“We decided to release them for humanitarian and poor health grounds … Despite that, the enemy refused to receive them last Friday,” the statement added.
The armed wing released two Americans on Friday, nearly two weeks after Hamas terrorists abducted them and dozens of others near Gaza.
A Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson on Friday said that the release of U.S. hostages from Gaza came “after many days on continuous communication” with all parties.
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Macron to Visit Israel, Meet With Netanyahu
French President Emmanuel Macron is traveling Tuesday to Israel to show France’s solidarity with the country and further work on the release of hostages who are being held in Gaza, according to the French presidency.
Mr. Macron will have talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and also meet with Israeli–French nationals who have lost loved ones, as well as families of hostages.
Mr. Macron may also seize the occasion to have talks with some Arab partners in the region, the president’s office said, without providing further details.
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Italy Confirms Death of 2nd Italian-Israeli Citizen in Israel
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has confirmed the death of a second Italian-Israeli citizen from the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
Mr. Tajani, writing on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, said on Monday that Liliach Le Havron, the wife of Evitar Kipnis, whose body was recovered last week, was confirmed dead.
The couple had lived in Be-eri Kibbutz. Both had been reported missing by their loved ones.
“For Italy, another day of mourning,’’ Mr. Tajani wrote. A third Italian-Israeli citizen, a young man who was attending the music festival that Hamas assaulted, remains missing.
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At Least 222 People Taken Hostage by Hamas: Israel
At least 222 people have been taken hostage in the Gaza Strip since Palestinian terrorist group Hamas launched its cross-border onslaught against Israel on Oct. 7, according to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari.
Speaking at a news briefing on Oct. 23, Rear Adm. Hagari said the updated number of people who were captured and dragged back to Gaza includes a number of foreign nationals. The latest figure is an increase from the previously stated total of 212 hostages.
“We will employ every available means to safely free the hostages, whether through military, intelligence, or diplomatic channels,” he said, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported. “This represents the core purpose of this war, in addition to dismantling Hamas rule and destroying its capabilities. These objectives will be achieved.”
According to Rear Adm. Hagari, the military has information about the hostages and has contacted family members of those who are missing to inform them that their loved ones were captured by Hamas.
The updated number does not include two U.S. citizens—Judith Tai Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter, Natalie Raanan—who were kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel.
Read more here.
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3rd Convoy of Humanitarian Aid Arrives in Gaza, UN Confirms
A third small aid convoy from Egypt has entered Gaza, where the population of 2.3 million has been running out of food, water, and medicine under Israel’s two-week seal and damage to power and water infrastructure.
Juliette Touma, director of communications for the U.N.’s Palestinian refugee agency, confirmed the arrival of the convoy “with 20 trucks” in Gaza on Monday to The Associated Press, but provided no other details.
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Britain Says Hospital Explosion Was Likely Caused by Misfired Missile From Gaza
The British government says it has concluded that a devastating explosion at a hospital in Gaza was likely caused by a misfired missile from within Palestinian territory, rather than an Israeli strike.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told lawmakers in the House of Commons that based on an intelligence assessment, “the British government judges that the explosion was likely caused by a missile, or part of one, that was launched from within Gaza towards Israel.”
He added of Hamas claims that it was an Israeli airstrike that the “misrepresentation of this incident had a negative affect in the region, including on a vital U.S. diplomatic effort and on tensions here at home.”
“We learn the lessons and ensure in future, there is no rush to judgment.”
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Poll Shows Most Americans Support Israel in War With Hamas
A majority of Americans support Israel and oppose Hamas in the ongoing war, according to a new poll.
The poll by the Harris Poll and HarrisX, released on Oct. 19, showed that most Americans are in favor of Israel in the war and oppose the Hamas terrorist group’s approach to multiple major issues impacting the wider Palestinian and regional community as the conflict has escalated.
The poll touched most key questions relating to the war, including the designation of Hamas as a terrorist group, U.S. military responsibility for Israel, and the Gaza hospital blast, among other issues.
Read more here.
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Iran-backed Terrorists Say They Targeted Base Used by US Military
Iran-backed terrorists in Iraq said Monday they targeted a strategic base used by the U.S. military in southeastern Syria.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iranian-backed terrorists, said two drones were used to attack the al-Tanf garrison near the Jordanian and Iraqi borders.
The attack came after a string of similar attacks on bases housing U.S. military in Iraq and Syria over the past week. In one, the same group attacked two bases in Iraq with drones, causing minor injuries among U.S. forces.
The was no immediate U.S. comment on Monday’s incident and no word on damage or injuries.
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Activists Denounce Netanyahu at International Criminal Court
Dutch authorities detained 19 activists who occupied the entrance to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday, denouncing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Israel’s actions during the war with Hamas.
Activists from the Extinction Rebellion group took over a bridge in front of The Hague-based court just after noon, carrying a banner that read “Netanyahu is a war criminal.” The Dutch branch of the activist group, which was originally set up to campaign against climate change, has staged several other pro-Palestinian actions since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
An ICC spokesperson said the demonstration did not disturb the court’s normal activities.
After police released the 19 following a brief detention, they joined a small pro-Palestinian protest outside the ICC’s grounds.
The demonstration took place as Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte arrived in the Middle East to meet with both Mr. Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
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Attacks in Rafah City Leave Casualties
Gaza’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry said at least 18 people were killed in Israeli attacks on neighborhoods in Rafah city on Monday. It said scores of Palestinians were also wounded.
An airstrike hit a residential building about 200 meters (650 feet) from the U.N. headquarters in Rafah on Monday, killing and wounding several people, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene, underscoring the perils of humanitarian operations.
Videos released by the Israeli military showed airstrikes decimating buildings in the Gaza Strip. The military said the videos showed attacks on Hamas infrastructure but did not specify the locations.
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Western Leaders Urge Adherence to Humanitarian Law
International leaders have called on all sides to adhere to international humanitarian law as tensions in the Middle East intensify.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday spoke with his counterparts in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and the UK regarding the ongoing war between the Israeli military and the Hamas terrorist group.
The leaders issued a joint statement following the talks, reiterating their support for Israel after Hamas launched a large-scale terrorist attack on Israeli properties and civilians on Oct. 7.
Read more here.
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Hamas-Run Health Ministry Says More Than 5,000 Have Died in Gaza
The death toll in Gaza has climbed to at least 5,087 Palestinians, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said Monday, since the war between Israel and Palestinian terrorist groups broke out on Oct. 7.
Ashraf al-Qidra, a spokesman for the ministry in Gaza, said the fatalities included 2,055 children and 1,119 women. More than 15,270 others were wounded, he said.
The tally includes the disputed toll from a hospital explosion last week, which the two sides have traded blame for. Israel said it has also monitored over 500 rockets launched from the Gaza Strip that also fell inside the Gaza Strip, failing to hit their intended targets in Israel.
More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed—mostly civilians slain during the initial Hamas attack. At least 222 people were captured and dragged back to Gaza, including foreigners.
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State Department Urges Americans in Lebanon to ‘Leave Now’
The State Department is urging all Americans in Lebanon to “leave now” while commercial flight options remain available, amid growing tensions in the region owing to Hezbollah’s sustained attacks on Israel from across its northern border with Lebanon.
In an Oct. 22 update, the government department recommended “that U.S. citizens who choose not to depart prepare contingency plans for emergency situations.”
Read more here.
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Europe Ministers Discussing Getting Aid Into Gaza
European Union foreign ministers are meeting Monday to discuss ways to help vital aid get into Gaza, particularly fuel, after two convoys entered over the weekend.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that “in normal times, without war, 100 trucks enter into Gaza every day. So it’s clear that 20 is not enough.”
Mr. Borrell said the emphasis must be on getting power and water-providing desalination plants running again. “Without water and electricity, the hospitals can barely work,” he told reporters in Luxembourg, where the meeting is taking place.
He said the ministers will also look at ways to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians in the long term.
“The great powers have forgotten about the Palestinian issue, thinking it was going to be solved alone, or it doesn’t matter. Yes, it matters,” Mr. Borrell said.
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Iraq Says It Will Pursue Terrorists Who Attacked Bases Housing US Troops
Iraq’s army spokesperson has said the state will go after terrorists who have carried out attacks against army bases housing U.S. troops in the country.
Maj. Gen. Yahya Rasoul said in a statement Monday that military advisers from the U.S.-led coalition are in the country “at the invitation of the government” and their mission is to train Iraqi forces.
Maj. Gen. Rasoul said the prime minister has ordered the country’s security agencies to go after those who carried out attacks and prevent any attempt to harm Iraq’s national security.
Over the past week, several bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq came under rocket and drone attacks that were believed to have been carried out by Iran-backed groups.
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Israeli Prime Minister Warns Hezbollah to Stay Out of War
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited troops stationed near the border with Lebanon, where the Israeli army and Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorists also have traded fire during the Israel–Hamas war.
A top official with Iran Hezbollah vowed Saturday that Israel would pay a high price whenever it starts a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip and said Saturday that his extremist group based in Lebanon already is “in the heart of the battle.”
Speaking to troops in the north on Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu said Israel would react more fiercely than it did during its short 2006 war with Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon.
“If Hezbollah decides to enter the war, it will miss the Second Lebanon War. It will make the mistake of its life. We will cripple it with a force it cannot even imagine and the consequences for it and the Lebanese state are devastating,” the Israeli leader said.
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Israel Mounts Limited Gaza Ground Raids, Hamas Says It Engages Attackers
Israel’s military said on Monday its ground forces had mounted limited raids into the Gaza Strip overnight and said their air strikes were focusing on sites where Palestinian terrorists were assembling to attack any wider Israeli invasion.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Sunday its fighters had engaged what it described as an armored force infiltrating a southern area of Gaza and had destroyed some Israeli military equipment. There was no Israeli comment on such losses.
In a televised briefing describing Israel’s latest moves on the ground, Israel’s chief military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari also said 222 people had now been confirmed as taken hostage during the Oct. 7 cross-border onslaught by Hamas.
“During the night there were raids by tank and infantry forces. These raids are raids that kill squads of terrorists who are preparing for the next stage in the war,” he said, describing incursions that went “deep” into Gaza.
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Israel Bombards Gaza as War Spreads to Other Fronts
Israel bombarded Gaza with more air strikes on Monday ahead of an anticipated ground operation into the besieged Palestinian enclave as the United Nations warned that civilians were running out of places to seek shelter.
In signs that the conflict was spreading, Israeli aircraft also struck southern Lebanon overnight and Israeli troops clashed with Palestinians in the West Bank, residents said.
More aid crossed the border into Gaza on Sunday but the U.N. humanitarian agency said it was just a fraction of the amount needed to help a desperate population short of food, water, medicine, and fuel.
Health authorities in Gaza said at least 4,600 people have died in Israel’s two-week bombardment after an assault on Oct. 7 by Hamas terrorists on southern Israeli communities in which 1,400 people were killed.
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Thousands Join Paris’s 1st Authorized Pro-Palestinian Demo Since Hamas Attacks
Thousands of people waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Gaza, Paris is with you” gathered on Sunday for the first pro-Palestinian demonstration allowed by police in the French capital since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.
Around 15,000 people turned out at the Place de la Republique, according to police figures, to express solidarity with Palestinians and call for a ceasefire.
A similar protest in Brussels drew around 12,000, Belgian police said.
French police said the Paris protest was authorized, unlike others, because a declaration by organizers condemned the Oct. 7 attacks.
Aldgra Fredly, Stephen Katte, Aaron Pan, Reuters, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
See the previous day’s updates here.
