Israel formally declares war against Hamas as it battles to push militants off its soil
Israel has formally declared war on Hamas, setting the stage for a major military operation in Gaza as fighting rages on Israeli soil. Tanks and personnel carriers could be seen on the move near the Israel-Gaza border on Sunday, after Hamas – an Islamist militant group – launched a surprise assault this weekend that has so far killed over 700 Israelis. Saturday was the deadliest day in decades for Israel and came after months of surging violence between Palestinians and Israelis, with the long-running conflict now heading into uncharted and dangerous new territory. Questions remain over how the Israeli military and intelligence apparatus appeared to be caught off guard in one of the country’s worst security failures. Over 400 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza as Israel responds with airstrikes in the densely-inhabited enclave. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed retaliation, warning his country would take “mighty vengeance” and was readying for “a long and difficult war.” He urged Palestinians living in Gaza to “leave now.” Over 400 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza as Israel responds with airstrikes in the densely-inhabited enclave. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed retaliation, warning his country would take “mighty vengeance” and was readying for “a long and difficult war.”
Israel at war with Hamas after unprecedented attacks
Fighting in Israel is raging a day after Hamas fighters breached the border from Gaza in an unprecedented surprise attack. Officials say the death troll in Isrqel has passed 700.
Videos show the horror on the ground, including an attack on a music festival where Israeli rescuers say they found 260 people dead. Other clips show Israeli citizens taken hostage. Hamas is believed to have dozens of captivees, including children.
Israel has been pounding Gaza with airstrlkes and formally declated war on Hamas Sunday. More than 400 Palestinians have died, according to the health ministry in Gaza, and medical care has been complicated by Israel cutting power to the territory.
The full scale of the Israeli response remains unclear, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has predicted a "long and difficult war," and a military spokesperson hinted the country may try to take full control of Gaza.
US officials tell CNN on Sunday that the administration has yet to find a smoking gun so far linking Iran directly to planning and executing the attack on Israel this weekend. However, there’s no denying Iran’s history of aiding Hamas, officials say. “Of course Iran is in the picture,” one US official told CNN. “They’ve provided support for years to Hamas and Hezbollah.” In the immediate aftermath of the attack, senior US officials have maintained that it was too early to determine whether Iran had any direct role in planning and supporting Hamas’ attack. “It is early" and a matter of direct interest to determine, one senior official said. But officials are beginning to go as far as to say that Iran's well-established connections to Hamas would mean it is likely they helped train and finance effort that ultimately led to this weekend’s attack.
What does Israel’s declaration of war mean for Palestinians in Gaza?
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday declared that his country was "at a war" after Hamas, the Palestinian group that governs Gaza, sent dozens of its fighters into Israel in one of the deadliest attacks in decades. “We are at war. Not an ‘operation,’ not a ‘round,’ but at war,” Netanyahu said, adding that “the enemy will pay an unprecedented price”. Israel has launched military offensives in Gaza and Lebanon before, without a formal declaration. The declaration now essentially greenlights Israel’s intensified military action against Hamas. Mohammed Jamjoom, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in West Jerusalem, said the Israeli cabinet’s approval of Netanyahu’s declaration of war means: “The prime minister and the defence minister can essentially make decisions going forward without having to consult the cabinet when it comes to every specific action.”
Israel formally declares war as leaders vow to wipe out Hamas and take full control of Gaza
The Israeli government has formally declared war on Hamas, hours after the country's military began bombarding the Gaza Strip with a stated goal of eliminating the militant group and seizing full control of the Palestinian territory. US officials, meanwhile, said they expect Israel to launch a full=scale ground invasion in the next 24 to 48 hours. The vote to formally declare war came over night and was announced Sunday by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose office said there would now be "significant military activities," The Times of Israel reported.
Israel-Hamas WarU.N. Warns of ‘Disaster’ in Gaza as Israel Strikes Back at Hamas
More than 300,000 people are homeless as Israeli airstrikes pound Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas attack. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged steadfast support for Israel while calling for “every possible precaution” to protect civilians. The humanitarian crisis deepened in the blockaded Gaza territory on Thursday, with a United Nations official warning of "disaster" as hospitals ran short on fuel for generators and corridors were crammed with wounded bodies. Fearful residents flooded U.N.-run schools seeking shelter from explosions as Israeli troops moved towards the border for a possible ground invasion to dismantle Hamas. Six days of Israeli bombardment, following brutal surprise attacks by Hamas that killed more than 1,200 people in Israel, have forced more than 300,000 Palestinians from their homes, with no immediate sign that emergency relief would be allowed in. Satellite imagery of residential areas shows dozens of flattened buildings, and video has shown the devastation wrought by an airstrike on a refugee camp.
Israel-Hamas war latest: IDF says it's "preparing to expand" attacks on Gaza Strip
Israel's war with Hamas appeared set to escalate Saturday as the country's military renewed a warning for civilians in the densely populated northern half of the Gaza Strip to evacuate to the south, "to preserve your safety," ahead of a widely expected ground offensive. Missiles have rained down on the Palestinian terrritory for a week, since Hamas militants launched a brutal terror attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, firing thousand of rockets and storming into the Jewish state on a murderous rampage. The combined death toll on both sides of the war climbed over 3,000 on Friday, rising precipitously in Gaza as the Israel Defense Forces hammered the region with missiles that it insists have all targeted Hamas. The warning from Israel has sparked a mass-exodus of civilians heading south through Gaza amid ongoing airstrikes and dire humanitarian circumstances. Israel's military said Hamas' attack and ongoing rocket fire from Gaza had killed more than 1,300 people and left at least 3,200 wounded as of Friday. At least 29 Americans are known to be among the dead, a State Department spokesperson confirmed Saturday. In Gaza, the Health Ministry said Saturday that the Israeli airstrikes had killed at least 2,215 people, including 724 children, and left more than 8,714 others wounded.
Israel-Hamas war live updates: 2,000 U.S. troops prep for possible deployment to Middle East, Biden seriously considering making trip to Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office appeared to deny reports of a humanitarian corridor that would allow the passage of foreign nationals out of the Gaza Strip via Egypt’s Rafah crossing. Some 600 American passport holders, as well as an unconfirmed number of other foreign nationals, are stuck in the blockaded enclave as it endures fierce Israeli bombardment, NBC News reports. “There is currently no cease-fire and humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the expulsion of foreigners,” Netanyahu's office said in a Google-translated statement. U.S. President Joe Biden warned that an Israeli re-occupation of Gaza would be a "big mistake" in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes.” He also said that the Palestinian militant group Hamas should be eliminated entirely, but that “there must be a path to a Palestinian state.” The White House has so far fully supported what it says is “Israel’s right to defend itself.” Israel is on its 10th day of an aerial bombardment campaign of the Gaza Strip, over which it has ordered a total siege, cutting off water, food and electricity supplies to a population of 2 million people.
Gaza's 2.3 million residents are struggling to find safe passage as conditions deteriorate and no aid is allowed in. A spokesman for Hamas, Ghazi Hamad, said the group has no plans to release some 200 hostages. Israel says it will not stop its attacks until it has destroyed Hamas. At least 1,400 Israelis and more than 2,800 Palestinians in Gaza are dead. About 1,000 Palestinians remain missing; many of that number are presumed dead, buried in rubble. President Biden will travel to Tel Aviv and Amman on Wednesday, a trip meant to signal full U.S. support as Israel responds to the Hamas attacks — but also to press for humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza, and safe passage out for Americans in the conflict zone.
Israel-Hamas war live: Israel says will not block Gaza aid from Egypt
The anger seen on the streets of the Jordanian capital echoed through the corridors of power today when we heard from several government officials words and phrases like “massacre”, “cannot be tolerated” and “Israeli aggression that needs to be stopped”.
Protesters, meanwhile, are out in force outside the Israeli embassy – thousands of them – and again for the second night, teargas has been fired at them.
People are angry. They’re angry not just at the pictures they see come out of Gaza but also at what they call the inaction of the Arab governments, the silence of the international community and the inability of the rest of the world combined to stop what they call Israeli aggression.
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Biden declares Israel and Ukraine support is vital for US security, will ask Congress for billions
Declaring that U.S. leadership “holds the world together,” President Joe Biden told Americans on Thursday night the country must deepen its support of Ukraine and Isreal in the middle of two vastly different, unpredictable and bloody wars. Acknowledging that “these conflicts can seem far away,” Biden insisted in a rare Oval Office address that they remain “vital for America’s national security” as he prepared to ask Congress for billions of dollars in military assistance for both countries. “History has taught us when terrorists don’t pay a price for their terror, when dictators don’t pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos and death and more destruction,” Biden said. “They keep going. And the cost and the threat to America and the world keep rising.”
There’s also $14 billion for Israel, $10 billion for unspecified humanitarian efforts, $14 billion for managing the U.S.-Mexico border and fighting fentanyl trafficking and $7 billion for the Indo-Pacific region, which includes Taiwan. The proposal was described by three people familiar with the details who insisted on anonymity before the official announcement. “It’s a smart investment that’s going to pay dividends for American security for generations,” Biden said. He hopes that combining all of these issues into one piece of legislation will create the necessary coalition for congressional approval. His speech came the day after his high stakes trip to Israel, where he showed solidarity with the country after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas and pushed for more humanitarian assistance to Palestinians.
Israel-Hamas war live: Hamas releases two more hostages from Gaza, Red Cross says
Shortly after two hostages were released in Gaza, Joe Biden quickly left an event as he was needed in the White House’s Situation room. At the end of an event to promote his economic policy, Biden abruptly left, telling the audience that he had to leave the event and go to the Situation room. While not confirmed, the meeting in the Situation room is likely about the hostages’ release. During the same event, Biden was asked about the possibility of a ceasefire in Gaza. In response, he said: “We should have those hostages released and then we can talk.”
One of the two Israeli hostages released from Hamas custody described being kidnapped from her kibbutz and taken to a tunnel in Gaza. "I weni through hell," Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, said Tuesday.
The humanitarian crisis is depending for the 2.2 million people trapped inside Gaza, with a doctor at the largest hospital warning it "it will become a mass grave"if fuel runs out while a top Israeli officials said no fuel would be allowed to enter because it could be stolen by Hamas.
At least 2,000 children have been killed in Gaza over 17 days, according to one aid agency. They are among the more than 5,000 people killed in the Israel bombardment, according to Palestinian health officials.
Israel's defense minister said Monday the country is preparing for a "multilateral operation against Hamas from the "air, ground, and sea." Israel has vowed to wipe out the Islamist group that controls Gaza in response to its deadly October 7 attacks.
The State of Israel is the only Jewish nation in the modern period, and the region that now falls within its borders has a lengthy and rich history that dates from prebiblical times. The area was a part of the Roman Empire and, later, the Byzantina Empire before falling under the control of the fledgling Islamic caliphate in the 7th century CE. Although the object of dispute during the Crusaders, the region, then generally known as Palestine, remained under the sway of successive Islamic dynasties until the collapse of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, when it was placed under British mandate from the League of Nations.
Jewish immigration in the 20th century greatly altered the settlement pattern of the country. The first modern-day Jewish settlers established themselves on the coastal plain in the 1880s. Later they also moved into the valleys of the interior and into parts of the hill districts, as well as into the Negev. Small cities such as Haifa and Jerusalem grew in size, and the port of Jaffa (Yafo) sprouted a suburb, Tel Aviv, which grew into one of the largest cities in Israel. Jewish immigrants also settled those areas of the coastal plain.
Jews constitute about three-fourths of the total population of Israel. More than one-fifth of the population consists of Arabs, almost all of whom are Palestinians from Sunni Muslim (roughly three-fourths) or Christian communities. Druze and other ethnic Arabs who do not consider themselves Palestinians make up a small fraction of the total population.
A ground offensive is still on track, Israeli prime minister says. Here's what you should know
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to tell soldiers on Tuesday a ground offensive "is coming" amid a growing sense of military delay. As Israel prepares for the ground operation, a source from the French presidential palace said it is believed such an operation will be "difficult to carry on with the respect of" international humanitarian law. And Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told an audience of Israeli troops Tuesday that Israel must destroy Hamas and warned that the war is still in its early stages. The Palestinian Authority's Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad Al-Maliki spoke in the UN Security Council meeting on the Middle East on Tuesday. Blinken on Tuesday called on UN Security Council member states to use their leverage to stop the Israel-Hamas war from expanding, urging them in particular to warn Iran that any involvement would be met with consequences. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said Tuesday he will not meet with UN Secretary-General António Guterres after the UN chief criticized Israel’s bombing of Gaza. Cohen also called out Guterres, saying "shame on him" in an answer to a reporter's question at the United Nations stakeout.
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