In Gaza, 3,000 people have been killed and another 12,500 were injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Tensions are high with the prospect of ground war and evacuation orders for Gaza after the Israel Defense Forces called for "all residents of Gaza City to evacuate their homes" and "move south for their protection" early Friday, saying residents should move "and settle in the area south of the Gaza River." The announcement was made, according to the IDF, because it plans to "operate significantly in Gaza City in the coming days" and wanted "to avoid harming civilians."
Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Oct 16, 2023, 2:47 PM EDT
Timeline: The Hamas attack and response
On the morning of Oct. 7, sirens echoed across Israel as Hamas terrorists began a full-fledged surprise attack from the air, sea and ground. Hundreds of armed Hamas fighters stormed into Israel from Gaza, charging into cities and gunning down citizens.
Israeli forces responded by sending wave after wave of bombs into Gaza, killing thousands, trapping civilians and raising fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.
The IDF said the first plane bringing U.S. ammunition landed in Israel Tuesday.
"We are grateful for the American backing and assistance to the IDF in particular, and to the State of Israel in general, during this challenging period," the IDF said in a statement.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Oct 10, 2023, 4:35 PM EDT
US intelligence 'did not see anything' suggesting this scale of attack
U.S. intelligence "did not see anything that suggested an attack of this type was going to unfold" in Israel, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday.
Sullivan wouldn't tell reporters if President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed on their Tuesday call the possibility of an Israeli ground incursion into Gaza, and how that might affect American hostages.
Sullivan did defend Israel's targeting of Hamas sites in Gaza after being asked how long the U.S. would support the airstrikes, saying this is "not retaliation," but instead it’s "Israel standing up to defend itself.”
Sullivan also said that "at this point" there is no plan for the U.S. to put American troops on the ground to help Israel.
He added, "The president was very clear today that we will be making a request to the Congress, and it will include a request for funding for support to Israel. And he has also been equally clear that we are going to renew our request to the Congress for aid to Ukraine."
-ABC News' Justin Gomez
Oct 10, 2023, 4:18 PM EDT
Netanyahu: 'Barbarism that has not been seen since the Holocaust'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, in his conversation with President Joe Biden on Tuesday, he called Hamas' attack on Israel "barbarism that has not been seen since the Holocaust."
"Hundreds of people were slaughtered," including soldiers whose heads were cut off, Netanyahu said.
"Entire families were murdered in their beds and homes, women were brutally raped and murdered, [and] more than a hundred were kidnapped, including children," he said.
Netanyahu said he told Biden that "Hamas is worse than ISIS -- and that they should be treated that way."
Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant said Israeli soldiers have gained control of Israel's southern border "and are now moving on to a full-scale response."
"Anyone who decapitates citizens, or murders women and Holocaust survivors, will be eliminated. We will use all our force," Gallant said.
To the soldiers, Gallant said, "We have full confidence in you. It is thanks to the IDF that Israel exists."
The IDF said Israeli soldiers exchanged gunfire with terrorists in the Ashkelon industrial area in the last hour, killing at least three terrorists.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Oct 10, 2023, 3:43 PM EDT
About 20 Americans missing in Israel: State Department
The United States is tracking about 20 Americans who are still missing in Israel, State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said Tuesday.
Miller said that doesn't necessarily mean they are being held by Hamas.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel this week to work with Israeli partners directly to determine "how we can continue to best support them," Miller said.
Blinken will most likely leave on Wednesday to arrive in Israel on Thursday, he said.
Biden has not spoken with the families of the 14 Americans killed in Israel, but the State Department has been in constant contact with their families, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday.
"The president has been making this his highest priority as he receives briefings each day about what we are doing to try to determine both what’s happening with the missing and also to ensure that we can secure the bodies of those that have perished and ensure that they get returned to their loved ones," he said.