Israel-Gaza updates: IDF preparing for 'wide range of offensive plans'

Fighting is ongoing after Hamas launched an attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

ByABC NEWS
Last Updated: October 17, 2023, 4:16 PM EDT

At least 1,400 people have died and 3,400 others have been injured in Israel after the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented incursion from air, land and sea on Oct. 7, Israeli authorities said.

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."

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Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Oct 16, 2023, 2:47 pm

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.

Friends and family mourn Dor Reder, who was killed following a deadly infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, at his funeral in Beit Kama, southern Israel, Oct. 16, 2023.
Violeta Santos Moura/Reuters

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.

Click here for the full timeline

Oct 17, 2023, 6:51 AM EDT

2,000 US military personnel available for possible deployment to the Middle East

Roughly 2,000 U.S. troops have been put on a heightened state of readiness for possible deployment to the Middle East, a Pentagon official said Tuesday morning.

The statement from deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh also says Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has extended the deployment of the USS Ford carrier strike group, which was coming to the end of a planned six-month deployment to Europe.

The Ford CSG was sent to the eastern Mediterranean after the Hamas terror attack on Israel as a deterrent to Iran and its proxies. It will be joined by the USS Eisenhower CSG.

"No decisions have been made to deploy any forces at this time. The Secretary will continue to assess our force posture and remain in close contact with allies and partners," the statement said.

Oct 17, 2023, 6:11 AM EDT

Israeli strikes kill at least 71, Gaza officials say

Overnight Israeli air raids killed at least 71 people and injured at least 50 others, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The strikes included attacks on Rafah, near a border crossing controlled by Egypt, and three homes that were bombed in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, official said.

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023.
Ariel Schalit/AP
Mourners react next to the bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes, at a hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 17, 2023.
Mohammed Salem/Reuters

The Israel Defense Forces says it hit Hamas targets.

Khan Younis is an area where the Israeli army has been urging people from northern Gaza to flee to. The border crossing in Rafah has seen thousands of people gather, waiting to cross into Egypt.

-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres

Oct 17, 2023, 1:14 AM EDT

IDF says it’s attacked Hamas tunnels, warehouses

Israel Defense Forces said Tuesday morning it had "attacked over 200 military terrorist infrastructures of" Hamas throughout the Gaza Strip.

The IDF said it hit targets including a bank used by Hamas to "finance terrorism in the Gaza Strip." Also attacked were underground tunnels, warehouses that IDF said contained weapons and “operational headquarters in the center of Gaza City."

-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman

Oct 16, 2023, 11:53 PM EDT

Top US military commander in Middle East arrives in Israel for ‘high-level’ meetings

Gen. Erik Kurilla, the top U.S. military commander in the Middle East, has arrived in Israel.

"I’m here to ensure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself, and am particularly focused on avoiding other parties expanding the conflict," Gen. Kurilla said in a statement provided by U.S. Central Command.

Kurilla is set to conduct "high-level" meetings with Israel’s military leadership "to gain a clear understanding of Israel’s defense requirements" and outline American support efforts "to avoid expansion of the conflict."

-ABC News’ Luis Martinez

Officials said 2,000 American troops are on alert for a possible deployment to the Middle East as the Israel-Gaza conflict continues.
2:14

US troops on alert for Middle East deployment

Officials said 2,000 American troops are on alert for a possible deployment to the Middle East as the Israel-Gaza conflict continues.
ABCNews.com

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