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 10, 2023, 2:26 PM EDT

Biden: 14 Americans killed in 'act of sheer evil'

At least 14 Americans have been killed in the Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel, President Joe Biden said Tuesday in an address to the American people.

He condemned Hamas' incursion as an "act of sheer evil."

Israelis take cover in a shelter as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza strip, in Ashkelon, Israel, Oct. 10, 2023.
Ohad Zwigenberg/AP

Biden confirmed that American citizens are among those being held by Hamas.

He said he's directed his "team to share intelligence and deploy additional experts from across the United States government to consult with and advise Israeli counterparts on hostage recovery efforts."

Oct 10, 2023, 2:22 PM EDT

At least 155 Israeli soldiers killed

The families of 155 Israeli soldiers have received death notices so far, the Israel Defense Forces said.

PHOTO: Israeli soldiers remove the body of a compatriot, killed during an attack by the Palestinian militants, in Kfar Aza, south of Israel bordering Gaza Strip, on Oct.10, 2023.
Israeli soldiers remove the body of a compatriot, killed during an attack by the Palestinian militants, in Kfar Aza, south of Israel bordering Gaza Strip, on Oct.10, 2023. Israel pounded Hamas targets in Gaza and said the bodies of 1,500 Islamist militants were found in southern towns recaptured by the army in grueling battles near the Palestinian enclave.
Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images

Oct 10, 2023, 1:33 PM EDT

US reaching out to families of missing Americans

The U.S. has started reaching out to the families of Americans missing in Israel as part of its efforts to identify the U.S. citizens who may be among the hostages taken to Gaza by Hamas, according to an official.

An aerial picture shows the abandoned site of the weekend attack on the Supernova desert music Festival by Palestinian militants near Kibbutz Reim in the Negev desert in southern Israel on Oct. 10, 2023.
Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images

But due to the dynamic situation and lack of visibility inside Gaza, the U.S. still can't say how many may be detained.

There's also a level of reluctance from U.S. officials to shine a spotlight on any Americans among the hostages for fear that they might be singled out by their Hamas captors.

Palestinians break into the Israeli side of Israel-Gaza border fence after gunmen infiltrated areas of southern Israel, Oct. 7, 2023.
Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa/Reuters

Other sources said American officials are working the phones with allies in the Middle East who have leverage over Hamas, encouraging them to pressure the militants to free the hostages.

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford

Oct 10, 2023, 1:25 PM EDT

US discussing whether to send 2nd carrier to eastern Mediterranean

United States officials are discussing whether a second U.S. aircraft carrier should be deployed to the eastern Mediterranean in the wake of the Israel-Hamas crisis, two U.S. officials confirmed.

The USS Dwight Eisenhower was previously scheduled to depart Norfolk, Virginia, later this week for the Middle East, via the Mediterranean Sea.

PHOTO: The USS Gerald R. Ford arrives in Halifax on Oct. 28, 2022. The Pentagon has ordered the Ford carrier strike group to sail to the Eastern Mediterranean to be ready to assist Israel, U.S. officials said Oct. 8, 2023.
The USS Gerald R. Ford, one of the world's largest aircraft carriers, arrives in Halifax on Oct. 28, 2022. The Pentagon has ordered the Ford carrier strike group to sail to the Eastern Mediterranean to be ready to assist Israel, two U.S. officials said Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023.
Andrew Vaughan/The Canadian Press via AP, FILE

Officials must decide whether it will now remain in the Mediterranean and head to the east to join the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier -- which was deployed on Sunday -- or whether it will relieve the Ford.

Either way, the Eisenhower will soon be in the Mediterranean for the previously scheduled transit and a training rotation.

-ABC News' Luis Martinez

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