Israel-Gaza-Lebanon updates: Netanyahu calls UN troops Hezbollah 'human shields'

U.N. peacekeepers claim IDF tanks breached their base in southern Lebanon.

ByLeah Sarnoff, David Brennan, Meredith Deliso, and Ivan Pereira
Last Updated: October 13, 2024, 5:51 PM EDT

The Israel Defense Forces continued intense air and ground campaigns against Hezbollah in Lebanon and against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The uptick in offensive operations came days after Israel marked the anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7 assault and as Israeli leaders planned their response to last week's Iranian ballistic missile attack.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
Oct 12, 2024, 8:02 PM EDT

Austin expressed 'deep concern' over UN attacks in Lebanon with Israeli defense minister

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday and "expressed his deep concern about reports that Israeli forces fired on UN peacekeeping positions in Lebanon as well as by the reported death of two Lebanese soldiers," the White House said in a statement.

The Secretary strongly emphasized the importance of ensuring the safety and security of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFL) and Lebanese Armed Forces and "reinforced the need to pivot from military operations in Lebanon to a diplomatic pathway as soon as feasible," according to the White House.

However, Austin reaffirmed the "United States' unwavering, enduring, and ironclad commitment to Israel's security," the statement said.

Oct 12, 2024, 5:55 PM EDT

Ambulance convoy evacuates critical patients from northern Gaza hospital

A convoy of nine ambulances evacuated 18 critical patients Saturday from Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, according to Gaza's Hamas-run Health Ministry.

Doctors did not leave Kamal Adwan Hospital with the convoy, and that staff remains to treat many patients who remain at the hospital, health ministry officials told ABC News.

The convoy was coordinated by the Red Cross, according to the health ministry.

Officials from the Israel Defense Forces told ABC News IDF forces also assisted the convoy, which was canceled for three consecutive days for "security reasons."

-ABC News' Victoria Beaulé, Samy Zyara and Dorit Long

Oct 12, 2024, 3:45 PM EDT

2,255 people killed in Lebanon since conflict began: Lebanese Health Ministry

The Lebanese government said 78 Israeli airstrikes were recorded over the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of strikes this week to 524.

A woman stands in the rubble of an Israeli airstrike on an apartment block, Oct. 11, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon.
Carl Court/Getty Images

A total of 2,255 people have been killed and another 10,524 people have been injured in Lebanon since the conflict began, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. About 1,660 of those deaths have been since the conflict escalated in mid-September, the Lebanese Health Ministry said.

Search and rescue team members try to find victims in the debris of a damaged building after an Israeli military strike on the Basta neighborhood in Beirut, Lebanon, 11 Oct. 11, 2024.
Wael Hamzeh/epa-efe/shutterstock/WAEL HAMZEH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Among those killed are 127 children and 94 health care workers, the Lebanese Health Ministry said.

-ABC News’ Ghazi Balkiz

Oct 12, 2024, 2:59 PM EDT

Hezbollah fired 320 projectiles into Israel, IDF says

The Israel Defense Forces said Hezbollah fired about 320 projectiles into Israel on Saturday, the day of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.

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