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ByABC NEWS
Last Updated: October 29, 2023, 4:44 PM EDT

Thousands of people have died and thousands more have been injured since the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel retaliated with a bombing campaign and total siege of the neighboring Gaza Strip, leaving the region on the verge of all-out war.

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Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Mar 1, 6:03 am

What we know about the conflict

The latest outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, has passed the four-month mark.

In the Gaza Strip, at least 30,228 people have been killed and 71,377 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.

In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 395 people in the territory since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

The ongoing war began after Hamas-led militants launched an unprecedented incursion into southern Israel from neighboring Gaza via land, sea and air. Scores of people were killed while more than 200 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli authorities. The Israeli military subsequently launched retaliatory airstrikes followed by a ground invasion of Gaza, a 140-square-mile territory where more than 2 million Palestinians have lived under a blockade imposed by Israel and supported by Egypt since Hamas came to power in 2007. Gaza, unlike Israel, has no air raid sirens or bomb shelters.

Oct 27, 2023, 4:39 PM EDT

IDF on current ground operations

When asked whether troops had launched a ground invasion into the Gaza Strip on Friday night, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Peter Lerner told ABC News, "We are conducting our sweep and clear activities in order to create better conditions for optimal operational conditions on the ground."

"So we are seeking out anti-tank capabilities, we are destroying observation posts and we are engaging the terrorists where we find them on the front lines or in the peripheral of the Gaza Strip," he continued, noting that troops have been "conducting these activities" for "several days" but he can't detail specifics due to "operational concerns."

"We intend on dismantling their capabilities, destroying their government, and making sure they can never use the Gaza Strip as a staging ground against our people again," Lerner added.

This is Israel's biggest ground operation in Gaza since the Oct. 7 attack.
10:41

IDF says it is 'expanding' ground activity in Gaza

This is Israel's biggest ground operation in Gaza since the Oct. 7 attack.
ABCNews.com

Oct 27, 2023, 4:19 PM EDT

UN General Assembly adopts Gaza resolution calling for immediate humanitarian truce

The United Nations General Assembly on Friday adopted a resolution calling for an "immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce" between Israel and Hamas.

The resolution also demands the "continuous, sufficient and unhindered" provision of supplies and services for civilians in Gaza, as Israel says it is expanding its ground operations in the territory.

Explosions caused by Israeli airstrikes in the northern Gaza Strip, Oct. 27, 2023.
Abed Khaled/AP

Oct 27, 2023, 3:47 PM EDT

US 'not drawing red lines for Israel': Kirby

The U.S. is "not drawing red lines for Israel" and is still in "active negotiations" to release hostages, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said during a virtual briefing Friday.

Asked whether the U.S. was given advance warning of the expanding ground incursion happening today, Kirby would not give any detail on conversations with the Israelis, but said President Joe Biden has been getting daily briefings from his national security team.

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in central Israel, Oct. 27, 2023.
Oded Balilty/AP

Pressed on whether the U.S. is confident that Israel has thought through what happens after the ground incursion, Kirby said it's up to the Israelis to answer questions about the "soundness of their planning and the effectiveness of the execution."

Kirby said Israel should support a humanitarian pause if it can allow for the release of hostages.

-ABC News' Selina Wang and Fritz Farrow

Oct 27, 2023, 2:29 PM EDT

IDF says it is expanding ground operations in Gaza Friday night

The Israel Defense Forces are expanding ground activity in Gaza Friday night, a military spokesperson told reporters.

This is Israel's biggest ground operation in Gaza since the Oct. 7 attack.

Fire rises above Gaza City during an Israeli strike, Oct. 27, 2023.
AFP via Getty Images

"In recent hours we have increased the attacks in Gaza," the IDF said in a statement. "The Air Force widely attacks underground targets and terrorist infrastructure, very significantly. In continuation of the offensive activity we carried out in the last few days, the ground forces are expanding the ground activity this evening."

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