Israel-Gaza updates: Blinken tells Israel onus is on Hamas to accept cease-fire
The 26-year-old was kidnapped from the Nova music festival.
As the Israel-Hamas war crosses the seven-month mark, negotiations are apparently stalled to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, and Israeli forces continue to launch incursions in the southern Gazan town of Rafah ahead of a possible large-scale invasion.
Latest headlines:
Evidence indicates weapons used in deadly Rafah strike are US-made: Experts
Evidence indicates a weapon used by Israel in the Rafah strike -- that killed 50 people and injured 249 others -- on May 26 appears to be made by a U.S.-owned company, two weapons experts who reviewed photos and video of fragments at the site told ABC News.
Weapon fragments seen in video are consistent with a U.S.-made "small diameter bomb," which includes the GBU-39/B, or B/B. These types of SDB/GBU-39 weapons can carry a 37-pound warhead, consistent with statements from the IDF about what weapons were used in the strike, Trevor Ball, a former U.S. Army explosive ordinance disposal specialist, said.
"We used two small rockets, 17 kg warhead, that were fired from aircraft to hit, precisely. We've used this kind of ammunition before," Israel Defense Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani told ABC News when asked about what weapons were used in the strike.
Ball identified a series of numbers beginning with “81873" marked on one fragment seen in video reviewed by ABC News. This is the Commercial and Government Entity Code, or CAGE Code, assigned by the U.S. government to aerospace manufacturing company Woodward, based in Colorado, according to U.S. government records.
A second former U.S. military explosive ordinance disposal specialist confirmed the fragments were consistent with the GBU-39, but asked to not be named by ABC News.
All sales of GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs to foreign entities require the State Department’s approval, but a U.S. official says Israel may have also procured the munitions through direct commercial sales that don’t meet the value threshold -- $25 million in Israel’s case -- for congressional review and public notification.
In the days following the Oct. 7 attack, Israel rushed to back up its stockpiles, including its supply of the small diameter bombs by any available means, the official said. ABC News has not confirmed if the weapons Israel received after Oct. 7 were used in the May 26 Rafah strike.
When asked if the bombs used in the strike were provided by the U.S., deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said reporters needed to ask the Israelis during a briefing on May 28.
-ABC News' Chris Looft, Helena Skinner, Britt Clennett, Sohel Uddin, Luis Martinez, Matt Seyler, Shannon Crawford, Ellie Kaufman, Dana Savir, Camilla Alcini, Kerem Inal and Cindy Smith
World Central Kitchen suspends operations in Rafah over safety
World Central Kitchen has suspended its humanitarian efforts in Rafah due to safety concerns. Jose Andre's aid group had restarted their relief efforts in Gaza after seven aid workers were killed by an Israeli strike, sparking international outrage over the protection of civilians in Gaza.
The group will continue to operate elsewhere in Gaza.
"In the face of Israeli operations in Rafah, countless families are being forced to flee once again. Ongoing attacks have forced us to pause work at our main kitchen in Rafah and relocate many of our community kitchens further north. The situation is dire but WCK's Palestinian team—all directly impacted by the war—is showing up every day to support neighbors in need," WCK said in a statement Wednesday.
"Yesterday we provided almost 100,000 meals and will increase capacity this week as 58 of our aid trucks have entered Gaza since Sunday," WCK said.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
War expected to last through end of year, Israeli official says
Israel expects that the war in Gaza will likely be long, lasting for at least seven more months of fighting against Hamas, a senior Israeli official said Wednesday.
"We expect another seven months of combat in order to shore up our achievement and realize what we define as the destruction of Hamas and Islamic Jihad’s military and governing capabilities," Tzachi Hanegbi, the head of the Israeli national security council, said in a radio interview to Kann News.
-ABC News' Dana Savir
Israel has 'tactical control' over Philadelphi corridor in Gaza: IDF
Israeli Defense Forces have "tactical control over the Philadelphi corridor" in Gaza, an IDF official told reporters Wednesday.
"IDF has tactical control over the Philadelphi corridor, which does mean it doesn't mean that we have boots on the ground across all of the corridor, but it means that we can control and we have the ability to cut off the oxygen line that Hamas has used for replenishing and movement in and around that area," the IDF official said.
-ABC News' Bruno Nota
Hamas says they will agree to cease-fire deal when Israel agrees to stop war in Gaza
Hamas released a new statement about the proposed cease-fire deal, saying if Israel agreed to "stop its war and aggression" in Gaza, they would "reach a complete agreement that includes a comprehensive exchange deal," Hamas said in the statement.
"Today, we informed the mediators of our clear position that if the occupation stops its war and aggression against our people in Gaza, our readiness to reach a complete agreement that includes a comprehensive exchange deal," Hamas added.
Israel had said it submitted a cease-fire proposal to Hamas earlier this week and was awaiting the group's review of the deal. Israel officials then said that they expect the war in Gaza to last until the end of this year.
-ABC News' Diaa Ostaz