Israel-Gaza updates: Nasser Hospital no longer 'functional,' WHO chief says
Israel Defense Forces turned the hospital into military barracks.
More than four months since Hamas terrorists invaded Israel on Oct. 7, the Israeli military continues its bombardment of the neighboring Gaza Strip.
The conflict, now the deadliest between the warring sides since Israel's founding in 1948, shows no signs of letting up soon and the brief cease-fire that allowed for over 100 hostages to be freed from Gaza remains a distant memory.
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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.
Gaza hostage talks may be hitting new snag: US officials
CIA Director Bill Burns will head to Egypt this week to try to move Hamas and Israel closer to a deal to free all hostages in Gaza for an extended pause and humanitarian aid, but two U.S officials said Burns may face a fresh challenge: So far, Israel hasn’t committed to sending representatives to the table.
If Israeli intelligence officials don’t attend the planned talks, a U.S. official said Burns would still press on, working with Egyptian and Qatari partners, even though it would mean none of the main players are directly represented at the meeting.
The official also said that while American and Israeli officials are frequently engaged in high-level talks, the U.S. does not have a clear understanding of Israel’s red lines for a hostage deal.
After two hostages were rescued from Gaza overnight, the official said there could be more targeted rescue missions in the days to come. But, the official said the U.S. believes the vast majority of hostages can only be recovered through diplomacy.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
US downplays Israeli military action in Rafah
U.S. Department of State spokesperson Matt Miller on Monday downplayed recent Israeli military operations in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, saying the United States did not assess that the overnight strikes were a prelude to a full ground incursion there.
The Israelis "have conducted airstrikes against Rafah, really, since going back to the original days of the campaign," Miller said. "It is not our assessment that this airstrike is the launch of a full-scale offensive happening in Rafah."
Miller again stressed that the U.S. wanted to see "a credible plan that they can actually execute" to address humanitarian concerns before Israel undertakes any kind of military campaign in Rafah, and that the State Department was looking forward to receiving briefings on the evacuation preparations Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered last week.
The Israel Defense Forces said details of a civilian evacuation from Rafah are being planned and will take some time.
Miller also dismissed the notion that Israel’s strikes on Rafah could have a detrimental impact on hostage talks.
"I don't think it should and I think that Israelis are well within their rights to do everything in their power to try to get back the hostages that were taken from Israel and continue to be held and held for far too long now," he asserted. "It should in no way impact the negotiations."
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Hostage families commend rescue but say 'time is running out' for remaining hostages
Two hostages, Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Har, 70, who were among those kidnapped in Israel on Oct. 7, were rescued during a special operation in Rafah in southern Gaza early Monday, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Monday, "We will continue to make every effort in every way to create the conditions for the return of the abductees, including … the possibility of a deal."
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters said in a statement, "We commend the IDF soldiers who demonstrated strength and bravery to secure the release of the two hostages, and wish them all to return home safely and speedily. Time is running out for the remaining hostages held captive by Hamas. Their lives are at risk with each passing moment. The Israeli government must exhaust every option on the table to release them. The lives of 134 hostages still hang in the balance."
IDF soldiers killed in Khan Younis
Two Israeli soldiers were killed in an operation in Khan Younis in southern Gaza on Monday, the Israel Defense Forces said.
Editor's Note: This post has been updated to say the two IDF soldiers were killed in a mission in Khan Younis, not during Monday's hostage rescue mission in Rafah.
Biden, Netanyahu to speak Sunday, US official says
President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plan to speak Sunday in their first call since Biden delivered his strongest rebuke yet of Israel's military operations in Gaza, a U.S. official confirmed to ABC News.
Biden called the Israeli forces' actions "over the top." When asked about Biden's remark in a Sunday interview with ABC's "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl, Netanyahu said, "I don't know exactly what he [Biden] meant by that, but put yourself in Israel's shoes. We were attacked. … I think we've responded in a way that goes after the terrorists and tries to minimize the civilian population.”
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow