Israel-Gaza updates: Israeli forces preparing for 'wide range of offensive plans'
Fighting is ongoing after Hamas launched an attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
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:
- At least 500 killed in explosion at Gaza hospital: Gaza Health Ministry
- IDF preparing to implement 'wide range of offensive plans'
- 3,000 tons of aid with nowhere to go as Gaza-Egypt border remains closed
- Biden to visit Israel
- Hostages suffering from amputated limbs, severe injuries from rape: Israeli forum
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.
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
IDF claims to have hit 500 militant targets in Gaza Strip
For an operation now dubbed "Swords of Iron," the Israel Defense Forces said Monday that it had struck 500 Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets in the Gaza Strip.
The attacks were carried out through the use of jets, helicopters and other aircraft, according to the IDF.
The IDF said seven of Hamas' command centers were struck in the mission.
-ABC News' Bruno Nota
Iranian Mission to UN says Iran had no involvement in Hamas attack on Israel
An Iranian official at the UN denied that Iran had any involvement in Hamas' attack on Israel.
Israeli officials, including President Isaac Herzog, had claimed on Saturday that Iran helped coordinate the attacks on Israel.
On Sunday, however, Iran's Mission to the UN, denied the claims.
“We emphatically stand in unflinching support of Palestine; however, we are not involved in Palestine's response, as it is taken solely by Palestine itself.,” the Iranian Mission to the UN said in a statement late Sunday. “The resolute measures taken by Palestine constitute a wholly legitimate defense against seven decades of oppressive occupation and heinous crimes committed by the illegitimate Zionist regime.”
A U.S. official said Saturday it was "too early" to tell if Iran had involvement in the attacks.
"We are going to be looking at that very closely," a senior administration official said.
-ABC News' Kirit Radia
Israel attacks targeted locations on Gaza Strip: IDF
Israeli Defense Forces attacked the Gaza Strip early Monday morning local time, the IDF said in a series of posts on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
The IDF attacked a building where it said Hamas operatives were and several operational headquarters of the organization, the IDF said in the posts.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
UN Security Council emergency meeting fails to condemn attack on Israel
An emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council failed to condemn the Hamas attacks on Israel Sunday evening.
Deputy U.S. Ambassador the U.N. Robert Wood said the situation was "still fluid" and "very dangerous."
"What is important now is that the international community needs to show its solidarity with Israel. We have Israel's back fully as the United States, and the condemnation of Hamas needs to continue until they end this violent terrorist activity against the Israeli people," Wood said after the meeting.
-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman
'Acute security threats' preventing US from aiding Americans at Rafah crossing
As Americans inside Gaza wait for the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza to open, a senior State Department official said that Egypt has informed the U.S. that “there are acute security threats" preventing U.S. officials and others from aiding Americans inside Gaza.
The official added that the State Department has placed a team on the Egypt side of the border "as close to the border as conditions permit."
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Monday that Israel has not allowed the opening of the Rafah border crossing from the Gaza side.
Shoukry said, since the crisis broke out, Egypt "has been seeking to keep the crossing operational and in a way that allows the entry of humanitarian aid."
"Until now, unfortunately, the Israeli government has not taken a position to allow the opening of the crossing from the Gaza side for the entry of aid or the exit of nationals of [other] countries," Shoukry said. "We are ready and Egyptian authorities on the border are ready to get aid in and get nationals of third countries out."
He added that Egypt aims to keep normal operation of the border "for the entry of Palestinians with medical needs or the normal movement between the Strip and Egypt."
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford