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."

Click here for the latest updates.


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


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Americans 'could be among those being held hostage by Hamas,' Kirby says

The United States is still working to determine how many Americans remain unaccounted for after Saturday's attack on Israel by Hamas and whether any are among those being held hostage in the neighboring Gaza Strip, according to National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.

In an interview Tuesday with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos on "Good Morning America," Kirby said the number of unaccounted Americans in Israel "keeps changing" as families contact the U.S. Department of State.

"We're trying to get a handle on where they are and how they are," he added. "Sadly, we have to accept the possibility -- the grim possibility -- that some of those unaccounted for Americans could be among those being held hostage by Hamas."

So far, U.S. officials have confirmed that at least 11 Americans were among those killed in Israel over the weekend when Hamas fighters stormed into the country from Gaza. U.S. officials are "preparing for the very distinct possibility that there'll be more" American deaths," Kirby said.

Meanwhile, there's currently no specific information on whether any Americans were among those taken hostage, according to Kirby. Israeli authorities have estimated that Hamas is currently holding "between 100 to 150" hostages in Gaza, including Americans.

"We're working at this really, really hard, talking to the Israelis every single day -- almost every hour -- to try to get more information about the Americans that are unaccounted for," Kirby said, "but we just don't know where they are."

U.S. officials have reached out to their Israeli counterparts to offer assistance in the form of intelligence and hostage recovery expertise, according to Kirby.

"It remains to be seen if there's Americans in that group, what more can be done," he said. "If there's Americans being held hostage, we'll do everything possible to get them home to their families where they belong."

When asked whether the U.S. would be prepared to pay ransom, Kirby said: "I don't want to get too far ahead of where we are."

"We don't even know if there are Americans in this population of hostages," he added.


Israeli airstrikes target Gaza-Egypt border crossing

An Israeli airstrike hit near the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip on Tuesday for the second time in two days, Palestinian authorities said.

"The occupation aircrafts re-bombed the gate of the Rafah crossing between the Palestinian and Egyptian sides after it was repaired yesterday, preventing the departure and arrival of passengers," Iyad Al-Bozom, spokesman for the Palestinian Ministry of Interior, said in a statement.

Operations at the frontier were disrupted on Monday after an Israeli airstrike hit near the border on the Gaza side. Officials on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing on Tuesday asked crews on the Palestinian side to immediately evacuate the crossing following threats to hit it, according to Al-Bozom.

-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy


Iran denies involvement in Hamas attack on Israel

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday that Tehran was not involved in Hamas' recent incursion on Israel but hailed the attack.

"We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime," said Khamenei, who was seen wearing a Palestinian scarf in his first televised speech since Saturday's attack.

"The Zionist regime's own actions are to blame for this disaster," he added.

Iran, which does not recognize Israel, has acknowledged giving financial and moral support to Hamas, the militant group that controls the Gaza Strip.

-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian


Hamas holding 'between 100 and 150' hostages, Israeli's UN ambassador says

Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan said "between 100 and 150" hostages are currently being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

"We estimate a number that is between 100 and 150. I think it’s an unprecedented number," Erdan told CNN during an interview late Monday. "It includes Americans. We don't know the exact number."


At least 25 Americans confirmed dead in Israel: Blinken

In remarks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at least 25 Americans had now been confirmed dead in Israel.

Netanyahu described some of the atrocities committed by Hamas.

"Hamas has shown itself to be an enemy of civilization: The massacring of young people in an outdoor music festival, the butchering of entire families, the murder of parents in front of their children and the murder of children in front of their parents. The burning of people alive, the beheadings," he said.

"Hamas should be treated exactly the way ISIS was treated," he said. "They shouldn't be spit out from the community of nations. No leader should meet them. No country should harbor them. And those that do should be sanctioned."

Blinken said he was speaking not only as an American diplomat, but as a Jew, a husband and a father of young children, saying it was impossible for him to look at photos of families killed "and not think of my own children."

"The same time that we've been shocked by the depravity of Hamas, we've also been inspired by the bravery of Israel citizens," he said. "The grandfather who drove over an hour to a kibbutz under siege, armed only with a pistol and rescued his kids and grandkids. The mother who died shielding her teenage son with her body, giving her life to save his -- giving him life for a second time."

Blinken remarked that some U.S. aid had already been delivered, and that more military aid was on his way. He said the administration would work with Congress to meet Israel’s additional needs and that bipartisan support for Israel was "overwhelming."

The secretary called on world leaders to condemn Hamas.

Blinken also reiterated that Israel "has the right -- indeed, the obligation -- to defend itself" but that it was "so important to take every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians."

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford