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Israel-Gaza live updates: 3 premature babies die at Al-Shifa Hospital, doctor says
The hospital has been treating thousands of wounded people.
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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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.
UN secretary-general: Something 'clearly wrong' with Israel's military operation
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Reuters NEXT conference that there's something "clearly wrong" with the Israeli military's operations when looking at the number of civilians killed in Gaza.
"There are violations by Hamas when they have human shields. But when one looks at the number of civilians that were killed with the [Israeli] military operations, there is something that is clearly wrong," Guterres said.
More than 4,000 children have died in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Guterres added that it hurts the world's public opinion of Israel "to see every day the terrible image of the dramatic humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people."
Rafah crossing closed Wednesday over 'security circumstance': State Department
The Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza was closed Wednesday due to a "security circumstance," Deputy State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said.
Patel said he could not give any details on the security situation.
"We're continuing to work with, in partnership with, the government of Egypt and the government of Israel toward safe passage for more U.S. citizens, eligible family members and lawful permanent resident,” he added.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
Hamas says it's ready to release hostages if 'suitable conditions are facilitated'
Hamas is ready to release civilian hostages if "suitable conditions are facilitated," a Hamas spokesperson said in a press conference Wednesday.
"From the beginning we have announced our position very clearly," said Hamas spokesman Bassem Naim at a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon. "We are ready to release all the civilians and foreigners inside the Gaza Strip, if the suitable conditions are facilitated, mainly by the Israelis ... in accepting an immediate cease-fire along the whole Gaza Strip."
Israeli media is reporting that Israel is in advanced talks to come to an agreement on releasing a group of hostages in exchange for a humanitarian pause. Israel wants a much larger group of hostages released than the 10 to 15 being proposed. Qatar and Egypt are leading the negotiations.
State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel declined to confirm or deny the reports on potential hostage negotiations.
"We've seen those reports" but won't "get into the specifics of any of our negotiations or discussions," he said. "I will just reiterate that we have been working around the clock to determine the whereabouts of these hostages. We're working with the Israeli government on every aspect of this including sharing intelligence experts, offering our insight."
Patel did, however, pour some cold water on the notion that Hamas was ready to release hostages or that Israel was refusing a reasonable deal to free them, dismissing recent statements from the group’s military leaders.
"The proof should be in the actions that they undertake, and so if they have a desire to release hostages, we would welcome that," he said.
IDF says it's destroyed 130 Hamas tunnels
The Israel Defense Forces said its soldiers have destroyed 130 Hamas tunnel shafts in northern Gaza since Oct. 7.
Blinken meets with Iraqi prime minister
Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Iraq to meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on Sunday following the secretary's visits to Israel, Jordan and the West Bank.
Blinken told reporters that his meeting with the Iraqi prime minister was productive and said he emphasized the need to prevent spillover from the conflict in Gaza.
"I made very clear that the attacks, the threats coming from militia that are aligned with Iran are totally unacceptable," Blinken said. "We're not looking for conflict with Iran. We've made that very clear. But we'll do what's necessary to protect our personnel."
"We're working very hard to make sure that the conflict in Gaza does not escalate, does not spread to other places, whether it's here, whether it's elsewhere in the region," he said.
Blinken was asked about Arab leaders' instance that nothing short of a total cease-fire would be acceptable.
"I think everyone would welcome humanitarian pauses -- there's no doubt about that," Blinken responded.
He said pauses "advance things that we're all trying to accomplish," including getting more humanitarian aid into Gaza, getting people out of Gaza and getting hostages home.
On his meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Blinken said the PA was "playing a very important role right now in the West Bank in trying to keep stability there."
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford