Israel-Gaza updates: Biden speaks with Netanyahu about hostages' release, Gaza humanitarian assistance
The hostages are two elderly women who are both Israeli nationals.
Thousands of people have died and thousands more were injured after 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.
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel, according to Israeli authorities. In Gaza, 5,087 people have died and 15,273 have been wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Authority.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel's call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself -- a right the United States endorses.
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Latest headlines:
US to impose new sanctions on Hamas leaders: Official
The U.S. is planning is impose new sanctions on several Hamas leaders this week, according to a U.S. official.
The Treasury Department is planning to announce the sanctions this week, the official said.
Earlier Tuesday, a top Treasury official pledged that the agency would "bring our tools to bear against Hamas' financing and the overall funding of terrorism."
"Disrupting Hamas' financing operations is not new to us; this has been a priority for Treasury for decades," Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said at a news conference. "We are equipped to target this infrastructure and its supporters, whether they be political leadership, operatives, facilitators, financiers, investors, or entire global procurement networks."
Axios first reported this development Tuesday night.
-ABC News' Ben Gittleson and Elizabeth Schulze
'I am outraged and deeply saddened' by hospital attack: Biden
President Joe Biden released a statement saying he was "outraged and deeply saddened by the explosion at the Al Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza, and the terrible loss of life that resulted."
"Immediately upon hearing this news, I spoke with King Abdullah II of Jordan, and Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel and have directed my national security team to continue gathering information about what exactly happened. The United States stands unequivocally for the protection of civilian life during conflict and we mourn the patients, medical staff and other innocents killed or wounded in this tragedy," he said.
-ABC News' Ben Gittleson
Biden prepares $100B package that includes aid for Israel: Sources
The Biden administration is preparing a foreign aid package for $100 billion that will include assistance for Israel, two people familiar with the details told ABC News.
Details on the spending request were still being finalized ahead of an official request sent to Congress later this week, according to the sources.
The specifics of the aid package are now circulating among U.S. officials, according to sources.
One source told ABC News the "bulk" of the assistance will likely go toward Ukraine, while another person with knowledge of the proposal said the latest draft included $10 billion for Israel, as requested.
-ABC News' Anne Flaherty, Ben Siegel, and Allison Pecorin
Palestinian Authority president calls for 'unity,' following hospital attack
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas blamed Israel for the attack on the Gaza hospital that has left over 500 people dead.
Abbas called for "unity" for all Palestinians in a speech delivered early Wednesday morning local time.
"Nobody will use division but the enemy of the Palestinian people," he said.
Abbas claimed the world was "silent" and called on the U.S. Security Council and others to condemn the attack.
"We warn the international community of the crimes of the Israeli occupations. [and] in this tough moment, to make the Israeli accountable and to protect the Palestinian people," he said.
Humanitarian worker in Gaza talks dire wait for aid
It’s not money that people in the Gaza Strip need right now, but rather food, water, medicine and other basic necessities, according to a humanitarian worker there.
"If we have money, we can’t buy anything. There's nothing to buy in the stores, it’s empty shelves," Omar Alnajjar, project manager for nonprofit Save Your Future, told ABC News in a telephone interview from the city of Rafah in southern Gaza.
As Israeli forces continue to bomb "terror targets" in Gaza in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack carried out by the Hamas militant group that governs the territory, an estimated 1 million people are displaced there, including over 520,000 people staying in "emergency shelters in increasingly dire conditions," according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
That's why it's crucial Egypt allows humanitarian aid convoys parked at its northwestern border with Gaza to cross into the war-torn territory and deliver the lifesaving supplies as soon as possible, Alnajjar said. But as of Friday afternoon, the Egyptian-controlled Rafah border crossing remains closed.
"People are just waiting," he added.
-ABC News' Ibtissem Guenfoud, James Longman and Morgan Winsor