Israel-Gaza updates: US making progress toward escape for Americans in Gaza
IDF shared a video appearing to show bulldozers breaking through a barricade.
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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Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
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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.
Israeli military briefly enters northern Gaza, IDF says
Israeli tanks and infantry personnel briefly entered northern Gaza in "preparation for the next stages of combat," the Israel Defense Forces said early Thursday.
"IDF tanks & infantry struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts," the military said in a post on social media.
The post included a video that appeared to show bulldozers breaking through a barricade-like structure, followed by footage of a military convoy traveling along dirt roads and then several explosions.
"The soldiers have since exited the area and returned to Israeli territory," IDF said. The video could not be independently verified.
House passes resolution defending Israel
The House of Representatives passed a resolution defending Israel and condemning Hamas after the group's attack earlier this month and the escalating war in the Gaza Strip.
The resolution passed in a 412-10 vote. Six members voted present. Nine of the 10 "no" votes came from progressive Democrats, while Rep. Thomas Massie, Ky., was the only Republican to vote against the resolution.
-ABC News' Lauren Peller and Tal Axelrod
Dueling Russia, US resolutions on conflict fail to advance at UN Security Council
The dueling resolutions on the Israel-Hamas war put forth to the United Nations Security Council by Russia and the U.S. have both failed.
Russia's version called for a humanitarian ceasefire and avoided condemning Hamas. Russia, China, the UAE and Gabon voted in favor of the draft, while nine members abstained, and both the U.S. and the U.K. voted against it.
While the U.S. emphasized in its resolution Israel’s right to defend itself from Hamas, officials worked to find a middle ground that would placate a majority of members, urging a pause to military action in Gaza. The U.S. measure secured the votes it needed to advance out of the council but was ultimately vetoed by Russia and China.
"The United States is deeply disappointed that Russia and China vetoed this resolution. A resolution that, as I've said, was strong and it was balanced. That was the product of consultations with members of this Council. We did listen to all of you. We incorporated feedback. And we worked to forge consensus around a resolution that would send a clear message to the world – and most importantly, to Israelis and Palestinians – that this Council is determined to meet this moment," U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford
WHO calls for release of hostages, proof of life, proof of medical care
The World Health Organization said there's "an urgent need" for Hamas to "provide signs of life, proof of provision of health care and the immediate release" of the hostages.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he met with families of some hostages on Wednesday.
"Many of the hostages, including children, women and the elderly, have pre-existing health conditions requiring urgent and sustained care and treatment," he said in a statement. "The mental health trauma that the abducted, and the families, are facing is acute and psychosocial support is of great importance."
US making progress toward escape route for Americans in Gaza: State Dept.
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said the U.S. was continuing "close consultations with both the Israeli government and the Egyptian government as well as the United Nations" on opening the Rafah border crossing to American citizens, but that those still talks hadn't crossed the finish line yet.
"We have been making progress. I can't get into the details of that progress because they are very sensitive negotiations, but it's something that we are focused on and hope to have American citizens and other foreign nationals able to move through in the coming days," Miller said.
Miller said the State Department sent a message to American citizens Wednesday telling them that they were continuing "to work out a solution." And while the administration still hasn't given an estimate on how many Americans it is in contact with in Gaza, for the first time Miller said the State Department was speaking with "several hundred."
-ABC News' Shannon Crawford