Israel-Gaza updates: Gantz rejects Netanyahu's request, resigns

He said Netanyahu is "preventing us from progressing towards a true victory."

As the Israel-Hamas war continues, negotiations are apparently stalled to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, and Israeli forces continue to launch incursions in the southern Gazan town of Rafah ahead of a possible large-scale invasion.


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Biden, Macron welcome rescue of hostages

President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the rescue of the hostages at a press briefing Saturday.

Biden welcomed the safe return of four hostages from Gaza, pledging that the United States will not stop working until all hostages are home.

"I want to echo President Macron’s comments welcoming the safe rescue of four hostages that were returned to their families in Israel. We won't stop working until all the hostages come home and a ceasefire is reached. That is essential to happen,” Biden said.

President Macron spoke before President Biden, also celebrating the news.

“In Gaza, we want to attain the immediate liberation of hostages and we can only welcome the liberation of four hostages by the Israeli army. We want to achieve the immediate ceasefire and open up the prospect of a political solution which is the only one that can bring about a fair and lasting peace and meet the security of concerns of both people,” Macron said.

“And that is why we are supporting the comprehensive proposal of the United States of America,” he added, calling on Israel to do more to assist humanitarian aid to Rafah, calling the situation “unacceptable.”

-ABC News’ Molly Nagle and Michelle Stoddart


Central Gaza death toll rises to 150

At least 150 Palestinians were killed in Israeli bombing targeting Nuseirat, in central Gaza, Saturday, according the Ministry of Health.

One video verified by ABC News shows about a dozen bodies lying on the street, covered in blood and surrounded by rubble.

Others show people fleeing Nuseirat market as smoke fills the background, and people arriving at the hospital in droves, carrying wounded people and children.


Gaza hospital receives 55 dead bodies amid Israeli raid on central Gaza

Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital says it received 55 bodies Saturday amid the Israeli raid on central Gaza, calling on people to come to donate blood, according to a spokesperson.

The hospital is overcrowded and cannot accommodate any more injured people, it said.

“We call on the international community and UN organizations to intervene to stop this brutal aggression,” the hospital said in a statement.

-ABC News’s Victoria Beaule


47 killed in Central Gaza amid Israeli raid

At least 47 Palestinians have been killed and dozens others were wounded in Central Gaza Saturday amid ongoing Israeli raids in Nuseirat, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

A number of victims are still under the rubble and on the roads, with ambulance and civil defense crews unable to reach them.

"The occupation forces penetrating into the Central Governorate are committing a massacre against citizens in the Nuseirat camp, as a result of which many martyrs and wounded were transported to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital," the Health Ministry said.

At least 36,801 Palestinians have been killed and 83,680 have been wounded since Oct. 7, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Videos obtained by ABC News from the hospital show dozens of people being brought in and lining the floors of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.

-ABC News' Samy Zyara and Nasser Atta


Gantz resigns from emergency government in blow to Netanyahu

Centrist Israeli minister Benny Gantz announced Sunday that he was resigning from the emergency government because of what he has described as a lack of a plan from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the "day after" in Gaza.

During a televised news conference, Gantz announced he was resigning from the coalition government, taking with him his State Party and the seats it held in the Knesset. Netanyahu's coalition government will still retain a majority, but the move by Gantz is considered a major blow to the prime minister.

"Netanyahu is preventing us from progressing towards a true victory," Gantz said. "For this reason, we are leaving the emergency government today, with a heavy heart, yet wholeheartedly."

He also called on Netanyahu to set a date for elections.

Gantz was set to make the announcement on Saturday but called it off amid the news of an Israel Defense Forces operation in Gaza that led to the rescue of four Israeli hostages.

Gantz is a member of Israel’s three-member war Cabinet, which includes Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

On Saturday, Netanyahu appealed to Gantz on X, saying, "This is the time for unity and not for division. We must remain united within ourselves in the face of the great tasks before us. I call on Benny Gantz -- do not leave the emergency government. Don't give up on unity."

Following Gantz's resignation, Netanyahu released a statement on X, saying, "Israel is in an existential war on several fronts."

"Benny, this is not the time to abandon the campaign -- this is the time to join forces," Netanyahu said. "Citizens of Israel, we will continue until victory and the achievement of all the goals of the war, primarily the release of all our hostages and the elimination of Hamas."

Netanyahu added, "My door will remain open to any Zionist party that is ready to get under the stretcher and assist in bringing victory over our enemies and ensuring the safety of our citizens."

In May, Gantz issued an ultimatum to Netanyahu, saying he would resign if the prime minister did not approve a post-war plan by June 8, saying at the time, "While the Israeli soldiers show supreme bravery on the front, some of the men who sent them into battle behave with cowardice and irresponsibility."

-ABC News' Jordana Miller