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DeutschIsrael–Hamas war
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The Israel–Hamas war, also known as the Gaza War, is an ongoing armed conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups.[ad] It is the fifth war of the Gaza–Israel conflict since 2008, and the most significant military engagement in the region since the Yom Kippur War in 1973.[145] It is the deadliest war for Palestinians in the history of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.[146]
The war began when Hamas-led militant groups launched a surprise attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, which involved a rocket barrage and a few thousand militants breaching the Gaza–Israel barrier, attacking Israeli civilian communities and military bases. During this attack, 1,195 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed, including 815 civilians.[99][ae] In addition, 251 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive into Gaza, with the stated goal to force Israel to release Palestinian prisoners and detainees.[147][148] Hamas said its attack was in response to Israel's continued occupation, blockade of Gaza, expansion of settlements, Israel's disregard for international law, as well as alleged threats to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the general plight of Palestinians.[149][150][151] After clearing militants from its territory, Israel launched one of the most destructive bombing campaigns in modern history[152][153] and invaded Gaza on 27 October with the stated objectives of destroying Hamas and freeing hostages.[154][155]
Since the start of the war, over 45,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed,[af] most of them women and children.[33][156][157] Israel's tightened blockade cut off basic necessities and attacks on infrastructure have destroyed Gaza's healthcare system and caused a severe hunger crisis, with a high risk of famine persisting as of November 2024[update].[158][159] By early 2024, Israeli forces had destroyed or damaged over half of Gaza's houses,[160] at least a third of its tree cover and farmland,[161][162] most of its schools and universities,[163][164] hundreds of cultural landmarks,[165] and at least a dozen cemeteries.[166] Nearly all of the strip's 2.3 million Palestinian population have been forcibly displaced.[167][168] Over 100,000 Israelis were internally displaced as of February 2024.[169] Throughout the war, Israel assassinated several Hamas leaders in and outside of Gaza.
The war continues to have significant regional and international repercussions. Large, primarily pro-Palestinian protests have taken place across the world, calling for a ceasefire. The International Court of Justice is reviewing a case accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, while the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders.[170] The United States has given Israel extensive military aid and vetoed multiple UN Security Council ceasefire resolutions.[171] Groups of the Axis of Resistance have attacked American military bases in the Middle East. Additionally, the Yemeni Houthi movement have engaged in attacks in the Red Sea on commercial vessels allegedly linked to Israel, incurring a US-led military response.[172] The ongoing exchange of strikes between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel escalated into an Israeli invasion of Lebanon on 1 October 2024.[173]
Names
The war is referred to by different names. Israel calls it the 'War of Iron Swords' (Hebrew: מלחמת חרבות ברזל).[174][ag] Palestinian militant groups refer to it as the 'Battle of al-Aqsa Flood' (Arabic: معركة طوفان الأقصى), in reference to Operation al-Aqsa Flood.[177][178] Western media outlets have variably described it as the 'Israel-Gaza War'[179] or the 'Israel-Hamas War',[180] while others use 'War on Gaza'.[181] Some have rejected 'war' as an appropriate framework and call it the 'Gaza genocide',[182][183] 'second Nakba'[184] or 'Nakba 2023.'[185][186]
Background
The 1948 Palestine war saw the establishment of Israel over most of what had been Mandatory Palestine, with the exception of two separated territories that became known as the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which were held by Jordan and Egypt respectively. Following the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel occupied the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.[145] The upcoming period witnessed two popular uprisings by Palestinians against the Israeli occupation; the First and Second Intifadas in 1987 and 2000 respectively,[188] with the latter's end seeing Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005.[189][190]
Since 2007, the Gaza Strip has been governed by Hamas, an Islamist militant group, while the West Bank remained under the control of the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority. After Hamas' takeover, Israel imposed a blockade of the Gaza Strip,[191][192] that significantly damaged its economy.[193] The blockade was justified by Israel citing security concerns,[194] but international rights groups have characterized the blockade as a form of collective punishment.[195][196][197] Due to the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, UNRWA reported that 81% of people were living below the poverty level in 2023, with 63% being food insecure and dependent on international assistance.[187][198]
Since 2007, Israel and Hamas, along with other Palestinian militant groups based in Gaza, have engaged in conflict,[194][192][199] including in four wars in 2008–2009, 2012, 2014, and 2021.[200][201] These conflicts killed approximately 6,400 Palestinians and 300 Israelis.[202][107][187] In 2018–2019, there were large weekly organized protests near the Gaza-Israel border, which were violently suppressed by Israel, whose forces killed hundreds and injured thousands of Palestinians by sniper fire.[203][204] Soon after the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis began, Hamas' military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, started planning the 7 October 2023 operation against Israel.[205][206] According to diplomats, Hamas had repeatedly said in the months leading up to October 2023 that it did not want another military escalation in Gaza as it would worsen the humanitarian crisis that occurred after the 2021 conflict.[197]
Hamas officials stated that the attack was a response to the Israeli occupation, blockade of the Gaza Strip, Israeli settler violence against Palestinians, restrictions on the movement of Palestinians, and imprisonment of thousands of Palestinians, whom Hamas sought to release by taking Israeli hostages.[149][150][207] Numerous commentators have identified the broader context of Israeli occupation as a cause of the war.[208][209][210] The Associated Press wrote that Palestinians are "in despair over a never-ending occupation in the West Bank and suffocating blockade of Gaza".[211] Several human rights organizations, including Amnesty International,[212] B'Tselem[213] and Human Rights Watch[214] have likened the Israeli occupation to apartheid, although supporters of Israel dispute this characterization.[215][216] However, an advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice published in July 2024 affirmed the occupation as being illegal and said it violated Article 3 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, which prohibits racial segregation and apartheid.[217]
Events
7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel
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- Approximate situation on 7–8 October
- A blood-stained floor in the aftermath of the Nahal Oz attack
- Aftermath of Hamas rocket hit on the maternity ward of Barzilai Medical Center
- Satellite view of widespread fires in Israeli areas surrounding the Gaza Strip
- Footage of Israeli soldiers securing the area after the Re'im music festival massacre
The attacks took place during the Jewish holidays of Simchat Torah and Shemini Atzeret on Shabbat,[218] and one day after the 50th anniversary of the start of the Yom Kippur War, which also began with a surprise attack on Israel.[211] At around 6:30 a.m. IDT (UTC+03:00) on 7 October 2023,[219] Hamas announced the start of what it called "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood", stating it had fired over 5,000 rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel within a span of 20 minutes. Israeli sources reported that at least 3,000 projectiles had been launched from Gaza. At least five people were killed by the rocket attacks.[220][221][222] Explosions were reported in areas surrounding the strip and in cities in the Sharon plain including Gedera, Herzliya,[223] Tel Aviv, and Ashkelon.[224]
Hamas employed tactics such as using aerial drones to disable Israeli observation posts, paragliders for infiltration into Israel, and motorcycles, which was unusual for Hamas.[225] In the evening, Hamas launched another barrage of 150 rockets towards Israel, with explosions reported in Yavne, Givatayim, Bat Yam, Beit Dagan, Tel Aviv, and Rishon LeZion.[221] Simultaneously, around 3,000 Hamas militants[74] infiltrated Israel from Gaza using trucks, motorcycles, bulldozers, speedboats, and paragliders.[211][219][226] They took over checkpoints at Kerem Shalom and Erez, and created openings in the border fence in five other places.[227] Hamas militants also carried out an amphibious landing in Zikim.[224][228]
Militants killed civilians at Nir Oz,[229] Be'eri, and Netiv HaAsara, and other agricultural communities, where they took hostages[230] and set fire to homes.[223] 52 civilians were killed in the Kfar Aza massacre, 108 in the Be'eri massacre (a loss of 10% of the kibbutz's population) and 15 in the Netiv HaAsara massacre.[231][232][233] In Sderot, gunmen targeted civilians and set houses ablaze. In Ofakim, hostages were taken during Hamas's deepest incursion.[234][233] In Be'eri, Hamas militants took up to 50 people hostage.[235] At least 325 people were killed and more injured at an outdoor music festival near Re'im and Hamas took at least 37 attendees hostage.[236][237][238] In total, 251 people were taken hostage during the attacks, mostly civilians.[235][239] Captives in Gaza included children, festivalgoers, peace activists, caregivers, elderly people, and soldiers.[240] Hamas militants also reportedly engaged in mutilation, torture, and sexual and gender-based violence.[241][242][243]
The 7 October attack was described as "an intelligence failure for the ages"[244] and a "failure of imagination" on the part of the Israeli government.[245] A BBC report on the intelligence failure commented that "it must have taken extraordinary levels of operational security by Hamas".[246] Israeli officials later anonymously reported to Axios that the IDF and Shin Bet had detected abnormal movements by Hamas the day before the attack, but decided to wait for additional intelligence before raising the military's alert level. They also did not inform political leaders of the intelligence reports.[247]
A briefing in The Economist noted that "the assault dwarf[ed] all other mass murders of Israeli civilians", reasoning that "the last time before October 7th that this many Jews were murdered on a single day was during the Holocaust."[233] Hamas stated that its attack was a response to the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements, rising Israeli settler violence and recent escalations at Al-Aqsa.[149][150][207] Intelligence and security officials from multiple Western countries, along with Hamas political officials, claimed that the 7 October attack was a calculated effort to create a "permanent" state of war and revive interest in the Palestinian cause.[248][249]
Initial Israeli counter-operation (October 2023)
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- Approximate situation on 9 October
- Aftermath of a Hamas rocket hit on the maternity ward of Barzilai Medical Center, a hospital in Ashkelon, Israel, on 8 October 2023
- Building in the Gaza Strip being destroyed by Israeli missiles
- Wounded child and man receive treatment on the floor at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City
- Remains of the Sderot police station, following recapture by IDF
- Destruction of a residential building in Gaza by an Israeli airstrike
After the initial breach of the Gaza perimeter by Palestinian militants, it took hours for the IDF to start its counter-attack.[250] The first helicopters sent to support the military were launched from the north of Israel, and arrived at the Gaza Strip an hour after fighting began.[237] They encountered difficulty in determining which outposts and communities were occupied, and distinguishing between Palestinian militants and the soldiers and civilians on the ground.[237] The helicopter crews initially sustained a high rate of fire, attacking approximately 300 targets in four hours. Later on the crews began to slow down the attacks and carefully select targets.[237] According to Haaretz's journalist, a police source said that a police investigation indicated an IDF helicopter which had fired on Hamas militants "apparently also hit some festival participants" in the Re'im music festival massacre.[236] The Israeli police denied the Haaretz report.[251]
A subsequent Israeli investigation claimed that militants had been instructed not to run so that the air force would think they were Israelis.[237] This deception worked for some time, but pilots began to realize the problem and ignore their restrictions. By around 9:00 am, some helicopters started laying down fire without prior authorization.[237]
A July 2024 Haaretz investigation revealed that the IDF ordered the Hannibal Directive to be used, adding: "Haaretz does not know whether or how many civilians and soldiers were hit due to these procedures, but the cumulative data indicates that many of the kidnapped people were at risk, exposed to Israeli gunfire, even if they were not the target." At 7:18 a.m., an observation post reported someone had been kidnapped at the Erez crossing, close to the IDF's liaison office.[252]
At 6:40 p.m. military intelligence believed militants were intending to flee back to Gaza in an organized manner from near Kibbutz Be'eri, Kfar Azza and Kissufim. In response the army launched artillery at the border fence area, very close to some of these communities. Shells were also fired at the Erez border crossing shortly thereafter. The IDF said it was not aware of any civilians being hurt in these bombardments.[252] 14 hostages were in the house of Pessi Cohen at Kibbutz Be'eri as the IDF attacked it, with 13 of them killed.[252]
Former Israeli Air Force officer Colonel Nof Erez said: "This was a mass Hannibal. It was tons and tons of openings in the fence, and thousands of people in every type of vehicle, some with hostages and some without." ABC News (Australia) said that not only soldiers but also Israeli civilians were targeted, citing testimonies from two incidents at Kibbutz Be'eri and Nir Oz.[253]
Six months later the IDF released a review exonerating itself, but it left many at Kibbutz Be'eri unsatisfied and contradicted the testimony from one of the survivors, Yasmin Porat, who told Israel's Kan radio on 15 October that Hamas gunmen had not threatened the hostages and instead intended to negotiate with police for their safe return to Gaza. She said an Israeli police special unit had started the gun battle by firing upon the house, catching "five or six" kibbutz residents outside in "very, very heavy crossfire". In the interview, she was asked: "So our forces may have shot them?" "Undoubtedly," she replied."[253]
The attack appeared to have been a complete surprise to the Israelis.[254] Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency gathering of security authorities, and the IDF launched Operation Swords of Iron in the Gaza Strip.[255][221] In a televised broadcast, Netanyahu said, "We are at war".[226] He threatened to "turn all the places where Hamas is organized and hiding into cities of ruins", called Gaza "the city of evil", and urged its residents to leave.[256][149] Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant conducted security assessments at IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv.[229][224] Overnight, Israel's Security Cabinet voted to act to bring about the "destruction of the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad".[257] The Israel Electric Corporation, which supplies 80% of the Gaza Strip's electricity, cut off power to the area.[224] This reduced Gaza's power supply from 120 MW to 20 MW, provided by power plants paid for by the Palestinian Authority.[258]
On 9 or 10 October, Hamas offered to release all civilian hostages held in Gaza if Israel would call off its planned invasion of the Gaza Strip, but the Israeli government rejected the offer.[259]
The IDF declared a "state of readiness for war",[221] mobilized tens of thousands of army reservists,[219][224] and declared a state of emergency for areas within 80 kilometers (50 mi) of Gaza.[260] The Yamam counterterrorism unit was deployed,[261] along with four new divisions, augmenting 31 existing battalions.[211] Reservists were reported deployed in Gaza, in the West Bank, and along borders with Lebanon and Syria.[262]
Residents near Gaza were asked to stay inside, while civilians in southern and central Israel were "required to stay next to shelters".[224] The southern region of Israel was closed to civilian movement,[261] and roads were closed around Gaza[211] and Tel Aviv.[224] While Ben Gurion Airport and Ramon Airport remained operational, multiple airlines cancelled flights to and from Israel.[263] Israel Railways suspended service in parts of the country and replaced some routes with temporary bus routes,[264][265] while cruise lines removed the ports of Ashdod and Haifa from their itineraries.[266]
Israeli blockade and bombardment
Following the surprise attack, the Israeli Air Force conducted airstrikes that they said targeted Hamas compounds, command centers, tunnels, and other targets.[221][260][267] Israel employed its artificial intelligence Habsora ("The Gospel") software to automatically generate targets to be attacked.[268][269] Two days after the surprise attack, Israel said that 426 targets had been hit, including Beit Hanoun, homes of Hamas officials, a mosque, and the Watan Tower, an internet infrastructure hub.[267][270][271] Israel also rescued two hostages before declaring a state of war for the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War.[272][273]
On 9 October, Defense Minister Gallant announced a "total" blockade of the Gaza Strip, cutting off electricity and blocking the entry of food and fuel, saying "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly".[274] This drew criticism from Human Rights Watch (HRW) who described the order as "abhorrent" and as a "call to commit a war crime" and accused Israel of using white phosphorus munitions over Gaza in violation of international law.[275][276] On 10 October, an Israeli airstrike on a house in Deir al-Balah killed 18 people.[277] Gallant backed down from implementing a total blockade under pressure from US President Joe Biden and a deal was made on 19 October for Israel and Egypt to allow aid into Gaza.[278] The first aid convoy after the start of the war entered Gaza on 21 October 2023,[279] while fuel did not enter Gaza until November.[280]
Evacuation of Northern Gaza
On 13 October, the IDF called for the evacuation of all civilians in Gaza City to areas south of the Wadi Gaza[281] within 24 hours. The Hamas Authority for Refugee Affairs responded by telling residents in northern Gaza to "remain steadfast in your homes and stand firm in the face of this disgusting psychological war waged by the occupation".[282] The statement by Israel faced widespread backlash with numerous agencies such as Doctors Without Borders, the World Health Organization, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and others condemning it as "outrageous" and "impossible" while calling for an immediate reversal of the order.[283]
As a part of the order, the IDF announced a six-hour window from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time on 13 October, for refugees to flee south along specified routes within the Gaza Strip.[284] An explosion at 5:30 p.m. along one of the safe routes killed 70 Palestinians. Israel and Hamas blamed each other for the attack.[285]
The IDF said Hamas set up roadblocks to keep Gaza residents from evacuating south and caused traffic jams.[286] Israeli officials stated this was done to use civilians as "human shields", which Hamas denied.[287] A number of countries and international organizations condemned what they called Hamas's use of hospitals and civilians as human shields.[288]
17 October
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- A man carries the body of a Palestinian child killed during the shelling of 17 October 2023
- The impact crater
- Aftermath of Al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion
On 17 October, Israel bombed areas of southern Gaza.[289] Gazan Ministry of Health officials reported heavy overnight bombing killing over 70 people, including families who had evacuated from Gaza City in the north.[290] One of the airstrikes killed a senior Hamas military commander Ayman Nofal.[291] In the afternoon, an Israeli strike hit a UNRWA school in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing six and injuring 12.[292] Late in the evening, an explosion occurred in the parking lot of the Al-Ahli Arabi Baptist Hospital in the center of Gaza City, killing hundreds. The cause of the explosion was disputed by Hamas and the IDF, and the ongoing conflict prevented independent on-site analysis.[293] Palestinian statements that it was an Israeli airstrike were denied by the IDF, which stated that the explosion resulted from a failed rocket launch by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.[294] The PIJ denied any involvement.[295][296]
The cause of the explosion at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital is contested. In the days after the blast, US, Canadian, French and UK defense and intelligence services concluded it was caused by an errant Palestinian rocket.[297] Channel 4 news cast doubt on Israeli claims of a misfired Hamas rocket being responsible for the blast.[298][299] The Associated Press,[300] CNN,[301] The Economist, The Guardian, and The Wall Street Journal[302] concluded a Palestinian missile was the most likely explanation for the blast. In late November, an analysis by Human Rights Watch indicated the evidence pointed to a misfired Palestinian rocket as the cause, but stated that further investigation was required.[303] Forensic Architecture's investigation, as reported by The New York Times, Bloomberg News, BBC News, and El País, disputed Israel's account, concluding instead that the blast was the result of a munition fired from the direction of Israel.[304] A second report by Forensic Architecture took into account the situated testimony of doctors, survivors, and journalists on the ground, as well as photogrammetry and 3D reconstruction, and gave additional credibility to the incident being an Israeli attack instead of a misfired Palestinian rocket.[305] In April 2024 The New Yorker, citing investigations from Earshot and Forensic Architecture, highlighted doubts about a Palestinian rocket involvement and noted the IDF's role in fostering uncertainty through misinformation.[306][307]
Invasion of the Gaza Strip until the truce (October–November 2023)
- Israeli soldiers preparing for the ground invasion of the Gaza Strip on 29 October
- Israeli military during ground operations on 31 October
- Israeli military during ground operations on 1 November
- Armored IDF D9R bulldozer around 16 November 2023
- Israeli tanks during operations on 31 October
On 27 October, the IDF launched a large-scale, multi-pronged ground incursion into parts of northern Gaza. The IDF was building up a force of over 100,000 soldiers in the cities of Ashkelon, Sderot and Kiryat Gat. Clashes between Hamas and the IDF were reported near Beit Hanoun and Bureij.[308][309] Israeli airstrikes targeted the area around al-Quds hospital,[310] where around 14,000 civilians were believed to be sheltering in or near the hospital.[310] Associated Press reported that Israeli airstrikes also destroyed roads leading to Al-Shifa hospital, making it increasingly difficult to reach.[311] The following day, the IDF struck Jabalia refugee camp, killing 50 and wounding 150 Palestinians. Israel said a senior Hamas commander and dozens of militants in an underground tunnel complex were among those killed. Hamas denied the presence of a senior commander on the scene.[312][313][314] The nearby Indonesia Hospital's surgical director said they had received 120 dead bodies and treated 280 wounded, the majority of them women and children.[315] The attack resulted in several ambassador recalls.[316][317][318] According to The New York Times at least two 2,000-pound bombs, the second largest type in Israel's arsenal, were used.[319]
| External videos | |
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 Gazan child speaks of having to carry a decapitated body after Israeli strike on Jabalia (via The Irish Times) |
On 31 October, Israel bombed a six-story apartment building in central Gaza, killing at least 106 civilians including 54 children in what Human Rights Watch called an "apparent war crime."[320] On 1 November, the first group of evacuees left Gaza for Egypt. 500 evacuees, comprising critically wounded and foreign nationals, would be evacuated over the course of several days, with 200 evacuees already waiting at the border crossing.[321] On the same day, the Jabalia refugee camp was bombed for a second time.[322][323]
On 3 November, Israel struck an ambulance convoy directly in front of Al-Shifa Hospital, killing at least 15 people and injuring 60 more.[324][325] The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said one of its ambulances was struck "by a missile fired by the Israeli forces" about two meters from the entrance to al-Shifa hospital.[325] The PRCS said another ambulance was fired on about a kilometer from the hospital.[325] The next day, a UNRWA spokeswoman confirmed reports that Israel had conducted an airstrike against a UN-run school in the Jabalia refugee camp, killing 15 people.[326]
On 18 November Israeli strikes killed over 80 people in Jabalia refugee camp.[327] Israel also attacked a clearly marked Médecins Sans Frontières convoy, killing two aid workers.[328] On 22 November, Israel and Hamas reached a temporary ceasefire agreement, providing for a four-day pause[329] in hostilities to allow for the release of 50 hostages held in Gaza.[329][330] The deal also provided for the release of approximately 150 Palestinian women and children incarcerated by Israel.[330] The Israeli Prime Minister's Office stated Israel's intention to continue the war.[329][330]
Duration of the truce (November–December 2023)
Following the introduction of a Qatari-brokered truce on 24 November, starting at 7:00 am Israel time, active fighting in the Gaza Strip ceased and some of the Israeli and foreign hostages were released by Hamas in exchange for the release of some of the Palestinian political prisoners held by Israel. The truce was announced for a period of four days but was extended for a longer period.
From 24 to 30 November, Hamas released hostages and Israel released prisoners. On 27 November, Qatar announced that an agreement between Israel and Hamas to extend the truce by two days had been reached.[331] Both Israel and Hamas accused each other of violating the truce on 28 November.[332] On 30 November, in a "last-minute agreement", Hamas released eight hostages in exchange for the release of 30 imprisoned Palestinians and a one-day truce extension.[333]
Resumption of hostilities (December 2023 – May 2024)
Continuation of operations in Northern Gaza (December 2023 – January 2024)
The truce expired on 1 December, as Israel and Hamas blamed each other for failing to agree on an extension. The disagreement centered on "how to define soldiers versus civilians and how many Palestinian prisoners Israel would release for its hostages".[334][excessive quote] The remaining Israeli hostages include a year old baby, his 4-year-old brother and their mother, 13 women aged 18–39, and 85 men, some over 80.[335] Thousands of Palestinians remain in administrative detention.[336] A Hamas official said that after the exchange, the only remaining hostages were civilian men and soldiers, and refused to exchange them until "all our prisoners are freed" and there is a ceasefire.[337] US National Security Advisor Kirby said "Hamas agreed to allow the Red Cross access to these hostages" during the pause, which "didn't happen and is still not happening".[338] The Palestinian Prisoners' Club said that although 240 Palestinian prisoners were released as part of the ceasefire deal, another 240 Palestinians were incarcerated. Released Palestinian prisoners reported mistreatment including beatings, overcrowding, food deprivation, and suspension of access to the Red Cross.[339] Released prisoners were forbidden to speak with the media and threatened with fines.[336]
Israel adopted a grid system to order precise evacuations within Gaza, released a map, and dropped leaflets with a QR code. The grid-based evacuation system was criticized as inaccessible and confusing due to the lack of electricity and internet connectivity in Gaza. Some evacuation instructions were vague or contradictory,[340][341] and Israel struck "safe" areas it had told people to evacuate to.[342][343][344]
Law experts said they had not seen significant changes in how Israel waged war, calling its warnings to civilians ineffective and saying it was unclear if anywhere in Gaza was safe.[345] Amnesty International said "US-made weapons facilitated the mass killings of extended families". Amnesty found no evidence of military targets at the sites of the strikes, or indication occupants were affiliated with Hamas, prompting it to request airstrikes be investigated as possible war crimes.[346] Decomposed babies were found in Al-Nasr Children's Hospital in north Gaza, two weeks after its forced evacuation.[347][348]
On 6 December Refaat Alareer, a prominent professor and writer in Gaza, was killed by an Israeli airstrike.[349] His poem, "If I Must Die" was widely circulated after his death.[350]
Advance into Central Gaza (December 2023 – February 2024)
In December, the IDF reported its troops had reached the centers of Khan Yunis, Jabalia, and Shuja'iyya.[351] Intensified bombing pushed Palestinian civilians south to Rafah.[352] On 7 December, Israel detained 150 men in the Gaza Strip, with dozens more detained on 10 December. According to Israel, the detentions followed a mass surrender of Hamas militants.[353][354] The New York Times reported that the statement about Hamas fighters surrendering was made after video and photos of "men stripped to their underwear, sitting or kneeling… with some bound and blindfolded" were seen on social media.[355]The Guardian reported that among those in the images were civilians, including a journalist. The ICRC said it was concerned and strongly emphasized humane and dignified treatment of those detained as well as international humanitarian law.[356] The BBC reported that a video of the apparent surrender of weapons was unclear on whether a man is "surrendering" weapons, or just moving them as instructed, suggesting it was performed for the camera rather than an authentic surrender, and it is unknown if the individuals are involved with Hamas, or the 7 October attack.[357] Haaretz reported that Israel believed about 10% of the people shown in the video were affiliated with Hamas, and despite public statements by Israel, this was not a "mass surrender" by Hamas.[358] Amnesty International described the treatment of those detained on 7 December as a violation of international law.[359]
On 8 December the Israeli Navy fired 20mm cannon rounds at UNRWA facilities in Rafah.[328]
On 13 December, the IDF said that, since it designated a humanitarian zone for civilians in the Gaza Strip on 18 October 116 rockets had been fired from there toward Israel, including 38 falling inside Gaza.[360] The Pentagon announced on 9 December that the Biden administration had authorized the sale of around 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition to Israel without congressional authorization, using emergency powers.[361] On 29 December, it did so again with $148 million worth of artillery shells and related items.[362]
On 15 December, the IDF announced it had killed three Israeli hostages by friendly fire. They "mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat" during operations in Shuja'iyya.[133][363][364] The same day, an IDF tank fired at the Convent of the Sisters of Mother Teresa, displacing the 54 disabled people sheltering there and leaving some without respirators that they needed to survive. Later that day, an IDF sniper killed two women sheltering in the compound. Pope Francis condemned the attack, calling it "terrorism."[328]
Withdrawal from Northern Gaza (January–February 2024)
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On 1 January 2024, Israel withdrew from neighborhoods in North Gaza.[365] On 7 January, the IDF conducted a targeted missile strike on a car carrying Al Jazeera journalists Hamza Dadouh and Mustafa Thuraya; they and their driver were killed.[366]
Rocket attacks on Israeli cities by Hamas decreased during this period with attacks on New Year's Eve and 29 January 2024.[367][368] On 8 January, an Israeli tank fired at a MSF facility housing 100 aid workers and their families, killing a 5-year-old girl.[328] On 15 January, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the most intense fighting in the north of the Gaza Strip had ended, and a new phase of low-intensity fighting was about to begin.[369] On 13 January, an Israeli tank fired at a convoy of Paltel repair workers returning to Rafah from the Paltel central offices in Khan Yunis. Two were killed. The job they completed and the route they took were pre-approved by COGAT.[370]
By 18 January, the IDF stated that Hamas had begun to rebuild its armies in formerly occupied parts of North Gaza and that their fighting strength had been significantly restored. The IDF had previously said that Hamas control over North Gaza was "dismantled" without providing any evidence.[371] An Israeli airstrike hit a residential compound housing aid workers with the International Rescue Committee and Medical Aid for Palestinians in Al-Mawasi. Because of the destruction of the compound, six frontline medical workers had to leave their posts and IRC and MAP surgeons were forced to suspend their work at Nasser Hospital.[328]
On 22 January 24 IDF soldiers died in the deadliest day for the IDF since the invasion began. Of these, 21 died when Palestinian militants fired an RPG at a tank, causing adjacent buildings that soldiers were rigging to demolish to collapse prematurely.[372][373][374]
On 29 January, Israeli forces killed Hind Rajab and six of her family members when the car they were driving was struck by an Israeli tank and machine gun fire. The IDF later killed two rescue workers who attempted to retrieve Rajab from her family's car.[375] The Red Crescent released the audio from Rajab's phone call with rescue workers, causing international outrage over her death.[376] On 31 January, Israeli forces bombed the offices of the Belgian development agency Enabel, completely destroying the building, after Belgium announced earlier that day that it would not suspend funding for UNRWA.[328]
Preparations for the attack on Rafah (February–March 2024)
During February to early May 2024, Israeli preparations to invade Rafah became a dominant issue in Israeli officials' public rhetoric. On 12 February, Israel started a bombing campaign on Rafah.[377] On 5 February, Israeli gunboats shelled a clearly marked UNRWA convoy, forcing UNRWA to suspend its operations for almost 3 weeks, affecting 200,000 people.[328] On 15 February, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported that Egypt was building a refugee camp for over 100,000 people south of Rafah, surrounded by five-meter-high concrete walls.[378][379] Mohamed Abdel-Fadil Shousha, governor of North Sinai Governorate, denied these rumors in a statement published by Al Arabiya.[380] On 20 February 2 family members of MSF staff were killed when Israel shelled a clearly marked MSF shelter.[328]
On 29 February, over 100 Palestinians were killed and 750 wounded during the flour massacre when Israeli forces opened fire on Palestinians waiting for food aid southwest of Gaza City. Some of the victims were run over by trucks as panic spread.[381] Survivors described it as an ambush, stating that Israeli forces opened fire as people approached the aid trucks, resulting in a rush away from the gunfire that added to the death toll.[382][383] On 1 March, the US announced they would begin an operation airdropping food aid into Gaza.[384] Some experts called the airdrops performative and said they would not alleviate the food situation.[385] During his State of the Union Address, Biden announced a new initiative for providing food and medications to Gaza by sea, setting up a temporary port on Gaza's coast to enable aid delivery.[386]
By 6 March, Israel had completed a new road in Gaza running from east to west. The IDF reported the road was an "active logistical route, constantly maintained". It was intended to be used for mobilization of troops and supplies, to connect and defend IDF positions on al-Rashid and Salah al-Din streets, and prevent people in the south Gaza Strip from returning to the north.[387] On 9 March, an Anera employee and his six-year-old son were killed along with several neighbors when their home was hit by an airstrike.[328]
Second raid on al-Shifa Hospital and withdrawal from southern Gaza (March–April 2024)
Israeli forces raided al-Shifa hospital again between 18 March and 1 April. The IDF clashed with Hamas in the area.[388] Israeli forces killed Faiq al-Mabhouh, who they said was head of the operations directorate of Hamas' internal security service. Hamas said al-Mabhouh was in charge of civil law enforcement and had been engaged in "purely civil and humanitarian activity,"[389] coordinating aid deliveries to north Gaza.[390][391] The IDF assaulted and detained Al-Jazeera correspondent Ismail al-Ghoul and over 80 others, including medical staff and journalists, and confiscated and destroyed media equipment.[392][393] Al-Ghoul was released the following day and could not verify the whereabouts of his colleagues.[394][395] The Committee to Protect Journalists said it was "deeply alarmed and outraged by reports of the assault of Ismail Al-Ghoul and other journalists".[395]
According to the IDF, senior Hamas leaders were killed during the hospital fighting.[396] Survivors of the events reported that workers in Gaza's civil government were receiving their salaries at the hospital before it was raided, and that claims of militants organizing on hospital grounds were not supported by evidence.[397] The IDF said it killed 200 people in and around the hospital. Time Magazine said it provided "no evidence that all were militants."[398] The Gaza media office reported that Israeli forces had killed 400 Palestinians around the hospital, and rendered the medical facility out of use, according to Reuters.[399] Photos of the hospital after Israeli withdrawal showed its "walls blown out and frame blackened" by fire.[400] Hundreds of bodies were found on hospital grounds, with Palestinian witnesses describing massacres.[401] According to a Forensic Architecture report, Israeli forces desecrated makeshift burial grounds within the hospital compound and buried Palestinians killed during the second invasion in mass graves using military bulldozers.[402]
On 10 March, a deputy Hamas military commander, Marwan Issa, was reportedly killed in an airstrike.[403] On 23 March, 19 Palestinians were killed by the IDF while waiting for humanitarian aid at the Kuwait roundabout in Gaza City.[404] On 25 March, the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, to last for the remainder of Ramadan. The US abstained; all other delegates voted in favor.[405] IDF activities in the Gaza Strip remained unchanged following adoption of the resolution.[406] On 28 March, the IDF shot and killed two unarmed men in central Gaza, before burying them in sand with bulldozers.[407] The Council on American-Islamic Relations called for a UN investigation into the "heinous war crime."[408]
On 1 April, seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen, including British, Polish, Australian, and Irish nationals, were killed in an Israeli airstrike south of Deir al-Balah.[409][410][411] World Central Kitchen said their vehicles were clearly marked and their location known to Israel. World Central Kitchen, ANERA and Project HOPE suspended their operations in Gaza. 240 tons of aid from World Central Kitchen was not distributed due to its withdrawal.[410][412] On 4 April, Israel opened the Erez Crossing for the first time since 7 October after US pressure.[413]
On 7 April, Israel withdrew from the south Gaza Strip, with only one brigade remaining in the Netzarim Corridor in the north.[414] Palestinians displaced from that city began to return from the south of the Gaza Strip.[415] Israel planned to initiate its ground offensive in Rafah around mid-April, but postponed to consider its response to the Iranian strikes on Israel.[416] On 25 April, Israel intensified strikes on Rafah ahead of threatened invasion.[417][418] On 5 May, Hamas launched a rocket attack from Rafah towards Kerem Shalom, killing 3 Israeli soldiers.[419]
Beginning of the Rafah offensive (May–July 2024)
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- Top: Israeli Merkava tanks at the Rafah Border Crossing
- Middle: The Givati Brigade in eastern Rafah
- Bottom: The Nahal Brigade in eastern Rafah
On 6 May, the IDF ordered civilians in eastern Rafah to evacuate to Al-Mawasi, west of Khan Yunis, affecting about 100,000 people.[420] Later that day, Hamas announced that it had accepted the terms of a ceasefire brokered by Egypt and Qatar.[421] The deal included a 6-week ceasefire and exchange of prisoners.[422] However, Israel rejected this deal.[423] Israel said that it found the terms unacceptable, but that it would continue to negotiate while the military operation on Rafah was ongoing to "exert military pressure on Hamas".[424][425]
Israel ordered a series of airstrikes on Rafah, while the Israeli war cabinet voted to invade Rafah.[426][427] Later that day, the IDF entered the outskirts of Rafah and approached the Rafah Crossing and Egyptian border.[426][428][429] On 7 May, the IDF seized control of the Gaza side of the Rafah Crossing bordering Egypt.[430][431] Haaretz reported that as talks continued, Israel committed to Egypt and the US that it would limit fighting to the Rafah Crossing and transfer control of the area to an American security company. However, the State Department and White House denied any knowledge of this commitment.[432] The previous week, the US had paused a shipment of bombs to Israel over concerns about the offensive.[433] On 11 May, the IDF ordered more residents to evacuate eastern and central Rafah.[434] By 15 May, an estimated 600,000 had fled Rafah and another 100,000 from the north, according to the United Nations.[435] On 24 May, the International Court of Justice ruled that "Israel must immediately halt its military offensive, and any other action in the Rafah Governorate, which may inflict on the Palestinian group in Gaza conditions of life that could bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part."[170][436]
On 24 May, the United Nations said only 906 aid truckloads had reached Gaza since Israel's Rafah operation began.[437] On 26 May, Hamas fired a barrage of rockets towards Central Israel. Israel bombed the Tel al-Sultan displacement camp in Rafah in an area designated by Israel as a safe zone, killing at least 45 people. The IDF said the strike killed two senior Hamas officials.[438][439][440] The bombing provoked a skirmish between Egyptian and Israeli soldiers at the Gaza border in which one Egyptian soldier was killed.[441] Despite global outrage and calls from government officials to halt its Rafah offensive, less than 48 hours after the Tel al-Sultan attack, the Al-Mawasi refugee camp, another designated civilian evacuation zone, was bombed, killing at least 21 people, 13 of them women and girls.[438][442][443] The IDF denied involvement in the attack.[444] On 31 May, the United States announced a ceasefire framework for ending the war.[445]
| Al Jazeera video of the Al-Awda School massacre | |
|---|---|
| External video | |
| Video of the July 9 air strike and its aftermath taken by a football spectator who was filming the game. Contains graphic images of severe injury.[446] |
On 6 June, Israel bombed a UN-run school sheltering displaced people in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, killing dozens of Palestinians. Two days later, Israel conducted an attack on Nuseirat refugee camp which resulted in the rescue of four hostages. The United States provided advice and intelligence to Israeli forces during the raid, through its "hostage cell" stationed in Israel.[447][448] The attack resulted in the deaths of 274 Palestinians.[449] On 23 June, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was open to a partial deal with Hamas to return some of the hostages without a permanent ceasefire. Hamas said that any deal should include a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces.[450][451] On 27 June, Israeli forces re-invaded the al-Shuja'iyya neighborhood.[452] According to Middle East Monitor and ReliefWeb, between 4 July and 10 August, Israel attacked 21 schools in Gaza, killing 274 people.[453][454] On 9 July, at least 31 people were killed in an Israeli strike on Al-Awda school.[455][456][446] The IDF carried out a series of coordinated attacks in Gaza City and Deir al-Balah. The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they fought against Israeli soldiers with anti-tank munitions and mortar fire. The fighting resulted in the killing of at least 50 Palestinians.[457]
Continued operations throughout Gaza (July 2024 – present)
On 13 July, at least 90 people were killed and 300 were injured in an Israeli strike on Al-Mawasi and 22 people were killed in an Israeli strike targeting people gathered to pray in the Al-Shati refugee camp.[458][459][460] On 15 July, Israeli air raids destroyed the UNRWA's Gaza headquarters.[461] Israeli forces destroyed the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, prompting calls for an investigation from the Turkish government.[462] On 31 July, Al Jazeera journalist Ismail al-Ghoul and his cameraman were killed in a targeted strike in the west of Gaza City. They were reporting on the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, which occurred earlier that day, from the area near Haniyeh's home in Gaza.[463] Rawhi Mushtaha and two other Hamas officials were killed in an Israeli airstrike.[464][465] On 1 August, Israeli strikes killed at least 15 in a shelter in Gaza City.[466][467] On 3 August, at least 17 Palestinians were killed in two Israeli airstrikes on a school turned shelter in Gaza City.[468][469] On 4 August, Israel bombed tents outside Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, killing 5 Palestinians,[470][471][472] and airstrikes targeting shelters in Gaza City killed at least 30.[473] Two days later, at least 80 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Al-Tabaeen school.[474] On 20 August, Israel struck the Mustafa Hafiz school in Gaza City, killing at least 12.[475][476] On 29 August, an Israeli airstrike on an Anera aid convoy en route to the Emirati Red Crescent Hospital killed four Palestinians.[328]
Second and third battles of Khan Yunis (22 July – 30 August)
On 22 July, the IDF began a second invasion of Khan Yunis.[477][478] Israel ordered the evacuation of the eastern part of Khan Yunis,[479] 73 people were killed during the first day of the attack.[478][480][481] Footage from an Israeli drone surfaced showing the destruction of the Grand Mosque in Khan Yunis.[482] On 30 August, The IDF withdrew its 98th battalion from Khan Yunis and Deir el-Balah after its month-long operation, saying it killed over 250 Palestinian militants.[483]
Polio vaccination campaign
On 16 August, a 10-month-old contracted Gaza's first case of polio in 25 years.[484] Polio vaccinations began on 31 August at Nasser Hospital.[485][486] On 4 September, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that vaccinations would continue at "four fixed sites in central Gaza for three more days".[487] On 6 September, the Gaza Health Ministry said that Israel was hindering polio vaccinations by refusing to coordinate the entry of medical teams into the southern Gaza Strip.[488] On 9 September, UN staff working with the polio vaccination campaign were detained by Israeli soldiers in northern Gaza, who held them at gunpoint and damaged UN vehicles with bulldozers.[489] On 16 September, Lazzarini said that first phase of polio vaccination was a success and it reached 90% of the children.[490] On 12 October, the WHO was able to begin its vaccination campaign in Central Gaza despite strikes on al-Aqsa Hospital.[491][492][493] Strikes on the Mufti school in Nuseirat also delayed the distribution of polio vaccines.[494] On 17 October, the vaccination campaign in central Gaza was completed.[495] On 23 October, vaccinations in northern Gaza were postponed due to Israeli bombardment, mass displacement and lack of access.[496] On 2 November, the WHO began its vaccination campaign in northern Gaza. An Israeli quadcopter fired on the Sheikh Radwan clinic, injuring six people. The IDF denied responsibility for the attack.[497][498] On 6 November, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that polio vaccination campaign in northern Gaza was completed a day prior. He said that up to 10,000 children could not be reached for receiving a second dose and added that "efforts will continue to reach more children through regular health services".[499]
Ground operation in Rafah
On 1 September, Israel bombed a school sheltering displaced Palestinians, killing 11 people.[500] The IDF claimed to have killed 200 militants and discovered dozens of weapons in Tel al-Sultan in one week in its operation in Rafah.[501] On 10 September, Israeli missile strikes on a tent encampment in Al-Mawasi killed 19 to 40 people.[502][503][504] On 11 September, an Israeli airstrike on a family home in eastern Khan Yunis killed at least 13 Palestinians.[505] An IAF UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Rafah while trying to evacuate a critically injured combat engineer, killing two Israeli soldiers and injuring seven others.[506]
Attacks in central Gaza
An Israeli airstrike on a UNRWA-run school-turned-shelter in Nuseirat refugee camp killed at least 18 people.[507][38][508] In September, an Israeli strike on a home in Nuseirat refugee camp killed 10 Palestinians.[509][510] An Israeli air strike on Zeitoun school in Gaza City killed at least 21 Palestinians.[511][512][513] Israel returned 88 bodies to Gaza in a container truck, providing no personal or location information where the victims had been killed. Nasser Hospital health officials refused to bury the bodies until they were identified.[514] An Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in Jabalia killed at least 15 Palestinians.[515][516] Israeli forces bombed two houses on the Nuseirat camp, killing at least 13 people.[517][518]
In October, Israeli airstrikes on Shuhada al-Aqsa mosque in Deir el-Balah and a school in central Gaza killed at least 26 Palestinians and injured over 93.[519][520][521] Palestinian journalist Hassan Hamad was killed in an airstrike on his home after receiving threats from an Israeli officer over WhatsApp.[522] Video of a fire at a tent camp outside Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital showed a person burned alive in the flames, and at least four others were killed.[494] An Israeli air strike on a residential building in the Maghazi refugee camp killed at least 10.[523][524] Israeli tank shelling on a school which serves as shelter for displaced people in Nuseirat killed at least 22 people and injured 80 others.[525][526] An Israeli strike on Rufaida school which was serving as a shelter for displaced people in Deir el-Balah killed at least 28 people and injured 54 others.[527][528][529] Oxfam condemned the killing of four engineers working with one of its partners, Coastal Municipalities Water Union near Khuzaa by an Israeli airstrike, despite prior coordination of their activities with Israeli authorities.[530] Israeli missile strikes on Shuhadaa al-Nuseirat school serving as a shelter for displaced families in Nuseirat refugee camp killed at least 18 Palestinians and injured at least 52 others.[531][532][533]
In November, Israeli bombardment in Deir Al-Balah, the Nuseirat refugee camp and Al-Zawayda killed 47 Palestinians and injured dozens of people.[534] An Israeli strike on the entrance of a school serving as shelter for displaced people in the Nuseirat refugee camp killed at least 14 Palestinians.[535] An Israeli strike on a car in Khan Yunis killed 10 people.[535] An Israeli strike on a school serving as shelter for displaced people in the Al-Shati refugee camp killed 12 people.[536][537] An Israeli drone strike on a small cafe in Israeli designated humanitarian zone in al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis killed 11 people and injured dozens of people.[538][539] Israeli air strikes killed at least 20 Palestinians in Nuseirat refugee camp.[540] An Israeli strike on a group of Palestinians waiting for aid killed 12 people and injured several others.[541] An Israeli airstrike on Abu Assi School used for housing displaced families in Al-Shati refugee camp killed at least 10 people and wounded at least 20 others.[542][543]
In December, an Israeli air strike targeted a home in Nuseirat refugee camp that was evacuated before the strike, killing at least 26 Palestinians and injuring over 60 others in nearby houses.[544][545][546] An Israeli air strike on a residential home in Bureij refugee camp killed at least 11 people.[547] Israeli strikes hit a post office serving as shelter for displaced Palestinians and nearby homes in a residential area in Nuseirat refugee camp killing 36 people and injuring approximately 50 others.[548][549][550] An Israeli airstrike in the vicinity of the municipality building in Deir al-Balah killed at least 10 Palestinians and wounded several others.[551][552][553]
Siege of Jabalia (5 October – present)
On 8 October, the IDF began to encircle Jabalia camp and said it had killed about 20 Palestinian militants in air strikes and street battles. Casualties also included at least seven Palestinian civilians.[554][555] On 10 October, the IDF issued evacuation orders for three hospitals in northern Gaza, threatening that they would meet "the same fate as al-Shifa hospital, with destruction, killing and arrest."[554] After an initial 14 October strike on the Alsayed family home in Jabalia, an American member of the family passed the home's coordinates to the Israeli military through the White House to coordinate an ambulance dispatch. However, the Alsayed family home was bombed again, killing several members of the family and the doctor sent to aid them.[556] The IDF said that an Israeli airstrike on a Hamas base in Jabaliya killed at least 12 Hamas and PIJ commanders.[557] The IDF said that it killed 20 Hamas militants in the Jabalia refugee camp in the past 24 hours.[558] The IDF said that its air force killed dozens of militants in Jabalia on 17 October.[559] On 28 October, the IDF said that it continued air and ground operations in Jabalia, killing dozens of fighters.[560]
In October, Israeli strikes on Jabalia killed at least 152 people. Strikes included the bombardment of Jabalia refugee camp on 6 October,[561] Al-Yemen Al-Saeed Hospital on 9 October,[562] an evacuation center in the western part of Jabalia on 10 October,[563] a multistory building on 11 October,[564][565] a food distribution center on 14 October,[566] the al-Faluja area on 15 October,[567] the UNRWA-run Abu Hussein school on 17 October,[568][569][570] and houses in the vicinity of Nassar Junction on 18 October.[571][572][573]
Strikes on Jabalia in November killed at least an additional 95 people. Strikes included the bombardment of a house on 7 November,[574] another house on Old Gaza Street on 10 November,[575][576][577][578] a strike on another home on 13 November,[579] shelling on 14 November,[580] and a strike in Jabalia al-Balad on 20 November.[581][582]
On 10 December, the IDF said that it killed 10 Hamas operatives who were involved in the killing of three Israeli soldiers and injuring of 12 others in Jabalia one day prior in an air strike.[583]
Killing of Yahya Sinwar
On 16 October, IDF ground forces killed Yahya Sinwar in a shootout in Tal as-Sultan.[584] The conscript soldiers who participated in the shootout were initially unaware that one of the militants they had killed was Sinwar, and he was identified the following day by his dental records.[585] Sinwar's death while participating in ground battles alongside a small group of militants ran counter to the Israeli defense establishment's assumptions that he would be hiding underground, surrounded by hostages. There were no hostages in Sinwar's vicinity at the time of his death,[586] and no civilian casualties were reported.[587] Joe Biden urged Israel to end the war citing victory as a result of Sinwar's death.[588]
Generals' plan
On 13 October, senior IDF officials told Haaretz that the government was not seeking to revive hostage talks and that political leadership was pushing for the annexation of parts of the Gaza Strip.[589] In the later weeks of October, Israel's siege on North Gaza intensified and daily aid shipments dropped significantly. Eyewitnesses reported the shelling of hospitals, razing of shelters, and abductions of men and boys by the Israeli military, leading to speculation that Israel had decided to implement a plan by a group of retired generals to turn the northern Strip into a closed military zone and declare all who refuse to leave as combatants.[590] On 19 October, Israel bombed al-Awda Hospital in Jabalia and Kamal Adwan and the Indonesian hospitals in Beit Lahiya.[591] The IDF continued its encirclement of Jabalia by sending tanks to Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun and issuing evacuation orders to residents. Israeli Colonel Ehsan Daxa was killed on 20 October during fighting in Jabalia when his tank squadron was hit with explosive devices.[592] Civilian sources also told Mondoweiss that on 20 October, Israel detained over 700 people at the UN-run Abu Hussein school in Jabalia camp. The army then forced the detainees to huddle together in a ditch and made each person stand in front of a camera that scanned their faces, revealing detailed personal information about them. Suspected members or relatives of members were taken to an unknown location and may have been executed.[593] On 24 October, an IDF attack destroyed at least 10 residential buildings in the al-Hawja residential area inside the Jabalia refugee camp. According to an assessment by Gaza Civil Defense, 150 people were killed or injured.[594] Gaza's civil defense ministry said that since the start of Israel's siege of north Gaza, at least 770 people had been killed there in total.[595] On 25 October, Gaza Civil Defense said that an Israeli drone strike on a group of Palestinians receiving aid near Shati refugee camp killed 12 people.[596] The WHO said it had lost contact with Kamal Adwan hospital that night, and UN human rights chief Volker Türk called recent developments in North Gaza the "darkest moment" in the war so far. In his statement, Türk invoked the international obligation to prevent genocide, marking a departure from UN hesitancy to use that word regarding the war.[597] Food aid to Gaza reached a new low in October at an average of 30 trucks per day, or less than 6% of the daily pre-war average.[598] Residents of northern Gaza have said no aid has reached its cities since 5 October.[599]
Israeli strikes on Beit Lahia in October killed at least 270 people. Israel struck several homes and a multistory building on 20 October,[600][601][602] a residential area on 26 October,[603] a building housing displaced people on 27 October,[604] a residential building on 29 October where over 100 people were killed,[605][606][607] and another residential area the same day,[608][609] as well as a market on 30 October.[610]
An Israeli airstrike on the UN-run Asmaa school sheltering displaced families in Al-Shati refugee camp killed at least 11 people and injured several others.[611][612][613] On 1 November, two Israeli strikes on buildings in northern Gaza killed 84 Palestinians.[614] The UN warned that the situation had become "apocalyptic" and that "The entire Palestinian population in North Gaza is at imminent risk of dying from disease, famine and violence".[615] On 2 November, UNICEF said that over 50 children were killed in Israeli strikes in Jabalia in the past two days.[616] On 5 November, Israeli Brigadier General Itzik Cohen told reporters that "there is no intention of allowing the residents of the northern Gaza Strip to return" and that no food aid had entered northern Gaza because there were "no more civilians left".[599] On 7 November, the IDF said that it killed an estimated 50 militants in Jabalia and Beit Lahia and killed a number of militants in Rafah one day prior.[617] On 9 November, the IDF said that its 162nd Division killed dozens of militants in Jabalia in the past day.[618] On 12 November, aid in Gaza fell to its lowest level in 11 months despite a US ultimatum that it be restored.[619]
In November, Israeli strikes on Beit Lahia killed at least 248 people. Strikes hit a home on 4 November,[620] a building serving as a shelter on 6 November,[621] a multi-story building on 17 November,[622][623][624] a home near Kamal Adwan Hospital on 18 November,[625] a residential neighborhood near Kamal Adwan on 20 November,[626][627][628] and another residential building on 29 November.[629][630] Hamas said an additional 112 people were killed in Israeli attacks on 22 November.[631]
Attacks on Gaza City in November killed at least 58 people. Targets included the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood on 20 November,[632] al-Tabin school on 27 November,[633][634][635] a home in the Abu Iskandar neighborhood on 29 November,[636][637] and Al-Hurreya School, which served as a shelter for displaced people, on 26 November.[638][639][640]
On 16 November, PIJ said it destroyed an Israeli army vehicle in Beit Lahia.[622] On 23 November, Hamas said an Israeli hostage had been killed in northern Gaza in an area where Israel was operating. On 24 November, Israel issued a new wave of evacuation orders, triggering another round of displacements in Jabalia.[641] UNRWA said that Israel had rejected nine attempts to deliver aid to north Gaza in the month of November and obstructed an additional 82 attempts; they added that the survival conditions were diminishing for the 60,000 to 70,000 civilians remaining in north Gaza.[642] On 30 November, more than 40 people were killed in an Israeli air raid on the Tel al-Zataar area of Jabalia which caused the collapse of a six-story building and trapped several others under the rubble.[643][644][645] Al-Aqsa TV journalist Mamdouh Qanita was killed by an Israeli quadcopter in Gaza City.[646] On 1 December, an Israeli strike on a home in Beit Lahia killed 25 people.[647][648] Mahmoud Almadhoun, a chef who founded the Gaza Soup Kitchen, was targeted and killed by an Israeli quadcopter near Kamal Adwan hospital.[649] On 3 December, an Israeli strike on a residential building in Beit Lahia killed 12 people.[650] On 4 December, two consecutive Israeli strikes in Israeli designated humanitarian safe zone of al-Mawasi killed at least 21 Palestinians, injured at least 28 others.[651][652][653] Four multi-story buildings collapsed as a result of an Israeli strike in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City, killing at least 25 people, injuring many others.[654][655][656] On 5 December, an Israeli strike on a residential building in Beit Lahia killed 15 people.[657] Israeli Army Radio announced that soldiers killed approximately 20 militants during fighting in Beit Lahia in the previous day.[658] On 6 December, Israeli shelling around the Kamal Adwan Hospital killed at least 33 people and dozens were injured.[659][660] On 9 December, an Israeli strike hit people who lined up for buying flour in Rafah, killing 10 people.[661] An Israeli air strike on a building in northern Gaza sheltering a displaced family from Beit Lahia and Jabalia killed 22 people.[662] On 10 December, an Israeli airstrike on a multi-floored building in Beit Hanoun killed at least 10 people and wounded dozens of others.[663] On 11 December, an Israeli strike on a residential building in Beit Lahia, in the vicinity of Kamal Adwan Hospital killed at least 22 people.[664][665][666] On 12 December, two Israeli strikes on an aid convoy killed 13 people and wounded at least 30 people, including several of them seriously.[667][668][669] On 13 December Israeli tank fire killed Dr. Sayeed Joudeh, the last orthopedic surgeon in northern Gaza.[670] On 15 December, Israeli artillery strikes on Khalil Oweida School serving as shelter for displaced people in Beit Hanoun killed at least 43 Palestinians and wounded several others, many of them seriously.[671][40][672] At least 15 people were killed when an Israeli airstrike hit Khalil Awida school in Beit Hanoun.The IDF said this was part of a raid on a "terrorist meeting point"[673] and said it had killed several gunmen in the combined ground and air operation.[674] An Israeli strike on UNRWA-run Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz school sheltering displaced people in Khan Yunis, killed at least 20 people and injured many others.[675][672][676] On 16 December, an Israeli strike in Shuja'iyya killed 10 people.[677][678] On 17 December, an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in Daraj neighbourhood, east of Gaza City killed at least 10 people.[679][680] An Israeli airstrike on a home in Beit Lahia killed at least 15 Palestinians and trapped several others under the rubble.[681][682] On 18 December, an Israeli strike on a home in Jabalia killed 10 people.[683] On 20 December, an Israeli strike on a home in Jabalia killed at least 12 Palestinians, and wounded 15 others.[684][685] [686]
Interference with aid deliveries in central Gaza
After several incidents of aid convoys at the occupied Kerem Shalom crossing being looted by armed gangs, an internal UN memo concluded that gangs in Israeli occupied areas of Gaza "may be benefiting from a passive if not active benevolence" or "protection" from the IDF. WHO teams were shot at by Israeli forces during several attempts to clear an alternative route for aid convoys, leading to allegations that the IDF was deliberately steering convoys into the path of the looters.[687]
On 16 November, 98 out of 109 food trucks carrying UN aid from Kerem Shalom crossing were looted in Israeli-controlled areas of the Gaza strip.[687][688][689] An Israeli strike on a home in Bureij refugee camp killed at least 10 Palestinians including a child and injured several others including children.[690][691][624] On 30 November, a strike on a World Central Kitchen vehicle transporting supplies along Salah al-Din Road near Khan Yunis killed three aid workers.[692][693][694] Israel alleged that one of the workers was affiliated with Hamas, a claim WCK denied.[695] World Central Kitchen announced it would suspend its operations in response to the killing of its aid workers.[696] An Israeli airstrike on a group of Palestinians waiting for receiving food from an aid convoy in Khan Yunis killed at least 12 Palestinians and injured several others.[697] On 1 December, the UN suspended its aid shipments to Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing, blaming Israel for failing to "ensure safe conditions for delivering relief supplies."[698]
Other confrontations
 | It has been suggested that this section be merged into Middle Eastern crisis (2023–present). (Discuss) Proposed since November 2024. |
Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and the Houthi movement in Yemen have launched limited attacks against Israel, raising fears of a wider regional military conflict. Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria have also traded attacks with the US and IDF.[699] Israel has bombed targets in and around Damascus throughout the war,[700][701][702] with an attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus on 1 April leading to a direct Iranian response.[703] Iran launched a series of retaliatory airstrikes on Israel.[703][704] Over 100 Palestinians have been killed in confrontations with Israeli soldiers and settlers in the West Bank since 7 October. Settler violence has been heavily criticized by the IDF.[705][706]
West Bank and Israel
Amnesty International released a report[707] on 5 February 2024 stating that Israel is carrying out unlawful killings in the West Bank and displaying "a chilling disregard for Palestinian lives" and that Israeli forces are carrying out numerous illegal acts of violence that constitute clear violations of international law.[708][709]
Even before the war, 2023 was the deadliest year for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in 20 years. Violence in the West Bank has increased since the war began with more than 607 Palestinians and over 25 Israelis killed.[710][711] At the same time, Israeli settler violence further increased to around 1,270 attacks, against 856 for all of 2022.[712] About 1,000 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced by settlers since 7 October and almost half of clashes have included "Israeli forces accompanying or actively supporting Israeli settlers while carrying out the attacks" according to a U.N. report.[713] According to the West Bank Protection Consortium, since the 7 October attacks six Palestinian communities have been abandoned due to the violence.[714]
By 10 October, confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli forces had left 15 Palestinians dead, including two in East Jerusalem.[715] On 11 October, Israeli settlers attacked the village of Qusra, killing four Palestinians. A 16-year-old child was fatally shot by the IDF in Bani Na'im, while another person was shot dead by the IDF near Bethlehem.[716] On 12 October, two Palestinians were killed after Israeli settlers interrupted a funeral procession for Palestinians killed in prior settler attacks and opened fire.[717][718][719]
On 18 October, protests broke out over the al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, with clashes reported in Ramallah.[720] In Jenin, a 12-year-old girl was shot dead by crossfire from Palestinian Authority security forces, and another youth was injured by PA forces in Tubas. One Palestinian was killed in confrontations with Israeli forces in Nabi Salih, and 30 others were injured across the West Bank.[721] On 19 October, more than 60 Hamas members were arrested and 12 people were killed in overnight Israeli raids across the West Bank. Those arrested included the movement's spokesperson in the West Bank, Hassan Yousef.[722]
On 22 October, Israel struck the al-Ansar Mosque in the Jenin refugee camp, saying that it had killed several "terror operatives" from Hamas and Islamic Jihad who were planning attacks inside without providing evidence.[723] Within a few days Ayser Mohammad Al-Amer, a senior commander of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad was killed during a clash with IDF in the Jenin refugee camp.[724] On 31 October, the IDF engaged Hamas around Shuweika.[725]
On 20 April 14 Palestinians were killed in clashes during an Israeli raid in the West Bank. Palestinian sources identified one of the victims as a militant,[726] while Israel said that 14 gunmen were killed.[727]
In July 2024, Israeli authorities approved the seizure of 12.7 square kilometers of land in the occupied West Bank. According to Peace Now, this was the largest single appropriation approved since the 1993 Oslo accords."[728] On 4 July, Israeli authorities approved plans for almost 5,300 new houses in occupied West Bank.[729]
On 7 August, Wafa reported that Israeli forces destroyed the regional headquarters of Fatah in the Balata Camp.[730][731]
On 14 August, the Israeli government approved new settlements in the occupied West Bank.[732][733]
On 28 August, Israel launched the largest military operation into the northern West Bank in more than 20 years. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said that the operation was a "full-fledged war".[734] Israeli forces carried out simultaneous operations in Jenin, Tubas, Nablus, Ramallah and Tulkarem. In Jenin, Israeli forces devastated civilian infrastructure with anti-tank munitions and armored bulldozers, set fire to the Jenin farmers' market, and carried out mass arrests of men and boys. Civilians were trapped in their homes and denied access to food, water and medicine. Members of the press were denied access to the city while the operation was ongoing. Eyewitnesses also reported the use of Palestinian detainees as human shields and the use of attack dogs against civilian families. The army blocked access to hospitals and ambulances.[735] On 29 August, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres demanded a halt to the operations.[736] EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the operations "must not constitute the premises of a war extension from Gaza, including full-scale destruction."[737] On 3 September, Israeli media reported that the IDF had classified the West Bank as a "combat zone" and now viewed it as the second most important front in the war.[738][739] Yoav Gallant said that Israel was "mowing the lawn" with its West Bank operations, but that it would eventually need to "pull out the roots".[740] On 6 September, Turkish-American protestor Ayşenur Eygi was killed by an Israeli sniper at a demonstration near Nablus.[741]
On 3 October, an Israeli airstrike in Tulkarm Camp killed at least 20 people.[742][743]
On 13 November, Smotrich said that with Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 United States presidential election, Israel was "a step away" from "sovereignty in Judea and Samaria." Later comments by Mike Huckabee, chosen by Trump as the next ambassador to Israel, corroborated the possibility of an Israeli annexation of the West Bank.[744]
Israeli settlements
Israeli settlers have taken advantage of the ongoing war to expand settlement activity supported by a far-right Israeli government,[745][712][746] including land seizure and large scale settlement plans.[747] In 2024, Israeli land seizures exceeded the combined total of the previous 20 years.[748]
Attacks in Israel
During the war, civilians in Israel have been subjected to intermittent killings and other violence. For example, on 30 November, two Palestinian gunmen killed three and wounded eleven Israeli civilians at a bus stop on the Givat Shaul Interchange in Jerusalem. Hamas claimed responsibility.[749] On 16 February 2024, a Palestinian gunman shot and killed two Israeli civilians and injured four others in Kiryat Malakhi, Israel. The shooter was killed by an off-duty IDF reservist at the scene.[750] On 12 April a 14-year-old Israeli shepherd was killed and on 16 April two Palestinians were killed by Israeli settlers in Aqraba.[751] On 13 May, at the Tarqumiya checkpoint, a convoy of trucks carrying food supplies to Gaza was attacked by Israeli settlers, who damaged the trucks and threw supplies on the ground.[752]
Israeli prisons and detention camps
Israel has increased its administrative detention of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza, as well as Palestinian citizens of Israel, since the start of the war. Administrative detention was already at a 20-year high before October 2023.[753] More than 11,000 Palestinians are held in Israeli jails, not counting detainees taken from Gaza during the war.[754] At least 60 Palestinians have died in Israeli detention since 7 October.[755]
In December 2023, a military base at Sde Teiman in the Negev Desert was converted to a detention camp by the IDF. Whistleblowers and detainees reported beatings and torture of Palestinian detainees at the camp, as well as amputations of limbs due to injuries sustained from handcuffing, medical neglect, arbitrary punishment and sexual abuse. Prisoners have been coerced to make confessions that they are members of Hamas.[756][757][758] After conditions in the camp came to light in May 2024, the Supreme Court of Israel held a hearing and the IDF began transferring 1,200 of the prisoners to Ofer Prison.[759] Detainees have reported severe instances of violence during transfers between prisons.[755][760]
Several Palestinian healthcare workers have been abducted from Gaza hospitals during sieges by Israeli forces.[760] On 5 December, Israeli forces abducted the adult men present at Al-Awda hospital and took them to Sde Teiman camp. Dr. Adnan Al-Bursh was detained and later died in Israeli custody.[761] In March, Israeli forces abducted Khaled Alser, lead author of the first Lancet paper on trauma among Gazan ER patients and doctors, from Nasser Hospital. As of 31 August, he remains in detention and his whereabouts are unknown.[762]
Al-Araby TV correspondent Mohammed Arab was abducted from the Gaza strip in March 2024 and transferred to Ofer prison in July. After reports of his treatment were leaked to al-Araby, he was beaten, threatened and tortured. According to Arab's testimony, prison guards used dogs and fire extinguishers to enact sexual violence on other prisoners.[754]
In July 2024, military police raided Sde Teiman to arrest ten soldiers "suspected of the serious sexual abuse" of a Palestinian detainee. Itamar Ben-Gvir and other members of the Otzma Yehudit party condemned the arrests.[756] Supporters of the arrested soldiers including Ben Gvir, Amihai Eliyahu, Zvi Sukkot, and Nissim Vaturi stormed Sde Teiman that night in protest. Hours later, protestors broke into Beit Lid where the soldiers were being held.[763]
On 7 October 2024, American journalist Jeremy Loffredo and three other international and Israeli journalists were detained at a checkpoint in the West Bank on suspicion of "assisting an enemy in war" for their reporting on the October 2024 Iranian strikes against Israel. The journalists' cameras and phones were confiscated. Loffredo was released after four days in detention, and barred from leaving the country until 20 October.[764]
Lebanon
A series of border clashes with Hezbollah along the Israel–Lebanon border began shortly after the 7 October attack. In 2024, Israel escalated its assault on Lebanon, carrying out explosive device attacks, assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, and expanding its bombing campaign. On 1 October, Israel began a ground invasion of Lebanon. More than 2,500 people have been killed and 20% of Lebanon's population has been displaced.[765]
Clashes
On 8 October, Hezbollah launched an artillery attack on Israeli positions in Shebaa Farms; this was met with immediate retaliation.[766][767] Skirmishes have occurred every day since, spilling over to the occupied Golan Heights.[768][118] more than a million people in Lebanon and over 96,000 more in Israel have been displaced.[769][770][765] On 13 October, Reuters journalist Issam Abdullah was killed by Israeli tank fire while reporting on the border skirmishes.[771] The inability of Israelis to return to settlements and homes in the north of the country led to Antony Blinken stating that Israel had effectively "lost sovereignty in the northern quadrant of its country".[772] On 27 July 2024, the Majdal Shams attack occurred, killing 12 children in the Golan Heights area.[773][774] The attack, which Israel and the US said was carried out by Hezbollah, marked an escalation in hostilities and opened discussion about a broader war with Lebanon. Hezbollah denied responsibility for the attack.[775]
Escalation
While the Biden administration publicly urged Israel to reach a negotiated solution with Hezbollah, senior white house officials including Amos Hochstein and Brett McGurk privately assured Israel that the US backed its decision to escalate militarily.[776] On 17 September 2024, at least 12 people were killed and thousands of others including Hezbollah members and civilians were wounded across Lebanon and Syria following multiple explosions blamed on pagers used by Hezbollah to prevent their members being targeted by mobile phone signals. Among those reported injured was the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani.[777][778][779] On 18 September 2024, a second series of explosions involving Hezbollah communication devices occurred across Lebanon.[780] On 20 September, Israel launched an airstrike in Dahieh, Beirut targeting Hezbollah's operations commander Ibrahim Aqil. At least 45 people were killed[781] including Aqil, senior Hezbollah commander Ahmed Mahmoud Wahabi.[782][783][784] Between 19 and 22 September, Hezbollah launched multiple rocket attacks against Israel causing injuries and damage.[785][786] Hezbollah also said that it targeted Israeli airbases, intelligence bases and a tank.[787] On 23 September, Israel conducted over 1,600 strikes in its deadliest attack on Lebanon since 2006,[788] killing at least 558 people and injuring over 1,835.[789][790][791] Hezbollah launched over 300 rockets at Israel on the same day.[792][793] On 26 September, an Israeli strike on a building in Younine killed at least 20 people.[794][795]
On 27 September, the IDF struck Hezbollah's central headquarters in Beirut, targeting Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.[796] Al-Manar reported that four buildings collapsed in the attack. At least six people including Nasrallah died and at least 100 were injured.[797][798] On 28 September, the IDF struck civil defense centres and a medical clinic in Taybeh and Deir Siriane killing 11 people.[799] On 29 September, an Israeli air strike on a home in Dahr-al-Ain killed at least 11 people.[800][801] The Lebanese National News Agency reported that at least 17 members of a family were killed in an Israeli air strike in Zboud.[802] An Israeli strike in Ain El Delb killed 45 people.[803][804] Another strike in Bekaa killed 12 people.[803]
Invasion
On 1 October, the IDF confirmed that it was conducting a "limited, localized" ground operation into southern Lebanon.[805] An Israeli strike on a house in Al-Dawoudiya killed at least 10 people and injured five others.[806] On 2 October, Israeli forces were ambushed by Hezbollah fighters in Odaisseh and forced to retreat while attempting to dismantle militant infrastructure. Six soldiers from the Egoz Unit were killed and several others were injured, including five seriously. Two soldiers of the Golani Brigade were killed. The IDF said that 20 Hezbollah militants were killed during the clash.[807][808] An Israeli air strike destroyed three houses in the Bekaa Valley killing 11 people.[809] On 3 October, an Israeli strike on the municipality building in Bint Jbeil killed 15 people.[810] On 7 October, two Israeli airstrikes in towns south of Beirut killed at least 12 people.[811] Israeli warplanes struck a fire station affiliated with the Islamic Health Authority in Baraachit, killing ten people.[812][813] On 10 October, an Israeli airstrike in central Beirut killed at least 22 people and injured 117 others. Israel said it was targeting Wafic Safa, but Safa reportedly survived.[814][815] On 12 October, four Israeli soldiers were killed and 61 were wounded in a drone strike on an army base near Binyamina.[816] On 14 October, an Israeli airstrike on an apartment building in Aitou in northern Lebanon killed at least 21 people.[817][818][819] On 15 October, the UNHCR said that over 25% of Lebanon was under evacuation orders of Israel.[820] Israeli air strikes in Qana killed 15 people.[821] On 16 October, an Israeli airstrike on the municipal building of Nabatieh killed at least 16 people, including the town's mayor Ahmad Kahil and injured 52 others.[822][823] Israeli forces also detonated explosives throughout the town of Muhajbib, home to the tomb of the prophet Benjamin, destroying nearly all of it. Videos surfaced of soldiers laughing and celebrating as they watched the destruction from a distance.[824][825] On 19 October, a drone struck Benjamin Netanyahu's residence in Caesarea. Netanyahu was not in the residence at the time and no casualties were reported.[826] Hezbollah later claimed responsibility for the attack.[827] On 22 October, an Israeli airstrike on a house in Teffahta killed 19 people.[828] An Israeli airstrike near the Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut killed at least 18 people, and injured at least 60 others.[829][830][831] On 23 October, the IDF said that it killed three Hezbollah sector commanders and 70 other Hezbollah militants.[832] Air attacks on Dahieh resumed in what was called one of the worst nights of bombing in the neighborhood to date. Six buildings, including the offices of Al Mayadeen, were destroyed in seventeen raids.[765] On 24 October, the IAF attacked over 160 targets in Lebanon.[833] On 27 October, the IDF claimed to have killed 70 Hezbollah fighters.[834] On 29 October, nine people were killed in an Israeli airstrike southeast of Sidon.[835][836] Another airstrike in Sarafand killed 10 people.[837][838] On 30 October the IAF hit more than 100 targets in Lebanon.[839] Israeli airstrikes in Sohmor killed 11 people.[840] Israeli strikes killed 19 people in two towns in Baalbek District.[841][842] On 1 November, an Israeli airstrike on a home in Amhaz killed at least 12.[843][844] On 5 November, an Israeli strike on a residential building in Barja killed at least 30 people and injured several others.[845] On 7 November, the IAF said that it struck about 20 sites in the Bekaa Valley and north of the Litani River killing approximately 60 Hezbollah operatives one day prior.[846][847] On 10 November, an Israeli strike on a civil defense centre affiliated to the Islamic Mission Scouts Association in Ras al-Ain, Lebanon killed 15 people and injured two others.[848][849] An Israeli strike on a home in Almat, Jbeil district killed 23 people and wounded six others.[850] On 11 November, an Israeli airstrike on a building in Ain Yaaqoub killed at least 14 people, injured 15 others and trapped some people under the rubble.[851] On 12 November, an Israeli air strike in Joun killed 15 people and wounded 12 others.[852] On 14 November, an Israeli airstrike on a civil defense center in Duris, Lebanon killed at least 15 people.[853][854][855] On 23 November, an Israeli airstrike on a building in Basta area of Beirut Central District targeting Hezbollah official Muhammad Haydar killed at least 29 people and injured 67 others.[856][857][858] The target was reportedly not present in the building.[859] On 26 November, Israel approved a ceasefire with Hezbollah.[860] On 27 November, the IDF estimated that it killed several dozens of Hezbollah operatives in its strikes on a Radwan Force base in the Bekaa Valley in the night leading up to the truce.[861] The ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah went into effect at 4:00 a.m. UTC+02:00.[862] On 2 December, Hezbollah launched two mortars towards Shebaa Farms, claiming that it was responding defensively to repeated ceasefire violations by the IDF.[863] In response, the IDF struck dozens of Hezbollah members and rocket launchers, including the one used in the mortar attack.[864] Six people were killed in Haris and four others in Talloussah.[865][866]
Yemen and the Red Sea
Houthi militants in Yemen have launched strikes against Israel and commercial ships in the Red Sea.[867][868][869] On 19 October 2023, the United States Navy destroyer USS Carney shot down several missiles that were traveling north over the Red Sea towards Israel.[870] On 31 October, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said that the group had launched ballistic missiles and drones towards Israel, and that they would continue to do so "to help the Palestinians to victory."[12] On 19 November, the Galaxy Leader, a cargo ship chartered by a Japanese logistics company with 25 individuals on board, was hijacked by the Houthis using a Mil Mi-17 helicopter.[871]
On 3 December, the Houthis said that they had attacked two ships, the Unity Explorer and Number 9 in order "to prevent Israeli ships from navigating the Red Sea".[872][873] Any ship destined for Israel, according to the group, was a "legitimate target". Saree announced in a post on X that the "horrific massacres" against the Palestinians in Gaza was the reason for this decision and that they will not stop until the Gaza Strip is supplied with food and medicine. Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi called this development a "global issue" and that Israel is "giving the world some time to organize in order to prevent this" otherwise, the country would "act in order to remove this naval siege".[874]
On 19 July, a Houthi drone strike killed one person and wounded 10 near the US embassy in Tel Aviv.[875] On 20 July Israeli planes struck military facilities and oil depots at the port of Hodeidah in response, killing at least 6 people and wounding at least 83 people.[876] On 29 September, the Israeli Air Force struck power plants and port facilities in al-Hudaydah and Ras Issa killing at least six people and injuring 57 others.[877][878][879] The Ministry of Information claimed that the group had emptied the facilities used to store fuel prior to the attack.[880] On 19 December, 14 Israeli warplanes dropped dozens of munitions on five locations in Yemen in two waves of airstrikes. The first wave saw four strikes hit Hudaydah Port, two hit the Ras Isa oil terminal,[881] and other strikes hit the Port of Salif. The second wave targeted two power stations north and south of Sanaa.[882][883] The IDF said that the strikes hit targets "used by Houthi forces for their military operations."[884] Houthi-affiliated media outlet Al Masirah reported that Israeli attacks killed at least nine civilians and wounded three others.[881][885]
Iraq
Since November 2023, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has claimed responsibility for drone and missile attacks against targets within Israel in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The group stated it would continue to "strike enemy strongholds". Strikes were recorded in Eilat,[886] the Dead Sea coastline,[887][888] the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights,[889] the Karish rig,[890] Haifa Bay,[891] Ashdod,[892] Kiryat Shmona,[893] Tel Aviv,[894][895] and in Elifelet.[896]
In late January, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced it had entered its second phase of operations which included blockading the Mediterranean maritime routes to Israeli ports and disabling the ports.[892] Since then, the group has launched joint military operations on Israel with the Houthis targeting ships in Haifa port.[897][898]
On 3 October 2024, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq launched a kamikaze drone attack on a military base in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, killing two IDF soldiers and injuring 24 others.[899] By late October, the Iraqi resistance had launched drones on an average of around five times a day. In one 24-hour period in October, the ISI launched eight drones at Israel.[900]
Syria
There have been numerous attacks claimed by or blamed on Israel since the start of the war in Gaza. In roughly the first year of the war, Israel struck Syria more than 220 times, killing 296 people.[901] On 10 October 2023, Israel exchanged rocket and mortar fire with forces in southern Syria. On 12 October, Israel bombed Damascus International Airport and Aleppo International Airport ahead of a visit to Syria by Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.[700] Since 2024, Israel has continued to launch airstrikes at targets in Syria, including in Damascus[702] and Aleppo.[902] A January 2024 strike on Damascus may have killed Iranian general Sadegh Omidzadeh, though the IRGC did not officially corroborate the news of his death.[903] In April, Israel bombed the Iranian consulate in Damascus.[904][905] On 13 July 2024, one soldier was killed and three other people were injured in Israeli strikes in and around Damascus.[906] On 27 September 2024, Israeli forces struck the Lebanon-Syria border, killing five Syrian soldiers.[907] On 30 September, several people including a state television presenter were killed in an Israeli strike on Damascus.[908][909] On 4 October, two Israeli soldiers were killed and 24 were wounded in a drone attack by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq on an Israeli base in the Golan Heights.[910] However, the group denied responsibility for the attack.[911] On 8 October an Israeli airstrike on Damascus killed 13 people.[901] On 14 October, two Israeli tanks crossed into Syria, positioning themselves south of Quneitra.[912] On 20 October, a guided missile attack on a car killed two people near the Golden Mazzeh hotel in Damascus.[913] On 31 October, SANA reported that Israeli strikes hit a number of residential buildings in Al-Qusayr, damaging its industrial zone and killing 10 people, including civilians.[914][915] The IDF said that it struck Hezbollah command centers and weapon depots.[916] On 14 November, an Israeli strike on a residential building in Mazzeh and another Israeli strike on a residential building in Qudsaya killed 23 people including seven civilians. Israeli Army Radio said that the strikes targeted assets and headquarters of PIJ.[917][918][919] PIJ confirmed the death of two of its leaders and a group of its cadres.[920] On 20 November, Israeli strikes in Palmyra killed 92 Iran-backed fighters, including four from Hezbollah, and injured 21 others including seven civilians.[921][922]
Iran
On 24 November 2023, a suspected Iranian drone attacked the CMA CGM Symi, owned by Eastern Pacific Shipping, whose principal is Israeli, in the Indian Ocean, according to a US defense official. An anonymous source said the drone was suspected to have been a Shahed-136 drone. The attack caused damage to the ship but did not injure any of the crew.[923]
In December, the US military was reportedly looking to build a maritime task force to protect trade against Iranian harassment.[924]
On 23 December, a suspected Iranian drone attacked the Israel-affiliated oil tanker MV Chem Pluto in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Gujarat. The attack did not harm any of its 20 crew members, but caused a fire that was extinguished. The vessel was reportedly carrying Saudi oil to Mangalore, India.[925]
On 13 April 2024, the IRGC Navy boarded the Portuguese-registered and Madeira-flagged container ship MSC Aries in the Strait of Hormuz via helicopter, and directed it to Iranian territory for "violating maritime law". The ship is leased by MSC from Gortal Shipping, an affiliate of Zodiac Maritime, whose principal is Israeli.[926][927]
On 31 July, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran, where he had traveled to attend the inauguration of President Masoud Pezeshkian. Iranian media said an Israeli strike took place at 02:00 and targeted a residence for war veterans in North Tehran, where Haniyeh was staying.[928]
Iranian strikes on Israel
On 13 April, following an Israeli airstrike on its consulate building in Damascus, Syria on 1 April,[929] Iran launched Operation True Promise,[930] a series of retaliatory airstrikes on Israel,[703][704] attacking the country from Iranian soil for the first time.[931]
On 1 October 2024, Iran began firing missiles at Israel in at least two waves,[932][933] with sirens being heard across the country. Explosions were heard overhead across Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.[932] The IDF confirmed over 100 missiles were fired by Iran.[934]
Israeli response
On 12 October, the United States authorized the deployment of THAAD missile defense systems and American crews to man them to Israel in anticipation of an Iranian response to the planned Israeli retaliation for Iran's 1 October strikes.[935][936] Massive cyberattacks were reported on nuclear facilities and government agencies of Iran.[937] Leaked US intelligence documents revealed that Israel was conducting covert drone operations over Iran in preparation for a strike. The documents also showed that the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency was monitoring Israeli weapons movements, ground forces, air defenses, navy, air and special forces, and nuclear weapons, but that it lacked the intelligence to anticipate an Israeli strike. US intelligence did not find any indication that Israel was planning to use nuclear weapons in its response.[938][939] On 23 October, Gholamreza Jalali, the head of Iran's National Organization for Passive Defense said that Israeli cyberattacks against Iranian interests are continuing, but they are facing a "layer-by-layer" defence strategy that have kept them at bay.[940] On 24 October, IRGC chief Hossein Salami claimed that THAAD systems will not be enough if Israel prompts an Iranian attack by attacking Iran.[941] On 26 October, the IDF carried out airstrikes in Iran in response to its attacks against Israel.[942][943] An Iranian civilian and four Iranian soldiers were killed in the strikes.[944][945]
Casualties
As of 10 December 2024[update], over 46,000 people – 44,786 Palestinian[948] and 1,706 Israeli[955] – have been reported killed in the Israel–Hamas war, as well as 141–156 journalists and media workers,[958] 120 academics,[959] and over 224 humanitarian aid workers, a number that includes 179 employees of UNRWA.[960] In Nov 2024, the UN published its analysis covering only victims verified from at least three independent sources over 6 months span between Nov 2023 and April 2024 found that 70% of Palestinian deaths in Gaza are women and children.[947]
The majority of casualties have been in the Gaza Strip. The Gaza Health Ministry (GHM) total casualty count is the number of deaths directly caused by the war. The demographic breakdown is a subset of those individually identified.[33][961] On 17 September 2024, the GHM published the names, gender and birth date of 34,344 individual Palestinians whose identities were confirmed. This reflects over 80% of the casualties reported so far; of these, 60% were not men of fighting age.[33] The GHM count does not include those who have died from "preventable disease, malnutrition and other consequences of the war".[962] An analysis by the Gaza Health Projections Working Group predicted thousands of excess deaths from disease and birth complications.[963] According to a PCPSR report, over 60% of Gazans have lost family members since 7 October 2023.[964][965] Indirect deaths[967][968] are likely to be multiple times higher.[51][969]
The 7 October attacks on Israel killed 1,195 people, including 815 civilians.[99] A further 479 Palestinians, including 116 children, and 9 Israelis have been killed in the occupied West Bank (including East Jerusalem).[948] Casualties have also occurred in other parts of Israel, as well as in southern Lebanon,[970] Syria,[971] Yemen,[972] and Iran.[973]
According to the Israeli Ministry of Defense's Rehabilitation Division, about 1,000 soldiers are wounded every month.[974] On 14 August 2024, the ministry predicted that it would have to account for 100,000 disabled IDF veterans by 2030 due to the war.[975] In November 2024, Hamas said it killed 20 armed young men from local Bedouin tribes who were stealing humanitarian aid.[976]
Humanitarian crisis
The Gaza Strip is experiencing a humanitarian crisis as a result of the Israel–Hamas war,[977][978] including a hunger crisis, in which famine-like conditions occurred in some areas of the strip and a high risk of famine persists as of October 2024,[979][159] as well as a healthcare collapse. At the start of the war, Israel tightened its blockade on the Gaza Strip, resulting in significant shortages of fuel, food, medication, water, and essential medical supplies.[977][980][981] This siege resulted in a 90% drop in electricity availability, impacting hospital power supplies, sewage plants, and shutting down the desalination plants that provide drinking water.[982] In July 2024, available water worked out to 4.74 litres per person per day, just under a third of the recommended minimum in emergencies.[983] Doctors warned of disease outbreaks spreading due to overcrowded hospitals.[978] A polio epidemic was the target of mostly-successful vaccination campaigns.[984]
Heavy bombardment by Israeli airstrikes caused catastrophic damage to Gaza's infrastructure, further deepening the crisis. Direct attacks on telecommunications infrastructure by Israel, electricity blockades, and fuel shortages caused the near-total collapse of Gaza's largest cell network providers.[985][986][987] Lack of internet access has obstructed Gazan citizens from communicating with loved ones, learning of IDF operations, and identifying both the areas most exposed to bombing and possible escape routes.[985] The blackouts impeded emergency services, making it harder to locate and access the time-critical injured,[985] and have impeded humanitarian aid agencies and journalists.[985] By December 2023, 200,000 Gazans (approximately 10% of the population) had received internet access through an eSIM provided by Connecting Humanity.[988]
The Gaza Health Ministry reported over 4,000 children killed in the war's first month.[989] UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that Gaza had "become a graveyard for children."[ah][992][993] Indirect Palestinian deaths are expected to be much higher due to the intensity of the conflict, destruction of healthcare infrastructure, lack of food, water, shelter, and safe places for civilians to flee to, and reduction in UNRWA funding, with one Lancet study stating that the death toll in Gaza, including future deaths indirectly caused by the war, might exceed 186,000.[994][995]
Scale of destruction
The scale and pace of destruction and damage of buildings in the Gaza Strip ranks among the severest in modern history,[996][997][998] surpassing the bombing of Dresden, Hamburg, and London combined during World War II,[999][1000][1001][ai] and included apartment buildings, hospitals, schools, religious sites, factories, shopping centres, and municipal infrastructure.[1001] As of January 2024, researchers at Oregon State University and the City University of New York estimated that 50–62% of buildings in the Gaza Strip had been damaged or destroyed.[1003][1004][aj][ak] The damage to buildings in northern Gaza reportedly exceeds that in Bakhmut and Mariupol in the Russian invasion of Ukraine,[1000] Aleppo in the Battle of Aleppo,[996] and Mosul and Raqqa in the War against the Islamic State.[996] The 29,000 munitions Israel had dropped on Gaza in three months exceeded the amount (3,678) dropped by the US between 2004 and 2010 after its invasion of Iraq.[1007] According to satellite analyses, 68% of roads, 70% of greenhouses, and nearly 70% of tree crops have been damaged or destroyed.[1008] After a year, the UN estimates that a total of 42m tonnes of rubble clutter the Strip, to clear and rebuild which might take 80 years and cost over $80bn.[1009] An earlier estimate worked out that 300 kilograms of rubble on average existed per square meter of Gaza.[1010]
The Guardian reported that the scale of destruction has led international legal experts to raise the concept of domicide, which it describes as "the mass destruction of dwellings to make [a] territory uninhabitable".[997] In October 2024, after monitoring and analyzing Israel's war conduct in Gaza for more than a year, Forensic Architecture published a cartographic map platform detailing Israel's campaign in Gaza titled "A Cartography of Genocide", accompanied by an 827-page text report that concludes that "Israel's military campaign in Gaza is organised, systematic, and intended to destroy conditions of life and life-sustaining infrastructure".[1011]
War crimes
A UN Commission to the Israel–Palestine conflict stated that there is "clear evidence that war crimes may have been committed in the latest explosion of violence in Israel and Gaza, and all those who have violated international law and targeted civilians must be held accountable."[1012][1013][1014] On 27 October, a spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called for an independent court to review potential war crimes committed by both sides.[1015]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed that its mandate to investigate alleged war crimes committed since June 2014 in the State of Palestine extends to the current conflict.[1016][1017] On 20 May, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan announced his intention to seek arrest warrants against Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh and Israeli leaders Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity during the war.[1018][1019][1020] On 21 November, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant, and Deif for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.[1021][1022][1023]
On 7 June 2024, both Israel and Hamas were added to the list of shame, an annex attached to an annual report submitted by the UN Secretary-General documenting rights violations against children in armed conflict. While past reports accused Israel of grave rights violations against children, the country was never included in the annex.[1024][1025][1026]
On 19 June 2024, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory presented a detailed report to the United Nations Human Rights Council covering the war from 7 October to 31 December 2023, affirming that both Hamas and Israel committed war crimes and that Israel's actions also constituted crimes against humanity.