Israel–Hamas war

2023 Israel–Hamas war
Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Gaza Strip   Evacuated areas inside Israel   Maximum extent of Palestinian advance   Areas inside Gaza Strip ordered to be evacuated by Israel See here for a more comprehensive map.
Date 7 October 2023 – present (1 year, 1 month, 1 week and 2 days) Location Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Syria Status Ongoing Palestinian militants break through the Gaza–Israel barrier and invade Israel's Southern District 199+ Israeli and foreign hostages taken by Palestinian militants Israeli military carries out airstrikes in the Gaza Strip and imposes a total blockade Israel orders the evacuation of northern Gaza including Gaza City
Belligerents
Hamas PIJ PFLP DFLP File:شعار عرين الاسود.png Lions' Den Hezbollah	Israel
Commanders and leaders
Ismail Haniyeh Yahya Sinwar Mohammed Deif Abu Obaida Murad Abu Murad † Ziyad al-Nakhalah Abu Hamza Nayef Hawatmeh Hassan Nasrallah	Benjamin Netanyahu Benny Gantz Yoav Gallant Herzi Halevi Kobi Shabtai Ronen Bar
Units involved
Al-Qassam Brigades Al-Quds Brigades Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades National Resistance Brigades Hezbollah's paramilitary wing	Israel Defense Forces Israel Police Shin Bet
Strength
Al-Qassam Brigades: 40,000 2,500 infiltrated Israel	529,500 total IDF strength
Casualties and losses
Gaza Strip: 2,808 killed 10,850 wounded Inside Israel (Israeli claim): 1,000 militants killed West Bank: 54 killed 300 wounded Lebanon: 12–14 killed	Israel: 1,400+ killed 4,121 wounded 199+ abducted
1,000,000 Palestinians displaced in Gaza 60,000+ Israelis displaced

An ongoing armed conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas began on 7 October 2023, with a coordinated surprise offensive on Israel. The attack began with a barrage of at least 3,000 rockets launched from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip against Israel. In parallel, some 2,500 Palestinian militants breached the Gaza–Israel barrier, attacking military bases and massacring civilians in neighboring Israeli communities. At least 1,400 Israelis were killed, including 260 people who were massacred at a music festival. Unarmed civilian hostages and captured Israeli soldiers were taken to the Gaza Strip, including women and children. Israel began conducting retaliatory strikes before formally declaring war on Hamas a day later.

Since 2006, Israel and Hamas have gone to war several times; Palestinians and Israelis have had many grievances against one another since the 20th century. Hamas avoided major engagements with Israel in 2022 and most of 2023, and instead, appeared to be covertly preparing for their major offensive, Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.

Israel began clearing Hamas forces from affected areas and conducting airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, which have killed 2,750 Palestinians as of 15 October. The United Nations reported that around 1 million Palestinians, nearly half of Gaza's population, have been internally displaced. Fears of a humanitarian crisis were heightened after Israel cut off food, water, electricity, and fuel supplies to Gaza, which had already been blockaded by both Egypt and Israel. Israel sent messages urging 1.1 million Gazans to evacuate northern Gaza, while Hamas called on residents to stay in their homes and blocked roads leading south. The United Nations and many countries called for an immediate ceasefire. Human rights groups called for the intake of Gazan refugees caused by the war.

At least 44 countries denounced Hamas and called its conduct terrorism. In contrast, countries across the Middle East called for deescalation and decried Israel's decades-long occupation of the Palestinian territories (i.e., Gaza and West Bank) as the root cause. Iran warned that if Israel did not immediately stop the war in Gaza, many other fronts in the war would open and Israel would suffer "a huge earthquake", in addition to threatening intervention if IDF launched a ground invasion against Gaza. On 8 and 9 October, there was an exchange of fire between Hezbollah and Israeli forces after Hezbollah militants fired rockets into Israel from Lebanon and Israel responded with airstrikes in Lebanon. The United States deployed two aircraft carrier battle groups to the Eastern Mediterranean, the United Kingdom declared it would send warships and aircraft, and Germany began supplying military aid to Israel. There have been widespread civilian deaths, and a panel of United Nations special rapporteurs along with human rights groups have accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes.

Name

Palestinian militants dubbed the initial attack Operation Al-Aqsa Flood (or Deluge) (Template:Lang-ar), while Israel named its counteroffensive Operation Swords of Iron.(Template:Lang-he

Others have called it the "Sukkot War", after the festivity celebrated the day the attack started, and analogously to the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Numerous analysts and officials have called the initial assault "Israel's 9/11".

Background

See also: Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Iran–Israel proxy conflict, and Gaza–Israel conflict

The Gaza Strip and Israel have been in conflict since the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, Hamas winning the 2006 Palestinian legislative election, and a civil war between Hamas and Fatah in 2007 that culminated in Hamas gaining control over Gaza. In response to Hamas's takeover, Egypt and Israel imposed an extensive blockade of the Gaza Strip that devastated Gaza's economy. International rights groups have decried the blockade as a form of collective punishment, while Israel has defended it as necessary to protect Israeli citizens from "terrorism, rocket attacks and any other hostile activity", and to prevent weapons and dual use goods from entering Gaza. Since the blockade, Hamas has regularly launched rockets into Israel, including into civilian areas, with Israel frequently responding to these attacks with bombing campaigns.

The Palestinian Authority has not held national elections since 2006, in part due to fears of another Hamas victory. According to Jewish Currents, polling has consistently found that while Hamas's governance is controversial among Palestinians, the organization is viewed as the only military power that can exact concessions from Israel. A March 2023 poll of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank indicated that a majority supported the use of "armed struggle", the creation of "militant groups", and an intifada against Israel.

At the time of the attack, Israel and Saudi Arabia were conducting negotiations to normalize relations; Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman said that normalization was "for the first time real". Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it had "repeatedly warned that Israel's ongoing occupation of Gaza would propel further violence." Following the 2013 Egyptian coup d'état in which military general Abdel Fattah el-Sisi deposed president Mohamed Morsi, Egypt–Hamas relations soured, with the Sisi government suggesting that potential ties between Hamas and the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood could pose a national security threat.

Israeli politics

Israeli politics has historically been dominated by social democratic, secular parties in the "peace camp" that made significant efforts to forge a peace process with the Palestinians from its founding to the early 2000s, most notably in the case of Yitzhak Rabin and the Oslo Accords. Their influence declined significantly after the Palestinian National Authority declared war on Israel during the Second Intifada of 2000–2005. Palestinian suicide bombings were a prominent feature of the fighting and mainly targeted Israeli civilians, contrasting with the less violent First Intifada and decimating attempts to resolve the conflict through talks. The New York Times wrote: "The waning of [attempts at a peace process] began in the 2000s, when a wave of Palestinian violence was interpreted by many Israelis as a rejection of efforts [by Palestinians] to peacefully resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That discredited [a] prior push [in Israel] for greater Palestinian sovereignty and boosted the... narrative that Israel could not count on Palestinians to negotiate a lasting peace."

After the 2022 Israeli legislative election in November, a Netanyahu-led right-wing government took office the following month. The government ramped up settlement construction in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Events leading up to the war

See also: July 2023 Jenin incursion, 2023 Al-Aqsa clashes, and May 2023 Gaza–Israel clashes

In 2023, there were several violent flareups in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Before the attack, including combatants and civilians on both sides, at least 247 Palestinians had been killed by Israeli forces, while 32 Israelis and two foreign nationals had been killed in Palestinian attacks. There were increases in settler attacks displaced hundreds of Palestinians; and there were violent clashes around the Al-Aqsa Mosque, a Jerusalem holy site.

Tensions between Israel and Hamas rose in September 2023, and the Washington Post described the two "on the brink of war". Israel found explosives hidden in a shipment of jeans and halted all exports from Gaza. In response, Hamas put its forces on high alert, and conducted military exercises with other groups, including openly practicing storming Israeli settlements. Hamas also allowed Palestinians to resume protests at the Israel-Gaza barrier. On Sep 13, five Palestinians were killed at the border amid conflicting accounts. On 29 September, Qatar, the UN, and Egypt mediated an agreement between Israel and Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip to reopen closed crossing points and deescalate tensions.

Days before the attack, Egypt says it warned it Israel that "an explosion of the situation is coming, and very soon, and it would be big." Israel denies receiving such a warning, but the Egyptian claim is corroborated by Michael McCaul, Chairman of the US House Foreign Relations Committee, who said the warnings were made three days before the attack.

The attack took place during the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah on Shabbat, and a day after the 50th anniversary of the start of the Yom Kippur War, which also began with a surprise attack.

Timeline

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.

For a more comprehensive list, see List of military engagements during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.

7 October

Main article: Operation Al-Aqsa Flood

Palestinian offensive

Rocket barrages

See also: Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel

File:Isr vs pla war.jpg

On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched a surprise attack, claiming to have fired more than 5,000 rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip within a 20-minute span.

At around 6:30 a.m. Israel Summer Time (UTC+3) on 7 October 2023, Hamas announced the start of what it called "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood", stating that 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. Explosions were reported in areas surrounding the Strip and in cities in the Sharon Plain including Gedera, Herzliyya, Tel Aviv, and Ashkelon. Air raid sirens were also activated in Beer Sheva, Jerusalem, Rehovot, Rishon Lezion, and Palmachim Airbase. Hamas issued a call to arms, with senior military commander Mohammad Deif calling on "Muslims everywhere to launch an attack".

Palestinian militants also opened fire on Israeli boats off the Gaza Strip, while clashes broke out between Palestinians and the Israel Defense Forces in the eastern section of the Gaza perimeter fence. In the evening Hamas launched another barrage of about 150 rockets towards Israel, with explosions being reported in Yavne, Givatayim, Bat Yam, Beit Dagan, Tel Aviv, and Rishon Lezion.

Incursions into Israel and massacres

Further information: Battle of Re'im, Battle of Sderot, Battle of Sufa, and Battle of Zikim

For a more comprehensive list, see List of massacres during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.

Simultaneously, around 2,500 Palestinian militants infiltrated Israel from Gaza using trucks, pickup trucks, motorcycles, bulldozers, speedboats and paragliders. They took over the checkpoint at the Kerem Shalom crossing, and created openings in the border fence in five other places, including by the Erez crossing. Images and videos appeared to show heavily armed and masked militants dressed in black fatigues riding pickup trucks and opening fire in Sderot, killing dozens of Israeli civilians and soldiers. Other videos appeared to show Israelis taken prisoner and a burning Israeli tank, as well as militants driving Israeli military vehicles.

A blood-stained home floor in the aftermath of the Nahal Oz massacre

Hamas also massacred 260 and injured many more at an outdoor music festival near Re'im that morning and left with hostages. Witnesses recounted militants on motorcycles opening fire on fleeing participants, who were already dispersing due to rocket fire that had wounded some attendees.

Militants killed civilians at Nir Oz, Be'eri, and Netiv HaAsara, where they took hostages and set fire to homes, as well as in other agricultural communities around the Gaza Strip. 200 civilians were killed in the Kfar Aza massacre, 108 in the Be'eri massacre (resulting in a loss of 10% of the kibbutz's population) and 15 people in the Netiv HaAsara massacre, in what has been described as the bloodiest day in Israel's history and the worst single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. In Sderot, gunmen targeted civilians and set houses ablaze, and In Ofakim, hostages were reported during Hamas's deepest incursion. Hamas said it took prisoners to force Israel to release its Palestinian prisoners, claiming it had taken enough prisoners to secure the release of all the imprisoned Palestinians, including women and minors.

Satellite view of widespread fires in Israel on 7 October 2023 when militants set fires, massacred civilians and took hostages at areas neighboring the Gaza Strip

Approximate situation on 7–8 October

Hamas militants carried out an amphibious landing in Zikim. Palestinian sources claim that the local Israeli army base was stormed. The IDF said it had killed two attackers on the beach and destroyed four vessels, including two rubber boats. A military base outside Nahal Oz was also taken by the militants, leaving at least two Israeli soldiers dead and at least six others captured.

Fighting was reported at Re'im military base, headquarters of the Gaza Division. It was later reported that Hamas took control of the base and had taken several Israeli soldiers captive before the IDF regained control later in the day. The police station of Sderot was reported to have come under Hamas control, with militants killing 30 Israelis, including policemen and civilians.

Several Palestinian groups voiced their support for the operation. The National Resistance Brigades, the armed wing of the secular-socialist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) confirmed their participation in the operation through their military spokesman Abu Khaled, saying it had lost three fighters in combat with the IDF. The PFLP, another Palestinian socialist militant group, and the Lions' Den group voiced their support for the operation and declared maximum alertness and general mobilization amongst their troops, and the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades (armed wing of the PFLP) published videos of it storming Israeli watchtowers.

An Israeli military spokesman stated that the militants from Gaza had entered Israel through at least seven locations and invaded four small rural Israeli communities, the border city of Sderot, and two military bases from both land and sea. Israeli media reported that seven communities came under Hamas control, including Nahal Oz, Kfar Aza, Magen, Be'eri, and Sufa. The Erez Crossing was reported to have come under Hamas control, enabling the militants to enter Israel from Gaza. Israeli Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai said that there were 21 active high-confrontation locations in southern Israel.

Israeli response

The attack, which coincided with the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, appeared to have been a complete surprise to the Israelis.

The Iron Dome air defense system was activated. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant conducted security assessments at Israel Defense Forces (IDF) headquarters in Tel Aviv. Gallant later approved the mobilisation of tens of thousands of army reservists and declared a state of emergency for areas within 80 kilometers (50 mi) of the Gaza border. He also said that Hamas "made a grave mistake" in launching its attack and pledged that "Israel will win". The IDF declared a "state of readiness for war". It also said that the reservists were to be deployed not only in Gaza, but also in the West Bank and along the borders with Lebanon and Syria. Residents in areas around the Gaza Strip were asked to stay inside, while civilians in southern and central Israel were "required to stay next to shelters". Roads around the Gaza Strip were closed by the IDF. The streets of Tel Aviv were also locked down.

Following the assault, Israel declared a heightened state of preparedness for potential conflict. The IDF declared a state of readiness for war, and Netanyahu convened an emergency gathering of security authorities. The IDF additionally reported their initiation of Operation Swords of Iron, a set of targeted actions in the Gaza Strip. Israeli Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai announced that a "state of war" existed, following what he called "a massive attack from the Gaza Strip". He also announced the closure of the entire southern region of Israel to "civilian movement" as well as the deployment of the Yamam counterterrorism unit to the area. The IDF's chief spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said four divisions were deployed to the area, augmenting 31 preexisting battalions.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said the country was facing "a very difficult moment", and offered strength and encouragement to the IDF, other security forces, rescue services, and residents who were under attack. In a televised broadcast, Netanyahu stated: "We are at war." He also said that the IDF would reinforce its border deployments to deter others from 'making the mistake of joining this war'. In a later address, 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 now".

While Ben Gurion Airport and Ramon Airport remained operational, multiple airlines cancelled flights to and from Israel. Israel Railways suspended service throughout portions the country and replaced some routes with temporary bus routes, while cruise ships removed ports such as Ashdod and Haifa from their itineraries.

Overnight, Israel's Security Cabinet voted to undertake a series of actions to bring about the "destruction of the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad", according to a statement by the Prime Minister's Office. The Israel Electric Corporation, which supplies up to 80% of the Gaza Strip's electricity, cut off power to the area. As a result, Gaza's power supply was reduced from 120 MW to only 20 MW, forcing it to rely on power plants paid for by the Palestinian Authority.

Main articles: Stand-off in Be'eri and Ofakim and Be'eri massacre

In Be'eri, Hamas militants took up to 50 people hostage. During a stand-off between militants and IDF forces, videos emerged from Be'eri showing the hostages being led by Hamas militants barefoot across a street in town. Approximately 18 hours after the stand-off began, the IDF announced that they had freed the hostages in Be'eri. In the town of Urim, a suburb of Ofakim, two Israelis were rescued by the IDF. Four Hamas militants were killed, and three Israeli soldiers were injured during the rescue.

Airstrikes in the Gaza Strip

Destruction of the Palestine Tower in Gaza following an Israeli strike

File:Damage in Gaza Strip during the October 2023 - 49.jpg

Resultant damage in the Gaza Strip following an Israeli airstrike

The IDF announced it had launched attacks in Gaza using fighter jets, stating it successfully targeted 17 Hamas military compounds and four command centers. The operation included also strikes on the 11-story Palestine Tower in central Gaza City. The IDF believes that the building housed a specialized Hamas intelligence unit, equipped with advanced electronic warfare devices focused on disrupting the GPS reception of Israeli smart bombs and Iron Dome counter-rocket defense system. Israel also struck two hospitals, killing an ambulance driver and a nurse.

8 October

Overnight Israel struck up to 426 targets in the Gaza Strip. The town of Beit Hanoun was mostly leveled by airstrikes, and the Al-Amin Muhammad Mosque was destroyed. Targets also included various housing blocks, tunnels, homes of Hamas officials, and the Watan Tower, which served as a hub for internet providers in the area. One Israeli airstrike killed 19 members of the same family (including women and children); survivors of the airstrike said there were no militants in their area nor were they warned.

Another rocket barrage was launched in the morning, with one rocket hitting the Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon. Hamas also fired 100 rockets at Sderot. The DFLP said that they were engaged with Israeli forces in Kfar Aza, Be'eri, and Kissufim.

Remains of the Sderot police station, following recapture by IDF.

The Israeli government's State Security Cabinet formally placed the country under a state of war for the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. The IDF stated that two hostage situations had been "resolved". Following the arrival of IDF reinforcements, soldiers surrounded Sderot police station and regained control over it, killing at least ten Hamas militants. The IDF also said it had secured 22 locations from Palestinian forces but were still trying to clear eight other locations including Sderot and Kfar Aza. In one community, it rescued nearly 50 hostages. Several Palestinian gunmen riding in a stolen car were killed by Israeli forces near Ashkelon following a shootout on a main road. At the same time, more Palestinian fighters were reported to have entered Magen, while 70 Palestinian reinforcements arrived at Be'eri.

Evacuations of residents living near the Gaza Strip were ordered, and Netanyahu appointed former brigadier general Gal Hirsch as the government's point man on missing and kidnapped citizens. The IDF said it had called in up to 300,000 reservists and said it was aiming to eliminate Hamas's military capabilities and overthrow its rule over the Gaza Strip.

A lockdown was imposed on the West Bank by the IDF.

9 October

Further information: October 2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, Jabalia refugee camp market airstrike, and Al-Shati refugee camp airstrike

Approximate situation on 9 October

Building in the Gaza Strip being levelled by Israeli missiles

The IDF reportedly struck 500 targets in the Gaza Strip overnight, including the densely populated Jabalia refugee camp, reportedly causing dozens of casualties, including children. IDF stated it established full control over Israeli towns around the Gaza perimeter fence. Operations against militants continued in Sderot. Hamas said that it would execute Israeli hostages if Israel continued to bombard "civilian homes without advanced warning."

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a "total" blockade of the Gaza Strip that would cut electricity and block the entry of food and fuel, adding that "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly." Human Rights Watch called the order "abhorrent" and called on the International Criminal Court to make "note of this call to commit a war crime." The IDF said 15 communities around the Gaza Strip had been evacuated.

The Israeli Air Force deployed C-130 and C-130J heavy transport planes across Europe to collect hundreds of off-duty IDF personnel to be deployed in the conflict.

Hamas fired another barrage in the direction of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, with one rocket landing near a terminal of Ben Gurion Airport.

10 October

Further information: Hajji Tower airstrike

On 10 October 2023, Israeli aircraft bombed a residential building in the Gaza Strip, the Hajji Tower, containing offices for journalists, killing at least three journalists and injuring dozens.

Israeli forces reclaimed Kfar Aza and began collecting the dead, finding the bodies of victims mutilated, with women and babies beheaded and burnt in their homes. The bodies of 40 babies and young children were taken out on gurneys, out of what one estimate described as at least 100 civilian victims.

The IDF said it had mobilized up to 360,000 reservists, and launched airstrikes at the al-Daraj and al-Furqan neighborhoods in Gaza, as well as the Port of Gaza. It also largely destroyed the al-Karama and Rimal neighborhoods of Gaza City, which hosted ministries of the Hamas-run government, universities, media organizations and aid agencies. Israeli warplanes also struck the Rafah border crossing linking Gaza and Egypt. The family residence of Mohammed Deif in Khan Younis was also struck, killing his father, brother and at least two other relatives.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir announced that the ministry was purchasing 10,000 rifles to arm civilian security teams, particularly in border communities, mixed Jewish-Arab cities and West Bank settlements. He added that 4,000 assault rifles, as well as helmets and bulletproof vests had already been acquired from a domestic manufacturer and were to be distributed immediately.

Hamas militants carried out another incursion into an industrial zone in Ashkelon, where at least three of them were killed in clashes with the IDF. Rockets were fired at Tel Aviv and Ashkelon.

11 October

Medics transport an injured Palestinian child into Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City following an Israeli airstrike

Injured child at Al-Shifa hospital.

Israeli warplanes struck and destroyed several buildings of the Islamic University of Gaza, saying that it had been turned into a weapons factory and training ground.

Israel formed an emergency war government, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and former Defense Minister Benny Gantz heading a war cabinet with Gadi Eizenkot and Ron Dermer as observers.

Hamas fired rockets at Ashkelon. Another rocket strike forced UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who was visiting the town of Ofakim, to run for cover. One person was injured and four buildings were hit following a rocket attack in Sderot.

An Israeli airstrike killed four IFRC paramedics inside an ambulance.

The Gaza Strip's only power plant ran out of fuel, and all supplies of gas and other types of fuel were cut off by Israel's and Egypt's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Israel struck the Gaza City port with white phosphorus artillery projectiles.

12 October

Israel said it had bombed Hamas's elite Nukhba forces, their command centers, and the residence of a senior Hamas naval operative that it said was used to store unspecified weapons. Commanders from two smaller militant groups were also reported to have been killed in airstrikes.

Four people were injured and seven houses were struck following a rocket attack in Sderot. As the IDF continued to attack buildings and neighborhoods, the Gaza Health Ministry announced that the number of dead in Gaza had reached more than 1,400 people, including 447 children and 248 women.

Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Israel Katz, stated that the lifting of the Gaza blockade would not occur until the hostages, who were abducted by Hamas, were safely returned to their homeland.

13 October

Further information: 2023 evacuation of northern Gaza, 2023 attacks on Palestinians evacuating Gaza City, and 2023 Israeli ground operations in the Gaza Strip

Early in the day, the IDF issued evacuation warnings for communities north of the Wadi Gaza, including Gaza City, within 24 hours, instructing people to move towards the south. The evacuation of northern Gaza, which would involve the displacement of 1.1 million Palestinians, was deemed impossible by the UN, who in a statement warned of "devastating humanitarian consequences." Shortly after the evacuation orders were issued, UN facilities, including UNRWA, were instructed to move to Rafah. The Hamas Authority for Refugee Affairs responded by telling residents in northern Gaza to "remain steadfast in your homes and to stand firm in the face of this disgusting psychological war waged by the occupation." Doctors Without Borders issued a statement calling the order to evacuate "outrageous" and "an attack on medical care and on humanity" and condemned the Israeli order "in the strongest possible terms." An OHCHR expert demanded that Israel immediately rescind its order, condemning the evacuation order as a crime against humanity and a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. Paula Gaviria Betancur, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, said that "forcible population transfers constitute a crime against humanity, and collective punishment is prohibited under international humanitarian law". The World Health Organisation has released a plea "appealing to Israel to immediately rescind orders for the evacuation of over 1 million people living north of Wadi Gaza" arguing that it's extremely difficult to move patients in critical care, medical supplies are depleting and that "the four Ministry of Health hospitals in south Gaza are already beyond capacity". Similar statements have been issued by UNICEF and IRC. Hamas claimed at least 70 people fleeing south had been killed by Israeli airstrikes.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on Palestinians to leave the northern part of Gaza, including Gaza City, saying: "The camouflage of the terrorists is the civil population. Therefore, we need to separate them. So those who want to save their life, please go south."

In the evening, the IDF stated that its ground forces had conducted localized raids into Gaza, saying they were attacking Hamas militants and searching for hostages taken during their attack.

NBC News reported on "top secret" Hamas documents that detailed plans to target elementary schools and a youth center in Sa'ad, with the goal being to "kill as many people as possible", take hostages and move them into the Gaza Strip. The plans were provided to NBC by "Israeli first responders."

The International Committee of the Red Cross issued a rare public appeal for a pause in hostilities, saying that while "nothing can justify the horrific attacks Israel suffered last weekend" that "those attacks cannot in turn justify the limitless destruction of Gaza" and that Israeli orders for the evacuation of northern Gaza along with its imposition of a total siege on the territory "are not compatible with international humanitarian law".

It also announced a six-hour window lasting from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time for refugees to flee south along specified routes within the Gaza Strip. An explosion occurred at 5.30 pm on one of the safe routes specified by the IDF, killing 70, including women and children. Some sources attributed it to an airstrike by the IDF, while CNN said that the cause was unclear. The Jerusalem Post reported that open-source analysts believed the explosion appeared to originate from a car on the ground, but the cause was unclear. The Financial Times carried out an investigation and concluded "However, analysis of the video footage rules out most explanations aside from an Israeli strike" while also saying that it is "difficult to conclusively prove whether these blasts came from an IDF strike, a potential Palestinian rocket misfire or even a car bomb." Wesley Clark said to CNN "I'd be very surprised if that would be an Israeli explosion... It looks like something engineered by Hamas to intimidate its own people." and added that Hamas is making efforts to impede the evacuation of Palestinian civilians, employing human shield tactics, and obstructing the exit of Americans from the strip via the Egypt border.

The IDF stated that Hamas set up road blocks inhibiting Gaza residents from evacuating south and causing traffic jams.

The Palestine Ministry of Health announced that al-Durrah Children’s Hospital in eastern Gaza was evacuated on Friday 13 October after it said it was targeted by white phosphorus munitions. Israel denied that it had used such munitions in Gaza.

14 October

The IDF said it had killed Hamas's head of aerial operations Murad Abu Murad in an overnight airstrike.

Israeli minister without portfolio Gideon Sa'ar told Channel 12 News that Gaza "must be smaller at the end of the war" and that "there should be an area that is classified as a security zone where whoever enters is intercepted." He added: "We must make the end of our campaign clear to everyone around us. Whoever starts a war against Israel must lose territory."

15 October

Israeli ambassador to the US, Michael Herzog, claims Israel is "in the process of establishing ... a big humanitarian zone in the southern part of Gaza, with the UN" able to host hundreds of thousands of Gazans.

16 October

US diplomatic efforts to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza appeared to falter as the Rafah crossing remained closed.

The spokesperson for Hamas' military wing said they are willing to release international hostages: "They are our guests, we seek to protect them and the moment the conditions on the ground allow we will release them."

Outside the conflict zone

Further information: October 2023 Israel–Hezbollah fire exchanges, October 2023 Hezbollah strike, 2023 Alexandria shooting, Arras school stabbing, and Storming of Jenin

7 October

Between 7 and 8 October 11 Palestinian youths, including a 13-year-old, were killed in confrontations with Israeli forces throughout the occupied West Bank.

8 October

In the morning, Hezbollah fired rockets and shells at the Shebaa Farms region; in response the IDF fired artillery shells and sent a military drone into southern Lebanon. Two Lebanese children were reportedly injured by broken glass.

In Alexandria, Egypt, a policeman attacked Israeli tourists and their Egyptian guides, killing two Israelis and one Egyptian, and wounding a third Israeli. The policeman was detained by the Egyptian police. Video footage confirmed that a small unit belonging to Palestinian militias had arrived at the Jewish settlement of Psagot near occupied East Jerusalem. According to the statement, the unit, made up of several fighters from Gaza, clashed with Israeli soldiers at the Qalandia checkpoint.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the deployment of the United States Navy's Carrier Strike Group 12—led by the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, and supported by the cruiser USS Normandy and the destroyers USS Thomas Hudner, USS Ramage, USS Carney, and USS Roosevelt—to the Eastern Mediterranean. Additionally, the United States Air Force augmented its F-35, F-15, F-16, and A-10 fighter squadrons in the region. The Biden administration said this was done to deter other actors from entering the conflict. Hamas called the move an "attempt to boost the morale of the crumbling Israeli army" and "participation in the aggression against our people". Likewise, Hezbollah said that "sending aircraft carriers to the region will not frighten the resistance factions ready for confrontation until victory is achieved".

9 October

The IDF claimed to have killed several infiltrators from Lebanon and fired artillery across the border. Hezbollah denied involvement in the incident. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad militia later claimed responsibility for the armed infiltration. Later in the day, fighting began again between Hezbollah and Israeli troops, resulting in three Hezbollah gunmen being killed. Three IDF soldiers, including a senior officer, were killed, while the IDF's Home Front Command ordered residents in 28 towns in northern Israel to seek refuge in bomb shelters. Artillery shelling was also reported from militants based in Syria.

10 October

Israeli police killed two Palestinians accused of throwing stones at them in East Jerusalem. Clashes broke out again on the Israel–Lebanon border after Hezbollah fired an anti-tank guided missile at an Israeli military vehicle in the Avivim area, prompting a retaliatory Israeli helicopter strike.

11 October

Clashes broke out between Hezbollah and the IDF along the Israel–Lebanon border again, with the IDF ordering residents in northern Israel to seek shelter following reports of drones being launched from southern Lebanon. A Patriot missile was launched to intercept a suspicious projectile, after which the IDF found that the object in question was not a drone. Warning sirens were activated across northern Israel after reports emerged that up to 20 infiltrators on paragliders had entered Israeli territory from Lebanon before the IDF dismissed the report as a false alarm. An IDF soldier was killed and another was injured in an anti-tank missile attack by Hezbollah.

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers attacked the village of Qusra, killing four Palestinians. A 16-year-old was fatally shot by the IDF in Bani Naim, while another person was also shot dead by the IDF near Bethlehem.

12 October

Syrian state TV said Israel launched attacks on the international airports of both Damascus and Aleppo. Russia characterized the strikes as a violation of international law.

In the West Bank, two Palestinians were killed after Israeli settlers interrupted a funeral procession for Palestinians killed in prior settler attacks and opened fire.

13 October

Hezbollah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said that 'when time comes for any action, we will carry it out' stating that Hezbollah was ready and 'would "contribute" to confrontations against Israel according to its own plan'. The IDF fired artillery into southern Lebanon following an explosion that caused minor damage to a section of the Israel-Lebanon border wall near the kibbutz of Hanita. A Lebanese Reuters correspondent was killed and at least four other journalists were injured.

An Israeli employee of the Israeli embassy in Beijing, China was stabbed and injured by a foreign national.

A teacher was killed and another teacher and a security guard were seriously wounded in a stabbing attack at a high school in Arras, France. The Ingush attacker, heard shouting "Allahu akbar" during the attack, was arrested by police. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin confirmed that the attack was linked to the Israeli military offensive.

14 October

The IDF said it had killed three infiltrators from Lebanon in a drone strike near Margaliot. Later in the afternoon, Hezbollah shelled five IDF outposts in the occupied Shebaa Farms.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the deployment of a second carrier strike group, headed by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, to the Eastern Mediterranean.

15 October

Outside Chicago, Illinois, a man while reportedly yelling "You Muslims must die" stabbed a 42-year-old woman, seriously injuring her, and stabbed her 6-year-old son 26 times to death. Detectives said the man targeted the family because they were Muslim, and he was upset about the conflict.

Casualties

See also: Operation Al-Aqsa Flood § Deaths

Israeli

At least 1,400 Israelis were killed, including 258 soldiers and 45 police officers, over 4,120 wounded, and 130–150 IDF soldiers and civilians taken hostage. Casualties include about 70 Arab Israelis, especially Negev Bedouin. On 7 October, over 100 civilians were killed in the Be'eri massacre, including children; and over 260 attendees were killed at a music festival in Re'im. As of 10 October, over 100 people had been reported killed in the Kfar Aza massacre, with the total death toll unknown. Nine people were fatally shot at a bus shelter in Sderot. At least four people were reported killed in Kuseife. At least 400 casualties were reported in Ashkelon, while 280 others were reported in Beer Sheva, 60 of which were in serious condition. In the north, injuries from rocket attacks were reported in Tel Aviv.

Former Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C. striker Lior Asulin was among those killed in the Re'im music festival massacre. The head of the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council, Ofir Libstein, was killed in an exchange of fire with the militants. The police commander of Rahat, Jayar Davidov, was also killed. Izhar Peled, a police officer, was killed in Kfar Aza. The IDF confirmed that 258 of its soldiers had been killed. Among their confirmed dead were Colonel Yonatan Steinberg, the commander of the Nahal Brigade, who was killed near Kerem Shalom; Colonel Roi Levy, commander of the Multidimensional "Ghost" unit, who was killed near Kibbutz Re'im; and Lieutenant Colonel Eli Ginsberg, commander of the LOTAR Counter-terrorism Unit School. The Druze deputy commander of the 300th "Baram" Regional Brigade, Lieutanant Colonel Alim Abdallah, was killed in action along with two other soldiers while responding to an infiltration from southern Lebanon on 9 October.

At least 150 Israelis were taken hostage by Hamas and transported to the Gaza Strip. On 8 October, Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed to be holding at least 30 captives. At least four people were reportedly taken from Kfar Aza. Videos from Gaza appeared to show captured people, with Gazan residents cheering trucks carrying dead bodies. Four captives were later reported to have been killed in Be'eri, and Hamas indicated that an IDF airstrike on Gaza on 9 October killed four captives. Among those believed to have been abducted was Vivian Silver, a peace activist and former board member of the human rights organisation B'Tselem, who went missing following the attack on Be'eri. Yedioth Ahronoth photographer Roy Idan was reported missing and likely captured alongside his child in Kfar Aza. His wife was killed and two of their children were able to hide in a closet until they were rescued. On 11 October, Hamas's Qassam Brigades released a video appearing to show the release of three hostages, namely Shiri Silberman-Bibas and her two children, in an open area near a fence. Israel dismissed the video as "theatrics".

Palestinian

The Gaza Strip has suffered heavy civilian casualties from bombardment since the beginning of the war. The Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that, as of 14 October, at least 2,215 Palestinians, including 724 children and 458 women had been killed and 8,714 others had been injured. In the West Bank, related violence since the start of the conflict had killed 53 Palestinians, with 16 deaths recorded on 13 October alone. By 16 October, the death toll had risen to 2,808 people killed and more than 9,700 wounded.

Four Palestinians were killed and five others were wounded in clashes with the IDF along Gaza's perimeter fence. The Israeli Defense Forces estimated on 10 October that the bodies of approximately 1,000 Palestinian militants had been found inside Israel. Five Palestinian militants were reported to have been killed in Sderot.

On 8 October, ten civilians were reportedly killed in a strike on a residential building in Shabora near Khan Younis. A Hamas leader named Ayman Younis was reported to have been killed after a shelling. On 9 October, nineteen people, including the leader of a local armed group, were killed in an airstrike in Rafah. At least 50 people were reportedly killed in an airstrike on the Jabalia Camp.

On 10 October, the head of Hamas's National Relations Office, Zakaria Abu Muammar, was said to have been killed in Khan Yunis. The IDF confirmed that they had killed Jawad Abu Shamala, the economy minister for Hamas, in a drone strike.

On 14 October, the IDF said it had killed Hamas's head of aerial operations Murad Abu Murad in an overnight airstrike.

Foreign and dual-national casualties

File:Kidnapped In Israel posters, High Road, North Finchley, October 2023 02.jpg

Posters in North Finchley, London, highlighting people kidnapped by Hamas during the war.

As of 11 October, the The Washington Post reported that persons from 24 countries had been killed or went missing during the conflict.

Foreign casualties in the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Country	Deaths	Kidnapped	Missing	Ref.
United States	30	Unknown	13
Thailand	28	17	14
Russia	16	1	8
France	15	Unknown	17
Ukraine	12	Unknown	8
Nepal	10	17	1
Argentina	7	Unknown	15
Ethiopia	7	0	0
United Kingdom	6	Unknown	10
Chile	4	1	0
Romania	4	0	3
Canada	5	Unknown	3
Austria	3	Unknown	2
Belarus	3	Unknown	1
China	3	0	2
Philippines	3	Unknown	3
Portugal	3	0	5
Brazil	3	Unknown	0
Colombia	2	Unknown	Unknown
Paraguay	2	Unknown	2
South Africa	2	Unknown	Unknown
Australia	1	Unknown	Unknown
Cambodia	1	0	0
Estonia	1	0	0
Germany	1	5	Unknown
Honduras	1	Unknown	Unknown
Ireland	1	Unknown	Unknown
Lithuania	1	0	0
Peru	1	Unknown	3
Spain	1	0	0
Sri Lanka	1	Unknown	2
Switzerland	1	Unknown	Unknown
Turkey	1	0	1
Denmark	0	1	0
Mexico	0	2	0
Italy	Unknown	Unknown	3
Tanzania	Unknown	Unknown	2

The Nepali ambassador to Israel, Kanta Rijal, said at least seven of its nationals in the country were injured in the attack, and that they along with ten others were held captive by Hamas at an agricultural farm in Alumim. The Nepalese embassy later confirmed that 10 Nepalese students were killed during the attack in the area of Kibbutz Alumim. Israeli media also reported that migrant workers from Thailand and the Philippines were also taken captive by Palestinian militants. The Philippine government confirmed that three Filipinos were killed while two others were injured in the attacks, with authorities verifying reports of Filipinos being held captive by Hamas. 26 Filipinos were rescued by Israeli security forces, while three Filipinos were unaccounted for. At least 28 Thais were killed and 17 were captured by Hamas at Kibbutz Alumim's farms. The reason for Hamas attacking the foreign workers' living quarters was because security guards successfully defended the main kibbutz residential area from invasion so they attacked softer targets. There were no guards stationed at the mostly Asian living quarters.

A German-Israeli national, Shani Louk, was reportedly killed while attending the Re'im music festival; a video of Palestinians parading her near-naked body in a car was circulated on the internet, and her credit card was reportedly used subsequently in Gaza. She was later said to be alive but in "critical condition" in a hospital in Gaza. Several other German citizens were reported to be among those kidnapped by militants. At least 17 British citizens were reported as dead or missing, including one attendee of the music festival. 12 Ukrainians, a Cambodian student, and a Chilean woman were confirmed to have been killed by Hamas. 13 French citizens were killed, with an additional 17 missing, including four children.

At least 29 Americans were killed during the attacks and 15 others were missing. Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs reported that two Mexican nationals were presumed to have been taken hostage by Hamas. One Brazilian national was reported as injured and three were reported missing. An Indian caregiver was injured by a rocket barrage in Ashkelon. The British embassy confirmed the death of a British national who attended the music festival.

Spanish foreign minister José Manuel Albares said two Spaniards were attacked without specifying their condition. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani stated that an Italian-Israeli couple went missing in Be'eri. Two Tanzanian students were reported by their embassy to be missing. The Russian Embassy stated that 16 Russian nationals were killed and eight others went missing following the attack. Four Argentinians were reported to have been killed and three were reported missing.

The Canadian government stated that three Canadians were killed, and that two other Canadians were missing. A Paraguayan couple was reported killed, with the government also reporting two nationals missing. An Irish attendee of the music festival was reported missing. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru confirmed that a Peruvian-Israeli soldier was killed in action on the front line, while three remained missing. A Colombian couple attending the music festival was reported missing after the attack. The Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that three Austrian-Israeli dual nationals had been captured, and that one of them had later been confirmed dead. South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation confirmed that two citizens, including a dual national, were killed.

Journalists

Main article: List of journalists killed in the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

At least six Palestinian journalists in Gaza were reported to have been killed by Israeli attacks while in the line of duty. Ibrahim Mohammad Lafi, a photographer for Ain Media, was fatally shot during the attack on the Erez crossing on 7 October, while Mohammad Jarghoun, a reporter with Smart Media, was killed east of Rafah on the same day. Freelance journalist Mohammad el-Salhi was also shot dead on the border east of Bureij refugee camp on 7 October. On 9 October, Saeed al-Taweel, editor-in-chief of Al-Khamsa News website, Mohammed Subh and Hisham Alnwajha were killed by an airstrike while filming an anticipated attack in Gaza City. Two other journalists were reported missing, and another was injured by shrapnel. The homes of two journalists were destroyed by shelling, and the offices of four media outlets were destroyed by airstrikes.

During clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border, an Israeli artillery strike on 13 October killed Reuters videographer Issam Abdallah and injured six other journalists from Reuters, Agence France-Presse and Al Jazeera.

In Israel, Roee Idan, a photographer for Ynet was reported missing and believed to have been taken hostage along with his three-year-old daughter, while his wife was killed, shortly after documenting Hamas's attack on Kfar Aza. The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that on 7 October, a television crew from Sky News Arabia was assaulted, and their equipment damaged by Israeli police in Ashkelon, with correspondent Firas Lutfi saying that police aimed rifles at his head, forced him to undress and evicted them from the area under escort after confiscating their phones. A crew from BBC Arabic was stopped, held at gun point, and assaulted by Israeli police in Tel Aviv on the night of 13–14 October.

Health and aid workers

On 11 October, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reported that nine of their workers were killed in an Israeli air-strike on the Gaza Strip and that the UNRWA headquarters was being targeted by Israel. It said a school sheltering more than 225 people was struck. 11 members of UNRWA and five members of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies were killed in Gaza since the start of the fighting. Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said it had counted 16 medical personnel killed since 7 October.

MSF said a nurse and an ambulance driver were killed, and several others injured in Israeli strikes on the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis and the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza City. A paramedic was reported to be in critical condition. The Indonesian Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C) confirmed that a local staff member was killed near an operational MER-C vehicle.

Humanitarian situation

In Gaza

Palestinians inspect the ruins of a destroyed residential building in Gaza City

Children injured by an Israeli airstrike at Al-Shifa Hospital

The humanitarian situation in Gaza has been termed a "crisis" and a "catastrophe". Doctors have warned of an impending disease outbreak due to hospital overcrowding and unburied bodies. As a result of Israel's siege, Gaza faces shortages of fuel, food, medication, water, and medical supplies. UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said, "the noose around the civilian population in Gaza is tightening."

On 16 October, the World Health Organization stated there were only "24 hours of water, electricity and fuel left" before "a real catastrophe."

Airstrikes

In just one week, Israel dropped more than 6,000 bombs on Gaza. By 16 October, airstrikes had killed 2,750 people, including more than 700 children, and wounded nearly 10,000. An additional 1,000 people were missing beneath rubble. On 16 October, Israeli airstrikes destroyed a UNRWA humanitarian aid supply depot. The same day, airstrikes destroyed the headquarters of the Palestinian Civil Defence, the agency responsible for emergency response services, including firefighting and search and rescue.

Displacement

Main article: Evacuation of the northern Gaza Strip

The United Nations said that the fighting had displaced more than 423,000 Palestinians, while Israeli airstrikes had destroyed 1,000 homes and rendered 560 housing units uninhabitable. By 15 October, an estimated 1 million people in Gaza had been displaced, many of them fleeing northern Gaza following an Israeli mandated evacuation.

Water

The United Nations said that Israeli actions had caused water shortages affecting 650,000 people. On 14 October, the UNRWA announced Gaza no longer had clean drinking water due to the blockade, and two million people were at risk of death from dehydration; by the next day, the mission was close to collapse.

On 15 October, Israel agreed to resume water supply, but only in southern Gaza. However, because Gaza's water pumps are dependent on electricity, the agreement did not ensure renewed water access. The spokesman for Israel's energy and water ministry stated it was only flowing at a single location in southern Gaza; however, aid workers and a Gaza government spokesperson reported no water was available. On 16 October, Minister of Energy Israel Katz claimed water was available at Bnei Sahila, near southern Khan Younis, though Gaza Interior Ministry spokesman Eyad Al-Bozom said water was still unavailable anywhere in Gaza. By 16 October, residents of Gaza were drinking seawater and brackish water from agricultural wells, raising fears of waterborne diseases. Doctors and hospital staff drank IV solution. Philippe Lazzarini stated, "Gaza is running out of water, and Gaza is running out of life."

Healthcare

The Health Ministry in Gaza said that 15 ambulances and nine health institutions were targeted in Israeli attacks, including its headquarters, the Rimal Clinic and the International Eye Center. Medecins Sans Frontieres said it had counted 18 ambulances destroyed and eight medical facilities destroyed or damaged. In a statement on 15 October, the World Health Organization stated four hospitals were no longer functioning after being targeted by Israel, and that 21 hospitals had received forced evacuation orders, leaving vulnerable patients at risk and "amounting to a death sentence" for those in intensive care. Doctors in northern Gaza were also unable to evacuate to south Gaza, because patients, including newborns in the intensive care unit, would die.

Following the shutdown of the Gaza Strip power station due to the lack of fuel caused by the Israeli blockade on 11 October, it was reported that hospitals in Gaza would run out of available fuel to power generators in three days. On 15 October, healthcare professionals warned entire hospital facilities would lose power, and patients would die when the generators stopped. On 15 October, United Nations humanitarian monitors estimated it could happen by the following day. On 16 October, Doctors Without Borders president Christos Christou wrote, the situation was "horrific and catastrophic... No electricity, no medical supplies. Surgeons in Al-Shifa hospital are now operating without painkillers."

Blockade

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres issued a statement urging the swift and unobstructed delivery of essential life-saving provisions, such as fuel, sustenance, and clean water, into the Gaza Strip.

Egypt closed the border with Gaza to civilians fleeing it. It also said that it would allow aid to be delivered through its border with Gaza and designated El Arish International Airport in the Sinai Peninsula as a hub for international humanitarian aid to Gaza. On 12 October, Jordan confirmed that it would send an aid airplane to Gaza, the first such flight since the start of the war; the plane was expected to land in Egypt before moving provisions to the Rafah border crossing. The aid included medical supplies. Hussein Al-Shibli, secretary-general of the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation, said his organizations wants to "provide hospitals and entities working in the field with medical supplies to support the people of Gaza."

As of 16 October, no aid had entered Gaza since the Israeli blockade was implemented. On 16 October, the Israeli army continued to bomb the Rafah crossing, as Israel declined to assure Egyptian authorities it would pause airstrikes for civilian aid convoys. Humanitarian aid to Gaza has been prevented by far-right politicians allied with Netanyahu.

In Israel

A Magen David Adom ambulance was reportedly taken by Palestinian militants to Gaza during their attack on 7 October. The Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon was struck by a rocket on 8 October.

Rockets from Gaza struck a hospital in Ashkelon on 11 October.

As of 15 October, some 60,000 Israeli civilians from southern Israel were internally displaced, including almost all 30,000 residents of Sderot and residents of communities within 4 kilometers of the Gaza border, following evacuation instructions of the Israel Defense Forces; evacuations of residents in communities 4 to 7 kilometers from the Gaza border were still ongoing. An unknown number of residents of northern Israel have also moved towards the center of the country, in anticipation of a second front opening up with Lebanon.

Economic impact

The Israeli energy ministry ordered Chevron to temporarily shut down the offshore Tamar gas field.

On 8 October, Israel's TA-35 index fell by 6.47%, its largest loss since 2020. The value of the New Israeli Shekel fell by 1.63% to trade at 3.90 against the US dollar, its weakest showing in seven years. In response, the Bank of Israel announced on 9 October that it would sell up to $30 billion in foreign reserves to support and provide up to $15 billion in liquidity to the market through SWAP mechanisms. This was the Israeli central bank's first ever sale of foreign exchange.

Historical context

Main article: Israeli–Palestinian conflict

Further information: Arab–Israeli conflict, Israeli-occupied territories, and Blockade of the Gaza Strip

Israeli and Palestinian deaths preceding the war. Most were civilians.

Rocket attacks fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, 2001-2021

In 2005, Israel withdrew its troops and citizens from the Gaza Strip, aiming to lessen its direct control over the area. However, in 2007, Hamas seized control of Gaza by force, escalating tensions. Israel imposed a blockade, while Hamas tunneled under the border wall to launch cross-border attacks and fired rockets into Israeli territory. This led to multiple conflicts, escalating into multiple outright wars, wreaking havoc on civilians from both sides, and particularly Palestinians. Despite the violence, Israeli leadership found this arrangement manageable, relying on the Iron Dome rocket defense system for defense and utilizing targeted strikes, euphemistically dubbed "mowing the grass," to keep Hamas in check, aiming to minimize the militant threat to a tolerable extent. American political scientist Stephen M. Walt said Palestinians feel they have no choice but to resist in response to Israel's decades long oppressive treatment of Palestinians, even though they acknowledge attacking civilians is wrong and the methods Hamas has chosen are illegitimate. The Hindu wrote that the Israeli occupation was "the longest in modern history" and created a "fuming volcano". The Associated Press wrote that Palestinians are "in despair over a never-ending occupation in the West Bank and suffocating blockade of Gaza". ABC News reported the August 2023 UNRWA figures for Gaza of 81% of people living below the poverty level, and 63% being food insecure and dependent on international assistance. ABC News also reported the UN OCHAoPt numbers of roughly 6,400 Palestinians and 300 Israelis killed in the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict since 2008 through September 2023, before this war.

Roger Cohen wrote that the increasing Israeli control over millions of Palestinians "incubated bloodshed". Prior to the attack, Saudi Arabia had warned Israel of an "explosion" as a result of the continued occupation, Egypt had warned of a catastrophe unless there was political progress, and similar warnings were given by Palestinian Authority officials. Less than two months before the attacks, King Abdullah II of Jordan lamented that Palestinians have "no civil rights; no freedom of mobility". Cohen wrote that many Israelis assumed the Palestinian question had become a nonissue, and it had disappeared from the global agenda.

Simon Tisdall pointed to the uptick in Israeli–Palestinian violence in 2023 as portending war, and claimed that Netanyahu refused to negotiate the peace process, adding fuel to the fire, and the rights of Palestinians were ignored. Yousef Munayyer wrote that the Biden administration had ignored the Palestinian issue. As late as 29 September, Jake Sullivan, the US National Security Advisor, proclaimed that "the Middle East region is quieter today than it has been in two decades." Iranian officials publicly boasted for years about their role in arming militants in Gaza, and a 2020 U.S. State Department report said Iran funnels roughly $100 million a year to Hamas. At a White House news conference on 12 October, Sullivan said Iran was "complicit" in the attacks, but the U.S. could not confirm whether Iran knew about the attack in advance or helped coordinate it.

According to an analysis in The Independent, the blockade on Gaza created hopelessness among Palestinians, which was exploited by Hamas, convincing young Palestinian men that violence was the only solution. Daoud Kuttab writes that Palestinian attempts to solve the conflict via negotiations or non-violent boycotts have been fruitless. For The Times of Israel, Tal Schneider wrote: "For years, the various governments led by Benjamin Netanyahu took an approach that divided power between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank—bringing Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to his knees while making moves that propped up the Hamas terror group. The idea was to prevent Abbas—or anyone else in the Palestinian Authority's West Bank government—from advancing toward the establishment of a Palestinian state."

Hamas said its attack was in response to the blockade on Gaza, continued settlements, Israeli settler violence, and restrictions on movement between Israel and Gaza. Following the attack, American counterterrorism analyst Bruce Hoffman pointed to the 1988 Hamas Charter, alleging that Hamas had always had "genocidal" intentions and that it had no intentions for "moderation, restraint, negotiation, and the building of pathways to peace". Michael Milshtein, head of the Palestinian Studies Forum at Tel Aviv University and a former Israeli military intelligence officer, argued that the attacks were "part of the long-term vision of Hamas to eradicate Israel" and that "Hamas is not ready at all to give up on the jihad".

War crimes

Damage from an Israeli airstrike on the El-Remal area in Gaza City on 9 October 2023.

The International Criminal Court issued a statement on 10 October confirming that its 2014 mandate to investigate alleged war crimes committed in the State of Palestine extends to the current conflict. The UN Human Rights Council said it had "clear evidence" of war crimes by both sides. A UN Commission to the Israel-Palestine conflict stated on 10 October 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."

In a 12 October preliminary legal assessment condemning Hamas's attacks in Israel, international humanitarian law scholar and Dean of Cornell Law School Jens David Ohlin said the evidence suggested Hamas's "killings and kidnappings" potentially violated Articles 6-8 of the Rome Statute as well as the Genocide Convention and were "crimes against humanity". The same day, independent United Nations experts condemned the military actions of Israel, saying that the nation had resorted to "indiscriminate military attacks" and "collective punishment." Additionally, they denounced the "deliberate and widespread killing and hostage-taking of innocent civilians," by Hamas. Israel's forced evacuation of northern Gaza also drew international condemnation. Paula Gaviria Betancur, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, termed it a "crime against humanity." Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, characterized it as a "repeat of the 1948 Nakba," noting Israeli public officials' open advocacy for another Nakba.

By Palestinian militant groups

Further information: Re'im music festival massacre, Netiv HaAsara attack, Be'eri massacre, and Kfar Aza massacre

See also: Palestinian political violence

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory said that "Reports that armed groups from Gaza have gunned down hundreds of unarmed civilians are abhorrent and cannot be tolerated" and that "Taking civilian hostages and using civilians as human shields are war crimes", and Human Rights Watch said that "Palestinian armed group's apparent deliberate targeting of civilians, indiscriminate attacks, and taking of civilians as hostages amount to war crimes under international humanitarian law. "

Massacres, hostage taking, and allegations of genocide

Further information: List of massacres during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

During their initial incursion Palestinian groups targeted civilians, shooting at civilian cars as they moved through Israel, and then upon reaching their targets carried out massacres; at the Re'im music festival they killed over 260 civilians, while at Be'eri and Kfar Aza they killed at least 112 and 73 respectively. The victims included babies and children, and the many were immolated, dismembered, and beheaded. Videos released on social media, primary by Hamas, documented torture, sexual violence, violence towards children, and molestation of bodies.

Under international humanitarian law these are war crimes and crimes against humanity; the Geneva Convention describes taking hostages as a "grave breach". In addition, according to over 100 international experts, as these acts appeared to have been carried out with an "intent to destroy, in whole or in part" a national group in line with the explicit goals of Hamas, these acts "most probably" amounted to genocide.

As the militants retreated they kidnapped approximately 150 people, predominantly civilians, to be used as hostages; armed men were later seen parading a half-naked hostage through the streets of Gaza in images that Amnesty International described as a "scene from a nightmare". Taking hostages is prohibited by international law and constitutes a war crime; Human Rights Watch described it as a heinous crime that has no justification.

Human shields and threats to execute hostages

Main article: Kidnappings during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Israeli officials and other sources have said that Hamas is using the hostages as human shields. While the taking of hostages is itself a war crime, the use of hostages in this manner is also forbidden and a violation of the Rome Statute, which says that using civilians to render "certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations" is a war crime.

Hamas has threatened to execute hostages every time Israel strikes a home in the Gaza Strip, and live-stream the executions on the internet. Such executions, if carried out, would constitute a war crime.

Indiscriminate rocket attacks

Palestine's initial attack included the launching of at least 3000 rockets from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, and in subsequent days continued the barrage. These rockets have struck as far away as Tel Aviv and the outskirts of Jerusalem, having overwhelmed the Iron Dome defensive system. Such rocket attacks are an indiscriminate attack against civilians and thus constitute a war crime.

By the Israeli government

Further information: Jabalia camp market airstrike, Al-Shati refugee camp airstrike, October 2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, and Evacuation of northern Gaza

See also: Allegations of war crimes against Israel § 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Numerous charges of war crimes have been levied against Israel for its actions against civilians during its 2023 war with Hamas. Critics argue the Biden administration has given tacit approval to Israeli war crimes. The Economist wrote there is a lack of expert consensus about the lawfulness of Israel's conduct.

On 16 October, Ione Belarra, the Spanish minister of social rights, called on prime minister Pedro Sánchez to petition the International Criminal Court to open an investigation into Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

Collective punishment and indiscriminate attacks

A mosque destroyed by an Israeli airstrike

Avatar of Israel Katz

Israel Katz

@Israel Katz

Humanitarian aid to Gaza? No electrical switch will be turned on, no water hydrant will be opened and no fuel truck will enter until the Israeli abductees are returned home. Humanitarianism for humanitarianism. And no one will preach us morality. (Translated from Hebrew)

12 October 2023

Several actions taken by the Israeli army, including its blockade on electricity, food, fuel and water, were characterized as collective punishment, a war crime prohibited by treaty in both international and non-international armed conflicts, more specifically Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol II. Doctors Without Borders international president Christos Christou said millions of civilians in Gaza faced "collective punishment" due to Israel's blockade on fuel and medicine. Tufts University law professor Tom Dannenbaum wrote that the siege order "commands the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, which is a violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime."

As part of Israel's blockade on Gaza, all access to water was shut off. Article 51 of the Berlin Rules on Water Resources bars combatants from removing water or water infrastructure to cause death or force its movement. The EU's chief diplomat Josep Borrell called Israel's cutting off water "not in accordance with international law." On 14 October, the UNRWA announced Gaza no longer had clean drinking water, and two million people were at risk of death from dehydration. On 15 October, Israel announced that it had resumed supplying water to southern Gaza. Israel's energy and water ministry spokesman, Adir Dahan, announced it was flowing at a single location in southern Gaza, but aid workers in Gaza refuted this. Israel said that this was done to "encourage" movement south. By 16 October, civilians drank seawater and water contaminated with sewage to survive.

A group of United Nations special rapporteurs termed Israeli airstrikes on Gaza a form of collective punishment, saying the indiscriminate airstrikes are "absolutely prohibited under international law and amounts to a war crime." Israel's president Isaac Herzog accused the residents of Gaza of collective responsibility for the war. Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that "the emphasis is on damage and not on accuracy." In an interview with The New Yorker, human rights expert Sari Bashi noted the historical uniqueness of Israeli officials openly admitting they are engaging in collective punishment. In a statement, UNRWA commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini said, "The scale and speed of the unfolding humanitarian crisis is bone-chilling."

White phosphorus

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International's Crisis Evidence Lab reported that Israeli military units striking in Gaza and Lebanon have employed white phosphorus artillery rounds; Israel denied the report. White phosphorus is an incendiary weapon that burns upon contact, can cause deep and severe injuries, potentially leading to multiple organ failure, and even minor burns can be fatal. Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons prohibits its use against military targets located among civilians, although Israel is not a signatory. According to Human Rights Watch, the use of white phosphorus is "unlawfully indiscriminate when airburst in populated urban areas, where it can burn down houses and cause egregious harm to civilians," and "violates the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life." According to Amnesty International weapons investigator Brian Castner, whether this particular case constitutes a war crime depends on "the intended target of this attack, and the intended use," but that, "generally, any attacks that fail to discriminate between civilians and military forces can potentially be a violation of the laws of war."

Forced evacuation

On 13 October 2023, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of 1.1 million people from North Gaza. The evacuation order was characterized as a forcible transfer and a crime against humanity by Jan Egeland, the Norwegian former diplomat involved with the Oslo Accord. UN Special rapporteur Francesca Albanese warned of a mass ethnic cleansing in Gaza. Israeli historian Raz Segal termed it a "textbook case of genocide." The action was condemned by the United Nations, Doctors Without Borders, UNICEF, and the International Rescue Committee.

Medical neutrality

Destroyed Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulance.

Israel is also alleged to have broken medical neutrality, a war crime under the Geneva Conventions. According to Gaza officials, the IDF deliberately targeted ambulances and health facilities with airstrikes. The World Health Organization issued a statement condemning Israel's order to evacuate 22 hospitals in Northern Gaza, saying that it would endanger patients' lives to transfer them. It also said that the deaths of health care workers and the destruction of health facilities "denies civilians the basic human right of life-saving health" and is prohibited by International Humanitarian Law.

Negotiations

On 9 October, Reuters reported that Qatar was mediating talks between Israel and Hamas to secure the release of female Israeli hostages in exchange for Israel releasing 36 Palestinian women and children. However, Israel had not confirmed such negotiations were taking place.

An Egyptian official told the Associated Press that Israel sought Egyptian assistance to ensure the safety of hostages held by Palestinian militants, and that Egypt's intelligence chief contacted Hamas and Islamic Jihad to seek information. Egyptian officials were reportedly mediating the release of Palestinian women in Israeli prisons in exchange for Israeli women captured by Palestinian militants.

Diplomats, concerned that Israel has no plan post war and looking to limit the humanitarian crisis as well as prevent any regional expansion of the war, are urging delay of a full-scale land invasion of Gaza. Russia has requested a United Nations Security Council vote on 15 October on a draft resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire.

In his initial interview with Sky News following Hamas' coordinated attack on Israel in 2023, Basem Naim, Hamas's head of political and international relations, asserted that no Israeli civilians were killed in the initial attack, despite evidence to the contrary. In his second interview, on 16 October, Naim told Sky News that the status of the 199 civilians held hostage remains uncertain. In a confrontational interview, he emphasized the difficulty of ascertaining their well-being due to the intense bombardment in Gaza. Naim further stated, "We have communicated to all intermediaries our willingness to release all civilian hostages once the aggression against our people ceases".

Reactions

Reactions in Israel

Volunteers organizing deliveries for soldiers in Nesher

A center for collecting equipment for the residents of the south, Tel Aviv-Yafo

Support sign for the "citizens of south" and IDF soldiers at the Policeperson roundabout in Raanana, October 2023

Following the Hamas attack on Israel, the protest group Kaplan Force cancelled its protest against the Israeli judicial reform scheduled on 7 October, extending support to the IDF amidst the crisis. Other protest groups like Forum 555 and Brothers in Arms also urged reservists to serve if called up.

Amidst the escalating violence, Magen David Adom initiated a blood donation drive and the Education Ministry closed schools on 7 October, transitioning to online learning from 15 October. Various events and performances were cancelled or postponed including the Haifa International Film Festival, a Bruno Mars concert, and football matches scheduled by UEFA.

Investigations were initiated into the failure of Israeli authorities to prevent the attack, with criticism targeted towards Prime Minister Netanyahu for his inability to foresee and prevent the crisis.

To support the war effort, El Al announced special flights to retrieve vital personnel from New York City and Bangkok on 13 October. Schools advised parents to have certain social media apps deleted from their children's phones to shield them from violent war-related media. IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi acknowledged military failures in preventing the attacks on 12 October.

Emergency unity government

Main article: Israeli war cabinet

Among opposition parties, Yesh Atid leader and former prime minister Yair Lapid, National Unity chairman Benny Gantz, Yisrael Beiteinu party leader Avigdor Lieberman and Labor Party leader Merav Michaeli issued a joint statement expressing full backing for the IDF and unity with the government, saying: "In times like these, there is no opposition and coalition in Israel."

Netanyahu proposed that Yesh Atid and National Unity enter an emergency unity government with his Likud-led coalition, after Lapid urged Netanyahu "to put aside our differences and form an emergency, narrow, professional government". Lapid said that Israel could not effectively manage the war with "the extreme and dysfunctional composition of the current cabinet" and called upon Netanyahu to eject the far-right Religious Zionist Party and Otzma Yehudit parties as a condition for Yesh Atid to join an emergency unity government. The National Unity party met with Likud on 9 October to discuss a possible unity government.

On 11 October, an emergency unity government was formally announced between Likud and National Unity following a joint statement from the latter party, with Benny Gantz, a former defence minister and military chief of staff, joining a war cabinet also consisting of Netanyahu as Prime Minister and Yoav Gallant as Defence Minister. The statement said the unity government would not promote any policy or laws except those related to the ongoing fighting with Hamas. The war cabinet was approved by the Knesset on 12 October. It significantly reduces the influence of Netanyahu's previous far-right coalition partners over the conduct of the war, which was one of Gantz's demands. Haaretz reported that former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eizenkot and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer would join the war cabinet as observers.

Reactions in Gaza

Some of the hostages taken by Hamas were publicly displayed in Gaza to displays of public support. Shani Louk, a German citizen captured from the Supernova music festival, was paraded by Hamas face down and stripped to her underwear on the back of a truck. People in the celebrating crowd shouted "Allah Akbar" and some, including a youth, spit on Louk. In another instance, an 85-year-old woman taken hostage was driven through the streets in a golf cart while the crowd cheered. Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri told Al Jazeera that its forces had taken enough Israeli hostages to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel in an exchange. Hamas spokesperson Abu Obaida said it was holding captured Israeli soldiers in "safe places" and tunnels.

Hamas official Basem Naim denied that his group had killed any civilians, saying that only Israeli "soldiers" were killed. A spokesperson for Palestinian Islamic Jihad stated that they did not consider Israeli citizens to be civilians: "We are not killing civilians. This is a military society. They are the ones who elect their governments."

Hamas stated that it had abducted Israelis to secure the freedom of Palestinian prisoners, which are currently estimated to number between 4,499–5,200, including 170 children. Prisoner exchanges have long been practiced in the Arab–Israeli conflict. In 2006, Hamas captured Gilad Shalit, forcing Israel to release 1,000 Palestinians, some of whom had been convicted by Israel of terrorism, as part of a prisoner swap.

The Palestinian Education Ministry said schools in the Gaza Strip were closed until further notice. The Palestinian Health Ministry appealed for blood donations.

On 13 October the spokesperson for Palestine's interior ministry said Israel was "lying when saying they are targeting resistance [Hamas] infrastructure" and that "everyone in Gaza is a target".

Gaza City's mayor Yahya al-Sarraj urged the international community to "support the victims, support the Palestinians" saying that the Israeli blockade is "against the international law" in an interview.

Hamas held a press conference claiming its aim was to attack Israeli military bases and instructions were given to not target civilians. This has been contradicted by Hamas documents which have emerged showing that they had detailed plans to attack schools, a youth center, and to "kill as many people as possible."

Reactions in Palestinian West Bank

Initially, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asserted the Palestinians' right to self-defense against the "terror of settlers and occupation troops" and condemned the orders by Israel for residents to evacuate north Gaza, labeling it a "second Nakba". Later, Abbas denounced Hamas' actions, rejected the killing of civilians on both sides, and stated that Hamas do not represent the Palestinians.

Following the attack, celebrations occurred in Ramallah. Neighborhood watches were established in 50 locations amid fears of reprisals by Israeli settlers, while a general strike was called for 8 October. Seven Palestinians were killed in clashes with Israeli forces on 7 October, while 126 others were injured. Clashes on 8 October killed six more Palestinians.

Military aid to Israel

See also: Israel–United States military relations § Military aid and procurement

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv, Israel, 13 October 2023

Hours after Hamas's attack, US President Joe Biden promised "rock-solid and unwavering" support to Israel. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in an interview with ABC News, condemned Hamas's "massive terrorist attack" and stated, "We have immediately engaged our Israeli partners and allies. President Joe Biden was on the phone with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu early yesterday to assure him of our full support." As Israel prepares to launch a possible ground invasion of Gaza, the Biden administration and leading members of Congress are preparing an aid package from the United States with about $2 billion in additional funding to support Israel, according to Time. On 12 October, Blinken went to Israel and met with its leaders as part of a visit that included upcoming meetings with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah II of Jordan.

Germany sent two Heron TP drones to Israel. The United Kingdom announced it would be deploying a Royal Navy Littoral Response Group consisting of two amphibious warfare ships, as well as P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine warfare aircraft in a show of support to Israel. On Oct. 15, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered that approximately 2,000 troops be prepared for possible deployment to Israel, several defense officials said.

Jewish diaspora

Above: Pro-Palestinian protest in London, England
Below: Pro-Israeli protest in Berlin, Germany

Throughout the world, Jewish communities, synagogues and Jewish institutions gathered for events of unity and solidarity with the Israeli people. Around 9,000 people in Sydney attended a vigil in solidarity with Israel, its citizens, and the worldwide Jewish diaspora.

Yeshiva University, a flagship Jewish university in the United States, held a night of song, prayer and unity, which included speeches from the university's President Rabbi Ari Berman, a dual American-Israeli citizen whose son was enlisted to join the war effort, and Rabbi Hershel Schachter, the Head of Yeshiva. These events came in the wake of a drastic rise in antisemitic incidents across Europe and concern over the wellbeing of North American Jews. In response to statements of support for Palestine from student groups at twenty prominent American universities, including Yale University and Harvard University, Berman called on university presidents to issue "moral clarity" in what he called "a battle against evil and terrorism."

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff, speaking to Jewish leaders at the White House, said "We witnessed a mass murder of innocent civilians." U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders said that "the targeting of civilians is a war crime, no matter who does it," and called Israel's siege on Gaza "a serious violation of international law". Writing for The Atlantic, Anne Applebaum critiqued how "open brutality has again become celebrated in international conflict". British-American journalist Sasha Abramsky wrote for The Nation about the importance of condemning the atrocities of both Hamas's massacre of civilians and Israel's oppression of Palestinians.

Argentina's Jewish community, the largest in Latin America and the seventh largest in the world, strongly condemned Hamas's attacks on Israel.

Fears for Jewish safety in the Diaspora were escalated by the call for a "Global Day of Jihad" by former Hamas leader Khaled Mashal calling on Muslims to take to the streets and deliver a message of anger. Antisemitic discrimination was also reported and in Stanford University a lecturer forced Jewish students to physically go to the back of class, justified the actions of Hamas, called Jews "colonizers" and downplayed the Holocaust.

Palestinian diaspora

Based in Qatar, former Hamas leader Khaled Mashal called on Muslims worldwide to take to the streets and deliver a message of anger. He also urged Muslims in neighboring countries like Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt to join the fight against Israel.

U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, came under attack for saying she grieved the loss of "Palestinian and Israeli lives" without explicitly condemning Hamas. In her statement, Tlaib criticized the Israeli government and called for an end to the occupation and an "apartheid" system for Palestinians. American-Palestinian model Gigi Hadid wrote on Instagram: "While I have hopes and dreams for Palestinians, none of them include the harm of a Jewish person. The terrorizing of innocent people is not in alignment with & does not do any good for the 'Free Palestine' movement. The idea that it does has fueled a painful, decades-long cycle of back&forth retaliation."

Palestinians in the diaspora also spoke out about the asymmetrical balance of power they experienced under Israeli oppression, which led to complex feelings after the massacres committed by Hamas. Paris-based Palestinian writer Karim Kattan wrote for Le Monde, "The feelings that are shaking us are intense, trying and contradictory ... If we want to make some sense of what's happening to us, we must also be willing to understand the effect that the image of a bulldozer tearing down part of the apartheid wall, or of an overturned tank, can have on a Palestinian. Understanding this in no way implies that we rejoice in the exactions committed by Hamas that followed, and of which we are all collective victims, even if, of course, these images are an integral part of it."

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele compared Hamas to gangs in his country and said, "As a Salvadoran with Palestinian ancestry, I'm sure the best thing that could happen to the Palestinian people is for Hamas to completely disappear ... Anyone who supports the Palestinian cause would make a great mistake siding with those criminals." Chile's Palestinian Community, one of the largest Palestinian populations outside of the Middle East, called for a "peaceful solution with full respect for international law and human rights."

Muslim world

Reaction from the Arab and Muslim world has generally been muted and confined to press statements. Hezbollah has offered token support to Hamas by providing some shelling and rocket attacks. However most of this has taken place in the Shebaa Farms, a small disputed parcel of land that has experienced low level conflict since 2000. Israel's relations with the Abraham Accord Countries have continued despite the conflict. Several Arab countries offered to send medical aid to Gaza via the border with Egypt. Egypt, despite having being pressed by the United States, refused to accept refugees from Gaza both for fear of security issues since Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups shares ties with militants in the Sinai, as well as for fear that a temporary refugee situation may turn permanent.

Countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia, who have either normalized relations with Israel or are on the path towards it, urged for a cessation of hostilities. However, some Arab League countries, such as Oman, Yemen, Qatar, and non-Arab countries like Iran and Pakistan expressed official support for the Palestinians, blaming the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories for the escalation of violence. The Arab League itself, as well Bahrain, and Egypt have called for an immediate halt to military operations to prevent further escalation.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry praised the military operations as a "spontaneous movement" of Palestinian resistance. Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, said he was proud of the militants.; Yahya Rahim Safavi committed "support to the Hamas operation against Israel." Hamas spokesman Ghazi Hamad told the BBC that Hamas had direct backing for the attack from Iran; European, Iranian and Syrian officers corroborated Iran's involvement, while senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mirdawi said the group planned the attacks on its own. The United States and Israel however said that they have no evidence of Iranian involvement or foreknowledge.

Demonstrations took place in Yemen, Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Turkey, Malaysia, Egypt, Algeria, Iran, Pakistan and Indonesia in solidarity with the Palestinian peoples.

International

Main article: International reactions to the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Further information: Evacuations during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war and Protests on the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the ongoing situation in Israel, 7 October 2023

International leaders, including from Argentina, India, the United States, and European countries condemned the attacks by Hamas, expressed solidarity with Israel, and said Israel has a right to defend itself from armed attacks and describing Hamas's tactics as terrorism. Most Latin American governments condemned Hamas's attacks in Israel, while some expressed solidarity with Palestinians such as Colombia. In a White House briefing, Biden expressed solidarity with Israel. The European Union announced it would review aid to Palestinian authorities to ensure the aid was not funding terrorism, and that no current aid payments were planned but subsequently announced that aid to Palestinians would be maintained and that to Gaza would be tripled. Austria, Germany, and Sweden suspended development aid to Palestine in response to Hamas's attack and said that they would review other projects and aid given. The World Uyghur Congress released a statement condemning "horrific attacks by Hamas against Israeli civilians". Croatia's president Zoran Milanovic publicly stated that Israel had lost his sympathy due to its humanitarian crimes and "reprisal actions" in Gaza. president of Colombia likened IDF crimes against Palestinians to Nazis and asked the Israeli ambassador to "apologize and leave the country" Spain’s deputy prime minister Yolanda Diaz called on the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop massacre in Gaza, while Spain’s Minister of social rights Ione Belarra accused EU and US of "being complicit in Israel's war crimes" and called to denounce Israel before the International Criminal Court because of what she identified as ongoing "planned genocide" in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian peoples.

Responses from African governments varied, showing division about the source of the conflict and who is to blame. However, most expressed grief and deep concerns about the outbreak of violence, with condemnations of attacks against civilians and calls for restraint and de-escalation to prevent further loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives.

As many as 20,000 Thai workers (around half of Israel's migrant work force) live all over Israel, including areas close to Gaza. Thailand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said their stance towards "the deadly Hamas-led attack against Israel is one of neutrality, and the Kingdom promotes a solution that would allow Palestine and Israel to coexist."

Pro-Palestine protest in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 10 October 2023

Many countries hosted demonstrations both in solidarity with Israel and in solidarity with Palestinian peoples. Argentina, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, and Uruguay stated that they would increase security in Jewish-associated sites in response to the attack. French authorities reported more than 100 antisemitic incidents across the country following the conflict, and provided additional security to National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet and MP Meyer Habib after death threats relating to the conflict were made against them. France issued a ban on all demonstrations in support of Palestine citing fears over public safety. Despite the prohibition, almost 3,000-strong pro-Palestinian demonstrators demonstrated at Place de la République in Paris with the police making ten arrests and dispersing the crowd with water cannons. Supporters of both Palestine and Israel were on the streets of London to hold rallies and demonstrations. In response to comparisons between the actions of Hamas and that of the Israeli army, several western governments defended Israel's actions. Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom, stated that "Israel has the right to do everything it can to get those hostages back safe and sound. Hamas [alone] bears responsibility [for the crisis]". American National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stated: "We're going to be careful not to get into armchair-quarterbacking the tactics on the ground ... What I can tell you is we understand what they're trying to do. They're trying to move civilians out of harm's way and giving them fair warning". Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stated that it represented a false equivalence and that the "condemnation belongs squarely with terrorists" and that "there are not two sides here".

Selected timeline

Gathering in support of Israel in front of the European Parliament in Brussels, 11 October 2023

On 8 October, the United Nations Security Council held a closed-door meeting for 90 minutes on the conflict. The meeting concluded without the unanimity required for a joint statement to be released. Brazil announced a rescue operation of nationals using an air force transport aircraft. Poland announced that it would deploy two C-130 transport planes to evacuate 200 of its nationals from Ben-Gurion airport. Hungary evacuated 215 of its nationals from Israel using two aircraft on 9 October, while Romania evacuated 245 of its citizens, including two pilgrimage groups, on two TAROM planes and two private aircraft on the same day. Australia also announced repatriation flights. 300 Nigerian pilgrims in Israel fled to Jordan before being airlifted home.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv, Israel, 12 October 2023

On 10 October, Josep Borrell, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, stated, "Some of the actions [by Israel]—and the United Nations has already said it—cutting water, cutting electricity, cutting food to a mass of civilian people, is against international law. So yes, there are some actions that are not in accordance with international law."

On 12 October, the United Kingdom arranged flights for its citizens in Israel; the first plane departed Ben Gurion Airport that day. The government had said before that there wouldn't be evacuating its nationals due to available commercial flights. However, the flights were commercial.

Media coverage

Main article: Media coverage of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Disinformation

This section is an excerpt from Misinformation in the Israel–Hamas war.[edit]

Misinformation involving the distribution of false, inaccurate or otherwise misleading information has been a prominent and ubiquitous feature of the Israel–Hamas war.

Much of the content has been viral in nature, with tens of millions of posts in circulation on social media. A variety of sources, including government officials, media outlets, and social media influencers across different countries, have contributed to the spread of these inaccuracies.

In the hours after the attack on October 7, Hamas "employed a broad, sophisticated media strategy" using bot accounts to spread graphic, emotionally charged and false propaganda that was picked up and repeated by official accounts and foreign governments. Cyabra, an Israeli social media intelligence company found that on the day after the attack, one in four posts about the conflict on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X were from fake accounts. The New York Times described the start of the Israel–Hamas war as releasing a "deluge of online propaganda and disinformation" that was "larger than anything seen before". It described the conflict as "fast becoming a world war online" and stated that Russia, China, Iran and its proxies had used state media and covert influence campaigns on social media networks to support Hamas, undermine Israel, criticize the United States and cause unrest. James Rubin of the U.S. State Department's Global Engagement Center called coverage of the conflict as being swept up in "an undeclared information war with authoritarian countries".

During the conflict, the Israeli government and Israeli cyber companies have deployed AI tools and bot farms to spread disinformation and spread graphic, emotionally charged and false propaganda to dehumanize Palestinians, sow division among supporters of Palestine by targeting Black lawmakers, and exert pressure on politicians to support Israel's actions. The Intercept reported that: "At the center of Israel’s information warfare campaign is a tactical mission to dehumanize Palestinians and to flood the public discourse with a stream of false, unsubstantiated, and unverifiable allegations." One such covert campaign was commissioned by Israel's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs. The ministry allocated about $2 million to the operation, and used political marketing firm Stoic based in Tel Aviv to carry it out, according officials and documents reviewed by the New York Times. The campaign was started after the October 7 attack, and remained active on X (formerly Twitter) at the time of the New York Times report in June 2024. At the peak of the campaign it used hundreds of fake accounts posing as Americans on X, Facebook and Instagram to post pro-Israel comments, focusing on U.S. lawmakers, particularly those who are Black and from the Democratic Party, including Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader from New York, and Raphael Warnock, Senator from Georgia. ChatGPT was deployed to generate many of the posts. The campaign also involved the creation of three fake English-language news sites featuring pro-Israel articles. In Nov 2024, in a UN published report the committee noted that western social media companies disproportionately removed content showing solidarity with the Palestinian people relative to content promoting violence against Palestinians.

Unconfirmed reports

Unverified information has been quickly published and spread during the conflict, through social media, politicians, and mainstream news outlets. While some stories have had follow-up information that clarifies or adds context to the original posted story, it has taken time due to the widespread conflict and lack of returning audience to read or hear the additional information.

Claims of decapitations by Hamas

Reports of Hamas beheading babies were reported by a range of news organizations on 10 October, after an i24 News reporter interviewed members of the Israel Defense Force, at the scene of the Kfar Aza massacre, who reported seeing babies whose heads had been cut off. CBS News later interviewed Yossi Landau, regional head of the first responder organisation ZAKA, who claimed that both babies and minors had been beheaded alongside corpses of dismembered adults. An IDF spokesperson stated to Insider that they would not investigate the allegation further, citing that it would be "disrespectful for the dead" to do so. The government of Israel later posted photos of dead babies that they said were killed in the attack. The Jerusalem Post stated that these images confirmed that babies were decapitated, while NBC News stated that no photographic evidence that babies were decapitated was provided. US President Joe Biden said that he had seen photographic evidence of terrorists beheading children, though a White House spokesperson later clarified that he was referring to media reports and statements by Netanyahu. Comments from Israeli officials and media have walked back or softened on the claims. CNN reported that it could not confirm claims that children were beheaded.

Claims of sexual violence by Hamas

Rape and sexual violence against Israeli women were reported, notably during the Re'im music festival massacre. Reports in Tablet, Ynet, PBS NewsHour, India Today, the Hindustan Times, and the Jewish Telegraphic Agency were sourced to named and anonymous eye-witnesses present at the massacre. An 8 October report by The Times of Israel referenced videos it said "have raised concerns of sexual assault against women". However, as of 11 October, Yuval Shany wrote it was too soon to know whether there had been a pattern of sexual assault, as there had not yet been time to formally take testimonies from victims and witnesses. These reports of sexual violence were repeated by Israeli officials, US President Biden, UK security minister Tom Tugendhat, Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle, and CNN journalist Jake Tapper. Jewish-American news media organization The Forward said on 11 October, "Biden, Netanyahu, celebrities and columnists have rushed to condemn rape. But the IDF does not yet have any evidence it happened." FactCheck.org concluded "there are no publicly confirmed examples of sexual assault."

Forensic team reports

On 14 October, Israel's military forensic teams attested that there were indications of torture and multiple rapes among the deceased. In addition, one reserve warrant officer among them attested that the forensic teams had "seen dismembered bodies with their arms and feet chopped off, people that were beheaded, [and] a child that was beheaded". Israel Weiss, who as of October 2023 led Israel's operation to identify bodies, stated that he had seen "babies, women and men beheaded. I have seen a pregnant woman with her belly torn open and the baby cut out ... A lot of the women who were brought here were raped".

Regional and global effects

The initial attack marked a notable escalation in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, standing out for the scale and reach of both rocket fire and border attacks around Gaza. This was a significant departure from prior conflicts, which typically followed a phased progression with a gradual escalation of tensions. It has been compared to the 1941 Attack on Pearl Harbor, the 1968 Tet Offensive, 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 2001 September 11 attacks, and the 2003 Ramadan Offensive. Like the Tet Offensive, Hamas's attack came on the morning of a holiday, seemed to be "everywhere at once", and demonstrated capabilities not thought possible in a guerrilla force.

Human rights groups and some politicians called for the intake of Gazan refugees caused by the war.

Effect on Palestinian factions

According to Daniel Byman and Alexander Palmer, the attack showcased the decline of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the rise of Hamas as a power center in Palestinian politics. They predicted the PLO's further decline if the status quo held. Laith Alajlouni wrote that the immediate effect of the Hamas offensive was to unite Hamas and PLO. However it may soon lead to conflict between them, possibly leading the PLO losing control of the security situation in the West Bank, if more militant groups there begin to launch their own independent attacks.

With global attention on Hamas, Emile Hokayem wrote that Turkey and Qatar, which have privileged relations with Hamas, may be accused of overly indulging Hamas and being tarnished by association. However, on October 13, 2023, Secretary Antony J. Blinken stated in a joint press conference with Prime Minister and foreign minister of Qatar, Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani - The US is “working intensively” with the Gulf state in order to secure the hostages….. “I’m grateful for the urgency that Qatar is bringing to this effort. I had an opportunity to meet yesterday with the families of some of those being held hostage by Hamas.Their anguish is profound.”

John Raine wrote that Hamas risks being decimated by the Israeli response, in which case Iran and Hezbollah would have to decide how to respond to requests for military intervention.

Israeli intelligence failure

Political journalist Peter Beaumont described the attack as "an intelligence failure for the ages" on the part of the Israeli government. The Jewish News Syndicate deemed it a "failure of imagination". A BBC report on the intelligence failure noted that "it must have taken extraordinary levels of operational security by Hamas." US officials expressed shock at how Israeli intelligence appeared to be unaware of any preparations by Hamas. 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.

Amir Avivi, former deputy commander of the Gaza Division of Israel's military, told the Financial Times it was "a failure that is no smaller than the Yom Kippur War." Yaakov Amidror, a former National Security Advisor to Netanyahu, said the attack proved their intelligence abilities in Gaza "were no good". An unnamed Egyptian intelligence official told the Associated Press that "[Egypt] warned them an explosion of the situation is coming, and very soon, and it would be big. But they underestimated such warnings." This story was corroborated by Michael McCaul, Chairman of the US House Foreign Relations Committee, who said the warnings were made three days before the attack.

Sources in Hamas and Israel's military establishment told Reuters the attack was the culmination of a years-long campaign by Hamas to deceive Israel into thinking that the group was primarily interested in economic and governance issues instead of fighting. An IDF colonel anonymously told Middle East Eye that intelligence units had detected Hamas training activities but misjudged their intent; they assessed these would be used in a series of separate attacks, rather than a large combined one.

On 11 October, Ynet reported that Egypt's Director of the General Intelligence Directorate, Abbas Kamel, made a personal phone call to Netanyahu ten days prior to the initial attack warning that individuals in Gaza were expected to do "something unusual, a terrible operation." Former MI6 chief Sir Alex Younger voiced his opinion that Hamas fighters were able to carry out their attack due to "institutional complacency" in Israel. Netanyahu described the reports as "absolutely false" and "fake news".

Effect on the Netanyahu government

Amit Segal, chief political commentator for Israel's Channel 12, said that the conflict would test Benjamin Netanyahu's survival as prime minister, noting that past wars had toppled the governments of several of his predecessors such as that of Golda Meir following the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Menachem Begin following the 1982 Lebanon War, and Ehud Olmert following the 2006 Lebanon War. Prior to the formation of an emergency unity government on 11 October, Politico described the then-potential move as Netanyahu's opportunity to correct his course and save his political legacy. Citing the Israeli intelligence failure, which some observers attributed to the incumbent government focusing more on internal dissent, the judicial reform, and efforts to deepen Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories, some commentators criticized Netanyahu for putting aside the PLO and propping up Hamas, and described him as a liability.

Effect on Israeli–Saudi Arabian normalization

See also: Arab–Israeli normalization

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 7 June 2023

In an analysis by The Times of Israel, the newspaper wrote that "Hamas has violently shifted the world's eyes back to the Palestinians and dealt a severe blow to the momentum for securing a landmark US-brokered deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia." The New York Times reported that the prospects of Israeli and Saudi normalization appeared dimmer, citing Saudi Arabia's statement that the country had repeatedly warned "of the dangers of the explosion of the situation as a result of the continued occupation, the deprivation of the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights and the repetition of systemic provocations against its sanctities."

Andreas Kluth wrote in his Bloomberg News column that Hamas "torched Biden's deal to remake the Middle East", arguing that the deal that was being discussed between Saudi Arabia, Israel and the United States would have left Palestinians in the cold, so the group decided to "blow the whole thing up." He added that, viewed from Gaza, things were only going to get worse, considering that Netanyahu's coalition partners opposed a two-state solution for the conflict. He suggested they would prefer to annex the entirety of the West Bank, even at the expense of turning Israel into an apartheid state, something critics have long claimed as Israel's goal.

Speculation arose that Iran was trying to sabotage relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, with former head of research for Shin Bet Neomi Neumann saying the attack could have been timed in part due to Iran's hopes to scuttle efforts to normalize relations between Israel and its Sunni rival. On 9 October, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani denied claims of Tehran's involvement in Hamas's attack. On 12 October, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed the Israel-Gaza situation with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. On 13 October, Saudi Arabia criticized Israel for the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza and the attacks on "defenceless civilians". On 14 October, Saudi Arabia suspended talks on the possible normalization of relations with Israel.

Regional spillover threats

Main article: Iran–Israel proxy conflict

Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, speculated the war would spread to Jerusalem and the West Bank. Hashim Safi Al Din, Head of Hezbollah's Executive Council, echoed these sentiments. Max Abrahms, a political scientist at Northeastern University, opined that the conflict could escalate into a war between Israel and Iran.

Effect on the Russo-Ukrainian War

See also: Russia and the Iran–Israel proxy conflict, Israel–Russia relations, and Israel–Ukraine relations

Russian President Vladimir Putin visiting Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran, 19 July 2022

Ukraine asserted that Russia is attempting to exploit the Israel-Hamas conflict to reduce international support for Ukraine, while Russia called it a Western intelligence failure. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of seeking to precipitate conflict in the Middle East to "undermine world unity, increase discord and contradictions, and thus help Russia destroy freedom in Europe." Russian president Vladimir Putin declared the war "a clear example of the failure of United States policy in the Middle East", adding that Washington had consistently failed to take into account the fundamental interests of Palestinians. Russian commentators characterized the war as a military and intelligence failure of the West, predicting it would sap Western support for Ukraine. The New York Times stated that Russia's relations with Israel were deteriorating, driven in part by Western support for Ukraine and Iran's continued support for Russia in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Politico wrote that it was a foregone conclusion that the war would divert US attention from Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Main Directorate of Intelligence accused Russia of transferring Western-made weapons captured in Ukraine to Hamas in order to blame Ukraine for selling them. The claim has not been independently verified, and no supporting evidence was provided.

See also

• Timeline of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in 2023
• Outline of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war
• List of wars involving Israel
• List of wars involving the State of Palestine
• Second Cold War

External links

• Escalation in the Gaza Strip and Israel | OCHA Flash Update #1 as of 18:00, 7 October 2023
• OCHA Escalation in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #2
• OCHA Escalation in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #3
• Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #4
• Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #5
• Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #6
• Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #7
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