Israel–Hamas war

2023 Israel–Hamas war
Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Gaza Strip   Evacuated areas inside Israel   Maximum extent of Hamas advance   Areas inside Gaza Strip ordered to be evacuated by Israel See here for a more comprehensive map.
Date 7 October 2023 – present (7 months and 2 weeks) Location Israel, Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Syria Status Ongoing Palestinian militants break through the Gaza–Israel barrier and invade Israel's Southern District 200+ 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 al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades	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 Herzl Halevi Yoel Strick Tomer Bar Yaakov Shabtai Ronen Bar
Units involved
Al-Qassam Brigades Nukhba Al-Quds Brigades Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades National Resistance Brigades Hezbollah's paramilitary wing	Israel Defense Forces Israel Police Shin Bet Israeli partisans
Strength
Al-Qassam Brigades: 40,000 2,500 infiltrated Israel	529,500 total IDF strength
Casualties and losses
Gaza Strip: 4,137 killed 13,300 wounded Inside Israel (Israeli claim): 1,000+ militants killed West Bank: 81 killed 300 wounded Lebanon: 28–30 killed	Israel: 1,400+ killed 4,834 wounded 203 abducted 100–200 missing
1,000,000 Palestinians displaced in Gaza 500,000 Israelis displaced

An ongoing armed conflict between Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas and Israel began on 7 October 2023, with a coordinated surprise offensive on Israel. The attack began in the morning 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 and attacked civilian communities and IDF military bases near the Gaza Strip. At least 1,400 Israelis were killed, including 260 people at a music festival in Re'im, the deadliest concert attack in history. 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.

Hamas launched its attacks during the end of the Sukkot Jewish holiday and 50 years after the Yom Kippur War in 1973.

The Gaza–Israel conflict has been ongoing since 2006. Hamas avoided major engagements with Israel in 2022 and most of 2023, instead covertly preparing for its major offensive, Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. Hamas said it received support from Iran for the attack, which it says was in response to Israeli settler violence, the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, as well as Israel's atrocities against Palestinians over the decades.

Israel cleared Hamas forces from the southern Israeli communities where the massacres took place, and conducted airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, which 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 nations denounced Hamas and explicitly decried its conduct as terrorism, including a joint statement by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Germany. In contrast, countries across the Middle East called for deescalation and decried Israel's decades-long occupation of the Palestinian territories as the root cause. Iran warned Israel to immediately stop all military aggression against Gaza, saying that its allies will inflict "a huge earthquake in the Zionist entity" by opening new fronts, and threatened to intervene if IDF launches a ground invasion of Gaza. Since 8 October, there have been continuous exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israeli forces after Hezbollah militants fired rockets into Israel from Lebanon and Israel responded with airstrikes in Lebanon. The U.S. deployed two aircraft carrier battle groups to the Eastern Mediterranean, the U.K. 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 led by Francesca Albanese along with human rights groups have accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes.

On 18 October, Israel responded to a request from U.S. President Joe Biden to allow humanitarian aid to be delivered to the Gaza Strip. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi agreed to let 20 trucks of aid use the Rafah Border Crossing to pass into Gaza through Egypt. On 20 October, after no trucks entered, Biden said that aid would enter within 24–48 hours. On 21 October according to The Guardian, the Rafah border crossing is still closed. More than 200 aid trucks are waiting to enter Gaza, but so far they remain stranded.

Background

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

In 2005, Israel withdrew its troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip, aiming to lessen its direct control over the area. But 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 a preponderance of Palestinian deaths. 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. 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 prevent weapons and dual-use goods from entering the territory. Since the blockade, Israel and Palestinian militants made several clashes and preemptive attacks on each other.

The Palestinian Authority has not held national elections since 2006, in part due to fear 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 the Israeli occupation.

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

See also: Politics of Israel, 2018–2022 Israeli political crisis, Thirty-seventh government of Israel, and 2023 Israeli judicial reform protests

The Israeli system of government is based on parliamentary democracy. 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."

Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving leader, having been elected a record six times. Netanyahu first became prime minister in the 1996 Israeli general election. He lost in 1999, but in 2009 the Knesset approved Netanyahu's appointment as prime minister again, and he was reelected in 2013, 2015, 2019, and 2020. A coalition government was formed in 2021 led by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, but it was dissolved after Netanyahu won the 2022 election and he became prime minister again on 29 December 2022. After the Netanyahu-led right-wing government took office, the government ramped up settlement construction in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. As of 2023, Netanyahu rules over the most right-wing government in Israel's history, leading to political chaos, including widespread protests against major judicial reforms. According to February 2023 polling by the Israel Democracy Institute, only a minority of Israelis supported the changes. Nonetheless, in July 2023 a law passed that abolishes the Israeli Supreme Court's ability to review government actions on grounds of reasonableness.

Since Hamas's attack, Netanyahu forged an emergency unity government, with the judicial overhaul and all other non-emergency legislation and policy indefinitely suspended. The Israeli war cabinet formed on 11 October includes two opposition lawmakers, including Benny Gantz, the former Minister of Defense and former Chief of the General Staff.

Events leading up to the war

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

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 that 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 13 September, 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.

Egypt said it warned Israel days before the attack that "an explosion of the situation is coming, and very soon, and it would be big." Israel denied receiving such a warning, but the Egyptian claim was 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.

Events

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.

Operation Al-Aqsa Flood

Main article: Operation Al-Aqsa Flood

Hamas offensive

See also: Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel

Approximate situation on 7–8 October

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.

Simultaneously, around 2,500 Hamas 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.

Attacks on military bases

Further information: Battle of Re'im and Battle of Zikim

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.

Massacres and attacks on civilians

Further information: Battle of Sderot and Battle of Sufa

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

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

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

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. 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. 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.

A total of at least 200 people were taken hostage during the attacks, mostly civilians. The captives in Gaza include children, festival-goers, peace activists, caregivers, elderly people, and soldiers. 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.

Response from Palestinian groups

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.

Israeli response

The attack, which coincided with the Jewish holidays of Sukkot and Simchat Torah, appeared to have been a complete surprise to the Israelis. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency gathering of security authorities, and the IDF additionally reported their initiation of Operation Swords of Iron, a set of targeted actions in the Gaza Strip. In a televised broadcast, Netanyahu stated: "We are at 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". Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant conducted security assessments at Israel Defense Forces (IDF) headquarters in Tel Aviv. 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.

The Iron Dome air defense system was activated, and the IDF declared a "state of readiness for war". Defense Minister Gallant 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. The Yamam counterterrorism unit was deployed to southern Israel. The IDF's chief spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said four divisions were deployed to the area, augmenting 31 preexisting battalions. 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". The entire southern region of Israel was closed to civilian movement, and roads were closed around the Gaza Strip and Tel Aviv. 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.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told a Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting in Tel Aviv that the war will have three main phases. The first phase in which "a military campaign is taking place with [airstrikes] and later with a [ground] maneuver with the purpose of destroying operatives and damaging infrastructure in order to defeat and destroy Hamas" followed by the elimination of pockets of resistance and then "the creation of a new security regime in the Gaza Strip, the removal of Israel’s responsibility for day-to-day life in the Gaza Strip, and the creation of a new security reality for the citizens of Israel and the residents of the [area surrounding Gaza]" Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen has stated that "the territory of Gaza will... decrease" after the war, implying that parts of Gaza would be annexed.

Israeli blockade and counteroffensive

7 October

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

By the morning, Israel struck 426 Hamas 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.

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.

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.

The IDF imposed a lockdown on the West Bank.

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

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 claims of beheaded babies has not been independently confirmed. 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

Wounded child and man wait for treatment at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City following an Israeli airstrike

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.

PFLP commander Awad "Abu Samud" Al-Sultan of the Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades was killed alongside some of his family members in an airstrike on the Jabaliya camp by the IDF in Gaza. In retaliation the Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades launched several rockets at the Zakim military base.

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

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".

The IDF 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 p.m. 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 that "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." Former US army officer Wesley Clark said to CNN that he would be "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 was making efforts to impede the evacuation of Palestinian civilians, employing human shield tactics, and obstructing the exit of Americans from the strip via the Egyptian 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 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, said that Israel was "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

Seven paramedics were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the headquarters of Civil Defense in Gaza City.

The spokesperson for Hamas' military wing said they are willing to release international hostages "the moment the conditions on the ground allow".

17 October

Further information: al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion and October 2023 UNRWA school airstrike

Israel bombed areas of southern Gaza. Ministry of Health officials in Gaza reported that heavy overnight bombing in Khan Younis, Rafah and Deir el-Balah in Gaza's south had killed over 70 people, many of them families who had evacuated from Gaza City in the north, as ordered by the Israeli military.

An explosion occurred in the parking lot of the Al-Ahli Arabi Baptist Hospital in the center of Gaza City, burning some nearby vehicles. The cause of the explosion has been disputed. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, the explosion was attributed to an Israeli airstrike and killed at least 500 civilians in the hospital. This claim was denied by the IDF, who asserted that the explosion resulted from a failed rocket launch by Palestinian Islamic Jihad, targeting the Israeli city of Haifa. Israel released footage of a rocket appearing to change course and flame out, followed by an explosion in the city below. The IDF also released what it claimed to be an intercepted phone conversation between Hamas militants acknowledging that the explosion was caused by a PIJ rocket. A PIJ spokesman denied any involvement. On 18 October, President Biden stated that the Pentagon had independently concluded that the explosion was not caused by Israel, but by "the other team," based on data from the Defense Department. On-the-ground imagery released following the blast revealed minimal structural damage to the hospital and a shallow blast crater inconsistent with an Israeli airstrike. The casualty figure reported by the Gaza Health Ministry was disputed by competing European, Israeli, and American estimations.

An Israeli strike hit a UNWRA school in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing six and injuring 12.

19 October

Israel bombed a building of the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius, the oldest church in Gaza, killing atleast 19 people and injuring "a large number."

Outside main conflict zone

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

Northern Israel sector of war

  Israel including Golan Heights

  Evacuated areas inside Israel

  Hezbollah presence in Lebanon

  Syria

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.

Shells from Syria struck Israeli positions in the Golan Heights. Israeli forces returned fire, targeting the launch sites.

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

Syria said Israel launched attacks on the international airports of both Damascus and Aleppo. Russia characterized the strikes as a violation of international law. The airports were temporarily closed.

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.

The United Kingdom announced it would be deploying a Royal Navy Littoral Response Group consisting of the amphibious warfare ships RFA Argus and RFA Lyme Bay, as well as P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine warfare aircraft to the eastern Mediterranean in a show of support to Israel.

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 outside the conflict zone

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.

Another US naval strike group composed of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, the guided missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea, and the guided missile destroyers USS Laboon, USS Mason, and USS Gravely was deployed to the eastern Mediterranean by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

Israeli aircraft bombed Aleppo Airport in Syria again, causing it to close.

15 October

The headquarters of the United Nations peacekeeping force in south Lebanon (UNIFIL) in Naqoura was struck by a rocket.

Hezbollah launched five anti-tank missiles towards northern Israel killing one civilian and injuring 3 others in Shtula. Lieutenant Amitai Granot, commander of the 75th Battalion of the IDF's Golan Brigade and son of Rabbi Tamir Granot, was killed in a missile attack on an IDF post bordering Lebanon.

Outside Chicago, Illinois, a man while reportedly yelling "You Muslims must die" stabbed a 42-year-old Palestinian-American woman, seriously injuring her, and stabbed her six-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.

16 October

A UN Security Council draft resolution sponsored by Russia was put to a vote in the UNSC. The resolution called for “an immediate, durable and fully respected humanitarian cease-fire ” and strongly condemned “all violence and hostilities directed against civilians and all acts of terrorism,” with no mention of Hamas. Russia, China, the United Arab Emirates, Mozambique, and Gabon voted for the resolution while the United States, the UK, France, and Japan voted against it. The other six countries abstained.

After the rejection of the resolution, Russian ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia said that “the council once again has found itself a hostage to the selfish intentions of the Western bloc of countries” and failed to send a collective message aimed at de-escalating “the most serious explosion of violence over the past decades.”

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield countered that Hamas, whose purpose is to destroy Israel and kill Jews, unleashed terror on Israel but the Russian resolution didn’t mention the militant group, which controls Gaza. She stated “By failing to condemn Hamas, Russia is giving cover to a terrorist group that brutalizes innocent civilians". She also added that “Hamas’ actions have led to the dire humanitarian crisis facing the people of Gaza.” and that civilians shouldn’t have to suffer for “Hamas’ atrocities”. She urged the council and the international community to help address Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, condemn Hamas and reaffirm Israel’s right to self-defense.

The UK's ambassador to the UN Barbara Woodward also said that it would be “unconscionable for this council to ignore the largest terror attack in Israel’s history.”

The IDF announced the evacuation of residents of settlements two kilometers away from the Lebanese border. In the afternoon, Hezbollah opened fire on IDF positions near the border and claimed to have started destroying surveillance cameras on several Israeli Army posts, prompting the IDF to respond with artillery.

In the evening, anti-tank missiles were fired at an IDF tank and gunshots were aimed towards multiple army positions. The IDF attacked the sources of the fire with artillery. There were no reported casualties in either exchanges on that day.

17 October

A tank missile from Lebanon landed in the Israeli town of Metula.

The IDF said it had killed four would-be infiltrators along the Lebanese border. Lebanese state media reported that the village of Dhayra and other areas along the western section of the border came under "continuous" bombardment overnight.

The Biden administration was discussing the possibility of using military force if Hezbollah joined the war in Gaza and attacked Israel, according to three US and one Israeli official.

In the wake of the al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion Jordan cancelled the visit by US President Joe Biden to Amman and the quartet summit that had been scheduled for 18 October.

Following the hospital blast, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office deleted a post on X quoting Netanyahu's speech in the Knesset, saying, "This is a struggle between the children of light and the children of darkness, between humanity and the law of the jungle." The post had triggered a backlash from users who perceived it as racist and genocidal.

In the West Bank, protests broke out over the al-Ahli hospital explosion, with clashes being reported in Ramallah. In Jenin, a 12-year old girl was shot dead after Palestinian Authority security forces opened fire. Another youth was injured by PA forces in Tubas. One Palestinian was killed in confrontations with Israeli forces in Nabi Saleh, while at least 30 others were injured across the West Bank. The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades threatened to withdraw its support for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas unless he resigned as the head of its Martyrs and Prisoners Commission by 19 October. It also called for the formation of “an emergency committee to pledge allegiance" to imprisoned militant leader Marwan Barghouti as "supreme commander of the Palestinian revolutionary forces”.

A US naval group consisting of the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan, the amphibious transport dock USS Mesa Verde and the dock landing ship USS Carter Hall, was deployed by the Pentagon to the eastern Mediterranean and the Red Sea to transport the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit in case they were needed in the area.

18 October

António Guterres Twitter @antonioguterres

I call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Middle East to ease the epic human suffering.

Too many lives - and the fate of the entire region - hang in the balance.

18 October 2023

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the Al-Ahli Hospital strike and called for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire".

Two molotov cocktails were thrown at a synagogue in the Mitte neighborhood of central Berlin. One person was arrested.

The synagogue of El Hamma, Tunisia, which is a Jewish pilgrimage site and contains the tomb of 16th-century Kabbalist Rabbi Yosef Ma'aravi, was severely damaged during anti-Israel riots, with hundreds of people filmed setting fire to the building.

The Or Zaruah synagogue in Melilla, a Spanish enclave in Morocco, was attacked by a mob chanting “murderous Israel” while waving Palestinian flags.

The US used its veto power to block a UN Security Council resolution, sponsored by Brazil and supported by 12 of the 15 Council members, calling for "humanitarian pauses" to deliver aid to Gazan civilians. The UK and Russia abstained. Louis Charbonneau, UN director at Human Rights Watch, said that the US had again "cynically used their veto to prevent the UN Security Council from acting on Israel and Palestine at a time of unprecedented carnage”. The US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield explained that the US wanted more time to let American on-the-ground diplomacy to “play out”. Thomas-Greenfield also criticized the text for failing to mention Israel’s right to self-defense – a point which was echoed by the UK’s Ambassador to the UN Barbara Woodward who said the draft resolution needed to be clearer on Israel’s inherent right to self-defence in line with the UN Charter. Russia abstained saying the draft had "no clear call for a ceasefire" and would "not help to stop the bloodshed".

19 October

More than 60 Hamas members were arrested in overnight Israeli raids across the West Bank, including the movement's spokesperson in the West Bank Hassan Yousef.

The United States Department of Defense announced that the USS Carney had shot down three cruise missiles and eight drones that were northbound over the Red Sea. It was their analysis that the missiles had been fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen and may have been en route to Israeli targets.

20 October

US destroyer USS Carney stationed in the northern Red Sea intercepted missiles originating in Yemen that were allegedly headed towards Israel.

Casualties

See also: Operation Al-Aqsa Flood § Deaths, and Kidnappings during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Israel

See also: List of massacres during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

Civilians and soldiers

After coordinated surprise offensive in Be'eri

Around 1,400 Israelis and foreigners have been killed since 7 October, including 306 soldiers, 10 Shin Bet agents and 58 police officers and over 4,120 wounded. About 70 Palestinian citizens of Israel, including many Negev Bedouin, were killed or reported missing in the fighting.

On 7 October there were massacres at 10+ different kibbutzim where civilians resided and at an outdoor dance music festival. Over 260 attendees were killed at the psychedelic trance open-air "Supernova Sukkot Gathering" music festival near the Re'im kibbutz. It became the deadliest concert attack ever and the worst Israeli civilian massacre in its history. Over 100 civilians were killed in the Be'eri massacre, including children. At least 50-100 people have been reported killed in the Kfar Aza massacre, with the total death toll unknown. Many civilians were also killed in the Nahal Oz massacre. 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, Lieutenant Colonel Alim Abdallah, was killed in action along with two other soldiers while responding to an infiltration from southern Lebanon on 9 October.

Hostages

Posters in Tel Aviv calling for the return of Israeli hostages in Gaza

Around 200 IDF soldiers and Israeli and foreign civilians were taken hostage during the Israeli attacks, mostly civilians. 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.

Those civilians believed to be held captive in Gaza include families, children, festival-goers, peace activists, caregivers, and elderly people. Among those believed to have been abducted was 74-year-old 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. 75-year-old historian Alex Dancyg, who has written books on Poland's Jewish community and the Holocaust, was taken from Nir-oz.

Video emerged of Hamas militants with rifles capturing Shiri Silberman-Bibas with her infant and three-year-old son as they were led from their home at the Nir Oz kibbutz; Hamas also kidnapped Shiri's husband and parents. On 11 October, Hamas's Qassam Brigades released a video appearing to show the release of three hostages, namely Silberman-Bibas and her two children, in an open area near a fence. Israel dismissed the release video as "theatrics". On 16 October, Hamas released a video of one of its hostages, a 21-year old French Israeli woman who appeared to have sustained injuries to her arm and a scar.

According to a report sent to the International Committee of the Red Cross by the Geneva-based organization Hostage and Missing Families Forum medical team, headed by professor Hagai Levine, hostages include some with Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer, as well as dementia, autistic spectrum disorder and psychiatric disorders, who are "in urgent need of treatment and lifesaving medication", and are "prone to immediate mortality as they are not receiving essential medications and treatment". The report also expressed concern about untreated injuries induced during the attack (gunshot wounds, amputations, rape-induced trauma), and infants requiring infant formula.

An open letter published in The Lancet by a group of 1,500 Israeli health-care professionals expressed shock at "the greatest loss of civilian life since the establishment of the state of Israel", and the indiscriminate "barbaric rampage" through "entire villages in the south of Israel", which it termed a "crime against humanity". The letter called on the international medical community to "condemn the savage massacre, to immediately call for guarantees for the safety and health of all those being kept hostage, and to unequivocally call for the immediate and unconditional return of our families and friends who have been cruelly taken hostage".

Journalists

Yaniv Zohar, a photographer for the Israel Hayom newspaper who was the first to cover the abduction of Gilad Shalit in 2006 for the Associated Press' Israel bureau, was killed along with his wife, two daughters and father-in-law in Hamas' attack on Kibbutz Nahal Oz on 7 October. His only son managed to escape. Yedioth Ahronoth photographer Roy Edan was killed along with his wife in Kfar Aza; two of their children were able to hide in a closet until they were rescued but his three-year-old daughter went missing and is believed to have been taken to Gaza. Shai Regev, an entertainment editor for the Ma'ariv newspaper, was killed in the Re'im music festival massacre, as was Ayelet Arnin, a news editor for KAN.

Multiple attacks against Arab journalists were reportedly committed by Israeli police. The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that on 7 October, a television crew from Sky News Arabia was assaulted, and their equipment damaged by 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 police in Tel Aviv on the night of 13–14 October.

Gaza Strip

Civilians

Man with body bags in Jabalia, Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip suffered heavy civilian casualties from Israeli bombardment. On 18 October, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry put the number of casualties in the Gaza Strip at 3,478 killed, 12,065 injured, and 1,300 missing under rubble. In the West Bank, related violence during the conflict killed 61 Palestinians and wounded at least 300.

There were reports of mass casualties resulting from an Israeli airstrike on the Jabalia Camp, where at least 50 people were killed. An Israeli airstrike at a United Nations school in the al-Maghazi refugee camp killed at least six people. Significant civilian casualties were reported following the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion. Other mass casualty strikes included the Church of Saint Porphyrius airstrike and the al-Shati refugee camp airstrike.

On 13 October, the Palestinian Ministry of Health noted 20 surnames had been removed from Gaza's civil registry, meaning every single person in that entire family had been killed. On 16 October, the UNRWA stated there were so many deaths in Gaza that there were no longer enough body bags. Because the morgues were so overcrowded, bodies began to be contained in ice cream trucks.

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. On 19 October, the Committee to Protect Journalists stated 21 journalists were confirmed dead, eight were injured, and three were missing or detained.

Health and aid workers

Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulance hit by an Israeli missile in Khan Yunis

On 11 October, UNRWA reported that nine of their workers were killed in an Israeli airstrike, and that its headquarters were being targeted by Israel. It said a school sheltering more than 225 people was struck. 11 members of UNRWA and five members of the Red Cross and Red Crescent 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.

Militants

The Israeli Defense Forces estimated on 10 October that the bodies of approximately 1,000 Palestinian militants had been found inside Israel. Several Hamas leaders have been reported killed. The following day, the head of Hamas's National Relations Office, Zakaria Abu Muammar, was reportedly killed in Khan Yunis. On 11 October, the IDF confirmed the death of Jawad Abu Shamala, who served as Hamas's economy minister, in a drone strike. Further, on 14 October, the IDF announced the killing of Hamas's head of aerial operations, Murad Abu Murad, in an overnight airstrike. On 16 October, another member of the Hamas political bureau, Osama Mazini, was killed in an airstrike at his home. In addition to the targeted strikes on Hamas leaders. On 9 October, an airstrike in Rafah killed a local armed group leader. On 17 October, Ayman Nofal was killed. On 18 October, Jamila Al-Shanti, the first woman to be elected to Hamas' political bureau and a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, was killed in an airstrike in Jabalia. On 19 October, Jihad Muheisen was killed. Rafat Harb Hussein Abu Hilal was killed by an airstrike.

Lebanon

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 addition, between 24 and 26 people have been killed in Lebanon.

Foreign and dual-national casualties

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	31	Unknown	13
Thailand	30	17	14
France	21	Unknown	11
Russia	19	2	7
Ukraine	19	Unknown	8
Nepal	10	17	1
Portugal	9	0	3
Argentina	8	Unknown	14
Ethiopia	7	0	0
Canada	6	Unknown	2
United Kingdom	6	Unknown	10
Austria	4	Unknown	1
Chile	4	1	0
China	4	0	2
Philippines	4	Unknown	2
Romania	4	0	3
Belarus	3	Unknown	1
Brazil	3	Unknown	0
Turkey	3	Unknown	Unknown
Colombia	2	Unknown	Unknown
Paraguay	2	Unknown	2
Peru	2	Unknown	5
South Africa	2	Unknown	Unknown
Australia	1	Unknown	Unknown
Azerbaijan	1	Unknown	Unknown
Cambodia	1	0	0
Estonia	1	0	0
Germany	1	5	Unknown
Honduras	1	Unknown	Unknown
Ireland	1	Unknown	Unknown
Italy	1	Unknown	2
Lithuania	1	0	0
Spain	1	1	0
Sri Lanka	1	2	2
Switzerland	1	Unknown	Unknown
Denmark	0	1	0
Mexico	0	2	0
Serbia	0	1	0
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 Kibbutz Alumim. The Nepalese embassy later confirmed that 10 Nepalese students were killed during the attack in the kibbutz. Israeli media also reported that migrant workers from Thailand and the Philippines were also taken captive by Palestinian militants. The Philippine government confirmed that four 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 two Filipinos were unaccounted for. At least 28 Thais were killed and 17 were captured by Hamas at Kibbutz Alumim. 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-inhabited 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. 18 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 31 Americans were killed during the attacks and 13 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 nine 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.

In Gaza, a Ukrainian national was confirmed to have been killed.

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 a preponderance of Palestinian deaths. 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 Benjamin Netanyahu refused to negotiate the peace process, adding fuel to the fire, and that 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".

Many of the Israeli kibbutz residents among the dead or missing were peace activists.

Humanitarian situation

In Gaza

Residents inspect the ruins of an apartment destroyed by Israeli airstrikes

The humanitarian situation in Gaza has been termed a "crisis" and a "catastrophe". As a result of Israel's siege, Gaza faces shortages of fuel, food, medication, water, and medical supplies. UN Humanitarian Aid chief Martin Griffiths said, "the noose around the civilian population in Gaza is tightening." On 13 October, UNRWA commissioner Philippe Lazzarini said, "The scale and speed of the unfolding humanitarian crisis is bone-chilling."

On 16 October, doctors warned of an impending disease outbreak due to hospital overcrowding and unburied bodies. The same day, the World Health Organization stated there were only "24 hours of water, electricity and fuel left" before "a real catastrophe." On 18 October, the United States vetoed a UN resolution urging humanitarian aid to Gaza. The World Health Organization stated the situation in Gaza was "spiralling out of control." On 20 October, Doctors Without Borders stated, it was "deeply concerned for the fate of everyone in Gaza right now."

Food

On 18 October, Alia Zaki, a spokesperson for the World Food Programme stated that "people are at the risk of starvation." On the same day, an Israeli airstrike destroyed a bakery in the Nuseirat Camp, killing four bakers. On X, journalist Refaat Alareer wrote the bakery was one of the last in the central and southern Gaza Strip. On 19 October, several bakeries were reportedly hit by Israeli airstrikes, making it even harder for residents to find food.

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.

On 17 October, Israel conducted intensive airstrikes in southern Gaza, in areas it told residents to seek refuge. An airstrike at a UNRWA school killed at least six people. On 18 October, the Ahmed Abdel Aziz School in Khan Yunis was hit. On the same day, the death toll in Gaza had risen to 3,478. On 19 October, an Israeli airstrike hit the Church of Saint Porphyrius, where 500 people were sheltering. Israel "pounded" areas in south Gaza it had declared as "safe zones," raising fears amongst residents that nowhere was safe. On 20 October, Israeli continued to bombard south Gaza. IDF spokesman Nir Dinar said, "There are no safe zones."

Healthcare

Man carrying wounded child in Gaza

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.

Following the shutdown of the Gaza Strip power station on 11 October, it was reported that hospitals in Gaza would soon run out of available fuel to power generators. On 14 October, the Diagnostic Cancer Treatment Centre of the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital was partially destroyed by Israeli rocket fire. In a statement on 15 October, the World Health Organization stated four hospitals were no longer functioning after being targeted by Israeli airstrikes. On 15 October, healthcare professionals warned if hospital facilities' generators stopped, patients would die when the power was lost.

On 16 October, WHO said 21 hospitals had received forced evacuation orders. It stated that compliance with Israel's demands would leave vulnerable patients at risk and amount "to a death sentence" for those in intensive care. Doctors across northern Gaza stated they were unable to follow Israel's evacuation order, since their patients, including newborns in the ICU, would die. On 16 October, Doctors Without Borders president Christos Christou wrote that the situation in Gaza was "horrific and catastrophic... No electricity, no medical supplies. Surgeons in Al-Shifa hospital are now operating without painkillers." On 17 October, a widely-condemned explosion in the al-Ahli courtyard resulted in significant fatalities.

On 18 October, Doctors Without Borders stated severely wounded patients were likely to die as Gaza's health system collapsed. On 19 October, the Ministry of Health asked for donations of liters of fuels to continue powering hospital generators, and Gaza's only cancer hospital announced it had "perilously low" levels of remaining fuel. Doctors noted pediatric patients had developed gastroenteritis infections due to the lack of clean water. Airstrikes hit the area around al-Quds Hospital. The Red Cross stated Gaza's entire health system was "on its knees."

On 20 October, Doctors Without Borders stated thousands people were at risk of dying "within hours" because it was "impossible" to give them medical attention. Doctors at al-Quds Hospital and the Palestine Red Crescent reported they received a call from the Israeli army to evacuate the hospital or "bear the consequences."

Water supply

Israel's blockade of water pipelines exacerbated water supply issues in the Gaza Strip, which already had a near lack of fit-to-drink aquifers. On 12 October, 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.

On 15 October, Israel agreed to resume water supply, but only in southern Gaza. However, because Gaza's water pumps require electricity, the agreement did not ensure renewed water access. On 16 October, Minister of Energy Israel Katz said that water was available at Bnei Sahila, near southern Khan Younis, but Gaza Interior Ministry spokesman Eyad Al-Bozom said water was still unavailable 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. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini stated, "Gaza is running out of water, and Gaza is running out of life."

By 17 October, the UN noted Gaza's last seawater desalination plant had shut down. The Guardian noted fears were growing people had begun to die from dehydration. On 18 October, Israel announced it would allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza but not fuel. In response, the UNRWA announced it was seeking a resumption in fuel imports so Gaza's water pumps could resume operation. On 19 October, the UN reported Gazans were surviving on a daily average of three liters of water each. The World Health Organization recommends people have access to a minimum of 50 to 100 liters per day.

Displacement

Main article: Evacuation of the northern Gaza Strip

On 10 October, the United Nations said 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 Israel's mandated evacuation. Due to continued heavy Israeli bombing in south Gaza, some northern Gazan refugees moved back to Gaza City. On 19 October, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs noted 98,000 houses, or 1 in every 4 homes in Gaza, had been destroyed by Israeli bombardments.

Humanitarian aid

Main article: October 2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip

Joe Biden Twitter @POTUS

I grieve with the families of those killed or wounded in the tragedy at the hospital in Gaza. We’re working with our partners in the region to get life-saving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza as quickly as we can.

19 October 2023

On 9 October, Israel implemented a complete blockade on Gaza, preventing the entry of any humanitarian aid. Egypt closed its border to prevent civilians fleeing, but said that it would allow aid to be delivered through its border. It designated El Arish International Airport in the Sinai Peninsula as a hub for international humanitarian aid. On 12 October, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged the swift and unobstructed delivery of life-saving provisions, such as fuel, sustenance, and clean water.

By 16 October, no aid had entered Gaza since the Israeli blockade was implemented. The IDF continued to bomb the Rafah crossing, as Israel declined to assure Egyptian authorities it would pause airstrikes for civilian aid convoys. In Israel, aid to Gaza was reportedly prevented by far-right politicians allied with Netanyahu. On 17 October, the UNRWA stated that there was currently "no water or electricity in Gaza. Soon there will be no food or medicine either."

On 18 October, Israel announced it would allow food, water, and medicine to be delivered to a “safe zone” in west Khan Younis in southern Gaza, distributed by the United Nations. Later the same day, U.S. president Joe Biden announced Egypt agreed to allow 20 trucks with aid to enter Gaza by 20 October. More than 100 trucks of aid were waiting at the Rafah crossing to enter into Gaza. In a statement, Human Rights Watch stated that without electricity or fuel, however, the provided aid would fail "meeting the needs of Gaza’s population.” On 19 October, US Special Envoy David M. Satterfield stated the US wanted "sustained" aid into Gaza. The same day, a spokesman for Oxfam stated aid distribution in Gaza would be a "big challenge," and the UN reported at least 100 trucks a day of aid were needed. On 20 October, Biden said the aid would be delivered within "24 to 48 hours."

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 rockets from Gaza on 8 October and on 11 October.

As of 17 October, some 500,000 Israeli civilians from both southern and northern Israel were internally displaced, including almost all 30,000 residents of Sderot and residents of communities within four kilometers of the Gaza border, following evacuation instructions of the IDF; evacuations of residents in communities four to seven 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.

War crimes

See also: List of massacres during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

The International Criminal Court issued a statement on 10 October confirming that its mandate to investigate alleged war crimes committed since June 2014 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 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". On 15 October, TWAILR published a statement signed by over 800 legal scholars stating their "alarm about the possibility of the crime of genocide being perpetrated by Israeli forces against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip."

Independent United Nations experts condemned the Israel Defense Forces' actions in Gaza, saying Israel 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. On 13, October Paula Gaviria Betancur, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, termed it a "crime against humanity." On 14 October, 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 the Israeli government

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

Further information: Jabalia camp market airstrike, Al-Shati refugee camp airstrike, October 2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, October 2023 UNRWA school airstrike, 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. These charges have come from Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, B'tselem, and human rights groups and experts, including UN rapporteurs. Critics argue the Biden administration has given tacit approval to Israeli war crimes. Antony Blinken indicated the Biden administration has a "high tolerance" for whatever happens in Gaza.

Medical neutrality

Israel is 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 International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, UNRWA, and Medecins Sans Frontieres reported the deaths of their medical personnel. On 14 October, the World Health Organization said the killing 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. On 17 October, the World Health Organization stated 51 health facilities in Gaza had been attacked by Israel.

Forced evacuation

On 13 October, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of 1.1 million people from North Gaza. The evacuation order was characterized as a forcible transfer 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. On 14 October, the World Health Organization issued a statement condemning Israel's order to evacuate 22 hospitals in Northern Gaza, calling it a "death sentence."

White phosphorus

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International's Crisis Evidence Lab shared evidence that Israeli military units striking in Gaza and Lebanon have employed white phosphorus artillery rounds; Israel denied the report.

White phosphorus is used in smoke, illumination, and incendiary munitions, and ignites when exposed to atmospheric oxygen. Upon contact, it can cause deep and severe injuries, potentially leading to multiple organ failure, and even minor burns can be fatal. White phosphorus is considered an incendiary weapon, and Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons prohibits their 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."

Indiscriminate attacks

A mosque destroyed by an Israeli airstrike

The IDF carried out thousands of airstrikes across Gaza, killing over 3,300 civilians and injuring over 12,000. The airstrikes have hit specifically protected locations, including hospitals, markets, refugee camps, mosques, educational facilities, and entire neighborhoods. A group of United Nations special rapporteurs asserted Israel's indiscriminate airstrikes are "absolutely prohibited under international law and amounts to a war crime." Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that "the emphasis is on damage and not on accuracy."

On 9 October, the IDF carried out a mass-casualty airstrike on the Jabalia refugee camp market. The attack resulted in the deaths of over sixty civilians and extensive damage to the market. As a result of Israeli airstrikes in other Gaza areas, internally displaced individuals sought refuge in the camp, causing the market to be densely populated at the time of the airstrike.

On the same day, the IDF carried out an airstrike on the densely populated Al-Shati refugee camp. Palestinian media reported that this strike resulted in numerous civilian casualties and the destruction of four mosques, including the al-Gharbi mosque, Yassin mosque, and al-Sousi mosque, all of which were confirmed destroyed by satellite footage. Under the Rome Statute, it is a war crime to intentionally attack places of worship in non-international conflict. The airstrikes in the Al-Shati refugee camp were described as a "massacre against an entire neighborhood" by the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

On 17 October, the IDF carried out an airstrike on a UNRWA school sheltering 4,000 refugees in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing six and injuring dozens. Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA Commissioner-General, called the attack "outrageous" and showing "a flagrant disregard for the lives of civilians."

Collective punishment

It is an entire nation out there that is responsible. It is not true this rhetoric about civilians not being aware, not involved. It’s absolutely not true. They could have risen up. They could have fought against that evil regime which took over Gaza in a coup d’etat.

— Isaac Herzog

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. Israel's president Isaac Herzog accused the residents of Gaza of collective responsibility for the war. 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, electricity and food as "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 it had resumed supplying water to a single location in southern Gaza to "encourage" movement. Aid workers in Gaza refuted water was available. By 16 October, civilians drank seawater and water contaminated with sewage to survive.

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. On 18 October, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated Hamas' attacks "cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people."

International reactions

Government officials around the world decried what they termed Israel's war crimes. China Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated Israel's bombing campaign represented the "collective punishment of the people of Gaza.” Ione Belarra, the Spanish minister of social rights, accused the EU and the US of "being complicit in Israel's war crimes." Belarra further called for Israel to be denounced before the International Criminal Court because of an ongoing "planned genocide" in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian peoples. The Workers Party of Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva officially classified Israeli actions in Gaza as genocide, while stating that the Palestinian militants' attack on civilian areas was "unacceptable". Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan criticized Western countries for their complicity as Israel committed "war crimes." President Gustavo Petro of Columbia termed Israel's campaign in Gaza as a "genocide."

By Palestinian militant groups

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

Image from Be'eri following Hamas's attack on the village

Jens David Ohlin's assessment of Hamas's attacks explained the following Rome Statues: Article 6 was violated "if the perpetrators acted with genocidal intent...It would appear that the 'manifest pattern' requirement applies to this case"; Article 7 about "crimes against humanity" was violated if there was "evidence that the attacks were carried out pursuant to an organizational 'plan or policy' ... each killing, kidnapping, and inhumane act constituted a separate predicate act"; and Article 8 was violated due to the "core prohibition against killing innocent civilians" and "the taking of hostages. The failure to release the hostages makes this a continuing and ongoing crime."

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. The reports of beheaded babies have not been independently confirmed. 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.

In addition, taking hostages is prohibited by international law, and the Geneva Convention describes it as a "grave breach". As the militants retreated they kidnapped approximately 200 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".

Human Rights Watch Israel and Palestine Director Omar Shakir said, "Deliberate killings of civilians, hostage-taking, and collective punishment are heinous crimes that have no justification." Amnesty International said, "Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups flagrantly violated international law and displayed a chilling disregard for human life by carrying out cruel and brutal crimes including mass summary killings, hostage-taking, and launching indiscriminate rocket attacks into Israel." According to over 100 international legal 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.

Human shields and threats to execute hostages

Main article: Kidnappings during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war

European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer, UK defense secretary Grant Shapps, UK foreign secretary James Cleverly, US Air Force scholar David Deptula, and analysts from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute have all said Hamas is using civilians or 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 3,000 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.

Negotiations and diplomacy

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.

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. Israel denied 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 requested a United Nations Security Council vote on 15 October on a draft resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire. The Russian draft was rejected while negotiations continued on a Brazilian draft resolution. On 18 October, the US vetoed a resolution that "condemned the Hamas attack on Israel, called for humanitarian pauses in all attacks to allow the delivery of lifesaving aid to civilians, and called for Israel to withdraw its directive for civilians to evacuate the northern part of the Gaza Strip". The resolution was supported by twelve of the council’s 15 members, including close US allies.

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. On 15 October, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered that approximately 2,000 troops be prepared for possible deployment to Israel, according to several defense officials.

On 19 October, US State Department official Josh Paul, who spent more than 11 years as the director of congressional and public affairs at the bureau which oversees arms transfers to foreign nations resigned in protest at the US government's decision to send weapons to Israel. He stated in his resignation letter that "blind support for one side" led to policy decisions that he described as "shortsighted, destructive, unjust and contradictory to the very values we publicly espouse" and that "The response Israel is taking, and with it the American support both for that response and for the status quo of the occupation, will only lead to more and deeper suffering for both the Israeli and the Palestinian people".

Reactions

Reactions in Israel

Volunteers organizing deliveries for soldiers in Nesher

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.

Adalah, a legal group which advocates for Palestinians living in Israel, has said that 50 Palestinians studying at academic institutions in Israel have been summoned to disciplinary committees due to perceived support for Hamas on social media, with some suspended from their studies. The newly created Civil Society Coalition for Emergencies in the Arab Community says that 30 Palestinian citizens of Israel have lost their jobs for the same reason. A number of construction sites in the Jerusalem Municipality prohibited Israeli Arabs from entering, including senior managers, stating that only Jews and foreign workers were permitted. Dalal Abu Amneh, a Palestinian singer born in Israel, was arrested by Israeli forces for posting "there is no victor but God" in Arabic, alongside an image of the Palestinian flag on social media. She was released on 18 October 2023 and placed under house arrest for 5 days. Adalah says that 100 Israelis have been arrested for posts supporting Palestinians in Gaza, with 70 remaining in detention as of 20 August 2023. Israeli police said that at least 170 Palestinians (all citizens of Israel or residents of Jerusalem) have been arrested or brought in for questioning since the beginning of the war due to social media posts. According to Adalah, this is the highest rate of arrests in such a short period of time for 20 years. Content that has led to these arrests includes: Quoting from the Quran, prayers for peace, and political analyses of Israeli military actions. One person faced discipline from their school in Israel for posting about a family celebration on the day of Hamas's attack, according to Adalah.

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. The Israeli energy ministry ordered Chevron to temporarily shut down the offshore Tamar gas field. Following a significant drop in the value of the New Israeli Shekel, the Bank of Israel announced that it would sell up to $30 billion in foreign reserves in its first ever sale of foreign exchange.

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.

The ethics panel of the Knesset voted to suspend left-wing MK Ofer Cassif for 45 days over what it deemed as anti-Israel statements in interviews he made after the war broke out. Following a rally in support of Gaza in Haifa, police commissioner Kobi Shabtai threatened to send antiwar protesters to the Gaza Strip. As of 18 October, 63 people have been arrested in Israel on suspicion of supporting or inciting “terror” since the start of the conflict, according to Israeli police.

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

Man's reaction following an airstrike, Indonesian Hospital in Jabalia, 8 Oct.

Reactions in Gaza ranged from anger at the international community's tepid response to outright fear. The territory faced numerous major crises. The Israeli blockade caused significant difficulties, including a lack of food, medicine, and water. Azmi Keshawi, a US-educated researcher in Gaza, expressed outrage, stating, "How the hell did the entire world just watch and let Israel turn off the water?" On 19 October, Omar Ghraieb, an officer at Oxfam, noted his lack of food, water, or internet, writing, "Families are displaced, humanitarian situation is beyond dire, thousands killed & injured, hundreds of thousands are traumatized."

Due to the Israeli Air Force's intense aerial bombardments, many Gazans expressed fears they could die at any time. In an interview, 22-year-old U.S. citizen Mai Abushaaban, said, "People are worried, people are essentially preparing to die." Muhammad Smiry, a journalist, wrote, "We are losing everyone and everything." Saeb al-Jarz, a 27-year-old engineer, said, "I just really, really want to live."

Among healthcare workers in Gaza, reactions ranged from grief to outrage. One doctor at the al-Ahli Arab Hospital stated, "This is really a genocide." Hussam Abu Safiya, a pediatrics doctor at Kamal Edwan Hospital, described the situation in Gaza as "really dangerous." Dr. Abu Safiya described the difficulties of compliance with Israel's mandatory evacuation order, as transferring the children would mean "handing them a death sentence." As a result of Israel's denial of clean water, Dr. Abu Safiya noted babies in his ward were experiencing vomiting, diarrhea, and fever. Samer Tarzi, a doctor who survived the al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, stated, "We collected bodies of children and many body parts. It’s a sight that will remain in my mind even if I live a thousand years.

Gazan civil society

The Palestinian Education Ministry said schools in the Gaza Strip were closed until further notice. On 7 October, the Palestinian Health Ministry appealed for blood donations. On 13 October the spokesperson for Gaza's Interior Ministry said Israel had not been honest about only striking military targets, and that "everyone in Gaza is a target." Yahya al-Sarraj, the mayor of Gaza City, noted the Israeli siege was a violation of international law and urged the international community to "support the victims."

Hamas military aims

Hamas stated it abducted Israelis to secure the freedom of Palestinian prisoners, currently estimated to number between 4,499 and 5,200, including 170 children. Prisoner exchanges have long been practiced in the Arab–Israeli conflict. In 2006, Hamas exchanged Gilad Shalit for 1,000 Palestinians as part of a prisoner swap. Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri told Al Jazeera they had enough Israeli hostages to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Hamas spokesperson Abu Obaida said they were holding captured Israeli soldiers in "safe places" and tunnels.

On 13 October, Hamas claimed its aim was to attack Israeli military bases and instructions were given to not target civilians. Hamas official Basem Naim denied any civilians were killed, saying that only Israeli soldiers were killed. A spokesperson for Palestinian Islamic Jihad stated they did not consider Israelis to be civilians, due to Israel's mandatory military service.

Reactions in the 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 did 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. As of 19 October, Al Jazeera noted that 76 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank and Jerusalem, eight of them by armed Israeli settlers; the Palestinian Ministry of Health said that 61 people have been killed and 1,250 injured in the West Bank. The Palestinian Prisoners Club said that 850 Palestinians, including lawmakers, prominent figures, journalists, and former detainees have been arrested by Israeli authorities since the start of the war.

Arab world

In contrast to previous Palestinian-Israeli wars, the initial part of the war was marked by a more muted reaction. While the populace of the region tends to be sympathetic to the plight of the Palestinians many governments in the region have strongly negative views of Hamas due to its affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood and its ties with Iran. This antipathy toward Hamas has had several impacts. The official reactions from many states in Arab world, particularly states aligned with Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have been neutral and confined to press statements. News programs in countries such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia do not book Hamas officials for interviews, however Arabic-speaking Jews are frequently invited. In speaking of the IDF, anchors in the UAE and Saudi Arabia no longer refer to it as an "occupation army" but just the Israeli army. This neutrality began to fade in response to the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion. Despite evidence from Israeli and US intelligence agencies that the cause of the explosion was a faulty Palestinian missile, many regional governments condemned Israel. This condemnation and subsequent diplomatic fallout had a disastrous effect on the burgeoning diplomatic relations between Israel and many Arab states.

There have been numerous rallies in support of the Palestinians, nevertheless populism and polarization have also tempered public reaction in the region. While many Lebanese and Syrians are sympathetic to the Palestinians, Hamas' affiliation with Iran and Hezbollah, which are hated by many due to their actions in the Syrian Civil War and the 2006 Lebanon War, makes the population less sympathetic to the current war. Many in Lebanon, Syria and Egypt also fear that they may unwillingly be drawn in to the conflict through the actions of Hezbollah and Iran. In Egypt populist pro-government talk show hosts have railed against the Hamas and Palestinian cause asking viewers, why Egyptians should suffer to help Palestinians. 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.

Hezbollah 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.

Some Arab League countries, such as Oman, Yemen and Qatar expressed official support for the Palestinians, blaming the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories for the escalation of violence. The Arab League itself called for an immediate halt to military operations to prevent further escalation.

Iran

The Iranian Foreign Ministry praised the military operations as a "spontaneous movement" of Palestinian resistance. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, said he was proud of the militants, while his adviser and former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander 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. Hojjat-ul-Islam Kazem Siddiqui, the Imam of Tehran's interim Friday prayers, said that jihad against Israeli citizens was justified.

The Iranian government opened an account for people to deliver aid through charity.

Egypt

The President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said he would not allow a refugee camp on the Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel and the Gaza Strip because he says it would allow the Palestinians to launch terrorist attacks from there against Israel, and Egypt would get blamed for it. Egypt closed its border with Gaza to Egypt but allowed humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

International

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

Further information: Evacuations during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, Protests on the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, and Hate crimes related to 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, President Joe 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. Colombian president Gustavo Petro likened IDF attacks against Palestinians to Nazis and asked the Israeli ambassador to "apologize and leave the country" Spain's deputy prime minister Yolanda Díaz called on the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop what she called a massacre in Gaza.

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."

Solidarity with Israelis in Munich

Many countries hosted demonstrations both in solidarity with Israel and in solidarity with Palestinian peoples. Argentina, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, 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 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.

Solidarity with Palestinians in Melbourne, Australia

In response to comparisons between the actions of Hamas and that of the Israeli army, several western officials 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]". US 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".

On 18 October, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on ten individuals and entities affiliated with Hamas and its financial networks in retaliation to its attack on Israel.

On 19 October, a large number of American Jews, several of them waving the Palestinian flags, protested outside the White House and Congress against Israeli actions in Gaza, and accused Israel of committing genocide. Hundreds were arrested in its aftermath.

Evacuations of foreign nationals

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 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 it would not be evacuating its nationals due to available commercial flights. However, the flights were commercial. India launched Operation Ajay to evacuate its citizens from Israel.

Visits by foreign leaders

On 17 October, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Israel to express solidarity with the country. On his departure from Ben-Gurion airport, he was evacuated to a shelter after a rocket alarm went off.

On 18 October, US President Joe Biden arrived in Israel and was received at Ben-Gurion airport by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Netanyahu. At a news conference, he said Israel did not commit the al-Ahli hospital bombing in Gaza and blamed what he called "the other team" for the attack. In the wake of the attack, a summit in Amman hosted by King Abdullah II that was also to be attended by Biden, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi was cancelled by the Jordanian government.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak arrived in Israel on 19 October, in order to meet Netanyahu and offer his condolences for the civilians killed in the initial attacks.

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 in the Israel–Hamas war refers to the dissemination of false, misleading or unsubstantiated information during 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.

Unconfirmed or disputed reports of violence and abuse

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.

Decapitations

During Antony Blinken's visit to Israel, he was shown photos of the massacre by Hamas of Israeli civilians and soldiers, among other things Blinken confirmed that he saw beheaded IDF soldiers.

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 said that both babies and children 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.

Sexual violence

Rape and sexual violence against Israeli women were reported, notably during the Re'im music festival massacre. Reports in Tablet, Ynet, Vice, PBS NewsHour, The Economist, 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, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek, Sydney Morning Herald editor Peter Hartcher, Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle, CNN journalist Jake Tapper, and ABC News.

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." On 13 October, FactCheck.org concluded "there are no publicly confirmed examples of sexual assault." An Arab Israeli council member in the city of Lod told The New York Times that local Arab youth had seen “images of slaughter, kidnap and rape”, which weakened their initial support for Hamas. On 17 October, Itzik Itah (a ZAKA official) reported that he had seen "a couple tied to each other with their clothes down, and you can see definitely, that the woman underwent rape ... When she is naked faced down, and her clothes had clearly been taken off not by her, that's a woman who underwent rape." The Hostage and Missing Families Forum, a group representing the families of hostages taken by Hamas, told the International Committee of the Red Cross that some of the hostages had been victims of rape.

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". Brigadier General Israel Weiss, the former IDF Chief Rabbi who led operations to identify victims, alleged 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". Colonel Chaim Weissberg stated that they had found "Young girls, elderly women, raped ... Soldiers and citizens whose heads were chopped off". Chen Kugel, the head of the Israeli National Center of Forensic Medicine, said "We also have bodies coming in without heads, but we can’t definitely say it was from beheadings. Heads can also be blown off due to explosive devices, missiles, and the like."

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.

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 13 October, Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated in a joint press conference with Qatari Prime Minister and foreign minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani that the US was "working intensively" with the Gulf state in order to secure the hostages and expressed his gratitude "for the urgency that Qatar is bringing to this effort."

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.

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.

Amir Avivi, former deputy commander of the IDF's Gaza Division, 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.

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. During a meeting with UN diplomat Tor Wennesland on 14 October, Iranian foreign minister asserted that Iran will intervene in the war if Israel continues its military operations or launches a ground invasion against Gaza.

On 16 October, Iran threatened "pre-emptive" attacks against Israel, indicating further region-wide escalation of the war. Iranian foreign minister stated: "The possibility of pre-emptive action by the resistance front is expected in the coming hours... All options are open and we cannot be indifferent to the war crimes committed against the people of Gaza."

There have also been suggestions that the conflict could be the trigger for a global war or World War III, particularly given the strong support for Israel and Hamas by the United States and Iran respectively. While campaigning for the 2024 Republican primaries, former U.S. President Donald Trump claimed on 8 October that "we are closer to World War III than we've ever been." By 9 October, Palestinian-Arab journalist Marwan Bishara, Indian writer Makarand Paranjape and Nigerian politician Femi Fani-Kayode were among the earliest voices suggesting that the Israel-Hamas conflict could escalate into a world war. Similar concerns were shared in following days by American hedge fund manager Ray Dalio and Israeli author Yuval Noah Harari as the threat of conflict escalation remained. Criticism of Israel by Russia and China, in contrast to the United States' long-term support of Israel, has added to fears that major powers could be drawn into the conflict if the situation deteriorates further.

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 would attempt to exploit the Israel-Hamas conflict to reduce international support for Ukraine, while Russia called it a Western policy 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. Bloomberg columnist Andreas Kluth wrote that some Trump-supporting Republican legislators supported aid for Israel but opposed it for Ukraine. Politico wrote that it was a foregone conclusion that the war would divert US attention from Ukraine.

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
• List of wars: 2003–present
• Second Cold War

External links

• OCHA: Hostilities in Gaza and Israel, Flash Updates: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13
• UNRWA: Gaza Situation Reports: #4 (11 Oct.), #5 (12 Oct.), #6 (15 Oct.), #7 (16 Oct.), #8 (18 Oct.), #9 (19 Oct.)

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