In Gaza, 3,000 people have been killed and another 12,500 were injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Tensions are high with the prospect of ground war and evacuation orders for Gaza after the Israel Defense Forces called for "all residents of Gaza City to evacuate their homes" and "move south for their protection" early Friday, saying residents should move "and settle in the area south of the Gaza River." The announcement was made, according to the IDF, because it plans to "operate significantly in Gaza City in the coming days" and wanted "to avoid harming civilians."
Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Oct 16, 2023, 2:47 pm
Timeline: The Hamas attack and response
On the morning of Oct. 7, sirens echoed across Israel as Hamas terrorists began a full-fledged surprise attack from the air, sea and ground. Hundreds of armed Hamas fighters stormed into Israel from Gaza, charging into cities and gunning down citizens.
Friends and family mourn Dor Reder, who was killed following a deadly infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, at his funeral in Beit Kama, southern Israel, Oct. 16, 2023.
Violeta Santos Moura/Reuters
Israeli forces responded by sending wave after wave of bombs into Gaza, killing thousands, trapping civilians and raising fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.
Lufthansa is suspending flights to and from Beirut, Lebanon, "due to the current situation in the Middle East," the airline said in a statement on Friday.
Lufthansa and Eurowings flights to the region will be suspended through Oct. 16.
Oct 13, 2023, 4:26 PM EDT
Members of Congress urge US airlines to resume Israel flights
At least 32 members of Congress wrote a letter to the CEOs of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines urging them "to resume flights as soon as possible to Tel Aviv and keep your operations flexible to assist with bringing Americans home and moving innocent civilians out of harm's way."
While U.S.-based airlines have stopped flights to and from Tel Aviv, they have been working with the U.S. government to bolster their operations in Europe to help get fleeing Americans home after they land in European cities.
The lawmakers wrote that certain "barriers" to resuming operations "may seem too complex or too difficult, but as long as there are Americans in need and a way to operate safely -- we must try."
1:54
Day 7 of the war in IsraelABC News foreign correspondent James Longman reflects on the past week covering Israel's war with Hamas
ABCNews.com
-ABC News' Ben Gittleson
Oct 13, 2023, 4:17 PM EDT
Asked what worries him about ground invasion, Biden says, 'Death'
When a reporter on Friday asked President Joe Biden what worries him about a potential Israeli ground invasion into Gaza, Biden responded, "Death."
Palestinians with their belongings flee northern Gaza City following the Israeli army's warning to leave their homes before an expected ground offensive, in Gaza City on Oct. 13, 2023.
Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images
He warned that "hospitals in the south of Gaza are already at capacity and will not be able to accept thousands of new patients from the north."
"The health system is on the brink of collapse; morgues are overflowing," Guterres said at the UN headquarters in New York. "The entire territory faces a water crisis, its infrastructure has been damaged, and there is no electricity to power pumps and desalinization plants."
Israeli forces have postponed the demand to evacuate Gaza's Al Awda Hospital until 6 a.m. local time.
-ABC News' Ben Gittleson and Mary Bruce
Oct 13, 2023, 3:07 PM EDT
Israel didn't give US heads-up on Gaza evacuation order
While the U.S. and Israel have been coordinating efforts to lessen civilian casualties in Gaza, Israel did not give the U.S. a heads-up on Israel's mass evacuation order for northern Gaza, according to a US official.
Hundreds of Palestinian families with their belongings flee following the Israeli army's warning to leave their homes and move south before an expected ground offensive, in Gaza City on Oct. 13, 2023.
Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images
"Of course, we're concerned about any additional loss of innocent human life," said John Kirby, spokesperson for the National Security Council.
"We are working very aggressively with the Israelis and the Egyptians to try to find a safe passage out of southern Gaza," he said.
-ABC News' Mary Bruce, Shannon Crawford and Justin Fishel