Israel-Gaza updates: Israeli forces preparing for 'wide range of offensive plans'
Fighting is ongoing after Hamas launched an attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
At least 1,400 people have died and 3,400 others have been injured in Israel after the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented incursion from air, land and sea on Oct. 7, Israeli authorities said.
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."
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Latest headlines:
- At least 500 killed in explosion at Gaza hospital: Gaza Health Ministry
- IDF preparing to implement 'wide range of offensive plans'
- 3,000 tons of aid with nowhere to go as Gaza-Egypt border remains closed
- Biden to visit Israel
- Hostages suffering from amputated limbs, severe injuries from rape: Israeli forum
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.
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.
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Netanyahu says Israel is at 'war'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a video statement on social media, saying simply, “We are at war. We will win," in his first comments, made in Hebrew, after the attack.
"Citizens of Israel, we are at war, not in an operation or in rounds, but at war. This morning, Hamas launched a murderous surprise attack against the State of Israel and its citizens. We have been in this since the early morning hours. I convened the heads of the security establishment and ordered – first of all – to clear out the communities that have been infiltrated by terrorists," Netanyahu said. "This currently is being carried out. At the same time, I have ordered an extensive mobilization of reserves and that we return fire of a magnitude that the enemy has not known. The enemy will pay an unprecedented price. In the meantime, I call on the citizens of Israel to strictly adhere to the directives of the IDF and Home Front Command. We are at war and we will win it."
14 UN humanitarian workers killed in Gaza, officials say
Fourteen staff members from the United Nations Agency for Palestine Refugees have been killed in airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, United Nations Relief and Works Agency Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said during remarks from the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem on Sunday.
Most of the UNRWA's 13,000 staff members in the Gaza Strip have now been displaced or are "out of their homes," Lazzarini added.
Unless supplies are brought into Gaza, UNRWA and other international aid workers will not be able to continue humanitarian operations, Lazzarini said.
"As I speak with you, Gaza is running out of water and electricity," Lazzarini said.
At least 400,000 people who have been displaced in Gaza are currently sheltering in UNRWA schools and buildings, most of which have not been equipped as emergency shelters, Lazzarini said.
-ABC News' Ely Brown