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Israel-Gaza live updates: Israel 'deepening the war' in Gaza: Netanyahu
Israel "will continue to fight until the complete victory over Hamas."
The temporary cease-fire between Hamas and Israel ended on Dec. 1, and Israel has resumed its bombardment of Gaza.
The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
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What we know about the conflict
The latest outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs the Gaza Strip, has passed the four-month mark.
In the Gaza Strip, at least 30,228 people have been killed and 71,377 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 395 people in the territory since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The ongoing war began after Hamas-led militants launched an unprecedented incursion into southern Israel from neighboring Gaza via land, sea and air. Scores of people were killed while more than 200 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli authorities. The Israeli military subsequently launched retaliatory airstrikes followed by a ground invasion of Gaza, a 140-square-mile territory where more than 2 million Palestinians have lived under a blockade imposed by Israel and supported by Egypt since Hamas came to power in 2007. Gaza, unlike Israel, has no air raid sirens or bomb shelters.
White House on Gaza humanitarian crisis: 'Nobody can look at the images … [and] not feel sense of pain'
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the U.S. is “leading the world” in getting humanitarian aid to Gaza, where the crisis worsens by the day.
“Nobody can look at the images coming out of Gaza and … not feel a sense of pain and anguish for so many innocent people that have been displaced from their homes, families killed, many wounded,” Kirby said.
ABC News asked Kirby about a letter sent to President Joe Biden this week from a group of House Democrats that raised concerns with Israel's military operation in Gaza. The lawmakers called the civilian death toll in Gaza unacceptable and urged Biden to work to shift Israel’s strategy.
Kirby acknowledged, “We don't believe you're going to be able to wipe out the ideology that inspires Hamas through military action."
-ABC News’ Lauren Peller
White House: 'Serious' talks continue on hostage exchange
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said there have been "serious talks and negotiations over trying to get back into another pause and a hostage exchange."
“It won’t get lost over the holidays. We're working on it every single day, almost every hour of every day," Kirby said.
Kirby said the Israelis recognize that "they need to transition" to a lower intensity stage of fighting.
"They have said themselves that they realize they're going to have to transition from a higher intensity level of operations, such as what they're doing now, to something a bit lower intensity. They will decide when, they will decide what lower intensity looks like, and what that means," he said.
Kirby said the U.S. is "not dictating the terms and timelines to the Israelis" on moving to lower intensity military operations.
-ABC News’ Lauren Peller
IDF forces destroyed network of underground tunnels in Hamas’ ‘Elite Quarter’ in Gaza
The Israel Defense Forces said it has destroyed a network of tunnels found in Hamas' "Elite Quarter" in Gaza City.
The IDF said the tunnels connected hideouts and homes belonging to Hamas leaders.
Senior Israeli official: Negotiations paused after 'some kind of progress'
A senior Israeli official said hostage negotiations have stopped for now. This comes after the Israeli official said there'd been "some kind of progress," noting that the Israelis met with the Qataris "twice already" over the last week.