Israel says it will take ‘security responsibility’ for Gaza after war ends

More than 400 Americans and family members have left Gaza, U.S. official says

Monica Alba

More than 400 U.S. citizens and their family members have been able to depart Gaza through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, a U.S. official said today.

Crossings were temporarily stopped over the weekend but resumed on Monday and more are hopefully expected to depart today, the official said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week that the total number of Americans and their families who expressed a desire to leave Gaza was around 1,000 people.

UNRWA says 70% of population in Gaza Strip displaced by war

One month into the Israel-Hamas conflict, 70% of the population in the Gaza Strip have been displaced, said the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which serves Palestinian refugees in Gaza.

Many of those displaced in Gaza have taken shelter in UNRWA facilities, but the humanitarian organization said the shelters are at four times their full capacity. As many as 66 people have been killed and 540 injured while sheltering in those facilities, it said.

“This is forced displacement & humanitarian tragedy of colossal proportions,” UNRWA said in a post on X.

Palestinians wave white flag as they head south

Matthew Nighswander

A woman holds-up a white T-shirt today as Palestinians in Bureij, in the central Gaza Strip, flee to southern Gaza.

U.S. consul general at Cairo Embassy describes relief Americans feel upon arrival from Gaza

CAIRO — After a long journey from Gaza, more than 100 American citizens and their families have entered Egypt through the Rafah crossing. Jonathan Webster, the U.S. Embassy in Cairo’s consul general, said some of those families are telling him they ran out of food and water during their journeys.

“We can see the relief on the faces of the families that come through,” he said. “They ranged in age from a newborn baby to much older senior citizens, and it’s been very gratifying to be able to assist them.”

The embassy sent a team to the Rafah border to offer assistance to the families, assess their needs and organize their transport to Cairo. One U.S. citizen was born recently in Gaza, and the embassy helped the family secure the necessary documentation to facilitate their entry into Egypt, he said.

“We’re very happy to be able to play this role, but we also know we still have a lot of work to do,” he said. “We really want to see this effort continue until everybody who needs to exit Gaza has an opportunity to do that safely.”

Hezbollah’s second in command warns of expanding conflict

BEIRUT — Rockets launched from Lebanon reached deeper into Israeli territory yesterday than any since the 2006 war, as the Hezbollah militant group’s second-in-command official threatened to escalate cross-border attacks if Israel continues its deadly assault on the Gaza Strip.

“Hezbollah participates for the sake of lowering the pressure on Gaza,” Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary-general, told NBC News in an exclusive interview. He framed Israel as the aggressor, saying that growing attacks from Iranian-backed militant groups across the Middle East against American targets were “a clear message that if you expand, there will be serious consequences.”

Taken together, Hezbollah’s heightened rhetoric and the widening strikes by the group of Iran-backed proxies suggest that this “axis of resistance” is acting in harmony to ramp up pressure on the U.S. and Israel to check the latter’s escalating assault on the Gaza Strip.

Read the full story here.

Military vehicles along the Gaza border with Israel

Max Butterworth

Israeli army vehicles leave a trail of dust as they pass through the border fence crossing back into Israel from Gaza today.

Hundreds of thousands still stuck in northern Gaza, officials say

Despite Israeli warnings to move south, hundreds of thousands of residents are still in Gaza City and northern Gaza, the enclave’s officials said today, as Israel continues its ground advances into the strip.

“No aid has reached citizens in Gaza and the north for 32 days, and no supplies have reached shelter centers or residential neighborhoods,” Iyad Al-Bazm, a spokesperson for the Gaza Interior Ministry and national security, told a news conference in Gaza City.

He added that all bakeries had stopped working because they were being targeted and “the lack of flour and fuel in others,” adding “the lack of drinking water in the Gaza and North governorates has forced citizens to drink polluted water that is not suitable for drinking.”

Hamas has been in power in Gaza since 2007.

Vigils held in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv for victims of Oct. 7 Hamas attacks

Some 1,400 candles were lit at Jerusalem’s Western Wall yesterday in tribute to the number of victims that Israel says were killed in the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of Oct. 7. In Tel Aviv, another vigil took place in Habima Square, where empty beds were presented in memory of the hostages who remain held in the Gaza Strip.

U.N. agency says 40% of hospitals in Gaza have stopped functioning

Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, 40% of hospitals and 71% of primary care facilities in Gaza have stopped functioning because of damage or lack of fuel, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

OCHA also said in a report today that on Sunday, the close vicinities of four hospitals in Gaza were struck, killing eight people and damaging buildings. Evacuation calls were made by the IDF to all hospitals in the north following allegations about the use of their premises by armed groups, the agency said.

“Out of the 102 attacks on health recorded by the World Health Organization (WHO), 83 were in the Gaza and North Gaza governates,” OCHA said.

Those hospitals are also where many of the 1.5 million internally displaced people in Gaza are sheltering. Others have taken up residence in churches, public buildings and schools — facilities where overcrowding and worsening sanitary conditions remain a major concern, the agency said.

The most crowded shelter, the Khan Younis Training Center, hosts more than 22,000 displaced Palestinians, who each have less than 2 square meters (about 21 square feet) of space.

“At least 600 people are sharing one toilet,” the OCHA report said.

UAE to set up field hospital in Gaza as part of humanitarian operation

The United Arab Emirates is setting up a field hospital in the Gaza Strip to deliver “essential medical support,” the state news agency WAM said today.

“The field hospital, with a 150-bed capacity, is set to be established in multiple stages,” it said, adding that five aircraft had already left Abu Dhabi for Cairo carrying the equipment.

The hospital will be equipped with various departments such as surgery and intensive care units, it said, including clinics for medicine, dentistry and psychiatry.

A field hospital is already running in Gaza and operated by the kingdom of Jordan.

WHO: More than 160 health care workers have been killed on duty in Gaza

GENEVA — A World Health Organization spokesperson said today that more than 160 health care workers have been killed on duty in Gaza and called for a lifting of restrictions on medical aid, saying some doctors were performing operations, including amputations, without anesthetics.

“Over 160 of the health care workers have died on duty while taking care of those injured and diseased. These are the people keeping the health system going, through the dedication they have somehow found a way to keep some level of service going,” Christian Lindmeier told a press briefing, without citing the source of information.

Jewish man dies at dueling protests over Israel-Hamas war

Stephanie Gosk

A vigil was held for Paul Kessler, a 69-year-old Jewish man, who died during dueling protests in California. His death has been classified as a homicide by the medical examiner, but investigators are not ruling out the possibility of a hate crime. NBC’s Stephanie Gosk reports for the “TODAY” show.

Israeli minister’s comments over nuclear weapon use raise ‘huge questions,’ Russia says

Russia said today that a comment made by an Israeli junior minister that expressed Israel’s willingness to use nuclear weapon on Gaza raised huge questions.

“This has raised a huge number of questions,” Maria Zakharova, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, was quoted as saying by the state RIA news agency.

“Question No. 1 — it turns out that we are hearing official statements about the presence of nuclear weapons?” Zakharova said. Israel has not publicly acknowledged the presence of nuclear weapons.

Netanyahu has suspended Amihay Eliyahu, the heritage minister from a far-right party in the coalition government, from Cabinet meetings.

Netanyahu says Israel could be in Gaza for an ‘indefinite period’

Richard Engel

The Israeli military says its troops will comb through every inch of Gaza. They’ve surrounded Gaza City. And Netanyahu says Israel may occupy Gaza for a period, until a replacement for Hamas can be found. But President Joe Biden has said occupying Gaza would be a mistake.

Richard Engel reports from Jerusalem for NBC News.

Israeli flags fly as crowd falls silent in Jerusalem

Max Butterworth

People hold Israeli flags during a ceremony in Jerusalem today, to mark the one month anniversary of the attack by Hamas.

Israeli government spokesman: No cease-fire until hostages are released

There is no chance of any cease-fire while Hamas still holds 240 hostages, Israeli government spokesman Eylon Levy said today.

“We will not consider any cease-fire no matter how temporary without the return of our hostages,” he told the German broadcaster DW. “There was a cease-fire on Oct. 6 but Hamas broke it,” he said, referring to the Oct. 7 terror attack.

Israel will not stop until it has achieved its goal of eradicating Hamas, he added.

Voter groups warn Biden his stance on Gaza could suppress youth turnout next year

The leaders of progressive groups focused on mobilizing young voters are warning Biden that his handling of the war in Gaza could depress turnout in a demographic that’s already notoriously difficult to energize on Election Day.

“We are experts in youth voting behavior who have worked tirelessly across the years to generate Generation Z and Millennial enthusiasm for civic action under a variety of circumstances,” the leaders wrote today in an open letter addressed to Biden and first shared with NBC News.

“We write to you to issue a very stark and unmistakable warning: you and your Administration’s stance on Gaza risks millions of young voters staying home or voting third party next year.”

Read the full story here

At least 16 dead in Khan Younis after airstrike levels residential buildings

Ahmad Al-Najjar lost at least 16 people from his family in southern Gaza yesterday, after a strike leveled buildings in a residential area of Khan Younis, according to local officials.

“We are civilians, we have nothing to do except we are Palestinians. We are Muslims,” the former teacher told a NBC News crew, as he emerged from the rubble covered in dust with blood dripping down his face.

“All my family are inside, more than 27 people are inside,” he said, struggling to breathe. “Babies inside, kids inside,” he added, as he pointed to the destroyed buildings.

A spokesperson for the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis provided NBC News with a list of the people killed in the strike, including women, children and a 7-month-old.

Khan Younis is in the southern portion of the Gaza Strip. Israel has repeatedly asked civilians to move south so it can concentrate its military campaign on the north, where it says Hamas’ strongholds are concentrated. The death toll in Gaza has passed 10,000, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza.

NBC News has contacted the Israeli military for comment. The IDF previously said it was “unable to address or confirm specific queries” when asked about strikes in residential areas.

Gaza protests as Blinken attends G7 in Tokyo

Max Butterworth

Protesters stage a pro-Palestinian demonstration near the Japanese Foreign Affairs Ministry in Tokyo today.Blinken arrived in Japan for a meeting of G7 foreign ministers set to seek a common line on Gaza, as calls mount for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.

Blinken calls for a united G7 in Japan

After making multiple stops in the Middle East, Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Japan today appealing to the Group of Seven leading industrial nations to align on the Israel-Hamas war.

“It’s a very important moment as well for G7 to come together in the face of this crisis and to speak as we do with one clear voice,” Blinken told Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, after a meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Kamikawa vowed Japan’s support.

“We appreciate the diplomatic efforts by the U.S. on the recent situation in Israel and Palestine. You have our utmost support,” he told Blinken.

University of Pennslyvania staff received antisemitic emails threatening violence

Staff members at the University of Pennsylvania have received “vile, disturbing antisemitic emails that threatened violence against members of our Jewish community,” the university’s president said in a statement yesterday.

M. Elizabeth Magill wrote in an online statement that the messages, received by a small number of staff, “included hateful language, targeting the personal identities of the recipients.”

Penn Hillel, a Jewish students’ group, was specifically mentioned in the messages, she said. The university’s security team conducted a search and concluded there was no “credible threat” of physical violence, she added.

The news comes a day after a student at the University of Massachusetts was arrested for allegedly punching a Jewish student at a vigil for the hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7, organized by UMass Hillel.

Tensions over Israel-Hamas war on the rise in the U.S.

The U.S. has seen hundreds of rallies in support of both Israel and Palestinians that have sparked incidents on college campuses and even the blockade of a military ship believed to be carrying supplies bound for Israel. NBC News reports on how tensions over the war are reaching a boiling point.

Israeli politicians condemn death of Jewish man at protest in California

Senior Israeli political figures have blamed antisemitism for the death of a Jewish man during rival protests inspired by the Israel-Gaza war in California on Sunday.

Paul Kessler, 69, died in Thousand Oaks, Ventura County, after falling backwards and hitting his head while pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators took to the streets and waved flags.

The cause of death is being investigated and community leaders — including local Jewish figures — have urged both sides not to speculate.

“The murder of Jewish-American Paul Kessler should serve as a stark warning sign to the whole world,” said Benny Gantz, the opposition leader who joined a wartime Cabinet after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

“Israel stands today at the forefront of the global fight against the murderous antisemitic ideology behind the Hamas terror attacks of 7.10,” he said in a post on X.

Another Israeli opposition leader, Yair Lapid, said in a post on X: “Paul Kessler was killed in Los Angeles because he was a Jew. It is not because of Gaza, it is because of antisemitism.”

‘One full month of carnage,’ U.N. human rights chief begins Middle East visit

The United Nations high commissioner for human rights today began his five-day visit to the Middle East region, seeking access to Israel, Gaza and the occupied West Bank, a month after the Oct 7. attacks.

“It has been one full month of carnage, of incessant suffering, bloodshed, destruction, outrage and despair,” Volker Türk said in a statement. He will visit Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt tomorrow.

“Human rights violations are at the root of this escalation and human rights play a central role in finding a way out of this vortex of pain,” he added.

Israeli who survived Hamas attack recalls events of a month ago

Max Burman

Amir Tibon, a prominent Israeli journalist, has shared his account of his family hiding from Hamas terrorists a month ago and his views on the war and a way forward.

“It was 7AM, they had just woken up in a dark room with no electricity or food, and five people were shouting outside the window,” he wrote on X in a lengthy thread to mark the date.

In Israel, a moment of silence a month after Hamas’ attack

TEL AVIV — An informal moment of silence was held in Israel today as residents marked one month since Hamas launched its deadly attack.

In the weeks since the ambush, those whose loved ones were among the 1,400 killed or the dozens of of people taken hostage in the attack have gathered with supporters day after day in a square in Tel Aviv near the IDF headquarters.

Today, many have gathered there as they continue to call on the Israeli government to do everything it can to see those taken hostage returned.

Around the time that the informal moment of silence was held, a red alert warning of a possible air attack over Ashkelon in southern Israel was sent out, while Israeli forces continued their deadly offensive in Gaza in a war that, one month on, appears to be far from over.

Gaza is becoming a ‘graveyard for children,’ U.N. chief says

The Gaza Strip is becoming a “graveyard for children,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said, as he called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire and the unconditional release of all hostages being held by Hamas.

The U.N. Security Council failed again last night to agree on a resolution on the war, however.

Despite more than two hours of closed-door discussions, differences remained, with the U.S. calling for “humanitarian pauses” and many council members demanding a “humanitarian cease-fire.”

Yesterday, the U.N. launched a $1.2 billion humanitarian appeal to help 2.7 million Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, more than 10,000 people, including more than 4,000 children, have been killed since the conflict began a month ago.

“Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children,” Guterres said. “Hundreds of girls and boys are reportedly being killed or injured every day.”

“Ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces and continued bombardment are hitting civilians, hospitals, refugee camps, mosques, churches and U.N. facilities — including shelters. No one is safe,” he told reporters yesterday in New York. “At the same time, Hamas and other militants use civilians as human shields and continue to launch rockets indiscriminately toward Israel.”

Analysis: Netanyahu’s ‘little pauses’ a little step toward U.S. position

LONDON — Overnight, Netanyahu endeavored to answer some of the questions the U.S. and its allies have been asking. In an interview with ABC News, he said that Israel ‘will have the overall security responsibility’ for the Gaza Strip ‘for an indefinite period’ after the war, hinting at a potential endgame for his military’s ground assault. But there was no detail or explanation of exactly how that might work.

And he seemed to move a little bit toward the White House’s call for a ‘pause.’ He said again there ‘will be no cease-fire — general cease-fire — in Gaza, without the release of our hostages.’ But then went on to say that ‘as far as tactical, little pauses — an hour here, an hour there — we’ve had them before. I suppose we’ll check the circumstances in order to enable goods —humanitarian goods — to come in or our hostages, individual hostages, to leave.”

But diplomats who have spoken to NBC News in recent weeks have talked of the need for a pause that lasts days in order to get the hostages out. Hamas has been described as needing to reach some hostages held by other groups and organizing the release of up to 240 people would inevitably take time. Offering pauses of ‘an hour here, an hour there’ will be viewed by many as the minimum concession to massive pressure from the Biden administration.

Vigils held in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv a month after Hamas attack

Some 1,400 candles were lit at Jerusalem’s Western Wall last night in tribute to the 1,400 victims of the Hamas-led terror attack in Israel a month ago. In Tel Aviv, another vigil took place in Habima Square, where empty beds were presented in memory of hostages who are being held in the Gaza Strip.

Singapore threatens jail for displaying symbols linked to Israel-Hamas war

Singapore has threatened jail time for the public display or wearing of signs and symbols related to the Israel-Hamas war, calling it an “emotive issue.”

Those convicted can be fined up to 500 Singapore dollars ($370), imprisoned for up to six months or both, the Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement yesterday.

“The peace and harmony between different races and religions in Singapore should not be taken for granted, and we must not let events happening externally affect this peace and harmony we have in Singapore,” the ministry said. It added that displaying the logos of militant groups such as Hamas would in particular not be condoned.  

The semiauthoritarian city-state said Singaporeans who wish to express their support for those affected by the war should contribute to authorized charities.

IDF says it took control of a Hamas stronghold in northern Gaza

TEL AVIV — Israel has taken control of a military stronghold in northern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces said this morning, as it advances its ground operations in the enclave.

“Anti-tank missiles and launchers, weapons, and various intelligence materials were located in the compound by the troops,” it said.

The IDF also said it struck a building next a hospital that was being used by Hamas for attacks, which “led to significant secondary explosions,” indicating “the presence of a Hamas weapons depot.”

Israeli ground operations in northern Gaza

Max Butterworth

An image released by the Israeli army today shows soldiers during ground operations in northern Gaza.

Iranian and Indian leaders emphasize need for de-escalation

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the need for de-escalation, continued humanitarian aid and the early restoration of peace and stability, according to a readout of their call from Modi’s office.

During the call yesterday, Raisi said that he “supports any joint global effort for an immediate ceasefire, lifting the blockade and providing relief to the oppressed people of Gaza,” Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Raisi also accused the United States of complicity in recent “crimes” against Gaza because of its support for Israel. 

“Terrorist incidents, violence and loss of civilian lives are serious concerns,” Modi said yesterday on X after their call. “Preventing escalation, ensuring continued humanitarian aid and early restoration of peace and stability are important.”

Israel open to ‘little pauses’ and will have Gaza ‘security responsibility’ for indefinite period, Netanyahu says

Israel is open to “tactical little pauses” for humanitarian aid to be let in to Gaza and hostages to be allowed out, Netanyahu said yesterday.

The Israeli leader also gave the strongest indication yet of what Israel may plan for the Palestinian enclave after the war, now a month old.

“I think Israel will, for an indefinite period, will have the overall security responsibility because we’ve seen what happens when we don’t have that security responsibility,” he told ABC News, when asked about who would govern Gaza if Hamas is removed.

Indonesia denies Gaza hospital is being used by Hamas

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The Indonesian Foreign Ministry said today that the purpose of the Indonesia Hospital in Gaza was to “fully” serve Palestinians, responding to an accusation by the Israeli military that it has been used by Hamas to launch attacks.

“Indonesia Hospital in Gaza is a facility built by Indonesians fully for humanitarian purposes and to serve the medical needs of Palestinians in Gaza,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the hospital is run by Palestinian authorities with the help of a few Indonesian volunteers.

The hospital “is currently treating patients in the amount that far exceeds its capacity,” the ministry said.

Sarbini Abdul Murad, chairman of the MER-C voluntary group that funded the Indonesia Hospital, also denied Israel’s accusations, saying yesterday that they were a “precondition so that they can attack the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza.”

Israeli flares light up Gaza City refugee camp

Max Butterworth

Illumination flares fired by Israeli forces light up the night sky over the Al-Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip last night.

Massachusetts family trapped in Gaza returns safely to the U.S.

A Massachusetts family who spent weeks trapped in war-torn Gaza is back in the United States.

Abood Okal, Wafaa Abuzayda and their 1-year-old son, Yousef, arrived in Boston yesterday and are now safely back in their home in Medway, according to a statement from the family.

“The Okal Family continues to be incredibly thankful for their family and friends around the world who spoke up on their behalf, the Medway community, the media for sharing their plight and the plight of the hundreds of other Americans trapped in Gaza, their elected officials who fought hard for their return, and the State Department for providing them with safe departure,” the statement read.

The couple and their baby had spent weeks waiting to cross through the Rafah border into Egypt.

Catch up with NBC News’ latest coverage of the Israel-Hamas war