As the Israel-Gaza conflict enters its 28th day, here are the key developments:
Here is the status as of Friday, November 3, 2023.
Latest development status
- Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said Thursday that a ceasefire was not on the table and that the military had “completed the siege of Gaza City.” International pressure is mounting following calls for a ceasefire by UN experts.
- At 3pm (13:00 Japan time) on Friday, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah will give his first public speech since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas.
- U.S. House Republicans on Thursday passed a plan to provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel fighting Hamas. The Democratic-controlled Senate has said it will not bring the bill to a vote.
Human influence and combat
- At least 9,061 people have died in Gaza, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
- The Israeli military announced Friday that four Israeli soldiers were killed in recent clashes with Palestinian fighters.
- Overnight Israeli shelling targeted areas across the Gaza Strip, including Jabalia and the Gaza City suburbs. According to Al Jazeera Arabic, new Israeli airstrikes also occurred near Al Quds Hospital.
- On Thursday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency announced that four shelters had been damaged within 24 hours.
- On Thursday, Hezbollah said it had attacked 19 Israeli targets on the Lebanon-Israel border, and the Israeli military said it had carried out “extensive attacks” against the group. Two people were injured in a barrage of rocket fire in the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona near the Lebanese border, said Magen David Adom of Israel’s emergency medical services.
- Palestinian television correspondent Mohammed Abu Khattab and 10 of his family members were killed in an Israeli airstrike on his home, the broadcaster reported.
- The United States has been flying surveillance drones over the Gaza Strip for more than a week in search of prisoners, U.S. officials said.
diplomacy
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel today and Jordan on Saturday, according to the State Department. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said he would press Blinken for a ceasefire.
- Chilean President Gabriel Boric on Thursday expressed concern about US President Joe Biden and the Israel-Hamas war. He condemned Hamas’s October 7 attack and said Israel’s retaliatory bombing of Gaza was “disproportionate” and a violation of international law, according to Reuters.
- Bahrain has recalled its ambassador to Israel.
- Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei said Israel was “powerless and confused” and would remain silent without US support. He posted on X on Friday, claiming that Israel’s expressions of concern about prisoners in Gaza were lies.
- Thailand is in talks with Iran and other governments to secure the release of at least 23 nationals detained in the Gaza Strip, the foreign minister said.
Clashes in occupied West Bank
- Wafa reported on Friday that a Palestinian who was shot dead by Israeli forces on Wednesday in the village of Tal, southwest of Nablus, died after being taken to a hospital.
- At least six Palestinians were killed in a gunfight and Israeli missile attack near Jenin, Wafa and Al Jazeera Arabia reported.