Billed as TheBeatles‘ last song, “Now and Then,” which was released last week, features vocal and instrumental contributions from all four members of the group, including the late John Lennon and George Harrison. Speaking to the BBC, Paul McCartney called the experience of recording the song joyful, lovely and magic.
“Now and Then” was a song Lennon had recorded on cassette prior to his death in 1980. Harrison, McCartney and Ringo Starr tried to record it in the ’90s, but the sound had degraded too much for them to make it work. However, thanks to the new technology that director Peter Jackson developed to make The Beatles: Get Back documentary, Lennon’s vocal and piano parts were able to be repaired enough to be used on the track.
“You could imagine he was just in the next room in a vocal booth or something, and we were just working with him again,” McCartney told the BBC about Lennon’s vocals. “And it was joyful. It was really lovely because we hadn’t experienced that for a long time, obviously. And then suddenly, here we were, working with our Johnny.”
“It’s very special for me to be singing with John again,” McCartney added.
And while Paul noted that he finds some forms of AI — like the ones online where people make his voice sing songs he never recorded — “sort of creepy,” he said, “What we were doing was just cleaning up John’s voice.”
In the U.K., “Now and Then” is on track to top the British charts. If it does, it would be the group’s first #1 in their home country since “The Ballad of John and Yoko” back in 1969.
In the new film Quiz Lady, available to watch on Hulu, Awkwafina and Sandra Oh play estranged sisters who come back together to help cover their mom’s gambling debts.
The film’s director, Jessica Yu, sat down with ABC Audio to chat about the film and its all-star cast. Seeing Awkwafina and Oh work together, Yu says, was like watching two actual sisters interact.
“You could really see there was a true trust and connection between the two of them,” Yu said. “I remember at one-point Awkwafina said … this was the first time she actually felt related to somebody that she’s supposed to be related to on screen. And I think that that really shows.”
This is a different kind of role for Oh, who is often cast as more serious characters. Yu says Oh was more than prepared to take a turn playing the comedic relief.
“Sandra, the way that she works, you know, her process, she wants to know everything,” Yu said. “She was very involved – down to, you know, ‘What are the earrings,’ ‘What’s the eyeshadow that she wears,’ ‘How thick are the lashes.’ So, you know, she came ready to go.”
Oh has even said that Quiz Lady was one of her favorite on-set experiences of her career, which means a lot to Yu.
“It’s like the biggest compliment,” Yu said. “I always feel like having a good time and doing good work shouldn’t be, you know, mutually exclusive. But in this case, I think because we had a lot of time to connect, to talk, to absorb the material beforehand and create those bonds, then when we were out there, it was like we all had confidence and room to play.”
ABC News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton shares what to know about natural remedies for hair loss. — ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Hair has been called a person’s “crown and glory,” so when a person starts to lose their hair, it can be stressful, distressing and confusing.
The causes of hair loss run the gamut, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, from age and poor diet, to significant weight loss, chronic iron deficiency, thyroid disorders, childbirth, and more.
In the United States, the most common type of hair loss, androgenetic alopecia, commonly known as male or female pattern hair loss, is hereditary and affects more than 50 million men and 30 million women, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Given that hair loss is so common, the marketplace can seem crowded with products promising to help.
The first step to treating hair loss, though, is to work with a health care provider to identify the cause, according to Dr. Jennifer Ashton, ABC News chief medical correspondent and a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist.
Once a root cause is identified, there are natural, cost-effective remedies that may help stop hair loss and even boost hair growth.
Here, Ashton breaks down six of the most scientifically proven natural remedies for hair loss.
What to know before trying a natural remedy: Ashton notes that the natural remedies are topical solutions, meaning they should be applied to the skin and scalp, and not ingested. Because applying the remedies could potentially cause scalp irritation, Ashton suggests testing the solution on a small patch of skin for a day or two and observing the results before applying it to the scalp.
She also says each remedy below is one that should be used every other night or every two to three days, not daily. Also, patience is required, as it could take as long as three to six months to see any results. There are also FDA-approved medications available for hair loss. Talk to your doctor to see if you may be eligible.
1. Coconut oil
Coconut oil has been shown in research to potentially help prevent hair loss.
While it is more a preventive option than a remedy for regrowing hair, Ashton said coconut oil – which comes both in liquid and solid forms – is a low-risk option that she loves.
“There’s very limited data that shows a dramatic improvement with hair growth or hair thickening with a coconut oil,” Ashton said. “But … you always have to say to yourself: risk versus benefit. This is incredibly low-risk. There may not be a benefit there, but it’s certainly not going to do harm.”
Pro tip: Ashton suggests also using coconut oil as a moisturizer, noting that it is safe to be absorbed into the bloodstream and can be used “from head-to-toe.”
2. Rosemary oil
At least one study has found that rosemary oil is similarly effective as the over-the-counter hair-growth medication minoxidil – commonly sold under the brand name Rogaine – in promoting hair growth.
The oil, which is extracted from the rosemary plant, can be directly applied to and massaged into the scalp, according to Ashton.
Pro tip: Ashton suggests vigorously massaging rosemary oil into the scalp to increase absorption and blood flow.
3. Peppermint oil
Peppermint oil has been shown to stimulate hair growth in animal studies by working to increase blood flow to the scalp.
“Peppermint oil vasodilates,” Ashton said. “[That] means it takes the blood vessels and makes them larger. When you make a tube larger and you’re talking about a blood vessel, that increases blood flow. Menthol, eucalyptus, peppermint absolutely can do that.”
Ashton said peppermint oil needs to be diluted with another oil, after which it can be applied and massaged directly into the scalp.
Pro tip: Ashton recommends washing your hands thoroughly after using peppermint oil, to avoid skin irritation.
4. Red ginseng
Red ginseng is a widely-used herbal remedy that has also been shown in studies to improve hair growth in mice.
“There is some improvement in thickening [hair], in transitioning the hair follicle from the resting phase to the more active phase,” Ashton said of using red ginseng. “Again, pretty low risk, and may have some benefit.”
Pro tip: Ashton says that red ginseng also needs to be diluted with another oil, or used sparingly in droplet form on the scalp.
5. Onion juice
Onion juice has been shown in studies as well to promote hair growth in people.
It’s said to work because of its sulfur content, which is said to help strengthen hair, reduce inflammation and hydrate the scalp.
Onion juice can be rubbed directly into the scalp on its own.
Pro tip: Be aware that onion juice carries with it a potent odor, and make sure to wash your hands thoroughly after use, recommends Ashton.
6. Scalp massage
Studies show that simply massaging your scalp can help increase the thickness of your hair.
The technique works by helping to boost blood flow to the scalp, according to Ashton.
“There are a lot of different instruments out there,” Ashton said of scalp massager options. “They’re inexpensive. You can order them online or find them in in some drugstores.”
Pro tip: While there are many scalp massager products on the market, Ashton says using your own fingers to massage your scalp is equally effective.
BONUS: What ingredients to look for in hair products
Just like packaged foods have nutrition labels that list their ingredients, hair-care products do as well.
While those hair-care product ingredients may be intended to help support hair growth or treat hair loss, they can also potentially cause hair loss, as well as affect your overall health, according to Ashton.
“Anything you put on your skin, including your scalp, will be absorbed into your bloodstream,” she said. “So it really is a good idea to make sure that those ingredients are as clean and low in chemicals as possible.”
The first ingredient to look for in a hair-care product, according to Ashton, is alcohol.
“It’s oftentimes one of the first three ingredients, but it does real damage to your hair,” Ashton said of alcohol. “It literally dries out the hair, makes it subject to breakage, and, ultimately, it can also dry out your scalp, depending on where you’re applying it.”
She continued, “So that’s something that’s in almost every hair product, but you want to try to pick one that either doesn’t have it at all or doesn’t have it in the first three ingredients.”
On the other hand, beneficial ingredients to look for in hair-care products include caffeine, menthol or mint, according to Ashton. She noted that those ingredients will increase blood flow when applied to the scalp, which in turn helps overall scalp health.
(NEW YORK) — Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York in a $250 million lawsuit that could alter the personal fortune and real estate empire that helped propel Trump to the White House.
Trump, his sons Eric and Don Jr., and Trump Organization executives are accused by New York Attorney General Letitia James of engaging in a decade-long scheme in which they used “numerous acts of fraud and misrepresentation” to inflate Trump’s net worth in order get more favorable loan terms. The trial comes after the judge in the case ruled in a partial summary judgment that Trump had submitted “fraudulent valuations” for his assets, leaving the trial to determine additional actions and what penalty, if any, the defendants should receive.
The former president has denied all wrongdoing and his attorneys have argued that Trump’s alleged inflated valuations were a product of his business skill.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Nov 06, 9:55 AM EST
The numbers ‘don’t lie,’ says New York AG
New York Attorney General Letitia James briefly conferred with her team of lawyers in court this morning before taking her seat in the gallery.
Before entering the courtroom, James predicted that Trump will likely engage in “name calling, taunts, [and] race baiting” to distract from his testimony.
“Before he takes the stand, I am certain that he will engage in name calling, taunts, race baiting, and call this a witch hunt,” James told reporters. “But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters are the facts and the numbers, and numbers, my friends, don’t lie.”
Nov 06, 9:48 AM EST
New York AG’s senior counsel to question Trump
Senior Enforcement Counsel Kevin Wallace of the New York attorney general’s office will lead the direct examination of Donald Trump when the former president takes the stand this morning.
Wallace led the depositions of Trump during the New York attorney general’s investigation and also delivered the state’s opening statement in the trial.
“The defendants were lying year after year,” Wallace said in his opening statement.
A constant presence in court during the trial, Wallace joined the New York AG’s office in 2018 after working in the private sector for 15 years.
Wallace and Trump sparred for hours during Trump’s April deposition, according to a transcript of the deposition that was subsequently released by the AG’s office.
“We’re going to be here until midnight if your client answers every question with an eight-minute speech,” Wallace remarked after one of Trump’s lengthier answers.
Wallace tried to press Trump on spreadsheets that Wallace displayed during the deposition, promoting frequent objections from Trump’s lawyers.
“Oh my God — are you people capable of reading a spreadsheet?” an exasperated Wallace said after one objection from Trump’s attorney Chris Kise.
Nov 06, 9:21 AM EST
Trump arrives at courthouse
Donald Trump’s motorcade has arrived at the New York State Supreme Courthouse in lower Manhattan.
Court is scheduled to get underway at 10 a.m. ET, with Trump scheduled as the day’s only witness.
Nov 06, 8:49 AM EST
Trump prepped for testimony with attorneys, say sources
Donald Trump, in New York, had a prep session with his lawyers Sunday ahead his testimony, sources tell ABC News.
Trump’s mood during the session fluctuated between fits of anger regarding the case and being “in a good head space,” according to sources.
The former president “can be a good witness if he stays focused,” one source said.
Nov 06, 8:23 AM EST
Trump due in court to testify this morning
Former President Trump is due in court to begin his testimony in his $250 million civil fraud trial at 10 a.m. ET.
Hundreds of members of the news media are huddled outside the New York State Supreme Courthouse ahead of Trump’s arrival, with some having waited overnight.
Nov 03, 3:19 PM EDT
Judge extends limited gag order to cover lawyers
After multiple in-court disputes about communications between him and his law clerk, Judge Arthur Engoron modified his limited gag order to cover attorneys in former President Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial.
“Defendants may reference my staff as is appropriate to ask about scheduling issues or the management of the trial, which is an integral part of their jobs. What they may not do is to make any further statements about internal and confidential communications (be it conversations, note passing, or anything similar) between me and my staff,” Engoron wrote in his supplemental limited gag order on Friday.
Engoron wrote that defense lawyers Chris Kise, Alina Habba, and Clifford Robert made “repeated, inappropriate remarks about my Principal Law Clerk, falsely accusing her of bias against them and of improperly influencing the ongoing bench trial.”
The attorneys have raised multiple arguments during the trial that Engoron and his clerk passing notes between each other suggests impropriety and is distracting. Going forward, if the lawyers want to object to communications with his clerk, Engoron advised that they refer to the order as a “blanket statement.”
“This gag order is as narrowly tailored as possible to accomplish its purpose, which is to protect the safety of my staff and promote the orderly progression of this trial,” Engoron said.
To justify the safety threat, Engoron added that his chambers has received “hundreds of harassing and threatening phone calls, voicemails, emails, letters, and packages” since the start of the trial,
The judge threatened “serious sanctions” for violations of the extended order.
Nov 03, 12:30 PM EDT
Eric Trump, leaving court, criticizes case against his family
Standing in the courthouse hallway where his father earlier railed against his civil trial, Eric Trump echoed his father’s attacks on the New York attorney general and the case levied against his family, following the adjournment of court for the day.
“We have an unbelievable company. We have some of the best assets anywhere in the world. We’ve never had a default. We’ve never missed a payment,” Eric Trump said of the Trump Organization.
Like his father, he described the case as politically motivated and decried the involvement of his family.
“They’ve dragged Don and I and Ivanka into it as collateral damage,” he said.
Later, addressing reporters on the courthouse steps, he said that the state’s efforts should be focused elsewhere.
“Let’s get the murderers off the street. Let’s take care of the crime. Let’s rebuild our infrastructure. Everywhere you drive in New York, you hit a pothole and your car gets destroyed,” he said.
Nov 03, 12:21 PM EDT
Court adjourned for the day, with Trump on deck for Monday
Judge Engoron adjourned court until Monday, when the state plans to call former President Trump to the stand.
“We will reconvene on Monday at 10 a.m., and the first witness will be…?” Engoron asked state attorney Andrew Amer.
“The only witness will be Donald J. Trump,” Amer said.
Nov 03, 11:37 AM EDT
Eric Trump pressed on Mar-a-Lago valuation
Eric Trump has stepped down from the witness stand after facing an hour of questions from state attorney Andrew Amer.
Amer concluded his questioning by directly asking Eric Trump about the $2 million severance agreement between the Trump Organization and its former CFO, Allen Weisselberg.
“Did you participate in the business agreement to enter into this business decision with Mr. Weisselberg?” Amer asked.
“Yes,” Eric Trump said.
“Did your father direct you to enter into this agreement with Mr. Weisselberg?” Amer asked.
“No, he did not,” Eric Trump replied. He reiterated, “I did this agreement with Mr. Weisselberg.”
Pressed on the value of Trump’s Mar-A-Lago property, Eric Trump denied knowing that the club was valued for tax purposes as a commercial property used as a social club.
“It is very clear that Mar-a-Lago is not a club, it is a private residence. I don’t see anything wrong with that. 100 percent,” Eric Trump said.
Previous testimony and documents in evidence demonstrated that despite the property being restricted by deed to club usage, Donald Trump continued to overvalue the property as if it could be sold as a private residence. Judge Engoron already found that the club was overvalued by 2,300%.
“Mar-a-Lago is a residence that could be sold to a private individual,” Eric Trump insisted.
Nov 03, 11:15 AM EDT
Eric Trump testifies that he signed financial certifications
Eric Trump said that he signed three financial certifications to lenders that relied on his father’s statements of financial condition, which are at the heart of the attorney general’s case.
“I certified something I believed was accurate. My lawyers told me was accurate, and our financial people told me was accurate,” Eric Trump said.
While Eric Trump did not certify his father’s financial statements themselves, like his brother Donald Trump Jr., the attorney general has alleged that these certifications to lenders are similarly fraudulent.
Eric Trump said that he did not personally review the methodologies or supporting data for the financial statements themselves, instead relying on lawyers and accountants to verify the documents for him.
“I wouldn’t sign something that I thought was inaccurate,” he said multiple times.
Nov 03, 11:03 AM EDT
Trump lawyer broaches mistrial over unproven report of bias
Eric Trump has resumed his testimony this morning.
Before he took the stand, Donald Trump’s attorney Chris Kise said that the defense team is considering requesting the mistrial on the basis of a Breitbart report alleging bias from Judge Engoron’s law clerk.
“I think the defense will have to give serious consideration to seeking a mistrial,” Kise said, initially referencing a vague media report that “some random individual” filed a complaint on Oct. 3 alleging “accusations of partisan political activity” by the judge’s clerk.
“It’s not information, it’s an allegation,” Judge Engoron initially responded. “I don’t know what you are talking about, and I will respond later.”
A state attorney argued that Kise was arguing a “frivolous position” and requested specifics about the news report Kise cited.
“I’m not the internet person. I want to say it is on Breitbart maybe. It’s on a news outlet,” Kise said, prompting laughter from the gallery.
“This idea that somebody notified me … is absolutely untrue. OK? Absolutely untrue,” Engoron responded. “I will let everybody in the room decide what they think about Breitbart.”
“It’s a shame you descended to this level,” Engoron added.
A court spokesperson subsequently described the report as “not a serious complaint.”
Nov 03, 8:55 AM EDT
NY AG claims Trump Jr., Eric Trump lied to enrich father
After a day of testimony in which tempers at times flared on all sides, Eric Trump will return to court this morning for what is expected to be his final day on the witness stand.
In a video statement posted to social media last night, New York Attorney General Letitia James suggested that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump’s testimony yesterday highlighted how they lied to help inflate their father’s net worth.
Eric Trump was “intimately involved in lying about the values of properties … to make his father appear richer,” while Donald Trump Jr. “continued to lie” by certifying his father’s financial statements despite being confronted with misstatements, James alleged.
“They pretend that they were not involved in their family’s fraudulent business. But the facts tell a very different story,” James said in the video.
Nov 02, 9:07 PM EDT
Appeals courts rules that Ivanka Trump must testify
A New York appeals court has denied an emergency request from Ivanka Trump to stop her testimony at her father’s civil fraud trial.
Trump’s daughter, who is not a defendant in the case, was subpoenaed by the attorney general to testify.
She is currently scheduled to testify next week on Wednesday.
Nov 02, 6:01 PM EDT
Trump attorney decries trial as ‘waste of NY taxpayer dollars’
Outside court after court was adjourned for the day, Trump attorney Alina Habba defended the actions of Donald Trump’s adult children on the heels of their testimony.
“These children are being brought in, away from their families, for doing nothing wrong,” Habba said.
Echoing Trump, Habba attacked New York Attorney General Letitia James and called the trial “the biggest waste of New York taxpayer dollars I have ever seen.”
“She piggybacked on Trump to get into office. She didn’t do it well enough to become governor,” Habba said, referencing James’ failed attempt to run for New York governor in 2021.
“This is a waste of time,” Habba said.
Exiting court separately with his attorney, Eric Trump shot a thumbs-up to an onlooker ahead of his return to the stand Friday morning.
Nov 02, 5:20 PM EDT
Judge suggests Trump attorney is misogynist, threatens gag order
Court concluded for the day with a threat from Judge Engoron to expand the trial’s limited gag order to include attorneys, after a clash between the judge and defense counsel.
The judge had previously issued the partial gag order prohibiting defendants from making public comments about his staff, after former President Trump posted online about Engoron’s law clerk.
After defense attorney Chris Kise suggested potential bias from the bench, Engoron told him, “Do not refer to my law clerk again.”
“Sometimes I think there might be a bit of misogyny,” Engoron told Kise.
“I have the right to make points on the record,” Kise responded. “If there is bias in the proceedings, I have the right to raise that.”
Engoron, pounding on the bench, shouted into his microphone that Kise had no right to hear conversations between the judge and his clerk.
“I have an absolute, unfettered right to get advice from my principal law clerk,” Engoron said.
Court is scheduled to resume tomorrow morning when Eric Trump returns to the stand.
Nov 02, 4:41 PM EDT
‘I stick by that 100%’ Eric Trump says of appraisal testimony
Eric Trump confidently stood by his past testimony regarding his limited involvement in an appraisal during a heated exchange with state attorney Andrew Amer.
Amer had spent the better part of the afternoon highlighting emails between Eric Trump and a Cushman & Wakefield appraiser, suggesting that Eric Trump was deeply involved in the appraisal of an estate and golf course in New York’s Westchester County. Attempting to paint the testimony as inconsistent, Amer played another portion the deposition Eric Trump had given to investigators.
“I pour concrete. I operate properties. I don’t focus on appraisals between a law firm and Cushman. It’s just not what I do in my day-to-day responsibilities,” Eric Trump said in the deposition.
“Will you concede that your testimony … that you really haven’t been involved in appraisal work on this property was incorrect?” Amer then asked Eric Trump on the stand.
“No. I really hadn’t been involved with appraisal work on that property,” Eric Trump responded. “I was clearly involved to a very small point. I see your emails. One hundred percent. I made phone calls.”
When Amer continued to press the issue, Donald Trump’s attorney Chris Kise loudly objected.
“Are you running the courtroom, or is the judge?” Kise shouted to Amer. “It’s asked and answered, asked and answered, asked and answered, and it’s continued all afternoon. At some point it needs to end.”
“There are a handful of emails well over ten years ago … I stick by that 100%” Eric Trump said.
Nov 02, 4:12 PM EDT
Eric Trump denies ignoring appraisal of luxury NY property
Eric Trump denied that he ignored a professional appraisal that would have significantly lowered the value of his family’s Seven Springs estate in New York’s Westchester County.
State attorney Andrew Amer attempted to show Eric Trump multiple emails and calendar invites from 2014 and 2015 to demonstrate that he was personally involved in an appraisal by Cushman & Wakefield executive David McArdle that placed the total value of the property’s undeveloped lots between $30 and $50 million.
Trump’s 2014 financial statement, in contrast, valued the property at $291 million, including $161 for just seven of the undeveloped lots.
“Can we agree that Mr. McArdle’s valuation in relation to the easement donation he was doing was disregarded?” Amer asked.
“No, the exercises are apples and oranges. Nothing to do with each other,” Eric Trump responded.
Nov 02, 3:53 PM EDT
Attorney continues to press Eric Trump on financial statement
Eric Trump grew visibly irritated as he appeared to struggle with his testimony regarding his father’s statement of financial condition.
Resisting state attorney Andrew Amer’s efforts to show he was familiar with the document at the center of the case, he at times raised his voice and punctuated his short answers with phrases like “obviously,” “clearly,” and “as I previously testified.” Other times he responded with lengthy equivocations, prompting Amer to exhort him to keep his answers to “yes or no.”
“You don’t have to give a speech about that,” Judge Engoron implored Eric Trump at one point.
Amer repeatedly asked variations of the same question: Was Eric Trump aware of his father’s statement of financial condition?
“This is not something I ever recall seeing or working on,” Eric Trump said in one clip from his deposition that was played in court. “This is accounting, and that is not what I do on a daily basis.”
Nov 02, 2:49 PM EDT
Eric Trump appears to contradict deposition
After acknowledging in his testimony that he provided Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney with information for his father’s statement of financial condition, Eric Trump was shown video from his own deposition where he appeared to contradict his testimony in court.
“I have no recollection of ever providing Jeff material to be used in a statement that I’ve ever seen,” Eric Trump said in the deposition he gave state attorneys during their probe.
“I don’t think it would have ever registered” what the material was for, Eric Trump said in court today, responding to his own statement during his deposition.
Nov 02, 2:32 PM EDT
Eric Trump clarifies testimony about email
Eric Trump clarified his earlier answer regarding his involvement in his father’s statement of financial condition, in which he was asked if he recalled a 2013 email from then-Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney asking him for notes for the statement.
“I clearly understood I sent notes to Jeffrey McConney,” Eric Trump testified.
“I don’t think that it ever registered [that] it was for a personal statement of financial condition,” he said.
Nov 02, 8:38 AM EDT
Trump Jr. has helped run family’s business for a ‘long time,’ AG says
As Donald Trump Jr. prepares to return to the witness stand this morning, New York Attorney General Letitia James says the Trump Organization executive VP has been with the Trump Organization for a long time for someone who appears to have so little understanding of the business.
In a video posted to social media last night following Trump Jr.’s first day of testimony, James said the eldest son of former President Trump “claimed to have very little understanding of the accounting and legal mechanics of the family business — but we know he has been involved in running the Trump Organization for a long time.”
Trump Jr. testified yesterday that he relied on the expertise of others when he signed the company’s statements of financial condition, distancing himself from the documents at the heart of the attorney general’s case.
While he acknowledged that he had some of the “the most intimate knowledge” about some of the deals described in the statements, Trump Jr. reiterated that he did not have a role in putting the documents together.
“The accountants worked on it. That’s what we pay them to do,” Trump Jr. said.
Trump Jr. will return to the witness stand this morning, with his bother Eric Trump on deck to testify later today.
Nov 01, 5:36 PM EDT
‘I wasn’t involved’ with financial statements, Trump Jr. says
Before stepping down from the witness stand at the end of the afternoon, Donald Trump Jr. was asked repeatedly about his involvement in the Trump Organization’s statements of financial condition — the allegedly fraudulent documents that underpin the attorney general’s case.
Trump Jr., who signed and certified the accuracy of the statements while his father was president between 2016 and 2021, said that he was not involved in preparing the filings.
“I wasn’t involved in the compilation of this statement of financial condition,” Trump Jr. said, placing the responsibility on his accountants.
“Did you work on the statement of financial condition for June 30, 2017?” state attorney Colleen Faherty asked.
“I did not. The accountants worked on it. That’s what we paid them to do,” Trump Jr. said.
Throughout the afternoon, the tone of the proceedings alternated rapidly between lighthearted and heated, varying from playful interactions between Trump Jr. and Judge Engoron, to bitter spats between some of the lawyers.
“I know you don’t like it when good evidence comes in,” Faherty told the defense lawyers during one particularly heated exchange.
“There’s no reason to raise your voice,” Donald Trump Jr.’s lawyer, Clifford Robert, responded.
Trump Jr. is scheduled to return to the stand tomorrow morning.
Nov 01, 4:40 PM EDT
Trump Jr. to resume testimony tomorrow
Donald Trump Jr. has stepped down from the witness stand.
He is due to return to the courtroom tomorrow morning to resume his direct examination.
Court is now adjourned for the day.
Nov 01, 4:25 PM EDT
“Move it along,” judge tells lawyer questioning Trump Jr.
Donald Trump Jr. and state attorney Colleen Faherty got into a rhythm of quick questions and answers during the first hour of direct examination.
“I moved to Florida, but kept the New York pace,” Trump Jr. joked at one point when asked by the judge to speak slower.
So far the state attorney has focused most of her questions on Trump Jr.’s broader roles and responsibilities at his family’s firm, rather than any specific allegations in the attorney general’s complaint.
“I don’t see where we are going at all with this,” Trump attorney Chris Kise said at one point regarding the questioning.
“Move it along as fast as you can,” Judge Engoron told Faherty.
Nov 01, 3:47 PM EDT
Trump Jr. pressed about departure of ex-CFO
Donald Trump Jr. struggled to answer questions when pressed about why former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg departed the family’s firm.
“Because some legal issues he got himself into,” Trump Jr. said, declining to offer specifics about Weisselberg’s guilty plea on tax evasion charges last year.
Previously giving lengthy answers to questions about his background and even smiling with the judge, Trump Jr. appeared tense on the witness stand as he answered questions about Weisselberg.
“The specific event was he was indicted,” Trump Jr. said.
He added that when began working for the Trump Organization as an executive vice president in the 2010s, Weisselberg outranked him. Trump Jr. would seek Weisselberg’s approval for certain business decisions such as refinancing loans.
“Who is above you in your role as an executive vice president in the Trump Organization?” state attorney Colleen Faherty asked.
“Obviously I would have reported to my father in that period of time … people like Allen Weisselberg would have still been senior to me,” Trump Jr. said of that time period.
Trump Jr. said he gained more responsibility in 2016 when his father became president and he was named a trustee of his father’s revocable trust. He said that he, Weisselberg and his brother Eric Trump became a kind of triumvirate running the Trump Organization.
“We stopped reporting to my father on decisions involving the business,” Trump Jr. said.
That relationship broke down once Weisselberg got himself into “legal issues,” Trump Jr. said. He testified that he could not recall the circumstances of Weisselberg’s exit, including the multimillion-dollar severance deal that Weisselberg received, which Weisselberg faced questions about during his own testimony earlier this month.
“I have no knowledge of the specifics of how it happened. He is no longer working at the Trump Organization,” Trump Jr. said of the former CFO.
Nov 01, 3:22 PM EDT
‘I leave it to my CPAs,’ Trump Jr. says of accounting standards
“Sounds very exciting, but no,” Donald Trump Jr. answered to a state attorney’s question about whether he knows about accounting certifications, professional organizations, or accounting standards other than GAAP, which stands for “Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.”
“I know nothing about GAAP,” Trump Jr. said, adding, “I leave it to my CPAs.”
“I’m a real estate broker,” Trump Jr. said as he introduced himself on the witness stand. He testified that he began working in the family real estate business “right after 9/11,” working on Trump Park Avenue and the former Sun Times building in Chicago.
State attorney Colleen Faherty tried to pressed him on his lack of accounting knowledge, prompting several objections from the defense.
Judge Engoron sustained the objections and admonished Faherty against asking negative questions.
-ABC News’ Olivia Rubin contributed to this report.
Nov 01, 3:10 PM EDT
Trump Jr. to be questioned by assistant AG
Assistant New York Attorney General Colleen Faherty will start off the direct examination of Donald Trump Jr.
Faherty is familiar with questioning high-stakes witnesses, having led the direct examination of former Trump attorney Michael Cohen last week.
Her quick objections during Cohen’s cross-examination led Trump attorney Alina Habba to accuse Faherty of trying to “throw off” her game.
A seven-year veteran of the New York attorney general’s office and a former criminal defense attorney, Faherty has been a vocal presence in the courtroom since the start of the trial.
Her willingness to spar with Trump lawyer Chris Kise previously led to some heated exchanges in court, such as a sidebar when Faherty demanded Kise “be more respectful.”
“No,” Kise responded.
“That was rude,” Faherty replied.
Nov 01, 3:01 PM EDT
Donald Trump Jr. takes the stand
Donald Trump Jr. has taken the stand, where he will be the first of the former president’s children to testify.
Before taking the stand, Trump Jr. sat while news photographers snapped pictures.
“I should’ve worn makeup,” he quipped.
Nov 01, 2:30 PM EDT
Ivanka Trump appeals ruling requiring her to testify
One week ahead of her planned testimony, Ivanka Trump has appealed Judge Engoron’s decision to require her to testify in person at the Trump Organization’s fraud trial.
Ivanka Trump’s lawyer Bennet Moskowitz asked an appellate court to decide whether Engoron has jurisdiction to compel her testimony and whether the trial subpoenas issued by the New York attorney general were properly served.
Ivanka Trump, who is not a defendant in the case, is currently scheduled to testify next Wednesday as the final witness in the attorney general’s case before the defense presents its case.
Nov 01, 2:08 PM EDT
Donald Trump Jr. arrives at courthouse
Donald Trump Jr. has arrived at the New York State Supreme Courthouse with his attorney.
Unlike his father and his brother Eric Trump — who have visited the courtroom to watch the proceedings – Donald Trump Jr. has not stepped foot inside the courthouse for the trial until today.
A Trump Organization executive vice president, Trump Jr. is scheduled to testify in the case this afternoon.
Nov 01, 1:44 PM EDT
Defense presses state’s expert on his analysis
Defense lawyer Jesus Suarez spent the first hour of his cross-examination working to cast doubt on expert Michiel McCarty’s analysis, which found that Trump defrauded lenders out of $168 million in interest.
“Who created the universe of documents for you to review? It was the New York attorney general, right?” Suarez said before launching into a rapid-fire succession of questions regarding which lenders McCarty had spoken to in the course of his analysis.
“Did you ever interview anyone from Deutsche Bank?” Suarez asked.
“No,” McCarty said.
“Did you ever interview anyone from Ladder Capital?” Suarez asked.
“No,” McCarty repeated.
“Did you ever interview anyone from Mazars,” Suarez asked.
“No,” McCarty responded.
“Did you ever interview anyone from the Trump Organization?” Suarez asked.
“No,” McCarty said again.
Nov 01, 12:34 PM EDT
Defense assails judge after he tells them to speed up questioning
Only 15 minutes into what is expected to be a three-hour cross-examination, Judge Arthur Engoron snapped at defense lawyer Jesus Suarez for asking redundant questions.
“I see why this is going to take two or three hours. Some questions become three or four more questions,” Engoron said, interrupting the cross-examination to request that Suarez shorten his questions.
That prompted Trump lawyer Chris Kise to criticize Engoron for placing an unfair standard on the defense team.
“You never give them speeches. You never limit their questions,” Kise said about Engoron’s approach to the attorney general’s legal team. “I think it’s unfair.”
Kise stressed that the cross-examination of the state’s sole expert witness is particularly important since his testimony is likely to play into the judge’s calculation of Trump’s potential fine.
“This witness is the only witness they have that even hints … about ill-gotten gains,” Kise said.
Engoron, however, refused to back down.
“I stand by my rulings and statements,” the judge said.
Nov 01, 12:17 PM EDT
Expert agrees that high-net-worth borrowers get low rates
Defense attorney Jesus Suarez began what is expected to be a marathon cross examination of the state’s expert witness, Michiel McCarty, by attempting to use his words against him.
“Historically banks have been willing to lend to high-net-worth individuals at low rates because they get repaid?” Suarez said, citing McCarty’s direct examination.
“That is correct,” McCarty said.
Suarez then reminded McCarty that Trump’s loans were paid on time — a point that the former president has reiterated during his appearance in court and on social media.
Suarez then asked if McCarty had charged the attorney general’s office $950 per hour for his expert analysis.
“That’s my standard rate, yes,” said McCarty, who estimated that his total bill for his analysis was $350,000.
The state’s expert witness, Michiel McCarty, calculated that Donald Trump’s lenders lost $168 million in potential interest between 2014 and 2023, according to a report he presented in court.
McCarty’s testimony appeared to reinforce a central tenet of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ case: that Trump’s misrepresentations in his financial statements cost banks potential earnings from interest, even if the banks made money on the loans.
State attorney Kevin Wallace directed McCarty to a footnote in Judge Engoron’s earlier summary judgment order about the concept of lost interest, in which Engoron said, “The subject loans made the banks lots of money; but the fraudulent SFCs [Statements of Financial Condition] cost the banks lots of money. The less collateral for a loan, the riskier it is, and a first principle of loan accounting is that as risk rises, so do interest rates. Thus, accurate SFCs would have allowed the lenders to make even more money than they did.”
McCarty, who said he agreed with this assessment, ultimately found that banks lost a total of $168,040,168 in potential interest from loans related to four of Trump’s properties in Miami, New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.
Trump attorney Chris Kise fiercely objected, arguing that McCarty was testifying about facts not established during the trial. During questioning, state attorneys declined to ask a Deutsche Bank executive if the bank would have still done business with Trump had they known his financial statements were inflated.
“They are not ill-gotten gains if the bank does not testify it would have done it differently,” Kise said.
“I decided these were ill-gotten,” the Judge Engoron replied.
Following Wallace’s direct examination of McCarty, defense attorney Jesus Suarez began his cross-examination.
Nov 01, 11:03 AM EDT
State’s expert witness takes the stand
Listing companies like Marriott, Fannie Mae and AT&T, the New York attorney general’s lone expert witness, Michiel McCarty, began his testimony by outlining some of the deals he worked on during his nearly 50-year career.
McCarty said that he has worked as an expert witness on “dozens of cases” and testified at 15 trials. But he acknowledged that he had limited experience with the compilation of statements of financial condition, prompting an objection from Trump’s lawyer Chris Kise.
“It appears that he does not have the specific experience relevant to the purpose he is here,” Kise argued.
Deemed an expert by Judge Engoron, McCarty went on to explain the report he wrote after reviewing Trump’s finances.
Nov 01, 10:49 AM EDT
Former Trump Organization VP testifies about Ivanka Trump
Former Trump Organization VP David Orowitz testified about Ivanka Trump’s involvement with Trump’s Old Post Office property in Washington, D.C.
“Ivanka wanted me to change the language in the GAAP section. She asked that I review with you,” Orowitz wrote in a 2011 email to then-Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, referring to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles used in the preparation of financial documents.
Defense attorneys have previously tried to downplay the extent to which Ivanka Trump was involved in the representation of Trump’s finances.
Orowitz subsequently stepped down from the witness stand to make way for Michiel McCarty, the state’s sole expert witness, to begin his testimony.
Nov 01, 10:14 AM EDT
‘We have a busy day,’ judge says as court gets underway
“We have a busy day and a busy week, so let’s try to move things along,” Judge Engoron remarked as he brought the courtroom to order to begin the day’s proceedings.
“Would you like to continue your witness?” Engoron asked state attorney Eric Haren.
“We would,” said Haren, before calling back to the stand former Trump Organization vice president David Orowitz, who began his testimony yesterday afternoon.
Defense attorneys Chris Kise, Alina Habba, and Jesus Suarez are sitting at the counsel table, leaving one seat available for Donald Trump Jr., who has not yet appeared ahead of his scheduled testimony this afternoon.
Nov 01, 10:01 AM EDT
Trump rails against judge, gag order
Former President Trump continued to attack Judge Engoron this morning, calling him “crazy, totally unhinged, and dangerous” on his Truth Social platform.
“He then put a RIDICULOUS GAG ORDER ON ME, which we will appeal. He fines me at levels never seen before,” Trump wrote this morning.
Trump recently paid $15,000 in fines related to two violations of the limited gag order Engoron established that prohibits public statements about the judge’s staff.
Trump also complained about the potential fine that Engoron could impose in the case. During court yesterday, the judge remarked that disgorgement — fining Trump for profits made through fraudulent means — is a “clearly available remedy” in the case.
“Now they come up with something called ‘disgorgement.’ I never even heard of the term,” Trump said.
Engoron already ruled in a partial summary judgment that Trump had submitted “fraudulent valuations” for his assets, leaving the trial to determine additional actions and what penalty, if any, the defendants should receive.
Nov 01, 8:45 AM EDT
‘Leave my children alone,’ Trump says ahead of sons’ testimony
Former President Trump attacked Judge Arthur Engoron and New York Attorney General Letitia James on social media ahead of today’s expected testimony from his son Donald Trump Jr.
“Leave my children alone, Engoron. You are a disgrace to the legal profession!” Trump wrote overnight on his Truth Social platform.
Donald Trump Jr. is expected to begin his testimony in the afternoon today.
If that testimony concludes today, his brother Eric Trump could also begin his testimony.
Both of them are executive vice presidents in the Trump Organization.
(NEW YORK) — Thousands of people have died and thousands more have been injured since the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel retaliated with a bombing campaign and total siege of the neighboring Gaza Strip, leaving the region on the verge of all-out war.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Nov 06, 8:43 AM EST
At least 10,000 dead in Gaza, Hamas-run ministry says
At least 10,022 have died in Gaza since the Israel-Hamas conflict began on Oct. 7, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said Monday.
The death toll includes at least 4,104 children in Gaza, Ashraf Al-Qidreh, the ministry’s spokesperson, said during a press conference. The ministry’s figures have not been independently verified.
-ABC News’ Ayat Al-Tawy
Nov 06, 6:11 AM EST
79 UN workers killed since Oct. 7, agency says
Five workers with UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, were killed in the last 48 hours in Gaza, bringing the total killed to 79, the organization said on Sunday.
UNRWA also received “confirmation of the death of two staff members who were killed on 24 October,” the agency said in a statement.
“Like most Gazans, our staff have also lost relatives, friends, neighbors and are themselves displaced with their families,” UNRWA said. “And yet, they continue to work tirelessly to provide humanitarian assistance.”
Another 24 UNRWA workers have been injured, the agency said.
-ABC News’ Victoria Beaule
Nov 06, 5:15 AM EST
Israel accuses Hamas of using hospital as shield for underground complex
The Israeli military on Monday accused Hamas militants of building “a whole tunnel system under” Sheikh Hamad Hospital in Gaza.
The practice of using hospitals as civilian shields has been “absolutely normal” for the militants, IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said.
“Why it is this important? Because hospitals and other humanitarian facilities are supposed to enjoy special protections,” Conricus said in a morning briefing. “But what Hamas is doing is that they’ve violating that special protection and using it for combat purposes.”
More than 500 people have died in at least 102 strikes near or on health care facilities since Oct. 7, the World Health Organization said on Sunday.
“Over half of health attacks and over a half of hospitals damaged were in Gaza City,” WHO officials said on social media. “Health care is #NotATarget.”
During Monday’s briefing, Conricus shared an IDF video that he said demonstrated there were Hamas tunnels under the hospital. He also shared several photos that he said dated back to at least 2010, when the hospital was being constructed. The groundwork for the Hamas tunnels was put in place at that time, he said. ABC News was not immediately able to verify the claims.
In a photo said to be from 2023, rocket-launching sites could be seen along the outskirts of the facility, Conricus said. He presented another photo of what he said was the opening of a Hamas tunnel on the grounds.
“We know that underneath this entire complex, there’s an entire Hamas infrastructure underground,” Conricus said. “And it is absolutely normal. This is how Hamas operates all around the Gaza Strip.”
-ABC News’ Kevin Shalvey
Nov 06, 3:54 AM EST
Israel strikes 450 sites, takes Hamas compound, IDF says
Israeli forces took control of a Hamas compound in the Gaza Strip, as the military continued its bombardment of the enclave overnight, the Israel Defense Forces said Monday.
The Hamas compound included a web of “underground terror tunnels,” as well as training areas and observation posts, the military said in a post on Telegram. Israel did not disclose the location of the compound. ABC News was not immediately able to verify IDF’s claims.
“During the operation, several Hamas terrorists were killed,” Israel said.
Israeli munitions struck “in the last day” at least 450 other sites throughout Gaza, “including tunnels, terrorists, military compounds, observation posts, anti-tank missile launch posts and more,” IDF officials said.
“Moreover, IDF naval soldiers struck command centers, anti-tank launch posts and additional observation posts belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization,” IDF officials said in the post.
-ABC News’ Kevin Shalvey
Nov 05, 7:17 PM EST
Jordan says it air-dropped aid into Gaza
King Abdullah II of Jordan says his country dropped aid by parachute into northern Gaza at midnight.
“Our fearless air force personnel air-dropped at midnight urgent medical aid to the Jordanian field hospital in Gaza,” read a post on X (formerly Twitter). “This is our duty to aid our brothers and sisters injured in the war on Gaza. We will always be there for our Palestinian brethren.”
The king posted two photos of a crate with the flag of Jordan on it being loaded onto an airplane.
Nov 04, 5:49 PM EDT
Biden says progress is being made on a humanitarian pause
President Joe Biden on Saturday said progress was being made on a humanitarian pause — something his administration has pushed for to get hostages out and aid into Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Answering a shouted question on if progress was being made, Biden gave a thumbs up and said, “Yes,” as he was departing church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed U.S. support for temporary pauses in the Israel-Hamas war during remarks at a summit in Jordan on Saturday. He again rejected the idea of a ceasefire being promoted by many Middle Eastern officials at the summit in Amman.
“It’s our view that a ceasefire now would simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat what it did on Oct. 7. And you don’t have to take my word for it — just a few days ago that a senior Hamas official said it was their intent to do Oct. 7 again and again and again,” Blinken said. “No nation would accept that. None of us would find that tolerable.”
The remarks capped off an afternoon of talks with Egyptian, Jordanian, Saudi, Qatari and Emirati diplomats and a senior Palestinian official.
Despite the divide, Blinken thanked the other officials for their partnership.
“We appreciate the engagement of every country, and we’re particularly grateful to Jordan and to Egypt,” said Blinken, noting that both countries have “long worked toward a two-state solution,” which he later called “the sole viable solution” to the overarching conflict.
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow and Shannon K. Crawford
Nov 04, 5:03 PM EDT
Hamas’ military arm claims 60 hostages killed in bombings
Hamas’ military arm, al-Qassam Brigades, claimed Saturday that 60 Israeli hostages have been killed in the Israel Defense Forces’ bombing of Gaza since Oct. 7.
It further claimed that 23 of the hostages’ bodies are missing in the rubble from the airstrikes.
Hamas is believed to be holding 241 captives, according to Israeli officials.
Nov 04, 10:48 AM EDT
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, is in its 29th day.
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Oct. 7, according to Israeli authorities. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 9,488 people have been killed — including 3,900 children and 3,509 women — and 24,158 have been injured, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel’s call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself — a right the United States endorses.
Nov 04, 10:41 AM EDT
Doctors Without Borders says conflict has reached ‘new low’ after ambulance strike
Doctors Without Borders called for a ceasefire Saturday saying the conflict has reached “a new low in an endless stream of unconscionable violence.” The organization, which has been providing medical care to people in Gaza, also condemned world leaders for not calling for a ceasefire.
“The deadly attack outside the gate of Al-Shifa hospital impacting an ambulance is horrendous. This is a lethal attack outside Gaza’s main and busiest hospital, where our staff work daily to provide lifesaving medical care. We have repeatedly called for an immediate and total ceasefire, for the protection of healthcare facilities, as well as medics, patients and people who are taking shelter there,” Doctors Without Borders said in a statement Saturday.
“This is a new low in an endless stream of unconscionable violence. The repeated strikes on hospitals, ambulances, densely populated areas and refugee camps are disgraceful. How many people have to die before world leaders wake up and call for a ceasefire?” Doctors Without Borders said.
This comes as the Palestinian death toll rises to 9,488 — including 3,900 children and 3,509 women — and 24,158 Palestinians were injured, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
One physician described seeing an ambulance hit outside Al-Shifa hospital.
“We were standing inside the hospital gate when the ambulance was directly hit in front of us. There were bloody bodies everywhere. Many were killed immediately, while we rushed others to the operating room for emergency care,” Dr. Obaid, a Doctors Without Borders doctor at Al Shifa hospital, said.
The Israel Defense Forces claimed its aircraft hit an ambulance that it believes was being used by Hamas and called for civilians to move south for safety.
-ABC News’ Cindy Smith and Emma Ogao
Nov 04, 9:47 AM EDT
Turkey withdraws its Israeli ambassador over ‘humanitarian tragedy in Gaza’
Turkey announced it is recalling its ambassador to Israel due to the “humanitarian tragedy in Gaza caused by the continuing attacks by Israel against civilians,” the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Saturday.
“In view of the unfolding humanitarian tragedy in Gaza caused by the continuing attacks by Israel against civilians, and Israel’s refusal of calls for ceasefire and continuous and unhindered flow of humanitarian aid, it was decided to recall our Ambassador in Tel Aviv, H.E. Mr. Şakir Özkan Torunlar, to Ankara for consultations,” according to a statement.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has now added a stop in Ankara, Turkey, during his diplomatic mission to the region.
-ABC News’ Cindy Smith and Davonne Morales
Nov 04, 6:47 AM EDT
Secretary Blinken in Jordan for talks with Middle East foreign ministers
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah on Saturday and will join a meeting of foreign ministers of five Arab countries, also attended by a representative of the Palestinian Authority led by Mahmoud Abbas.
The prime objective of the talks is to ease Gaza’s growing humanitarian crisis, but that mission is complicated by Israel’s insistence there can be no temporary cease-fire until all hostages held by Hamas are released. Israel has also presented the argument that a cease-fire would be in Hamas’s favor.
Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has again called for an immediate cease-fire to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, saying the conditions in Gaza are now “horrific” with food and water needed along with fuel for generators that power hospitals.
The U.N.’s director for Palestinian refugees says that the average Gaza inhabitant is living on two pieces of bread made from flour the UN had stockpiled and that people in southern Gaza have been forced to do all their washing on the beach using seawater as clean water runs out.
Nov 03, 4:15 PM EDT
13 killed from strikes on ambulances at gate of Gaza hospital: Gaza Health Ministry
Thirteen people were killed and 26 were injured from a blast that struck ambulances at the gate of Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital complex, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the group of ambulances were returning to the hospital from a mission to transport injured people to the Gaza-Egypt Rafah border crossing.
The Israel Defense Forces said its aircraft hit an ambulance that it believes was being used by Hamas.
“We have information which demonstrates that Hamas’ method of operation is to transfer terror operatives and weapons in ambulances,” the IDF said.
“A number” of Hamas terrorists were killed in the blast, the IDF said.
The IDF said, “We emphasize that this area is a battle zone. Civilians in the area are repeatedly called upon to evacuate southwards for their own safety.”
Nov 03, 2:13 PM EDT
Over 100 Americans and relatives left Gaza Thursday, more expected Friday
The U.S. Embassy in Cairo helped more than 100 U.S. citizens and family members who left Gaza for Egypt on Thursday, according to the White House. “Another large group of Americans” is expected to leave Gaza on Friday, the White House said.
The U.S. is aware of more Americans and family members who left Gaza on Thursday and didn’t seek out help from the embassy in Cairo, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez
Nov 03, 12:28 PM EDT
Egyptian Red Crescent says it’s about to run out of aid to send to Gaza
Ramy ElNazer, CEO of the Egyptian Red Crescent, warned Friday that the organization is about to run out of its stock of humanitarian aid to send to Gaza.
Nov 03, 12:21 PM EDT
Explosion reported at Gaza City’s biggest hospital
A large explosion has been reported at Al-Shifa hospital, Gaza City’s biggest hospital. An ambulance was apparently on fire following the blast.
A spokesman for the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said, “We informed the Red Cross in accordance with international law that the convoy of wounded was moving via ambulances from Al-Shifa Hospital, but the occupation targeted the convoy in more than one location: in front of the hospital door, at the Ansar roundabout, and on Al-Rashid (Al-Bahr) Street leading to the south of the Gaza Strip.”
Nov 03, 11:12 AM EDT
35 Americans killed in Oct. 7 attack in Israel: Blinken
Thirty-five Americans were killed in the Oct. 7 attack in Israel, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a Friday news conference after meeting with Israeli leaders. The American death toll previously stood at 32.
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Nov 03, 10:24 AM EDT
Blinken discusses ‘humanitarian pauses’ during meetings in Israel
At Friday’s news conference in Israel, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said among the goals for his meetings are upping aid deliveries to Gaza, continuing to move American nationals out of Gaza and freeing hostages.
He said these goals would all be “facilitated by humanitarian pauses.”
“That was an important area of discussion today with Israeli leaders — how, when and where these can be implemented, what work needs to happen, and what understandings must be reached,” he said.
Mick Mulroy: ‘Anything to facilitate civilians getting out of Gaza needs to happen’
Blinken acknowledged these pauses would not be easy to pull off.
“A number of legitimate questions were raised in our discussions today, including how to use any period of pause to maximize the flow of humanitarian assistance, how to connect a pause to the release of hostages, how to ensure that Hamas doesn’t use these pauses or arrangements to its own advantage,” he said. “These are issues that we need to tackle urgently and we believe they can be solved.”
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Nov 03, 9:40 AM EDT
Blinken recounts graphic video of Israeli dad, sons targeted at kibbutz
Israel has an obligation to self-defense, as no country should tolerate the “slaughter of innocence,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a Friday news conference in Israel after meeting with Israeli leaders.
Blinken said during his Friday meetings with Israeli leaders he viewed more footage from Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, describing the videos as “almost beyond the human capacity to process.”
In one video, he said, a father at a kibbutz grabbed his two sons, who appeared about 10 or 11 years old, and pulled them from the house into a shelter.
The family was “followed seconds later by a terrorist who throws a grenade into that small shelter,” Blinken said.
When the dad came stumbling out of the shelter, he was shot, Blinken said.
The sons then ran from the shelter into the house, crying, “Where’s daddy?” he said.
The terrorist then “casually opens the refrigerator and starts to eat from it,” Blinken said.
“It is striking, and in some ways, shocking, that the brutality of the slaughter has receded so quickly in the memories of so many. But not in Israel and not in America,” he said.
Nov 03, 9:24 AM EDT
New Jersey woman who fled Gaza says Gazans ‘deserve life’
American Maha Elbanna woke up in Gaza on Thursday unsure if she’d be able to cross the border into Egypt. She found her name on the approved list and said she had enough fuel in her car for one shot at getting to the border.
Thursday night, from her hotel in Cairo, she told ABC News that she’s been in Gaza for other wars, but this time is different.
“It’s brutal,” she said. “The total number of people killed is too high, too fast. Too many women and children — can’t be justified.”
She said the decision to leave Gaza wasn’t easy.
“I’m leaving everyone I know — my brothers, sisters, nieces, my cousins, my friends, my co-workers,” she said.
But she also has four children in New Jersey. She said she’s grateful she is able to go home to have Thanksgiving with them.
She said she wants people to know that Gazans are human.
“They’re beautiful. They have dreams and hopes and aspirations. We do everything like all other normal people. We eat, we breathe, we play, we dance … we do yoga. we ride our bikes. It’s normal life,” she said. “It’s people who deserve life.”
-ABC News’ Maggie Rulli
Nov 03, 8:13 AM EDT
US flying unarmed drones over Gaza to help with hostage recovery
The U.S. has been flying unarmed MQ-9 Reaper drones above Gaza to assist with hostage recovery efforts, a U.S. official said.
The official would not discuss where the MQ-9 flights are originating for operational security reasons.
-ABC News’ Luis Martinez
Nov 03, 6:30 AM EDT
Blinken and Netanyahu meet again
Secretary Blinken and Prime Minister Netanyahu met earlier this morning behind closed doors and are now meeting with the Israeli War Cabinet, according to the pool producer on the ground.
Photos of the closed meeting were posted to the Netanyahu’s X account.
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now holding a private meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, at the Kirya in Tel Aviv. They will also meet with the members of the War Cabinet,” the Israeli PM tweeted.
Nov 03, 4:12 AM EDT
Secretary Blinken arrives in Israel
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken descended the plane stairs and greeted newly sworn-in Ambassador Jack Lew and the former Chargé d’Affaires, now Deputy Chief of Mission Stephanie Hallett, as he arrived in Tel Aviv on Friday morning.
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Chief of State Protocol Gil Haskel and MFA North Americas Bureau Director Yaron Sideman also welcomed the secretary.
Blinken will meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu, members of the Israeli War Cabinet and President Herzog this morning and will hold a press availability at 8 a.m. ET (2 p.m. local) after the meetings.
Nov 02, 6:42 PM EDT
Hezbollah leader to give speech Friday in Beirut, Lebanon
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to speak publicly Friday to people in Ashura Square in Beirut, Lebanon.
The speech is expected to start 3 p.m. local time
Nasrallah will likely appear to the crowd in Beirut via a screen and not in person. He has not appeared in person on the street since 2006.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman, Marcus Moore and Bruno Roeber
Nov 02, 6:15 PM EDT
Ceasefire would allow Hamas to regroup: Pentagon spokesperson
Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder reiterated the administration’s calls for a humanitarian pause over a ceasefire.
We do not support a ceasefire, in that gives time for Hamas to regroup which is something that again, would put Israeli citizens and others in danger,” he said. “You have heard however, the president say that the U.S. government does support humanitarian pauses to enable humanitarian aid to get in, for hostages to get out as well as other citizens.”
“So in the [Defense] Secretary’s discussion with his counterparts, ensuring that innocent civilians in Gaza are able to get humanitarian assistance, whether that be water fuel, medical aid … that continues to be something that we continue to emphasize regularly,” Ryder added.
Ryder added that the U.S. continues to speak to Israel about the importance of safeguarding civilian lives in its operations in Gaza, which includes the principle of proportionality, while acknowledging that Israel has a right to self-defense and is dealing with an existential threat.
-ABC News’ Luis Martinez
Nov 02, 3:31 PM EDT
IDF says its ‘encirclement of the city of Gaza has been completed’
The Israeli military’s “encirclement of the city of Gaza has been completed,” according to Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari.
Israeli soldiers are now “attacking positions, command centers, firing posts, firing infrastructure and eliminating terrorists in face-to-face combat,” he said Thursday.
Nov 02, 3:24 PM EDT
Kirby suggests ‘pause’ allowed 2 American hostages out, US looking to secure more ‘pauses’
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby on Thursday suggested that Israel agreed to a temporary pause in order for the two American hostages to be safely freed last month and said the U.S. would be working toward securing more pauses.
“The president already worked on one such pause when we were able to get those two Americans out. And that’s, that’s what we’re kind of looking at,” Kirby added. “When we’re talking about humanitarian pause, what we’re talking about are temporary, localized pauses in the fighting to meet a certain goal or goals — as I said, get aid in, get people out.”
He said the administration is exploring “as many pauses as might be necessary to continue to get aid out, and to continue to work to get people out safely, including hostages.”
Israeli officials said there are 242 hostages in Gaza.
Kirby stressed that the administration isn’t “advocating for a general cease-fire at this point.”
“We believe that a general cease-fire would benefit Hamas in providing them breathing space and time to continue to plot and execute attacks on the Israeli people,” he said.
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow
Nov 02, 2:54 PM EDT
Blinken says minimizing harm to Palestinians ‘very much on the agenda’ for Israel meetings
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is en route to Israel and Jordan, said this trip he’s focused on de-escalation and the plight of the Palestinians.
“We will be talking about concrete steps that can and should be taken to minimize harm to men, women and children in Gaza,” Blinken said.
“When I see a Palestinian child, a boy or a girl, pulled from the rubble of a collapsed building — that hits me in the gut as much as seeing a child in Israel or anywhere else. So this is something we have an obligation to respond to, and we will,” he said.
The secretary identified three key goals for his trip.
“First, to talk to the Israeli government about the ongoing campaign against the Hamas terrorist organization,” Blinken said. “Israel has not only the right but the obligation to defend itself, and also to take steps to try to make sure that this never happens again. … We’ve also said very clearly and repeatedly that how Israel does this matters. We will focus as well on steps that need to be taken to protect civilians who are in a crossfire of the Hamas’ making, and we want to look at concrete steps that can be taken to better protect them.”
Blinken said his second objective is getting humanitarian aid into Gaza and getting people who want to leave out of Gaza.
Blinken said his third goal is to try to set the groundwork for a resolution to the conflict.
The secretary added that the administration is still “intensely focused” on the hostages in Gaza and “taking every possible step that we can in concert with others to secure their release.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Nov 02, 1:39 PM EDT
Total of 300 aid trucks have crossed into Gaza
Forty-five aid trucks crossed from Egypt into Gaza through the Rafah border crossing on Thursday as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, the Palestinian spokesman for the border crossing, Wael Abu Omar, told ABC News.
A total of 300 trucks have now crossed from Egypt into Gaza since Oct. 21.
Nov 02, 1:35 PM EDT
677 foreign passport holders have crossed into Egypt: Border spokesman
At least 342 foreign passport holders crossed from Gaza into Egypt via the Rafah border crossing on Thursday, according to Wael Abu Omar, the Palestinian spokesman for the border crossing.
A total of 677 foreign passport holders have crossed into Egypt from Gaza since Wednesday, he said.
Another 97 injured Palestinians have crossed into Egypt. Overall, 118 Palestinians have crossed into Egypt from Gaza, he said.
Nov 02, 1:27 PM EDT
74 Americans, family members have left Gaza: White House
Seventy-four U.S. citizens and family members have crossed from Gaza into Egypt, a senior Biden administration official said, adding that the numbers are fluid and changing in real time.
President Joe Biden said at the White House Thursday, “We got out today 74 American folks, out that are dual citizens, and coming home.”
Nov 02, 1:16 PM EDT
70 UNRWA staff killed
Seventy employees from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East have been killed since Oct. 7, the highest number of U.N. aid workers to die in a conflict in such a short time, the agency said.
Nov 02, 12:40 PM EDT
Israeli troops in Gaza City
Israeli troops are operating in Gaza City and are “encircling it from several directions,” said chief of the Israeli General Staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.
Israeli forces are now also “engaged in a ground operation in the northern Gaza Strip,” Halevi said.
Halevi said less than half of the total strength of the Israeli Air Force is operating in the Gaza Strip.
“Most of the force is prepared and ready, with bombs on the wings and people who are ready to be scrambled at any moment to the planes, to go out and strike in other arenas as soon as required,” he said.
ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Nov 02, 11:20 AM EDT
200 foreign passport holders left Gaza: Border spokesman
Two-hundred foreign passport holders have left Gaza on Thursday, crossing into Egypt through the Rafah border crossing, according to Wael Abu Omar, the Palestinian spokesman for the border crossing.
This is in addition to the 335 foreign passport holders who exited Gaza through the crossing Wednesday.
Nov 02, 11:01 AM EDT
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, is in its 27th day.
At least 1,400 people have died, and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Oct. 7, according to Israeli authorities. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 9,061 people have been killed and more than 23,000 have been injured, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel’s call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself — a right the United States endorses.
Nov 02, 9:19 AM EDT
American who escaped Gaza: ‘People are frustrated, they’re desperate’
Barbara Zind, a pediatrician from Colorado who was in Gaza working with the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, said the scene at the Gaza-Egypt border was pure chaos.
“Everyone rushed in and they were pressing the doors,” she told ABC News. “They did have a list up of who was on the list to leave.”
“People are frustrated. They’re desperate. People are angry. There were a couple of fist fights,” she said.
Zind, one of the first five Americans to leave Gaza on Wednesday, said she has survivor’s guilt.
“I just left so I might get a little emotional, but these people are just being slaughtered,” she said. “These are my friends.”
Zind said the bombing was constant.
She said often it was near impossible to contact people outside Gaza. At one point she was in a total communication blackout for 18 hours and unable to tell her husband and son that she was safe.
As conditions worsened, she said at one point they were down to consuming 800 calories per day, with two days left of supplies. She said one man risked his life to drive into Gaza City to get more supplies for everyone to eat for another week.
Zind has made many trips to Gaza to work with children and families there. When asked if she would go back, she said, definitely.
Nov 02, 7:13 AM EDT
Border crossings continue in Rafah for second day
Hundreds of foreign nationals and dual citizens, including about 400 Americans, were eligible to cross from the Gaza Strip into Egypt, local officials said Thursday.
Egyptian authorities published a list of some 600 names of those who would be permitted to leave though the Rafah crossing on the second day it’s been open since Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
In total some 7,000 foreign nationals from about 60 countries were eligible to leave, officials said.
Lena Beseiso, a 57-year-old American from Salt Lake City, Utah, was on the list on Thursday. Beseiso had previously told ABC News she had made the trip to the border twice only to be turned away.
“Our government has the power to demand the Egyptians to open the border. Why do they delay, keeping our lives in danger?” she told ABC News last month.
Nov 01, 5:21 PM EDT
IDF claims they have broken through Hamas’ frontline
The Israel Defense Forces released a statement claiming they broke through “the forward Hamas perimeter [in] the northern Gaza Strip.”
The IDF said it killed the head of Hamas’ anti-tank array in an air strike.
“The array is a deadly and capable anti-tank force and eliminating it will impact Hamas’ future fighting capabilities,” the IDF said in a statement.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Nov 01, 4:53 PM EDT
‘Handful of Americans’ expected to leave Gaza Wednesday: White House
A “handful of Americans” are expected to leave Gaza on Wednesday and enter Egypt through the Rafah border crossing, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
According to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, five American aid workers crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday.
Kirby called the exit of Americans “a significant breakthrough.”
Approximately 400 Americans, as well as 600 of their family members, have been trapped in Gaza, according to the State Department.
“We’ve gotten through a bottleneck,” Kirby said, but the evacuations will “take some time.”
He cautioned that “the situation remains very fluid” and explained the “complicated process” to identify Americans and make sure they have proper documentation and can access an available route to exit safely and efficiently.
President Joe Biden said later Wednesday afternoon, “American citizens were able to exit today as part of the first group of probably over 1,000. We’ll see more of this process going on in the coming days. We’re working nonstop to get Americans out of Gaza, as soon and as safely as possible.”
-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez
Nov 01, 4:01 PM EDT
Blinken to travel to Israel, Jordan
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel and Jordan on Friday, State Department spokesperson Matt Miller announced.
Blinken will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to get an update on their military plans.
While meeting with the Israelis, Blinken “will reiterate U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself in accordance with international humanitarian law and discuss the need to take all precautions to minimize civilian casualties, as well as our work to deliver humanitarian assistance,” Miller said.
In Jordan, Blinken will “underscore the importance of protecting civilian lives and our shared commitment to facilitating the sustained delivery of life saving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza, the resumption of essential services, and ensuring that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza,” Miller said.
“He will also reaffirm the U.S. commitment to working with partners to set the conditions for a durable and sustainable peace in the Middle East to include the establishment of a Palestinian state that reflects the aspirations of the Palestinian people in Gaza and in the West Bank,” Miller continued. “And of course, he will discuss the ongoing work to secure the release of all hostages.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Nov 01, 3:15 PM EDT
22 Doctors Without Borders staff cross from Gaza into Egypt
Doctors Without Borders said 22 of its staff members — all foreign nationals — crossed into Egypt from Gaza via the Rafah crossing on Wednesday.
A new team of workers “is ready to enter Gaza as soon as the situation allows,” Doctors Without Borders said. “Meanwhile, many of our Palestinian colleagues continue to work and provide lifesaving care in hospitals and across the Gaza Strip, while the most basic protections for hospitals and medical personnel are not guaranteed.”
“We reiterate our call for an immediate cease-fire,” the organization said. “Critically needed humanitarian supplies and staff must be allowed into Gaza where hospitals are overwhelmed and the healthcare system is facing total collapse.”
Nov 01, 3:06 PM EDT
‘Handful of Americans’ expected to leave Gaza Wednesday: White House
A “handful of Americans” are expected to leave Gaza on Wednesday and enter Egypt through the Rafah border crossing, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
According to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, five American aid workers crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday.
Kirby called the exit of Americans “a significant breakthrough.”
Approximately 400 Americans, as well as 600 of their family members, have been trapped in Gaza, according to the State Department.
“We’ve gotten through a bottleneck,” Kirby said, but the evacuations will “take some time.”
He cautioned that “the situation remains very fluid” and explained the “complicated process” to identify Americans and make sure they have proper documentation and can access an available route to exit safely and efficiently.
-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez
Nov 01, 2:35 PM EDT
2nd airstrike on Jabalia refugee camp, Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says
Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp, the most populous refugee camp in the region, was hit by a second airstrike on Wednesday, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed that on Wednesday, “based on precise intelligence, IDF fighter jets struck a Hamas command and control complex” in Jabalia, and that Hamas fighters were killed in the strike.
“Hamas deliberately builds its terror infrastructure under, around and within civilian buildings, intentionally endangering Gazan civilians,” the IDF said. “The IDF has been urging Gazans in this neighborhood to evacuate as part of its efforts to mitigate harm to civilians. The IDF continues to call on all residents of northern Gaza and Gaza City to evacuate southwards to a safer area.”
The IDF also took responsibility for the first strike on Tuesday, saying the blast killed a Hamas official who the IDF claimed was one of the leaders of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
Nov 01, 2:20 PM EDT
76 patients, 335 foreign passport holders cross from Gaza into Egypt
Seventy-six injured Gazan residents have crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday, hours after the Rafah border crossing opened for the first time since the Israel-Hamas conflict began on Oct. 7, according to Palestinian Rafah Crossing spokesman Wael Abu Omar.
The World Health Organization said it’s working with officials in Egypt to help establish “a comprehensive triage, stabilization, and medical evacuation system” and “ensure that psychological trauma support services are available to patients.”
At least 335 foreign passport holders — including dual nationals and foreigners — also crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday, he said.
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, 51 aid trucks crossed the border Wednesday to head into Gaza, he said. A total of 268 aid trucks have now entered Gaza.
Nov 01, 1:31 PM EDT
More Americans expected to leave Gaza, Biden says
President Joe Biden posted on social media on Wednesday confirming that the U.S. “secured safe passage for wounded Palestinians and for foreign nationals to exit Gaza.”
“We expect American citizens to exit today, and we expect to see more depart over the coming days,” Biden wrote.
Five American aid workers are among the foreign nationals who crossed the Rafah border from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday, according to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund.
A Rafah crossing spokesman said at least 335 foreign passport holders — including dual nationals and foreigners — have crossed from Gaza into Egypt.
Nov 01, 12:24 PM EDT
76 patients, 335 foreign passport holders cross from Gaza into Egypt
Seventy-six injured Gazan residents have crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday, hours after the Rafah border crossing opened for the first time since the Israel-Hamas conflict began on Oct. 7, according to Palestinian Rafah Crossing spokesman Wael Abu Omar.
At least 335 foreign passport holders — including dual nationals and foreigners — also crossed from Gaza into Egypt on Wednesday, he said.
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, 51 aid trucks crossed the border Wednesday to head into Gaza, he said. A total of 268 aid trucks have now entered Gaza.
Nov 01, 11:10 AM EDT
5 American aid workers cross from Gaza into Egypt
Five American aid workers have crossed the Rafah border from Gaza into Egypt, according to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund. They work for the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, Catholic Relief Services and Doctors Without Borders.
Nov 01, 11:06 AM EDT
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, is in its 26th day.
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Oct. 7, according to Israeli authorities. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 8,796 have been killed and another 22,219 have been injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel’s call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself — a right the United States endorses.
Nov 01, 9:48 AM EDT
Rafah border crossing opens, allowing foreign nationals to exit Gaza
The border crossing between Gaza and Egypt opened on Wednesday, allowing some foreign nationals and injured Gaza residents to exit the enclave for the first time since the Israel-Hamas conflict began on Oct. 7.
Seventeen ambulances, each transporting one injured Gazan, have crossed the border into Egypt, ABC News has confirmed.
The Rafah border crossing, which is controlled by Egypt, was expected to allow about 500 foreign passport holders to exit, according to the Gaza Borders and Crossings Authority, which released a list of names of those who would be allowed across.
At least 110 dual nationals have crossed the Rafah border into Egypt, ABC News confirmed.
Five American aid workers are among those at Rafah waiting to cross into Egypt, according to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund.
Nov 01, 9:02 AM EDT
Ground fighting between IDF, Hamas near Jabalia
The Israel Defense Forces said Israeli soldiers and Hamas militants fought overnight near Jabalia in northern Gaza. This comes as the IDF said it’s “significantly” deepening its ground operations.
The IDF said it’s hit more than 11,000 targets in Gaza since Oct. 7.
Nov 01, 8:49 AM EDT
Eleven Israeli soldiers killed in ground fighting Tuesday
The Israel Defense Forces said 11 of its soldiers were killed in ground fighting in Gaza on Tuesday.
The total number of Israeli soldiers killed now stands at 326, according to the IDF.
Nov 01, 5:43 AM EDT
Rafah border crossing opens, allowing foreign nationals to exit Gaza
The border crossing between Gaza and Egypt opened on Wednesday, allowing some foreign nationals and injured Gaza residents to exit the enclave for the first time since the Israel-Hamas conflict began on Oct. 7.
The Rafah border crossing, which is controlled by Egypt, was expected to allow about 500 foreign passport holders to exit, according to the Gaza Borders and Crossings Authority, which released a list of names of those who would be allowed across.
At least five Americans working for nongovernmental agencies were included on the list. Passport holders from an additional 13 countries were also listed.
Another 81 Gaza residents with serious injuries were to be given priority in crossing into Egypt, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.
Ambulances on Wednesday had been lined up at the crossing, waiting to exit.
Nov 01, 12:31 AM EDT
Phone, internet down in Gaza again, Palestinian communications companies say
Phone and internet service in Gaza is down once again, the Paltel communications company claimed early Wednesday morning.
“We regret to announce a complete interruption of all communications and Internet services with the Gaza Strip, due to international routes that were previously reconnected being cut off again,” Paltel said.
Jawwal, a cellular communications company, also claimed a loss of service.
Internet and phone service in Gaza was inaccessible last Friday for more than 24 hours.
Oct 31, 9:57 PM EDT
Biden and Abdullah committed to facilitating ‘life-saving’ humanitarian aid for Gaza
President Joe Biden spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah, the White House said on Tuesday.
The leaders discussed the latest developments in Gaza and stated their commitment to “facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza and the resumption of essential services,” according to a press release from the White House.
The president reiterated the importance of “protecting civilian lives and respecting international humanitarian law, as Israel defends its citizens and combats terrorism,” according to the White House.
The president and King Abdullah also agreed it’s a critical need to ensure “Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza,” while also discussing ways to reduce regional tensions.
Oct 31, 6:00 PM EDT
52 Palestinians killed in refugee camp strike, Gaza Health Ministry says
The Gaza Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, put out a statement claiming that 52 Palestinians were killed in the Israel Defense Forces strike on the Jabalia refugee camp earlier Tuesday.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman, Nasser Atta and Samy Zayara
Oct 31, 4:24 PM EDT
Israeli forces ‘fighting deep inside the Gaza Strip’: IDF
The Israeli military is “fighting deep inside the Gaza Strip,” killing “terrorists in close range combat” and “conducting coordinated strikes on terror targets from land, air and sea,” the Israel Defense Forces said Tuesday.
The IDF said it has “eliminated many terrorists and destroyed terror infrastructure.”
On Tuesday, Israeli soldiers killed terror leader Ibrahim Biari, the IDF said.
“Striking Biari caused the collapse of adjacent buildings because of the expansive infrastructure there whose purpose was to launch terror attacks against our forces,” the IDF said. “During the battle, the entire infrastructure collapsed and many terrorists were killed.”
“The Hamas terrorists continue to use civilian population as protective armor. This is intentional and devastatingly barbaric,” the IDF continued. “Once again, today, we call on the citizens of Northern Gaza to move Southward. … We will act forcefully in the city of Gaza and in the Northern Gaza Strip. We will continue to act against any terrorist in every part of the Gaza Strip.”
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
Oct 31, 4:16 PM EDT
State Department says ‘good progress’ made toward securing exit for Americans in Gaza
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller signaled Tuesday that the U.S. might be close to securing safe passage for the approximately 400 Americans and 600 of their immediate family members trapped in Gaza, saying negotiators “have made good progress on this.”
“We are making very good progress on this issue. You may have seen some reports that have moved from the region just in the last few hours about the possibility of Rafah gate opening tomorrow,” Miller said. “I’m not in the position to make any announcements as I stand here right now, but I would say that we would welcome any agreement that would permit the safe exit of American citizens, families, other foreign nationals.”
The Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza is expected to open Wednesday to receive injured Palestinians from Gaza, according to Egypt state-linked TV channels.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 31, 4:09 PM EDT
Rafah border crossing to open Wednesday to ‘receive injured Palestinians’: Egypt state-linked TV
The Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza will open Wednesday to receive injured Palestinians from Gaza, according to Egypt state-linked TV channels.
The Palestinian interior ministry’s border authority said it has been informed by Egyptian authorities that 81 critically injured Palestinians will be allowed entry from Gaza Wednesday to receive treatment at Egyptian hospitals.
More than 21,000 people have been injured in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
Oct 31, 4:03 PM EDT
White House: ‘It’s obvious to us’ that Israel is ‘trying to minimize’ civilian casualties in Gaza
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby would not discuss the Israeli strike that hit Gaza’s Jabaliya refugee camp on Tuesday, but he did say broadly that the U.S. believes Israel is “trying to minimize” civilian casualties in Gaza.
“It’s obvious to us that they are, that they are trying to minimize,” Kirby said.
He said that assessment is based on the “daily conversation we are having with our counterparts about their goals, the strategies, and their plans.”
“We’re not going to react to every event in real time, but will certainly recognize that civilians have been hurt, civilians have been killed, to the tune of many thousands, that infrastructure has been damaged by these airstrikes,” Kirby said. “We’re not accepting of any single civilian death in Gaza. They’re all tragedies. And we continue to work … with the Israelis about the need to respect human life and to try to limit civilian casualties.”
Following repeated warnings from President Joe Biden and his administration for Israel to follow the “rules of war,” ABC News asked Kirby if a strike like this on a refugee camp would mean they violated that, but Kirby would not speculate on the explosion, saying he had no information on what occurred.
The Israeli Defense Forces has taken responsibility for the strike at the Jabaliya refugee camp, which is one of the most densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip. The IDF said the blast killed a Hamas official and claimed the official was one of the leaders of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez
Oct 31, 2:42 PM EDT
Austin: Iran had ‘big part’ in Hamas attack
At Tuesday’s hearing before the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was asked several times about Iran’s role in Hamas’ Oct. 7 ambush on Israel.
Austin said that while Iran helped enable the attack, he has not seen evidence that Tehran played a direct role.
But Austin added that Iran has “funded, resourced, enabled, trained Hamas operatives,” which “means that they have a big part in this.”
-ABC News’ Matt Seyler
Oct 31, 2:38 PM EDT
66 aid trucks arrived in Gaza in last 24 hours
Another 66 aid trucks with food, water and medicine arrived in Gaza over the last 24 hours — the “highest single-day delivery so far” — and “dozens of more trucks are expected to clear today,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday.
But “it’s a trickle compared to what needs to get in,” Kirby said, “and we’re gonna keep working that, very, very hard.”
Kirby said the U.S. is continuing to push for safe passage for civilians in Gaza and the resumption of essential services, including water and fuel.
Kirby also said President Joe Biden is set to speak with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Tuesday “to discuss further cooperation with Arab partners to address the worsening humanitarian situation.”
-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez
Oct 31, 2:19 PM EDT
IDF confirms strike on Jabaliya refugee camp in Gaza
A massive blast has been reported at the Jabaliya refugee camp in Gaza, which is one of the most densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip.
The Hamas-run Gaza Interior Ministry claims Israeli aircraft dropped six bombs on the residential area.
The Israeli Defense Forces took responsibility for the strike, saying the blast killed a Hamas official who the IDF claimed was one of the leaders of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The “elimination [of Hamas commander Ibrahim Biari] was carried out as part of a wide-scale strike on terrorists and terror infrastructure belonging to the Central Jabaliya Battalion, which had taken control over civilian buildings in Gaza City,” the IDF said. “The strike damaged Hamas’ command and control in the area, as well as its ability to direct military activity against IDF soldiers operating throughout the Gaza Strip.”
The IDF did not acknowledge the civilian deaths and casualties but repeated the warning that residents of Gaza should move south for safety.
Oct 31, 1:46 PM EDT
UN secretary-general: ‘I condemn the killing of civilians’
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement Tuesday that he’s “deeply alarmed by the intensification of the conflict between Israel and Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Gaza,” including the Israeli military’s expansion of ground operations in Gaza and continued airstrikes on Gaza.
He reiterated his call for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, for more humanitarian assistance allowed into Gaza and for the release of the hostages held by Hamas.
He also condemned both Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the killing of civilians in Gaza.
“International humanitarian law establishes clear rules that cannot be ignored. It is not an a la carte menu and cannot be applied selectively. All parties must abide by it, including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution,” Guterres said. “With too many Israeli and Palestinian lives already lost, this escalation only increases the immense suffering of civilians.”
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
Oct 31, 1:29 PM EDT
60 aid trucks crossed Rafah border Tuesday
Sixty aid trucks crossed through the Egypt-Gaza Rafah border crossing on Tuesday, two Egyptian security sources told ABC News. The trucks are headed to Nitzana, Israel, for inspection before the aid can be distributed in Gaza.
A total of 144 aid trucks have entered Gaza as the humanitarian crisis worsens, according to the Palestinian and Egyptian Red Crescent.
Oct 31, 11:19 AM EDT
400 US citizens want to get out of Gaza, Blinken says
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that about 400 American citizens and their family members, which totals about 1,000 people, “are stuck in Gaza and want to get out.”
Blinken said Hamas is the only hurdle blocking the exit of Americans and their families.
“The impediment is simple — it’s Hamas. We’ve not yet found a way to get them out by whatever, through whatever place, and by whatever means that Hamas is not blocking, but we’re working that with intermediaries,” Blinken said.
“We’ve been in close communication as best we can with Americans who are stuck in Gaza,” he said. “We’ve had about 5,500 communications that we’ve initiated — phone calls, emails, WhatsApp — to be in touch with them to try to guide them as best we can, and to work for their ability to leave.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 31, 11:03 AM EDT
Rising antisemitism since Hamas attack part of ‘preexisting’ trend, DHS chief says
A rise in antisemitism since Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel is part of a “preexisting increase … in the United States and around the world,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told a Senate committee on Tuesday.
“Hamas terrorists horrifically attacked thousands of innocent men, women and children in Israel on Oct. 7, brutally murdering, wounding, and taking hostages of all ages,” Mayorkas said. “In the days and weeks since, we have responded to an increase in threats against Jewish, Muslim and Arab-American communities and institutions across our country.”
-ABC News’ Luke Barr
Oct 31, 7:42 AM EDT
Israeli bulldozers, tanks continue push into Gaza
The Israeli military has continued its “expanded ground operation” into Gaza, with bulldozers clearing paths and troops appearing to take up positions.
Military officials released video appearing to show tanks and bulldozers pushing through the rubble of destroyed buildings.
The footage, which could not be independently verified, also appeared to show ground troops patrolling in the dark.
Oct 31, 6:21 AM EDT
Hamas compounds included in strikes on about 300 Gaza targets, IDF says
The Israeli military struck about 300 targets, including Hamas compounds, during the last day, the Israel Defense Forces officials said Tuesday.
“Numerous Hamas terrorists have been eliminated,” IDF said. “The IAF struck terrorist targets and infrastructure.”
The strikes hit Hamas compounds inside underground tunnels, as well as posts for launching anti-tank missiles and rockets, IDF said.
Israel shared a short video on social media appearing to show explosions at sites throughout Gaza.
The military also said it had hit “Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure including weapons, posts and sites in Lebanon.” The video and claims could not be independently verified.
Oct 31, 12:03 AM EDT
18-year-old Chicagoan taken by Hamas returns home following release
Natalie Raanan, one of two American women released by Hamas on Oct. 20, has returned home to Chicago, the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest announced Monday.
“I am relieved to see Natalie back home in Chicago. Her family members have been anxiously waiting for her return, and today I am sharing their happiness,” Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, Yinam Cohen, said in a statement.
“While we’re celebrating Natalie’s return, we remember the 239 hostages, among them babies, children, women, and the elderly, who are still held by Hamas in Gaza. This week, family members of those still held hostage by Hamas will be in Chicago to share their stories and call for their immediate release,” Cohen’s statement continued.
Raanan, 18, and her mother, Judith Tai Raanan, 59, were kidnapped by Hamas during the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel. They were held for nearly two weeks before they were released. Two Israeli women were released last week. More than 200 people are still being held hostage by Hamas.
Oct 30, 5:31 PM EDT
Half of Gaza population pushed south in 3 weeks: UNRWA
One million people were pushed from the north of the Gaza Strip towards the south in the last three weeks, according to Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
This represents half of the population of Gaza, according to Lazzarini.
“I have said many times, and I will say it again, no place is safe in Gaza,” he said during a briefing Monday.
Over 670,000 displaced people are currently in overcrowded UNRWA schools and buildings, according to Lazzarini.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Oct 30, 4:17 PM EDT
Last planned US charter flight to leave Tel Aviv Tuesday
The last planned U.S. charter flight out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport is set for Tuesday, according to the State Department.
“Commercial availability remains limited out of Ben Gurion Airport,” the State Department said. “Please go to Ben Gurion International Airport, Terminal 3 if you wish to depart Israel. U.S. Embassy personnel will be present to direct you and provide specific flight information. Be prepared to wait.”
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said the chartered flights are ending because there’s no longer enough American passengers to fill them.
“It is purely a demand issue. We had a charter flight yesterday that had five people on it,” he said Monday. “We’ve consistently seen the demand for our charter flights go down to where we had a lot of flights going out with 50% capability. I think the number of seats that we have offered, we have had something like 25% of that actually be filled.”
“We have notified everyone that the charter flight tomorrow is the last one that we are currently planning, so if they do want to leave, now’s the time to do it,” he continued. “But we will always conduct assessments in real time about whether there’s additional demand, whether circumstances change on the ground, and if we need to make additional arrangements, we will of course be open to doing so.”
Oct 30, 4:16 PM EDT
Hamas making ‘number of demands’ for foreign nationals in Gaza: State Department
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said Hamas was making “a number of demands” for opening the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza to foreign nationals, including the 500 to 600 Americans who are trapped in Gaza.
“Hamas is making a number of demands before they’ll allow people to leave Gaza. I’m not going to speak to those demands, but it’s something we’re continuing to try to work through,” he said.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 30, 4:09 PM EDT
US making ‘significant progress’ on getting fuel into Gaza: State Department
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller claimed Monday that the U.S. was making “significant progress” on getting fuel into Gaza via a “reliable delivery mechanism” that would assuage Israel’s fear that it could be intercepted by Hamas.
“Fuel is essential to the delivery of humanitarian assistance, the desalinization of water and the provision of medical care and we want to see it provided for those purposes as soon as possible,” Miller said. “I should note that even as we work to provide fuel for these essential humanitarian services, Hamas continues to maintain extensive fuel reserves. Rather than provide that fuel to hospitals or aid workers or for other civilian needs, however, it continues to hoard it for the benefit of its fighters and to carry out its terrorist attacks against Israel.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 30, 4:03 PM EDT
26 more aid trucks entered Gaza Monday
Twenty-six more aid trucks entered Gaza through the Egypt-Gaza Rafah border crossing on Monday, Egyptian state TV reported.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has worsened by the day, with residents trapped without food, water, electricity and internet as Israeli strikes continue.
A total of 150 trucks have entered Gaza, according to State Department spokesperson Matt Miller.
“We aim to surpass that number today, tomorrow and beyond,” Miller said Monday.
Oct 30, 3:21 PM EDT
Netanyahu says no plans to resign, Israel will fight on
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Monday that Israel will keep fighting despite international criticism, and said he has no plans to resign.
Netanyahu said Israel will not agree to a cease-fire, saying doing so would mean surrendering to Hamas.
Netanyahu implored the international community to back Israel, framing the war as a fight for civilization itself.
He said Hamas will continue to use civilians as human shields as long as the international community keeps blaming Israel for their deaths.
-ABC News’ Matt Rivers
Oct 30, 2:22 PM EDT
Last planned US charter flight to leave Tel Aviv Tuesday
The last planned U.S. charter flight out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport is set for Tuesday, according to the State Department.
“Commercial availability remains limited out of Ben Gurion Airport,” the State Department said. “Please go to Ben Gurion International Airport, Terminal 3 if you wish to depart Israel. U.S. Embassy personnel will be present to direct you and provide specific flight information. Be prepared to wait.”
Oct 30, 1:43 PM EDT
63 UNRWA staff members killed
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees said 63 of its staff members have been killed and at least 22 staffers have been injured since Oct. 7.
Ten have been killed in the last 72 hours.
Oct 30, 1:22 PM EDT
What we know about the conflict
The war, which has now moved into its second stage, according to Israel, is in its 24th day.
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Oct. 7, according to Israeli authorities. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, at least 8,306 people have been killed and 21,048 have been injured, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel’s call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself — a right the United States endorses.
Oct 30, 12:55 PM EDT
26 more aid trucks entered Gaza Monday
Twenty-six more aid trucks entered Gaza through the Egypt-Gaza Rafah border crossing on Monday, Egyptian state TV reported.
More humanitarian aid arrives in Gaza
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has worsened by the day, with residents trapped without food, water, electricity and internet as Israeli strikes continue.
A total of 144 aid trucks have entered Gaza since Oct. 21.
Pvt. Ori Megidish, a female Israeli soldier who was kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, was released during the Israeli military’s ground operations overnight, the Israel Defense Forces said Monday.
“The soldier was medically checked, is doing well, and has met with her family,” the IDF said.
Oct 30, 12:36 PM EDT
Death of German-Israeli woman kidnapped by Hamas confirmed by Israeli, German governments
The death of Shani Luk, a 23-year-old German-Israeli woman who was kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, was confirmed by both the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the German government on Monday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on social media, “The news of Shani Louk’s death is terrible.”
“This shows the full barbarity behind the Hamas attack – who must be held accountable.” Scholz said. “This is terror, and Israel has the right to defend itself.”
Oct 30, 12:14 PM EDT
Hamas releases new hostage video
Hamas has released a new video that claims to show three female hostages. One of the hostages speaks in Hebrew pleading for their release, blaming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack and calling on Netanyahu to help free the hostages.
The group that represents the hostage families confirms the names of the three women in the video as Rimon Buchshtab Kirsht, 36; Danielle Aloni, 44; and Yelena (Lena) Trupanob, 50.
Netanyahu’s office in a statement called the video “cruel psychological propaganda by Hamas-ISIS.”
“We embrace the families and are doing everything to return all of the captives and missing to their families,” Netanyahu’s office said.
According to the Israeli military, 230 people were taken hostage by Hamas.
Oct 30, 10:56 AM EDT
4 prominent Hamas operatives killed, IDF says
The Israel Defense Forces said four prominent Hamas operatives, including a commander of Hamas’ naval forces, have been killed in the last few hours.
This comes after the IDF says it “expanded” its ground operations in Gaza overnight.
Oct 30, 10:47 AM EDT
What we know about the conflict
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Oct. 7, according to Israeli authorities. In the neighboring Gaza Strip, more than 8,000 people have been killed and 21,400 have been injured, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
Aid workers and officials fear that Israel’s call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.
Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself — a right the United States endorses.
Oct 30, 10:56 AM EDT
4 prominent Hamas operatives killed, IDF says
The Israel Defense Forces said four prominent Hamas operatives, including a commander of Hamas’ naval forces, have been killed in the last few hours.
This comes after the IDF says it “expanded” its ground operations in Gaza overnight.
Oct 30, 10:37 AM EDT
Israeli tanks apparently reach main highway of Gaza Strip
Israeli military tanks apparently reached the main highway of the Gaza Strip on Monday morning, pushing deep into the eastern part of the territory, according to statements from Hamas officials as well as reports from Palestinian journalists.
The Hamas government media office said in a statement that “a few” Israeli tanks targeted civilian cars on the outskirts of Gaza City during an incursion along Salah al-Din Road, which connects the north to the south. Israeli troops then used a bulldozer to cut the street before Hamas militants “forced them to retreat,” according to the office.
“There is currently no presence of occupation army vehicles on Salah al-Din Road, and citizen movement has returned to normal on it,” the office added.
Izzat Al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’ political bureau, also released a statement about the alleged incident on Salah al-Din Road, saying an Israeli tank had “positioned itself for 15 minutes” on the highway and “bombed a civilian car that was returning from the south of the Gaza Strip to its north.”
“The car, crowded with a civilian family, tried to return, but the tank bombarded it with a shell,” Al-Rishq said in a statement. “The Al-Qassam and Resistance Brigades engaged in violent clashes with the tanks, which penetrated all the way to Salah al-Din Road and hit at least one tank directly. The tanks turned back and they realized that the area in front of them was a minefield.”
Video filmed by a Palestinian journalist purportedly shows an Israeli tank striking a car that was attempting to turn around and drive away on Salah al-Din Road on the outskirts of Gaza City.
Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told reporters during a press briefing on Monday morning that he can’t comment on the location and movement of troops in Gaza.
ABC News’ Nasser Atta, Bruno Nota and Morgan Winsor
Oct 30, 9:16 AM EDT
In Gaza, ‘day and night is hell’
Younes Elhallaq, a 24-year-old student at the Islamic University of Gaza, is among about 30 family members sheltering in a four-room house in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. They are running out of resources and living in fear.
“The situation is really miserable,” he told ABC News. “No electricity, no internet, no water, no food.”
“They all told us to go to the south because it’s going to be secure and safe or something, but no. … Everything here in Gaza is targeted,” he said.
“Sometimes you kind of sleep for two hours, three hours, and then we hear the bombs everywhere,” he said.
His sister-in-law, 22-year-old Batoul Abu Ali, added, “Our day and night is hell.”
-ABC News’ Camille Alcini and Zoe Magee
Oct 30, 9:10 AM EDT
Ground operations ‘continued and expanded’ overnight: IDF
Israel Defense Forces announced that their ground operations “continued and expanded” in Gaza overnight.
“An IAF aircraft—guided by ground forces—struck a Hamas post and the 20+ terrorist operatives in it,” the IDF said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter). “Soldiers spotted armed terrorists and an anti-tank missile launching post near the Al-Azhar University and guided an IAF fighter jet to strike them.”
Meanwhile, the IDF said that they had eliminated “multiple terrorists barricaded within civilian buildings and terrorist tunnels” who attempted to attack the forces.
Meanwhile, the IDF said that they had eliminated “multiple terrorists barricaded within civilian buildings and terrorist tunnels” who attempted to attack the forces.
Oct 29, 6:41 PM EDT
24 trucks bring in aid: Red Cross
The Red Cross announced Sunday night that its teams in Gaza received 24 trucks from the Egyptian Red Crescent through the Rafah crossing.
The trucks contained food supplies and medical necessities, the Red Cross said.
That brings the total number of aid trucks to 118, according to the Red Cross.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Oct 29, 5:52 PM EDT
IDF spokesperson says Hamas tactical commanders killed in ground operation
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Sunday that the military ground operation has led to the death of “many terrorists,” including tactical commanders.
The IDF is pursuing Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza, and Hagari said they will go after him “until we get to him.”
Meanwhile, rockets were fired from Lebanon toward northern Israel on Sunday, Hagari said, with Israeli troops returning fire. Hagari said the IDF struck “Hezbollah terror infrastructure.”
In the north of the country, the IDF also attacked what Hadari said were three terrorist cells that had been shooting toward Israel’s troops.
On Sunday night, local time, rockets were fired at Kiryat Shmona and the Upper Galilee, Hadari said, noting the IDF returned fire.
In his Sunday briefing, Hadari again encouraged Gaza’s civilian population to move south of Wadi Gaza for “their personal safety,” and where conditions will “allow access to medicines, food and water.”
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Oct 29, 6:52 PM EDT
Israeli officials release statement after reports of protesters storming Russian airport
Israeli officials released a statement Sunday following reports that hundreds of people stormed the Makhachkala main airport and landing field in southern Russia to protest the arrival of a flight from Tel Aviv.
“The State of Israel takes seriously attempts to harm Israeli citizens and Jews everywhere,” the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office and Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a joint statement Sunday.
“The Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Security Headquarters (NSH) are monitoring the development of events in southern Russia in the Dagestan province,” it continued. “Israel expects the Russian law enforcement authorities to protect the safety of all Israeli citizens and Jews wherever they may be and to act resolutely against the rioters and against the wild incitement directed against Jews and Israelis.”
“Israel’s ambassador to Russia, Alex Ben-Zvi, is working with the authorities in Russia to ensure the safety of Israelis and Jews there,” the joint statement read.
The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency said, “The measures are in effect until the situation normalizes. Law enforcement agencies are working on the spot,” adding that “the planes that were supposed to land in Makhachkala were redirected to alternate airfields.”
In a statement, Sergei Melikov, the head of Dagestan, said the actions of the crowd were a gross violation of the law. “There is no courage in waiting in a crowd for unarmed people who have not done anything forbidden,” Melikov said. “There is no determination to break into the airport territory. There is no honor in swearing at strangers, reaching into their pockets and trying to check their passport. There are no good intentions in attacking women with children who were undergoing treatment abroad.”
“What happened at our airport is outrageous and should receive an appropriate assessment from law enforcement agencies! And this will definitely be done,” he added.
More than 20 people were injured at the Makhachkala airport, the Ministry of Health of Dagestan said early Monday local time. Two people of the 10 in hospitals were in serious condition, the Ministry said. More than 10 people received medical aid at the airport.
-ABC News’ Bruno Nota, Natalia Shumskaia and Will Gretsky
Oct 29, 4:44 PM EDT
Israeli officials release statement after reports of protesters storming Russian airport
Israeli officials released a statement Sunday following reports, including from The Associated Press, that hundreds of people stormed the Makhachkala main airport and landing field in southern Russia to protest the arrival of a flight from Tel Aviv. The AP cited Russian news agencies and social media.
“The State of Israel takes seriously attempts to harm Israeli citizens and Jews everywhere,” the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office and Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a joint statement Sunday.
“The Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Security Headquarters (NSH) are monitoring the development of events in southern Russia in the Dagestan province,” it continued. “Israel expects the Russian law enforcement authorities to protect the safety of all Israeli citizens and Jews wherever they may be and to act resolutely against the rioters and against the wild incitement directed against Jews and Israelis.”
“Israel’s ambassador to Russia, Alex Ben-Zvi, is working with the authorities in Russia to ensure the safety of Israelis and Jews there,” the joint statement read.
The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency said, “The measures are in effect until the situation normalizes. Law enforcement agencies are working on the spot,” adding that “the planes that were supposed to land in Makhachkala were redirected to alternate airfields.”
-ABC News’ Bruno Nota and Natalia Shumskaia
Oct 29, 3:19 PM EDT
Biden, Netanyahu spoke Sunday, White House says
President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke Sunday about “developments in Gaza,” and the president reiterated that Israel needed to defend itself “in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law,” according to the White House.
The two also discussed efforts to locate and free hostages, including U.S. citizens, the White House added.
Biden also spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Sunday, the White House said, and the two “committed to the significant acceleration and increase of assistance flowing into Gaza beginning today and then continuously.”
The two leaders talked about “ensuring that Palestinians in Gaza are not displaced to Egypt or any other nation,” the White House added.
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow
Oct 29, 3:16 PM EDT
American father trapped in Gaza describes difficulties getting drinking water, bread
Abood Okal, a 36-year-old American father trapped in Gaza with his wife and young son, told ABC News on Sunday about the difficulties getting drinking water and bread.
“And I think it is for many people here in Gaza. We are almost out of drinking water today,” he said. “I think we have enough just to last us through the night and then tomorrow would be basically out.”
Okal described them spending their days not only “trying to figure out our water situation,” but also trying to secure bread, telling ABC News he was part of a group that spent six hours standing in lines in front of bakeries.
“We hit four different bakeries to buy bread and any type of bread, actually, and it was a total mayhem, just like we expected,” he said. “And actually quite heartbreaking to see the amount of people lined up in front of the bakeries, hundreds and hundreds of people in front of each one.”
Okal said they stood in line for hours to get one portion of bread — “which is about 25 to 30 pieces of pita bread, an average sized pita bread,” he said — “which basically would be good enough for a day or two at most.”
“I think Gaza has reached a point where it does not matter where you’re from or how much money you have or who you know,” he said. “Everyone is in the same boat in terms of the dire daily struggle to survive. And certainly our family is no exception to that.”
-ABC News’ Zoe Magee
Oct 29, 10:04 AM EDT
Freeing hostages in Gaza is still a priority amid expanding war, Sullivan says
Securing the release of the hostages being held in Gaza is still a priority as Israel expands its ground assault in the territory in an effort to defeat Hamas, the White House’s national security adviser said Sunday.
“We are continuing to see if there are ways to make that happen. We are prepared to support humanitarian pauses so that hostages can get out safely. And we will keep working at that every day because the president has no higher priority than the safe return of American citizens and wants to support the return of citizens of other countries and Israelis, as well,” Jake Sullivan told ABC “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz.
“Now, how exactly that happens … I cannot predict that. All I can tell you is every effort is being undertaken right now to do that,” Sullivan said.
But he noted “there are ongoing efforts which I can’t get into detail on television, including regional partners, including the Israelis.”
-ABC News’ Tal Axelrod
Oct 29, 10:03 AM EDT
Retired US general says Israel faces ‘nearly impossible’ task
Israel’s expanding ground assault on Gaza will involve months of painstaking and “very fierce fighting” with Hamas extremists amid conditions “unlike anything that we’ve seen in recent years,” retired Army Gen. Robert Abrams predicted on Sunday.
“And simultaneously trying to ensure that the Israelis do not target, unwittingly, the locations on the hostages — this is going to prove to be a very difficult task,” Abrams told ABC “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz. “And we’ll just have to see how their plan plays out here over the coming days.”
Abrams, who commanded U.S. troops during America’s invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, went on to say that he believes Israeli forces face a nigh insurmountable challenge in their stated goal to destroy the militant group that launched a terror attack on Israel earlier this month — while seeking to limit civilian casualties in the Palestinian territory and recover the hundreds of captives Hamas is thought to be holding in Gaza.
“It’s going to be what I would consider nearly impossible to destroy Hamas, to eliminate their capability to do harm to Israel and the Israeli people, while simultaneously protecting what some people have estimated as to be a million Palestinians who are in harm’s way and they can’t get out of harm’s way,” Abrams said.
Israel has faced mounting international outcry at the potential humanitarian disaster in the blockaded territory as it carries out its retaliatory operations on the militants.
Abrams said on “This Week” that he thinks “every effort is being made to follow the laws of armed conflict” but acknowledged the “horrific” images being broadcast of the escalating conflict.
“Fundamentally, at the end of this, Martha … we still have to answer the question: What is the future? Hamas was created as a result of a lack of a separate Palestinian state. A two-state solution, as many people have talked about. That has to be somewhere, when you asked, ‘How does this end?’ That has to be part of the equation,” Abrams said.
-ABC News’ Adam Carlson
Oct 29, 7:54 AM EDT
230 people held hostage by Hamas, IDF says
The number of people believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel has risen to 230, according to Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari.
During a press briefing on Sunday morning, Hagari said bringing the hostages home remains a top priority and that Israeli forces on the ground in the neighboring Gaza Strip are working to achieve this goal.
The IDF expanded its entry of troops into Gaza overnight, joining the forces already fighting on the ground there, according to Hagari.
“We are gradually expanding the ground activity and the scope of our forces in the Gaza Strip,” Hagari said. “The operations on the ground are complex and include risks to our forces.”
Over the past 24 hours, the IDF struck 450 Hamas military targets in Gaza. Ground forces directed IDF aircraft toward the targets and also struck “terrorist cells” that attempted to attack them, according to Hagari.
The IDF also struck Hezbollah military positions in neighboring Lebanon in response to attacks on IDF positions, Hagari said.
The IDF will draft new soldiers in November as was scheduled, even during the war, according to Hagari.
-ABC News’ Anna Burd, Bruno Nota and Morgan Winsor
Oct 29, 6:16 AM EDT
Thousands break into UNRWA warehouses in Gaza, taking food and ‘basic survival items,’ agency says
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency said Sunday that “thousands of people” have broken into several of their warehouses and distribution centers in the middle and southern parts of the Gaza Strip, “taking wheat flour and other basic survival items like hygiene supplies.”
“This is a worrying sign that civil order is starting to break down after three weeks of war and a tight siege on Gaza,” Thomas White, director of UNRWA affairs in Gaza, said in a statement. “People are scared, frustrated and desperate. Tensions and fear are made worse by the cuts in the phones and internet communication lines. They feel that they are on their own, cut off from their families inside Gaza and the rest of the world.”
Since Oct. 7, a “massive displacement of people” who were forced to leave the north of Gaza and head southward due to Israeli airstrikes “has placed enormous pressure on those communities,” according to UNRWA.
“Supplies on the market are running out while the humanitarian aid coming into the Gaza Strip on trucks from Egypt is insufficient,” White added. “The needs of the communities are immense, if only for basic survival, while the aid we receive is meager and inconsistent.”
As of Sunday morning, just over 80 trucks of humanitarian aid had crossed into Gaza from Egypt in one week. There was no aid delivered on Saturday due to a communications blackout in Gaza, according to UNRWA. The agency, which is the main actor for the reception and storage of aid in Gaza, said it was “not able to communicate with the different parties to coordinate the passage of the convoy.”
UNRWA said its teams in Gaza have reported that internet services and connections were restored. The agency said it will reassess the situation with the goal of resuming aid convoys and distribution on Sunday.
“The current system of convoys is geared to fail,” White said. “Very few trucks, slow processes, strict inspections, supplies that do not match the requirements of UNRWA and the other aid organizations, and mostly the ongoing ban on fuel, are all a recipe for a failed system. We call for a regular and steady flow line of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza Strip to respond to the needs especially as tensions and frustrations grow.”
Meanwhile, UNRWA said 59 staff members have now been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7.
-ABC News’ Guy Davies and Morgan Winsor
Oct 29, 4:52 AM EDT
Gaza internet ‘gradually’ returns
As internet service returned to Gaza on Sunday, several people inside the enclave spoke with ABC News, detailing an increase in aerial bombardments and tank shelling over the last two nights.
“When the internet went out, I felt very afraid and thought we would die and no one would know anything about us,” said one resident, who asked not to be named for safety reasons.
Internet and telecommunications in Gaza, which had been disrupted Friday, were being “gradually” restored, Paltel Group, a local provider, said on social media early Sunday.
“For a moment, we thought it’s the end,” said another Gaza resident, who also asked that they not be identified.
The person added, “No way out. Complete darkness, no communication and the loud sound of missiles and bombardment.”
-ABC News’ Zoe Magee
Oct 28, 5:11 PM EDT
Netanyahu: War will be ‘long and difficult’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war in Gaza “will be long and difficult” as Israel expands its ground operations in the enclave.
“This is the second stage of the war, the goals of which are clear: Destroying Hamas’s military and governing capabilities, and bringing the captives back home,” Netanyahu said in a statement Saturday.
Netanyahu said the War Cabinet and Security Cabinet both decided to expand ground operations “based on a commitment to ensure both the destiny of the state and the security of our soldiers.”
The prime minister said aerial strikes have intensified in recent days to “assist our forces in making a safer ground incursion.”
“We have eliminated countless terrorists, including arch-terrorists, and we have destroyed many terrorist command posts and infrastructure. We are only just getting started,” he said.
Oct 28, 5:05 PM EDT
Netanyahu meets with families of hostages for 1st time
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the families of hostages held in Gaza for the first time on Saturday, on the heels of Israel’s expanded ground operation.
Among those in attendance were the families of abducted children.
“My heart was broken. I reiterated to them: At every stage up to now and at every stage from now, we will exhaust every possibility to bring our brothers and sisters back to their families,” Netanyahu said in a statement following the meeting.
According to Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, 229 people captured in Israel are being held hostage in Gaza.
Oct 28, 9:57 AM EDT
Israel pressure on Hamas to ‘continue to rise’ amid ground operation
ABC News’ Ian Pannell speaks to Mark Regev, the advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Nentayahu and a former ambassador, on Israel’s expanded ground operation in Gaza. Regev said the land operation could be long, with many challenges.
“We are continuing to beef up the pressure on Hamas,” said Regev. “It will continue to rise in the coming days and weeks until we achieve our goal which is the total dismantlement of the Hamas military machine and the end of their political structure in Gaza.”
Oct 28, 10:42 AM EDT
Israel says ‘forces are still on the ground and are continuing the war’
In a press briefing on Saturday, Israeli military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said that “the forces are still on the ground and are continuing the war” and the Israel Defense Forces “will continue to make a concerted effort in order to maintain the security of our forces, using strong fire from the air, this is combat.”
Meanwhile, several Hamas commanders have been killed overnight as part of the expanded offensive as aid trucks make their way into Gaza carrying food and water.
Hagari confirmed there have been 311 Israel Defense Forces fatalities since Oct.7 and added that the IDF have suffered no casualties in the overnight operations.
There are reports that communication networks have been cut in Gaza and WHO Chief Tedros Ghebreyesus who said the communications blackout is making it “impossible to reach the injured” and WHO staff, according to a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Oct 28, 10:40 AM EDT
IDF says more Hamas militants killed in overnight attacks
The Israel Defense Forces said they hit 150 underground targets in the northern Gaza Strip overnight and killed the head of Hamas’ Ariel Array – Asem Abu Rakaba.
In a Saturday morning post, the IDF said that based on intelligence it had and intelligence from the Israel Securities Authority, IDF fighter jets struck and killed Abu Rakaba.
He was responsible for Hamas’ UAVs, drones, paragliders, aerial detection and aerial defense, the IDF and Israel Securities Authority said in a joint release. He took part in planning the massacre in the communities surrounding the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, the IDF said. He directed the terrorists who infiltrated Israel on paragliders and was responsible for the drone attacks on IDF posts, according to the military.
The IDF said it also hit tunnels and underground infrastructure. Several Hamas terrorists were killed in the attacks, according to the IDF.
Oct 28, 9:57 AM EDT
Israel pressure on Hamas to ‘continue to rise’ amid ground operation
ABC News’ Ian Pannell speaks to Mark Regev, the advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Nentayahu and a former ambassador, on Israel’s expanded ground operation in Gaza. Regev said the land operation could be long, with many challenges.
“We are continuing to beef up the pressure on Hamas,” said Regev. “It will continue to rise in the coming days and weeks until we achieve our goal which is the total dismantlement of the Hamas military machine and the end of their political structure in Gaza.”
Oct 27, 8:14 PM EDT
Grand Central Terminal closes amid sit-down calling for cease-fire in Gaza
Protesters with a Jewish peace activist group are calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza in a large, ongoing demonstration Friday at Grand Central Terminal in New York City.
Metro-North said Grand Central is closed due to the protest.
According to organizer Jewish Voice for Peace-New York City, a far-left Jewish group, thousands of members and allies are taking part in the sit-in, which comes after Israel announced it is expanding its ground activity in Gaza.
Oct 27, 6:44 PM EDT
State Department perspective on Israel’s expanded ground activity in Gaza
The State Department was tracking the potential for a significant escalation in Israel’s military campaign in Gaza throughout the day but did not have confirmation that the Israel Defense Forces would expand its ground operations until around the time it was announced to the public earlier Friday, according to two U.S. officials.
Officials say the U.S. has been pressuring Israel to adopt a narrower scope for its offensive and take a more incremental approach. One source said that while Israeli forces seem likely to stay on the ground in Gaza for a longer duration this time, if this incursion doesn’t spiral, it could be a positive sign that the administration is successfully making its case.
At this hour, there is still no clarity from the U.S. side on whether this is the big ground offensive that’s been expected — or just part of the buildup.
Officials are confident that they can keep up the short windows of calm that have allowed a limited amount of aid to flow into Gaza through the Rafah Gate, but these fall short of the sustained “humanitarian truce” the United Nations is demanding.
But several other delicate negotiations directly involving the U.S. — including efforts to free the hostages, allow foreign nationals to exit Gaza and create safe spaces inside the enclave — could be sidelined by a more comprehensive ground assault. Talks with all parties involved press on. Officials acknowledge that the U.S. would have liked to resolve these issues before any escalation, but that Hamas was likely to use its leverage to push off additional military action as long as possible.
Oct 28, 10:45 AM EDT
Doctors Without Borders said it has lost contact with Gaza staff
Doctors Without Borders made an urgent plea for protection of medical centers in Gaza, after the organization said it has lost contact with its members in the region.
In a video post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Avril Benoit, the organization’s executive director, said she was very concerned about the patients, staff and civilians who are taking shelter at al-Shifa Hospital.
The Israel Defense Force said Hamas was using the hospital as a shield for its tunnels and ops centers.
“We call for the unequivocal protection of all medical facilities, staff and civilians across the Gaza Strip,” she said. “We need an immediate cease-fire now.”
UNICEF said it has also lost contact with its employees in Gaza and is “extremely concerned about their safety.”
Oct 27, 4:40 PM EDT
IDF on current ground operations
When asked whether troops had launched a ground invasion into the Gaza Strip on Friday night, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Peter Lerner told ABC News, “We are conducting our sweep and clear activities in order to create better conditions for optimal operational conditions on the ground.”
“So we are seeking out anti-tank capabilities, we are destroying observation posts and we are engaging the terrorists where we find them on the front lines or in the peripheral of the Gaza Strip,” he continued, noting that troops have been “conducting these activities” for “several days” but he can’t detail specifics due to “operational concerns.”
“We intend on dismantling their capabilities, destroying their government, and making sure they can never use the Gaza Strip as a staging ground against our people again,” Lerner added.
Oct 27, 4:19 PM EDT
UN General Assembly adopts Gaza resolution calling for immediate humanitarian truce
The United Nations General Assembly on Friday adopted a resolution calling for an “immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce” between Israel and Hamas.
The resolution also demands the “continuous, sufficient and unhindered” provision of supplies and services for civilians in Gaza, as Israel says it is expanding its ground operations in the territory.
Oct 27, 3:56 PM EDT
US ‘not drawing red lines for Israel’: Kirby
The U.S. is “not drawing red lines for Israel” and is still in “active negotiations” to release hostages, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said during a virtual briefing Friday.
Asked whether the U.S. was given advance warning of the expanding ground incursion happening today, Kirby would not give any detail on conversations with the Israelis, but said President Joe Biden has been getting daily briefings from his national security team.
Pressed on whether the U.S. is confident that Israel has thought through what happens after the ground incursion, Kirby said it’s up to the Israelis to answer questions about the “soundness of their planning and the effectiveness of the execution.”
Kirby said Israel should support a humanitarian pause if it can allow for the release of hostages.
Oct 27, 2:29 PM EDT
IDF says it is expanding ground operations in Gaza Friday night
The Israel Defense Forces are expanding ground activity in Gaza Friday night, a military spokesperson told reporters.
This is Israel’s biggest ground operation in Gaza since the Oct. 7 attack.
“In recent hours we have increased the attacks in Gaza,” the IDF said in a statement. “The Air Force widely attacks underground targets and terrorist infrastructure, very significantly. In continuation of the offensive activity we carried out in the last few days, the ground forces are expanding the ground activity this evening.”
Oct 27, 1:26 PM EDT
Internet, cell service cut off in Gaza after barrage of strikes, telecom provider says
All internet and communications services have been cut off in Gaza following a barrage of strikes, according to the Palestinian Telecommunications Company.
“The intense bombing in the last hour destroyed all remaining international routes linking Gaza to the world,” the company said in a statement. “The severe bombing led to the interruption of all communications services in the Gaza Strip.”
Jawal, a Palestinian mobile company, also said all communications and internet services have been interrupted due to the “intense bombing.”
Palestinian Red Crescent, a humanitarian organization, said it is unable to reach its teams due to the disruption in landline, cell and internet services.
“We are deeply concerned about the ability of our teams to continue providing their emergency medical services,” the group said in a statement.
The World Health Organization said it has also lost touch with its staff in Gaza, with Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus adding, “This siege makes me gravely concerned for their safety and the immediate health risks of vulnerable patients. We urge immediate protection of all civilians and full humanitarian access.”
Oct 27, 1:20 PM EDT
Harris, Emhoff meet with families of missing Americans
Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff met with families of Americans who are unaccounted for following the Oct. 7 attack in Israel and heard of their “agonizing” experiences, Harris’ office said.
During the meeting at the State Department Friday morning, Harris told the families that “securing the hostages remains front and center in our diplomatic conversations,” a readout from her office stated.
She also said they are working with partners in the Middle East “to ensure that any country with influence over Hamas brings that influence to bear to help secure the release of hostages,” the readout stated.
Doug and I met with families of Americans who are still unaccounted for following the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, and my message to them was simple: You are not alone. @POTUS and I are doing everything we can to bring these Americans home. pic.twitter.com/ADUvjs7u0g
Her office did not specify how many families attended the meeting.
The Biden administration said Tuesday that 10 Americans remained accounted for.
Oct 27, 11:15 AM EDT
Blasts hit 2 Egyptian Red Sea towns near border with Israel
Blasts hit two Egyptian Red Sea towns on Friday, injuring at least six people, according to the Egyptian military and state media, with Israel blaming the incidents on an “aerial threat” in the region.
Egyptian army spokesman Col. Gharib Abdel-Hafez said an “unidentified drone” crashed Friday morning into a building near a hospital in the resort town of Taba, near the border with Israel, injuring six people.
Earlier on Friday, Egyptian state-linked TV channel Al-Qahera News said a missile fired as part of the escalation in the neighboring Gaza Strip had struck a medical facility in Taba.
The channel later reported that an “unidentified body” crashed near a power station in the South Sinai resort town of Nuweiba, some 45 miles to the south.
The Israeli military said the incidents were a result of an “aerial threat” in the Red Sea region and that there were no Israeli casualties from the strike near its border.
“An aerial threat was detected in the Red Sea region, and fighterjets were called in to deal with it,” the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a statement. “We estimate that the harm to Egypt was caused by this threat,” he said, adding that Israel will work with Egypt and the United States to “tighten defense in the region” against such threats.
Egyptian witnesses said fighter jets have roared above the two towns since dawn.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the two incidents.
Earlier this week, a number of Egyptian border guards were injured after being hit by fragments of a shell that Israel’s army said was accidentally fired from one of its tanks. The Israel Defense Forces quickly apologized for the incident.
The recent incidents highlight the risk Egypt faces from a possible regional spillover of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza.
ABC News’ Ayat Al-Tawy
Oct 27, 9:22 AM EDT
At least 4 injured after rocket his Israeli apartment building, authorities say
At least four people were injured on Friday when a rocket struck an apartment building in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli authorities.
Hamas allegedly fired a barrage of rockets from the Gaza Strip toward Tel Aviv on Friday afternoon and most were intercepted by Israel’s air defense system, but one hit a five-story apartment building.
The injured victims ranged in age from 20 to 78. Two were hospitalised in moderate condition while the others were in minor condition, according to Israel’s rescue service MDA.
-ABC News’ Dani Tene and Morgan Winsor
Oct 27, 8:59 AM EDT
Hamas has taken 229 hostages, IDF says
The number of people believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas in Israel on Oct. 7 is now 229, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
As of Friday morning, the IDF said 229 hostage families have been notified.
-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Oct 27, 6:58 AM EDT
Israeli troops enter Gaza for 2nd straight night
A column of Israeli military tanks crossed into the northern Gaza Strip late Thursday for the second straight night to conduct a series of targeted raids.
The mission lasted several hours and included airstrikes from above. The Israel Defense Forces said Friday morning that 250 targets were struck in Gaza in the past 24 hours.
-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Oct 27, 12:58 AM EDT
Missile of undetermined origin strikes medical facility in Egyptian Red Sea
A missile struck a medical facility in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Taba, near the border with Israel early on Friday, injuring six people, Egyptian state-linked Al-Qahera News TV channel reported Friday morning local time.
The missile was fired as part of the ongoing violence in Gaza, it said, citing sources.
The blast, which hit a Taba ambulance facility and a residential building for the staff of the Taba Hospital, damaged a residential building, the station reported. The channel aired footage showing a charred car and big holes in the facade of a building.
“Once the side that launched the missile is identified, all options are available to address and Egypt reserves the right to respond [to the incident] at the right time,” a security source from the Egyptian government told the channel.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Earlier this week, a number of Egyptian border guards were injured after being hit by fragments of a shell that Israel said was accidentally fired from an Israeli tank. Israeli Defense Forces quickly apologized for the incident.
-ABC News’ Ayat Al-Tawy
Oct 27, 6:58 AM EDT
Israeli troops enter Gaza for 2nd straight night
A column of Israeli military tanks crossed into the northern Gaza Strip late Thursday for the second straight night to conduct a series of targeted raids.
The mission lasted several hours and included airstrikes from above. The Israel Defense Forces said Friday morning that 250 targets were struck in Gaza in the past 24 hours.
-ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Oct 27, 12:58 AM EDT
Missile of undetermined origin strikes medical facility in Egyptian Red Sea
A missile struck a medical facility in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Taba, near the border with Israel early on Friday, injuring six people, Egyptian state-linked Al-Qahera News TV channel reported Friday morning local time.
The missile was fired as part of the ongoing violence in Gaza, it said, citing sources.
The blast, which hit a Taba ambulance facility and a residential building for the staff of the Taba Hospital, damaged a residential building, the station reported. The channel aired footage showing a charred car and big holes in the facade of a building.
“Once the side that launched the missile is identified, all options are available to address and Egypt reserves the right to respond [to the incident] at the right time,” a security source from the Egyptian government told the channel.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Earlier this week, a number of Egyptian border guards were injured after being hit by fragments of a shell that Israel said was accidentally fired from an Israeli tank. Israeli Defense Forces quickly apologized for the incident.
-ABC News’ Ayat Al-Tawy
Oct 26, 6:37 PM EDT
What the US is requesting before Israel launches Gaza invasion
A senior U.S. official said Thursday the administration has requested that Israel allow the U.S. to get forces in place before Israel launches an expected ground invasion in Gaza.
The U.S. has also requested that Israel get a better handle on the hostage and humanitarian situation in Gaza, where cases of dysentery from people drinking contaminated water are being reported, the official said.
Additionally, the U.S. told the Israelis that it is still not convinced they have a good plan for what they want to do in Gaza, the official said.
Oct 26, 4:23 PM EDT
US explains wanting a ‘temporary pause’ for humanitarian reasons
White House national security council spokesman John Kirby explained during a briefing what the U.S. meant by wanting a “temporary pause” in the action.
“As Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken said, we do think that there should be consideration made right now for humanitarian pauses,” Kirby said. “These are localized, temporary, specific pauses on the battlefield so that humanitarian assistance can get in to people that need it or the people can get out of that area in relative safety. That’s what a humanitarian pause is, and we think it’s an idea worth exploring.”
“Now, it could also be more than one spot, right?” he added. “So, I mean, it depends, but we think it’s a valuable idea that’s worth looking at to help alleviate the humanitarian suffering in Gaza.”
Kirby said 74 trucks carrying humanitarian aid have entered Gaza since the Rafah border crossing was opened on Oct. 21, but added it was “not enough.” Twelve trucks have crossed with supplies in the last 24 hours, he said.
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson
Oct 26, 3:59 PM EDT
US to send 2 Iron Dome systems to Israel
The U.S. will be sending its two Israeli-made Iron Dome air defense systems to Israel, the Pentagon said Thursday.
“We’re also planning to provide the two U.S. Iron Dome systems currently in our inventory to Israel to help further bolster their air defense capabilities and protect citizens from rocket attacks,” Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters today at his briefing.
Ryder said he would not provide delivery timelines due to operational security and would only say that all of the air-defense systems being sent by the U.S. would be “online soon.”
Ryder also told reporters that 900 U.S. troops have been deployed or will be deploying to the Middle East, making care to say they will not be going to Israel itself. This includes the THAAD air defense unit, the Patriot missile systems and an air-defense headquarters — some of which were part of the original 2,200 placed on Prepare to Deploy Orders a few weeks ago.
-ABC News’ Luis Martinez
Oct 26, 3:37 PM EDT
US making progress toward escape route for Americans in Gaza: State Dept.
State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said the U.S. was continuing “close consultations with both the Israeli government and the Egyptian government as well as the United Nations” on opening the Rafah border crossing to American citizens, but that those still talks hadn’t crossed the finish line yet.
“We have been making progress. I can’t get into the details of that progress because they are very sensitive negotiations, but it’s something that we are focused on and hope to have American citizens and other foreign nationals able to move through in the coming days,” Miller said.
Miller said the State Department sent a message to American citizens Wednesday telling them that they were continuing “to work out a solution.” And while the administration still hasn’t given an estimate on how many Americans it is in contact with in Gaza, for the first time Miller said the State Department was speaking with “several hundred.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 26, 3:22 PM EDT
IDF claim to have killed terror attack co-architect
The Israel Defense Forces claim to have killed the co-architect of the Oct. 7 terror attack in an aerial strike.
IDF fighter jets struck Shadi Barud, the head of intelligence relations for Hamas, the Israeli military said in a statement Thursday. The statement did not specify when the attack occurred.
IDF accused Barud of planning the attack with Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza.
Oct 26, 2:31 PM EDT
There’s ‘significant evidence’ Israel committed war crimes: Amnesty International
Paul O’Brien, the executive director of Amnesty International USA, told ABC News Live that “there is significant evidence” that Israel is “committing war crimes” in its targeting of the Gaza Strip.
“Israel is not taking the measures that it needs to take in order to protect civilians now,” O’Brien told ABC News’ James Longman. “Dropping leaflets into a densely populated area and forcing people to move or threatening them if they don’t is a war crime.”
O’Brien pointed not just to the issue of collective punishment, but also to the “indiscriminate targeting of civilians,” and demanded an immediate investigation and accountability. The executive director also said that Amnesty has denounced Hamas’ actions on Oct. 7 as a war crime, but that “the answer to that is not the further commission of war crimes by the state of Israel.”
In a letter released Thursday, Amnesty International Senior Crisis Response Adviser Donatella Rovera said, in part, “Amnesty International reiterates its call on the Israeli authorities to immediately rescind the forced ‘evacuation’ orders and to put an end to threats designed to sow fear and panic among Gaza’s civilian population. All conditions on the distribution of humanitarian aid must be urgently lifted and aid, including fuel, must be allowed into Gaza in sufficient quantities to meet the dire needs of the civilian population.”
Israel has allowed in limited resources through the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt and says Hamas is stockpiling fuel that could be used for humanitarian needs in the region. Israel has also asserted it has a right to defend itself in the wake of the Hamas terrorist attack.
-ABC News’ Luis Rodriguez
Oct 26, 1:53 PM EDT
What a potentially wider Israel-Hamas war could mean for the US economy
A potential escalation of the Israel-Hamas war and the possibility that it could widen into a regional conflict could send gas prices above $5 a gallon, trigger an overall surge of inflation and plunge the U.S. economy into a recession, economists and oil industry analysts told ABC News.
A conflict that ensnares the Middle East could send oil prices soaring, which in turn would hike costs not only for gasoline but also for many consumer products that depend on diesel and jet fuel for transport, the experts said.
Oct 26, 12:27 PM EDT
Iran issues warning to United States
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the minister of foreign affairs for Iran, chastised the United States and issued a warning in a speech at the United Nations during an emergency session to discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Amir-Abdollahian said that America was “managing the genocide” of Palestinians and “that we do not welcome the expansion of war in the region, but I warn if the genocide in Gaza continues, they will not be spared from this fire.”
The U.S. has cautioned against Iran becoming directly involved in the conflict and sent two aircraft carriers to the region to serve as a deterrent.
There have, however, been smaller skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon and the U.S. shot down cruise missiles fired by the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Both groups are backed by Iran.
Oct 26, 6:24 AM EDT
Israeli military briefly enters northern Gaza, IDF says
Israeli tanks and infantry personnel briefly entered northern Gaza in “preparation for the next stages of combat,” the Israel Defense Forces said early Thursday.
“IDF tanks & infantry struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts,” the military said in a post on social media.
The post included a video that appeared to show bulldozers breaking through a barricade-like structure, followed by footage of a military convoy traveling along dirt roads and then several explosions.
“The soldiers have since exited the area and returned to Israeli territory,” IDF said.
The video could not be independently verified.
Oct 25, 5:46 PM EDT
House passes resolution defending Israel
The House of Representatives passed a resolution defending Israel and condemning Hamas after the group’s attack earlier this month and the escalating war in the Gaza Strip.
The resolution passed in a 412-10 vote. Six members voted present. Nine of the 10 “no” votes came from progressive Democrats, while Rep. Thomas Massie, Ky., was the only Republican to vote against the resolution.
-ABC News’ Lauren Peller and Tal Axelrod
Oct 25, 5:31 PM EDT
Dueling Russia, US resolutions on conflict fail to advance at UN Security Council
The dueling resolutions on the Israel-Hamas war put forth to the United Nations Security Council by Russia and the U.S. have both failed.
Russia’s version called for a humanitarian ceasefire and avoided condemning Hamas. Russia, China, the UAE and Gabon voted in favor of the draft, while nine members abstained, and both the U.S. and the U.K. voted against it.
While the U.S. emphasized in its resolution Israel’s right to defend itself from Hamas, officials worked to find a middle ground that would placate a majority of members, urging a pause to military action in Gaza. The U.S. measure secured the votes it needed to advance out of the council but was ultimately vetoed by Russia and China.
“The United States is deeply disappointed that Russia and China vetoed this resolution. A resolution that, as I’ve said, was strong and it was balanced. That was the product of consultations with members of this Council. We did listen to all of you. We incorporated feedback. And we worked to forge consensus around a resolution that would send a clear message to the world – and most importantly, to Israelis and Palestinians – that this Council is determined to meet this moment,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 25, 4:40 PM EDT
WHO calls for release of hostages, proof of life, proof of medical care
The World Health Organization said there’s “an urgent need” for Hamas to “provide signs of life, proof of provision of health care and the immediate release” of the hostages.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he met with families of some hostages on Wednesday.
“Many of the hostages, including children, women and the elderly, have pre-existing health conditions requiring urgent and sustained care and treatment,” he said in a statement. “The mental health trauma that the abducted, and the families, are facing is acute and psychosocial support is of great importance.”
Oct 25, 4:36 PM EDT
Israeli official: ‘Definitions of defeating Hamas’ must be more ‘realistic’
Maj. Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland, the former head of the Israel National Security Council, told ABC News the “definitions of defeating Hamas … have to be a little more measurable and realistic.”
Eiland, who has been working inside Israel’s military headquarters, said there’s no way to completely destroy Hamas, but he said what Israel can do “is destroy the military capabilities and other governmental functions of Hamas.”
“But even to achieve this limited goal we will have to maintain the military effort,” he said.
Eiland said Israel cannot allow Hamas “the ability now or in the future to rebuild their rocket arsenal.”
-ABC News’ Matt Gutman
Oct 25, 3:44 PM EDT
House to vote on resolution defending Israel
The House on Wednesday is debating a resolution to show support for Israel and condemn Hamas.
The resolution introduced by House Foreign Affairs Chairman Mike McCaul is entitled “Standing with Israel as it defends itself against the barbaric war launched by Hamas and other terrorists.”
It’s expected to pass with large bipartisan support.
-ABC News’ Lauren Peller
Oct 25, 3:39 PM EDT
Israeli forces said they’ve hit underground tunnels
Missiles fired by Israeli forces have struck underground tunnels in Gaza, targeting Hamas terrorists, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces said. It’s unclear what the result of the hit was.
Hamas has previously claimed to have built 500 kilometers — more than 300 miles — of tunnels under Gaza. The tunnel system is designed to conceal and cover Hamas militants and allow them to execute surprise attacks, according to experts.
The IDF spokesman said Israel’s current attacks in Gaza are improving their situation for the next stage of the long war ahead.
Oct 25, 2:35 PM EDT
Biden says Israel has right to defend itself while urging country to follow ‘laws of war’
President Joe Biden on Wednesday emphasized U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself, while also urging the country to do “everything in its power” to protect innocent people in Gaza.
“We will ensure Israel has what it needs to defend itself,” Biden said during a press conference at the White House with Australia’s prime minister.
Biden said Hamas is using Palestinian civilians as human shields, putting an “added burden on Israel while they go after Hamas,” but Israel should still do everything it can to follow the “laws of war.”
“Israel has to do everything in its power, as difficult as it is, to protect innocent civilians,” he said.
Biden also said the flow of aid to Gaza needs to increase and that he was working “around the clock” to secure the release of hostages.
He reiterated his support for a two-state solution, saying that the status quo will never return after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
“I’m convinced one of the reasons Hamas attacked when they did — I have no proof of this, my instinct tells me — is because of the progress we were making toward regional integration for Israel and regional integration overall. And we can’t leave that work behind,” Biden said, repeating a claim he’s made before about his efforts to broker a broader deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia that would lead to Saudi Arabia recognizing Israel.
-ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett
Oct 25, 2:23 PM EDT
Israel readying for ground operation, won’t reveal date: Netanyahu
Israeli forces are getting ready for the ground operation into Gaza, but will not tell anyone when it will be, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday.
When soldiers enter Gaza, they’ll “exact the full price from these murderers,” Netanyahu said in Hebrew.
“I once again call on the uninvolved population in Gaza to evacuate to the southern strip,” he said.
Netanyahu also said Israel will “do everything possible to bring hostages home.”
“We are gathering the support of world leaders,” he added. “Our fight against Hamas is also their fight.”
Oct 25, 12:52 PM EDT
Gaza shelters 4 times over their capacities: UNRWA
Shelters in Gaza are four times over their capacities, forcing many people to sleep in the streets, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
Nearly 600,000 displaced Gaza residents are sheltering at 150 UNRWA facilities, the agency said.
Oct 25, 12:41 PM EDT
Tuesday marks deadliest day in Gaza since conflict began
Tuesday marked the deadliest day in Gaza since the Hamas-Israel conflict began on Oct. 7, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
At least 700 people died on Tuesday, OCHA said.
Over 6,500 people have died in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
Oct 25, 11:40 AM EDT
Gaza to run out of fuel Wednesday night: UNRWA
Gaza is set to run out of fuel Wednesday night, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
“If we do not get fuel urgently, we will be forced to halt our operations in the Gaza Strip” Wednesday night, UNRWA said.
Oct 25, 11:29 AM EDT
UN secretary-general responds to Israeli ambassador’s criticism
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is responding to the Israeli ambassador’s call for him to resign, saying it’s false to accuse him of “justifying” Hamas’ attacks.
At the U.N. Security Council meeting on Tuesday, Guterres asserted that “the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” sparking immediate backlash from Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Gilad Erdan.
“The Secretary-General is completely disconnected from the reality in our region and that he views the massacre committed by Nazi Hamas terrorists in a distorted and immoral manner,” Erdan said. “His statement that, ‘The attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,’ expressed an understanding for terrorism and murder.”
Experts breakdown Israel-Hamas conflict
“It’s truly sad that the head of an organization that arose after the Holocaust holds such horrible views,” Erdan said.
Guterres said at the U.N. Wednesday, “I am shocked by the misinterpretations by some of my statement yesterday in the Security Council, as if I was justifying acts of terror by Hamas. This is false. It was the opposite. In the beginning of my intervention yesterday, I clearly stated — and I quote: ‘I have condemned unequivocally the horrifying and unprecedented 7 October acts of terror by Hamas in Israel. Nothing can justify the deliberate killing, injuring and kidnapping of civilians, or the launching of rockets against civilian targets.'”
“Indeed, I spoke of the grievances of the Palestinian people,” Guterres continued. “And in doing so, I also clearly stated, and I quote: ‘But the grievances of the Palestinian people cannot justify the appalling attacks by Hamas.'”
Oct 25, 11:10 AM EDT
Gaza hospital ‘will turn into a big morgue,’ doctor warns
In Gaza, where the “health system is collapsing,” doctors “cannot offer much” to their hundreds of severely wounded patients, Dr. Mohammed Ghandil from Gaza’s Nasser Hospital told ABC News.
“The hospital door is open, but the health care is not provided,” Ghandil said.
“We are just giving some peaceful words for them to die,” he said.
The World Health Organization said Tuesday that one-third of hospitals in Gaza and two-thirds of clinics were not functioning.
More than 17,000 people in Gaza have been wounded since Oct. 7.
“Even the medical patient [who] was not wounded, who came with heart attack, with stroke, with sepsis, we’re just sending them home because there is no bed in the hospital,” he said. “The hospital corridors, the hospital backyards, the hospital balcony are fully, fully packed with the severely wounded.”
Gaza is set to run out of fuel Wednesday night, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
“If the fuel is zero,” Ghandil said, “the doctors and the nurses will go home and the hospital will turn to a big morgue.”
ABC News’ Somayeh Malekian
Oct 25, 10:31 AM EDT
‘Some progress’ in hostage negations, Qatar says
“Some progress” has been made as Qatar continues its hostage negotiations with Hamas, Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said at a news conference.
“If we compare where we started and where we are right now, there is some progress and some breakthrough and we will remain hopeful,” he said. “The negotiations are still ongoing and at any moment of time, I think that if we will be able to get along between the two parties, I think we will see some breakthroughs hopefully soon.”
Israel reported that 222 hostages were taken by Hamas. Four hostages have been released in the last week: two American women and two Israeli women.
Oct 25, 10:01 AM EDT
UN meeting Thursday to debate Israel-Hamas war
The United Nations General Assembly will be called back into an emergency special session in New York on Thursday morning to debate the Israel-Hamas war.
The general assembly could vote on moves, including a humanitarian pause in Gaza and the establishment of an international protective presence in Gaza.
Oct 25, 5:35 AM EDT
IDF says it targeted Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian military in ‘wide-scale strikes’
The Israel Defense Forces said Wednesday morning that it has carried out “wide-scale strikes” in the neighboring Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours.
The Israeli airstrikes hit Hamas infrastructure, including tunnels, military headquarters and weapons warehouses, as well as “several terrorists,” including a Hamas commander, according to the IDF.
The IDF said it also killed five Hezbollah militants in neighboring Lebanon who tried to launch missiles and rockets against Israeli forces in the last day.
Two rockets were fired into Israel from neighboring Syria and the IDF said it responded by attacking infrastructure and positions of the Syrian military.
Oct 24, 7:28 PM EDT
US intelligence assess ‘with high confidence’ that Israel was not responsible for Gaza hospital explosion
An official with the U.S. Office of the Director of Intelligence told reporters Tuesday that the office has updated its assessment of last week’s explosion of al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza, which killed hundreds, and stated “with high confidence that Israel was not responsible for the explosion.”
The official added, “We assess with low confidence that Palestine Islamic Jihad, PIJ, was responsible for launching the rocket that landed on the hospital,” the official added, noting that they suspect based on their analysis that the rocket responsible likely suffered a “catastrophic motor failure.”
The intelligence official said they were drawing on “intelligence, missile activity, open-source video and images of the incident,” including an examination of the blast effects.
“If an Israeli munition was responsible for this blast, we would expect that Palestinian militants would be very directly and clearly showing what they thought was an Israeli munition,” the official said. “We’ve looked at all of the images and in none of them do we assess that there are remnants, Israeli munitions.”
Oct 24, 5:45 PM EDT
US engaging in ongoing talks to release a number of hostages: Source
Talks are ongoing between the U.S. and regional partners, including Israel, Egypt, and Qatar to secure the release of a large number of hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza, a source with knowledge told ABC News.
The U.S. is still advising for a delay to have more time for the hostages to be released and for aid to get out, but does not want to appear to be dictating what to do to the Israelis, according to the source.
-ABC News’ Selina Wang
Oct 24, 4:12 PM EDT
Blinken updates number of Americans killed
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that 33 Americans were confirmed dead after the Hamas terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 24, 3:39 PM EDT
How the ‘law of war’ could apply to an Israeli ground invasion of Gaza
With Israel appearing to be on the cusp of a ground invasion into Gaza, President Joe Biden and other world leaders this week said the Jewish state has the right to defend itself against the recent brutal attacks by Hamas.
At the same time, they warned, Israel must abide by the “law of war” in protecting innocent Palestinians living in Gaza.
But with the prospect of hundreds, if not thousands more Palestinian civilians killed, can Israel do both? And could either Israel or Hamas be prosecuted for war crimes?
Click here to read what you need to know about international humanitarian laws and how they apply in the Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza.
-ABC News’ Anne Flaherty
Oct 24, 3:28 PM EDT
Kirby: Israel needs to ‘consider possibility of humanitarian pause’
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Tuesday a “ceasefire right now really only benefits Hamas.”
When asked if the U.S. has set or discussed any red lines with the Israelis, he said simply, “No.”
But when pressed to elaborate on Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments that “humanitarian pauses must be considered,” he said, “pauses in operation is a tool and a tactic” that can protect civilians for temporary periods of time.
Later when asked, Kirby said Blinken talked about the need to “consider the possibility of a humanitarian pause, to allow aid to get in — and get in unfettered — and to allow for the safe movement of people out.”
-ABC News’ Selina Wang
Oct 24, 2:12 PM EDT
Gaza to run out of fuel Wednesday night: UNRWA
Gaza is set to run out of fuel Wednesday night, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
“If we do not get fuel urgently, we will be forced to halt our operations in the Gaza Strip as of tomorrow night,” the agency said.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan said, “We know for sure that there’s plenty of fuel in Gaza. Hamas has stored fuel in advance, and is stealing fuel from both civilians and the U.N. to power its war machine against Israel.”
Oct 24, 1:45 PM EDT
20 more aid trucks cross Rafah: Egyptian officials
Twenty more aid trucks crossed the Egypt-Gaza Rafah border on Tuesday and are now headed to the Israel-Egypt Nitzana Border Crossing for inspection, according to Egyptian officials.
It is not clear if the trucks have reached Gaza yet, where humanitarian conditions are worsening by the day, but these new trucks will bring the total to 74 aid trucks crossing through over the last four days.
The Rafah border crossing was shut on Oct. 10 after it was hit by Israeli warplanes on the Palestinian side three times on Oct. 9 and 10.
The crossing has briefly opened each day since Saturday, permitting a small amount of aid to enter Gaza.
Asked by a reporter if humanitarian aid is getting to Gaza fast enough, President Joe Biden said Tuesday, “Not fast enough.”
Oct 24, 1:26 PM EDT
Israeli, Palestinian Authority foreign ministers speak out at UN Security Council meeting
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and the Palestinian Authority’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad al-Maliki, gave long, impassioned speeches at the United Nations Security Council meeting about the suffering their people are experiencing.
Cohen began by holding up photographs of the Israeli children kidnapped by Hamas, reading out their names and ages.
“They are just a few the many children and babies that have not seen evil. They have not caused evil. But they are victims of evil,” he said.
Cohen described Hamas as “the new Nazis” and said Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel should serve as “a wakeup call against extremism.”
Al-Maliki purported that Israel’s retaliation had equated to “ongoing massacres being deliberately, systematically, and savagely” perpetrated against Palestinians civilians.
“The Security Council has a duty to stop them,” he said. “It is our collective human duty to stop them now.”
He suggested that Israel’s campaign would ultimately lead to more conflict, saying “more injustice and more killing will not make Israel safer.”
The foreign minister argued that everyone on the council should be united behind one goal.
“We should be on the same side — all of us who believe in justice and peace,” he said. “We should stand shoulder to shoulder in these moments. But that is only possible if everyone recognizes the value of Palestinian life — the need to uphold Palestinian rights.”
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 24, 1:17 PM EDT
Blinken backs Israel but says ‘humanitarian pauses must be considered’
Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivered a forceful defense of Israel’s military actions at the United Nations Security Council, but Blinken said “humanitarian pauses must be considered” to protect civilians in Gaza — the administration’s strongest statement of a support for any type of halt in Israel’s efforts to vanquish Hamas.
“We must affirm the right of any nation to defend itself and to prevent such heart from repeating itself. No member of this council, no nation in this entire body. could or would tolerate the slaughter of its people,” Blinken said.
The secretary said every member of the U.N. has a “responsibility to denounce the member states that arm, fund and train Hamas or any other terrorist group that carries out such horrific acts,” reminding them that many other foreign nationals were also killed and kidnapped in its attacks.”
Blinken then turned to ongoing efforts to protect civilian lives, first emphasizing that Hamas is responsible for putting the innocent in harm’s way, before shifting to Israel’s responsibilities.
“Hamas must cease using them as human shields,” he said. “Israel must take all possible precautions to avoid harm to civilians. It means means food, medicine and water and other assistance must flow into Gaza and to the areas people need them. It means civilians must be able to get out of harm’s way. It means humanitarian pauses must be considered for these purposes.”
Previously, the State Department and other U.S. officials flatly rejected calls for any kind of ceasefir, arguing, as State Department spokesperson Matt Miller did Monday, that it would “give Hamas the ability to rest, to refit and to get ready to continue watching terrorist attacks against Israel.”
In his remarks, Blinken also detailed the administration’s efforts to prevent the conflict from spreading in the Middle East, but emphasized the threat posed by Iran and promised the U.S. would not allow attacks on Americans to go unanswered.
“We do not want this war to widen, but if Iran or its proxies attack U.S. personnel anywhere, make no mistake — we will defend our people, we will defend our security–swiftly and decisively,” he vowed.
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Oct 24, 11:54 AM EDT
784 slain in Israel identified, Israeli police say
The Israeli police said they’ve identified at least 784 people killed by Hamas.
Police said some bodies were in such bad condition that they have not yet been identified.
At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, according to Israeli authorities.
Oct 24, 11:35 AM EDT
US sends 3-star Marine general to advise Israel
The Biden administration has sent Lt. Gen. James Glynn, a three-star Marine general who is currently serving as the head of Marine personnel, to Israel to advise the country on its military operations, according to a U.S. official.
The news was first reported by Axios on Monday.
Glynn is “not directing operations” but rather is “purely there to provide military advice and pose hard questions to help [the Israel Defense Forces] think through various scenarios,” the U.S. official told ABC News.
The official said Glynn was in Israel “temporarily” and was not expected to still be there when a ground operation starts.
ABC News’ Ben Gittleson
Oct 24, 11:30 AM EDT
Fuel ‘most vital commodity’ in Gaza, WHO says
Fuel is now the “most vital commodity” in Gaza, according to the World Health Organization.
The limited aid trucks trickling into Gaza have not included any fuel, the organization said. Before Oct. 7, hundreds of trucks entered Gaza every day, including about 45 trucks bringing fuel, said Tamara Alrifai, spokesperson for the U.N. agency for Palestine refugees.
Without fuel, “trucks can’t move and generators can’t produce electricity for hospitals, bakeries and water desalination plants,” said Alrifai.
Alrifai said the United Nations Relief and Works Agency would be responsible for delivering the fuel to hospitals and water desalination plants and keeping it out of Hamas’ hands.
The WHO said one in three hospitals in Gaza and two in three clinics are not functioning, with the health system overwhelmed by more than 16,000 injured people.
Dr. Rick Brennan, WHO emergencies director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region, said he’s begging “all those in a situation to make a decision or influence decision makers, to give us the humanitarian space to address this human catastrophe.”
Oct 24, 11:03 AM EDT
Underground hospital prepares to treat wounded IDF soldiers
In just two weeks, the space below Jerusalem’s Hadassah Hospital has been converted into an underground hospital, bracing for an influx of war casualties.
Rows of hospital beds and medical equipment have been set up in what was meant to be used as a parking garage.
“We have up to 130 beds here, including intensive care beds,” Dr. Tamar Elram, director of the Hadassha Mount Scopus Hospital, told ABC News. “Everything that we do here is in total cooperation and agreement with the army and with police and all the other security forces.”
The hospital has also been treating civilian victims, like Michal Alon, who was shot in the hand and chest by Hamas militants on Oct. 7 and is now embarking on the long road to recovery, both physically and emotionally.
Israeli hospital prepares for war casualties
“We’ve already got soldiers and civilians who are turning to our ERs, two and a half weeks after the terror attack, starting to suffer from acute post-traumatic syndrome,” Elram said.
Elram says one of the biggest challenges they’ve faced in preparing for what’s to come includes manpower. Some staffers are leaving the hospital to go serve in the Israeli military.
ABC News’ Guy Davies and Ines De La Cuetara
Oct 24, 9:07 AM EDT
Hostages influencing Israeli military’s operational plans, spokesperson says
Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col Peter Lerner confirmed that hostages are influencing the plans of Israel’s forces.
“Of course the presence of the hostages is at the top of our priority list,” Lerner told ABC News. “It is obviously influencing our operational capabilities, operational plans.”
Lerner said that while the military has been given the “green light” to go into Gaza, they have not officially been given the command to “go” from the government.
Asked if the window for an operation into Gaza will close, Lerner responded, “There is no choice for Israel.”
Learner also said Israeli forces are actively trying to assassinate Hamas’ leader in Gaza, Yahye Sinwar, but they haven’t found him yet.
As the humanitarians conditions in Gaza become more dire by the day, Lerner said fuel will not be among the aid trickling into Gaza.
“Hamas has over a million liters of fuel in their stockpiles in Gaza — they are actually not far away from Rafah. All they need to do is give some to the hospitals,” he said.
Oct 24, 8:29 AM EDT
Parents describe watching video of Hamas taking son hostage
The father of 23-year-old Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was taken hostage by Hamas at the Supernova music festival, said he has gained some “strength” from seeing a video of his son on the day of the attack.
“No parent should ever be subjected to this sight,” Jon Polin said on ABC News’ Good Morning America on Tuesday.
Polin and Rachel Goldberg’s son was wounded in the Oct. 7 attack. He had been hiding with a group in a bomb shelter and witnesses saw him being loaded into the back of a Hamas pickup truck, his parents told ABC News earlier this month.
Goldberg-Polin’s parents said on Tuesday they have since seen a video in which their son leaves the bomb shelter.
“Knowing he spent an hour to an hour and a half being subjected to this massacre and he then gets up with an arm freshly blown off and walks on his own two feet, under his own strength, towards this truck and uses his weak hand, his only hand now, to pull himself onto the truck while bloodied, but looking sort of composed,” Polin said. “It gives me a sense of, he’s got a perseverance and fortitude that we hope carries him through this.”
Oct 24, 8:25 AM EDT
Gaza hospitals as ‘dire as it can be’
Hospitals in Gaza are “horrific scenes,” filled with killed and injured children and “medical staff working 24/7 with almost nothing in terms of resources and equipment,” said Dr. Ashraf al-Qudra, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Gaza.
Seventy-percent of the victims are children, women and the elderly, according to the health ministry.
The ministry said 12 hospitals and 32 health centers are out of service, with those numbers expected to rise as airstrikes continue and Gaza runs out of fuel.
“It’s dire as it can be. The scenes inside the hospital are almost indescribable — one of our doctors recently had to do an operation on the floor, in the corridor of the hospital, because there was nowhere to do it. The situation is untenable, absolutely horrific,” al-Qudra said.
Oct 24, 6:52 AM EDT
‘Through hell,’ released Hamas hostage says of days in captivity
After Yocheved Lifschitz, 85, was taken hostage by Hamas militants, she was brought into a “huge network” of underground tunnels, which she described on Tuesday as being “like a spider’s web.”
“I’ve been through hell,” Lifschitz told gathered reporters in the lobby of the Tel Aviv hospital where she’s being treated.
As Lifschitz spoke in Hebrew, her daughter translated her words into English.
The 85-year-old had been taken by motorcycle on Oct. 7, carried away through fields while her captors struck her with sticks and removed her watch and jewellery, she said. She was made to walk a few kilometers to the entrance of one of the many tunnels Hamas has built under Gaza.
She said she was kept during her captivity in a “clean” location, where doctors visited every few days. Medicine was available, she said.
She slept on a mattress on one of the tunnel’s floors. She ate white cheese, cucumbers and pita bread, she said.
Oct 24, 1:06 AM EDT
Three Hamas deputy commanders killed: IDF
The Israel Defense Forces said Tuesday morning that three Hamas deputy commanders were killed Monday night.
“During the night, IDF aircraft also attacked operational headquarters used by operatives of the terrorist organization Hamas and assembly points of the terrorist organization located inside mosques,” the IDF said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
The deputy commander of the Nusirat battalion, the deputy commander of the Shati battalion and the deputy commander of the Alfurkan battalion of Hamas were killed, the IDF said in the post.
Oct 23, 10:27 PM EDT
Biden speaks with Netanyahu about hostages’ release, humanitarian assistance for Gaza
President Joe Biden spoke with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday afternoon, once again addressing his commitment to efforts to “secure the release of all remaining hostages taken by Hamas – including Americans – and to provide for safe passage for U.S. citizens and other civilians in Gaza,” according to a White House readout of the call. Biden welcomed the news of the two hostages who were released earlier on Monday, per the readout.
During the call, Biden also “underscored the need to sustain a continuous flow of urgently needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” according to the readout.
Biden also spoke with Netanyahu about U.S. support for Israel and what the White House said was “ongoing efforts at regional deterrence, to include new U.S. military deployments.”
Oct 23, 6:06 PM EDT
Kirby warns of uptick in Iran-linked attacks
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Monday that in recent days there had been “an uptick in rocket and drone attacks by Iranian-backed proxy groups against military bases housing U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria.”
“We know Iran continues to support Hamas and Hezbollah, and we know Iran is closely monitoring these events and in some cases, actively facilitating attacks and spurring on others who may want to exploit for their own good, or for that of Iran,” Kirby said.
Kirby said Iran tries to “maintain some level of deniability here, but we’re not going to allow them to do that.”
He added that there is still no direct evidence that Iran was involved in Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel.
Following a brief virtual meeting with CEOs on Saturday, November 4, SAG-union leaders continued on Sunday to weigh the studios’ final offer. “We received an offer today from the AMPTP, which they characterized as their “Last, Best, and Final Offer, ” the SAG-AFTRA Theatrical Committee said in a statement obtained by ABC Audio. “We are reviewing it and considering our response within the context of the critical issues addressed in our proposals.” The studios have previously claimed they need to complete a deal no later than the beginning of November to salvage the 2024 TV and movie slate…
Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s live-action take on the animated movie How to Train Your Dragon is the latest casualty of the SAG-AFTRA strike, with the studios revealing the strike has forced them to move the release date from March 14, 2025 to June 13, 2025, according to Deadline. The fantasy series — which includes 2010’s How to Train Your Dragon, 2014’s How to Train Your Dragon 2 and 2019’s How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World — has grossed more than $1.6 billion worldwide and spawned the TV series DreamWorks Dragons, Rescue Riders and The Nine Realms, as well as theme park rides and the live show, How to Train Your Dragon on Ice…
Peter White, the actor best known for his role in The Boys in the Band, as well as a recurring stint in All My Children, died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles of melanoma, his All My Children castmate Kathleen Noone told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 86. White also played Arthur Cates, the attorney for Stephanie Beacham‘s Sable Colby on the first two seasons of the ABC primetime soap The Colbys in 1985-86, recurring as the late father of Swoosie Kurtz, Sela Ward, Patricia Kalember and Julianne Phillips characters on the 1991-96 NBC drama Sisters. White’s other TV credits include Hill Street Blues, The Jeffersons, Dynasty, Knots Landing to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The X-Files and The West Wing. His film appearances include Flubber, Armageddon and First Daughter…
Christine Hahn/AEG Presents/Resorts World/Concerts West
Katy Perry bid farewell to PLAY, her Las Vegas residency, with a star-studded audience that included Céline Dion, Prince Harry and Megan Markle.
In a video captured by a fan who attended the Saturday, November 4 finale, Prince Harry and Meghan were spotted among the crowd seated beside Perry’s fiancé, Orlando Bloom. Prince Harry appeared utterly captivated by the stage performance, while Meghan was seen grooving to the music from a row behind.
In another photograph, Prince Harry and Meghan looked like they were lining up to talk to Céline.
One attendee even documented their experience meeting Céline on X, formerly known as Twitter, as “the best moment of my life thus far,” sharing that they were able to “meet & talk with the legendary icon.”
The appearance marked a rare public appearance by Céline since she was diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome in 2022. The rare neurological syndrome causes muscle stiffness and painful spasms. Last week, she visited the Montreal Canadiens hockey team in their locker room after they played the Las Vegas Golden Knights in Sin City.
Katy’s three-year-old daughter Daisy, who she shares with Bloom, was also in attendance at the grand finale of the residency at Resorts World, which saw her perform chart-toppers like “California Girls,” “Roar,” and “Firework.”
Tyson Chicken Nuggets Fully Cooked bag (Frozen). Food Safety and Inspection Service — USDA
(NEW YORK) — Tyson Foods is voluntarily recalling almost 30,000 pounds of its dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets due to possible contamination of foreign materials, specifically metal pieces, according to a press release issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service on Saturday.
The specific items subjected to the recall are for 29-ounce plastic bag packages containing “fully cooked fun nuggets breaded shaped chicken patties” with a best by date of Sept. 2, 2024, according to the USDA. The products were distributed and sold in Alabama, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin and bear establishment number “P-7211” on the back of the package.
Tyson alerted USDA after receiving complaints from consumers who found small metal pieces in the products, said the agency, which added there has been “one reported minor oral injury” associated with consumption of the food, but no other additional injuries reported so far.
Tyson Foods did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Officials from USDA expressed their concern that some consumers may have some of the chicken nuggets stored in their freezers and are urging them not to consume the products, return the items to the place of purchase or throw them out.
In a press release posted on its website, Tyson Foods said some of its consumers reported they found “small, pliable metal pieces in the product” and the company decided to recall the products “out of an abundance of caution.”
The company also advised purchasers to cut the UPC and date code from the packaging, discard the product and call or text 1-855-382-3101.
Last year, Tyson Fresh Meats recalled about 93,697 pounds of raw ground beef products, saying the items may be contaminated with “extraneous materials, specifically reflective mirror-like material,” USDA announced. At the time, the agency and company told consumers not to eat the contaminated ground beef, however, there were no confirmed reports of injury or illness from the recalled beef.
Matthew Perry was laid to rest on Friday, November 3, with his Friends co-stars — Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer all in attendance.
Perry’s former castmates paid their respects, along with family and friends, in a private ceremony at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles, not far from Warner Bros. Studios where he filmed Friends, according to Entertainment Tonight.
The 54-year-old actor, known for playing Chandler Bing on the hit sitcom, which ran from 1994-2004, died on the afternoon of October 28 in his Pacific Palisades home.
The Friends cast remained close following the show’s series finale and reunited onscreen in the 2021 special, Friends: The Reunion.
“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” Aniston, Cox, LeBlanc and Schwimmer said in a joint statement obtained by ABC News on October 30. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”
“In time we will say more, as and when we are able,” the statement continues. “For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”
(WASHINGTON) — While a major Republican event down in Florida saw boos and cheers, former President Donald Trump faced mounting legal challenges to his candidacy because of the 14th Amendment — an argument he totally rejects — and Trump’s rival Joe Biden sought to play down some notably poor new poll numbers.
Here’s a recap of major 2024 campaign updates over the last week:
‘Boos’ and cheers at the Florida Freedom Summit
On Saturday, Republican presidential hopefuls took the stage at the annual Florida Freedom Summit in Kissimmee. Hosted by the state GOP, the event featured a lineup of officials and conservative voices as well as some of the biggest names in the 2024 race.
The GOP primary’s most anti-Trump candidates didn’t shy away from condemning the former president in his home state. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie were both met with raucous “boos” from the audience as they called for new leadership in the Republican Party.
Hutchinson — who was also shouted at to “go home” by one attendee — predicted that Trump is likely to be convicted of a felony in one of four criminal cases, citing his own experience as a federal prosecutor.
Trump has denied all wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty. He has dismissed criticism from the likes of Christie and Hutchinson, as when he’s called Christie a “failed” candidate.
Christie, who has seemingly relished building his campaign in part around an anti-Trump message, invited the “boos” as they poured over him in Florida, noting that “it feels like home.” He continued through shouts of “loser” and “traitor,” sternly telling the audience that such behavior “will not solve one problem we face in this country and will not make this country better.”
“You can yell and boo about it as much as you’d like,” he said. “But it doesn’t change the truth, and the truth is coming.”
Another candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, made his case to be the next standard-bearer of the GOP, touting how conservatives in the state have won a slew of elections and overseen major policy shifts since he’s been in office. This time, cheers came from the crowd.
“You think of what’s happened, and I don’t think that there’s a parallel anywhere in the modern history of the Republican Party than what’s happened in the state of Florida over these last five years,” DeSantis said.
Former President Trump, in his own remarks, sought to attack DeSantis but faced a less receptive audience. After praising multiple Republican governors, except DeSantis, the crowd began to chant, “Florida, Florida,” leaving Trump to stand there and smirk.
Still, though, fervent support for Trump was not missing. MAGA flags, purses and stickers were on full display.
Both Biden and Trump have major favorability issues, new poll shows
A year out from the 2024 presidential election and the race’s leading candidates — President Biden and Trump — are nonetheless not viewed favorably by Americans, a new ABC News/Ipsos poll shows.
Only 33% of Americans view Biden favorably, and even less, 29%, view Trump favorably. Biden’s favorability among Black (49%) and Hispanic (33%) Americans is also low, which likely comes as a considerable concern for Democrats since these groups overwhelmingly supported him in 2020, according to exit polling.
Similarly, a large majority of Americans (76%) believe that the country is headed in the wrong direction. And Americans are more likely to trust Republicans to do a better job on the top issues they identified: the economy and inflation.
Those numbers underline what has been an unusual dynamic throughout the 2024 race so far: While Biden and Trump continue to lead in primary polls, other surveys show the general public is seemingly unhappy with them both — and the potential for a rematch.
Separately, and similarly likely to provoke alarm for Democrats, a new New York Tmes/Siena College poll that surveyed registered voters in key battleground states found that in hypothetical matchups between Biden and Trump, the former president comes out on top in most of them.
Trump edges out Biden in the poll’s theoretical contest in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania, with Biden taking Wisconsin by a slim margin. Biden won all five states in 2020.
Registered voters in the swing states were also asked how they would vote in the case of another Democratic nominee, such as an unnamed generic alternative or someone like Vice President Kamala Harris — and both options polled better than Biden.
Biden’s campaign said in a statement that they wouldn’t be “fretting” about the new polls, pointing both to Democrats’ unexpected success in the 2022 midterms, when Biden was also unpopular, and unfavorable polls in 2011 for former President Obama before he was reelected in 2012.
“Predictions more than a year out tend to look a little different a year later,” Biden campaign spokesperson Kevin Munoz said in a statement.
14th Amendment challenges to keep Trump off the ballot are moving ahead
Last week, hearings in Colorado and Minnesota were held as groups of voters attempt to keep Trump off the ballot in their states, arguing that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution prohibits him from holding office because of Jan. 6
Supporters of this theory argue it applies to Trump because of his conduct after he lost the 2020 election but sought to reverse the results, including on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021. Previous such efforts focused on other Republicans have failed, except in New Mexico, where a local commissioner convicted of trespassing at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was booted from his office.
Trump has rejected the 14th Amendment outright and his attorneys have labeled it “anti-democratic.”
A district judge in Denver heard five days of testimony about the matter while in Minnesota, the state Supreme Court heard arguments on Thursday.
A ruling in Colorado is expected this month. One of the main lawyers behind the challenge to Trump recently told ABC News that he expects the U.S. Supreme Court will have to weigh in.
Dean Phillips heads out on the trail
After launching his long shot Democratic presidential campaign in late October, Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips has been out on the trail in full force.
His primary bid against Biden has been criticized by some other Democrats who see it as an unnecessary — and possibly harmful — obstacle to preparing to run against Trump.
He’s also brushed off attacks that his early focus on New Hampshire disregards how Democrats are trying to pivot in their primary to focus on states like South Carolina and Michigan that they feel are more representative of their voters.
Phillips, a third-term lawmaker, former member of Democratic leadership in the House and a wealthy businessman in his own right, has said that he is concerned about the president’s age and the future of the Democratic Party. He’s said he had been urging Democrats to challenge Biden for months and is now doing it himself.
But that doesn’t mean he’ll stick around forever. “I’ll be clear – if my campaign is not viable after March 5th, I’ll wrap it up and endorse the likely nominee – Biden or otherwise,” he wrote on X on Saturday, in part. “I will then campaign for them as vigorously as I’m campaigning now. I’m not here for games.”
“I’m saying the quiet part out loud. Biden/Harris isn’t viable against Trump,” Phillips posted on X later in the weekend. “I will defeat Trump.”
ABC News’ Libby Cathey, Abby Cruz, Hannah Demissie, Devin Dwyer, Lalee Ibssa, Fritz Farrow, Isabella Murray, Oren Oppenheim and MaryAlice Parks contributed to this report.
