A mother and her three daughters were shot and killed in a domestic violence incident at a suburban Illinois home, authorities said.
Officers responded to a 911 call at the home in Tinley Park around 11:30 a.m. Sunday and found the four women dead, according to the public safety department in Tinley Park, about 30 miles south of Chicago.
A man was taken into custody and police recovered the gun used in the shooting, the department said.
The victims were identified as Majeda Kassem, 53; Halema Kassem, 25; Hanan Kassem, 24; and Zahia Kassem, 25, officials said.
An ice storm moving through parts of the U.S. on Monday is expected to cause serious travel disruptions.
Eleven states from Texas to Michigan are on alert for ice, freezing rain and mixed precipitation that could create a nightmare for many commuters. Ice storm warnings have been issued in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri.
The storm system is forecast to sweep through the Heartland and the South Monday morning, bringing freezing rain, sleet and heavy rain to Interstates 40, 35, 70, 80 and 90.
The ice is expected to end in the South by the afternoon as warmer air moves in with heavy rain. But icy conditions are forecast to continue into the evening for Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit and Cleveland.
Ice and snow are forecast to move into the Northeast on Tuesday morning and continue throughout the afternoon from Erie, Pennsylvania, to Buffalo, New York, and into Boston, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
Several inches of snow with a glaze of ice are expected from Pennsylvania to New York’s Hudson Valley to New England. Roads there could be slick during rush hour on Tuesday evening.
After the ice storm is over, rounds of heavy rain are forecast to pummel the South this week, with some areas getting up to a half a foot of rainfall from Texas to Mississippi, including Houston and New Orleans. Flash flooding and even severe weather with a chance of a few tornadoes will be possible along the Gulf Coast.
Meanwhile, heavy rain is heading to the West Coast.
A flood watch Monday spans from Sacramento in Northern California to San Diego in Southern California, where 2 to 4 inches of rainfall is expected.
Heavy, wet snow is in the forecast for the Sierra Nevada mountain range, where local snowfall amounts of 1 to 2 feet will be possible. The National Weather Service has issued an avalanche watch there for Monday.
The arctic air is set to depart areas east of the Rocky Mountains this week, with temperatures expected to reach well above normal from Kansas to New York. Temperatures could surpass 40 degrees in Chicago, 60 in Nashville and 50 in New York City.
Weeks after a mid-cabin door plug fell off during the ascent of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9, the FAA is recommending flight operators check another model of Boeing airplanes.
On Sunday night, the FAA issued a statement recommending operators of the Boeing 737-900ER “visually inspect mid-exit door plugs to ensure the door is properly secured.” In a statement late Sunday night, Boeing said it fully supports “the FAA and our customers in this action.”
The 737-900ER has the same door plug design as the 737 Max 9.
According to the FAA’s safety alert, some operators that were conducting additional inspections on their 737-900ER mid-exit door plugs “noted findings with bolts during the maintenance inspections.”
The FAA noted that the Boeing 737-900ER has over 11 million hours of operation and 3.9 million flight cycles, and the door plug has not been an issue. Major airlines that fly the Boeing 737-900ER include Alaska, Delta and United.
In a statement, United, which has 136 of the aircraft in its fleet, said it has “started proactive inspections” of its “Boeing 737-900ER aircraft earlier this week.” The company expects them to be concluded in the next few days. The airline said it expects no disruption to customers.
Alaska Airlines also issued a statement saying it began inspecting the 900 ER planes “several days ago.”
“We have had no findings to date and expect to complete the remainder of our -900ER fleet without disruption to our operations,” the statement read.
In its statement, Delta Airlines said, “we elected to take proactive measures to inspect our 737-900ER fleet. We’re in full compliance with regulation from federal authorities regarding the safety of our aircraft, and at this time we do not anticipate any operational impact.”
This will impact 380 aircraft across the world, a source told ABC News.
Earlier this month, the door plug fell out of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-Max 9 after the plane took off for Ontario, California, after departing Portland.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282, the airline previously said.
The cabin became depressurized shortly after takeoff, and the pilots asked for an emergency landing, according to the transcript of an air traffic control call from LiveATC.net.
The door was found several days later. The NTSB is investigating the incident.
(KATY, Texas) — Three people were killed and at least two people were injured during an overnight shooting at a home that may have been used as a short-term rental in Katy, Texas, law enforcement said.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said that reports for the shooting came in at about 2 a.m. Sunday morning, during a gathering that included up to about 20 people. Those who attended appear to have been in their 20s, officials said.
One man and one woman were pronounced deceased at the scene, and another man died at a local hospital, Gonzalez said.
Two others are receiving treatment at the hospital, though their conditions are unknown, Gonzalez said. Officials said they believe that others may have been transported privately to area hospitals.
Officials said they are still trying to determine how many people were involved in the shooting, Gonzalez said. Multiple people were shot inside the home, and there is evidence that rounds were fired on the street outside the home, according to law enforcement.
There is no known immediate threat to the public at this time, though officials are still trying to determine the motive for the shooting, Gonzalez said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who endorsed Donald Trump after suspending his own Republican presidential campaign, on Sunday tried to downplay the former president’s inflammatory new attacks on former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s name and heritage.
When pressed by ABC News “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Trump’s intentional mispronunciations of Haley’s first name — Nimarata — and elevation of a false conspiracy theory that she is unable to be president because her Indian immigrant parents weren’t citizens when she was born in South Carolina, Burgum initially did not give a direct answer.
But Raddatz followed up: “Please answer the question, sir. Answer the question about why you think Donald Trump is doing that.”
Trump has repeatedly misstated or mispronounced Haley’s first name, more often in social media posts. She goes by her middle name and took her husband’s last name after they married.
Trump has a history of racist attacks on some non-white opponents — including infamously questioning whether Barack Obama was born in the U.S. (he was) and singling out Obama’s middle name, Hussein.
Burgum on “This Week” chalked the comments up to more routine sharp exchanges in a campaign, pointing to how President Joe Biden has gone after Trump rather than, he argued, focusing more on key issues like crime, immigration and inflation.
“I think it’s politics,” Burgum said, adding, “That’s politics around the world, and it’s politics in America.”
“So, do you think that’s the kind of politics that Donald Trump is using, going after Nikki Haley’s heritage, that will bring the country together?” Raddatz asked.
“You could ask me the question about, you know, what did Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris say? The vicious things they said about Joe Biden, even during debates nationally televised within that party,” Burgum said, referencing some of Biden’s 2020 primary opponents. “This is all in the norm for politics in our country. But once we agree as parties, we get behind candidates. The Democrats got behind Biden in 2020. I’m confident Republicans are gonna get behind President Trump.”
Haley has also responded to Trump’s attacks.
“I know President Trump well. That’s what he does when he feels threatened. That’s what he does when he feels insecure,” she said during a CNN town hall on Thursday.
Burgum, who suspended his campaign in December after failing to gain traction, endorsed Trump earlier this month, one day before the Iowa caucuses that began the 2024 race.
On “This Week,” Burgum was asked about several areas in which he seemingly diverges from Trump, including a self-declared mission to pull the country together — while Trump has vowed “retribution” — and reaffirming that Biden won the 2020 race.
Burgum said he was endorsing Trump because he was “confident that President Trump is going to be right on the economy, right on energy policy and right on national security.”
“During the time that President Trump was in office, I mean, we had peace and prosperity in America. And under President Biden, we’ve got chaos around the world,” he said.
When Raddatz pressed Burgum over Trump’s repeated and unfounded claims that the 2020 election was “stolen,” a stance Burgum has opposed in the past, including an interview with ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, Burgum initially pivoted to past instances of other candidates raising questions about the election process.
He then cited “irregularities” regarding 2020, though there has never been any evidence of widespread fraud.
“Do you think the election was stolen now, sir?” Raddatz followed up.
“No, I’m not saying that,” Burgum responded.
“I’m saying that I think that we have to … make sure that Americans have confidence in these elections,” he said.
Burgum also swatted away a recent gaffe by Trump in which he repeatedly confused Haley with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi while discussing the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump and other Republicans have made repeated attacks on Biden’s age and fitness, which many voters also feel is poor, polls show — as Biden says his work speaks for itself.
Haley seized on Trump’s slip in a recent campaign appearance, suggesting he, too, might not be mentally strong enough.
“I’ve been on the campaign trail, and I know when you’re going around the clock, it’s possible to … use words that don’t fit in sentences,” Burgum told Raddatz. “But I would say having been with the president last week in Iowa and in New Hampshire and watching him go for 20 hours a day, I know that he’s got the strength, he’s got the experience to lead.”
(WASHINGTON) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was hailed for much of last year as a rising Republican star, is ending his presidential campaign after he failed to overtake rival Donald Trump in polling or in the early vote of the 2024 race.
DeSantis made his announcement in a four-and-a-half-minute video posted to X on Sunday with less than 48 hours until voting in New Hampshire’s primary, the second state in the nominating race.
“We don’t have a clear path to victory,” he said in the video, which he said was filmed in Florida.
His exit now leaves the primary battle as essentially a one-on-one contest between Trump and Trump’s former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who continues to trail Trump in polling and placed a distant third in the Iowa caucuses where DeSantis came in second (with 21%) to Trump’s first-place finish with 51%.
According to polls, Haley has her best chance at beating Trump in New Hampshire on Tuesday.
DeSantis on Sunday quickly endorsed Trump, a primary opponent whom he has increasingly criticized on the trail.
“It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance. … While I’ve had disagreements with Donald Trump, such as on the coronavirus pandemic and his elevation of [COVID-19 adviser] Anthony Fauci, Trump is superior to the current incumbent, Joe Biden. That is clear,” DeSantis said in his video. “I signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee and I will honor that pledge.”
DeSantis begins 2024 as a failed challenger to Trump, but he entered 2023 as the Republican seen as the most likely alternative to win the party’s presidential nomination.
After a dominant reelection to the Florida governor’s mansion in November 2022, winning by double digits in a famous swing state that had only barely elected him in 2018, DeSantis was buoyed through March 2023 by poll numbers that showed him less than 15 points behind Trump, according to 538.
DeSantis also often boasted of his track record of conservative victories in his state, where Republicans have increasingly won a number of local elections even as Trump-aligned candidates have struggled in high-profile races elsewhere in the country.
Among his achievements in Florida, he said, was his high-profile resistance to federal health authorities’ recommendations during the height of COVID-19 — which he likened to bureaucratic overreach — and his opposition to many K-12 students being instructed on LGBTQ issues, which he contended was often not age-appropriate.
The latter position, widely condemned as prejudiced by LGBTQ advocates, helped solidify DeSantis’ national profile as a Republican warrior but sparked a lengthy feud with The Walt Disney Company, ABC News’ parent company and one of the largest private employers in Florida.
Disney sued, claiming DeSantis and his allies retaliated against the company because it spoke out against the Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
As the battle wore on, DeSantis, who denied politically motivated retaliation, said the state had “basically moved on.” (Disney’s suit remains pending.)
In early 2023, before officially entering the presidential race, DeSantis used a new book — “The Courage to be Free” — to tout his wins in Florida while teasing that he would launch a White House bid after “the most productive legislative session” ever seen in his state.
But his official kickoff in May 2023, hosted by Elon Musk on X, formerly known as Twitter, was marred by glitches and soon evolved into a dense discussion on policy and culture war issues, the very things also came to define DeSantis’ campaign.
DeSantis’ stump speech on the trail was heavy with dense language like “indoctrination” and acronyms like “DEI,” or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that many conservatives oppose as unnecessarily race-conscious.
During the summer months, DeSantis ran an insular operation, keeping his distance from the mainstream press — just as he often did while running for reelection as governor — and holding his fire on Trump, the front-runner, only taking Trump on directly when asked by reporters or voters.
The strategy led to some awkward moments, as in New Hampshire in June, when he responded to a voter who asked him about Jan. 6 by saying, “I wasn’t anywhere near Washington that day.”
In the closing days and weeks of his campaign, DeSantis vocally criticized Trump’s record but was unable to build up much momentum in polls of Republican voters.
DeSantis also repeatedly endured cycles of negative headlines over staffing layoffs, infighting with his allied super PAC, which organized much of his campaigning, and his high rate of spending that saw him burn through a significant amount of his huge fundraising.
By the time the governor appeared to find his footing on the trail in the fall, his earlier strength in the polls had badly erode and he was hearing Haley’s footsteps. The former South Carolina governor delivered multiple well-received debate performances in the summer and fall and saw a steady uptick in the polls, even surpassing DeSantis in many surveys by the winter months as both sought to pitch themselves as the stronger Trump alternative.
DeSantis, responding to Haley’s rise, labeled her as less conservative — needing to prop up her campaign with anti-Trump voters outside the GOP base.
Haley on Sunday responded to the end of DeSantis’ campaign by praising him.
“I want to say to Ron: He ran a great race, he’s been a good governor and we wish him well,” she said.
“Having said that,” she added, “it’s now one fella and one lady left. … May the best woman win.”
An intense campaign schedule, and a bet on Iowa
DeSantis pitched himself to voters as the hardest-working candidate, and often had the receipts to prove it.
In late summer, DeSantis began campaigning intensely across Iowa, ticking off counties big and small as he sought to visit all 99 by the time of January’s caucus (he accomplished the feat by early December).
The tours through Iowa were led primarily by Never Back Down, the deep-pocketed super PAC supporting the governor.
Staff from the group guided DeSantis through each crevice of the state in a red and blue bus with his name stamped on each side.
The stops ranged from meeting the owners of a meat locker in rural Wright County, near the Minnesota border, to rallying in front of hundreds of supporters near the banks of the Mississippi River.
Along the way, DeSantis consistently chided Trump for not exerting the same effort, accusing the former president of taking voters for granted.
The governor’s problem, though, was that voters didn’t seem to care.
His deficit in FiveThirtyEight’s national polling average, already severe, widened, as did his marks in polls of Republicans in the early voting states.
By the end of the fall, DeSantis’ chance at the nomination had shrunk to one scenario: notch a stellar result in Iowa, whose evangelical Republican base was more aligned with his conservative policies in Florida, and hope that it would shatter Trump’s aura of invincibility.
With the backing of the state’s popular Republican governor, Kim Reynolds, and the evangelical leader, Bob Vander Plaats, DeSantis was confident in his chances.
Several times, he pledged to win the state.
Abby Cruz, Nicholas Kerr, Mike Pappano, Rachel Scott and Will Steakin contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — A top White House national security official is defending the repeated U.S. strikes on Houthis in Yemen, amid attacks by the militant group on international ships in the Red Sea, which has drawn America into a pattern of back-and-forth retaliatory operations.
“In terms of how this is playing out, I think one thing that’s important to keep in mind is deterrence is not a light switch,” the White House deputy national security adviser, Jon Finer, told ABC News “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday. “It requires a pattern and a practice of activity over time and can’t be accessed based on a snapshot of what’s happening at any given moment.”
Raddatz had asked Finer: “Where does this end? It’s in this stage of tit for tat.”
President Joe Biden acknowledged to reporters last week that the strikes weren’t stopping the Houthis but that they would continue.
“The purposes here go well beyond deterrence,” Finer told Raddatz. “We are also seeking to degrade the Houthis’ ability to continue launching these attacks.”
Since strikes on Red Sea ships began escalating in recent weeks, the U.S. has also announced an international task force to, essentially, help police the Red Sea area from further attacks.
The U.S. has taken diplomatic steps, too, Finer said on “This Week.”
“We’ve imposed sanctions on the Houthis, we have gotten dozens of countries to issue statements condemning their attacks,” he said.
Last week, the Biden administration announced that the Houthis would once again be classified as a terrorist organization, reimposing a designation the White House had earlier lifted out of concerns about how it could affect Yemen’s ongoing civil war.
“This is not an attack just on the United States,” Finer said. “This is an attack on the entire global economy and the world is standing up and saying they won’t tolerate that.”
Both the Houthis in Yemen and Iran, whom the U.S. calls a key backer of the Houthis, have said they are carrying out strikes in response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza in order to take out Hamas in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack.
The altercations in the Red Sea, at Israel’s border with Lebanon and at U.S. military sites in Iraq and Syria, as well as elsewhere in the Middle East, have raised concerns that Israel’s war with Hamas could spill into a wider regional conflict.
That’s something the U.S. has maintained it doesn’t want.
At the same time, U.S. officials have said they must respond to strikes from Iranian-allied groups like the Houthis and others.
On Saturday, an American airbase in western Iraq came under fire from Iranian-backed fighters, military officials said. Finer, on “This Week,” said, “I’m not going to get ahead of any decisions the president may make, but you can be sure that we are taking this extremely seriously and we’ll have more to say about it soon.”
Raddatz asked Finer about the U.S. decision to not take more direct actions against Iran.
Finer said the U.S. rejects “the justification and the rationale that because there is a conflict going on between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, that entitles a group to take action, military actions, against the entire global economy, against shippers … that have nothing to do with that conflict.”
He went on to say that “we have held Iran responsible for this in a number of ways.”
“We have taken military action against sites in Iraq and Syria tied to [Iran], which supports these militias,” Finer said.
“I’m not going to sit here and say we are going to take this or that action ahead of decision-making,” he said, “but we have been quite clear and we have been quite willing to take action to hold Iran responsible for these attacks in the past.”
Raddatz also asked Finer about the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where Israel is continuing its now monthslong campaign against Hamas and where approximately 25,000 people have been killed, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
Finer said last month that the White House thinks Israel “did not show sufficient care for civilian life” in Northern Gaza — echoing what various other high-level Biden administration officials have been saying, trying to balance opposition to Hamas with public concern for Palestinian civilians.
Referring to his previous comments, Raddatz asked on Sunday, “Have things changed and what do we do about them?”
“We have stood up for Israel’s right to take defensive actions against Hamas so that this threat cannot be perpetrat[ed] against them again. But we’ve also been quite clear that the way in which Israel conducts this conflict is of great concern to us,” Finer said.
He told Raddatz that the U.S. had seen a a recent “shift” in the fighting in which Israel has begun “to focus more on high-value targets, on Hamas leadership.”
Still, “There needs to be more humanitarian assistance going into Gaza,” Finer said.
And while he called out “small but consequential steps” like progress with a border crossing opening and the arrival of some goods, he said that was “not enough.”
“And so we’re gonna continue to put the pressure on and continue to try to work day in, day out, in excruciating detail to make sure that the humanitarian assistance in Gaza is improved as this conflict shifts to a different phase,” Finer said.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden’s campaign is dismissing threats that a third-party candidacy, like a potential No Labels “unity” ticket, could siphon crucial votes from him in a close election in November, arguing that voters won’t be “fooled” by those options.
“At the end of the day, there’s only going to be two parties that have an ability to get to 270 electoral votes and that’s going to be Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee and whoever emerges from the extreme Republican primary that’s going on right now,” Quentin Fulks, the Biden campaign’s principal deputy manager, told ABC News “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday.
“So, you know, look, we’re gonna stay focused on the issues and make this about freedom and democracy,” Fulks continued. “The Americans that have the most at stake understand that and they’re not going to be fooled by anything else.”
The Biden campaign’s projected confidence comes as Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who is mounting a long-shot primary challenge against the president, recently said for the first time that he would consider accepting No Labels’ nomination if the election becomes a rematch between Biden and former President Donald Trump and it looked like Biden was “almost certain to lose.”
That’s a reversal for Phillips, who had said that if he loses in the Democratic primary, he would support Biden.
No Labels is a group that is fielding a possible bipartisan “unity” third-party ticket.
While Fulks said Sunday that third-party groups do not pose a major risk of spoiling Biden’s campaign, Biden himself said last fall that the group would “help the other guy,” in reference to Trump.
No Labels officials have insisted they don’t want to run a ticket merely to hurt Biden over Trump.
Fulks said Sunday that the campaign is approaching the race as two-way matchup between Biden and the eventual Republican nominee and will work to create a split-screen of their policy differences.
“Our campaign is going to continue to make sure that we’re delivering a message to draw that contrast about what this election is all about and that’s restoring democracy and protecting freedoms for millions of Americans across this country,” Fulks told Raddatz.
But, while the 2024 campaign is only still ramping up, Biden is running with weak approval numbers and what polling shows is widespread voter sentiment that he’s too old and without enough mental sharpness or physical health to serve in office.
Something else that could spell trouble for Biden in November is a potential underperformance with Black voters, who are core to the Democratic Party’s base and whose support appears to be softening in the polls.
Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, a close Biden ally, recently said he was “very concerned” about Black voters showing up for the president.
The campaign has tried to push back, with Vice President Kamala Harris telling ABC News in an exclusive interview last week that they are responding to the community’s needs.
Fulks argued on “This Week” that Biden’s administration has done more for African Americans than any other, citing an increase in Black wealth and a shrinking of the racial wealth gap.
He told Raddatz that the campaign is working to “send a clear signal that, one, we don’t take them for granted; two, we recognize that we need to earn their support in this campaign and communicate with them … all the work that this administration has done to make their lives better.”
Selling the administration’s record is also the campaign’s plan to counter the voter concerns about Biden’s advanced age, Fulks said. The president would be 86 at the end of a second term. (Biden is just three years older than Trump.)
“We have a simple formula for that and that’s results,” Fulks said. “Age equals wisdom equals results and experience.”
“This election is not going to be about age,” Fulks maintained. “This election is about freedom and democracy and the fact that Democrats, under President Biden’s leadership, believe that people deserve more freedom, not less and Republicans want to roll that back and rip it away.”
Raddatz followed up, however, to note that “that is what your opponents are hammering about President Biden. Donald Trump talks about it constantly.”
“I’m sure it’s much easier for them to talk about age than it is to talk about the fact that they want to rip away a woman’s right to choose or take away reproductive freedom from a third of women across this country that are living under national abortion ban because of Donald Trump,” Fulks responded.
(MANCHESTER, N.H.) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ended his presidential campaign on Sunday amid dour poll numbers in New Hampshire and South Carolina, marking a major shift in the primary field and the downfall of a politician once seen as former President Donald Trump’s chief rival.
Meanwhile, Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are growing increasingly combative on the trail ahead of New Hampshire’s primary on Tuesday, where polls show Haley has her best chance at beating Trump.
As Trump defends his racially charged attacks on Haley based on her name, Haley has been going after Trump over his age and, she argues, his decline in mental stamina.
Here’s where the trail stands with less than two days before New Hampshire votes.
DeSantis leaves the race
DeSantis announced in a video shared to social media that he was leaving the race for president, marking the exit of another major candidate shortly before Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary. The race essentially consists of Trump and Haley.
DeSantis in the video endorsed Trump while noting disagreements with the former president over issues like his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
His departure will now see his support in New Hampshire divvied up by the remaining field. Trump is looking to build an early winning streak, after last week’s Iowa caucuses, while Haley is looking at her best chance to best Trump, per state polling, which shows her a relatively close No. 2.
Trump won more than 50% of the vote Iowa, and DeSantis — who had previously projected he would win there — got a distant second place, with 21%. That was a major setback for a rising Republican star who had cruised to reelection in 2022 in a famous swing state where he built a track record as a successful, often hard-line conservative.
DeSantis’ decision to leave the race had been the subject of mounting speculation this weekend after he canceled high-profile scheduled appearances on Sunday on NBC and CNN and on WMUR, a New Hampshire TV station.
He had also been set to spend most of this weekend campaigning in South Carolina in events hosted by his allied super PAC, Never Back Down, but then planned to return to New Hampshire on Sunday for an event in Manchester.
DeSantis’ campaign even insisted less than a day before that he would remain in the race.
“The media hits were canceled due to a scheduling issue and will be rescheduled. The governor will be traveling Sunday morning with the campaign and has public events scheduled Sunday evening through Tuesday in NH,” campaign spokesperson Bryan Griffin posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Trump and Haley go at it with different attacks
Trump has, more and more, been mispronouncing or misstating Haley’s given first name — Nimarata — in his social media posts and in public, echoing his repeated emphasis on Barack Obama’s middle name, Hussein.
Trump has also elevated the racist conspiracy theory that Haley is not eligible to be president of the United States because her Indian immigrant parents weren’t yet citizens when she was born in South Carolina. He infamously floated a similar baseless claim about Obama.
Asked about him mocking Haley’s name, Trump told Fox News’ Bret Baier on Sunday that he had done something similar to former primary opponent Asa Hutchinson.
“It’s a little bit of a take-off on her name and her name, wherever she may come from,” he said.
“I have fun with it. And sometimes to tell you the truth, it’s a very effective tool,” he added.
Haley brushed off Trump’s new slams, telling CNN on Thursday: “I know President Trump well. That’s what he does when he feels threatened. That’s what he does when he feels insecure.”
Trump dismissed that on Sunday. “I’m not concerned with her,” he told Baier.
Haley has also returned fire of her own, casting Trump, 77, as too old to return to the White House and questioning his mental acuity after he repeatedly confused her with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in recent comments about the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“The concern I have is — I’m not saying anything derogatory — but when you’re dealing with the pressures of a presidency, we can’t have someone else that we question whether they’re mentally fit to do it,” Haley said Saturday in New Hampshire. She has repeatedly indicated both Trump and President Joe Biden, who is 81, are too old for office.
She reiterated her criticism of Trump on Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
“You don’t be surprised if you have someone that’s 80 in office, their mental stability is going to continue to decline. That’s just human nature. We know that,” she said. “What I’m saying is, first of all, you’re talking about somebody who’s only going to be an office for four years. Secondly, you’re talking about someone who continues to I mean, look, I don’t know if he was confused. I don’t know what happened. But it should be enough to send us a warning sign.”
Biden’s campaign weighed in as well, with a sarcastic post on X that read “I don’t agree with Nikki Haley on everything, but we agree on this much: She is not Nancy Pelosi.”
On Saturday night, Trump said his mind is “stronger” than it was 25 years ago and jabbed at Biden, who has made a number of verbal gaffes and slip-ups himself.
Sununu boasts of Haley’s chances in NH but dodges on path forward
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, one of Haley’s top surrogates, boasted of her chances in his state — but he sounded less bullish when discussing her path forward beyond that race.
According to 538, Haley is behind Trump in New Hampshire by about 15 points, though she is banking on the state’s independent voters rallying to her over him.
“I’m looking at the next 72 hours,” Sununu said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “We’re going like gangbusters. She’s crisscrossing the state. She’s hitting every voter. She’s going everywhere.”
Still, when pressed on whether Haley would remain in the primary contest if she loses next month in her home state of South Carolina — where 538’s polling average shows Trump with a roughly 30-point advantage — Sununu demurred, saying that Haley could “build on momentum” from a strong finish in New Hampshire.
“I think after every state, you look at your campaign, obviously, but that’s a month away. I mean, it’s really a month away,” he said.
ABC News’ Gabriella Abdul-Hakim, Libby Cathey, Hannah Demissie, Fritz Farrow, Lalee Ibssa and Soo Rin Kim contributed to this report.
A man holds the body of a small child as he and others mourn while collecting the bodies of friends and relatives killed in an airstrike on January 13, 2024 in Rafah, Gaza. (Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza, freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on southern Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jan 21, 1:27 PM
IDF confirms death of kidnapped soldier
The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday announced that Sgt. Shay Levinson, who until now had been identified as a hostage, was killed in battle on Oct. 7 and his body is being held in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli officials say 532 IDF soldiers have been killed, including 195 since the ground operations in Gaza began.
-ABC News’ Anna Burd
Jan 21, 12:41 PM
Netanyahu says war to continue ‘on all fronts,’ rejects Hamas’ ‘terms of surrender’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will “continue the war on all fronts and in all sectors.”
“We do not give immunity to any terrorist — not in Gaza, not in Lebanon, not in Syria and not anywhere,” Netanyahu said in the statement Sunday, written in Hebrew.
The prime minster added, “Whoever tries to hurt us — we hurt him.”
Netanyahu said he’s working to secure the return of all the hostages “around the clock,” and added: “But to be clear: I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas.”
Netanyahu also said he had a conversation with President Joe Biden over the weekend, in which he emphasized “determination to complete all war objectives, and to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel,” according to the prime minister’s statement.
“That is why I insist that after we achieve complete victory, after we eliminate Hamas — there will be no factor in Gaza that finances terrorism, educator of terrorism or courier of terrorism,” Netanyahu said.
“Gaza must be demilitarized, under full security control of the State of Israel,” he said. “I will not compromise on full Israeli security control over all the territory west of Jordan.”
Netanyahu added he will continue to “firmly” stand by his insistence to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state for as long as he is prime minister.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Jan 21, 5:39 AM
More than 25,000 killed in Gaza, health ministry says
More than 25,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, the Gaza Ministry of Health said Sunday.
Citizens inspect a car that was destroyed by Israeli air strikes on Jan. 21, 2024 in Rafah, Gaza.
At least 62,681 people have been injured since the war began, said the ministry, which operates under the Hamas Authority.
A ministry spokesperson said at least 178 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last day.
-ABC News’ Nasser Atta and Edward Szekeres
Jan 20, 12:54 PM
Relatives of hostages protest outside Israeli PM’s home
Several relatives of hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza protested outside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home on Saturday, demanding the government take more steps to free the captives.
Some protesters camped out in front of his home, in the coastal town of Caesarea.
More than 130 hostages are still held in captivity, according to Israeli officials.
Jan 20, 12:01 PM
Fatal shooting of Palestinian-American teen in West Bank under investigation
The fatal shooting of a 17-year-old Palestinian-American in the West Bank on Friday remains under investigation, as mourners gathered Saturday for the teen’s funeral.
Tawfiq Ajaq was killed near the city of Ramallah, according to the Defense for Children International – Palestine advocacy group.
Israeli police said they received a report Friday regarding a “firearm discharge, ostensibly involving an off-duty law enforcement officer, a soldier and a civilian.” Police did not identify who fired the shot but described the shooting as taking place over people “purportedly engaged in rock-throwing activities” along a main highway.
Israeli police said its internal affairs department is investigating the incident.
An initial assessment by the Defense for Children International – Palestine also found that it was unclear who fired the shot that struck the teen.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed the death of a U.S. citizen civilian in the West Bank on Friday.
Asked about the incident at a briefing on Friday, U.S. National Security spokesman John Kirby said White House officials “don’t have perfect context about exactly what happened here” but are “seriously concerned about it.”
“We’re going to be in constant touch with counterparts in the region to get more information,” he said.
The teen’s funeral was held Saturday in the West Bank.
Jan 19, 3:18 PM
Biden speaks with Netanyahu in 1st known call in 27 days
President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Friday, according to the White House.
This was the first known call between the two leaders since Dec. 23, 2023.
Biden and Netanyahu spoke about a two-state solution, among other things, one day after Netanyahu expressed opposition to a Palestinian state.
“The president still believes in the promise and the possibility of a two-state solution,” White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Friday. “He recognizes that it’s going to take a lot of hard work. It’s going to take a lot of leadership, there in the region, particularly, on both sides of the issue. And the United States stands firmly committed to eventually seeing that outcome.”
“We’re not going to agree on everything,” Kirby said. He later added that Netanyahu’s comments will not change Biden’s “strong conviction” that “the best long-term solution for regional security, particularly the security of the Israeli people, is a free, independent Palestinian state that they can live in peace and security with — and this is an important caveat — with Israel’s security also guaranteed.”
Though Biden will continue to press for a two-state solution, “this isn’t about trying to twist somebody’s arm or force a change in their thinking,” Kirby said.
Kirby said Netanyahu’s comments did not trigger the two leaders’ Friday call.
“This was a call that we’ve been, actually, trying to land on the schedule for quite a bit of time,” he said.
ABC News’ Fritz Farrow
Jan 19, 11:43 AM
Teen boy shares story of being held hostage by Palestine Islamic Jihad
Yagil Yaacov, now 13, was 12 years old when he was kidnapped at knifepoint from his room at the Nahal Oz kibbutz on Oct. 7.
He told his captors — allegedly members of the Palestine Islamic Jihad — “Don’t take me, I’m too young,” according to his mother, Renana.
Yagil’s brother was also kidnapped and the two were separated. Yagil told ABC News in an exclusive interview that he was first taken to a safe house, and then to another home where he stayed for 30 days.
Yagil said during his time as a hostage he listened to some radio and learned a little Arabic to determine what was happening around him.
He was eventually reunited with his stepmother and brother.
Yagil’s father is still being held hostage.
ABC News’ Matt Gutman
Jan 18, 2:54 PM
Netanyahu voices opposition to Palestinian state in post-war Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced his opposition to a Palestinian state in a post-war Gaza.
“For 30 years I have been consistent — this conflict is not about the absence of a Palestinian state but about the existence of a Jewish state. Wherever we vacate territory, we receive terrorism,” he said at a news conference. “It happened in Judea and Samaria and it happened in Gaza. In any agreement, Israel must control all territory west of Jordan. This is what I say to our American friends: I stopped the possibility of a security breach in the State of Israel. This did not prevent me from expanding the circle of peace to four Arab countries, and I am determined to expand it to other countries in the region, together with our American friendship.”
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in response that Israel, for the first time, has a “historic opportunity” to “deal with challenges that it has faced since its founding.”
“You see the countries in the region who are ready to step up and further integrate with Israel and provide real security assurances to Israel. The United States is ready to play its part, too, but they all have to have a willing partner on the other side,” Miller said.
Miller also said, regarding the challenges facing Israel after the war eventually ends, “There is no way to solve their long-term challenges, to provide lasting security and there is no way to solve the short-term challenges of rebuilding Gaza, establishing governance and providing security for Gaza without the establishment of a Palestinian state.”
Jan 18, 12:41 PM
Unclear whether medical aid has reached Israeli hostages in Gaza
It was unclear Thursday whether medical aid had reached Israeli hostages in the war-torn Gaza Strip as part of a Qatari-brokered deal between Israel and Gaza’s militant rulers, Hamas.
During an interview Thursday on CNN, a spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the medicine was received by Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health but that there was not yet confirmation of it being distributed to the Israeli hostages as agreed upon. The spokesperson noted that an ongoing telecommunications blackout in Gaza has made it difficult to get information in real time.
The medical aid, provided by Qatar and France, entered Gaza on Wednesday, according to the Qatari foreign ministry.
As part of the agreement, Hamas was expected to pick up the medicine for the Israeli hostages at designated hospitals and then distribute it among the abductees. Qatar will verify and provide proof to Israel that the medicine was in fact delivered to the hostages, according to Hamas and Qatari officials.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has helped with getting aid into Gaza and transferring some hostages out of the enclave as part of previous deals, said it has no role in the implementation of this agreement, including the delivery of the medicine.
“The ICRC initiated the conversation in its role as a neutral intermediary. The parties negotiated the agreement, including how much medicines would be delivered and by whom, with Qatar brokering the deal,” the ICRC told ABC News in a statement on Thursday. “The mechanism that was agreed to does not involve the ICRC playing any part in its implementation, including the delivery of medication.”
“The ICRC welcomes the agreement to deliver medications to the hostages and to medical facilities for the residents of Gaza as a positive humanitarian step,” the organization added.
The Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson told CNN on Thursday that the ICRC could not be involved because the security situation in Gaza makes it almost impossible for them to deliver the medicine.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky, Jordana Miller, Cindy Smith and Morgan Winsor
Jan 17, 1:29 PM
Qatar says it’s brokered deal to allow medicine, aid into Gaza
Qatar said Tuesday it has mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas to deliver medicine to Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip.
Medicine and other humanitarian aid will also be delivered to civilians “in the most affected and vulnerable areas” of the Gaza Strip as part of the deal, Qatar said.
The aid landed in Egypt Wednesday and “includes medicines provided by the State of Qatar and the French Republic, along with food items provided by Qatar Charity to be further transferred to Gaza,” the Qataris said.
Jan 17, 11:38 AM
Gaza’s telecommunications blackout surpasses 100 hours
NetBlocks, a London-based nonprofit that covers internet connectivity around the world, said Wednesday that the Gaza Strip has been “in the midst of a near-total telecoms blackout for 120 hours.”
“The disruption, now entering its sixth day, is the longest sustained telecoms outage on record since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war,” NetBlocks wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Jan 17, 11:28 AM
IDF can’t confirm cause of death of 3 hostages found in Gaza
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday informed the families of Ron Sherman, Nick Beiser and Elia Toledano that it is not possible to determine what caused their deaths, ABC News has learned.
Sherman, Beiser and Toledano were among the more than 200 people taken hostage by militants during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7. The IDF recovered the bodies of the three abductees from a Hamas tunnel in the city of Jabalia in the Gaza Strip on Dec. 14, near where Ahmed Randour, who commanded Hamas’ forces in the northern part of the enclave, had been killed a month earlier.
ABC News has learned that an investigation subsequently concluded the IDF did not know there were hostages in the area at the time it attacked the tunnel where Randor was staying and that the IDF discovered the bodies while conducting scans of the tunnel afterward.
ABC News has learned that a pathological report showed no signs of trauma or gunshots on the three bodies, and it could not be ruled out or confirmed whether they were killed as a result of suffocation, poisoning or due to an attack by the IDF or Hamas. Samples were taken to conduct a further examination.
ABC News’ Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 17, 9:59 AM
Blinken says Palestinians need own state but must ‘work with Israel’
Speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken described the scenes in the war-torn Gaza Strip as “gut-wrenching” and said Palestinians need a state of their own but must “work with Israel to be effective.”
Blinken said the Palestinian Authority, which exercises partial civil control over areas in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, could lead such a state but only “with the help of Israel, not with its active opposition.”
“The question now is, is Israeli society prepared to engage on these? Is it prepared to have that mindset?” Blinken asked. “You’re not going to get the genuine security you need absent that [Palestinian state].”
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Morgan Winsor
Jan 17, 9:08 AM
IDF says it killed top militant in West Bank strike
The Israel Defense Forces said early Wednesday that it has killed a top Palestinian militant in an airstrike in the occupied West Bank, averting “an imminent, large-scale terrorist attack” he was allegedly planning.
Ahmed Abdullah Abu Shalal and members of his terrorist cell were “eliminated in a precision airstrike” at the Balata refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, according to the IDF. It was unclear exactly how many individuals were killed in the strike.
“Abdullah was responsible for carrying out a number of terrorist attacks over the last year, including the shooting attack in the Shimon HaTzadik neighborhood in Jerusalem last April during which two Jerusalem residents were injured,” the IDF said in a statement. “Additionally, he was responsible for the bombing attack against IDF soldiers last October during which a soldier was injured.”
“Under Abdullah’s leadership, the terrorist infrastructure in the Balata camp in Nablus has received funding and guidance from Iranian sources who are in cooperation with terrorist headquarters in both the Gaza Strip and abroad,” the IDF added.
Jan 16, 3:35 PM
Qatar says it’s brokered deal to allow medicine, aid into Gaza
Qatar said Tuesday it has mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas to deliver medicine to Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip.
Medicine and other humanitarian aid will also be delivered to civilians “in the most affected and vulnerable areas” of the Gaza Strip as part of the deal, Qatar said.
The medication and aid is expected to depart Doha on board two Qatari Armed Forces aircraft on Wednesday, bound for Arish, Egypt, before being transported to the Gaza Strip, Qatar said.
Jan 16, 3:22 PM
2 Israeli hostages who appeared in Hamas video confirmed dead: Kibbutz
Itay Svirsky, 35, and Yossi Sharabi, 53 — two hostages who appeared in a video released by Hamas earlier this week — have been confirmed dead, according to Kibbutz Be’eri.
“Their bodies are in the hands of Hamas, we will demand their return with the rest of our abductees,” Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the communities attacked by the terrorist group on Oct. 7, said in a statement on Tuesday. “Our hearts are with the families in their immense pain. May they rest in peace.”
Svirsky was at his parents’ home in the kibbutz when he was abducted, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Hamas released a video on Sunday showing the two men, as well as 26-year-old Noa Argamani, while calling on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war on Gaza.
Following the release of the hostage video, the IDF said they told the men’s families that “there is grave concern for their lives” and denied Hamas’ claims that Israeli forces shot Svirsky.
Jan 16, 12:07 PM
Jordan accuses Israel of hindering aid delivery to Gaza
Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi said Tuesday that Israel is creating hurdles to the entry of aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip.
Jordan is working in coordination with the United Nations to deliver aid to Gaza, but only 10% of the total needs of the more than 2 million Palestinians who live there are currently being met, according to Safadi.
“The reality now is that Israeli measures are preventing sufficient aid from arriving and only a fraction is being delivered,” Safadi said during a press conference in Amman.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 1:27 PM
At least 1 dead, 17 injured in car-ramming attacks in Israel, police say
At least one person was killed and 17 others were injured on Monday afternoon in car-ramming attacks that took place in various locations across Ra’anana, Israel, authorities said.
Two suspects — identified as a pair of Palestinian men from the Hebron area in the Israeli-occupied West Bank — allegedly stole multiple vehicles before ramming them into crowds of pedestrians in Ra’anana, about 13 miles north of Tel Aviv, according to the Israel Police.
Both suspects have since been arrested. The incidents and the motive remains under investigation, police said.
The victim killed was an elderly woman, according to police.
Fourteen of the 17 injured remained hospitalized Monday evening, officials said. At least seven children were among the injured.
ABC News’ Jordana Miller, Bruno Nota, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 11:59 AM
What life is like for displaced Palestinians in Rafah’s tent city
Ahmad Ismael said his “whole world turned upside down” after Oct. 7.
The Palestinian father of four now lives with his family in a tent in Rafah, the southernmost region of the Gaza Strip. They are among the almost 1.9 million people — 85% of Gaza’s population — who are displaced from their homes, nearly half of whom are crammed inside Rafah.
“We want the tragic situation we are living in to end,” Ismael told ABC News in an interview Sunday. “We hope from God that the war will stop.”
Ismael said Israel’s intense bombardment forced him and his family to flee their home in northern Gaza. They have been living in Rafah’s tent city for the past 70 days, he said.
“We fled with only our souls,” he told ABC News. “We didn’t bring anything with us.”
Ismael showed ABC News around his family’s makeshift shelter and explained what life is like there amid the latest outbreak of war between Israel and Gaza’s militant rulers, Hamas.
“People wake up at 5 or 6 in the morning,” he told ABC News. “You wake up to think about the situation of the tent. Is there water flowing or not? Because of the rain, how will we provide wood for the fire? How will we provide today’s food for the children?”
Ismael said they receive some canned food from a U.N. agency’s warehouse every two or three days. But it’s not enough to feed his family, so they must try to buy other food and cook it over an open fire.
“Everything is expensive and scarce,” he told ABC News. “We used to buy this oil for 7 or 6 shekels. Today, I buy this for 20 shekels. One day you find it and the next day you don’t.”
“Firewood is also very expensive, not cheap, and even I can no longer afford it,” he continued.
“What I’m telling you is not just about my life,” he added, “but the lives of all of us here.”
ABC News’ Rashid Haddou-Riffi, Morgan Winsor and Sami Zayara
Jan 15, 10:52 AM
Another communications blackout in Gaza
NetBlocks, a London-based nonprofit that covers internet connectivity around the world, said Monday that the Gaza Strip has been “largely offline” for the past 72 hours.
“The disruption is the longest sustained telecoms blackout on record since the onset of the Hamas-Israel war, and is likely to significantly limit visibility into events on the ground,” NetBlocks wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 9:22 AM
At least 1 dead, 16 injured in car-ramming attacks in Israel, police say
At least one person was killed and 16 others were injured on Monday afternoon in car-ramming attacks that took place in various locations across Ra’anana, Israel, authorities said.
Two suspects — identified as a pair of Palestinian men from the Hebron area in the Israeli-occupied West Bank — allegedly stole multiple vehicles before ramming them into crowds of pedestrians in Ra’anana, about 13 miles north of Tel Aviv, according to the Israel Police.
Both suspects have since been arrested. The incidents and the motive remains under investigation, police said.
At least four of the wounded victims were hospitalized in critical condition, according to Israel’s rescue service MDA.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller, Bruno Nota, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 5:07 AM
What we know about the conflict
The Israel-Hamas war has reached the three-month mark.
In the Gaza Strip, at least 24,100 people have been killed and 60,834 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 297 people in the territory since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Jan 15, 4:59 AM
Shots fired as crowd seeks humanitarian aid in Gaza
Gunshots rang out as hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sought food from humanitarian aid trucks in the war-torn Gaza Strip on Sunday.
Video of the incident in Sheikh Iljlin, a neighborhood in southern Gaza City, shows a large crowd gathering to receive flour from aid trucks parked near an Israeli military checkpoint. Then the sound of gunfire erupts and people are seen frantically running.
ABC News was not able to independently verify who fired the shots and whether anyone was killed or injured.
The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment on Monday.
-ABC News’ Felicia Alvarez, Nasser Atta, Helena Skinner and Morgan Winsor
Jan 14, 7:29 PM
Hamas releases video showing 3 Israeli hostages in captivity
Hamas released a video on Sunday showing three Israeli hostages who are still being held in captivity in Gaza.
The three hostages that appear in the video are 26-year-old Noa Argamani, 35-year-old Itai Svirsky and 53-year-old Yossi Sharabi.
The video released by Hamas called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war on Gaza.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
Jan 14, 6:47 PM
100 days into war, IDF says its ‘goals are complex to achieve and will take a long time’
As the Israel-Hamas war reached its 100th day Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces says it’s goals “will take a long time” to achieve.
“To achieve real results, we must continue to operate in enemy territory, not to allow extortion attempts for a cease-fire,” IDF Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said in a televised address Saturday.
“We must continue applying pressure and that is exactly what we are doing,” he said. “[Our] goals are complex to achieve and will take a long time. To dismantle Hamas, patience is both necessary and essential.”
The IDF also said it’s now moving to intensify its operations in southern Gaza, where it believes Hamas’ leadership is hiding.
-ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Jan 13, 4:56 PM
Netanyahu says Israel will pursue war with Hamas until victory
Israel will pursue its war against Hamas until victory and will not be stopped by anyone, including the world court, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a defiant speech Saturday evening.
Netanyahu spoke after the International Court of Justice at The Hague held two days of hearings on South Africa’s allegations that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, a charge Israel has rejected as libelous and hypocritical.
South Africa asked the court to order Israel to halt its blistering air and ground offensive in an interim step.
“No one will stop us, not The Hague, not the axis of evil and not anyone else,” Netanyahu said in televised remarks, referring to Iran and its allied militias.
The case before the world court is expected to go on for years, but a ruling on interim steps could come within weeks. Court rulings are binding but difficult to enforce.
Netanyahu made clear that Israel would ignore orders to halt the fighting, potentially deepening its isolation. Netanyahu also said a decision had yet to be made about a potential military takeover of the “Philadelphi Corridor” along the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt.
-ABC News’ Bruno Nota
Jan 13, 2:44 PM
Israel-Hamas war reaches 100th day
Saturday marked 100 days since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, the deadliest conflict between the two sides in recent history.
The fighting began on Oct. 7 when Hamas launched a surprise attack in southern Israel. Since then, Israel has launched numerous airstrikes and a ground offensive. The Israeli government has previously claimed it is defending itself.
More than 23,300 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Meanwhile, 1,200 people have been killed in Israel along with 520 Israel Defense Forces officers since Oct. 7.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N’s Palestinian Relief Agency, issued a statement marking 100 days of the war, saying there are now 1.4 million people in U.N. shelters in Gaza and facing a “looming famine.”
Meanwhile, families of the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza are holding a series of events Saturday to mark 100 days since their captivity began.
-ABC News’ Mary Kekatos and Patrick Reevell
Jan 13, 8:22 AM
More than half a million people are starving in Gaza, UN says
About 577,000 people in Gaza, equal to a quarter of the population, are now starving, Arif Husain, chief economist for the U.N.’s World Food program, told ABC News.
Hussain has worked as an expert assessing hunger crises for 20 years and said, in terms of scale of severity and speed, he has never seen what is unfolding in Gaza right now, calling it “unprecedented.”
Even before the war with Israel, Gaza relied on humanitarian assistance to meet around 75% to 80% of its needs. With Israel now allowing very few supplies into Gaza, it has quickly run into massive shortages.
“If things continue as they are, or if things worsen, we are looking at a full fledged famine within the next six months,” he said.
-ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Jan 12, 12:59 PM
Deal reached to get medicine to hostages, Israel says
A deal has been reached to get medicine to the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza over the next few days, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.
The families of the hostages are insisting that the Israeli war cabinet “demand visual proof that the medications did indeed reach the abductees, as a condition for any return from Israel.”
“After 98 days in the Hamas tunnels, all the abductees are in immediate danger and need life-saving medication,” the families said in a statement.
Jan 12, 9:30 AM
Israel rejects genocide charges at UN’s top court
Israel on Friday called on the United Nations’ top court to dismiss South Africa’s request to halt its offensive in the Gaza Strip amid “grossly distorted” accusations of genocide.
During opening statements to a panel of judges at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Israeli legal adviser Tal Becker said the country is fighting a “war it did not start and did not want.”
“In these circumstances, there can hardly be a charge more false and more malevolent than the allegation against Israel of genocide,” Becker added.
He noted that “Israel is in a war of defense against Hamas, not against the Palestinian people,” and that the suffering of civilians during wartime does not amount to genocide.
“The key component of genocide, the intent to destroy a people in whole or in part, is totally lacking,” he said.
-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Jan 11, 12:18 PM
Blinken says he found new willingness to discuss Gaza’s future, denies conflict is escalating
As Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up his trip to the Middle East, he said he encountered a new appetite among Middle Eastern leaders to discuss contributing to what he often refers to as “the day after” in Gaza.
“I have to say what was different about this trip is that on our previous trips here, I think there was a reluctance to talk about some of the day after issues and long-term stability and security on a regional basis, but now we’re finding that our partners are very focused on that and wanting to engage on those questions,” Blinken said.
On his major goal of preventing the Israeli-Hamas war from spreading across the region, Blinken was optimistic.
“I don’t think the conflict is escalating. There are lots of danger points; we’re trying to deal with each of them,” he said.
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Jan 11, 12:11 PM
Hostage families beg for Israel to ‘take the deal’: ‘This is hell’
The families of hostages held by Hamas came together for a news conference Thursday demanding that the Israeli war cabinet prioritize their loved ones’ return and approve any deal that would lead to their release.
“I demand the cabinet take any deal on the table,” said Shay Wenkert, whose son, Omer Wenkert, was kidnapped from the music festival on Oct. 7.
“My son has colitis,” Wenkert said. “This is hell. I’m begging you — you had opportunities for other deals and didn’t take them. Take action. You have to take the deal. Bring them home now.”
“No one is doing us any favors in Israel. They must do everything to release the hostages, at any price,” said Gilad and Nitza Corngold, parents of Tal Shoham, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri. “I suggest anyone who says ‘It’s not worth it’ to bring a family member of theirs and make a personal exchange with me — to give me their son and take mine out. Their time is running out.”
Jan 11, 11:48 AM
Genocide case against Israel begins at UN’s top court
Israel is defending itself in the United Nations’ top court starting Thursday against allegations that its ongoing military campaign in the neighboring Gaza Strip amounts to genocide of the Palestinian people — a claim that Israel vehemently denies.
South Africa, which brought forward the allegations, is initially asking the Netherlands-based International Court of Justice to order an immediate suspension of the Israeli military offensive against Gaza’s militant rulers, Hamas, as part of a landmark case that is likely to take years to resolve.
“Genocides are never declared in advance, but this court has the benefit of the past 13 weeks of evidence that shows incontrovertibly a pattern of conduct and related intention that justifies as a plausible claim of genocidal acts,” South African attorney Adila Hassim told the panel of judges inside a packed courtroom in The Hague during Thursday’s opening statements. “Nothing will stop the suffering except an order from this court.”
South Africa insists Israel is committing genocide by design and that the country’s latest war in Gaza is part of its decadeslong oppression of Palestinians. South Africa’s ruling political party, the African National Congress, has a long history of solidarity with the Palestinian cause and sees parallels with its own struggle against the apartheid regime of white minority rule that ended in 1994.
“The violence and the destruction in Palestine and Israel did not begin on Oct. 7, 2023,” South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said. “The Palestinians have experienced systematic oppression and violence for the last 76 years.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has called South Africa’s allegations “atrocious and preposterous,” while Secretary of State Antony Blinken has dismissed the case as “meritless.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in response Thursday called South Africa’s allegations “upside-down.”
“Israel is fighting against murderous terrorists who have committed terrible crimes against humanity: they slaughtered, they raped, they burned, they dismembered, they killed children, women, the elderly, young men, young women. A terrorist organization that committed the most terrible crime against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, and now there are those who come to defend it in the name of the Holocaust,” Netanyahu said. “We will continue to fight the terrorists, we will continue to repel the lies, we will continue to maintain our right to defend ourselves and secure our future.”
Lawyers for Israel will address the court on Friday.
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti, Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Jan 11, 11:08 AM
Man who lost entire family sifts through rubble in Gaza
The main highway connecting south and north Gaza, Salah al-Din Road, which Israeli forces used for a civilian corridor, has become impassable in Deir al Balah in central Gaza.
“When we came here, we were surprised — Salah al-Din is a main road connecting the north and the south in four directions, 70 meters wide,” Gaza resident Yahya Deeb Al-Laham told ABC News. Now there’s “no infrastructure, no electricity, no roads, buildings and areas are non-existent … there is nothing here, there are no signs of life. Homes for families have completely disappeared and not a single one of them remains.”
The Israelis have recently left the area.
One of the families who followed Israeli military instructions, evacuating from northern Gaza to Deir al Balah, has been completely wiped out.
The surviving family member, Muhammad Fouad Abu Safi, returned to the site to sift through the rubble and try to find what might be left of his family.
“They left me no family member, no sister, no brother, no cousin, no child,” he told ABC News. “There were about 50 people here. Only three children, girls, came out alive … the rest here were taken out as body parts or decomposing bodies.”
“Humanity has ended, mercy has ended,” he said. “Neither from America nor from any country, there is no humanity or mercy.”
ABC News’ Samy Zayara
Jan 11, 8:32 AM
UN court opens hearings on South Africa’s accusation that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza
Israel is defending itself in the United Nations’ top court starting Thursday against allegations that its ongoing military campaign in the neighboring Gaza Strip amounts to genocide of the Palestinian people — a claim that Israel vehemently denies.
South Africa, which brought forward the allegations, is initially asking the International Criminal Court of Justice to order an immediate suspension of the Israeli military offensive in Gaza as part of a landmark case that is likely to take years to resolve.
“Genocides are never declared in advance, but this court has the benefit of the past 13 weeks of evidence that shows incontrovertibly a pattern of conduct and related intention that justifies as a plausible claim of genocidal acts,” South African attorney Adila Hassim told the panel of judges in a packed courtroom at The Hague during Thursday’s opening statements. “Nothing will stop the suffering except an order from this court.”
South Africa insists Israel is committing genocide by design and that the country’s latest war in Gaza is part of its decadeslong oppression of Palestinians. South Africa’s ruling political party, the African National Congress, has a long history of solidarity with the Palestinian cause and sees parallels with its own struggle against the apartheid regime of white minority rule that ended in 1994.
“The violence and the destruction in Palestine and Israel did not begin on Oct. 7, 2023,” South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said. “The Palestinians have experienced systematic oppression and violence for the last 76 years.”
Lawyers for Israel will address the court on Friday.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has called South Africa’s allegations “atrocious and preposterous,” while U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has dismissed the case as “meritless.”
Jan 10, 1:31 PM
Hamas official says hostages won’t return alive if Netanyahu doesn’t accept cease-fire
Hamas leader Osama Hamdan said in a statement that the Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza “will not return alive to their families” unless Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli leaders respond to Hamas’ conditions, “the first of which is a comprehensive and complete cessation of their aggression against the Gaza Strip.”
Jan 10, 11:50 AM
Israelis in Egypt for hostage talks: Egyptian security source
A delegation from Israel is in Egypt on Wednesday for new discussions on swapping Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for Palestinians in prison in Israel, an Egyptian security source confirmed to ABC News.
Jan 10, 11:18 AM
Israeli minister warns ‘Hamas will regain control’ if combat in Gaza stops
Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz warned Wednesday that “Hamas will regain control” of the Gaza Strip if the Israeli military ceases combat operations there.
“We must go on. If we stop now, Hamas will regain control,” Gantz, a retired army general who previously served as Israel’s defense minister and alternate prime minister, said during a press conference in Tel Aviv. “In most areas, we have completed the phase of operational takeover and now, we are deep in the phase of dismantling the terrorist infrastructure, which will lead to the demilitarization of the strip.”
However, Gantz noted that “the most urgent thing is the return of the abductees.” More than 100 Israeli citizens are believed to still be held hostage by militants in Gaza after being taken captive during the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.
“This has precedence over every move in combat,” he said.
Gantz also warned that the Israeli military “will act in southern Lebanon as we act in northern Gaza” if the neighboring country “continues to serve as an Iranian terrorist outpost.” His remarks came as Israeli forces continue to exchange fire with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese militant group, amid fears that regional tensions could escalate into a wider war in the Middle East.
“This is not a threat to Lebanon,” Gantz added. “It is a promise to the residents of [northern Israel].”
Israel’s war cabinet is expected to meet on Wednesday evening, followed by a meeting of the wider security cabinet.
ABC News’ Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 10, 10:06 AM
IDF claims to have found ‘further evidence of Hamas’ exploitation’
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday claimed to have found “further evidence of Hamas’ exploitation of the civilian population for terrorist activity across the Gaza Strip.”
The 55th Brigade combat team made the alleged discovery in recent days while “operating to destroy terror infrastructure” in the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, according to the IDF.
“During the operations on the military targets, the soldiers located a UAV launch post, a loaded rifle underneath a child’s bed, along with grenades, cartridges, Hamas uniforms, and many intelligence materials inside the residences of terrorist operatives,” the IDF said in a statement. “During the operation, the soldiers found a tunnel shaft near a school, a rocket launcher near a kindergarten, and a training compound near a mosque.”
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza, has denied Israel’s claims that it deliberately shelters behind civilians by hiding its fighters, infrastructure and weapons in hospitals, schools and other areas populated by civilians.
ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Jan 10, 9:49 AM
At least 40 killed in Israeli strike near Gaza hospital, Hamas says
More than 40 people, including a journalist, were killed Wednesday when Israeli forces bombed an inhabited house across the street from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas Government Media Office.
Hamas claimed the Israeli military had declared the city of Deir al-Balah safe before striking the area.
There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.
Earlier Wednesday, the IDF said its aircraft and ground troops were continuing to operate against Hamas in central Gaza within the area of the Maghazi refugee camp, a couple miles north of Deir al-Balah.
