World

(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 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.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(LONDON) — Iranian missiles targeted two locations, one in Iraq claimed to be used by Israeli intelligence and one in the Syrian city of Idlib, a base for ISIS militants, Iranian military officials said Tuesday.

Four missiles were “successfully fired” toward the Takfiri group, who are affiliated with ISIS, in Idlib, said Amir Ali Hajizadeh, a commander in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“Also, four missiles were fired from Kermanshah, and seven from West Azerbaijan Province towards the Zionist headquarters in the Kurdistan region of Iraq,” he added.

Explosions had been reported in at least two areas in Iraq, including several that were reported near the U.S. Consulate in Erbil, Iraq, an Iraqi security source told ABC News.

Iran didn’t name the U.S. as a target of the missiles it said it fired and U.S. officials said no American “personnel or facilities” had been targeted.

U.S. officials condemned the strikes, with Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, saying that the “initial indications are that this was a reckless and imprecise set of strikes.”

“The United States supports the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Iraq,” Watson said in a statement.

Four people were killed on Tuesday, Iraqi officials said. Iranian-backed militias in Iraq have launched near-daily drone attacks on bases housing U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria.

Tuesday’s strikes were a response to the terrorist attack on crowds of people in Kerman, Iran, on the anniversary of the death of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, Iran said. That attack killed dozens, according to Iranian officials. ISIS took responsibility.

“The rocket attacks on the Mossad headquarters and terrorists were part of our response to those who acted against national security,” said spokesman of the Islamic Republic Foreign Ministry Nasser Kanaani.

Israel has not commented on Tuesday’s strikes.

Kanaani added, “While the enemy, with a miscalculation, committed a crime against the government and nation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the system with its high intelligence, identified the criminals’ headquarters in a precise and targeted operation. Using precise and accurate projectiles, the Islamic Republic has targeted them.”

The Iraqi government recalled recalled its ambassador in Tehran “for consultations” in response to the strikes, officials said in a statement on social media.

Tuesday’s strikes were the first IRGC missile operation to target two different regions at the same time, local Iranian media reported.

The most recent strike by Iran within Iraq appeared to have been in 2020, when the country fired at least 16 missiles into the neighboring country.

Fars News, a state news agency, reported at the time that the missiles had been surface-to-surface and added that the location of launch was the western city of Kermanshah.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(LONDON) — Two passenger planes have collided in Hokkaido, Japan, according to Japanese media reports.

The incident took place at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido, some 110 miles east of the city of Sapporo in the northern part of the country, at approximately 5:30 p.m. local time, according to NHK in Japan.

According to airport officials, there was “contact” between a Korean Air plane and a Cathay Pacific plane but it is currently unclear how severe the collision between the airliners was.

The Korean Air plane had had 276 passenger and 13 crew on board when, according to the fire department, it clipped the Cathay Pacific aircraft which was parked at the gate at the time of the accident and had no passengers on board.

Both planes were on the ground at the time of the accident.

Weather reports indicate that visibility is currently poor in the northern part of Japan with heavy snow being reported in some areas and temperatures below freezing at just 24 degrees at New Chitose Airport when the accident happened.

Many flights here have been cancelled at the airport in Hokkaido and disruption is expected to continue for some time, officials said.

This accident comes just over two weeks after that Japanese Airline jet collided and burst into flames after colliding with another plane on the runway at a Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(ERBIL, Iraq) — Several explosions were reported near the U.S. Consulate in Erbil, Iraq, an Iraqi security source told ABC News.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps quickly took responsibility for targeting and destroying what it said was the Mossad headquarters in Erbil, Iraq. Mossad is the national intelligence agency for Israel.

The IRGC said it used ballistic missiles in the attack.

Coalition forces also shot down three drones near Erbil airport in Iraq, the source said. There were no human losses among the coalition forces or American forces in the bombing of Erbil, an Iraqi security source told ABC News.

Air traffic has stopped in Erbil, an Iraqi security source said, and the source stated that the bombing was very violent.

The source said eight locations were targeted near the U.S. Consulate.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(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 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.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has warned that “time is running out” for Congress to pass a new funding deal for more military aid for Ukraine.

The Biden Administration and House Republicans have not reached a broader funding agreement, which would include an additional $60 billion in security assistance for Ukraine’s war effort.

In an interview with ABC News, Kuleba claimed more money for Ukraine would potentially avoid a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia, in which American troops would be forced to intervene.

“Whatever the price of supporting Ukraine is now, the price of fixing the mess in the world if Ukraine loses will be much, much higher,” he said.

He also warned the United States and its allies about the type of signal a Russian victory in Ukraine would send to other adversaries.

“If the West is not able to stop Russia in Ukraine, who else is it able to stop in other parts of the world?” Kuleba asked.

However, Kuleba vowed that Ukraine would never give in to Russia.

“Even if we run out of weapons, we will fight with shovels,” he told ABC News during an interview in the Ukrainian capital, “Because what is at stake here for Ukraine is the existence of this nation.”

Pressed on the notion that one day Ukraine would have to negotiate with Russia, Kyiv’s top diplomat ruled out any negotiations with the Putin regime until Ukraine finds itself in a much stronger position on the battlefield.

He conceded the Russian military had “learned their lessons” and was now “far better adapted to this war” but predicted “more defeats” for Russia this year.

Russian forces have become more assertive on the battlefield in recent weeks, gaining small areas of territory in eastern Ukraine around the embattled city of Avdiivka.

However, Ukraine’s foreign minister claimed those “minimal” Russian gains came at “an extremely high price” and he rejected the notion that Russia now has the momentum on the battlefield.

Ukrainian soldiers have told ABC News that Russia’s superior firepower and quantity and quality of lethal, exploding drones are making the war harder and more deadly for Kyiv’s forces.

Kuleba admitted that the war was “difficult” but rejected the notion that Russian President Vladimir Putin was now looking stronger after Ukraine’s failed counteroffensive in the summer.

“Hitler pretended to be very strong for many years and we all know how it ended,” Kuleba said.

As the Republican primary season gets underway, Ukraine’s foreign minister said he didn’t want Ukraine to be featured prominently in American election debates, adding, he hoped Ukraine would be “an issue that unites, not divides.”

Republican frontrunner former President Donald Trump has indicated he would halt aid to Ukraine.

Asked whether he was worried about the prospect of a second Trump presidency, Kuleba insisted that Ukraine is “not afraid of anything” and said his country would not meddle in the U.S. election, something Russia stands accused of doing in the 2016 vote.

In recent months, Ukraine has continually launched explosive drones at targets inside the internationally recognized borders of Russia.

Kuleba refused to comment directly on these attacks, however, he hinted that Kyiv was trying to show that the war in Ukraine was having an adverse impact back home, in Russia.

“President Putin must explain to his people why all of this is happening,” he said.

“I think it’s helpful to force them [Russian residents] from time to time to realize that the reality outside of their TV is different and can be much, much worse than their propaganda.”

ABC News has seen evidence that components made by Western and American companies are being used in missiles that Russia has launched against Ukraine.

Ukraine’s foreign minister called on those companies and the U.S. government to do more to prevent those components from being sold to Russia via indirect and sometimes opaque trading routes.

Kuleba conceded that there was “no obvious solution” but hinted that “business channels can be disrupted” because “financial intelligence” can “pretty easily” reveal the routes the components take and claimed measures could be taken “through very thorough, daily work.”

A report last week by the U.S. Defense Department’s inspector general found that around a billion dollars worth of U.S. military items sent to Ukraine were not properly logged and tracked by U.S. officials.

Kuleba promised the American public that “everything you give to us is used for the best purpose of ending this war with Ukraine’s victory as soon as possible.”

Investigations by the U.S. and the European Union have uncovered no evidence that Western military aid sent to Ukraine has been misused.

“Every attempt by Russia to disinform the world about (the) alleged leak or illicit traffic of U.S. weapons into other parts of the world… turned out to be fake,” Ukraine’s foreign minister added.

“So don’t believe in fakes, believe in Ukraine,” Kuleba concluded.

 

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(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 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.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — A U.S. fighter aircraft shot down a missile fired toward an American warship from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, U.S. military officials said.

The USS Laboon was fired on in the Southern Red Sea at about 4:45 p.m. on Sunday, U.S. Central Command said on social media.

“The missile was shot down in vicinity of the coast of Hudaydah by U.S. fighter aircraft,” officials said. “There were no injuries or damage reported.”

The missile launch on Sunday appeared to be the first such attack by the Houthi militants since American and British forces unleashed a series of large-scale retaliatory airstrikes against multiple Houthi targets inside Yemen.

The Houthis, an Iran-backed militant group, have for weeks been attacking merchant ships in the Red Sea, a gateway to the Suez Canal, one of the world’s most heavily traveled shipping routes.

There have been at least 27 attacks on international commercial shipping, President Joe Biden said Friday.

Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, two of the world’s largest shipping companies, have diverted container ships away from the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, sending them instead on the longer journey around the Cape of Good Hope.

More than 2,000 commercial ships have been rerouted to avoid the Red Sea, Biden said.

The retaliatory strikes by the United States and United Kingdom were a “defensive action” following the attacks on commercial vessels, Biden said in a statement issued Thursday.

“I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary,” he said.

ABC News’ Luis Martinez and Nathan Luna contributed to this story.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — More than a month after a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas ended, the Israeli military continues its bombardment of the neighboring Gaza Strip.

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 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.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Hours after a volcanic fissure opened north of an evacuated town in Iceland, a second fissure opened “just outside” the residential area, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said Sunday.

The first fissure cracked open at about 8 a.m., releasing a slow-moving river of lava that inched south toward Grindavík for hours.

The lava seemed to split into two paths, covering land alongside the berms being built to protect the town. It was about 450 meters from the town, officials said.

“The town had already been successfully evacuated overnight and no lives are in danger, although infrastructure may be under threat,” President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson said on social media. “No interruptions to flights.”

The office said at 12:40 p.m. that a second fissure had opened south of the first. On a live video feed from Icelandic state television station RUV, the lava from the second fissure could be seen bubbling near rows of vacant houses.

Sunday’s eruption followed an “intense” series of earthquakes that began around 3 a.m. near where a volcano erupted in December, the Met office said.

“At the time of publication, over 200 earthquakes have been measured in the area, and the seismicity has moved towards the town of Grindavík,” weather officials said in a notice posted before the eruption.

The earthquakes were in the Sundhnúksgígar crater, an area north of the town. The largest measured was an about 3.5 magnitude quake just after 4 a.m., the Met said.

Preliminary data showed Sunday’s eruption just southeast of Hagafell, a mountain on the Reykjanes peninsula, the Met said.

About 4,000 Grindavík residents were evacuated in November, as tens of thousands of earthquakes rumbled the region. Those tremors signaled a high likelihood of an eruption, Met officials said at the time.

Some residents had returned in recent weeks, as the government worked to build a kilometers-long berm in an attempt to protect the town from future eruptions.

That town was again ordered to evacuate on Saturday, officials said in a statement ahead of Sunday’s eruption.

As the lava flowed toward the town, workers could be seen moving construction equipment out of its path.

“This continues to surprise us,” Benedikt feigsson, of the Met Office, told RUV. “Things were slowing down after the eruption started, but about half an hour or an hour ago they started to pick up speed again. We are no longer seeing a slowdown in the town.”

ABC News’ Edward Szekeres contributed to this story.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.