Hundreds of people waited to leave the Gaza Strip across the southern border on Thursday as the Israeli military largely cut off Gaza City in the north of the enclave.
Gaza invasion: Israeli forces tried to split the enclave in two and isolate the northern part of the strip, where tank and infantry units were fighting Hamas militants, the United Nations and former Israeli officers said. Israeli authorities have said they would ensure safe passage for civilians seeking to flee south to escape the fighting.
Israeli airstrikes: Israel continued its heavy shelling and air strikes in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military said it attacked a Hamas command complex in the Gaza Strip’s Jabalia area, a day after an airstrike on a refugee camp there killed dozens of people.
Hostages: Israel said 242 people were kidnapped by Palestinian militants on October 7, increasing the number. This number has changed as Israel identifies victims of Hamas attacks.
Rafah border crossing: A day after the border with Egypt was opened for the first time in the war, hundreds of foreign nationals waited to leave the Gaza Strip. Egypt said it plans to help evacuate nearly 7,000 people from more than 60 countries.
US reaction: President Biden called for a humanitarian pause in the Israel-Hamas war. U.S. officials are talking to their counterparts in Arab states about plans for governing Gaza after the war, according to people familiar with the early talks.
Losses: According to Israel, 19 soldiers were killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip. Hamas-controlled health authorities in the Gaza Strip said more than 9,000 people were killed, most of them women and children. They do not differentiate between militants and civilians. More than 1,400 people in Israel died in the attacks that sparked the war, including over 300 Israel Defense Forces soldiers, Israeli officials said. According to the United Nations, 70 colleagues have died in Gaza.