Dozens of deaths reported in Gaza refugee camp airstrike; Israel says it killed top Hamas commander

Palestinian telecommunications provider Paltel said all internet and communications services in the Gaza Strip have been interrupted, according to a statement on X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter.

— Christine Wang

The head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, issued an urgent call for "unrestricted" access to Gaza so that aid organizations can deliver life-saving supplies.

Calling the scale of the casualties "staggering," Tedros said that without access, "tragedy will continue unfolding before our eyes."

"The limited aid flow is a mere trickle of the growing needs," Tedros posted on X. "Without urgent, unrestricted access at scale, tragedy will continue unfolding before our eyes. The conflict started on 7 October, the first aid crossing was on 21 October. Since then, @WHO has only been able to transport enough supplies for approximately 370,000 people, including for traumatic wound and burn care, and treatment for serious chronic conditions."

Tedros called for an "immediate humanitarian pause:" "There's no time to waste. Every moment matters."

— Riya Bhattacharjee

President Joe Biden said on X that he is "not done pushing for more aid and will continue to support safe passage for Gaza civilians seeking safety."

"Yesterday saw the largest delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance into Gaza so far, and more trucks are being cleared to enter today. But many more are needed," Biden posted on Tuesday.

Human rights groups have been sounding the alarm about an escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza amid heavy bombardment by Israeli troops, as Gaza health officials report more than 8,500 people have lost their lives since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict on Oct. 7. Stark images of entire families stranded without food, water, sanitation and other basic necessities have emerged on social media and television networks across the world, sparking protests globally.

NBC News reported that although Muslim Americans voted overwhelmingly for Biden, community leaders in swing states say that the president's handling of the war in Gaza risks losing their support.

"It literally may dissuade enough voters to sit back in the next election and watch Donald Trump control the presidency, watch the Republicans control the Congress and also know that conservatives will have control of the Supreme Court," said Wa'el Alzayat, the CEO of Emgage, a group that mobilizes American-Muslim voters.

Read the full report on NBC News.

— Riya Bhattacharjee

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday "emphasized the need to take feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians" during a telephone call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the State Department said, amid the conflict with Hamas.

"The Secretary reiterated U.S. support for Israel's right to defend itself against terrorism consistent with international humanitarian law," spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

— Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced plans to travel to Israel on Friday to consult with Israeli officials about their ongoing war on Hamas.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Tuesday that Blinken would visit Israel "and then will make other stops in the region." He did not identify the other planned stops.

Blinken made an urgent trip to the Middle East earlier this month, visiting Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

— Associated Press

Editor's note: The following post contains a photograph with graphic content.

The director of the Indonesian Hospital said at a press conference on various networks that the initial number of people who were killed and injured during the air strikes on Jabalia currently stood at 400, NBC News reported.

Dr. Atef Al-Kahlot said that recovery work was still ongoing. The hospital had reported on social media after the strikes that dozens were killed and hundreds injured.

"The initial number of martyrs and injured in the occupation's attack on Jabalia is 400," Al-Kahlot said during the press conference. "We are still searching for missing persons and carrying out rescue operations from under the rubble in Jabalia. We stress the necessity of supplying the hospital with medical supplies and medicines. We stress the necessity of supplying us with fuel to continue the necessary work in the hospital. Running out of fuel will lead to a humanitarian catastrophe, and we call for the opening of the Rafah crossing to relieve the wounded. Most of the bodies and wounded were seriously injured, indicating the use of different types of weapons."

 — Riya Bhattacharjee

Two of President Joe Biden's top advisers asked U.S. lawmakers to provide billions more dollars to Israel on Tuesday at a congressional hearing interrupted repeatedly by protesters denouncing American officials for backing what they called "genocide" against Palestinians in Gaza.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin testified to the Senate Appropriations Committee on Biden's request for $106 billion to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and U.S. border security.

Arguing that supporting U.S. partners is vital to national security, Biden requested $61.4 billion for Ukraine, about half of which would be spent in the United States to replenish weapons stocks drained by previous support for Kyiv.

Biden also asked for $14.3 billion for Israel, $9 billion for humanitarian relief -- including for Israel and Gaza -- $13.6 billion for U.S. border security, $4 billion in military assistance and government financing to counter China's regional efforts in Asia.

As the hearing began, a line of anti-war protesters raised red-stained hands in the air. Capitol police later removed them from the room after shouted slogans including, "Ceasefire now!" "Protect the children of Gaza!" and "Stop funding genocide."

Blinken did not respond to the protesters, but when he was asked later about the possibility of a ceasefire, he said that would "simply consolidate what Hamas has been able to do and ... potentially repeat what it did another day." A pause, however, for humanitarian reasons can be considered, he said.

"We do believe that we have to consider things like humanitarian pauses to make sure that assistance can get to those who needed and people can be protected and get out of harm's way," Blinken said.

Blinken said Gaza in the future could not be governed by Hamas, but could also not be run by Israel, adding that ideally an "effective and revitalized Palestinian Authority" could ultimately run the strip, while other countries in the region could step in to help under temporary arrangements.

— Reuters

The Pentagon said it will deploy an additional 300 troops to the U.S. Central Command region, which oversees America's national security interests in the Middle East and northern Africa, but declined to say which countries the servicemembers would relocate to.

"I can confirm they're not going to Israel and that they are intended to support regional deterrence efforts and further bolster U.S. force protection capabilities," Pentagon spokesman U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said during a daily Pentagon press briefing.

"These additional troops will provide capabilities and explosive ordinance disposal, communications and other support enablers for forces already in the region," he added.

— Amanda Macias

The United Nations said that, so far, more than 140 trucks carrying crucial humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza have moved through the Rafah border crossing.

"The level of humanitarian assistance that has been allowed into Gaza up to this point is completely inadequate and not commensurate with the needs of people in Gaza, compounding the humanitarian tragedy," United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres wrote in a statement.

Guterres reiterated his urgent call for unhindered access to humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza.

— Amanda Macias

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the "intensification of the conflict between Israel and Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Gaza" in a new statement.

"Civilians have borne the brunt of the current fighting from the outset. Protection of civilians on both sides is paramount and must be respected at all times," Guterres said, adding that he is "dismayed by reports that two-thirds of those who have been killed are women and children."

He called on all parties to abide by international humanitarian law.

— Amanda Macias

A representative for the Rafah border crossing said it will open tomorrow to allow some wounded civilians out of Gaza and into Egypt, though those reports are not confirmed, according to NBC News.

Wael Abu Omar, media director at the Rafah land crossing, said it would open Wednesday," for a number of wounded to leave to complete their treatment in Egyptian hospitals."

It's unclear if the opening will come to fruition as neither the Egyptian side nor Israel have confirmed the reports.

The crossing is the only travel point between Egypt and the Gaza Strip and the only land route out of the region not controlled by the Israeli government.

— Chelsey Cox

The Senate voted to confirm former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew as the next U.S. Ambassador to Israel.

President Joe Biden nominated Lew last month.

"He's more than qualified to be our ambassador to Israel," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the White House ahead of the completed Senate vote.

"We are very excited to get him over there so he can get on the ground and start leading our efforts to support Israel and their fight against Hamas but also to help us integrate and continue to lead the effort of getting humanitarian assistance to people of Gaza," he added.

Read the full story here.

— Amanda Macias

IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari confirmed that the Israeli military killed senior Hamas commander Ibrahim Biari, one of the architects of the Oct. 7 terror attack, during a deadly strike on the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza.

"Tonight we eliminated the murderous terrorist Ibrahim Biari," Hagari said. "Biari is the main fighting leader in the north of the Gaza Strip since the IDF forces entered Gaza and he also had a part in the massacre. During his assassination, many terrorists were killed, terrorists who stayed with him in Mena and in the underground area of the building."

NBC News has not independently verified Biari's death.

According to Hamas, the strike destroyed at least 20 homes. A hospital nearby reported dozens of deaths. Photos and videos posted on social media and aired on Al Jazeera show the devastation in the area.

IDF posted on X that IDF troops carried out a ground operation during which they eliminated approximately 50 terrorists. NBC News has not verified this number.

— Riya Bhattacharjee

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday 66 trucks entered Gaza in the last 24 hours.

"It's the highest single day delivery so far," Kirby told reporters at the White House briefing.

Kirby said "dozens" more trucks of aid are expected to clear by the end of the day.

— Emma Kinery

Secretary of State Antony Blinken told lawmakers that Russian President Vladimir Putin hopes to use the ongoing conflict in Gaza to distract from the Kremlin's war in Ukraine.

"Putin is very much trying to take advantage of the Hamas attack on Israel in the hopes that it will distract us, that it will divert our focus away from Ukraine and away from his aggression in Ukraine," Blinken said during testimony before the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

Blinken said that Putin would want to see the U.S. pull back its aid and security assistance to Ukraine and pivot that support to Israel.

Biden's top diplomat added that the State Department and Pentagon are poised to continue supporting both Ukraine and Israel.

— Amanda Macias

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the U.S. has not seen any indication that Hamas has taken the critical humanitarian aid delivered through the Rafah border crossing.

"Neither the Israelis nor the U.N. have said the aid has been averted," Blinken told lawmakers on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the White House that the aid transported into Gaza is given directly to humanitarian organizations, like the United Nations.

"That's what we've seen with every single one," Kirby said of the trucks carrying the humanitarian aid to the region.

— Amanda Macias

The local Indonesian Hospital in Gaza reported in a post on its Facebook page that dozens of people have been killed and hundreds wounded, most of them women and children, in the attack on the Jabalia refugee camp.

The camp is located at the northern end of the Gaza Strip and is one of the most densely populated places on Earth.

The Government Information Office in Gaza also reported that 20 homes were completely destroyed in the Israeli bombing that targeted a residential neighborhood in Jabalia. It was unclear whether the homes were the intended target of the bombardment.

Earlier Tuesday, the Hamas-run health ministry, and the director of the Indonesian Hospital, said that at least 50 people had been killed in the blast.

CNBC and NBC News were unable to independently verify the number of casualties.

— Karen Gilchrist, Terri Cullen

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly visits the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip as trucks carrying humanitarian aid for Palestinians, prepare to move into the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah, Egypt, on Oct. 31, 2023.

— Reuters

An Israeli government ministry drafted a proposal to transfer the Gaza Strip's 2.3 million people to Egypt's Sinai peninsula, in a move that has inflamed tensions with Palestinians and Cairo.

In a wartime document dated Oct. 13, six days after the Hamas attacks on Israel, Israel's Intelligence Ministry outlined the transfer of civilians to Sinai as one of three options in the report.

The other options proposed that the population remain in Gaza, either under the rule of the Palestinian Authority or under a new "local Arab authority."

According to an NBC translation of the document, the removal of Gazans to Sinai was assessed as providing "positive, long-term strategic outcomes for Israel" but likely to face international pushback.

"The option that will yield positive, long-term strategic outcomes for Israel, and is an executable option. It requires determination from the political echelon in the face of international pressure, with an emphasis on harnessing the support of the United States and additional pro-Israeli countries for the endeavor," the document said.

Egypt's government, which is facing an economic crisis, has already rejected the idea of a forced relocation of millions of Palestinians from their homes and into the Egyptian desert region.

"What is happening now in Gaza is an attempt to force civilian residents to take refugee and migrate to Egypt, which should not be accepted," Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Oct. 18.

"Egypt rejects any attempt to resolve the Palestinian issue by military means or through the forced displacement of Palestinians from their land, which would come at the expense of the countries of the region," Sisi said, adding that such a measure would turn the Sinai into a base for attacks against Israel.

Israel dismissed the plans as a hypothetical "concept paper" after the document was seen by media. Israel's Intelligence Ministry conducts research but does not set policy.

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office, in a statement to NBC News, called the paper "an initial thinking document, of which there are dozens at all levels of the government and the security arms."

It added that "the issue of 'the day after' was not discussed in Israel's official forum, which is now focused on destroying the governmental and military capabilities of Hamas."

— Karen Gilchrist, Natasha Turak

Editors note: The following post contains a disturbing image of a child in a body bag.

The United Nations Children's Fund, or UNICEF, said that more than 3,400 children have died since the start of the Israel and Hamas conflict on Oct. 7.

"The numbers are appalling; reportedly more than 3,450 children killed; staggeringly this rises significantly every day," UNICEF spokesman James Elder told reporters in Geneva.

"Gaza has become a graveyard for thousands of children. It's a living hell for everyone else," he added.

Elder added that in addition to the active war zone in Gaza, children are also facing a water crisis.

"Gaza's water production capacity is a mere 5 percent of its usual daily output. Child deaths – particularly infants - to dehydration are a growing threat," he added.

Elder warned of the mounting traumatic experiences children are also facing.

"When the fighting stops, the cost to children and their communities will be borne out for generations to come," he said.

— Amanda Macias

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., urged the Senate to immediately send Jack Lew to the Middle East after he is minted as U.S. ambassador to Israel.

The Senate is set to confirm the appointment of Lew, the former Treasury Secretary under President Barack Obama, today.

"I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of sending an American Ambassador to Israel today," Schumer said in a statement. "With everything happening in Israel right now, confirming Jack Lew at this moment will be one of the most important and consequential nomination votes the Senate has taken in a long time."

The ambassadorship has been vacant since Tom Nides left the post this summer.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved Lew's nomination on a 12-9 basis.

— Chelsey Cox

The head of Israel's national security council said that he does not see a deal for the release of hostages as being close, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported Tuesday.

"As of today, we do not see a deal to release the hostages close," Tzachi Hanegbi said during a press briefing.

Hanegbi added that "the day after the war is not close" and that the government was determined in its goal for Hamas to "cease to exist."

— Karen Gilchrist

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the Israel-Hamas conflict with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Miqdad Tuesday, the ministry of foreign affairs said, according to a Google translation of the ministry's statement.

"The government officials paid special attention to the dramatic development of the situation in the Israel-Hamas conflict zone," a press statement said, following a telephone conversation between the pair.

Lavrov and Miqdad agreed that "an immediate end to the bloodshed in Gaza, a solution to all humanitarian problems arising as a result of the fighting, and a transition to discussing a long-term settlement through political and diplomatic methods" was needed.

The impacts of the Israel-Hamas war on neighboring countries, such as Syria, is being closely watched as the violence continues in the Gaza Strip.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

Dozens of people were reportedly killed and injured after an airstrike on the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza on Tuesday.

The Hamas-run heath ministry, and the director of the nearby Indonesian hospital, said that at least 50 people had been killed in the blast.

CNBC was unable to independently verify the number of casualties.

The refugee camp is located at the northern end of the Gaza Strip and is one of the most densely populated places on Earth.

— Karen Gilchrist

A senior U.S. Treasury official on Monday reiterated support for humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people as the Israel-Hamas war continues.

The aid is authorized through U.S. sanctions programs that ensure assistance for civilians, according to Brian E. Nelson, under-secretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence.

Nelson also outlined Hamas' fundraising scheme by laundering money through fake charities at a roundtable with representatives of non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and U.S. government implementers.

The under-secretary again condemned the attacks by Hamas and emphasized cutting off resources for the terrorist group.

—Chelsey Cox

Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Tuesday that his country is engaging at all levels to resolve the "unprecedented humanitarian crisis" in Gaza, Reuters reported.

"Egypt is engaging at all levels starting with the political leadership with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to all state agencies that are moving to solve this unprecedented humanitarian crisis that the innocent residents of the Gaza strip are exposed to today," Madbouly said.

During a visit to the Rafah crossing, through which aid deliveries have been crossing into Gaza, Madbouly added that a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine was critical to ensuring peace in the region.

— Karen Gilchrist

The E.U.'s top envoy Josep Borrell once more called for the "immediate" and "unconditional" release of all hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, decrying the "slaughter" of Shani Louk.

"Horrified by the slaughter of Shani Louk, a German-Israeli citizen, by Hamas," Borrell said on social media. "Her death is an illustration of the barbarity of terrorists committed against hundreds of Israeli & international citizens."

Hamas abducted over two hundred people during its terror attacks in Israel on Oct. 7. Only four captives have since been released, and one has been rescued by the Israeli military.

Earlier this week, Israel revealed that 23-year-old Shani Louk, a young woman kidnapped by Hamas during the Nova music festival, was confirmed as dead.

Louk was previously seen in video footage, stripped and paraded around Gaza in the back of a pick-up truck by Hamas militants on Oct. 7.

— Ruxandra Iordache

The Israel Air Force said it deployed the long-range Arrow defense system for the first time since the start of its war with Hamas, intercepting a surface-to-surface missile in the Red Sea that had been launched toward its territory.

The Air Force said that the Israeli Defense Forces had earlier in the day followed an aerial threat detected in the Red Sea region and addressed "hostile targets flying in the area," according to a Google-translated social media update.

"All the threats were intercepted outside the territory of the State of Israel. No intrusion into Israeli territory was detected," the IAF said.

Earlier on Tuesday, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that a warning had been activated about the intrusion of a "hostile aircraft" in the southern Israeli town of Eliat. He later downgraded the incident as posing "no threat" and "no danger."

A senior official of the Houthi militants in Yemen claimed responsibility for the incident, according to Agence France Presse.

"These drones belong to the state of Yemen," Abdelaziz bin Habtour, prime minister of the Huthi government, said when asked about the launch towards Eilat.

The Hamas, Houthi and Hezbollah group in Lebanon — which has likewise been trading fire with Israel since the start of the Hamas conflict — are all backed by Iran, with whom Israel has had a long-term inimical relationship.

— Ruxandra Iordache

U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths has drawn attention to the harm civilians have experienced in both the Gaza Strip and Israel, as a result of the Israel-Hamas war.

The suffering of the Palestinian people has been "beyond devastating," he said on social media on Tuesday, after a call with families in the region.

"When an 8-year-old tells you that she doesn't want to die, it's hard not to feel helpless," he said.

Overnight, he warned that the current situation in the Gaza enclosure "may pale in comparison with what is to come."

Griffiths said he arrived in Israel on Monday, pleading for the release of the over 200 civilians still held hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

"For the past 3 weeks, their families have been living in agony, not knowing if their loved ones are dead or alive," he said.

Griffiths' trip to Israel had been under question, following a breakdown in ties between Israel and the U.N. last week over comments made by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who said the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7 "did not happen in a vacuum."

— Ruxandra Iordache

An antisemitic mob incident at an airport in Russia's republic of Dagestan will be analyzed to deter similar incidents in the future, the Kremlin said Tuesday.

"The relevant authorities will take investigative actions. And after that, of course, the situation will be analyzed," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in Google-translated comments reported by Russian state news agency Tass. "What is necessary to minimize or completely eliminate such illegal manifestations in the future."

Kremlin officials held a special closed meeting following the unrest in Dagestan, where an anti-Israel group stormed an airport on Sunday, reportedly looking for passengers that had come on a flight from Tel Aviv. Russian President Vladimir Putin levelled accusations at the U.S., claiming it had orchestrated the incident in Dagestan — which Washington denies.

Demonstrations either against Israel or supporting Palestinian people have been on the rise since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict and Israel's siege of the Gaza Strip enclosure.

— Ruxandra Iordache

West Bank-based journalist Mohamed Bader turned himself in to the Israeli Defense Forces so his wife, who had been detained, would be freed, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.

Soujoud Al-Assi, the wife of Bader, told the CPJ non-profit organization that she was arrested in order to put pressure on her husband to give himself up to the IDF. She was later freed.

Bader and Al-Assi both work for the Saudi al-Hadath newspaper in Ramallah city in the West Bank.

News sites The New Arab, based in London, and Amad, a Palestinian news website, reported that Bader was previously held by the IDF for four months. 

— Katrina Bishop

Sixty-four staff members of the U.N. Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) have been killed since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, the organization's Director of Communications Juliette Touma said on social media.

The death toll stood at 63 on Monday.

UNRWA has previously urged a humanitarian cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, where it assists Palestinian civilians, and urged safe conditions for its staff to distribute supplies. UNRWA-run schools in the Gaza enclosure have been transformed into shelters for refugees.

— Ruxandra Iordache

The number of hostages held by Hamas is currently at 240, according to Daniel Hagari, spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces.

"As I say this, the number has risen to 240, since as I have explained, identification is complex," Hagari said in a press briefing Tuesday morning.

"Some of the hostages are not Israeli citizens, and the process is complex. It takes time, and the number currently stands at 240 — we have updated the families of 240 hostages."

Militant group Hamas captured the hostages on Oct. 7 as part of its terror attack in southern Israel and took them to the Gaza Strip. Israel has previously said it will not end its siege of the area, imposed following the attack, until the hostages are freed.

— Katrina Bishop

The Israeli military is focusing its operations in the northern part of the Gaza strip but attacking "all parts" of the territory, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said in an overnight update.

"We will focus our activities in the northern part of Gaza, that is the center of gravity of Hamas ... but we are also continuing to strike in other parts of Gaza, we are hunting their commanders, we are attacking their infrastructure," he said, noting that Israel had sent heavily armored vehicles, tanks and bulldozers into the strip.

This equipment is enhanced with "special engineering constructions to face threats that they're going to face inside the densely populated urban terrain," he noted.

The IDF is simultaneously engaged in combat with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, with whom it has traded fire since the early days of its conflict against Hamas.

"What is important here is for the state of Lebanon to understand that they stand to lose almost everything and gain absolutely nothing by allowing Hezbollah to drag them into a war," Conricus said.

Addressing the exacerbating humanitarian crisis in the heavily bombarded and resource-deprived Gaza Strip, he said: "As days go by, I think we will be ramping up the facilitation of humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip. We do understand that the situation there is difficult, but this isn't our doing, and this isn't what we wanted."

Human rights groups and the U.N. have repeatedly called for a humanitarian cease-fire to allow food, water, fuel and medical resources to reach the Palestinian population through the Rafah crossing that bridges the Gaza Strip and Egypt. U.N. officials have said that the current number of trucks able to reach the civilians of the strip represents "a trickle" compared with their actual needs.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Rescued hostage Ori Megidish, a private in the Israel Defense Forces, has been able to supply information to the military on the location and conditions of her detainment by Hamas, IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus told MSNBC in a TV interview.

He confirmed that Megidish is now "safe with her family" after being rescued during an Israeli ground operation conducted in the Gaza Strip.

"This was the first of the hostages that was freed in such a way," Conricus said.

Another 238 captives remain held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, following the group's terror attacks of Oct. 7. Four other people were released by the Palestinian militant organization following negotiations.

Conricus said that the IDF is "committed to bringing all the people home," but qualified this as a "very daunting task."

Analysts have previously noted that the number of hostages will offer Hamas a strong bargaining chip in the event of an Israeli ground incursion. Hamas officials have said a ceasefire must be agreed before captives are released.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Japan has slapped fresh financial sanctions on individuals and a company believed to be linked to Palestinian militant group Hamas, the foreign ministry said in a Google-translated statement on Tuesday.

Among the newly sanctioned are individuals believed to be affiliated with the Hamas political bureau and its investment and financial operations, along with one of the group's top commanders, Ayman Nofal, which the Israeli military previously reported it had killed.

This is the first set of sanctions Japan has applied against Hamas and Hamas-affiliated individuals since the terror attacks of Oct. 7.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that there is "no threat" and "no danger" in Eliat, a town in the south of the country, following earlier reports of a "hostile aircraft" in the area.

"Further to the initial report, the IDF systems detected an aerial target approaching the territory of the State of Israel. There is no threat and there is no danger," Hagari said on social media, according to a Google translation.

Around 30 minutes earlier, he had said a warning had been activated "about the intrusion of a hostile aircraft in the Eilat area."

— Katrina Bishop

The chief of the World Health Organization has spoken out against antisemitism and Islamophobia, amid a rise in protests and deepening divides since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

"Hatred is not an expression of views, it's a poison that divides and diminishes us. Increasing acts of antisemitism are deeply concerning and have no place in our society," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media.

"We must express our opinions with respect and empathy, leaving no room for antisemitism, Islamophobia or bigotry of any kind."

His comments come after support of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip led to a wave of protests and demonstrations around the world. The enclave has been under Israeli siege since early October in response to the Oct. 7 terror attacks carried out by Hamas.

On Sunday, an anti-Israel mob stormed an airport in the Russian republic of Dagestan, looking for passengers who arrived on a flight from Tel Aviv.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Consul General of Israel to the U.S. Midwest Yinam Cohen said that freed hostage Natalie Raanan has returned home to Chicago.

"Her family members have been anxiously waiting for her return, and today I am sharing their happiness," he said on social media.

"While we're celebrating Natalie's return, we remember the 239 hostages, among them babies, children, women, and the elderly, who are still held by Hamas in Gaza."

Natalie Raanan and her mother Judith were taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, as they visited Israel. They were staying in the kibbutz Nahal Oz, which was stormed by the militant group.

They were released on Friday, Oct. 20, after nearly two weeks of captivity.

— Katrina Bishop

The armed wing of Hamas, Al-Qassam Brigades, fired anti-tank missiles against Israel's forces early on Tuesday, according to a Hamas-affiliated outlet on social media.

The report said clashes had escalated in the northwest Gaza axis, according to a Google translation, as well as two tanks and bulldozers being targeted in the same area.

—Matt Clinch

Israeli military struck 300 targets of Palestinian militant group Hamas during ground operations undertaken in the past day, the Israel Defense Forces said in a social media update.

Targets included infrastructure, anti-tank missiles posts, rocket launch posts and Hamas compounds. The military also hit Hamas operatives, the IDF said.

CNBC could not independently verify developments on the ground. The IDF's stated goal is to strip away the military capabilities of Hamas.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has no plans to resign, despite a public uproar over the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas raid that killed over 1,400 Israelis and sparked the current Israel-Hamas war.

Netanyahu was asked at a news conference Monday if he has considered stepping down.
"The only thing that I intend to have resigned is Hamas. We're going to resign them to the dustbin of history," he said. "That's my goal. That's my responsibility."

Netanyahu also said he would not agree to a cease-fire, saying it would be tantamount "to surrender to Hamas, to surrender to terrorism, to surrender to barbarism. That will not happen."
He said Hamas was responsible for the high death toll in Gaza, accusing the group of using civilians as human shields.

The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 8,306, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 110 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.

— Associated Press

The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees is warning that "an immediate humanitarian cease-fire has become a matter of life and death for millions," stressing that "the present and future of Palestinians and Israelis depend on it."

Philippe Lazzarini warned during an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council Monday that a further breakdown of civil order, following the recent break-ins at the agency's warehouses by panicked Palestinians searching for food and other aid, will make it extremely difficult for the largest U.N. agency in Gaza to continue operating.

He said in a virtual briefing that he is worried about a spillover of the conflict and urged all 193 U.N. member nations "to change the trajectory of this crisis."

The commissioner-general of the agency known as UNRWA, also said 64 of its staff have been killed in just over three weeks — the latest only two hours prior when UNRWA's head of security in mid-Gaza was killed with his wife and eight children.

Lazzarini said most Palestinians in Gaza "feel trapped in a war they have nothing to do with" and "they feel the world is equating all of them to Hamas." He stressed that the Oct. 7 Hamas atrocities in Israel don't absolve Israel from its obligations under international humanitarian law, starting with the protection of civilians.

— Associated Press

Israel has warned its citizens to leave the northern Caucasus after a mob stormed an airport in Russia's Dagestan region when a flight from Israel landed there.

Hundreds of men, some carrying banners with antisemitic slogans, rushed onto the tarmac of the airport in Makhachkala, the capital of the predominantly Muslim region, on Sunday night, looking for Israeli passengers on the flight from Tel Aviv, according to Russian news reports.

The attack seemed to be partly fueled by anger at Israel's actions in Gaza, where it has been at war with Hamas following a deadly incursion by the militant group earlier this month. Several people in the mob were waving Palestinian flags.

More than 20 people were wounded, with two in critical condition, and police made 60 arrests.

Israel raised its travel warning level to 4, the highest level, calling on citizens to avoid all travel to Dagestan and neighboring regions, and for those who are there to leave as soon as possible.

— Associated Press

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby was asked during a press briefing to confirm reports that the U.S. was involved in convincing Israel to restore internet and communication services on the Gaza Strip after it was plunged into darkness Friday night, NBC News reported.

"I would just tell you that we're glad to see that the internet connectivity was restored," Kirby said,

Later he confirmed, "yes, we were part of the conversations that led to that restoration."

The Gaza Strip was plunged into darkness Friday night as Palestinians lost access to internet and communication. Large explosions could be seen lighting up the night sky as Israel stepped up bombardment.

Communication services were slowly restored on Sunday.

— Riya Bhattacharjee

Israeli officials are going back on their promised refusal to grant entry visas to U.N. officials.

Martin Griffiths, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, tweeted Monday that he was in Israel — less than a week after Israel's U.N. ambassador said it had "refused" to grant Griffiths a visa.

Israeli officials had expressed outrage over comments last Wednesday by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that the deadly Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants "did not happen in a vacuum."

Gilad Erdan, Israel's U.N. ambassador, accused Guterres on Israel's Army Radio of justifying a slaughter, called for his resignation and said Israel would "refuse to grant visas to U.N. representatives."

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Guterres stood by his remarks.

On Monday, Israel's ambassador in Geneva, Meirav Eilon Shahar, said, "We haven't said categorically that we're not giving visas. We are … We understand their need to be there."

Eilon Shahar confirmed that Griffiths was in Israel, as well as other officials, including Han Kluge, the regional head of the World Health Organization.

But she continued to voice Israel's frustration that U.N. institution chiefs didn't speak out more forcefully against Hamas militants for "butchering civilians and women in such a vicious way."

"The United Nations has let down the people of Israel," Eilon Shahar added. "When I say the United Nations, I'm talking about the multilateral organizations have let down the people of Israel."

— Associated Press

Netanyahu says Israel will not agree to a cease-fire; UNICEF says 'more than 420 children are being killed or injured in Gaza every day'