Netanyahu rejects days-long humanitarian pause; Israel military says it will help evacuate hospital babies

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization, said Sunday that the situation at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza has grown increasingly dire and that a cease-fire is necessary to preserve civilian lives.

He said on social media that he had received updates from health care professionals at the hospital.

"It's been 3 days without electricity, without water and with very poor internet which has severely impacted our ability to provide essential care," said Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

He added that the number of patient fatalities has increased significantly: "The hospital is not functioning as a hospital anymore."

Hospitals are supposed to be protected by the standards of international humanitarian law, but speculations about Hamas' operations within the Al-Shifa hospital have made it a primary target of Israeli attack.

Adhanom Ghebreyesus ended his social media post by demanding a cease-fire "NOW."

— Rebecca Picciotto

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke Saturday with Qatar's prime minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, to discuss "ongoing efforts to evacuate the critically wounded and urgently increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza," department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

"Secretary Blinken and Prime Minister Al Thani also discussed efforts to ensure the safe passage of foreign nationals out of Gaza and the immediate and safe return of all hostages. Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the importance of the strategic partnership between the United States and Qatar," Miller also said.

— Fred Imbert

The European Union on Sunday demanded an immediate pause in fighting so a humanitarian corridor can be properly established for aid deliveries and civilian evacuation.

"The E.U. is gravely concerned about the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza," the E.U.'s statement read.

The E.U. reiterated its support for Israel to defend itself against Hamas and demanded the release of Hamas' hostages. It also noted that according to international humanitarian law, hospitals must not become targets of attack.

In recent weeks, the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza has become a central point of combat due to the theory that Hamas is conducting significant operations within it. The hospital has experienced prolonged power outages, putting patients' lives at risk.

"In this context, we urge Israel to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the protection of civilians," the E.U. said.

— Rebecca Picciotto

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Sunday Hamas' attacks on Israel do not justify the collective punishment of Palestinians.

"You cannot use the horrific things that Hamas did as a reason for collective punishment of the Palestinian people," Guterres told CNN in an interview, adding that 101 U.N. personnel have died so far in the Hamas-Israel war that erupted after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.

— Reuters

Republican presidential hopeful Chris Christie on Sunday visited Israel, expressing solidarity in Israel's war against Hamas and saying the U.S. must stand "shoulder to shoulder" with its close ally.

Christie toured a kibbutz that was ravaged in the Oct. 7 rampage by Hamas militants that triggered the war and was meeting Israeli leaders during his one-day visit. The former New Jersey governor is the first candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination to visit Israel.\

"I came here because I wanted to see this for myself," Christie said during a tour of Kfar Azza, one of more than 20 towns and villages attacked by Hamas militants on Oct. 7. Israel says over 1,200 people were killed and 239 others are being held hostage in Gaza.

"To be able to walk through a neighborhood like this and see what was done to the people, to still be able to walk into one of these homes and smell the death still, a month later, is something that I think the American people need to know."

Christie, the 2024 race's most vocal critic of former president, Donald J. Trump, has cast himself as the only Republican willing to directly take him on. Trump has not visited Israel during the current campaign cycle, though President Joe Biden has.

— The Associated Press

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Sunday that Israel's goal of neutralizing Hamas will take a long time to achieve.

Attacks have recently centralized around Al-Shifa hospital where patients lives are at risk and it is rumored that Hamas' command center is located. But Herzog said that even if Israel takes control of that hospital, the war will not be over.

"It doesn't end in Shifa Hospital. They're based all throughout Gaza. Unfortunately, they're based in a- in a whole city underneath," Herzog said on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday, speaking about Hamas. "That's why it will take a long drawn-out operation."

In a separate interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he does not think the war will go on for "many years." He added that Israel is moving as quickly as it can.

Hundreds of thousands of protesters have gathered for the fifth consecutive weekend calling for a cease-fire in the war. Israel has repeatedly declared it will only consider a cease-fire if all Hamas' hostages are released.

"We demand all the hostages. That's the worldwide demand," Herzog said.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Christos Christou, the international president of Doctors Without Borders, said on Sunday that hospital evacuations in Gaza would take weeks and a ceasefire is necessary to ensure the safe passage of patients.

"To evacuate the hospital you need time, you need weeks. It's not within 24 hours," Christou said on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday. "It takes also a ceasefire."

Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza has become a particular pain point in the war so far as Israel alleges that Hamas has based its headquarters within it, making it a prime target for attack despite the humanitarian consequences.

"Any attack on medical care at the moment is an attack on humanity," said Christou.

He explained that many patients who have just underwent surgery cannot walk out of the hospital safely and require elevated assistance and time. He added that premature babies who are hooked up to incubators for life need extensive support to be removed from the hospital.

Palestinian health officials reported power outages at Al-Shifa hospital on Saturday, which hit pediatric divisions and intensive care units particularly hard. An infant was among at least two patients who died as a result.

Getting infants and children to safety is a top priority for Doctors Without Borders, but Christou said that he has not heard any "coordinated action" from the Israeli military to evacuate neonatal patients.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel is making every effort to minimize civilian casualties. He agreed to short, hours-long humanitarian pauses to allow for the evacuation of civilians in Gaza. But many, including President Joe Biden, have asked for longer, days-long pauses since safe evacuation takes more time.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday dodged questions on his personal role in missing the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that triggered the current war and said that everyone bears some responsibility.

"We all bear responsibility, nobody's going to evade responsibility," Netanyahu said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday.

Still, he deflected specific questions about whether his government was distracted by internal strife in Israel before the attacks. Prior to Oct. 7, Israelis were protesting some of Netanyahu's judicial reforms.

"We weren't distracted at all," said Netanyahu, but he added that relitigating the past is not his current priority.

He said he is focused on uniting Israel to defeat Hamas. After the war has concluded, he said, there will be time to do a proper investigation into the Oct. 7 attack and answer those "tough questions."

— Rebecca Picciotto

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said that after the war, Israeli military forces will have to remain in Gaza to prevent a resurgence of terrorism in the region.

"We've seen that any place that we leave, we just exit, give it to some other force and very soon terrorism resurges," Netanyahu said on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. "When Israel left Gaza, it handed the keys over to the PA [Palestinian Authority] and what happened? Within a very short time, Hamas took over."

The question of who will govern Gaza once the war ends is currently open-ended.

The U.S. has advocated for a pathway to Palestinian independence, while also supporting Israel's goal to neutralize Hamas. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen has also said that Israel does not want to impose a civilian government on Gaza after the war and that he would support turning over control of Gaza to an international coalition, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu remains staunch on his position that the Palestinian Authority failed to prevent a Hamas takeover and that Israeli military presence is necessary in the region. In a separate interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Netanyahu said that Israel's military is "the only force" that can ensure terrorism does not reappear on the strip.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Jake Sullivan, U.S. national security advisor, told CNN earlier Sunday highlighted the tightrope the world is navigating amid the Israel-Hamas war.

"There can be no forcible displacement of the Palestinian people from Gaza, and there can be no reduction in the territory," he said. "At the same time, Gaza can never be used again as a terrorist base from which to attack Israel."

"We've also said that we think that there should be unified political leadership across both the West Bank and Gaza the Palestinian Authority is that local leadership and investment bank over the long term," he said. "Of course, the determination of how the West Bank and Gaza are governed, will be up to the Palestinian people."

— Fred Imbert

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that he will not consider pausing fighting for more than hours at a time.

"The only ceasefire that we would consider is one in which we have our hostages released," Netanyahu said on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. "That doesn't mean that we can't give humanitarian pause for a few hours."

But President Joe Biden has pushed Netanyahu to pause the attacks for at least three days to guarantee the safe passage of hostages and civilians.

"That's not a pause," Netanyahu said Sunday. "If you're talking about stopping the fighting, that's exactly what Hamas wants."

Israel has agreed to short, hours-long pauses in fighting, but nothing beyond that. The Israel Defense Forces said in a Sunday post on X, formerly Twitter, that since Nov. 8, there have been humanitarian pauses between the hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Gaza for "civilians to move south."

In a separate interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," Netanyahu said a deal to release hostages could be reached. "We'll talk about it when it's there. We'll announce it if it's achieved," he said.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Israel's land, sea and air assault on the Gaza Strip, triggered by Hamas's cross-border attack on Oct. 7, has brought upheaval and destruction to the Palestinian territory on a scale never before seen in the enclave.

Here are latest estimates from international organizations on the socio-economic impact of the conflict.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), quoting data from the Palestinian public works and housing department, said Israeli attacks had destroyed more than 41,000 housing units and damaged more than 222,000 housing units. In all, it said at least 45% of Gaza's housing units had reportedly been damaged or destroyed.

In a Nov. 10 report, OCHA said 279 educational facilities had reportedly been damaged, more than 51% of the total, with none of Gaza's 625,000 students able to access education.

It said more than half of Gaza's hospitals and nearly two-thirds of primary health care centres were out of service and 53 ambulances damaged. All 13 hospitals in Gaza City and northern Gaza have received evacuation orders from the Israeli military.

— Reuters

The Al-Quds Hospital in the Tel al-Hawa area of Gaza City is "out of service and no longer operational," according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

"The cessation of services is due to the depletion of available fuel and power outage," it said on social media.

The aid group added that the hospital had been "left to fend for itself under ongoing Israeli bombardment."

Israel's military says Hamas uses hospitals as operational bases and hides weapons in tunnels underneath them, although Hamas denies these charges. Last week, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: "Hamas systematically exploits hospitals as part of its war machine."

— Katrina Bishop

Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said it was opening evacuation routes from three hospitals, including Al-Shifa.

"Following the repeated calls by the IDF to Gazan residents to evacuate from northern Gaza for their own safety, the IDF is enabling a passage from the Shifa, Rantisi and Nasser hospitals," Hagari said on social media.

It follows multiple reports from local health officials and aid agencies of intense fighting in and around hospitals in Gaza City.

— Katrina Bishop

Gaza's Health Ministry said three premature babies have died at the Al-Shifa hospital and "others may face death at any moment."

The ministry, which is an agency of the Hamas-led government, also said that five patients died in the hospital's intensive care unit Saturday due to lack of oxygen. A further 35 babies at the hospital are at risk of death, according to health officials.

CNBC was unable to confirm developments on the ground. The Israel Defence Forces said it will help evacuate babies from Al-Shifa hospital Sunday, and that a "self-evacuation corridor" will operate from the medical complex.

Separately, the World Health Organization's head Tedros Ghebreyesus said in a social media post Sunday: "WHO is gravely concerned about the safety of health workers, hundreds of sick and injured patients, including babies on life support, and displaced people who remain inside the hospital."

— Katrina Bishop

Hamas has denied that it uses civilians as human shields in a press statement issued by the National and Islamic Forces Committee.

"We completely deny everything that the terrorist occupation leaders said yesterday evening, Saturday, and we consider them false lies, including talk about using civilians as human shields," it said, according to an NBC translation.

Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using civilians and civilian infrastructure — including hospitals, kindergartens and mosques — as a front for its military activities.

—Katrina Bishop

In a social media post on its Arabic-language X account, the IDF's Avijaa Adraei said there will be a "temporary tactical cessation of military activities for humanitarian purposes in the village of Jabalia and Ezbet Mlin" between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. local time Sunday.

There will also be a "self-evacuation corridor" from the Al-Shifa hospital via Al-Wahda Street to Salah Al-Din Road, Adraei said.

The Salah Al-Din Road — the main highway in Gaza — has been used by thousands of people evacuating the north of the enclave. Adraei said it will be open to traffic from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. local time on Sunday.

— Katrina Bishop

The World Health Organization said early Sunday that it had lost communications with its contacts inside Al-Shifa, Gaza's biggest hospital.

"As horrifying reports of the hospital facing repeated attacks continue to emerge, we assume our contacts joined tens of thousands of displaced people who had sought shelter on the hospital grounds and are fleeing the area," WHO said in a statement on social media.

"There are reports that some people who fled the hospital have been shot at, wounded and even killed."

The UN health agency said the latest reports indicate that the hospital is surrounded by tanks — something the Israeli military denied in an update late Saturday. CNBC was unable to confirm the situation on the ground.

WHO said that over the last 48 hours, the hospital had been "reportedly attacked multiple times, leaving several people dead and many others injured." It added that staff said there was a lack of clean water and critical medical facilities, such as ventilators and incubators, which could soon be shut down due to a lack of fuel.

— Katrina Bishop

The Israeli military said late Saturday that there is "no siege" on the Al-Shifa hospital, and pledged to help evacuate babies from the facility.

"The staff of the Shifa hospital has requested that tomorrow we will help the babies in the pediatric department to get to a safer hospital. We will provide the assistance needed," IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a video posted to social media.

The east side of the hospital remains open for Gazans who wish to leave the hospital, he said. CNBC was unable to confirm this.

Hagari added that the IDF is speaking "directly and regularly" with hospital staff.

— Katrina Bishop

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a Saturday press conference that after the war, Israel will maintain security control in Gaza but will demilitarize the region.

He also doubled down on his position that there will be no cease-fire until Hamas releases all of its over 200 hostages.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Power outages have hit the intensive care unit and the pediatric ward at Gaza's main hospital, Palestinian health officials said Saturday.

An infant was among two people who died at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City "because we did not have electricity," Dr. Marwan Abusada, a surgeon at the hospital who is also head of international cooperation at the Hamas-run Ministry of Health told NBC News in a telephone interview.

NBC News was not immediately able to independently confirm the situation on the ground.

A spokesperson for the Israeli military in a statement to NBC News said that there was "ongoing intense fighting against Hamas in the vicinity" of Al-Shifa hospital.

— Melodie Warner

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to criticism from French President Emmanuel Macron who said that Israel should stop killing civilians.

"The responsibility for any harm to civilians lies with Hamas - ISIS and not with Israel," Netanyahu said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday.

In a Friday interview with the BBC, Macron said that he condemns the Oct. 7 Hamas attack but there is "no reason" and "no legitimacy" for Israel's killing of innocent women, children and elderly people in Gaza. He also called for a cease-fire.

The Israeli Prime Minister responded that Israel is in the war because of the Oct. 7 attack and because Hamas still has over 200 hostages. Netanyahu has previously said that if Hamas releases its hostages, Israel will call a cease-fire. The Israel Defense Forces also said it would temporarily pause bombardment during certain time windows on Saturday to allow for the safe evacuation of civilians.

"The crimes being committed today by Hamas - ISIS in Gaza will be committed tomorrow in Paris, New York and all over the world," Netanyahu said in his statement. "The leaders of the world should be condemning Hamas - ISIS, not Israel."

Netanyahu has equated Hamas with the ISIS terrorist organization. It is important to note that they are different groups.

— Rebecca Picciotto

Al Shifa — the largest hospital in Gaza — has no electricity or water, according to local health officials, who said it has "stopped working."

In a Saturday news conference, Palestinian Ministry of Health Spokesman Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra said the hospital was "besieged." The Ministry of Health is an agency within the Hamas-controlled government.

"We can say that the Al-Shifa Medical Complex has stopped working and is out of service due to the occupation's targeting of everything that moves inside the complex," he said, according to an NBC translation.

Al-Qudra said the Israeli military was currently bombing an area of the hospital, and those inside were unable to move location "due to the intensity of the bombing and the intensity of the fire."

Also speaking at the press conference, Dr. Muhammad Qandil said there were many dead bodies both inside and outside of the hospital, which is "collapsing totally."

"We are now calling the whole world, if there is any conscience still there, please [act] ... Any politician in the world now who cannot put pressure to stop this war crimes against hospitals his hands are bloodied," the emergency consultant said, according to an NBC translation of his comments.

Israel's military says Hamas uses hospitals as operational bases and hides weapons in tunnels underneath them, although Hamas denies these charges. Last week, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: "Hamas systematically exploits hospitals as part of its war machine."

— Katrina Bishop

‘Catastrophic’ situation at Gaza hospital as attacks ramp up; Pro-Palestinian march due in London