November 4, 2023 Israel-Hamas war news

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on a multinational trip Saturday after visiting Israel for the third time since the October 7 Hamas attack.

Meanwhile, a US official told CNN that Hamas is blocking foreign nationals from leaving Gaza after an Israeli airstrike on an ambulance near a hospital Friday.

Here are some of the latest headlines:

Blinken meets with Arab leaders: The top US diplomat has reiterated his country's rejection of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, instead calling once again for "humanitarian pauses" to get aid into Gaza. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his government opposes any temporary ceasefire in Gaza unless Hamas frees all the hostages it holds, adding that it would continue to block fuel from entering the enclave.

Blinken met with foreign ministers from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Qatar, as well as the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization. The Egyptian and Jordanian leaders made remarks after the meetings strongly condemning Israel's offensive. Blinken, who acknowledged differences with Arab leaders on their approaches to the conflict, will also travel to Turkey.

Hamas stopping foreigners from leaving, official says: Hamas is blocking foreign nationals from departing Gaza until Israel guarantees that ambulances from the Palestinian enclave can reach the Rafah crossing to Egypt, a US official familiar with situation told CNN Saturday.

The demand comes after Israel admitted on Friday that it attacked an ambulance outside Gaza City’s Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the enclave. The vehicle had been in a convoy headed for Rafah, which is the only remaining option for getting in and out of Gaza during Israel's siege of the territory. Israel claimed the ambulance was being used by Hamas fighters, which the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza has rejected.

More than 700 foreign nationals were expected to leave Gaza through the Rafah crossing Saturday, according to an official source on the Egyptian side of the crossing.

CNN reported Friday that initial efforts to secure safe passage for foreign nationals in Gaza were stymied in part by Hamas including its own members on a list of wounded Palestinians designated to pass through the Rafah crossing, according to a senior US official.

UN chief on Israel's ambulance attack: United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement he was "horrified" by the strike, while calling for a ceasefire and release of hostages.

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan accused Guterres of rushing to comment “without even bothering to ask” about the context of the strike. “You completely ignore the fact that Hamas intentionally exploits ambulances for terror,” Erdan wrote on Saturday in post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Strikes near hospital and school shelter: Israeli airstrikes have damaged a building located in front of the emergency entrance of Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City, injuring 21 people, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said Saturday.

A UN-run school serving as a shelter in a refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip was also struck Saturday, according to the main UN agency assisting Palestinian refugees in Gaza.

Humanitarian situation: The number of people who have fled from north of Wadi Gaza to the southern part of the enclave is estimated to be 800,000 "to perhaps a million," the US special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues, David Satterfield, said Saturday. There has been no new fuel into Gaza since the war began, he said.

The US is looking at the prospect of establishing field hospitals in south Gaza, Satterfield said, and Israel is engaging with countries about putting hospital ships offshore of Gaza.

IDF says Hamas fired on safe route: The Israeli military accused Hamas of using an announcement telling Gaza residents to move safely south as an opportunity to fire on soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces.

The IDF had called on Gaza residents via its Arabic account on X, formerly known as Twitter, to use the main Salah-al-Din Road to move south for a three-hour period from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. local time. It's unclear how many Gaza residents had access to internet to see the message.

Turkey latest to recall ambassador: Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Israel for "consultations" due to the "unfolding humanitarian tragedy in Gaza" and continuing Israeli airstrikes, the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement Saturday. Several other countries, including Honduras, Colombia, Chile, and Bahrain, have also withdrawn their ambassadors.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Amman, Jordan.

Neither spoke during a brief photo spray at the beginning of their meeting on Saturday, but the US State Department released a statement later.

They discussed "the vital importance of protecting civilians, providing increased and sustained humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people, and ensuring Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza," according to a readout from spokesperson Matt Miller.

Blinken also "reiterated his thanks to the Qatari government for its work to secure the exit of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals from Gaza, the release of hostages held by Hamas, including two U.S. citizens, and continued efforts to prevent the conflict from spreading."

Qatar has served as a key negotiator in discussions with Hamas amid the conflict in Israel and Gaza. The US has credited the Gulf nation for its help in securing the release of four hostages held by the group, as well as for the eventual opening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

A total of 84 Palestinians needing urgent medical treatment have entered Egypt through the Rafah border crossing so far as of Saturday, an Egyptian government official told CNN. 

The injured Palestinians all had injuries sustained from airstrikes, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity since they are not authorized to speak to the media.

Most are currently receiving treatment in hospitals across the country, and more are expected to arrive in the coming days, the official added. 

According to an Egyptian border official, more Palestinians were expected to arrive in ambulances on Saturday, but the border was shut for a few hours out of caution following an Israeli airstrike that targeted an ambulance on Friday. Israel claimed the ambulance was being used by Hamas fighters, which the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza has denied.

More on the Rafah crossing: Located in Egypt’s north Sinai, the Rafah crossing is the sole border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

It falls along an 8-mile (12.8-kilometer) fence that separates Gaza from the Sinai desert.

The Israel Defense Forces says it "did not target" a United Nations-sponsored school in Gaza that was hit in an airstrike on Thursday, but said the explosion may have been a result of Israeli fire aimed at another target nearby.

More than 20 people sheltering at the UN-run Jabalya Elementary School were killed by an Israeli strike Thursday, according to the head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which is the primary UN relief agency in the strip.

Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UNRWA, told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Thursday that three of the agency's other schools were also hit by strikes.

In response to questions about those strikes, the IDF told CNN, "Based on an initial review the IDF is not aware of any military activity conducted by our forces in the vicinity of the location provided."

Egypt cannot accept Israel's actions in Gaza as "legitimate self-defense," the country's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said Saturday during a news conference alongside US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.

Shoukry said earlier this week that a leaked Israeli intelligence ministry document that proposed the relocation of millions of Palestinians to the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt was a "ludicrous proposition." 

The foreign minister accused Israel of violating international laws of war, and reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza without conditions.

He went on to say that "Egypt is exerting all its efforts to guarantee that aid is delivered to Gaza," as a humanitarian crisis continues to unfold there.

The Egyptian leader also said it was premature to discuss the future of Gaza at this time. 

"We have to concentrate on the subject at hand, whether it be the cessation of hostilities, addressing the humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza, addressing the issues of displacement and the provision of safety for the civilians, and addressing the overall context of the conflict," Shoukry added.

More from the summit: Shoukry and Safadi were among the Arab leaders meeting with Blinken on Saturday at a summit in Jordan.

The Jordanian foreign minister also slammed Israel after the meetings, saying Israel's “war crimes must stop and its immunity from international law must end.”

He too called for "an immediate ceasefire" and said Jordan does not accept Israel's actions as self-defense.

Safadi went on to say his priority is to stop the war, saying the U.S. has a leading role to play in those efforts.

The Israel military said Saturday that it used an Arrow Aerial Defense System for the second-known time since the war with Hamas began to intercept a launch from the Gaza Strip headed toward the Arava region.

The Arrow defense system is designed to intercept high-altitude and long-range missiles. It is not typically used to intercept missiles fired from Gaza.

Earlier use: Israel announced earlier this week that it had used the system to intercept a surface-to-surface missile that was fired from the area of the Red Sea, a launch that the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen claimed credit for.

The use of the Arrow defense system indicates the Houthis used a more advanced, long-range missile in the attempted attack.

In a statement aired on the Houthi-owned Al-Masirah TV, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a spokesperson for Houthi forces, announced the launch of ballistic missiles and drones by Yemeni Armed Forces against targets in Israel.

Saree said it was the third operation in support of the Palestinian people with plans for more strikes until the “Israeli aggression” ceases.

The presence of Iran-backed groups opposed to Israel, like the Houthis and Hezbollah, has raised fears that the current conflict could broaden into a wider war in the Middle East.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken doubled down on the United States' opposition to a ceasefire in Gaza as he met with key Middle Eastern leaders Saturday, saying it was the US’ view that a ceasefire now would leave Hamas able to regroup and attack Israel again.

The US resistance to calls for a ceasefire has put it at odds with its Arab partners, including those with whom he met in Amman, Jordan.

Instead, the top US diplomat again stressed the US support for “humanitarian pauses” – a concept that has been rejected by Israeli officials.

Fears of an expanded conflict: Blinken said he and his counterparts “all agreed on the importance of using our respective influence and capabilities to deter any state or non-state actor from opening another front in this conflict.”

“Throughout this conflict, countries across the Middle East and beyond have played an essential role in preventing its spread,” Blinken said at a news conference in Amman.

The US has repeatedly warned other foes of Israel — including Hezbollah, which has voiced support for Hamas and exchanged fire with Israeli troops across the border with Lebanon but not directly intervened on Hamas' behalf — not to broaden the conflict into a wider war in the Middle East.

The US and its Arab partners share “the same fundamental interests and objectives” to end the Israel-Hamas war “in a way that ensures lasting peace and security in the region,” Blinken said following the summit, while acknowledging “we may have different views and positions” on how to achieve that end.

The top US diplomat said all parties reaffirmed their commitment to working together on the issue.

West Bank attacks: Blinken said he also spoke with the Arab leaders about the need to protect Palestinian civilians amid increasing attacks by Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

He updated his counterparts on his talks with Israeli officials yesterday, where he said he “underscored that incitement and extremist violence must be stopped and perpetrators must be held accountable.”

The Israeli military accused Hamas of using an announcement telling Gaza residents to move safely south as an opportunity to fire on soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces.

"The Hamas terrorist organization exploited the humanitarian window that the IDF provided to residents of the Gaza Strip to move southwards," the IDF said in a statement. "The terrorists fired mortars and anti-tank missiles at IDF troops who arrived and operated to open the route."

Earlier Saturday, the IDF had called on Gaza residents via its Arabic account on X, formerly known as Twitter, to use the main Salah-al-Din Road to move south for a three-hour period from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. local time. It's unclear how many Gaza residents have access to internet to see the message.

The IDF said no soldiers were hurt in the incident, but that it served as proof that Hamas "exploits the Gazan population and prevents them from acting in the interest of their own safety."

In its statement, the IDF provided links to a video, photos and audio it claimed showed Hamas opening fire toward the route during the window. 

CNN is unable to verify the authenticity of the material.

More context: The IDF has repeatedly called for civilians in Gaza to move south of Wadi Gaza as it has intensified its air and ground assault on Gaza City and northern Gaza, including strikes on densely populated areas and civilian infrastructure that the IDF has said is being used by Hamas militants. 

International aid and rights groups have been critical of Israel's calls for residents to evacuate the north without a pause in fighting, as transportation infrastructure has also been damaged. It has also recently struck several targets in the southern strip.

The number of people who have fled from north of Wadi Gaza to the southern part of the enclave is estimated to be 800,000 "to perhaps a million," the US special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues said Saturday — a mass relocation that has exacerbated humanitarian issues, which are only expected to grow as more people flee.

The envoy, David Satterfield, said there needs to be the “secure, sustained movement” of aid not only from the Rafah crossing in Egypt to Gaza, but “into points of need in the south.”

“And those points of need are growing as individuals come increasingly to the south,” he added.

The ability to move assistance has scaled up exponentially, particularly in the last week, from “pretty much zero in terms of ability to move humanitarian assistance through the Rafah corridor into Gaza,” Satterfield said, but reiterated that even the current number of aid trucks getting through the crossing per day is not sufficient.

Although the US believes the current daily flow of trucks into Gaza is sustainable, “it's challenged by the environment on the ground in south Gaza,” Satterfield said, noting United Nations warehouses with basic supplies and food had been broken into early in the week.

Shelter is also a problem, he added.

Israeli's military has called for civilians in Gaza to move south as it intensifies its air and ground assault on Gaza City and northern Gaza. International aid and rights groups have criticized Israel's calls for residents to evacuate the north without a pause in fighting and while roads and other infrastructure are badly damaged.

Possible field hospitals and ships: The US is looking at the prospect of establishing field hospitals in south Gaza, Satterfield said Saturday, and Israel is engaging with countries about putting hospital ships offshore of Gaza.

Satterfield said the US is speaking with agencies like the International Committee of the Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders to set up tented field hospitals.

“Now bringing in staff — which we all see in the realm of the 'very doable' — will require an assurance that staff, international staff, not only can come in but can exit,” he said. “And that of course lies with what we refer to as the de-facto authorities.”

Israeli officials are speaking with allies like the United Kingdom and France about large hospital ships, he said, while also taking security and safety into account.