October 17, 2023 - Israel-Hamas war news

Jordan has canceled a planned Wednesday summit between United States President Joe Biden and the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority after a blast at a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of people, the country's foreign minister announced.

Biden was scheduled to visit Amman, Jordan, on Wednesday after making a trip to Tel Aviv earlier in the day.

A White House official told reporters traveling to the region with Biden that the US president will "postpone" his trip to Jordan after consulting with King Abdullah II of Jordan and taking into consideration the days of mourning announced by President Abbas of the Palestinian Authority.

The White House made the announcement shortly after the Biden boarded Air Force One en route to Israel. 

Dina Kawar, the Jordanian ambassador to the United States, also told CNN that the summit has been canceled. The US administration has been told, Kawar said, adding that they’ve been told that this is not the moment.

Palestinian officials have blamed Israel for the hospital blast, while Israeli officials say a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad is to blame.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog decried the deadly blast in Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City that he said was caused by an Islamic Jihad rocket and criticized the media's reporting on the tragedy.

"An Islamic Jihad missile has killed many Palestinians at a Gazan hospital, a place where lives should be saved," Herzog said on social media.  

The explosion was caused by a “failed rocket launch” from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, according to The Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Herzog denied accusations from Gaza officials blaming the IDF for the blast, which likely killed hundreds.

"Shame on the media who swallow the lies of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, broadcasting a 21st century blood libel around the globe," Herzog said. "Shame on the vile terrorists in Gaza who willfully spill the blood of the innocent."

"Never before has the choice been clearer. Israel is standing against an enemy made of pure evil. If you stand for humanity — for the value of all human life — you stand with Israel," Herzog said. 

A miles-long convoy of humanitarian assistance between the cities of El-Arish and Rafah was awaiting the possibility of entering Gaza on Tuesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said. 

Shoukry said the Rafah crossing was bombed four times over the past few days. He added that four Egyptian workers were injured while trying to repair some of the damage caused by the blasts.

He said that they do not have "any authorization or clear, secure routes for those convoys to be able to enter safely and without any possibility of their being targeted,” adding that trucks carrying humanitarian aid were parked on the side of the road.

Asked whether Egyptian authorities would accept and welcome refugees, the foreign minister voiced concerns about the massive influx of people. "Why Egypt should allow for the influx of 1 million or 2 million inhabitants who are suffering because of the consequences of them being targeted unnecessarily," he said.

Shoukry also condemned the October 7 attacks on Israeli civilians, calling them “totally unacceptable.”

It is “horrendous to see whatever imagery of targeting civilians. it's totally unacceptable,” he said. “Civilians should not be in anyway subject to any form of military activity, and it was a shock,” Shoukry added. 

The European Union is working with Egypt to deliver aid to those fleeing the conflict in Gaza, according to the president of the European Commission.

Ursula von der Leyen said the commission is in contact with authorities in Egypt to try to allow humanitarian aid to be delivered to Gaza.

The commission is also “establishing an air bridge to Egypt, close to Gaza in order to be in a position to quickly deliver aid across the border.”

“We're also explaining to the Israeli authorities that providing water to Gaza is essential. This is a basic human right,” she added. 

Such moves do not affect the EU’s position on the recent attacks launched by Hamas on October 7, she said. 

“There is no contradiction in standing with Israel in solidarity and acting for the humanitarian needs for the Palestinians,” von der Leyen said.

Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, said on Tuesday that “Egypt has very clearly said in many political and diplomatic contacts, that they did not wish to open the border with Gaza.”

“But we are working with all the leaders in the region to try to organize the evacuation of foreign civilians. And, we're also working with all the leaders of the region in order to make possible the humanitarian access to be able to provide to the people in need what they need and to meet their basic needs,” he added. 

At least 17 journalists have been killed since the Israel-Hamas conflict erupted on October 7. At least eight others were reported injured and three are missing or detained, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Of the deceased journalists, 13 were Palestinian, three were Israeli and one was Lebanese, said the CPJ, which is tracking the growing number of press deaths related to the unfolding conflict.

The CPJ said it compiled its information from its own sources in the region and from media reports.

"Journalists across the region are making great sacrifices to cover this heartbreaking conflict," said Sherif Mansour, the CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. "All parties must take steps to ensure their safety."

The group is publishing the names and circumstances of the journalists’ deaths.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed the “barbaric terrorists in Gaza” for "attacking" the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza on Tuesday, which the Palestinian Health Ministry said resulted in an estimated hundreds of deaths.

"So that the whole world knows: the barbaric terrorists in Gaza are the ones who attacked the hospital in Gaza, not the IDF,” Netanyahu said in a statement. 

“Whoever brutally murdered our children is also murdering their children,” he added. 

Some background: A spokesman for the IDF has "categorically” denied that Israel was involved in the bombardment of the hospital, instead saying intelligence suggests it "was a failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad."

IDF also posted to its Telegram account that "analysis of IDF operational systems indicates that a barrage of rockets was fired by terrorists in Gaza, passing in close proximity to the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza at the time it was hit."

Palestinian officials have said the hospital was hit in an Israeli strike.

Hamas on Tuesday said more than 500 people were dead following the devastating strike on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, according to a statement on the Hamas official website.

A spokesperson of the Israel Defense Forces told CNN a Palestinian Islamic Jihad group is responsible for the "failed rocket launch" that hit the hospital.

The Israel Defense Forces said intelligence shows a Palestinian Islamic Jihad group is responsible for the “failed rocket launch” that struck a Gaza hospital Tuesday, killing hundreds of people, according to Palestinian officials.

The IDF said a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza toward Israel passed near the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza when it was hit.

“Intelligence from multiple sources we have in our hands indicates that Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch which hit the hospital in Gaza,” it added.

A spokesman for the IDF has "categorically” denied that Israel was involved in the bombardment of the hospital.

Further, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement that the IDF “did not conduct any operations” in the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital area at the time it was bombed.

Palestinian officials have said the hospital was hit in an Israeli strike, adding that between 200 to 300 people were killed, citing preliminary estimates.

CNN’s Martin Goillandeau and Tamar Michaelis contributed reporting to this post.

The Pentagon said there will continue to be a "steady flow of weapons" to Israel from the United States.

Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said that as of Tuesday, “there have been five C-17 aircraft missions that have successfully carried a range of security assistance into Israel."

Those flights happened between October 12-16, Singh said.

Some context: In addition to sending weapons, the US is also bolstering its presence in the Middle East as it works to prevent the conflict between Israel and Hamas from widening any further.

A US Marine rapid response force is headed to the waters off the coast of Israel and the Pentagon is preparing American troops for a potential deployment to the country, multiple defense officials said over the weekend.

Two defense officials familiar said the rapid response force will join a growing number of US warships and forces converging on Israel as the US seeks to send a message of deterrence to Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.