May 7, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

By Kathleen Magramo, Jessie Yeung, Rob Picheta, Angela Dewan, Christian Edwards, Tara John and Tori B. Powell, CNN

Updated 12:09 a.m. ET, May 8, 2024

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2:26 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

Israeli military says it has captured Palestinian side of Rafah crossing

From CNN’s Lucas Lilieholm

A photo from social media shows two Israeli flags mounted outside the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing’s main building, on May 7. From Social Media

Israel's military has seized control of the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing, an Israeli military official said Tuesday.

The facility is the sole crossing between Gaza and Egypt and a crucial entry point for humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinian enclave.

“We have operational control of the area and the crossing,” the Israeli military official said.

Military operations at the crossing are ongoing, the official added.

"We have special forces scanning the crossing; that is what's happening in the upcoming hours," they said. "We have operational control of the area of the crossing and we have special forces handling there."

The official refused to say how long Israeli troops would control the crossing,

Video from the Israel Defense Forces showed Israeli flags raised on the Palestinian side of the crossing.

Earlier, a Palestinian official told CNN all movement on the crossing had stopped after Israeli tanks captured the facility on the Palestinian side.

This post has been updated with additional information.

3:07 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

There's "nowhere safe to go" in Gaza, aid worker says

From CNN staff

Palestinians injured after an Israeli airstrike wait for medical treatment in Rafah, Gaza on May 7. Doaa Albaz/Anadolu/Getty Images

Palestinians awoke to the sound of Israeli airstrikes in Rafah on Tuesday, with hundreds of thousands of displaced people in the southern Gaza city at a loss for where to go next, an aid worker said.

Speaking to CNN from Rafah, Suze van Meegen, head of the Norwegian Refugee Council's (NRC) operations in Gaza, said she saw thousands of people fleeing the airstrikes and the "increasing sound of artillery southeast as well, which is very close to the Rafah crossing."

"Not only is there nowhere safe to go, for many people there's also no way to get there," she said.

More than 1 million Palestinians have fled to Rafah during seven months of war; many of them have described their fear and despair after Israel's military told them to evacuate eastern parts of the city on Monday.

Israel's deadly strikes early Tuesday came after Israeli officials said ceasefire terms that Hamas responded to Monday were "far from" meeting its demands.

Confusion over a purported ceasefire deal had initially sparked "huge celebrations on the streets" of Rafah before the Israeli bombing resumed, Van Meegen said.

"It's adding to the confusion, but also the emotional roller coaster that people are being dragged along," she said. "And what we're seeing is that people just can't take anymore of the ups and downs and the uncertainty — and wondering whether they can protect their kids and families."

2:16 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

Israeli airstrikes kill 15 in Rafah, hospital officials say

From CNN’s Abeer Salman

A man mourns by the shrouded body of a Palestinian child killed in an Israeli airstrike in Rafah, on May 7. Anas Zeyad Fteha/Anadolu/Getty Images

Israeli airstrikes on Rafah overnight killed 15 people, including a child, according to hospital officials in southern Gaza on Tuesday.

The reports from medical officials at the Abu Yousef Al Najjar and Al Kuwaiti hospitals come after the Palestinian Civil Defense earlier said its teams had recovered bodies from several homes struck by Israeli aircraft in Rafah.

Israel has vowed to "exert military pressure on Hamas" in Rafah after saying the ceasefire terms the Palestinian militant group responded to Monday were "far from" meeting its demands.

1:48 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

Rafah crossing closed after Israeli troops capture Palestinian side, official says

From CNN's Kareem Khadder and Abeer Salman

All movement on the Rafah crossing has stopped after Israeli tanks captured the facility on the Palestinian side, a Palestinian official told CNN on Tuesday.

The facility is the sole crossing between Gaza and Egypt and a crucial entry point for humanitarian aid.

"Passenger movement and entry of aid to the Gaza Strip has completely ceased," said Wael Abu Omar, a spokesperson for the General Authority of Border and Crossing.

Crossings stopped "after Israeli tanks captured the crossing facilities from the Palestinian side," he said, adding the facility had been under fire since Monday afternoon.

Images spreading on social media show Israeli flags and a video of a tank at the crossing.

CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for a response, and an announcement is expected soon.

1:45 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

"I am leaving for the unknown": Palestinians fleeing Rafah describe their fear and despair

From CNN's Helen Regan, Abeer Salman, Tareq Al Hilou and Tim Lister

Palestinians flee from Rafah, Gaza, on May 6. Ramadan Abed/Reuters

Palestinian civilians told to evacuate eastern Rafah by the Israeli military have described their fear and despair at being uprooted from their homes and shelters, as Israel airstrikes hit Gaza’s southernmost city.

“We left because they distributed leaflets,” Mohammed Ghanem, a resident in eastern Rafah told a CNN stringer in the area on Monday. “(They) are striking everywhere without differentiating between children, adults, militants or non-militants. I left my house that I have been building for 17 years.”

Ghanem and his wife were pushing strollers piled high with belongings. “We no longer have a home. We are heading to Mawasi because there is no safety with the Israelis. They are killing women and children,” he said.

Another woman from eastern Rafah said, “The Israelis sent us messages ordering us to leave. We cannot stay.”

Earlier on Monday, the Israeli military called on an estimated 100,000 Palestinians living in parts of eastern Rafah to “evacuate immediately,” telling them to move to Al-Mawasi, a coastal town near the city of Khan Younis that aid groups say is not appropriate for habitation.

In a statement, the office of Israel’s prime minister said the country’s war cabinet had “unanimously decided” to continue with the Rafah operation “to exert military pressure on Hamas.”

Read the full story.

2:28 a.m. ET, May 7, 2024

It's morning in Gaza. Here's what you need to know

From CNN staff

People inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a house in Rafah on Tuesday, May 7. Hatem Khaled/Reuters

Israeli airstrikes killed multiple people in Rafah early Tuesday, Palestinian officials said, after Israel reiterated its commitment to an offensive in southern Gaza.

Israel has vowed to "exert military pressure on Hamas" in Rafah after saying the ceasefire terms the Palestinian militant group responded to Monday were "far from" meeting its demands.

International leaders, including the United Nations chief, have urged Israel and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire deal as tensions escalate on the ground after the Israeli military called on Palestinians in eastern Rafah to "evacuate immediately."

Here's what to know:

Negotiations stall: Hamas on Monday said it responded a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar, but Israel said the terms Hamas accepted were still far from meeting its "requirements." However, Israel said it will send a delegation to Cairo for further talks, which mediator Qatar said would resume Tuesday.
Deadly strikes: Palestinian officials reported multiple fatalities in Rafah following Israeli airstrikes early Tuesday. It comes after at least 26 people were killed by strikes from late Sunday into the early hours of Monday, the Civil Defense said. Separately, video and images showed multiple explosions in Rafah on Monday night, which US officials said they did not believe to be the beginning of Israel's operation.
Mass evacuations: Palestinians evacuating eastern Rafah described their fear and despair, after Israel's evacuation order raised fears that its long-threatened assault on the city could be imminent. Throughout the war, more than 1 million Palestinians have fled to Rafah, where Hamas is believed to have regrouped after Israel’s destruction of much of northern Gaza.
International response: Qatar and Jordan expressed hope for a ceasefire deal, while the White House said the US remains opposed to an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah and that President Joe Biden had been briefed about where things stand on negotiations. Meanwhile, the UN secretary-general warned that a Rafah ground invasion would be "intolerable" and the UN human rights chief called Israel's evacuation order "inhumane."

11:00 p.m. ET, May 6, 2024

Biden discusses Gaza and hostages in White House meeting with Jordan's king

From CNN's Nikki Carvajal

US President Joe Biden and King Abdullah II of Jordan “discussed the latest developments in Gaza and affirmed their commitment to work together towards an enduring end to the crisis” during their lunch at the White House Monday, the White House said.

“They further underscored the need for an immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas and a sustainable ceasefire that allows for a surge of the urgently needed humanitarian assistance to be delivered safely through Gaza,” a readout of the meeting released by the White House said.
“Both remain committed to achieving a durable, lasting peace to include a pathway to a Palestinian state, with security guarantees for Israel."

Both Biden and Abdullah “reiterated their shared commitment to facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” the White House said. Biden also thanked the king for his “critical leadership and partnership in this effort.”

Abdullah warned Biden in their meeting that an Israeli attack on Rafah, where about 1.4 million Palestinians are internally displaced "threatens to lead to a new massacre," according to a post on X from Jordan's Royal Hashemite Court.

11:41 p.m. ET, May 6, 2024

Israeli airstrikes kill multiple people in Rafah, Palestinian officials say

From Eyad Kourdi and Kareem El Damanhoury

Civil defense teams transport several injured people following Israeli attacks in Rafah, southern Gaza. Palestinian Civil Defence

Israeli airstrikes killed a number of Palestinians and injured others early Tuesday, Palestinian officials said.

In a statement published alongside photos of at least two bodies inside body bags, the Palestinian Civil Defense said it had rescued "several injured individuals from under the rubble of several homes which were bombed by Israeli warplanes tonight in various places" in Rafah.

Eight Palestinians were killed in two attacks on Rafah, although the exact timeframe remains unclear, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.

Rafah's Kuwait hospital said it received 11 dead, according to a post on its Facebook account in the early hours of Tuesday.

The reports come after Israel reiterated its commitment to an offensive in southern Gaza, saying ceasefire terms accepted by Hamas were "far from" meeting its demands.

CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment.

11:40 p.m. ET, May 6, 2024

Israeli ground invasion of Rafah would be "intolerable," UN chief says

From CNN's Richard Roth

An Israeli ground invasion of Rafah would be "intolerable," United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Monday.

"A ground invasion in Rafah would be intolerable because of its devastating humanitarian consequences and because of its destabilizing impact in the region," the UN chief warned.

Guterres said he had made a "very strong appeal" to both the Israeli government and the leadership of Hamas to "go an extra mile" to reach a ceasefire agreement.

"This is an opportunity that cannot be missed," he added.