Number of hostages held in Gaza now up to 240, says IDF
From CNN's Amir Tal
A woman looks at posters showing the pictures of Israeli hostages near Azrieli Mall in Tel Aviv, Israel, on October 18. Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images
The number of hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza is up to 240, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said at a press conference Tuesday.
Hagari also said 315 IDF soldiers have died since Hamas' attack in Israel on October 7.
Pvt. Ori Megidish was "actively rescued" with "boots on the ground" in a joint operation between the IDF and the Israeli Security Agency (ISA), also known as Shin Bet, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus told CNN.
3:59 a.m. ET, October 31, 2023
At least 13 killed in Israeli airstrike in central Gaza overnight, doctor says
From CNN’s Kareem Khadder and Manveena Suri
Flames and smoke rise over Gaza City after Israeli airstrikes on October 30. Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty Images
At least 13 people have been killed in an overnight Israeli airstrike in central Gaza, according to a staff member at Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
The strike hit a home in al-Zawaida in Deir al Balah killing all 13 people inside, including children, Dr Khalil Al Dikran, head of nursing at the hospital, told a journalist working for CNN.
The journalist, who was at Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital on Tuesday morning, counted a total of 44 bodies in the morgue tent being prepared for burial, including the 13 killed overnight.
The other casualties were killed in strikes on Monday afternoon that hit two homes and a wedding hall being used to shelter displaced residents who had fled northern Gaza, according to Al Dikran.
He added that the Monday airstrikes occurred in central Gaza, killing 31 people.
3:26 a.m. ET, October 31, 2023
Analysis: New wave of antisemitism threatens to rock an already unstable world
Analysis from CNN's Stephen Collinson
Workers clean graffiti from the sidewalk in front of Congregation Beth Elohim synagogue on 8th Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York City on October 27. Gardiner Anderson/NY Daily News/Getty Images
History is flashing warnings to the world.
Outbursts of antisemitism have often been harbingers of societies in deep trouble and omens that extremism and violence are imminent.
So the wave of global hatred directed against Jews — intensified by Israel’s indiscriminate response in Gaza to horrific Hamas terrorist murders of Israeli civilians on October 7 — should not just be seen as a reaction to the Middle East yet again slumping into war.
It is also a reflection of destructive forces tearing at American and western European societies, where stability and democracy are already under pressure.
The Hamas attacks — a pogrom against Jews that killed 1,400, mostly civilians — have initiated a sequence of events that have left Jewish people around the world feeling threatened. And now that the Israeli government has sought retribution through airstrikes and operations in Gaza targeting Hamas, the scenes of carnage in Palestinian communities threaten to further drain public sympathy for Israel abroad and, in some cases, contribute toan atmosphere that risks worsening harassment of Jewish people.
In the United States there is a climate of growing fear.
Jewish day schools have canceled classes. Synagogues have been locked. Social media has pulsated with hatred against Jews, leaving a community that can never escape its historic trauma yet again wondering where and when it can ever be safe.
Explosions in northern Gaza as Israel says it struck 300 Hamas targets
From CNN's Ivana Kottasova in Ashkelon, Israel
Smoke billows across the skyline of Gaza on October 31. Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
Fighter jets and helicopters have been heard flying around the areas surrounding Gaza early on Tuesday, following yet another night of intense fighting.
Overnight, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) bombarded the enclave with artillery rounds, mortars and airstrikes. CNN teams saw numerous large explosions in northern Gaza, as the IDF appeared to be fire flares illuminating the ground, followed by artillery rounds and airstrikes.
Videos released by the IDF on Tuesday morning show Israeli soldiers on the ground in Gaza, progressing on foot and in tanks through rural areas as well as in what appears to be a significantly war-damaged urban district.
Despite the intensified IDF ground operation, Hamas has continued to fire rockets from Gaza. CNN reporters heard alarms indicating incoming fire in a number of areas around the Gaza perimeter overnight and early Tuesday.
The IDF said Tuesday its forces have struck "approximately 300 targets," including military compounds inside underground tunnels belonging to Hamas over the past day.
During ground operations, IDF soldiers "had several engagements with terrorist cells that fired both anti-tank missiles and machine gun fire toward them. The soldiers killed terrorists and directed air forces to real-time strikes on targets and terror infrastructure," it said.
Israel's expanded ground operations in recent days have killed "numerous Hamas terrorists," and hundreds of military targets have been struck, the IDF said.
12:59 a.m. ET, October 31, 2023
Analysis: Russian airport riot shows risks of Putin's balancing act on Hamas
Analysis from CNN's Nathan Hodge
Vladimir Putin attends a meeting in Moscow on October 30. Gavriil Grigorov/AFP/Getty Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin prides himself as the leader of what he calls a “multinational, multiconfessional” Russia. And the republic of Dagestan is in many ways a microcosm of Russia’s diversity: The mountainous region is home to over 30 ethnic groups with distinct languages.
But the images of antisemitic rioters overrunning Dagestan’s Makhachkala Uytash Airport have shaken Russia’s Jewish community, stoked international outrage and raised serious questions about the blowback from Putin’s war on Ukraine — now in the Russian leader’s view directly linked to events in Gaza.
On Monday, the Kremlin leader held an extensive meeting to address the situation in Dagestan, where rioters — fired up by rumors that Jews and Israelis were aboard a Red Wings Airlines flight that landed Sunday from Tel Aviv — surged into the airport terminal and stormed the runway.
In his remarks Monday, Putin called for law enforcement to take “firm, timely and precise actions to help protect constitutional order of Russia, rights and liberties of our citizens, the interethnic and inter-religious harmony.”
But the Kremlin leader also directed the finger of blame away from Russia in remarks that require serious unpacking.
Israel's prime minister rejects calls for ceasefire as ground operation intensifies. Here's what to know
From CNN staff
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear on Monday that Israel would not agree to a ceasefire as the country's ground operations in Gaza intensify. He said while the Bible says there is a time for peace, "this is a time for war."
Meanwhile, a Hamas spokesperson said Israel was not successful in entering Gaza "except in some limited areas," and described the humanitarian situation in the enclave as "disastrous."
The Israel Defense Forces has not released details about how far it has advanced, but it is clear that Israeli troops have established positions well within the strip, with CNN crews reporting armored personnel carriers moving inside the border fence on Monday.
Here's what else to know:
Ground operation: The Israeli military said Monday its troops have killed four prominent Hamas operatives as part of its expanded ground operations in Gaza. Over the weekend, Israel announced it had entered the “second stage” of its war against Hamas, warning Sunday that its ground operation in Gaza would ramp up. In Sderot, about a kilometer from the Gaza perimeter, CNN crews heard machine gun fire on numerous occasions during the day, suggesting intense fighting on the ground in northern Gaza.
Soldier rescued: A female Israeli soldier who was abducted by Hamas on October 7 was “actively rescued” in a special operation, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told CNN on Tuesday. Pvt. Ori Megidish was rescued by Israeli forces in northern Gaza in an intelligence-led operation and is “well mentally and physically,” after being reunited with her family, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said.
Hostage video: Hamas released a short video on Monday showing three women who are believed to be captives held by the militant group since its October 7 attack. The video shows them seated in plastic chairs facing the camera, while the woman in the middle addresses Netanyahu directly with increasing fury, demanding Israeli leaders to “free us all." CNN is unable to verify anything about their circumstances or well-being. Ongoing talks that include the US, Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Hamas are underway to get a large group of hostages out of Gaza, a task that sources say is now further complicated by Israel’s expansion of its ground operations.
Humanitarian crisis: The humanitarian situation in the enclave is continuing to deteriorate. The United Nations reported that thousands of desperate Palestinians are taking basic items like flour and hygiene supplies from warehouses — while facing sustained Israeli airstrikes. A total of 26 trucks went through the Rafah crossing into Gaza on Monday, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said. The head of surgery at the largest hospital in Gaza described dire conditions and said staff at the facility “cannot cope” with the huge number of patients they are treating.
West Bank strikes: Israel reported new operations against armed Palestinian groups in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Ministry of Health said four men were killed in an Israeli air and ground operation in the city of Jenin. According to Palestinian eyewitnesses there, the Israeli army launched two airstrikes on a refugee camp, causing severe damage to buildings.
Wider conflict fears: Lebanon's caretaker prime minister said an escalation of the war in Gaza could plunge the whole region into chaos. An uptick in Israeli clashes with Hezbollah has raised fears that the powerful Lebanese paramilitary group could actively participate in the conflict. Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi said Sunday that Israel has "crossed the red lines" and it "may force everyone to take action." The White House said the US is working to send a “strong” message of deterrence to Tehran.
Pvt. Ori Megidish was rescued by Israeli forces in northern Gaza. ISA
An Israeli soldier who was abducted by Hamas on October 7 was “actively rescued” in a special operation, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told CNN on Tuesday.
Pvt. Ori Megidish was rescued by Israeli forces in northern Gaza in an intelligence-led operation and is “well mentally and physically,” after being reunited with her family, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus told CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
An initial IDF announcement that the soldier had been “released” was a translation error, Conricus said. “It indeed was a special operation that was targeted in specifically getting her out,” he said.
Megidish has shared information about her captivity with Israeli intelligence officers, which “can be used for the future,” he added.
Conricus did not rule out more potential rescue missions but did not share whether Israel is planning any other operations based on intelligence about hostages' whereabouts.
“We are definitely committed to get all of our 238 hostages currently held by Hamas in Gaza, all of them, to get them home,” he said.
Hamas is indulging in psychological warfare by using hostages as leverage, Conricus claimed, and he pushed back on criticism that Israel’s ground operations in Gaza would potentially have a negative impact on hostage negotiations.
Based on the rescue of Megidish, “I would argue that the reality on the ground dictates differently,” he said.
Israeli forces on the ground in Gaza are expecting “fierce resistance” and “tunnel warfare, booby traps, IEDS, anti-tank mines, snipers, and many other things,” Conricus said, adding that so far “progress is good.” The Israeli military is making “considerable efforts, now in the ground warfare, to distinguish between combatants and non-combatant,” and are “moving slowly and deliberately,” he said.
1:03 a.m. ET, October 31, 2023
Israel's expanding ground operation complicating efforts to get hostages out of Gaza, sources say
From CNN's MJ Lee, Alex Marquardt and Becky Anderson
Israeli soldiers are seen mustering near Gaza on October 29. Yossi Zeliger/TPS/Latin America News Agency/Reuters
The US remains a part of the ongoing talks that include Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Hamas to get a large group of hostages out of Gaza, and officials are now contending with Israel pressing forward with ground operations into the strip.
Officials with US President Joe Biden's administration have been calling on Israel to consider so-called “humanitarian pauses” that can allow for civilians in Gaza, including hostages, to exit and for aid to get in.
Offering a glimpse into how unpredictable and fluid the situation remains, a senior US official told CNN on Monday they believed the prospects of getting hostages out could be described as “50/50.”
“The parameters are all there,” this official said about a potential deal. But efforts to negotiate with Hamas — mediated significantly by the Qataris — has been slow-going, in no small part because it simply takes a long time for messages to be transmitted from Doha to Hamas.
Majed Al-Ansari, the spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and adviser to the Qatari prime minister, told CNN on Saturday that Israel’s escalation on the ground is making the situation “considerably more difficult.”
Israel has said the intensifying ground offensive puts additional pressure on Hamas, and therefore may ultimately be helpful in the ongoing efforts to free hostages.
A US official said there could in fact be some benefit to this approach.
Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, said on Sunday that Hamas has “not been forthcoming about allowing these hostages to go,” but the administration believes there is still a “pathway” for securing their release.
“Even though we’ve started to see Israel moving on the ground, that has not changed our basic view that this has to remain a paramount priority that we have to keep working at,” Sullivan said.
One source familiar with the discussions said the talks have centered on freeing hostages in exchange for prisoners being held by Israel.
Al-Ansari, the Qatari spokesperson, also said there have been active discussions about a “prisoner exchange” for the hostages.
The source added the negotiations also include getting Hamas to open the Rafah gates for dual nationals to leave Gaza.
“We are optimistic that the talks are headed more towards all civilian hostages,” al-Ansari said. “But obviously, it is a fluid situation ... And we still don't know will happen.”
As the talks continue, there remains real skepticism about how serious Hamas is about the negotiations, the senior US official said. “It’s Hamas after all.”
9:19 p.m. ET, October 30, 2023
UN aid agency says 64 workers killed in Gaza conflict as "entire population dehumanized"
From CNN’s Artemis Moshtaghian
Dozens of UN aid workers have been killed this month during Israel’s sustained offensive on Gaza in the highest toll of any conflict worldwide in such a short period of time, a UN commissioner said Monday.
Addressing the UN Security Council, Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said, "I lost 64 colleagues in just over three weeks."
"The last tragic passing was two hours ago. Samir, head of security and safety in the middle region died with his wife and eight children," he said.
Lazzarini highlighted the devastated state of Gazans, saying they “feel that they are not treated as other civilians” and “they feel the world is equating all of them to Hamas.”
“This is dangerous. And we know this too well from previous conflicts and crises. An entire population is being dehumanized," he said.
“Panic pushed thousands of desperate people to head to the UNRWA warehouse and distribution centers where we store the food and other supplies,” he said.
Spreading conflict: The commissioner noted that while the focus should remain on Gaza, it is important to acknowledge the increasing violence taking place in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
He said Palestinian fatalities in the West Bank “are the highest since the UN started to keep records in 2005," while escalating tensions between Israel and Lebanon have resulted in “regular exchanges of fire and civilian casualties.”
Lazzarini expressed deep concern about the potential spillover of the conflict beyond Gaza’s borders, emphasizing that “an immediate humanitarian ceasefire has become a matter of life and death for millions.”
The official also said UNRWA needs a safe and unimpeded path to provide continuous humanitarian aid, including fuel, to Gaza residents.
“The rules of war must be followed by all parties, at all times, in all places. Civilians must be protected, hostages released, and a genuine humanitarian response facilitated,” he said.
