November 4, 2023 Israel-Hamas war news

Efforts to secure safe passage for foreign nationals in Gaza were stymied by Hamas and a slew of logistical challenges, further exacerbating a dire humanitarian situation as thousands of foreigners remained trapped in the war-torn region, according to a senior US official.

Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, would not permit anyone to leave the area, according to a senior administration official. This prompted a flurry of negotiations led by Ambassador David Satterfield.

As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsened, Hamas relayed that foreign nationals would be permitted to leave “subject to a number of wounded Palestinians being allowed to leave as well, which of course is not objectionable,” the official said.

But approximately one-third of the wounded Palestinians listed were flagged as members of Hamas in the vetting process, which was “just unacceptable to Egypt, to us, to Israel," the official said.

After another round of negotiations, an agreement was reached to ensure “that the wounded Palestinian civilians leaving with the foreign nationals were not Hamas fighters, [but] truly Individual civilians caught in this awful, horrific tragedy.”

A breakthrough was finally reached Tuesday to allow foreign passport holders and a group of critically injured civilians to depart through the Rafah border crossing, with the first group departing Wednesday.

Issues with the Rafah crossing into Egypt, which the administration characterized as “not really the crossing where large numbers of civilians typically pass,” complicated factors more.

Meanwhile, the official said, there is “just as intense a process ongoing” to secure the safe release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.

The successful release of two hostages last month, the official said, “was a bit of a pilot to see if it was possible. It is possible, but the numbers we’re talking about is extremely difficult.” 

Negotiating a release for such a large number of hostages, the official added, would require “a fairly significant pause in hostilities."

On Tuesday, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the number of hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza is up to 240.

US officials are anticipating a new phase of Israel’s war with Hamas in the coming days in which Israel decreases the scale of its air campaign and focuses on a more tactical ground operation. 

As humanitarian aid continues to flow into Gaza, the Biden administration expects that Israel’s air campaign will see “a decrease in what we’ve seen," a senior administration official told CNN on Friday. The administration anticipates a move to a “more of a tactical focus on the ground campaign” aimed at clearing out the vast network of underground tunnel complexes Hamas operates out of, the official said.

The official maintained that the administration has been “very direct…about wartime decisions and being deliberate and asking hard questions” in discussions with Israel, even as the Israeli military has drawn international criticism over the targeting of the Jabalya Refugee Camp in northern Gaza. 

Asked when the Biden administration might feel compelled to call for a ceasefire — something it has so far declined to do — the official said that given the scale and nature of Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7, a ceasefire was not appropriate. 

The official reiterated that the US is actively calling on Israel to enact so-called “humanitarian pauses,” and that it is stressing to Israel that even as it has a right to defend itself, it must adhere to international humanitarian laws. 

Ultimately, “a ceasefire I think, depends on the Israelis feeling secure in ensuring that something like this cannot happen again,” the official added.

Israeli ground forces are closing in on Gaza City, the largest and most densely packed population center in the Palestinian enclave, satellite imagery and videos from open and official sources suggest.

CNN’s analysis of the imagery helps shed light on what is happening on the ground as the Israel Defense Forces claims it has encircled the city.

Since the IDF launched its ground offensive into Gaza a week ago, marking the latest phase of its war against Hamas, its troops have pushed forward on three axes – from Gaza’s northwest border along the Mediterranean coast, from the northeast near Beit Hanoun, and from east to west, along the south of Gaza City – in an apparent effort to divide the strip into two.

Israeli troops have moved deeper along that western stretch, towards the sea, according to European Space Agency satellite imagery from Wednesday, which indicated the forces were within about a kilometer of completely encircling Gaza City.

While the imagery is low-resolution, it appears to show the tracks from heavy armored vehicles snaking across the strip, south of the urban center, nearly reaching the coast.

Videos showing Israel’s advance south of Gaza City have yet to surface, but footage shared by the IDF and circulating on social media in recent days showed Israeli troops had moved in the northernmost communities in Gaza – Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya and Atatra – and were sitting on the perimeter of Gaza City from the north.

Satellite imagery and footage have also shown Israeli forces on Salah al-Din Road, a highway running the length of the strip, seemingly blocking anyone still in Gaza City from moving south. A video that surfaced Monday, filmed by freelance Palestinian journalist Yousif Al Saifi, showed an Israeli tank opening fire on a car on the road.

Israel has claimed responsibility for an attack outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City that witnesses say killed and wounded dozens of people.

Videos from the scene show multiple people bloodied and strewn across the ground near an ambulance.

Fifteen people were killed and 50 others wounded, Hamas-run health authorities say.

In a statement, Israel said it targeted the ambulance because it was being used by Hamas.

A spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said earlier Friday that the ambulance was in a medical convoy from the hospital, traveling to the Rafah border crossing, and had informed the International Committee of the Red Cross about the move.

The ICRC confirmed it was aware of the scheduled movement of a convoy of vehicles carrying wounded patients from northern Gaza to the south, but it was not part of it, the organization said on Friday.

"We were informed by the MoH (Ministry of Health) about the planned convoy, but we were not part of it," the ICRC said in a statement to CNN. 

Earlier Friday the organization said it had received a request from the Gaza Ministry of Health to accompany the convoy.

"Even if we were not present, this is still medical convoy, and any violence towards medical personnel is unacceptable," the ICRC said. "No doctors, nurses, or any medical professionals should ever die while working to save lives." 

"Any involvement of the ICRC in evacuating civilians from an area requires the agreement of the sides on the exact terms and conditions so that this can be done safely, and then with the full consent of those evacuated,” the organization said in a previous statement.

There are dozens of casualties after an incident near Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital, according to multiple videos from the scene and the Hamas-run Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.

The cause is not immediately clear. 

Multiple videos from the scene show at least a dozen bloodied casualties strewn across the ground near an ambulance. There appears to be some shrapnel damage to at least one of the cars on the scene.

CNN has geolocated the videos to the edge of a compound that includes the hospital. There is so far no video evidence of any crater from a munition.

CNN has inquired about the incident with the Israel Defense Forces.

A spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, who was at the hospital, said that Israel was responsible for the attack. 

Dr. Ashraf Al-Qidra said that authorities had organized a medical convoy from the hospital, traveling to the Rafah border crossing, and informed the International Committee of the Red Cross about the move.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that his government opposed any temporary ceasefire in Gaza unless Hamas freed all the hostages it holds.

He also said that it would continue to block fuel from entering Gaza.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Tel Aviv on Friday said the US believes efforts to get humanitarian assistance in and hostages out “would be facilitated by humanitarian pauses.”

Blinken also said during the news conference that the US and Israel have "identified mechanisms" to get much-needed fuel to Gaza's hospitals.

The Israeli military on Friday said 241 hostages are believed to have been taken by Hamas on October 7.

The military also said Friday the death toll of Israeli soldiers fighting in Gaza is up to 25.

CNN’s Becky Anderson contributed reporting to this post.

Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, called in a speech Friday for people to "work day and night" to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza, saying it is Hezbollah's "primary goal."

Nasrallah said the powerful Iran-backed Lebanese paramilitary group's secondary goal is for Hamas to emerge "victorious" in Gaza.

He also described the war as a "turning point."

"The victory of Gaza means a victory for Palestine, for Jerusalem, for Aqsa and the Holy Sepulcher and all the neighboring countries," Nasrallah said.

Warning of a new front: Nasrallah went on to say Hezbollah has been in an "unprecedented battle" with Israel on the Israel-Lebanon border since October 8, adding that "the possibility of the Lebanese front escalating into broad battle is a realistic option."

"Israel should take this into account," he said in his speech.

Nasrallah described Hezbollah's operations at the Lebanese border as a "deterrent" to Israel and said "all scenarios" are possible in the region, warning Israel against escalating its military activity there. The Hezbollah leader said any such escalation would be "a historic folly" by Israel.

Some background: Hezbollah is an Iran-backed Islamist movement with one of the most powerful paramilitary forces in the Middle East. The group, which has its main base on the Israel-Lebanon border, could become a wildcard player in the Hamas-Israel war and spark a wider regional conflict.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in tit-for-tat skirmishes across the border in northern Israel and southern Lebanon since the war began. The Lebanese group has voiced support for Hamas' cause but not yet directly intervened on its behalf, linking its clashes with Israel to attacks on Lebanese soil.

US intelligence officials were watching Nasrallah's speech closely Friday for signals about Hezbollah’s intentions, an intelligence source told CNN on Thursday.