Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza denies Israeli assertion that ambulances were used by fighters
From CNN's Kareem Khadder and Eyad Kourdi
Palestinians inspect a damaged ambulance after an attack outside Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on November 3. Anas al-Shareef/Reuters
The Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza has rejected Israeli military allegations that an ambulance struck on Friday was being used by Hamas operatives.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed responsibility Friday for striking an ambulance "that was identified by forces as being used by a Hamas terrorist cell in close proximity to their position in the battle zone.”
At least 15 people were killed, and 60 others wounded in the attack outside Shifa hospital in Gaza City, according to Gazan health authorities.
The ministry said Saturday that two ambulances were hit.
“The first ambulance was struck near the Ansar roundabout, critically injuring a paramedic and causing additional injuries to the ambulance driver. The second attack occurred as the convoy reached the entrance of the Shifa medical compound,” the ministry statement said.
This post has been updated to reflect the most recent information on the number of people injured.
7:57 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
Jordan: Blinken to meet with several Arab foreign ministers Saturday
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler in Amman
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a meeting with Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Amman, Jordan, on November 4. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
Jordan says US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet with fellow foreign ministers from key Arab partners at a summit in Amman Saturday to discuss the conflict in Israel and Gaza.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry announced Friday that Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi would convene his counterparts from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Qatar, as well as the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, who will then meet as a group with Blinken.
The Foreign Ministry said the summit will be focused on ending the war and addressing “the humanitarian catastrophe it has caused.”
3:11 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
730 foreign nationals expected to cross through Rafah Saturday, Egyptian source says
From journalist Asmaa Khalil in Rafah
Some 730 foreign nationals are expected to leave Gaza through the Rafah crossing Saturday, according to an official source on the Egyptian side of Rafah.
Here is breakdown of nationalities expected:
55 Egyptians
386 Americans
112 British
77 French
151 Germans
3:13 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
Blinken to meet with Lebanon caretaker prime minister in Amman
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler in Amman
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets with Lebanese Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati at his hotel during a day of meetings, in Amman, Jordan, on Saturday, November 4. Jonathan Ernst/Pool/AP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is meeting with Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Amman Saturday as part of his third trip to the region since Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent war.
It comes after his trip to Tel Aviv to meet with Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Friday, after which he spoke of the need for more to be done to protect Palestinian civilians.
But he also condemned Hamas’ use of civilians as human shields and embedding its fighters within civilian infrastructure, adding that “civilians should not suffer the consequences for its inhumanity and its brutality.”
He said that the US believes efforts to get humanitarian assistance in and hostages out “would be facilitated by humanitarian pauses.”
3:35 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
Israeli festival survivor returns to site of Hamas rampage
From CNN's Rebecca Wright and Nic Robertson, John Torigoe, Eli Kiko Cohen and Joel Bennett
Aliza Samuel, 24, returned to the site of the deadly Nova festival attack by Hamas militants, in southern Israel, on October 7. Rebecca Wright/CNN
Nearly one month on from the massacre of festival-goers in Re’im in southern Israel by Hamas militants, survivor Aliza Samuel left her home for the first time and returned with CNN to the place where she witnessed the murders of four of her friends.
She walked carefully through debris left strewn across the ground, picking up a bracelet before coming across some small clay trinkets that had been handmade during the Nova Music Festival.
More than 260 bodies were found at the site in the aftermath of the assault on October 7, one of the deadliest of the Hamas attacks, which killed at least 1,400 people in Israel.
Samuel recalls the moment she was jolted awake soon after sunrise by the sound of Hamas rockets flying toward them from Gaza. She said she immediately woke her friend, and they fled their tent to try to find a concrete shelter.
Many of the other festival goers were asleep or still dancing, and either didn’t hear the alarm, or ignored it, she said.
But Samuel and her friend didn’t want to take any chances, so they started running. As they sought cover, they suddenly spotted Hamas fighters appearing in the skies above them on paragliders, shooting at people from the air as they came in to land.
Panicking, the pair sprinted across the open farmland surrounding the festival site and dived into a ditch behind a line of large trees. Samuel worked on trying to calm her friend down, clamping her hand over her mouth to stop her screaming, as they began to realize what was unfolding. Others were also hiding behind the trees, “trying not to breathe,” she said.
“I saw Hamas take a bunch of people and went to their commander, and asked if to kill them or to take them,” she said. “And once they were dead, they didn’t stop, they just kept shooting them, and you just saw the body just jump and jump from the bullets, after they were dead.”
After hiding in the ditch for hours, Samuel and her friend eventually saw army vehicles arrive and decided to make a run for it – stepping through “pools of blood” to escape. Finally, they found some Israeli soldiers who helped them get to safety.
Later, she learned that another male friend at the festival had also been found dead – shot in the leg and then later beheaded at a nearby kibbutz.
Israeli army "not aware" of military activity in area where Palestinian journalist was killed
From CNN's Kyle Blaine
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said it is "not aware" of its forces conducting any military activity in the area where a Palestine TV correspondent and his family were killed Thursday in southern Gaza.
Palestine TV correspondent Mohammad Abu Hattab and 11 members of his family were killed Thursday night in southern Gaza in what the network said was an alleged Israeli airstrike on his home.
His death came shortly after he had just been live on-air, according to the Palestinian Authority-run television network.
“Based on a review of operations in the area, the IDF is not aware of any military activity conducted by our forces in the vicinity of the location in question,” the IDF said in a statement to CNN Saturday.
Context: Journalists covering the war have found themselves increasingly in the crosshairs.
The number of journalists killed covering the conflict has risen to 36, according to a statement Thursday by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which said this had been the deadliest period for reporters since its records began in 1992.
The toll includes 31 Palestinians, four Israelis, and one Lebanese, CPJ added.
Another eight journalists were injured and nine others were reported missing or detained, it added.
1:47 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
Honduras joins other countries in calling back its ambassador to Israel
From CNNE's Elvin Sandoval and Begona Blanco Munoz
Honduras said Friday it was calling back its ambassador to Israel, joining a list of other nations that have scaled back on diplomatic ties following criticism of the country's actions in Gaza.
"Given the grave humanitarian situation that the civil population of the Gaza Strip are enduring, the government of President Xiomara Castro has decided to immediately call the ambassador of the Republic of Honduras in Israel, Roberto Martinez, to go to consultations to Tegucigalpa," the Honduran Minister of Foreign Affairs Eduardo Enrique Reina wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Reina told CNN affiliate Televicentro that Honduras is advocating for a ceasefire in Gaza in order to establish a humanitarian corridor and to start peace talks.
CNN has contacted the Embassy of Israel in Tegucigalpa for comments.
Context: Honduras is not the only country readjusting diplomatic ties with Israel. On Tuesday, Bolivia cut diplomatic relations, citing "crimes against humanity committed against the Palestinian people", while Colombia and Chile recalled their ambassadors to Israel for consultation due to Israel's strikes on Gaza.
A day later, Israel said it regretted the Jordanian government's decision to recall its ambassador.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said in a statement the immediate move was "an expression of Jordan’s position rejecting and condemning the Israeli war raging in Gaza."
On Thursday, Bahrain also withdrew its ambassador.
1:35 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
UN Secretary-General "horrified" by Israeli strike on ambulance convoy
From CNN's Mitch McCluskey
UN Secretary-General António Guterres addresses the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 19, in New York City. Adam Gray/Getty Images
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was "horrified" by Israel's strike on a convoy of ambulances in Gaza, a statement from the UN said.
The strike near Gaza City’s Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the enclave, killed at least 15 people and wounded 50 others Friday, according to the Hamas-run health authorities.
"I am horrified by the reported attack in Gaza on an ambulance convoy outside Al-Shifa hospital," Guterres said in the statement. "The images of bodies strewn on the street outside the hospital are harrowing," he added.
But he said he had not forgotten Hamas' "terror attacks" in Israel and "the killing, maiming and abductions, including of women and children," as he reiterated calls for the unconditional release of all hostages held in Gaza.
Guterres called for a cessation of fire on Gaza.
"Now, for nearly one month, civilians in Gaza, including children and women, have been besieged, denied aid, killed, and bombed out of their homes," he said, "This must stop."
He also called attention to the dire humanitarian situation, which he said was "horrific."
"Not nearly enough food, water and medicine are coming in to meet people’s needs. Fuel to power hospitals and water plants is running out," he said.
Context: Israel has admitted responsibility for the attack outside the Al-Shifa Hospital, saying it targeted an ambulance being used by Hamas.
Al-Shifa Hospital has increasingly found itself part of the frontline as Israel last week claimed that the facility is the site of a significant Hamas command and control center.
Palestinians have rejected the Israeli army claim, with the Director General of the Gaza Health Ministry, Dr. Medhat Abbas, telling CNN last week that Gaza’s hospitals “are used to treat patients only” and are not being used “to hide anyone.”
1:00 a.m. ET, November 4, 2023
Israel has claimed responsibility for an airstrike near Gaza's largest hospital. Here's what else you should know
From CNN staff
Palestinians pull an ambulance after a convoy of ambulances was hit near the entrance of Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City. Anas al-Shareef/Reuters
Multiple videos from the scene show at least a dozen bloodied people strewn across the ground near an ambulance. There appears to be some shrapnel damage to at least one of the cars on the scene.
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 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, in a statement, 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 Palestine Red Crescent Society said one of its ambulances was in the convoy and was damaged by shelling, but none of its members were harmed.
Developments on the ground: 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. And at least two rockets were seen making a direct hit in the Israeli city of Sderot on Friday evening, with one striking the courtyard of a kindergarten. Shrapnel hit the windows of the building as well as several nearby cars. There were no reported casualties.
Blinken visit: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to Israel on Friday for his third trip to the country since the October 7 Hamas attack, where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials. In a news conference, Blinken said, “we need to do more to protect Palestinian civilians,” while also condemning Hamas. Blinken said that the US believes efforts to get humanitarian assistance in and hostages out “would be facilitated by humanitarian pauses.” He also said that the US and Israel had "identified mechanisms" to get much-needed fuel to Gaza's hospitals. However, Netanyahu said on Friday that his government opposed any temporary ceasefire in Gaza unless Hamas freed all the hostages it holds, adding that it would continue to block fuel from entering Gaza. The Israeli military on Friday said 241 hostages are believed to have been taken by Hamas on October 7.
Hezbollah's leader makes rare speech: In his first public speech since 2006, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah called for a ceasefire and praised Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israel, adding that they were fully planned and executed by Hamas. His speech came amid escalating skirmishes between his powerful, Iran-backed armed group and Israel, sparking concern of a potential broader regional war.
ICC complaint filed: The families of 11 victims of the October 7 Hamas attack have accused the perpetrators of “crimes against humanity” in a complaint filed to the International Criminal Court. The complaint concerns 11 victims who were either killed or injured within Israeli borders. Several had been at the Nova music festival, where Hamas gunmen killed more than 260 people.
Government warnings: The Israeli government is warning its citizens to reconsider foreign travel and to exercise caution while abroad in light of an increase in antisemitic incidents and violence in recent weeks. Earlier this week, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday that antisemitism is reaching “historic levels” in the United States.
This post has been updated with the latest statements from the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Palestine Red Crescent Society.
