https://sputnikglobe.com/20231028/live-updates-idf-kills-head-of-hamas-air-force-in-overnight-strike-1114543593.html

LIVE UPDATES: Israeli Chief of Staff Says IDF Put on High Level of Readiness Along Northern Border

Sputnik International

Hostilities have been rocking Gaza Strip since October 7 when Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an unexpected attack, firing a barrage of missiles and infiltrating Israeli territory. Israeli government introduced complete humanitarian blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched retaliatory strikes.

2023-10-28T04:52+0000

2023-10-29T04:23+0000

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In this photo released by the Israeli army, Israeli soldiers walk towards the northern Gaza Strip as seen from the Israeli border with Gaza, Monday, Jan. 12, 2009. - Sputnik International

LIVE UPDATES: Israeli Chief of Staff Says IDF Put on High Level of Readiness Along Northern Border

04:52 GMT 28.10.2023 (Updated: 04:23 GMT 29.10.2023)

The Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip on October 7, breaching the border and killing and abducting people in neighboring Israeli communities. Israel launched retaliatory strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The United Nations General Assembly on Friday adopted a Jordan-submitted resolution calling for a humanitarian truce in Gaza. In turn, Israel rejected the UN General Assembly's call for a ceasefire and plans to eliminate Palestinian group Hamas, Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said.

The number of victims in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the hostilities, according to the local Ministry of Health, exceeded 7,300 people, more than 18,000 were injured. In Israel, according to local authorities, more than 1,400 people were killed, including 300 military personnel, and more than 5,000 were injured.

Several countries in the region, including Turkiye and Iran, criticized Israel's military response, which killed thousands of civilians and destroyed civilian infrastructure.

Follow Sputnik’s live feed to learn more.

Table of contents

New firstOld first

03:21 GMT 29.10.2023

Internet Connectivity Appears to Be Coming Back Online in Gaza - Network Monitor

02:06 GMT 29.10.2023

Gaza Health Ministry Says Over 8,000 Killed in Palestinian Territory - Reports

The Gaza Health Ministry said over 8,000 people had been killed in the Palestinian territory since the start of escalation with Israel, French media reported.

"The death toll linked to the Israeli aggression is past 8,000, half of whom are children," the ministry said as quoted by media.

The last death count, issued on Saturday, was 7,703.

00:59 GMT 29.10.2023

Israel Shelling Syrian Province of Quneitra - Reports

00:46 GMT 29.10.2023

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel - Sputnik International, 1920, 29.10.2023

World

Actions of World Leaders Too Weak to Stop Violence in Gaza - Doctors Without Borders

29 October 2023, 00:46 GMT

00:00 GMT 29.10.2023

French flag - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.10.2023

World

Over 70% of French People Fear Attack Similar to Hamas' October 7 Strikes on Israel

28 October 2023, 23:53 GMT

23:05 GMT 28.10.2023

UNSC Meeting Over Israel's Ground Operation in Gaza Scheduled for Oct 30

The UAE-requested UN Security Council meeting over Israel's ground operation in the Gaza Strip has been scheduled for 3 p.m. New York time (1900 GMT) on October 30, the Brazilian Presidency told Sputnik.

"It should take place on Mon Oct 30th at 3pm," the mission said.

23:00 GMT 28.10.2023

An Israeli soldier is seen next to an Iron Dome rocket interceptor battery deployed near the northern Israeli city of Haifa, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2013. - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.10.2023

World

How Former Israeli Soldier Turned Anti-War After Witnessing 2014 Gaza Invasion

28 October 2023, 23:00 GMT

21:19 GMT 28.10.2023

Palestinian Leader Calls for Emergency Arab Summit Amid Israeli Ground Invasion - Reports

Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian National Authority, called on Arab nations on Saturday to hold an emergency summit after Israel launched a ground invasion in the Gaza Strip, media reported.

Speaking at a meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Ramallah in the West Bank, the Palestinian leader said that Arab nations should band together to halt Israeli aggression against Palestinians, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Abbas reportedly said that the Arab leaders should work towards preventing mass displacement of Palestinians and ending the occupation of their land by Israel.

21:05 GMT 28.10.2023

Israel Threatens to Shun Starlink Over Musk’s Pledge to Restore Connectivity in Gaza

The Israeli communications minister threatened on Saturday to cut all ties with Elon Musk’s satellite service Starlink after the billionaire offered to bring internationally-recognized aid charities in Gaza back online.

"Israel will use all means at its disposal to fight this. Hamas will use it for terrorist activities. There is no doubt about it, we know it, and Musk knows it," Shlomo Karhi wrote.

"Perhaps Musk would be willing to condition it with the release of our abducted babies, sons, daughters, elderly people. All of them! By then, my office will cut any ties with Starlink," he added.

20:48 GMT 28.10.2023

Israel’s Netanyahu Says Unaware of Iran’s Role in Hamas’ October Attack

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted on Saturday having no knowledge of Iran’s role in the deadly attack launched by Hamas against his country on October 7.

"I cannot say for sure whether they played any part in the planning in that concrete operation, at that specific moment," the prime minister told a press conference.

Netanyahu claimed that Iran was financing and coordinating Hamas activities. He went as far as suggest that the Gaza-based Palestinian group relied on Iran for 90% of its military spending.

20:44 GMT 28.10.2023

A Palestinian fighter from Ezz-Al Din Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, checks debris at the site of an Israeli air strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip December 26, 2019 - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.10.2023

World

'Definitely Misinformation': US Denies American Troops Took Part in Israeli Ground Offensive

28 October 2023, 20:44 GMT

19:39 GMT 28.10.2023

Iranian President Defies US Calls to Stay Clear of Palestine-Israel Conflict

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi defied warnings by the United States that Iran should not get involved in the conflict between Israel and Palestine, saying Washington was not following its own advice.

"Washington wants Iran to do nothing about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while the US itself has been offering broad support to Israel, making its calls null and void," Raisi was quoted as saying in an interview with Qatari media.

The Iranian president also denied that his country stood behind the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, in which about 1,400 Israelis were killed, arguing that the Palestinian group was not taking orders from Tehran.

19:29 GMT 28.10.2023

Hamas Political Office Says Ready for Immediate Exchange of War Prisoners With Israel

19:28 GMT 28.10.2023

Israel Rejects Calls to End Communication Blackout in Gaza - Palestinian Minister

Israel has rejected calls by the international community to end a communications blackout in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian National Authority's communications minister told Sputnik on Saturday.

"Israeli occupation forces have been investigated by international institutions but refused to restore services in the Gaza Strip," Ishaq Sadr said.

Sadr said it had been confirmed that Israel was responsible for the breakdown in internet and mobile phone services across the Palestinian exclave. He called the blackout a crime against humanity because it disrupted emergency services.

UN chief Antonio Guterres said earlier in the day that he had been concerned about the blackout cutting off contact with the UN staff who are delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza.

19:05 GMT 28.10.2023

Israeli Minister Gantz Says Ground Operation in Gaza Will Help Bring Hostages Home

Benny Gantz, a minister in the Israeli cabinet, said Saturday that the ongoing ground operation in the Gaza Strip could secure the release of Israel hostages from Hamas captivity.

"The ground operation … may help us make progress in bringing the hostages home," he said in a televised address to the nation.

The former defense minister who sits on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet seemingly sought to address concerns that the ground operation could endanger the lives of dozens of Israeli hostages trapped in Gaza.

18:07 GMT 28.10.2023

Israel’s Netanyahu Announces Second Phase of War Against Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Saturday that the next phase of the war against Hamas would focus on a ground operation expanding into Gaza.

"Yesterday, our ground troops moved in through the gate of Gaza … This is the second stage of the war and its goals are clear: to destroy Hamas’ military and political infrastructure and to bring the hostages home," he said in an address to the nation.

"We unanimously decided to expand the ground operation, both in our war cabinet and in our political and security cabinet," the prime minister added.

Netanyahu argued that Israel's allies in western and Arab countries understood the goals of Israel’s war against Hamas and wanted Israel to win.

The Israel Defense Forces said on Saturday that Israeli tanks, infantry and armored engineering units had been operating on the ground in northern Gaza since early Friday evening. Israeli Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi said Israel sent in its best soldiers.

17:46 GMT 28.10.2023

UAE Requests UNSC Meeting Over Israel's Ground Operation in Gaza - Source

The United Arab Emirates has requested a UN Security Council meeting over Israel's ground operation in Gaza, a security council source told Sputnik on Saturday.

"Emergency public briefing was requested [by the UAE] following Israel’s announcement that it is 'expanding ground operations' in Gaza," the source said.

A date for the meeting has not yet been set.

17:43 GMT 28.10.2023

Everything Possible Will Be Done to Release Israeli Captives in Gaza - Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara met on Saturday with representatives of the families of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and assured them that everything possible will be done to free the kidnapped citizens, as this is one of the objectives of the war.

"The efforts are continuing even more aggressively. We are taking every opportunity to bring them home ... This is an integral part of the objectives of the operation that we set out earlier ... The work continues, and I'm not sure people realize the extent of it," Netanyahu was quoted as saying by his office.

The more pressure is put on Hamas, the better the chances of bringing the hostages home, Netanyahu said.

17:16 GMT 28.10.2023

Hamas Demands Release of Palestinian Prisoners in Return for Israeli Hostages - Spokesman

Hamas is demanding the release of all Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages it holds in the Gaza Strip, either simultaneously or in several stages, Hamas' military wing spokesman Abu Ubaida said on Saturday.

"The release of the enemy's prisoners will only be possible if all the Palestinian prisoners in its jails are released. If the enemy wants an immediate end to the dossier of hostages and prisoners, we are ready, and if it wants an opportunity to divide this dossier, we are also ready," Ubaida said.

Earlier in the day, Mousa Abu Marzouq, the deputy head of the movement's political bureau, told Sputnik that there had been no progress in negotiations for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

16:33 GMT 28.10.2023

WHO Chief Says Will 'Follow Up’ on Musk's Pledge to Support UN Agencies in Gaza

Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told Sputnik on Saturday that he would follow up on an offer by US billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who said that his company SpaceX would support the United Nations and other recognized humanitarian organizations in the Gaza Strip.

"We will follow up [on Musk’s offer]," Ghebreyesus said.

Starlink, SpaceX, Elon Musk - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.10.2023

World

SpaceX to Support Internet Communications With International Organizations in Gaza - Musk

28 October 2023, 12:10 GMT