Rockets were fired at Tel Aviv and southern Israel overnight, and the Israel Defense Forces attacked targets in and around the northern part of Gaza. It was not immediately clear how much damage, if any, was caused in the rocket attacks. Hezbollah claimed a strike from Lebanon that killed one Israeli and wounded three.
Israel also acknowledged for the first time that it had intelligence of something happening in Gaza two hours before the attack on Oct. 7.
The US said it would provide a ship for some of its citizens to leave Israel on Oct. 16.
(All timestamps are Israeli time)
Hezbollah Claims Missile Strike on Israel (11 a.m.)
Hezbollah claimed a missile strike on Israel near the Lebanese border that Israel’s rescue service said killed one Israeli and wounded three.
Hezbollah says it fired guided missiles toward an Israel army post in Shtula from Lebanon, according to the militant group’s Al-Manar TV. The Israeli military said earlier it was targeting southern Lebanon after initial report of a shooting near the Lebanese border.
Gaza Death Toll Reaches 2,300 (9:00 a.m.)
The number of people killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza has reached more than 2,300, local authorities said, with thousands more wounded in the past eight days.
This now outnumbers the death toll of the 51-day Israel-Hamas war of 2014, according to Ashraf Al-Qedra, a spokesperson for the Gaza health ministry.
The 2014 war killed more than 2,200 Palestinians, according to UN figures. At the time it was the deadliest and most destructive violence since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip.
IDF Announces Evacuation Window in Gaza (8:48 a.m.)
The Israel Defense Forces said it wouldn’t hit targets in parts of Gaza between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm to allow residents of Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip to leave the area and head to Khan Yunis and areas located south of the Gaza Valley.
The IDF provided two evacuation corridors yesterday and said that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians had left northern areas.
US to Ship Out Some Citizens From Israel (8:14 a.m.)
The US government is assisting US nationals and their immediate family members with a valid travel document to depart Haifa via sea for Cyprus on Oct. 16, according to a statement on the US Embassy in Israel website.
Israel Says it Killed Hamas Military Leader (7:36 a.m.)
The Israeli military said on Sunday its fighter jets killed the Hamas military leader responsible for the attack on one of Israel’s communities last Saturday, Kibbutz Nirim. In a statement, the military said this occurred Saturday night during operations that also took out Hamas rocket launchers.
It said the man was commander of the Nukhba forces in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. Nukhba are the elite Hamas military unit that Israel says trained and led the October 7 attack. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist group by the US and the European Union.
Rockets Fired at Tel Aviv, Southern Israel (7:00 a.m.)
Rockets were fired at Tel Aviv and southern Israel overnight, Jonathan Conricus, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, said in a briefing on X. The IDF is still attacking Hamas targets in and around the northern part of the Gaza Strip, he said.
Israeli forces are deployed along the Gaza Strip and preparing for the next stage of operations, the spokesman said. There will be “significant military activity” in the northern part of the strip, he said, reiterating a call for civilians to move to the south.
“The next stage of operations will be enhanced operations against Hamas,” Conricus said.
US Deploys Second Aircraft Carrier Group (2:17 a.m.)
The US is sending a second aircraft carrier group to the eastern Mediterranean in support of Israel, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. The USS Eisenhower carrier strike group will join the USS Gerald Ford, sent shortly after the Hamas attacks from Gaza last week.
Austin said the deployments “signal the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and our resolve to deter any state or non-state actor seeking to escalate this war.”
Syria’s Aleppo Airport Out After Airstrike (12:31am)
Israel carried out an airstrike on Saturday targeting Aleppo International Airport at about 11:35pm local time, putting it out of service, Syria’s state-run news agency SANA reported. Flights through Aleppo airport have been transferred to Latakia airport, Syria’s Ministry of Transport said, according to SANA. On Thursday, the Israeli military fired missiles targeting Damascus and Aleppo airports, damaging their runways and putting them out of service.
Liberman to Join Emergency Government (8:33 p.m.)
Israel’s Likud Party announced that Avigdor Liberman, who heads the opposition party Yisrael Beitenu, agreed to join the emergency war government as a cabinet member. His party has six seats in parliament. Earlier this week, Benny Gantz, leader of a bigger opposition party, helped form the emergency government by joining with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Blinken Urges China to Use Its Influence (8:25 p.m.)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Beijing to use its influence to prevent other state or non-state actors from attacking Israel and widening its war with Hamas, the State Department said.
Blinken spoke with Foreign Minister Wang Yi before departing from Riyadh, where the top US diplomat was attempting to shore up support for Israel among Arab nations, said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller. He met with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the State Department said.
Israel Acknowledges Reports of Gaza Activity (8:18 p.m.)
Israel confirmed for the first time that there were intelligence indications of something happening in Gaza two hours before the attacks last week. The head of Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service, spoke with military personnel about the reports, said Tzachi Hanegbi, head of Israel’s National Security Council.
“Both sides assessed that this is something other than it turned out to be,” he said.
