Israel-Hamas war top developments Nov 23: Death toll in Gaza nears 15,000, says Hamas government

The spokesman of Hamas' armed-wing called on Thursday for the escalation of the confrontation with Israel on all resistance fronts.

"We call for escalation of the confrontation with the occupation throughout the West Bank and all resistance fronts" the spokesman for the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Ubaida, said in a video speech aired by Al Jazeera TV. 

Source: Reuters

Gaza's Hamas government on Thursday (Nov 23) said that the death toll in the Palestinian territory had reached 14,854 since the beginning of the war on October 7. 

Hamas government said 6,150 children and 4,000 women were among the dead, with another 36,000 people wounded.

Meanwhile, the Hamas-run health ministry said that it can no longer give exact tolls as intense fighting has prevented bodies from being recovered.

Hamas has confirmed that the truce with Israel will come into effect at 7:00 am (local time) on Friday. 

During the four-day truce its armed wing Qassam Brigades and other "Palestinian factions" will "halt all military activity" and so will Israeli forces, said Hamas, in a statement, as per Al Jazeera. 

It also said that Israeli aircraft will completely stop flying over southern Gaza but only stop flying over Gaza City and northern Gaza for six hours between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm (local time). 

Israel will release three Palestinian prisoners for every Israeli hostage released. A total of 50 Israeli hostages - women and children under the age of 19 - will be released, said the Palestinian militant group. 

200 trucks carrying aid, including medical supplies and four fuel trucks will be allowed into Gaza per day. 

Out of 50 rockets fired toward northern Israel, earlier on Thursday over 20 of the projectiles landed short in southern Lebanon, said Israeli army spokesperson in Arabic Avichay Adraee, as per Times of Israel. 

"The attack caused economic damages in the villages of Rmeish, Ain Ebel and Yaroun," said a statement by the IDF official.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Thursday (Nov 23) that authorities were in contact with the families of all the hostages being held in Gaza after receiving "a first list of names".

However, the office did not immediately specify who was on the list, which was announced shortly after Qatar and Hamas said a ceasefire would go into effect at 7:00 am (0500 GMT) on Friday.

Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Dr. Majid bin Mohammed Al Ansari confirmed that the country doesn't see further delay in the Israel-Hamas truce set to happen on Friday. 

Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesperson, in a presser, said that the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will start at 7am local time (10:30 AM IST) in Gaza on Friday. A total of 13 captives will be released at 4pm (local time). 

The Israeli military confirmed on Thursday (Nov 23) that the forces have been holding the director of Al Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip for questioning. Earlier, the Gaza Health Ministry also confirmed that several medical personnels have been held captive by Israeli Defence Forces. 
 

Gaza Health Ministry has confirmed that Israeli military has detained Shifa Hospital Director Dr. Mohammed Abu Selmia in addition to other medical personnel and patients. 

The confirmation was made by the ministry spokesperson Dr. Ashraf al-Qidra. 

This came as Khalid Abu Samra, a department chief at the hospital, told the AFP news agency that the Israeli army had arrested the director of al-Shifa Hospital. 

France’s foreign ministry on Thursday (Nov 23) called for the immediate implementation of a truce agreement between Israel and Hamas, media reports said. 

This came after an agreement was reached between both over the release of hostages in Gaza in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. 

Israel's military stated that 300 Hamas targets were hit in the Gaza Strip. Taking to X, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that it launched attacks "from the air in the last day, including operational headquarters, underground combat tunnels, IED warehouses, IED production sites and anti-tank launching positions".

The IDF stated the area around Jabalia in northern Gaza was targetted and a tunnel, which was found in Beit Hanoun, was “destroyed”.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) stated that it “welcomes any respite from the fighting and bombardment in Gaza” but added that the agreed four-day pause was not long enough for addressing Gaza's humanitarian crisis.

It is "critical" to use any pause for increasing the humanitarian aid's flow into Gaza and secure the hostages' safe release, stated the IRC.

“However, four days is not enough time to meet what are now catastrophic levels of humanitarian need,” stated the IRC, in a press release.

The IRC added that the “scale of suffering requires a massive and sustained humanitarian assistance effort, and civilians must have protection that has been gravely absent.”

Assistance should be “scaled up alongside safety for civilians and aid workers,” the IRC stated, adding that Israel should “immediately allow for the permanent resumption of sufficient fuel, water and electricity supplies, without which humanitarian needs will continue to deepen.”

The IRC appealed for aid to be delivered “impartially by humanitarian agencies.”

“This must include prioritized medical supplies, food, shelter and dignity kits for women, and the assurance of safety to provide vital protection services and healthcare,” it stated.

Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health's spokesperson said that the Israeli forces arrested the director of Gaza's largest hospital. Spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qidra said that other doctors were also arrested along with Al-Shifa Hospital director Mohammed Abu Salmiya.

Speaking to CNN, the IDF did not confirm Abu Salmiya's arrest and added that he "needs to be questioned."

"He was in constant state of denial saying it doesn't happen. How could a General Manager of the hospital not know about the extent of the tunnel system?" said Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, while speaking to CNN's Max Foster.

"We need to see exactly what he can share with us about his knowledge," the IDF spokesperson added.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian held talks with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, stated the Lebanese movement.

Hezbollah has traded deadly cross-border fire with Israel since the Gaza war started. In a statement, Hezbollah stated Amir-Abdollahian and Nasrallah "reviewed the latest developments in Palestine, Lebanon and the region, and... the efforts made to end the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip".
 

A large convoy of aid trucks have lined up on the Egypt's side of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt when a truce between Hamas and Israel starts.

Speaking to CNN, the Egyptian Government press office said that it is unclear what type of aid and in how much amount will be permitted inside the Gaza Strip.

Egyptian Government press office director Ayman Walash stated that a total of 2,222 tonnes of medical aid will be delivered through the Rafah crossing since the war started, along with 6,063 tonnes of food, 4,625 tonnes of water, and 1,407 tonnes of other aid.

Qatari foreign ministry stated that “in the next few hours” they will announce when the truce will begin between Israel and Hamas, stated Qatari foreign ministry.

Speaking to CNN, a diplomatic official stated that the truce will start on Friday, and the earliest time will be midnight local time (5 p.m. ET).

In a statement shared on X, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said that the talks on implementation of hostage deal between Israel and Hamas are progressing positively.

“The work between the two parties, and our partners in Egypt and the US, is ongoing to ensure the speedy implementation of the truce, and to provide what is necessary to ensure that both parties adhere to the agreement,” the statement read.

British Foreign Minister David Cameron on Thursday visited the site of an Israeli kibbutz which was targeted during the deadly attack by Hamas gunmen on October 7. 

The former British prime minister was shown a number of destroyed rooms in the Kibbutz Beeri.

Aviel Gabay told the newspaper Maariv that they were "hoping for a different ending, and today we unfortunately discovered the worst ending possible. We believed for many days that she would come back, we were optimistic that there would be a happy ending." 

"We will forever remember her joy and happiness. She was amazing and we hoped she would continue to spread her goodness in the world. She was just beginning her life and was in the middle of a law degree, which she will never finish," he added. 

The Gaza Strip is the "most dangerous place in the world to be a child," the head of the United Nations children's agency UNICEF said on Wednesday. 

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell told the U.N. Security Council that more than 5,300 Palestinian children had reportedly been killed since October 7.  

"The true cost of this latest war in Palestine and Israel will be measured in children's lives – those lost to the violence and those forever changed by it. Without an end to the fighting and full humanitarian access, the cost will continue to grow exponentially," Russell, who last week visited Gaza, said at a council briefing on women and children there.

"The Gaza Strip is the most dangerous place in the world to be a child," Russell said. "In Gaza, the effects of the violence perpetrated on children have been catastrophic, indiscriminate and disproportionate."

Palestinian official has told AFP that the delay in implementing a truce in the Gaza Strip between Israeli forces and Hamas was due to "last-minute" specifics of which hostages would be released and how. 

The truce, which was widely expected to go into effect on Thursday but was delayed over the night, had been postponed over "the names of the Israeli hostages and the modalities of their release," according to an official with knowledge of the deal. 

When the deal was finalised, both parties had exchanged lists of people to be released. Questions were also raised about whether the Red Cross would have access to the captives before they were released into Egypt, and whether the Red Cross would have access to those who were released. 

Germany on Thursday said raids were underway in four regions on the homes of members and supporters of Hamas and another Palestinian organisation which are banned in the country.

"We are carrying out action against radical Islamists. By banning Hamas and Samidoun in Germany, we have sent a clear signal that we will not tolerate any apology or support for Hamas's barbaric terror against Israel," Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said in a statement.

A doctor at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City told AFP that the facility's director and several other medical personnel were arrested by Israeli forces on Thursday.

"Doctor Mohammad Abu Salmiya was arrested along with several other senior doctors," said Khalid Abu Samra, a chief of department at the hospital which has been a major focus of the Israeli operation against Hamas following the militants' October 7 attacks.

According to the official data released by both sides on Wednesday the death toll from the ongoing war has surpassed 15,900. 

The Hamas-run government media office said that the Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip has risen to 14,532 since the outbreak of the war on October 7. 

Ismael al-Thawabta, director of the office, said during a press conference that among the deceased were 6,000 children and 4,000 women, adding that more than 35,000 people have been injured. 

The victims included 205 medical personnel, 22 people from civil defense teams, and 64 journalists, according to al-Thawabta.

Over 7,000 people have been reported missing, and more than 4,700 of them were children and women, he said.

French medical charity Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) reported the death of three doctors, including two from its team, in a strike on the Al Awda Hospital in northern Gaza.

"MSF has regularly shared information about Al Awda as a functioning hospital and the presence of its staff in Al Awda to warring parties," it said in a statement.

"GPS coordinates were also shared with Israeli authorities yesterday," it added. 

Release of Israeli captives and detained Palestinian women and children faces a setback, causing frustration among families.

UN National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson expresses Washington DC's optimism for the captives' release, hopeful it will commence by Friday. 

US Central Command reports the USS Thomas Hudner's downing of several "one-way attack drones" in the Red Sea while on patrol.

Five Hezbollah members, including a Lebanese parliamentarian's son, killed in an Israeli attack on southern Lebanon.

Deaths and injuries reported across Gaza as Israeli forces escalate bombings ahead of an expected truce.

At least one reported killed in Balata refugee camp as Israeli forces conduct multiple raids across the occupied West Bank.

Students in Melbourne, Australia, show support for Palestine by staging a walkout from school, with a similar protest planned for Sydney on Friday.

Former US diplomat Stuart Seldowitz, an ex-Obama adviser, faces hate crime charges after a viral video shows him harassing a halal cart vendor in New York.

Top Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren calls for an extension of the truce and an "enduring end" to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Warns against resuming bombings on Gaza after the expected truce, deeming it a "grave strategic and moral mistake.

Reports confirm the discovery of the body of 25-year-old Israeli woman Shani Gabay, presumed to be among the hostages taken by Hamas during the attack on the Supernova music festival near the Gaza border. Gabay's body was found beneath a burned ambulance at the festival site where she had been working on October 7. Following Hamas' rocket attack and gunmen assaulting the site, several attendees sought refuge under the ambulance, which was later targeted and bombed by the gunmen.

The Israeli forces discovered a reinforced tunnel adjacent to Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza on Wednesday (Nov 22). The tunnel, featuring amenities such as a bathroom, kitchen, and air-conditioned meeting room, was identified as a command post used by Hamas fighters in a video released by the IDF.

Read the full report here.

In a statement, US Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren says she “strongly supports” the temporary truce in Gaza and urges all parties “to extend this agreement and work to achieve an enduring end to this fighting”. Warren said she welcomed Biden’s efforts to secure the truce agreement, dubbing it a “significant diplomatic breakthrough”.

The Khan Younis-based European Gaza Hospital has released photos showing the arrival of patients transferred from the Indonesia Hospital in northern Gaza. The closure of all northern enclave hospitals is attributed to Israeli military assaults and a fuel shortage.

Photo credits - Reuters 

Photo credits - Reuters 

Photo credits - Reuters 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Red Cross will be allowed to visit the remaining hostages in Gaza as part of the four-day truce agreed between Israel and Hamas in which the Palestinian militants would free at least 50 of the people taken hostage in their deadly October 7 attack. In turn, Israel would release at least 150 Palestinian prisoners and allow more humanitarian aid into the coastal territory after more than six weeks of war.

There will be no halt to the fighting between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers "before Friday", an Israeli official told news agency AFP early on Thursday (Nov 23) after a hostage release deal was also pushed back by a day.

There will be "no pause" in the fighting, the source said, delaying a widely anticipated lull which had been expected to start at 10:00 am local time, according to another Israeli source.

Israel's national security adviser said late Wednesday that no hostages held by Hamas militants in Gaza would be released before Friday, despite the two sides agreeing a truce.

"The contacts on the release of our hostages are advancing and continuing constantly," national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said in a statement.

"The start of the release will take place according to the original agreement between the sides, and not before Friday."

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned Wednesday that the threat of the Gaza war spreading would grow unless a truce between Israel and Hamas lasts, in an interview as he visited Beirut.

"If this ceasefire starts tomorrow, if it does not continue... the conditions in the region will not remain the same as before the ceasefire and the scope of the war will expand," Amir-Abdollahian told the Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen television channel, according to Iran's Fars news agency.

"We do not seek to expand the scope of the war," he added. "If the intensity of the war increases, every possibility is conceivable for the expansion of the scope of the war."

The son of a senior Hezbollah lawmaker was killed Wednesday in Israeli bombardment in south Lebanon, a source close to the family told news agency AFP.

The son of Mohammed Raad, head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, "was killed with a number of other Hezbollah members" in an Israeli strike on a house in Beit Yahun, the source said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

US President Joe Biden spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the leaders of Qatar and Egypt on Wednesday in the aftermath of a deal to secure the release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas, the White House said.

The White House said summaries of the calls would be released later. Biden also spoke to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

“The IDF, with all the relevant bodies, is carrying out an orderly procedure ahead of the release of the hostages,” IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said.

“We have a duty to do everything to return the hostages, the elderly and women, the men and the children. This is a complex process that may take time and a number of stages,” he said.

“Please prevent circulating rumors, and unsubstantiated reports. We are talking about lives here,” he added.

“We have before us a long fight, and we are determined to carry out the goals of the war… dismantling Hamas’s abilities and creating conditions for the release of the hostages,” he further said.

UN officials briefed the Security Council on the humanitarian crisis faced by women and children in Gaza on Wednesday (November 22) while calling for a ceasefire to be extended beyond the original four days.

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell told the U.N. Security Council that more than 5,300 Palestinian children had reportedly been killed since October 7, making Gaza the "most dangerous place in the world to be a child."

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu thanked US President Joe Biden over phone call for his efforts to aecure the release of at least 50 hostages from Gaza, the Times of Israel reported citing an Israeli official.