Coverage on this live blog has ended. Follow live updates here.
Israel’s military moved into the area of Gaza’s largest hospital in what it said was a targeted operation against Hamas — but which targeted a site that houses a medical complex where hundreds of staff members, patients and civilians have been taking shelter.
The situation at the Al-Shifa hospital has been described as dire, with a lack of electricity leaving it no longer functioning, according to the World Health Organization.
In the U.S., National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the White House has information that Hamas uses hospitals in Gaza, including Al-Shifa, and tunnels underneath the buildings, to support its military operations.
“Members operate a command and control node from Al-Shifa in Gaza City,” Kirby said. He did not go into great detail, saying that was to protect sources and methods, but that it came from a variety of U.S. intelligence methods.
Hamas, medical staff and Palestinian health officials deny that Gaza hospitals are used by militants.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that his message to the more than 200 hostages believed to be held by Hamas is, “hang in there, we’re coming.” Biden also expressed optimism that the hostages would be freed. Negotiations are ongoing.
Meanwhile, the devastation in Gaza continues. The head of the United Nations aid organization UNICEF visited and said, “Inside the Strip, there is nowhere safe for Gaza’s one million children to turn.”
Executive Director Catherine Russell said that many children are missing and believed to buried under the rubble of buildings that have collapsed in airstrikes and other bombardments.
Giving birth as bombs fall in Gaza: ‘My girl came to the world broken’
TEL AVIV — Ahlam is younger than this war.
The tiny Gazan was born prematurely Nov. 7, weighing just 2.75 pounds. She has spent most of her short life in an incubator in the Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza. The neonatal ward where she’s being cared for is filled with cries of newborns, the beep of the medical machines that keep them alive, and the nearby thunder of Israeli airstrikes.
Ahlam is one of around 180 children being born every day in Gaza, according to the World Health Organization. There are an estimated 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza, mothers-to-be who conceived their children at a time of relative peace but are now giving birth amid the chaos of war.
Heavy rain in Gaza brings new problems and fears for Palestinians
GAZA/GENEVA — Heavy rain in Gaza on Tuesday brought new concerns and challenges for Palestinians, many of whom are homeless and living in makeshift tents after weeks of Israeli bombardment.
The start of the rainy season and the possibility of flooding increased fears that the densely populated enclave’s sewage system will be overwhelmed and disease will spread.
One displaced Gazan, Karim Mreish, said people at a shelter were praying for the rain to stop. "Those children, those women, those elderly pray God that it doesn’t rain,” he said. “If it does, it will be very difficult and words will fail to describe our suffering.”
Ahmed Bayram, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Refugee Council, said the start of the rainy season could mark “the most difficult week in Gaza since the (military) escalation began.”
“Heavy rains will mean more impeded movement for people and rescue teams,” he said. “It will make it harder to save people stuck under the rubble, or to bury the dead, all of this amidst ceaseless bombardment and a fuel shortage catastrophe.”
International effort rescues child cancer patients from Gaza, but many remain trapped in war zone
A group of pediatric cancer patients have been rescued from Gaza and are now receiving treatment after more than a month in Egypt, but many remain trapped in Gaza without chemotherapy and live-saving medical care.
Andrea Mitchell reported on the international efforts by Egypt, Jordan and the U.S., alongside the Palestinian Children’s Rescue Fund and St. Jude’s Hospital for Children, to get the children out of Gaza and to safety.
“Immediately upon hearing about this request, the President directed us to do whatever we could to help these civilians, who were in very acute situations, get out of Gaza,” National Security Council Chief of Staff Curtis Reid said.
“They start to smile for the first time and they start to feel secure. It is very relieving and we hope that we can do that for all the children in Gaza,” Egyptian Minister of Health Hossam Abdel Gaffar added.
Family of 3-year-old girl taken captive by Hamas reveals harrowing details
WASHINGTON — The families of American citizens kidnapped by Hamas militants in Israel nearly 40 days ago said Tuesday they want to focus international attention on the plight of their loved ones in captivity — including a 3-year-old American girl who the White House confirmed was taken into the Gaza Strip during the Oct. 7 terror attack.
Liz Hirsh Naftali, the great-aunt of 3-year-old Abigail Mor Idan, revealed that the little girl’s parents were killed in their home at the Kfar Aza kibbutz. Abigail was in her father’s arms when a Hamas gunman shot him. He fell on top of her. Abigail then “crawled out from under her father’s body … full of his blood,” Hirsh Naftali said.
The girl ran over to a neighbor’s house and hid with that family in a bomb shelter. “The last thing we learned was that somebody saw (a) terrorist taking this mother, her three kids and Abigail out of the kibbutz,” Hirsh Naftali said. “That’s all we know.”
Families of hostages say they don’t understand why posters are being torn down
WASHINGTON — The families of American citizens kidnapped by Hamas militants on Oct. 7 said Tuesday they cannot fathom why people would rip down posters showing the names and faces of their loved ones — a phenomenon that has led to tense confrontations captured on video.
“How can you do that? I just don’t understand it,” Orna Neutra, whose 21-year-old son Omer was kidnapped, told NBC News’ Lester Holt in an exclusive interview in Washington, where thousands of people from across the U.S. gathered Tuesday for a pro-Israel rally on the National Mall.
As outrage grows over fate of babies in Gaza hospital, Israel offers incubators and fuel
As outrage grows over reports of babies’ dying and a mass grave’s being dug at Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital, Israel has publicly indicated a desire to mitigate the crisis there — not by ending the siege but by offering fuel and mobile incubators.
On Sunday night, the Israel Defense Forces released video appearing to show soldiers depositing 300 liters (about 79 gallons) of fuel at Al-Shifa’s entrance and announced an evacuation route for people in the complex. Yesterday it was pledged that the IDF would coordinate the delivery of incubators to Al-Shifa following reports that premature babies had to be removed from their incubators because of power shortages. Then, today, the IDF shared a photo of a soldier helping load mobile incubators into a van, which an IDF spokesperson said would be used to transfer at-risk infants out of the hospital.
“We are trying to bring in incubators that can help transfer babies out of Shifa Hospital to other places down south, which will help safeguard the babies in the hospital,” said an IDF spokesman, Lt. Col. Peter Lerner.
15-person medical team enters Gaza through Rafah crossing, Doctors Without Borders says
An international team of 15 people from Médecins Sans Frontières, also known as Doctors Without Borders, has entered into Gaza through Egypt, the organization said today on X.
“We [will] do everything we can to alleviate suffering in this catastrophic situation," said Christophe Garnier, the project coordinator.
The MSF team will be stationed in south Gaza Strip to support medical and surgical staff, “where the health care infrastructure has collapsed and medics are utterly exhausted,” the post said.
Médecins Sans Frontières reiterated its calls for a cease-fire. It added that delivering aid is extremely difficult in northern Gaza because of bombardments and ground warfare.
Israeli hostage families start 5-day march on Netanyahu’s home
TEL AVIV — The families of Israelis being held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip kicked off a five-day march today from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to demand the government do much more to secure their release.
Hamas fighters took around 240 people hostage during their Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. The captives are ages 9 months to 85 years, and they are believed to be held in tunnels deep under the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu is coming under fierce criticism from some relatives for not doing more to secure their release as the Israeli military pushes deep into Gaza with an order to destroy Hamas.
“I demand from Benjamin Netanyahu and the Cabinet to give us answers and actions,” said Shelly Shem Tov, whose 21-year-old son, Omer, was dragged into Gaza five weeks ago.
Netanyahu has so far rejected any talk of a cease-fire, telling NBC News on Sunday that he would be willing to pause the fighting only if all the hostages were freed.
Biden, Netanyahu speak on phone about efforts to free hostages
Biden and Netanyahu spoke today by phone and discussed the more than 200 hostages held by Hamas, the White House said.
“The President and the Prime Minister discussed at length ongoing efforts to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas, including many children and a number of Americans,” the White House said in a statement.
Israel’s military has said Hamas was holding around 240 hostages taken in surprise attacks on Israel on Oct. 7.
Biden and Obama alumni sign letter supporting president's handling of Israel
More than 125 former Biden and Obama administration and campaign officials signed a letter commending Biden's "moral clarity, courageous leadership, and staunch support of Israel."
"Mr. President, we are grateful to you and Vice President Harris for your leadership in this moment of crisis, and please know that you have our strongest support as you continue to serve our country with such distinction and dedication," the letter said.
The list of signers included Ron Klain, Biden's former chief of staff; Larry Summers, Obama's director of the National Economic Council; and Colin Kahl, Biden's former undersecretary of defense for policy. It also included three members of Congress — all Obama alumni — and 19 ambassadors.