President Joe Biden is due to land in Israel in the coming hours. Catch up on the latest here
From CNN staff
US President Joe Biden is traveling to Israel on Wednesday for an extraordinary wartime visit amid growing international pressure to address the crisis in the Middle East.
Biden was also due to attend a meeting scheduled in Jordan with several Arab leaders — but the summit was canceled in the wake of a blast at a Gaza hospital that likely killed hundreds of people.
The hospital was sheltering thousands of displaced people when it was bombed Tuesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
Palestinian officials blamed Israeli airstrikes. But the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has “categorically” denied any involvement in the blast, blaming instead a “failed rocket launch” by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Here's what else you need to know:
Biden's visit: The US president's focus will be on managing a complicated situation and less on securing clear deliverables, according to two sources close to the matter. It's a clear signal of the White House seeking to manage expectations after a major portion of the trip was scrapped at the last-minute. The presence of Biden, who places a premium on personal diplomacy, is meant to show solidarity with the US' closest allies and to deter rogue actors in the region from opening up a second front in the war.
Health services on the brink: Food and water supplies are running low in Gaza, where 20 out of 23 hospitals were offering partial services because fuel reserves are “almost totally depleted,” the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said. UN agencies have warned that stores are less than a week away from running out of food and Gaza’s last seawater desalination plant has shut down, bringing the risk of further deaths, dehydration and waterborne diseases.
Aid supplies stuck: Meanwhile, vital humanitarian aid is piling up at Gaza’s shuttered border, despite diplomatic efforts to open a corridor from Egypt. The UN and other agencies have said they need assurance of safe passage for any potential aid convoys. On the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, a miles long convoy of aid awaits entry into Gaza, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told CNN. “Until now, there is no safe passage that has been granted,” he said.
Israeli airstrikes: While the IDF has said it does not target hospitals, the UN and Doctors Without Borders say Israeli airstrikes have struck medical facilities, including hospitals and ambulances. On Tuesday, Israeli warplanes hit two densely populated refugee camps and an UNRWA school housing displaced people in central Gaza, killing at least 18 people and injuring scores of others, Palestinian officials said. The IDF said a high-level Hamas commander was killed in the strikes.
Fears of wider conflict: Regional leaders raised concerns of fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah in the north, and Syria, as strikes at the border become a flashpoint for wider conflict. The IDF said on Tuesday shots were fired toward several locations on the security fence between Israel and Lebanon. Meanwhile, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned if the “atrocities” against Gaza persist, “Muslims and resistance forces could lose patience,” and no-one would be able to prevent their actions.
2 hr 41 min ago
White House: Biden plans to ask Israel tough questions "as a friend" during Tel Aviv visit
From CNN's Betsy Klein
US President Joe Biden plans to ask “tough questions” as a “friend” to Israel when he spends his Wednesday in Tel Aviv — a trip meant as a forceful public show of support, but also a push for easing a growing humanitarian crisis.
Biden will first meet with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a restricted bilateral meeting, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters aboard Air Force One in a preview of Wednesday’s trip. That meeting will later broaden to include other US officials and the Israeli War Cabinet.
In those meetings, Kirby said the president is "going to get a sense from the Israelis about the situation on the ground, and, more critically, their objectives, their plans, their intentions in the days and weeks ahead.”
Biden “Will be asking some tough questions. He'll be asking them as a friend — as a true friend of Israel, but he’ll be asking some questions of them," Kirby said.
Pressed later on what those tough questions would be, Kirby said it would not be “adversarial” but rather, “in the spirit of a true, deep friend of Israel.”
The president will “make it clear that we continue to want to see this conflict not widen, not expand, not deepen,” Kirby said, pointing to a “strong signal” from the US with additional military capability. Biden is also expected to discuss Israel’s needs and “make it clear that we will do everything we can to meet those needs,” Kirby said.
Hostages held by Hamas will also be a key topic of discussion, Kirby said, as Biden seeks to find out more from his Israeli counterparts about “where they are, what condition they are in, if they are being moved.”
And he will make the case for the “sustained” flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza, Kirby added.
Later Wednesday, Biden will meet with some families impacted by the violence of the past week, including some who have lost loved ones in Israel, and some who “still don’t know the fate of their loved ones.” Some of those family members have loved ones who are being held hostage, though it was not immediately clear whether they are Americans.
After that, Biden will make public remarks in Tel Aviv, which will be covered by traveling press. And he is also expected to “speak directly” with Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
Though Biden’s trip to Amman, Jordan, was canceled, Biden is expected to speak with leaders in the region on Wednesday night as he returns to Washington.
“The President intends to speak with both (Palestinian Authority) President Mahmoud Abbas and (Egyptian) President (Abdel Fattah el-) Sisi on the flight home,” Kirby said.
2 hr 42 min ago
UN Security Council to hold meeting on Middle East
From CNN's Richard Roth and Mariya Knight
The United Nations Security Council will hold an open meeting Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET on developments in the Middle East, including the blast at a Gaza hospital.
Both Israel and Palestinian officials are expected to speak at the meeting, which was requested by Russia and the United Arab Emirates.
The blast at the Gaza hospital is expected to be a major topic of the meeting.
Russia requested the open meeting of the UNSC following the blast, Russia's first deputy to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, said on Telegram.
Palestinian officials have blamed Israel for the hospital blast, while Israeli officials say a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad is to blame.
53 min ago
Protests break out around the region after Gaza hospital blast
From CNN's Ben Wedeman in Beirut, Aqeel Najim in Baghdad and Caroline Faraj, Jomana Karadsheh, Mohammed Tawfeeq and Adam Pourahmadi
Several countries in the Middle East and North Africa saw protesters march after hundreds of people died in an explosion at a hospital in Gaza.
Palestinian officials quickly blamed Israel for the blast as the Israelis denied responsibility and pinned the blame on a failed rocket by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Preliminary estimates indicate hundreds of people were killed in the explosion at the hospital, which was sheltering thousands of displaced people who were forcibly evacuated from their homes during Israeli airstrikes, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said in a statement.
Here's a look at protests erupting across the Middle East:
Jordan: Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Amman. A group gathered near the Israeli Embassy in an attempt to "reach it," but security forces pushed them away, a security source told CNN Tuesday. Jordan's state-run Petra news agency also reported the protesters' attempts to reach the embassy. Jordanian security forces used tear gas to disperse crowds in the capital, two activists told CNN, a claim backed up by social media videos. There have been almost daily protests near the Israeli Embassy over the past week.
Lebanon: Hundreds of protesters gathered in the square that leads to the US Embassy north of Beirut and tried to break through security barriers, according to a CNN team there.
Iraq: Hundreds of people took to the streets in Baghdad chanting anti-Israel slogans. Security officials told CNN that dozens of protesters tried to cross a bridge that leads to the Green Zone, but security forces prevented them. The area houses Iraqi government offices and several embassies, including the US Embassy.
Iran: Protests took place outside the French and British embassies in Tehran. Demonstrators could be heard chanting "death to France, England, America, and the Zionists," according to a video published by state-run RNA news. Rallies also took place in other cities, including Esfahan and Qom.
Tunisia: Hundreds of people rallied in several areas in Tunis, state-run TAP news agency reported. TAP said "mass protests were held on Tuesday night," in several areas "in solidarity with the Palestinian people" and against Israeli aggression on Gaza.
1 hr 5 min ago
Biden is traveling to Israel. Here's what he's looking to accomplish during his wartime trip
From CNN's Phil Mattingly, Kevin Liptak, Kayla Tausche, MJ Lee, Jennifer Hansler and Alex Marquardt
While the trip will amount to a dramatic show of support for Israel as it prepares the latest stage of its response to last week’s Hamas attacks, it will also act as Biden’s strongest push for easing the suffering of civilians and allowing those who want to leave Gaza out.
That mission got more complicated Tuesday as Biden was about to take off on Air Force One for the region — a planned summit with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was canceled after an explosion at Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City killed hundreds.
Palestinian officials quickly blamed Israel for the blast as the Israelis denied responsibility and pinned the blame on a failed rocket by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The high-stakes diplomacy with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his interlocutor of four decades, underscores the delicate balance Biden is striking as he embarked upon the last-minute wartime visit Tuesday evening.
The White House had attempted to balance the public and military support for Israel with the reality that Arab partners are critical to Biden’s approach by going to Jordan for a summit with the key Arab leaders. But the last-minute scrapping of that meeting meant Biden would no longer go to Amman and instead faces a new diplomatic headache.
At stake on the trip to Israel are the lives of millions of civilians, including Americans, currently stuck in the coastal Palestinian enclave where a humanitarian crisis is underway as Israeli troops mass at its borders ahead of an expected ground invasion.
While there was no explicit stipulation from the US that Israel not launch its invasion until Biden leaves the region, that’s the understanding among American officials who have spent the past several days debating and planning the president’s visit, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
No safe passage yet for aid to Gaza, Egyptian foreign minister says
From CNN’s Martin Goillandeau, Ami Kaufman and Christiane Amanpour
A miles-long convoy of humanitarian assistance between the Egyptian cities of El-Arish and Rafah was awaiting the possibility of entering Gaza on Tuesday, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said.
“Until now, there is no safe passage that has been granted,” Shoukry told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.
Shoukry said the Rafah crossing was bombed four times over the past few days. He added that four Egyptian workers were injured while trying to repair some of the damage caused by the blasts.
“The crossing has sustained damage, the roads, access roads between the Egyptian and Gaza side have severe damage and need repair,” Shoukry said.
Egypt does not have "any authorization or clear, secure routes for those convoys to be able to enter safely and without any possibility of their being targeted,” he said, adding that trucks carrying humanitarian aid were parked on the side of the road.
Asked whether Egyptian authorities would accept and welcome refugees, the foreign minister voiced concerns.
"Why Egypt should allow for the influx of 1 million or 2 million inhabitants who are suffering because of the consequences of them being targeted unnecessarily," he said.
Shoukry also condemned Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israeli civilians, calling them “totally unacceptable.”
It is “horrendous to see whatever imagery of targeting civilians. it's totally unacceptable,” he said. “Civilians should not be in anyway subject to any form of military activity, and it was a shock,” he said.
3 hr 9 min ago
Jordan cancels planned summit with Biden and Middle East leaders following deadly hospital blast
From CNN's Ben Wedeman, Alex Marquardt, Nikki Carvajal and Kevin Liptak
Jordan has canceled a planned Wednesday summit between US President Joe Biden and the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority after a blast at a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of people, the country's foreign minister announced.
"There is no point in doing anything at this time other than stopping this war,” Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Al Jazeera Arabic early Wednesday morning. “There is no benefit to anyone in holding a summit at this time."
Biden was scheduled to visit Amman, Jordan, on Wednesday after making a trip to Tel Aviv earlier in the day.
A White House official told reporters that Biden will "postpone" his trip to Jordan after consulting with the country's King Abdullah II and taking into consideration the days of mourning announced by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
"The president sent his deepest condolences for the innocent lives lost in the hospital explosion in Gaza, and wished a speedy recovery to the wounded. He looks forward to consulting in person with these leaders soon, and agreed to remain regularly and directly engaged with each of them over the coming days," the official said.
The White House made the announcement shortly after the Biden boarded Air Force One en route to Israel.
Palestinian officials have blamed Israel for the hospital blast, while Israeli officials say a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad is to blame.
3 hr 18 min ago
What to know about Rafah Crossing — the last hope for civilians in Gaza to escape war
From CNN's Abbas Al Lawati and Mohammed Abdelbary
As Israel responds to the October 7 attacks by Hamas, it has rained down bombs on Gaza, shut off the supply of water, electricity, food and fuel, and blockaded the coastal enclave by land, air and sea.
Where Palestinians will go is anyone’s guess. A border crossing with Egypt in the south, located in Egypt’s north Sinai, has been touted as the last hope for Gazans to escape, and many Palestinians have begun moving in its direction in anticipation.
That crossing at Rafah however is shut, with aid unable to get into Gaza.
Here’s what we know about the crossing:
The importance of Rafah crossing: Before the war started, Israel had two crossings with Gaza: Erez, which is for the movement of people, and Kerem Shalom, for goods. Both were heavily restricted and have been shut since the war began. That has left the Rafah Crossing with Egypt as the territory’s only entry-point to the outside world. According to United Nations figures, an average of 27,000 people crossed the border each month as of July this year. The border was open for 138 days and closed for 74 this year until that month. Closures often depend on the security and political situation on the ground. While Israel has no direct control over the crossing, Egypt’s closures often coincide with Israel’s own tightening of restrictions on Gaza.
What's it like to cross Rafah border: Only Gazans with permits as well as foreign nationals can use it to travel between Gaza and Egypt. Gazans wishing to cross the border often have long waits. Jason Shawa, a Palestinian American from Seattle who lives in Gaza, says the process has taken him a minimum of 30 days, but wait times could last up to three months. On the day of departure, a bus would take travelers from the Palestinian side of the border to the Egyptian one, where they would wait hours for Egyptian authorities to receive and process visa applications. Many travelers are turned away there, Shawa said, adding that Palestinians are regularly mistreated there.
What's it like now: Israel has struck the crossing multiple times since the war began. Asked about the bombing, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said on Tuesday: “When we see Hamas targets moving, we will take care of it.” Dozens of trucks are on the Egyptian side of the crossing waiting to get into Gaza. Egypt has said there has been no progress in efforts to open it.
Egypt's reluctance to open the crossing: The United States has been pressuring Egypt to establish a humanitarian corridor for civilians in Gaza, as well as for foreigners. Egypt, which already hosts millions of migrants, is uneasy about the prospect of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees crossing into its territory. More than 2 million Palestinians live in Gaza. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi last week said his country is trying to help — within limits. Many have also fumed at the idea of turning the Gazan population into refugees once again by displacing them from Gaza. Most Gazans are registered by the UN as refugees, whose ancestors came from areas that are now part of Israel.
US President Joe Biden is traveling to Israel as he aims to show staunch support for the country while also pressing to ease suffering in Gaza, where water and food supplies are dwindling for hundreds of thousands of displaced people.
Biden's trip comes after a deadly blast likely killed hundreds of people at a Gaza hospital. Palestinian officials blamed Israel, which said the blast was caused by an Islamic Jihad rocket. Following the blast, Jordan canceled a planned summit between Biden and Middle Eastern leaders.
Vital humanitarian aid is piling up at Gaza's shuttered border, despite diplomatic efforts to open a corridor from Egypt. The UN and other agencies say they need assurance of safe passage for any potential aid convoys.
Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas, the Islamist group that controls Gaza, in response to the October 7 terrorist attacks that killed 1,400 people. At least 3,000 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials.
US President Joe Biden is traveling to Israel on Wednesday for an extraordinary wartime visit amid growing international pressure to address the crisis in the Middle East.
Biden was also due to attend a meeting scheduled in Jordan with several Arab leaders — but the summit was canceled in the wake of a blast at a Gaza hospital that likely killed hundreds of people.
The hospital was sheltering thousands of displaced people when it was bombed Tuesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
Palestinian officials blamed Israeli airstrikes. But the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has “categorically” denied any involvement in the blast, blaming instead a “failed rocket launch” by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Here's what else you need to know:
Biden's visit: The US president's focus will be on managing a complicated situation and less on securing clear deliverables, according to two sources close to the matter. It's a clear signal of the White House seeking to manage expectations after a major portion of the trip was scrapped at the last-minute. The presence of Biden, who places a premium on personal diplomacy, is meant to show solidarity with the US' closest allies and to deter rogue actors in the region from opening up a second front in the war.
Health services on the brink: Food and water supplies are running low in Gaza, where 20 out of 23 hospitals were offering partial services because fuel reserves are “almost totally depleted,” the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said. UN agencies have warned that stores are less than a week away from running out of food and Gaza’s last seawater desalination plant has shut down, bringing the risk of further deaths, dehydration and waterborne diseases.
Aid supplies stuck: Meanwhile, vital humanitarian aid is piling up at Gaza’s shuttered border, despite diplomatic efforts to open a corridor from Egypt. The UN and other agencies have said they need assurance of safe passage for any potential aid convoys. On the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, a miles long convoy of aid awaits entry into Gaza, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told CNN. “Until now, there is no safe passage that has been granted,” he said.
Israeli airstrikes: While the IDF has said it does not target hospitals, the UN and Doctors Without Borders say Israeli airstrikes have struck medical facilities, including hospitals and ambulances. On Tuesday, Israeli warplanes hit two densely populated refugee camps and an UNRWA school housing displaced people in central Gaza, killing at least 18 people and injuring scores of others, Palestinian officials said. The IDF said a high-level Hamas commander was killed in the strikes.
Fears of wider conflict: Regional leaders raised concerns of fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah in the north, and Syria, as strikes at the border become a flashpoint for wider conflict. The IDF said on Tuesday shots were fired toward several locations on the security fence between Israel and Lebanon. Meanwhile, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned if the “atrocities” against Gaza persist, “Muslims and resistance forces could lose patience,” and no-one would be able to prevent their actions.
US President Joe Biden plans to ask “tough questions” as a “friend” to Israel when he spends his Wednesday in Tel Aviv — a trip meant as a forceful public show of support, but also a push for easing a growing humanitarian crisis.
Biden will first meet with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a restricted bilateral meeting, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters aboard Air Force One in a preview of Wednesday’s trip. That meeting will later broaden to include other US officials and the Israeli War Cabinet.
In those meetings, Kirby said the president is "going to get a sense from the Israelis about the situation on the ground, and, more critically, their objectives, their plans, their intentions in the days and weeks ahead.”
Biden “Will be asking some tough questions. He'll be asking them as a friend — as a true friend of Israel, but he’ll be asking some questions of them," Kirby said.
Pressed later on what those tough questions would be, Kirby said it would not be “adversarial” but rather, “in the spirit of a true, deep friend of Israel.”
The president will “make it clear that we continue to want to see this conflict not widen, not expand, not deepen,” Kirby said, pointing to a “strong signal” from the US with additional military capability. Biden is also expected to discuss Israel’s needs and “make it clear that we will do everything we can to meet those needs,” Kirby said.
Hostages held by Hamas will also be a key topic of discussion, Kirby said, as Biden seeks to find out more from his Israeli counterparts about “where they are, what condition they are in, if they are being moved.”
And he will make the case for the “sustained” flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza, Kirby added.
Later Wednesday, Biden will meet with some families impacted by the violence of the past week, including some who have lost loved ones in Israel, and some who “still don’t know the fate of their loved ones.” Some of those family members have loved ones who are being held hostage, though it was not immediately clear whether they are Americans.
After that, Biden will make public remarks in Tel Aviv, which will be covered by traveling press. And he is also expected to “speak directly” with Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
Though Biden’s trip to Amman, Jordan, was canceled, Biden is expected to speak with leaders in the region on Wednesday night as he returns to Washington.
“The President intends to speak with both (Palestinian Authority) President Mahmoud Abbas and (Egyptian) President (Abdel Fattah el-) Sisi on the flight home,” Kirby said.
The United Nations Security Council will hold an open meeting Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET on developments in the Middle East, including the blast at a Gaza hospital.
Both Israel and Palestinian officials are expected to speak at the meeting, which was requested by Russia and the United Arab Emirates.
The blast at the Gaza hospital is expected to be a major topic of the meeting.
Russia requested the open meeting of the UNSC following the blast, Russia's first deputy to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, said on Telegram.
Palestinian officials have blamed Israel for the hospital blast, while Israeli officials say a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad is to blame.
Several countries in the Middle East and North Africa saw protesters march after hundreds of people died in an explosion at a hospital in Gaza.
Palestinian officials quickly blamed Israel for the blast as the Israelis denied responsibility and pinned the blame on a failed rocket by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Preliminary estimates indicate hundreds of people were killed in the explosion at the hospital, which was sheltering thousands of displaced people who were forcibly evacuated from their homes during Israeli airstrikes, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said in a statement.
Here's a look at protests erupting across the Middle East:
Jordan: Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Amman. A group gathered near the Israeli Embassy in an attempt to "reach it," but security forces pushed them away, a security source told CNN Tuesday. Jordan's state-run Petra news agency also reported the protesters' attempts to reach the embassy. Jordanian security forces used tear gas to disperse crowds in the capital, two activists told CNN, a claim backed up by social media videos. There have been almost daily protests near the Israeli Embassy over the past week.
Lebanon: Hundreds of protesters gathered in the square that leads to the US Embassy north of Beirut and tried to break through security barriers, according to a CNN team there.
Iraq: Hundreds of people took to the streets in Baghdad chanting anti-Israel slogans. Security officials told CNN that dozens of protesters tried to cross a bridge that leads to the Green Zone, but security forces prevented them. The area houses Iraqi government offices and several embassies, including the US Embassy.
Iran: Protests took place outside the French and British embassies in Tehran. Demonstrators could be heard chanting "death to France, England, America, and the Zionists," according to a video published by state-run RNA news. Rallies also took place in other cities, including Esfahan and Qom.
Tunisia: Hundreds of people rallied in several areas in Tunis, state-run TAP news agency reported. TAP said "mass protests were held on Tuesday night," in several areas "in solidarity with the Palestinian people" and against Israeli aggression on Gaza.
While the trip will amount to a dramatic show of support for Israel as it prepares the latest stage of its response to last week’s Hamas attacks, it will also act as Biden’s strongest push for easing the suffering of civilians and allowing those who want to leave Gaza out.
That mission got more complicated Tuesday as Biden was about to take off on Air Force One for the region — a planned summit with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was canceled after an explosion at Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City killed hundreds.
Palestinian officials quickly blamed Israel for the blast as the Israelis denied responsibility and pinned the blame on a failed rocket by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The high-stakes diplomacy with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his interlocutor of four decades, underscores the delicate balance Biden is striking as he embarked upon the last-minute wartime visit Tuesday evening.
The White House had attempted to balance the public and military support for Israel with the reality that Arab partners are critical to Biden’s approach by going to Jordan for a summit with the key Arab leaders. But the last-minute scrapping of that meeting meant Biden would no longer go to Amman and instead faces a new diplomatic headache.
At stake on the trip to Israel are the lives of millions of civilians, including Americans, currently stuck in the coastal Palestinian enclave where a humanitarian crisis is underway as Israeli troops mass at its borders ahead of an expected ground invasion.
While there was no explicit stipulation from the US that Israel not launch its invasion until Biden leaves the region, that’s the understanding among American officials who have spent the past several days debating and planning the president’s visit, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
A miles-long convoy of humanitarian assistance between the Egyptian cities of El-Arish and Rafah was awaiting the possibility of entering Gaza on Tuesday, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said.
“Until now, there is no safe passage that has been granted,” Shoukry told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.
Shoukry said the Rafah crossing was bombed four times over the past few days. He added that four Egyptian workers were injured while trying to repair some of the damage caused by the blasts.
“The crossing has sustained damage, the roads, access roads between the Egyptian and Gaza side have severe damage and need repair,” Shoukry said.
Egypt does not have "any authorization or clear, secure routes for those convoys to be able to enter safely and without any possibility of their being targeted,” he said, adding that trucks carrying humanitarian aid were parked on the side of the road.
Asked whether Egyptian authorities would accept and welcome refugees, the foreign minister voiced concerns.
"Why Egypt should allow for the influx of 1 million or 2 million inhabitants who are suffering because of the consequences of them being targeted unnecessarily," he said.
Shoukry also condemned Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israeli civilians, calling them “totally unacceptable.”
It is “horrendous to see whatever imagery of targeting civilians. it's totally unacceptable,” he said. “Civilians should not be in anyway subject to any form of military activity, and it was a shock,” he said.
Jordan has canceled a planned Wednesday summit between US President Joe Biden and the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority after a blast at a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of people, the country's foreign minister announced.
"There is no point in doing anything at this time other than stopping this war,” Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Al Jazeera Arabic early Wednesday morning. “There is no benefit to anyone in holding a summit at this time."
Biden was scheduled to visit Amman, Jordan, on Wednesday after making a trip to Tel Aviv earlier in the day.
A White House official told reporters that Biden will "postpone" his trip to Jordan after consulting with the country's King Abdullah II and taking into consideration the days of mourning announced by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
"The president sent his deepest condolences for the innocent lives lost in the hospital explosion in Gaza, and wished a speedy recovery to the wounded. He looks forward to consulting in person with these leaders soon, and agreed to remain regularly and directly engaged with each of them over the coming days," the official said.
The White House made the announcement shortly after the Biden boarded Air Force One en route to Israel.
Palestinian officials have blamed Israel for the hospital blast, while Israeli officials say a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad is to blame.
As Israel responds to the October 7 attacks by Hamas, it has rained down bombs on Gaza, shut off the supply of water, electricity, food and fuel, and blockaded the coastal enclave by land, air and sea.
Where Palestinians will go is anyone’s guess. A border crossing with Egypt in the south, located in Egypt’s north Sinai, has been touted as the last hope for Gazans to escape, and many Palestinians have begun moving in its direction in anticipation.
That crossing at Rafah however is shut, with aid unable to get into Gaza.
Here’s what we know about the crossing:
The importance of Rafah crossing: Before the war started, Israel had two crossings with Gaza: Erez, which is for the movement of people, and Kerem Shalom, for goods. Both were heavily restricted and have been shut since the war began. That has left the Rafah Crossing with Egypt as the territory’s only entry-point to the outside world. According to United Nations figures, an average of 27,000 people crossed the border each month as of July this year. The border was open for 138 days and closed for 74 this year until that month. Closures often depend on the security and political situation on the ground. While Israel has no direct control over the crossing, Egypt’s closures often coincide with Israel’s own tightening of restrictions on Gaza.
What's it like to cross Rafah border: Only Gazans with permits as well as foreign nationals can use it to travel between Gaza and Egypt. Gazans wishing to cross the border often have long waits. Jason Shawa, a Palestinian American from Seattle who lives in Gaza, says the process has taken him a minimum of 30 days, but wait times could last up to three months. On the day of departure, a bus would take travelers from the Palestinian side of the border to the Egyptian one, where they would wait hours for Egyptian authorities to receive and process visa applications. Many travelers are turned away there, Shawa said, adding that Palestinians are regularly mistreated there.
What's it like now: Israel has struck the crossing multiple times since the war began. Asked about the bombing, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said on Tuesday: “When we see Hamas targets moving, we will take care of it.” Dozens of trucks are on the Egyptian side of the crossing waiting to get into Gaza. Egypt has said there has been no progress in efforts to open it.
Egypt's reluctance to open the crossing: The United States has been pressuring Egypt to establish a humanitarian corridor for civilians in Gaza, as well as for foreigners. Egypt, which already hosts millions of migrants, is uneasy about the prospect of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees crossing into its territory. More than 2 million Palestinians live in Gaza. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi last week said his country is trying to help — within limits. Many have also fumed at the idea of turning the Gazan population into refugees once again by displacing them from Gaza. Most Gazans are registered by the UN as refugees, whose ancestors came from areas that are now part of Israel.
