US defense chief travels to Israel as deaths mount in Gaza. Here's what to know
From CNN staff
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will push Israeli officials to define milestones for the war with Hamas during a visit Monday, a senior defense official said.
Austin will press the Israelis on "what metrics they're looking at in order to transition to the next phase of their campaign in Gaza," the official said, noting he will also work to "drill down" on efforts to increase humanitarian aid to civilians.
About 18,800 Palestinians — 70% of whom were women and children — have died in Gaza between October 7 and December 15, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah said Sunday. The ministry added that more than 51,100 people have been reportedly wounded, with scores of other people unaccounted for.
CNN cannot independently verify these numbers. The ministry bases its figures on data received from hospitals in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
Here's the latest on the war:
Crossing opens:Aid trucks on Sunday entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel for the first time since it was closed on October 7, Israeli officials said. The volume of aid entering Gaza is less than half of pre-war levels, according to the United Nations.
Tunnel discovery: The Israel Defense Forces claims to have discovered “the biggest Hamas tunnel” in Gaza, spanning a length of 4 kilometers (about 2.5 miles). The IDF said the tunnel, secured “a few weeks ago” but revealed to the public Sunday, is wide enough to drive a large vehicle through, reaches up to 50 meters (over 160 feet) underground and is equipped with electricity, ventilation and communication systems. CNN could not independently verify the IDF’s claims.
Pope speaks out: Pope Francis on Sunday addressed the deaths of a mother and daughter who were sheltering inside the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, where church leaders say they were killed by an Israeli military sniper. "Unarmed civilians are targets for bombs and gunfire. And this has happened even within the parish complex of the Holy Family, where there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities, sisters," Francis said. CNN has reached out to the IDF for comment.
Jabalya airstrike: An airstrike Sunday morning killed at least 24 people in Jabalya, northern Gaza, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said. At least 90 others were wounded and there are "many more feared under the rubble of a house," according to Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, director-general of the ministry.
Comms blackout: A communication blackout in Gaza has now continued for four days, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said Sunday, making it the longest since the start of the Israeli operation in October.
France calls for truce: French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said Sunday she was in Tel Aviv to stress the importance of a "new humanitarian truce," while also expressing France's solidarity with Israel after the October 7 attacks. France is concerned about the deepening “catastrophic and tragic situation on the ground in Gaza,” and Israel must engage in a ceasefire to facilitate the release of hostages and the aid distribution, Colonna said.
2 hr 13 min ago
Aid enters Gaza through Kerem Shalom crossing for first time since October 7, Israel says
From CNN's Kareem El Damanhoury
Aid trucks on Sunday entered war-torn Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel for the first time since it was closed on October 7 following Hamas' attacks, Israeli officials said.
The Israeli office for Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said in a statement that a total of 201 aid trucks entered Gaza Sunday, including 79 through Kerem Shalom.
In an earlier statement, COGAT said the move to allow trucks into Gaza through Kerem Shalom would increase the volume of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave.
The announcement follows the Israeli government’s decision last week to allow aid trucks to be inspected at Kerem Shalom for the first time since October 7.
The US government pushed Israel to reopen the Kerem Shalom border crossing to allow humanitarian aid trucks to go directly into Gaza on an emergency basis.
A senior Israeli Defense Ministry official said earlier Sunday that a total of 470 aid trucks went through security inspections and were sent to the Rafah crossing in Egypt.
Aid warnings: The amount of aid entering Gaza is less than half of pre-war levels, according to the United Nations.
The number of aid trucks "is well below the daily average of 500 truckloads (including fuel and private sector goods) that entered every working day prior to 7 October," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement Sunday.
CNN's Mariya Knight and Tamar Michaelis contributed reporting.
5 hr 1 min ago
70% of Palestinians killed in Gaza are women and children, health ministry says
From CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman and Eve Brennan in London
Approximately 18,800 Palestinians — 70% of whom were women and children — have died in Gaza between October 7 and December 15, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah said in a statement Sunday.
More than 300 health sector workers, 86 journalists, 135 employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and approximately 35 civil defense crews are included in the death toll, the ministry said.
The ministry added that more than 51,100 people have been reportedly wounded, with scores of other people unaccounted for.
The ministry went on to say in its report that only eight out of 36 hospitals are partially functional in the enclave, and that occupancy rates have soared to 206% in inpatient departments and 250% in intensive care units.
CNN cannot independently verify these numbers. The ministry bases its figures on data received from hospitals in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
As of last week (December 10), the Israel Defense Forces stated it had struck over 22,000 targets in Gaza since Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7.
CNN has reached out to the IDF for an updated figure.
5 hr 3 min ago
Israeli military claims to discover largest Hamas tunnel in Gaza
From CNN’s Benjamin Brown
The Israel Defense Forces claims to have discovered “the biggest Hamas tunnel” in Gaza, spanning a length of 4 kilometers (about 2.5 miles).
The IDF said the tunnel, secured “a few weeks ago” but revealed to the public Sunday, is wide enough to drive a large vehicle through, reaches up to 50 meters (over 160 feet) underground and is equipped with electricity, ventilation and communication systems.
It does not cross into Israel but ends 400 meters before the now-closed Erez crossing on the northern Israel-Gaza border, according to the IDF.
The tunnel is part of Hamas’ “strategic infrastructure” and would be destroyed, the IDF said.
In a video shared by the IDF, the Israeli military claimed the tunnel was created for Hamas troop movements and as a launching point for attacks.
Footage shared by the IDF and allegedly filmed by Hamas to show the construction of the tunnel shows a large vehicle driving into the tunnel and a makeshift railroad inside it.
CNN could not independently verify the footage or the IDF’s claims.
In a statement Sunday, the IDF alleged that the tunnel system was a project of the brother of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Muhammad Sinwar. The IDF did not provide any evidence to support the claim.
What to know about Gaza's tunnels: The myriad tunnels under Gaza are best known as passageways used to smuggle goods from Egypt and launch attacks into Israel.
Colloquially referred to as the “Gaza metro,” the vast labyrinth of tunnels is also used to transport people and goods, to store rockets and ammunition caches, and house Hamas command and control centers — all away from the prying eyes of the IDF’s aircraft and surveillance drones.
Hamas in 2021 claimed to have built 500 kilometers (311 miles) of tunnels under Gaza, though it is unclear if that figure was accurate or posturing. If true, Hamas’ underground tunnels would be a little less than half the length of the New York City subway system.
During its offensive in the territory, the IDF claims it has exposed “hundreds of terror tunnel shafts throughout the Gaza Strip,” and says it is operating “to locate and destroy dozens of attack tunnel routes.”
CNN's Joshua Berlinger contributed reporting to this post.
5 hr 4 min ago
Gaza under longest communication blackout since war began, Palestine Red Crescent Society says
From CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman and Eve Brennan
A communication blackout in Gaza has now continued for four days, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said Sunday, making it the longest since the start of the Israeli operation in October.
Internet monitoring organization NetBlocks said on social media Saturday that the disruption was already "the longest sustained telecoms blackout on record since the onset of the conflict with Israel, and is likely to significantly limit visibility into events on the ground.”
In a video accompanying the social media post on X, formerly Twitter, supervisor of the Red Crescent emergency operations room in Gaza, Osama Kahlut, said the organization will resort to VHF radio as an alternative, but added this “limits the space available for communication" and "poses a challenge to our work."
The signal is “weak and susceptible to interference from other sources,” which “weakens the credibility and volume of the information we receive. Undoubtedly, ambulances will face challenges during this time, especially with the power outage,” he said.
The power outage has affected the main aerial communication service provider located at the association’s headquarters in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, he said.
“Unfortunately, this is the sole vehicle that all ambulance centers in the Gaza Strip rely on. This poses a significant challenge for ambulance vehicles in responding to humanitarian cases, signaling potential difficulties in mobility,” Kahlut said.
The Red Crescent added on X that its emergency medical teams are "encountering significant challenges in reaching the wounded amidst the ongoing shelling.”
Aid trucks on Sunday entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel for the first time since it was closed on October 7, Israeli officials said. The volume of aid entering Gaza is less than half of pre-war levels, according to the UN.
An Israeli airstrike on Jabalya in northern Gaza killed at least 24 people and wounded many others Sunday, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said. Elsewhere, Israel's military claimed to discover the biggest Hamas tunnel in Gaza.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will push Israeli officials to define milestones for the war with Hamas during a visit Monday, a senior defense official said.
Austin will press the Israelis on "what metrics they're looking at in order to transition to the next phase of their campaign in Gaza," the official said, noting he will also work to "drill down" on efforts to increase humanitarian aid to civilians.
About 18,800 Palestinians — 70% of whom were women and children — have died in Gaza between October 7 and December 15, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah said Sunday. The ministry added that more than 51,100 people have been reportedly wounded, with scores of other people unaccounted for.
CNN cannot independently verify these numbers. The ministry bases its figures on data received from hospitals in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
Here's the latest on the war:
Crossing opens:Aid trucks on Sunday entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel for the first time since it was closed on October 7, Israeli officials said. The volume of aid entering Gaza is less than half of pre-war levels, according to the United Nations.
Tunnel discovery: The Israel Defense Forces claims to have discovered “the biggest Hamas tunnel” in Gaza, spanning a length of 4 kilometers (about 2.5 miles). The IDF said the tunnel, secured “a few weeks ago” but revealed to the public Sunday, is wide enough to drive a large vehicle through, reaches up to 50 meters (over 160 feet) underground and is equipped with electricity, ventilation and communication systems. CNN could not independently verify the IDF’s claims.
Pope speaks out: Pope Francis on Sunday addressed the deaths of a mother and daughter who were sheltering inside the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, where church leaders say they were killed by an Israeli military sniper. "Unarmed civilians are targets for bombs and gunfire. And this has happened even within the parish complex of the Holy Family, where there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities, sisters," Francis said. CNN has reached out to the IDF for comment.
Jabalya airstrike: An airstrike Sunday morning killed at least 24 people in Jabalya, northern Gaza, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said. At least 90 others were wounded and there are "many more feared under the rubble of a house," according to Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, director-general of the ministry.
Comms blackout: A communication blackout in Gaza has now continued for four days, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said Sunday, making it the longest since the start of the Israeli operation in October.
France calls for truce: French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said Sunday she was in Tel Aviv to stress the importance of a "new humanitarian truce," while also expressing France's solidarity with Israel after the October 7 attacks. France is concerned about the deepening “catastrophic and tragic situation on the ground in Gaza,” and Israel must engage in a ceasefire to facilitate the release of hostages and the aid distribution, Colonna said.
Aid trucks on Sunday entered war-torn Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel for the first time since it was closed on October 7 following Hamas' attacks, Israeli officials said.
The Israeli office for Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said in a statement that a total of 201 aid trucks entered Gaza Sunday, including 79 through Kerem Shalom.
In an earlier statement, COGAT said the move to allow trucks into Gaza through Kerem Shalom would increase the volume of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave.
The announcement follows the Israeli government’s decision last week to allow aid trucks to be inspected at Kerem Shalom for the first time since October 7.
The US government pushed Israel to reopen the Kerem Shalom border crossing to allow humanitarian aid trucks to go directly into Gaza on an emergency basis.
A senior Israeli Defense Ministry official said earlier Sunday that a total of 470 aid trucks went through security inspections and were sent to the Rafah crossing in Egypt.
Aid warnings: The amount of aid entering Gaza is less than half of pre-war levels, according to the United Nations.
The number of aid trucks "is well below the daily average of 500 truckloads (including fuel and private sector goods) that entered every working day prior to 7 October," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement Sunday.
CNN's Mariya Knight and Tamar Michaelis contributed reporting.
Approximately 18,800 Palestinians — 70% of whom were women and children — have died in Gaza between October 7 and December 15, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah said in a statement Sunday.
More than 300 health sector workers, 86 journalists, 135 employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and approximately 35 civil defense crews are included in the death toll, the ministry said.
The ministry added that more than 51,100 people have been reportedly wounded, with scores of other people unaccounted for.
The ministry went on to say in its report that only eight out of 36 hospitals are partially functional in the enclave, and that occupancy rates have soared to 206% in inpatient departments and 250% in intensive care units.
CNN cannot independently verify these numbers. The ministry bases its figures on data received from hospitals in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
As of last week (December 10), the Israel Defense Forces stated it had struck over 22,000 targets in Gaza since Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7.
CNN has reached out to the IDF for an updated figure.
The Israel Defense Forces claims to have discovered “the biggest Hamas tunnel” in Gaza, spanning a length of 4 kilometers (about 2.5 miles).
The IDF said the tunnel, secured “a few weeks ago” but revealed to the public Sunday, is wide enough to drive a large vehicle through, reaches up to 50 meters (over 160 feet) underground and is equipped with electricity, ventilation and communication systems.
It does not cross into Israel but ends 400 meters before the now-closed Erez crossing on the northern Israel-Gaza border, according to the IDF.
The tunnel is part of Hamas’ “strategic infrastructure” and would be destroyed, the IDF said.
In a video shared by the IDF, the Israeli military claimed the tunnel was created for Hamas troop movements and as a launching point for attacks.
Footage shared by the IDF and allegedly filmed by Hamas to show the construction of the tunnel shows a large vehicle driving into the tunnel and a makeshift railroad inside it.
CNN could not independently verify the footage or the IDF’s claims.
In a statement Sunday, the IDF alleged that the tunnel system was a project of the brother of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Muhammad Sinwar. The IDF did not provide any evidence to support the claim.
What to know about Gaza's tunnels: The myriad tunnels under Gaza are best known as passageways used to smuggle goods from Egypt and launch attacks into Israel.
Colloquially referred to as the “Gaza metro,” the vast labyrinth of tunnels is also used to transport people and goods, to store rockets and ammunition caches, and house Hamas command and control centers — all away from the prying eyes of the IDF’s aircraft and surveillance drones.
Hamas in 2021 claimed to have built 500 kilometers (311 miles) of tunnels under Gaza, though it is unclear if that figure was accurate or posturing. If true, Hamas’ underground tunnels would be a little less than half the length of the New York City subway system.
During its offensive in the territory, the IDF claims it has exposed “hundreds of terror tunnel shafts throughout the Gaza Strip,” and says it is operating “to locate and destroy dozens of attack tunnel routes.”
CNN's Joshua Berlinger contributed reporting to this post.
A communication blackout in Gaza has now continued for four days, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said Sunday, making it the longest since the start of the Israeli operation in October.
Internet monitoring organization NetBlocks said on social media Saturday that the disruption was already "the longest sustained telecoms blackout on record since the onset of the conflict with Israel, and is likely to significantly limit visibility into events on the ground.”
In a video accompanying the social media post on X, formerly Twitter, supervisor of the Red Crescent emergency operations room in Gaza, Osama Kahlut, said the organization will resort to VHF radio as an alternative, but added this “limits the space available for communication" and "poses a challenge to our work."
The signal is “weak and susceptible to interference from other sources,” which “weakens the credibility and volume of the information we receive. Undoubtedly, ambulances will face challenges during this time, especially with the power outage,” he said.
The power outage has affected the main aerial communication service provider located at the association’s headquarters in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, he said.
“Unfortunately, this is the sole vehicle that all ambulance centers in the Gaza Strip rely on. This poses a significant challenge for ambulance vehicles in responding to humanitarian cases, signaling potential difficulties in mobility,” Kahlut said.
The Red Crescent added on X that its emergency medical teams are "encountering significant challenges in reaching the wounded amidst the ongoing shelling.”
