Israel-Gaza updates: Biden speaks with Netanyahu about hostages' release, Gaza humanitarian assistance

The hostages are two elderly women who are both Israeli nationals.

Last Updated: October 23, 2023, 4:29 PM EDT

Thousands of people have died and thousands more were injured after the militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel retaliated with a bombing campaign and total siege of the neighboring Gaza Strip, leaving the region on the verge of all-out war.

At least 1,400 people have died and 4,629 others have been injured in Israel, according to Israeli authorities. In Gaza, 5,087 people have died and 15,273 have been wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Authority.

Aid workers and officials fear that Israel's call for an evacuation of the northern part of Gaza is precipitating a humanitarian disaster as electricity and other supplies have been cut off in preparation for what appears to be an imminent ground offensive.

Humanitarian groups have urged Israel to call off the evacuation and agree to a cease-fire, even as the country has asserted a right to defend itself -- a right the United States endorses.

Click here for previous updates.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Oct 20, 2023, 12:06 AM EDT

Israel’s Iron Dome intercepted 6,000 rockets within first week of conflict: IDF

An Israel Defense spokesperson told ABC News’ Britt Clennett the Iron Dome is holding strong against the increase in rockets launched at the country.

ABC News’ Britt Clennett takes a tour of Israel’s Iron Dome defense system, amid questions on whether the system could be overwhelmed with growing Hezbollah clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border.
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How does Israel’s Iron Dome defense system work?ABC News’ Britt Clennett takes a tour of Israel’s Iron Dome defense system, amid questions on whether the system could be overwhelmed with growing Hezbollah clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border.
ABCNews.com

Within the first week of the conflict, the Iron Dome intercepted more than 6,000 rockets, the IDF spokesperson told Clennett.

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden said the U.S. was "going to keep Iron Dome fully supplied so it can continue standing sentinel over Israeli skies, saving Israeli lives."

The Iron Dome first became operational in 2011, with the IDF spokesperson saying the coming days were going to be challenging but the Iron Dome and "our other active air defense systems were designed exactly for this mission."

-ABC News’ Britt Clennett

Oct 19, 2023, 10:40 PM EDT

Biden's $105B foreign aid package includes $14B for Israel: Sources

The White House prepared a sweeping $105 billion foreign aid package that includes some $60 billion in assistance for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel, three officials tell ABC News.

During President Joe Biden’s Thursday address to the nation, he stressed success in Ukraine and Israel is "vital" to the U.S.

The full-year request is also expected to include $14 billion to improve security at the U.S.-Mexico border and another $7 billion in assistance for the Indo-Pacific region, which includes Taiwan. Another $10 billion would go toward humanitarian efforts, according to the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity before details are announced Friday.

ABC News' Anne Flaherty, Ben Siegel and Allison Pecorin

Oct 19, 2023, 9:10 PM EDT

An estimated 1 million Palestinians are displaced in Gaza: UN

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated about 1 million people in Gaza are displaced, including over 520,000 people staying in "emergency shelters in increasingly dire conditions," according to a press release on Thursday.

OCHA estimated at least 30% of "all housing units in the Gaza Strip have been either destroyed, rendered uninhabitable or moderately/lightly damaged."

-ABC News’ Brian Hartman

Oct 19, 2023, 8:44 PM EDT

Biden calls on world to denounce anti-Semitism, Islamophobia

President Joe Biden addressed the rise in reports of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent retaliation.

He cited Jewish students being targeted in schools and the stabbing death over the weekend of a 6-year-old Muslim American boy in Illinois.

President Joe Biden addressed the rise in reports of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent retaliation.
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Biden calls on world to denounce anti-Semitism, IslamophobiaPresident Joe Biden addressed the rise in reports of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent retaliation.
ABCNews.com

Biden said to all of those who are hurting, "I see you, you belong."

"We can't stand by and stand silent when this happens. We must, without equivocation, denounce anti-Semitism. We must also without equivocation denounce Islamophobia," he said.

Biden noted that he told Israeli officials that after 9-11, America "felt enraged as well," and while it "sought and got justice, we made mistakes."

"So I cautioned the government of Israel not to be blinded by rage," he said.

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