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

Eligible family members and non-emergency government personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the consulate general in Erbil, Iraq, have been ordered to depart the country “due to increased security threats against U.S. government personnel and interests," the U.S. State Department said Sunday.

Under the State Department’s travel advisory system, Iraq remains at Level 4, the highest warning level, where it has been for many years. The State Department said the order for non-emergency U.S. government personnel and eligible family members at the Baghdad Embassy and Consulate General was issued on Friday.

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford

Intensifying Israeli airstrikes against Hamas targets in Gaza and a possible ground assault “may increase calls for violence in the United States,” according to a new intelligence assessment by the Department of Homeland Security that also noted there has already been a rise in hate crimes against Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities.

“Targeted violence attacks may increase as the conflict progresses,” the assessment said.

A separate memo to law enforcement agencies in Washington D.C., said, the escalation in the latest war between Israel and Hamas almost certainly will increase the threat of "terrorism and targeted violence” in the United States.

“While we currently have no intelligence to suggest that homegrown violent extremists and unaffiliated lone actors are planning any attack on the District or U.S. at large, foreign terrorist organizations are likely to increase the production of propaganda compelling U.S.-based actors to conduct attacks,” the memo said.

Likely targets include houses of worship, First Amendment-protected demonstrations and events, or U.S. military assets, the memo said. It mentioned an increase in swatting calls targeting Jewish houses of worship in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island with hoax bomb threats.

The memo adds, "We expect to remain in a heightened threat environment in the near-to-medium term -- even if a diplomatic solution to the crisis is found.”

--ABC News' Aaron Katersky and Josh Margolin

Republican presidential candidate Tim Scott doubled down on his accusations Sunday that President Joe Biden has "blood on his hands" after the Hamas' terror attack spurred a wider war.

The South Carolina senator has been a vocal critic of the United States agreeing to release some $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue in order to free five American detainees. The deal, arranged before the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, prompted the Biden administration to re-freeze the money after the terrorist group's rampage.

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Congress should pass Israel and Ukraine aid ‘separately’: Sen. Tim ScottABC News’ Jon Karl interviews GOP presidential candidate Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., on “This Week.”

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"Do not be surprised when the result of that $6 billion leads to more conflict in the Middle East," Scott told ABC "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl.

"I'm saying with great clarity that weakness from the American president, plus the negotiations, leading to terrorist attacks by negotiating with the No. 1 state sponsor of terrorism in the world -- yes, it creates complicity," Scott said, repeating claims he made earlier this month.

-ABC News' Gabriella Abdul-Hakim

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which has been assisting people trapped in Gaza, said Sunday that it is on the verge of running out of fuel "critical" to keeping its humanitarian response going.

“In three days, UNRWA will run out of fuel, critical for our humanitarian response across the Gaza Strip," UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement. “Without fuel, there will be no water, no functioning hospitals and bakeries. Without fuel, aid will not reach those in desperate need. Without fuel, there will be no humanitarian assistance."

The UNRWA, the largest humanitarian agency in the Gaza Strip, said it is sheltering about 500,000 people in Gaza out of the nearly 1 million people who have been displaced by the Israel-Hamas conflict, the agency said.

“I call on all parties and those with influence over them to immediately allow fuel supplies into the Gaza Strip and to ensure that fuel is strictly used to prevent a collapse of the humanitarian response," Lazzarini said.