As war wages on in Gaza, updated maps and graphics show latest in Hamas, Israel conflict
The death toll continues to rise in Gaza with more destruction from Israeli airstrikes as Israel Defense Forces prepare to launch a ground invasion in response to the brutal attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.
Preparations continue despite international pleas for a humanitarian pause in the conflict. Israel said Thursday it had sent tanks into Gaza to prepare the area for future combat.
USA TODAY is tracking developments in Gaza and the surrounding area. Here are the latest:
Nov. 12: Gaza's largest hospital no longer functioning
As Israeli airstrikes and ground forces advance toward Gaza's largest hospital, thousands of civilians seeking shelter and receiving treatment remain trapped inside the facility that officials say has run out of fuel and water.
Word Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Al Shifa Hospital – a stated target of the Israeli military, which says the facility is the location of a significant Hamas command post – "is not functioning as a hospital anymore."
Oct. 31: Israeli forces press further into Gaza
Israeli soldiers are pouring into Gaza as the ground invasion drives more Palestinians from their homes. Israeli forces have moved further into Beit Hanoun in the northeastern Gaza Strip and have expanded their positions in the northwest of the Gaza Strip along the coast.
Oct. 31: Israeli airstrike hits Gaza's largest refugee camp
A flurry of Israeli airstrikes on the largest refugee camp in Gaza caused dozens of casualties Tuesday, flattened apartment buildings and killed what the Israeli military said were numerous Hamas militants.
Citing officials from Indonesian Hospital on the outskirts of Gaza City, Reuters reported more than 50 people were killed and 150 wounded in the attack on the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp, which left craters were residential structures had been standing. Al Jazeera TV video showed dozens of people digging through rubble trying to find survivors.
The Israel Defense Forces said it struck a "terrorist stronghold'' and killed Ibrahim Biari, a Hamas commander it said was among the leaders of the Oct. 7 rampage. The IDF also said Hamas "had taken over civilian buildings” and that tunnels under them collapsed.
"The stronghold was used for training and execution of terrorism activities,'' the IDF said in a tweet with a photo showing its targets. "During the ground activity, the troops eliminated approx. 50 terrorists, as well as destroyed entrances to terrorist tunnels and weapons.''
Reuters reported a long line of bodies covered in white cloth laid outside Indonesian Hospital in the nearby town of Beit Lahiya, and a procession of injured people of different ages getting rushed into the facility amid screams and chaos.
Oct. 30: Israeli forces push invasion into northern Gaza
Israel appeared to begin blocking exit routes from northern Gaza on Sunday as its ground invasion of the occupied enclave intensified amid pockets of resistance from Palestinians who refused repeated Israeli orders to evacuate.
Fierce clashes took place as Israeli forces penetrated deep into northern Gaza near Beit Lahia, a city of 90,000, the Palestinian media outlet Al-Ayyam reported. The Israeli military said its forces were pushing into the territory, encountering militants attempting to launch anti-tank missiles and mortar shells. Dozens of the militants were killed, the Israelis said.
Oct. 26: Destruction in Beit Hanoun, Al Karameh in North Gaza
Cities in Gaza have been heavily damaged by heavy Israeli airstrikes over the past three weeks, new satellite images from Maxar Technologies show.
In the north, Beit Hanoun has significant damage, with four- and five-story buildings collapsing, reported the Guardian. The city is close to the area where Hamas militants crossed the border and attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
In Al Karameh, aerial views show blankets of gray ash marking areas of destruction.
Oct. 23: Aid trucks are entering Gaza from Egypt at Rafah border crossing
A third small aid convoy has entered Gaza from Egypt, according to The Associated Press. Satellite images collected Saturday by Maxar Technologies showed trucks on both sides of the border.
Many on the Gaza side appeared to be empty, perhaps ready to be loaded with goods from the trucks crossing from Egypt. Others are seen driving out of Gaza, presumably empty, back to Egypt. Previous images showed up to 90 trucks waiting to cross.
According to The New York Times, Gaza's Hamas-run interior ministry described the latest convoy as consisting of 20 trucks, with 34 trucks crossing over the weekend.
Oct. 20: Satellite imagery shows trucks reportedly carrying humanitarian supplies lined up at Gaza's Rafah border crossing
Maxar Technologies captured new imagery today showing trucks lined up at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.
At the Egyptian border, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters that “restrictions” are preventing humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, which has been cut off by Israel from food, water, fuel and electricity since Hamas’ Oct. 7 surprise attack.
“We are actively engaging with all the parties in order to clarify these restrictions so we can have these trucks moving towards where they’re needed. We need these trucks moving as soon as possible,” said Guterres, adding: “We have two million people here who are suffering tremendously.”
Oct. 20: Israeli military forces pound Gaza with heavy airstrikes, hit a Greek Orthodox church building in Gaza City
Israeli military forces on Friday continued pounding the Gaza Strip with heavy airstrikes, slamming areas in the south where Palestinians had been told to seek safety, prompting many to return north as hundreds of trucks packed with humanitarian aid stayed piled up at the Egypt-Gaza border.
An untold number of Palestinians were allegedly killed and wounded in an explosion at a Greek Orthodox Saint Porphyrius Church, the oldest church still in use in Gaza City late Thursday. The precise death toll has not yet been determined as bodies were still under rubble. The church is located a few blocks from the at al-Ahli Hospital that was struck on Tuesday.
The New York Times posted a statement from the Israeli military, which said that the church was not the intended target. The IDF said the fighter jets that carried out the attack were trying to destroy a Hamas command center near the church.
Gaza's health ministry (controlled by Hamas) said at least 16 people were killed and with many still buried under rubble. The death toll has not be independently confirmed.
Justin Amash a former member of the U.S. House, representing Michigan's 3rd Congressional District, stated that some of his family members were killed at the church in a post to X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday.
Oct. 19: Red Cross says Gaza's dwindling water, electricity supply could turn hospitals into 'morgues'
Vehicles carrying relief supplies stood motionless at Egypt's border with the Gaza Strip this week while locals and aid organizations begged for food, water and fuel for generators. They said the tiny territory sealed off by Israel after last week’s rampage by Hamas was near total collapse.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who had been forced from their homes were searching for bread. Hospitals in Gaza were on the brink of power outages, endangering the lives of thousands of patients. As an Israeli ground invasion seemed a certainty, Hamas militants continued their relentless rocket fire, and tensions grew along the Israel-Lebanon border to the north.
The Gaza power plant and power cables from Israel, which were Gaza's two primary suppliers of electricity, are no longer operational. At the beginning of the siege, Israel cut off its supply of electricity to the city, and the power plant ceased operations almost a week ago because of a shortage of fuel.
Oct. 18: U.S. backs Israeli denial of involvement in Gaza hospital complex explosion
President Joe Biden backed up Israel’s statements on Wednesday, as he visited Tel Aviv. Biden said he was “outraged and saddened” by the loss of life in Gaza City. But he said that U.S. intelligence indicated that Israel was not behind the explosion.
Mohammed Abu Selmia − the general director of Shifa Hospital where all the wounded and dead were transferred following the explosion − said early Wednesday he believed the death toll was close to 250, with hundreds more wounded, The Associated Press reported.
Oct. 17: Hamas-run Health Ministry says hundreds killed in hospital strike
Israelis and Palestinians blamed each other Tuesday for an explosion that killed hundreds at a Gaza City hospital packed with wounded people and others seeking shelter from relentless bombing.
The Gaza Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, said an Israeli airstrike tore through Al Ahli Arab Hospital and estimated the number of fatalities at a minimum of 500. The Israel Defense Forces said it would investigate, then issued a statement disavowing involvement.
"An analysis of IDF operational systems indicates that a barrage of rockets was fired by terrorists in Gaza, passing in close proximity to the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza at the time it was hit,'' the statement said. "Intelligence from multiple sources we have in our hands indicates that Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch which hit the hospital in Gaza."
The U.S. considers Islamic Jihad, the second-largest militant group in Gaza and the West Bank, a terrorist organization. It occasionally cooperates with Hamas.
Oct. 17: Israeli bombings kill dozens in Gaza region seeking to flee
Israel bombed areas of southern Gaza where it had told Palestinians to flee to ahead of an expected ground invasion, killing dozens of people on Tuesday in retaliatory attacks it says are targeted at Hamas militants that rule the besieged territory, according to the Associated Press.
With no water, fuel or food being delivered to Gaza since Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel last week, mediators struggled to break a deadlock over delivering supplies to increasingly desperate civilians, aid groups and hospitals.
In Gaza, dozens of injured were rushed to hospitals after heavy attacks outside the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis, residents reported. Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official and former health minister, reported 27 people were killed in Rafah and 30 in Khan Younis.
Oct. 16: Gaza-Egypt border strained as many Palestinians try to flee fighting
There have been conflicting reports regarding the state of affairs at Rafah. Who can pass through is controlled by Hamas and Egypt, however since Israel started attacking Gaza with airstrikes in response to Hamas's attack, operations have been hampered.
Reports that the crossing might be temporarily reopened during a brief lull on Monday, masses gathered at Rafah; however, both Israel and Hamas promptly refuted this.
More than 1 million Gazans had evacuated their homes. Last week Israel ordered an evacuation of northern Gaza, an edict that fueled chaos across the Israeli-occupied territory of about 2.3 million Palestinians.
Oct. 13: Israeli military calls for evacuation of civilians in northern Gaza
Unable to view our graphics? Click here to see them.
Israel’s military told some 1 million Palestinians on Friday to evacuate northern Gaza and head to the southern part of the besieged territory, an unprecedented order applying to almost half the population ahead of an expected ground invasion against the ruling Hamas militant group.
The evacuation order, which includes Gaza City, home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, sparked widespread panic among civilians and aid workers already running from Israeli airstrikes and contending with a total siege and a territorywide blackout.
A closed military zone has been created by the Israel Defense Forces surrounding the Gaza Strip. Hamas continues to try to infiltrate the area, though in smaller forces. The border breaches from the initial attack are being rebuilt. There are around 300,000 Israeli soldiers are gathering near the Gaza Strip.
Oct. 10: Destruction of residential buildings evident in Gaza City, US carrier group heads to Middle East
Residential neighborhoods in Gaza City sustained significant damage, as seen in recent satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies.
The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, a force of six warships headed by the U.S. Navy’s largest and most advanced nuclear aircraft carrier, arrived in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday as part of the U.S. response to the attack by Hamas on Israel.
Oct. 9: Israel announces "complete siege" of Gaza
Israel’s defense minister says electricity, food, water and fuel to Gaza will be halted as part of a “complete siege” of the nation.
Israel launched strikes inside Gaza on Monday morning. Several mosques and a marketplace are hit and an unknown number of people are injured. The Yassin Mosque near the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City is among those destroyed.
The Israeli military says it's conducting one of the largest airstrikes ever against Hamas in Gaza and says more than 1,200 targets were hit.
A Hamas spokesperson said Monday the group will kill one civilian hostage each time Israel targets civilians in Gaza without warning.
Oct. 8: Israel strikes Gaza
2:19 a.m. On social media site X, formerly Twitter, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel has destroyed the sites used to launch the rocket attacks.
See more with this visual story: Gaza, the 140-square-mile strip at the core of the conflict
Israel's Defense Ministry said mortars fired from Gaza hit the Erez border crossing into Israel, used by thousands of Gazans daily. The mortars damaged the roof and shrapnel hit the hall's entrance, the ministry said. The crossing has been closed amid the fighting.
A Hamas official said Saturday that the hostages could be freed in exchange for Palestinian terrorists serving prison sentences in Israel.
Oct. 7: Hamas attacks Israel
More than 1,900 people have died, including at least 14 Americans, and fighting continues after the Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched thousands of rockets from Gaza against Israeli cities and sent an estimated 1,000 gunmen across Israel's border to attack and kidnap civilians on Oct. 7.
See more with this visual story: Maps and graphics show how Hamas militants' deadly raid unfolded
The coordinated assault, the deadliest attack on Israel in decades, caught the nation and the world by surprise. Israeli Defense Forces responded with airstrikes and rocket attacks against cities inside the Gaza Strip.
Hamas seized dozens of people as hostages from various locations during its attack and has detained them in Gaza. The exact number isn’t known, but the hostages, from Israel and other countries, include “civilians, children and grandmothers,” an IDF spokesperson told CNN.
6:30 a.m.: Hamas launches Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel, firing thousands of rockets from inside the Gaza Strip into Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
See more with this visual story: How Hamas overwhelmed Iron Dome
See more with this visual story: Did Hamas defeat Israel's Iron Dome? Thousands of rockets were fired within minutes
7 a.m.: Hamas militants kill at least 260 people at an open-air music festival in a field about 3 miles from the Gaza border. An unknown number of hostages are seized.
7:40 a.m.: Israeli Defense Forces say Hamas fighters have crossed into southern Israel from Gaza.
8:15 a.m.: Air-raid sirens sound in Jerusalem.
8:25 a.m.: Israeli officials announce Hamas is taking hostages in southern Israel.
10:30 a.m.: Israel begins airstrikes inside Gaza.
The rubble of the Yassin Mosque, destroyed in an Israeli airstrike, is seen at Shati refugee camp in Gaza City early Monday, Oct. 9, 2023.
11:35 a.m.: Netanyahu addresses Israel, says nation is at war.
1:45 p.m. Israel says it has hit 21 Hamas military buildings.
6:08 p.m.: President Joe Biden speaks with Netanyahu, assures him of U.S. support.
10:16 p.m.: Netanyahu makes another address, vows vengeance against Hamas.
SOURCE: Associated Press, USA TODAY reporting
Contributing: Kim Hjelmgaard, Jorge Ortiz, Christopher Cann, Vanessa Arredondo, Thao Nguyen, USA TODAY.
Keep up with developments from Gaza:Sign up for USA TODAY's Israel-Hamas War newsletter.