Israel Predicts ‘Difficult’ Gaza Ground Offensive, Claims Hamas Wages ‘War from Hospitals’ | Updates – News18

Amid an ongoing war with the Hamas extremists, Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Friday said that the country will soon launch a “long and difficult” ground offensive into Gaza to destroy a vast network of tunnels used by the territory’s Hamas rulers.

The IDF also accused Hamas of using hospitals in the Gaza Strip as operational centres for directing attacks against Israel as it conducted another ground raid on Friday in Gaza in advance of an expected invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory.

Israel-Hamas War: Hamas Rocket Falls on Tel Aviv; Palestine Says 1,650 Gazans Still Under Rubble

Meanwhile, the United Nations warned that “many more will die” as a result of Israel’s ongoing siege of Gaza.

Here are the major updates on the Israel-Hamas war today:

• Israel on Friday said that it expects to launch a ground offensive into Gaza soon which will be long and difficult.
• Israeli forces on Friday conducted another ground raid in Gaza in advance of an expected invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared a graphic overlay of satellite images on X alleging that Hamas is abusing hospitals in Gaza as their headquarters in the war against Israel.
• Hamas rejected Israel’s accusation that it was abusing hospitals to shield its war effort, calling the charges unfounded. “There’s no basis in truth in what the spokesman of the enemy army stated,” said Izzat al-Rishq, a senior member of the Hamas political bureau.
• The United Nations warned on Friday that “many more will die” as a result of Israel’s ongoing siege of Gaza.
• Israel forces eliminated Madhath Mubshar, the commander of Hamas’ Western Khan Yunis Battalion.
• The Israeli Health Ministry announced a minute of silence next Sunday, October 29, at 10 am Israel time, for those who have lost their lives in the ongoing war since the October 7 attacks.
• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Joe Biden administration was imposing sanctions on eight persons with alleged ties to the Hamas militant group.
• The United States carried out strikes on two facilities in Syria that were connected to Iran, reported IANS, citing the US Defense Secretary.
• French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday called for a “humanitarian truce” in the conflict between Hamas and Israel to ensure the protection of civilians in the Gaza Strip.
• Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday spoke to his Omani counterpart Badr Albusaidi and discussed the ongoing crisis in West Asia that was triggered by the unprecedented attacks on the Israeli cities by Hamas militants on October 7.
• The Israeli Shekel has reached its lowest value against the US dollar in over 11 years.
• The health ministry in Gaza said Friday that 7,326 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since the eruption of war with Israel on October 7.
• A WHO official said estimates show there are still 1,000 people under the rubble in Gaza who have not been identified.
• IDF spokesperson says that Hamas now holds at least 229 hostages, according to a report by The Spectator Index.
• Hamas on Friday said Israel “cut communications and most of the internet” across the Gaza Strip on Friday. Global internet monitor NetBlocks reported “a collapse in connectivity in the Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel.”
• A senior Iranian envoy met with Hamas representatives in Moscow following talks with Russian diplomats that underscored the country’s efforts to expand its clout as a power broker in the latest Israel-Hamas war.