Food stocks in Gaza shops will last "less than a week," UN warns
From CNN’s Caitlin Danaher and Sharon Braithwaite in London
Shops in Gaza will run out of available food stocks in “less than a week," with retailers unable to restock from wholesalers due to “widespread destruction and insecurity,” a spokesperson for the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) told CNN Tuesday.
Bread supplies are running short, with only one of the five flour mills in the Gaza Strip functioning due to a lack of fuel and electricity, the spokesperson warned. Meanwhile, people are “lining up for hours to get bread” from bakeries, and only five of the 23 bakeries contracted by the WFP to provide fresh bread to shelters are operational.
In warehouses, commercial supplies of essential food commodities are “sufficient for approximately two weeks,” but due to damaged infrastructure, it is difficult to distribute, the spokesperson for the UN agency added.
With warehouses located in Gaza City, the WFP is struggling to channel food to the southern region where displaced people are moving.
Biden thinks it is "exactly the right time to go to Israel," White House official says ahead of visit
From CNN's Donald Judd
United States President Joe Biden "believes that this is exactly the right time to go to Israel and to go to Jordan," National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said Tuesday, previewing the president’s visit to the region, which is set for Wednesday.
Biden will "speak to other leaders in the region about the humanitarian assistance that we want to make sure it gets into Gaza, about Israeli plans and intentions going forward, how this is unfolding on the ground, and absolutely to continue to talk to regional partners, about those hostages and getting and see if we can getting them home back to their families where they belong," Kirby told CNN.
The US does notwant this conflict to "escalate and widen," he said.
"We don't want to see this conflict escalate and widen; there are no plans or intentions to put US boots on the ground in combat in Israel — everything we're doing right now is about sending a strong signal of deterrence," he said.
Biden will also keep US hostages high on his agenda, which "will be represented in virtually every conversation that he has: with Israeli officials, including the prime minister, as well as President (Abdel Fattah el-Sisi) of Egypt, President (Mahmoud) Abbas of the Palestinian Authority and certainly King Abdullah of Jordan,” Kirby said.
The US continues to believe that a handful of Americans weretaken hostage by Hamas,but there is nothing known about the conditions of the captives, a US official told CNN.
Hamas says Biden "fell for the Israeli narrative" ahead of high-stakes visit
From CNN's Eyad Kourdi
On the eve of his visit to Israel, Hamas on Tuesday accused US President Joe Biden of falling “for the Israeli narrative," calling the United States "a culprit in this war against our people."
Hazem Qassem, the spokesperson for Hamas, said the US stance toward the Palestinian people was “aggressive”andclaimed that Biden’s visit was aimedat providing financial and moral support to Israel while encouraging the latter to "commit more massacres against Palestinians."
Qassem told CNN in a telephone interview:
"Unfortunately the US administration and the USPresident Biden took a very aggressive measure against the Palestinian people and fell for the Israeli narrative. His visit is only to support the Israelis financially and morally and to encourage the occupation to commit more massacres against our Palestinian brothers and sisters, children and the elderly."
A significant number of casualtiesin Israeli airstrikeson Tuesday were individuals who had fled from northern areasof Gazato the south, Qassem said. Two-thirds of the casualties were women and children, he said.
CNN is unable to verify those figures independently.
Israeli military is returning fire across Lebanon border
From CNN's Florence Davey-Attlee in northern Israel and Ruba Alhenawi
The Israeli military said Tuesday it was responding with "tank and artillery fire towards military posts belonging to Hezbollah," after "two anti-tank missiles" were fired near the border with Lebanon.
One anti-tank missile was fired at a vehicle in Metula and a second one was fired at a tank in Misgav-Am, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told CNN.
The IDF told CNN that it is seeing "increasing attacks" today on its intelligence-gathering means, and it is working to fix some of the damage caused.
IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said in a briefing Tuesday morning that there were injuries on both sides. According to the IDF, two reserve soldiers were injured in Metula and they have been transferred to a hospital for treatment.
Multiple airstrikes seen about a kilometer from Rafah border crossing
From CNN's Celine Alkhaldi
There have been a number of airstrikes Tuesday about a kilometer from Rafah crossing, according to a CNN stringer at the border crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
Dozens of trucks are on the Egyptian side of the crossing waiting to get into Gaza, the stringer said.
Some context:The Rafah crossing is the only remaining outlet for supplies, but it has been closed for much of the past week. Humanitarian supplies have been piling up on the Egyptian side of the border, and neither Gazans nor foreign nationals have been able to cross.
“Two airstrikes struck 15 minutes apart around 1 kilometer away from the Rafah crossing,” the CNN stringer said. “Loud sounds of airstrikes have been heard every 30 minutes since Tuesday at 4 a.m.” local time.
In videos filmed by the CNN stringer on the Egyptian side, plumes of smoke can be seen rising beyond the main gate into the crossing.
Pregnant women in Gaza prepare to give birth in a war zone
From CNN's Mohammed AbdelbaryandNadeen Ebrahim
Khulood Khaled was woken up by the sound ofIsraeli airstrikesas she slept next to her son last week. Black smoke filled the room, making it difficult for her to breathe. She felt a sense of panic setting in, followed by pain in her abdomen. She thought she was going into early labor.
Eight months pregnant and worried about her unborn child, the 28-year-old decided to leave her home in the al-Karama district of the northern Gaza Strip the next day as thebombing continued.
“We watched houses dropping as we drove, thinking we could die any minute,” she told CNN. On the way, she saw refugees being struck by Israeli jets “just meters away,” She hugged her son “so we’d die together.”
Khulood eventually made it to the southern city of Khan Younis, but she is now surviving on “a dry piece of bread,” as the territory faces a food shortage and no electricity or running water. “I don’t know if the bread will be available tomorrow,” she said.
Around 50,000 women in Gaza are pregnant, 10% of whom are expected to give birth in the coming month, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
Gaza residents have faced Israeli airstrikes in several rounds of conflict over the past few years.But this time it’s different.Israel has vowed “mighty vengeance” after the Hamas militants that control the territorylaunched an attackon October 7, killing 1,400 in Israel. Between October 7 and 12, Israel dropped 6,000 bombs on the enclave – that’s equivalent to the total number of airstrikes on Gaza during the entire 2014 Gaza-Israel conflict, which lasted 50 days.
Israel has also imposed what it calls a “complete siege” on the territory, blocking supplies of water, electricity, goods and fuel. Human rights organizations havecondemned the moveas “collective punishment” and “a war crime.” Locals say that Khan Younis is still being targeted by Israeli strikes.
Khulood said she doesn't know where to go when it’s time for her to give birth.
“I’m scared. For my son, my unborn child and myself,” she told CNN. “I don’t want to die. I want to see my son grow up… but there’s no life left here. Gaza has become a ghost city.”
Read more about the plight of pregnant women in Gaza
Additional reporting by Kareem Khadder, Abeer Salman, Chloe Liu and Niamh Kennedy
It’s early afternoon in Gaza and Israel. Here’s what you need to know
From CNN staff
US President Joe Biden will visit Israel and Jordan on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in the early hours of Tuesday from Tel Aviv. Biden’s mission is threefold – and difficult: To show support for Israel, to press for ways to ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and to prevent the conflict from escalating across the region – after Iran warned that the spread of war to “other fronts” might soon be “unavoidable.”
Meanwhile, the situation in Gaza has continued to deteriorate amid sustained Israeli airstrikes that have killed nearly 3,000 people since Hamas’ terror attack in Israel on October 7. Gazans have been urged to donate blood as doctors battle with crippling medical shortages as humanitarian aid is unable to pass through the Rafah crossing from Egypt.
Among those caught in the conflict are as many as 250 hostages taken into Gaza by Hamas militants during their brutal attack. Hamas released the first hostage video overnight, showing 21-year-old Mia Schem, a French-Israeli citizen. “I am begging the world to bring my baby back home,” Schem’s mother said Tuesday.
Here are the latest developments:
- Biden trip: As Blinken was concluding his seven-nation, multi-day tour of the Middle East, he announced the US president would make an extraordinary wartime visit to Israel on Wednesday. While seeking to support America’s longtime ally ahead of a potential incursion into Gaza, Biden will also call for some restraint. In an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” that aired Sunday, Biden said it would be a “big mistake” for Israel to occupy Gaza. The president will also travel to Jordan, where he will meet with King Abdullah II, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
- Rafah crossing: For days, speculation has grown as to whether the Rafah crossing into Egypt – the last remaining exit for Gazans — will open. Despite Blinken’s “promise” that “Rafah will be open,” there is as yet no agreement between the various parties to unblock the crossing. Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said there has been no progress in efforts to open the crossing, while the Israeli prime minister’s office denied there were any arrangements for its opening. The result is that aid has begun to pile up on the Egyptian side of the border, unable to reach Palestinians in Gaza.
- Hostage video: Hamas released the first video showing Mia Schem, a 21-year-old French-Israeli citizen – a hostage captured during its October 7 attack and brought to Gaza. CNN cannot independently verify where and when the video of Schem was taken and what condition she is in at the moment. Schem is among as many as 250 hostages being held in Gaza, according to Hamas. At a press conference in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, Schem’s mother issued an appeal to help rescue her daughter: "I am begging the world to bring my baby back home, she only went to a festival party to have some fun and now she is in Gaza and she is not the only one.”
- Regional spillover: As Israel’s bombardment of Gaza continues ahead of a potential ground incursion, some of Israel’s neighbors have warned it against escalating the conflict further. Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said new fronts could open if Israel continues its “war crimes and humanitarian siege on Gaza.” The fiercest flashpoint outside of Gaza so far has been along Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, whose southern regions are dominated by the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. While the crossfire so far does not match the scale and intensity of the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza, Israel’s border with Lebanon could become a launching pad for a regional war.
- Inside the race for relief in Gaza: In the latest podcast episode of "Tug of War: Attack on Israel," CNN looks at the diplomatic efforts to bring relief to those who need it as the death toll in Gaza continues to rise.
Sign up for CNN’sMeanwhile in the Middle East, a three-times-a-week newsletter that explores the region’s biggest stories.
Iran's Supreme Leader accuses Israel of "ethnic cleansing" in Gaza and warns against escalation
From CNN's Eyad Kourdi
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Tuesday said if the "atrocities" against Gaza persisted, "Muslims and resistance forces could lose patience," and nobody would be able to prevent their actions.
"The world is bearing witness to the ethnic cleansing carried out by the Zionist regime," he said during a speech in Tehran.
He added: "All parties should refrain from asking anyone to prevent a group from taking steps in response to the crimes of the Zionists."
Israel has maintained that it is making efforts to minimize civilian casualties by warning civilians to move out of the northern part of Gaza, but the total number of deaths reported by the Palestinian health ministry is close to 3,000.
Some context: A direct link between Iran and the attacks on October 7 has not been established, but both the US and Israel say Iran is the primary backer of Hamas, which launched an unprecedented attack in Israel on October 7 that left 1,400 people dead.
Iran has denied any involvement.
US President Joe Biden has warned Iran to "be careful" with its actions in the region, while French PresidentEmmanuelMacron and German ChancellorOlafScholz have both warned Tehran against intervening and escalating the Israel-Hamas war.
Bipartisan group of US lawmakers urges Biden administration to sanction Iran for supporting Hamas
From CNN's Zachary Cohen and Jeremy Herb
A bipartisan group of 113 congressional lawmakers is urging the Biden administration to “hold Iran accountable” for its role in supporting the terrorist group Hamas after its brutal attack against Israel, according to a new letter obtained by CNN.
The letter, signed by 63 Democrats and 50 Republicans, calls on President Joe Biden to "take all necessary steps to cut off Iranian funding sources."
"This includes maximum enforcement of all U.S. sanctions, and taking any and all steps to end Iran’s oil trade to China, which currently brings in $150 million per day in revenue," the letter states.
It notes that on October 18, UN ballistic missile sanctions will expire under the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
"This cannot be allowed to happen. We urge your Administration to work with our European allies to immediately implement snapback sanctions on Iran at the UN Security Council," it says.
"The US must also put significant pressure on Qatar and Turkey to cease their support for Hamas and expel Hamas leadership that they host," the letter adds.
The letter does not reference the $6 billion in Iranian funds that were transferred to Qatari accounts last month as part of a deal to free Americans detained in Iran — a move that has sparked GOP criticism of the Biden administration in the aftermath of the Hamas attack.
US national security adviser JakeSullivan said on Sunday the administration was engaged in backchannel diplomacy with Tehran to send the same message it has been conveying publicly about not escalating the crisis further.
