Israelis take cover in an underground car tunnel as a siren warns of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, during a protest calling for the return of more than 220 people captured by Hamas militants, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.

Image Credit: AP Photo/Bernat Armangue

Israel launched an expanded ground operation on Saturday after knocking out communications and creating a near-blackout of information in the Gaza Strip with increased bombardment and artillery fire overnight.

Israel’s defense minister said that “the ground shook in Gaza” and that the war against the Palestinian territory’s Hamas rulers had entered a new stage. Gaza residents described the massive overnight bombardment from the sea and the air as the most intense of the 3-week-old Israel-Hamas war.

Other countries, United Nations officials and aid agencies described a dire situation on the ground in Gaza as ambulances left without cellphone or radio service resorted to chasing the sound of artillery fire to local people wounded.

The Palestinian death toll since the war started passed 7,700, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 110 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.

More than 1,400 people were slain in Israel during a surprise incursion by Hamas militants, including at least 310 soldiers, according to the Israeli government. At least 229 hostages were taken into Gaza, and four hostages were released earlier.

Currently:

1. Spider web of Hamas tunnels raises risks for Israeli ground offensive in Gaza Strip

2. Mass graves, unclaimed bodies and overcrowded cemeteries replace funeral rites

3. AP Photos: Scenes of sorrow and despair on both sides of Israel-Gaza border on week 3 of war

4. Jewish and Muslim chaplains navigate tensions on US college campuses

5. UN General Assembly calls for `humanitarian truce’ in Gaza leading to halt in Israel-Hamas fighting.

6. Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

1. Spider web of raises risks for Israeli ground offensive in Gaza Strip

2. Mass graves, unclaimed bodies and overcrowded cemeteries

3. AP Photos: on both sides of Israel-Gaza border on week 3 of war

4. Jewish and Muslim chaplains navigate tensions on

5. UN General Assembly calls for ` leading to halt in Israel-Hamas fighting.

6. Find more of AP’s coverage at .

Here’s what is happening in the latest Israel-Hamas war:

Palestinian rockets, Israeli air strikes and another hospital is hit

A Palestinian militant group in Gaza said it fired barrage of rockets Saturday evening on Tel Aviv and on Ashkelon and Ashdod in southern Israel. The rockets by Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, was the latest in a serious of rocket attacks on Israel on Saturday as Israeli forces continued its relentless aid and land bombardment.

One of the Israeli airstrikes across northern Gaza late Saturday afternoon caused damage to the Indonesian hospital in Beit Lahia, according to freelance journalist Anas al-Sharif, one of the few journalists in Gaza who remain connected to the outside world. He shared images of the hospital's damaged roof.

Communications across Gaza have been increasingly difficult. A blackout has disrupted the work of ambulances and aid groups in the besieged strip.

PROTESTS SPREAD, CALLING ON ISRAEL TO STOP GAZA WAR

PARIS — Police encircled hundreds of people who defied a ban on a pro-Palestinian demonstration Saturday in central Paris. The officers tried to contain the protest but fired tear gas when tensions rose as a breakaway group tried to march.

The protest collective known as Urgence Palestine called for a cease-fire in the increasingly intense war between Israel and Hamas. At least 80 people were given citations, according to French media. Other pro-Palestinian demonstrations were held in Marseille and Strasbourg in the east.

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin’s order to ban pro-Palestinian demonstrations in France was trimmed back by the nation’s highest administrative authority. The Council of State ruled any protests in favor of either side in the war are to be authorized on a case-by-case basis after assessing risks to public order.

Demonstrations also took place Saturday in London, Indonesia, Pakistan, Italy, Norway and Switzerland, and a crowd of protesters filled New York City's Grand Central Station Friday night, many wearing black T-shirts saying “Jews say cease-fire now” and “Not in our name.”

ISRAEL DISMISSES CALLS FOR CEASE-FIRE AND HOSTAGE-SWAP

JERUSALEM — As Israeli airstrikes and an intensified ground attack pounded northern Gaza on Saturday, a representative for the families of the hostages held by Hamas told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu they support a prisoner swap.

“As far as the families are concerned, a deal of a return of our family members immediately in the framework of “all for all” is feasible, and there will be wide national support for this,” said MeIrav Gonen, the representative. Her daughter, RoMi, is one of the hostages.

Israel’s government has not yet commented on Hamas’s offer to free all the hostages in exchange for Israel releasing all Palestinians held in Israeli jails. It was unclear if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the possibility of a prisoner swap during the meeting with the families, or if he specified any military or diplomatic plan to achieve the release of hostages.

Israel’s military has said it will be able to continue its devastating campaign on Gaza while rescuing the hostages, and has dismissed the possibility of a Hamas-proposed cease-fire deal in exchange for their release. Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Saturday that by proposing the cease-fire, Hamas was engaged in a “cynical exploitation” of their famililes' anxieties.

NETANYAHU MEETS FAMILIES OF HOSTAGES AS TUNNELS ARE BOMBED

TEL AVIV -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he has met again with representatives of the families of the people taken hostage in Gaza, telling them Israel will exhaust every possibility to bring them home.

The Israeli military says Hamas militants kidnapped more than 200 people on Oct. 7 and took them into a network of tunnels inside the densely populated Gaza Strip. In the night from Friday to Saturday, Israeli war planes bombed Hamas tunnels and underground bunkers in dozens of strikes, heightening the concerns of relatives of hostages over the fate of their loved ones.

Netanyahu and his wife Sara met with the families in Kirya in Tel Aviv. His office said he told them that getting abductees released is one of the goals of the war. He told them that the greater the pressure, the greater the chances for bringing them home.

Hundreds of family members had demonstrated in Tel Aviv earlier Saturday, expressing fears that military leaders are being cavalier with the lives of the hostages. “The families feel like they’re they’re left behind and no one is really caring about them," said Miki Haimovitz, a former lawmaker.

UN LEADER RENEWS CEASE-FIRE PLEA: ‘HISTORY WILL JUDGE US ALL’

CAIRO — U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has reiterated his appeal for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza, the unconditional release of hostages and a delivery of humanitarian aid the strip’s 2.3 million people.

“This situation must be reversed,” he said Saturday in a statement following his meeting in Doha with Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani. “This is the moment of truth. Everyone must assume their responsibilities. History will judge us all.”

He warned that the ongoing escalation, including relentless Israeli bombardment and a communication blackout, would have devastating impacts and undermine “the referred humanitarian objectives.”

OMAN ACCUSES ISRAEL OF WAR CRIMES, CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY

CAIRO — Oman's Foreign Ministry says Israel’s siege and bombardment of Gaza amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Omani ministry said in a statement that a wide-scale Israeli ground invasion of Gaza would have “serious catastrophic consequences on the region and the world, and the prospects of achieving peace and stability.”

Oman has a long record of serving as a key broker between Iran and the West when regional tensions flare.

The ministry called for the international community to immediately intervene to stop the Israel-Hamas war and to speed humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.

HAMAS REPORTS FIRING ROCKETS AT ISRAELI CITY OF DIMONA

BEIRUT — A top Hamas official said Saturday that by shutting down most communications, Israel aims to prevent “the truth” about what is happening in the Gaza Strip from reaching the world.

Speaking to reporters in Beirut on Saturday, Ghazi Hamad alleged that Israel has made “baseless claims and lies” about Hamas militants hiding in tunnels under the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza "to justify the targeting of the hospital.”

He said that Israel has forced Palestinians to move from northern parts of Gaza into the southern parts with plans to try to push them to move to Egypt.

“We strongly reject that and say that our Palestinians will stay in their land,” Hamad said.

But he called on the international community to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza from Egypt, specifically medical equipment and fuel.

Meanwhile, Hamas’ military arm, Qassam Brigades, said Saturday afternoon it fired a barrage of rockets on Dimona, a southern Israeli city on the edge of the Negev Desert.

TURKEY LEADER SAYS ISRAEL TO BE DECLARED A ‘WAR CRIMINAL’

ISTANBUL — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a mass pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul on Saturday that his country was making preparations to proclaim Israel a “war criminal” for its actions in Gaza.

In his address to hundreds of thousands of people who joined the rally, Erdogan also held Western countries responsible for the deaths in Gaza for failing to stop Israel’s attacks.

“Israel, we will proclaim you as a war criminal to the world,” Erdoga said. “We are making our preparations, and we will declare Israel to the world as a war criminal.”

Erdogan, whose government recently restored full diplomatic ties with Israel, has stepped up his criticism of the country. Earlier this week, he asserted that the Hamas militant group was not a terrorist organization but a liberation group fighting for its lands and people.

Participants at the rally waved Turkish and Palestinian flags, chanting “God is great.” Yusuf Islam, the musician formerly known as Cat Stevens, took part in the rally.

UN RIGHTS CHIEF: ISRAEL TAKING PAIN IN GAZA TO ‘A NEW LEVEL’

CAIRO -- The U.N. human rights chief said Israel’s overnight intense air and ground bombardment has taken the crisis in Gaza to “a new level of violence and pain.”

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk’s comments came in a statement Saturday as Gaza remained cut off from the outside world following a communication blackout.

He said the communication blackout has added to the misery and suffering of civilians in the Palestinian territory, with ambulances and civil defense teams no longer able to locate the wounded.

The humanitarian and human rights consequences will be devastating and long-lasting,” Turk said. “Given the manner in which military operations have been conducted until now, in the context of the 56-year-old occupation, I am raising alarm about the possibly catastrophic consequences of large-scale ground operations in Gaza and the potential for thousands more civilians to die.”

LONDON DEMONSTRATORS DEMAND A CEASE-FIRE IN GAZA

Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters have turned out on London’s streets for a second straight weekend to demand a cease-fire in Gaza.

Fireworks and red and green flares were lit as huge crowds massed Saturday on the banks of the River Thames.

Mohammed Ullah, an engineer, said he was surprised politicians and governments are “not stopping this genocide against the Gaza people.”

“Yes, it was a crime by Hamas. But at the same time, what the Israelis are doing, this is genocide. And these children should not be killed and murdered and they don’t deserve to be treated like this,” Ullah said.

Demonstrations also took place Saturday in Indonesia, Pakistan, France, Italy, Norway and Switzerland.

HEAD OF UN PALESTINIAN REFUGEE AGENCY EXPRESSES WORRIES FOR STAFF

JERUSALEM — The chief of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees wrote a public letter to his staff in Gaza, expressing “immense worry” for their safety amid a near-total communications blackout.

“I am constantly hoping that this hell on earth will soon come to an end and that you and your families are safe,” Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the UNRWA agency. “You are the face of humanity during one of its darkest hours.”

He said his staff was working around the clock to secure his entry into the Gaza Strip but that since Israel knocked out communications there he could only communicate with some of staff members by satellite phone.

ISRAEL REPORTS STRIKING HEZBOLLAH SITES IN LEBANON

JERUSALEM — Israel’s military says it is striking Hezbollah military infrastructure in Lebanon.

It said the strikes were ordered Saturday after “several anti-tank missile and mortar shell launches were identified from Lebanese territory toward Israel," including Israeli military posts along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said a shell fired by Israeli troops hit the wall surrounding the headquarters of the U.N. peacekeeping force in the Lebanese coastal border town of Naqoura.

Andrea Tenenti, a spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL, confirmed that the shell only caused some damage and no injuries.

There has been concern that the Israel-Hamas war could expand into Lebanon and northern Israel if Hezbollah decides to join the conflict.

ISRAELI MILITARY AGAIN ADVISES GAZA RESIDENTS TO RELOCATE SOUTH

JERUSALEM — Israel’s military once again ordered Palestinians in northern Gaza and Gaza City to move south as its troops expand their ground offensive in the territory.

“For your immediate safety, we urge all residents of northern Gaza and Gaza City to relocate south immediately," Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, a military spokesperson, said in a video message posted on X. "This is a temporary measure. Moving back to northern Gaza will be possible once the intense hostilities end.”

Israel’s military also dropped leaflets over northern Gaza telling residents that the area has become a warzone.

The Israeli military estimated that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in northern Gaza moved south since the beginning of the war. But tens of thousands returned amid relentless Israeli airstrikes in Gaza’s southern areas.

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION APPEALS FOR A CEASE-FIRE

CAIRO — The World Health Organization has appealed to “the humanity in all those who have the power to do so to end the fighting now” in Gaza.

In a statement, the U.N. agency said health workers, patients and civilians have been subjected to a total communications and power blackout amid the intense bombardment and ground raids in Gaza.

“The WHO reiterates its calls for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire and reminds all parties to the conflict to take all precautions to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure,” the statement added.

WHO expressed “grave concerns” about reported bombardment near the Indonesia and Shifa hospitals in the northern half of Gaza.

GAZA HEALTH MINISTRY: ISRAELIS KILLED 377 SINCE FRIDAY NIGHT

BEIRUT — The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza said 377 people have been killed since Israel expanded its large ground offensive on Friday evening.

Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qedra told reporters Saturday that Israel has “totally paralyzed” the health network in Gaza by cutting off internet and cellular service.

“Israel has turned Gaza into pieces of fire,” al-Qedra said, adding that the bombardment is the most intense since Hamas' deadly incursion in southern Israel three weeks ago.

Al-Qedra said the 377 people killed in the past day raises the death total in the Gaza to 7,703 people, including 3,195 children and 1,863 women.

He called on people in Gaza to donate blood, requested delivery of all blood types from the International committee of the Red Cross and urged the opening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt to allow medical supplies and fuel to enter and the evacuation of seriously wounded people.

RED CRESCENT CHASING ARTILLERY SOUNDS TO FIND GAZA'S WOUNDED

In Ramallah in the West Bank, the Palestinian health minister said the Gaza situation has grown dire since the bombing that cut off telecommunications to most people, including hospital teams.

“What is happening in Gaza is a genocide,” Mai al-Kailah said at a press conference .

Thousands of people are trapped under the rubble of bombed-out buildings, al-Kailah said, adding that disease is spreading rapidly among the 1.4 million displaced people forced to crowd into shelters with unsanitary conditions due to a lack of water.

With communication networks largely severed, residents had no way of calling ambulances as Israel intensified its bombardment. Palestinian Red Crescent spokesperson Nebal Farsakh said emergency teams were chasing the sounds of artillery barrages and airstrikes to search for people in need.

EGYPT'S LEADER CALLS FOR HUMANITARIAN AID, END TO MILITARY ACTION

CAIRO — President Abdel Fattah el-Sisis of Egypt on Saturday urged the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, saying the number of trucks allowed into the besieged territory is far below the needs of Gaza’s population.

“The needs are massive,” he said in televised comments.

The Egyptian government was working to deescalate the conflict through talks with the warring parties, including discussions about releasing prisoners and hostages, he said without providing details.

Egypt’s Foreign Ministry warned about “gave risks” of a wide-scale Israeli ground invasion, slamming Israel for not respecting the U.N. General Assembly’s resolution on Friday calling for a “humanitarian truce.”

ISRAEL ANNOUNCES EXPANSION OF GROUND OPERATION INTO GAZA

Israel is expanding its ground operation in Gaza with infantry and armored vehicles backed by “massive” strikes from the air and sea, the Israeli military spokesperson said Saturday.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said “the forces are still on the ground and are continuing the war.”

Troops previously conducted brief nightly ground incursions before returning to Israel.

Earlier Saturday, the military released videos showing columns of armored vehicles moving slowly in open, sandy areas of Gaza, the first visual confirmation of ground troops. The military said warplanes bombed dozens of Hamas tunnels and underground bunkers.

Israel’s military also announced Saturday it had struck and killed a top Hamas naval operative, Ratib Abu Tzahiban, who it says orchestrated an attempted naval attack in Israel on Oct. 24. It was unclear if the military was referring to an episode when a group of Hamas divers were repelled after trying to infiltrate Israel on a beach north of Gaza.

News from © The Associated Press, 2023