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November 6, 2023 Israel-Hamas war

By Kathleen Magramo, Sana Noor Haq, Ed Upright, Elise Hammond, Eric Levenson, Maureen Chowdhury and Steve Almasy, CNN

Updated 12:04 a.m. ET, November 7, 2023
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7:58 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

Internet and phone connection gradually recovering in Gaza after blackout, companies say

From CNN’s Lucas Lilieholm

Communication services are slowly returning in some parts of Gaza after they were cut out across the Palestinian enclave, according to local providers.

“We would like to announce the gradual return of communication services (fixed, cellular, and Internet) to work in various areas of the Gaza Strip, after they were disconnected from the Israeli side,” Palestinian telecommunication company PalTel said on Monday.

Other telecoms operators, including JawwaL and Ooredoo Palestine, posted similar updates on Facebook. 

Netblocks, an Internet monitoring firm, confirmed in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Monday that internet access was coming back online.

“Metrics show that internet connectivity is being restored in the #Gaza Strip after Sunday's near-total telecoms blackout, the second-longest observed since the onset of the present conflict with Israel; overall service remains significantly below pre-war levels,” the organization said. 

Communications in Gaza had been disrupted on Sunday for a third time since October 7, with humanitarian organizations saying they were unable to reach employees inside the territory.

When asked by CNN to respond to previous communications outages, the Israeli military said they had no comment to offer.

In late October, Amnesty International said human rights organizations "have found it increasingly challenging to document violations due to the intensity of Israel’s attacks and restrictions on communications."

5:03 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

Israeli military says it hit 450 Hamas targets and captured militant compound in past 24 hours

From CNN’s Amir Tal 

People search through buildings destroyed during Israeli air strikes in Khan Younis, Gaza, on Monday, November 6.
People search through buildings destroyed during Israeli air strikes in Khan Younis, Gaza, on Monday, November 6. Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Monday it has struck hundreds of Hamas targets and taken control of a military compound in Gaza over the last 24 hours.

“Over the last day, IDF fighter jets struck over 450 Hamas targets, including tunnels, terrorists, military compounds, observation posts, anti-tank missile launch posts and more,” the IDF said in a statement on Monday.

The IDF captured additional territory inside Gaza, the statement added.

“Overnight, IDF ground troops took control of a Hamas military compound in the Gaza Strip. The compound contains observation posts, training areas for Hamas operatives and underground terror tunnels.”

Israeli forces are conducting a significant strike in the enclave targeting Hamas infrastructure above and underground, as well as militants and senior commanders, army spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Sunday.

Some context: The IDF launched a relentless bombardment on Gaza, following the Hamas' attack that killed 1,400 in Israel on October 7.

Israeli strikes have hit civilian areas including residential neighborhoods, hospitals, refugee camps and schools, killing more than 9,700 people, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah, using data drawn from medical sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave. At least 4,800 of the fatalities are children, the ministry added.

3:47 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

French death toll rises to 40 in Hamas attacks, prime minister says

From CNN’s Joseph Ataman in Paris

The number of French citizens killed in Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israel has risen to 40, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne told radio station France Inter on Monday.

Eight French citizens remain missing, with some of them believed to have been captured by Hamas, Borne said. She was unable to provide an exact figure for the number of French hostages.

Some 240 hostages are being held by Hamas in Gaza, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

3:46 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

UK temporarily withdraws some embassy staff from Lebanon

From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London

The United Kingdom's Foreign Office said Monday it is temporarily withdrawing some British embassy staff from Lebanon due to the security situation in the region.

"The embassy continues with essential work including services to British nationals," a statement on the Foreign Office website said.

Last month, the ministerial department advised British nationals against all travel to Lebanon due to risks associated with the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Tensions flared again at the northern Israel border Sunday, with Israel and Lebanon both announcing civilian casualties from the ongoing strikes between the Israel Defense Forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants. 

3:39 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

Blinken meets with Turkish foreign minister on final stop of Middle East trip

From CNN’s Jennifer Hansler in Ankara, Turkey

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Turkey, on Monday, November 6.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Turkey, on Monday, November 6. Jonathan Ernst/Pool/Reuters

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara on Monday on the final stop of his whirlwind diplomatic trip across the Middle East amid the escalating war in Gaza.

The top US diplomat will discuss the humanitarian situation in the enclave with Firdan and the need to prevent the conflict from widening, according to a State Department note.

Blinken "will underscore the importance of protecting civilian lives in Israel and the Gaza Strip," while also stating the "commitment to facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza," it said.

He is not expected to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has strongly condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza, calling them “crimes against humanity.”

Erdogan said Saturday he was cutting off communications with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Turkey hosts some of Hamas’ leadership and Blinken has repeatedly said that things cannot go back to the “status quo” with the militant group following its October 7 attack on Israel.

3:04 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

"Enough is enough": UN agencies and aid groups call for ceasefire in rare joint statement

From CNN's Xiaofei Xu 

The heads of 18 United Nations agencies and major aid organizations issued a rare joint statement Sunday calling for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

“It’s been 30 days. Enough is enough. This must stop now,” said the statement, signed by the heads of the World Health Organization, UNICEF, CARE International, Save the Children, the World Food Programme and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) among others.

The signatories called the October 7 attack by Hamas in Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people and displaced tens of thousands, “horrific” and also said the killing of civilians in Gaza was an “outrage.”

More than 9,700 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since October 7, according to Palestinian health authorities in Ramallah, using data drawn from medical sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave.

“An entire population is besieged and under attack, denied access to the essentials for survival, bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals and places of worship. This is unacceptable,” the statement said.

The authors also highlighted the toll the conflict has taken on aid workers.

“Scores of aid workers have been killed since October 7 including 88 UNRWA colleagues – the highest number of United Nations fatalities ever recorded in a single conflict,” the statement said.

2:36 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

Thailand has seen proof Thai hostages held by Hamas are alive, prime minister says

From CNN's Kocha Olarn in Bangkok, Thailand

Thailand's government has seen photographic evidence that Thai hostages held by Hamas in Gaza are alive, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin told reporters on Monday.

Without stating how many photos, or how many of the 24 Thai nationals the government has confirmed were taken hostage could be seen in them, Srettha said: "I understand, at the very least, they are alive."

“Our next point of consideration is the period when there is a temporary ceasefire, let’s say a day or two, that could be a window to evacuate (hostages),” he said. 

Thailand has been one of Israel’s biggest sources of migrant labor for decades, and many of the Thai hostages were captured while working in the south of the country near the Gaza border when Hamas militants attacked on October 7.

Last week, Thailand's Foreign Ministry said it had secured "full support" from Iran, Qatar and Egypt to help negotiate the release of Thai hostages.

Malaysia has also provided significant assistance with the negotiations, Srettha said Monday.

1:54 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

In call for ceasefire, Jordan's Queen Rania says pro-Palestinian stance is not antisemitic

From CNN's Becky Anderson, Elizabeth Wells, Zeena Saifi and Rhea Mogul

Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan is pictured during an interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson on Sunday.
Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan is pictured during an interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson on Sunday. CNN

Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan has called for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against Hamas, saying that supporting the protection of Palestinian lives does not equal being antisemitic or pro-terrorism.

“Let me be very, very clear. Being pro-Palestinian is not being antisemitic, being pro-Palestinian does not mean you’re pro-Hamas or pro-terrorism,” Rania told CNN’s Becky Anderson on Sunday.
“What we’ve seen in recent years is the charge of antisemitism being weaponized in order to silence any criticism of Israel,” she said.
“I want to absolutely and wholeheartedly condemn antisemitism and Islamophobia…but I also want to remind everyone that Israel does not represent all the Jewish people around the world. Israel is a state and is alone is responsible for its own crimes.”

Israel declared a “complete siege” on Gaza following the October 7 terror attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas, which controls the coastal enclave.

Hamas killed more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and took about 240 hostages, according to the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) count.

The Israeli siege and accompanying bombing campaign has seen Gaza pounded with relentless airstrikes, and a blockade of vital supplies to 2.2 million people living in the isolated strip. As of Sunday, more than 9,700 people had been killed in Israeli strikes, according to the Palestinian Minister of Health in Ramallah, using figures that are drawn from sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave.

Read more from Queen Rania's CNN interview.

1:11 a.m. ET, November 6, 2023

Communications down in Gaza as top US diplomat visits Turkey. Here's what to know

From CNN staff

Humanitarian agencies have lost contact with aid workers in Gaza, as the Palestinian enclave faces its third communications blackout of the Israel-Hamas war, according to operators.

Telecoms firm Paltel announced a "complete interruption" of its services in a statement posted on Facebook. It said the interruption was due to "the main routes that were previously reconnected being cut off again from the Israeli side."

The main UN agency supporting Palestinians in Gaza said it lost contact with "the vast majority" of its teams in the strip. The Palestine Red Crescent Society also said it couldn't reach aid workers in the territory.

Here are some of the latest major developments:

  • Israel's offensive: The Israeli military said it was carrying out a significant strike on Gaza Sunday evening, after its forces reached the enclave's coast earlier in the day. An IDF spokesperson provided few further details about the strike, beyond saying it was very extensive and targeted Hamas infrastructure both above and underground. A CNN team in Sderot, southern Israel, near the Gaza border, saw a number of explosions and flares in the direction of the enclave on Sunday evening. Earlier, the IDF said its soldiers had reached the coast as part of an effort to encircle Hamas forces and strike targets in Gaza.
  • Rising Gaza death toll: More than 9,700 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since October 7, according to Dr. Mai Al-Kaila, the Palestinian minister of health in Ramallah, using data drawn from medical sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave. The figure included 4,800 children, Al-Kaila said. The updated figures came after a US special envoy, David Satterfield, said Saturday that between 800,000 and a million people have fled from the north to southern parts of the Gaza Strip, deepening the humanitarian crisis. Critical supplies remain in short supply during Israel's siege on the territory.

  • Blinken trip: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to meet with Turkish officials Monday to discuss the Israel-Hamas war — his last stop on a whirlwind diplomatic trip to the Middle East. Blinken met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani for more than an hour in an unannounced visit to Baghdad Sunday, emerging to say the meeting was "productive." It came after he visited Israel on Friday and met with key Arab leaders on Saturday in Jordan. He also met with the Palestinian Authority president Sunday in Ramallah, where the two discussed escalating settler violence in the West Bank.
  • US sub: In a rare announcement, the US military said a guided missile submarine has arrived in the Middle East, a message of deterrence clearly directed at regional adversaries as the Biden administration tries to avoid a broader conflict amid the Israel-Hamas war. US Central Command said on social media Sunday that an Ohio-class submarine was entering its area of responsibility. A picture posted with the announcement appeared to show the sub in the Suez Canal northeast of Cairo.
  • Jordan aid: Jordan air-dropped a medical aid package to a Jordanian field hospital in Gaza, King Abdullah II said on social media. "We will always be there for our Palestinian brethren," said the king, who has previously criticized Israel's assault on Gaza and repeatedly called for a ceasefire.
  • Lebanon border: Tensions flared again at the northern Israel border Sunday, with Israel and Lebanon both announcing civilian casualties from the ongoing strikes between the Israel Defense Forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah. On Friday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the militants would be "prepared for all scenarios,” and that any escalation by the Israeli army at the border would be a "historic folly" that would prompt a major response. But he also said Hezbollah’s “primary goal” was to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. On Sunday, Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib told CNN the government is working with Hezbollah and Palestinian groups in Lebanon to prevent a wider war. 
  • IDF accuses Hamas: The Israeli military released what it said was evidence of Hamas using civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and children’s playgrounds, as shields for its attacks on Israel. Images and video showed what a military spokesperson described as "launch pits" that Hamas used to fire rockets from the civilian areas. Officials with the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority and the Hamas-controlled government media office in Gaza rejected the claims.