By Associated Press
Palestinian fighters in Gaza fired a wave of rockets into Israel as the nation mourned the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 people and set off a war that has engulfed Gaza and parts of Lebanon and threatened to ignite a wider regional conflict.
Israel, which has focused increasingly on Hezbollah militants in Lebanon in recent weeks, warned people in over a dozen towns and villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate.
The Hamas-led attack last year saw fighters stream into Israel, attacking communities and security outposts and battering the reputation of Israel’s vaunted military and intelligence services. Today, many of those communities are struggling to rebuild. Around 100 of some 250 hostages that terrorists took that day have not been released. About a third of those remaining are thought to be dead.
Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.
Much of Gaza, meanwhile, is in ruins in the wake of Israel’s assault, with more than 41,000 Palestinians killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between fighters and civilians. It says more than half of those killed were women and children. Nearly the entire population of 2.3 million has has been displaced.
Israel, which has focused increasingly on Hezbollah militants in Lebanon in recent weeks, warned people in over a dozen towns and villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate.
Hezbollah began launching rockets into Israel just after the Oct. 7 attack, in support of Hamas.
Here’s what to know:
What is the status of the fighting in the Gaza Strip?
The Israeli military ordered people to evacuate areas near the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip after a Hamas rocket attack into Israel. Hamas claimed the attack, which lightly wounded two women and caused minor damage. The military said the rockets were fired from the area of Khan Younis.
The military had also ordered an evacuation of the areas east of Khan Younis earlier in the war when it sent ground troops into the territory’s second-largest city.
On Sunday, the military reiterated warnings for the entire population of northern Gaza to flee south.
Hamas also said it attacked Israeli forces in other parts of Gaza. The Israeli military said it launched a wave of artillery and airstrikes overnight and into Monday to thwart what it said was an imminent attack. It said it targeted Hamas launch posts and underground combatant infrastructure.
What’s the latest on Israel’s operations in Lebanon?
Israel has widened warnings for people to evacuate parts of south Lebanon in recent days, as its forces continue their ground incursion backed by intense airstrikes.
The warnings now include more than a dozen towns and villages, a provincial capital and the the coastal town where the U.N. peacekeeping mission is headquartered.
Israel’s Arabic military spokesperson Avichay Adraee in a post on X told residents to immediately flee north. “You are not allowed to head southward,” the statement read. “Any movement to the south puts your lives at risk.”
Lebanon’s government estimates that some 1.2 million people have been displaced in the fighting, and it’s struggling to support them.
Israel says its aim is to weaken Hezbollah to allow displaced Israeli residents to move home. Hezbollah says it will stop firing rockets at Israel when there is a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, in solidarity with its ally Hamas.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said an Israeli strike in the country’s south killed at least 10 firefighters on Monday. It said more people were buried under the rubble and the death toll may rise.
