Thousands Break Into Gaza Warehouses In Desperation As Death Toll Climbs To 8,000 — Top Points

Thousands of people broke into aid warehouses in Gaza on Sunday, a UN agency said, in a sign of growing desperation three weeks into Israel's war with Hamas. Here's all that happened today.

Israeli attacks on Gaza continue on the 23rd day

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Thousands of people broke into aid warehouses in Gaza on Sunday, a UN agency said, in a sign of growing desperation three weeks into Israel's war with Gaza's militant Hamas rulers, according to news agency AFP. Tanks and infantry pushed into Gaza over the weekend, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a "second stage" in the war sparked by Hamas's brutal incursion into Israel on Oct. 7. Israel also bombarded the territory from the air, the ground, and the sea. Take a look at all the events that happened today: 

Top Points: 

• According to Gaza's Health Ministry, the death toll among Palestinians has surpassed 8,000, with the majority of those killed being women and minors. It's a toll unseen in decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, AP reported. Over 1,400 people have died on the Israeli side, the majority of whom were civilians killed during the initial Hamas onslaught.
• Thousands of people broke into aid warehouses in Gaza on Wednesday, according to a UN agency, in a sign of growing desperation three weeks into Israel's war with Gaza's militant Hamas rulers, as per a report by AP. 
• Over the weekend, Israeli tanks and infantry pushed into Gaza as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a "second stage" in the war, which was sparked by Hamas's brutal October 7 incursion into Israel. Israel also bombarded the territory from the air, the ground, and the sea.
• Israel has "crossed the red lines" in Gaza, which "may force everyone to take action," said Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi on Sunday. "The crimes of the Zionist regime have crossed red lines, forcing everyone to act." "Washington asks us not to do anything, but they continue to provide widespread support to Israel," Raisi said in a social media post.  "The US sent messages to the Axis of Resistance but received a clear response on the battlefield," he said.  
• The Israel Defence Forces said in a statement on Sunday that ground operations in the northern Gaza Strip are continuing.  Syrian "aircraft, guided by IDF troops, struck Hamas military structures, some of which contained Hamas terrorists," according to the Israeli military. "In addition, anti-tank missile launching posts, observation posts and military infrastructure were struck. Terrorists who shot at the soldiers were killed, as well as terrorists who were identified on the coastline in the Gaza Strip near the area of Zikim," according to the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), as reported by CNN. 
• According to the Associated Press, communications were restored to much of Gaza early Sunday after what residents described as the most intense bombardment of the war knocked out most contact with the territory late Friday. The besieged enclave's 2.3 million inhabitants were largely cut off from the rest of the world.
• In other news, the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor visited the Rafah border crossing, Gaza's only link to Egypt. According to a senior Egyptian official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media, Karim Khan was briefed on the damage caused by Israeli airstrikes on the Palestinian side during his visit on Saturday, according to the AP report. Khan's office has launched an investigation into possible Israeli war crimes in Gaza during the 2014 conflict.
• The Israeli military said on Sunday that it had struck over 450 militant targets in the previous 24 hours, including Hamas command centres and anti-tank missile launch sites. According to the report, ground forces killed a number of Hamas militants as they exited a tunnel near the Erez crossing, which was the only pedestrian passageway into Israel before it was destroyed in the fighting, as reported by AP.
• Military officials released video of tanks and troops operating in open areas, as well as bulldozers clearing mountains of debris. According to Hamas' military wing, its militants clashed with Israeli troops who entered the northwest Gaza Strip armed with small arms and anti-tank missiles.  
• In response to harsh criticism from allies and the opposition, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologised for an earlier statement in which he blamed security services for the October 7 Hamas attack. Read more here. 

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