Israel-Hamas war: List of key events, day 27

Here is the situation on Thursday, November 2, 2023:

Latest developments

• Gaza’s only medical centre for cancer treatment, the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, was forced to shut down on Wednesday after fuel ran out, according to its director.
• Foreign passport holders in Gaza are exiting into Egypt through the Rafah Crossing. About 500 people were allowed to leave via the crossing on Wednesday, while 596 more are expected to exit on Thursday, according to the Gaza Borders and Crossings Authority. Some injured Palestinians have also been allowed to leave for medical treatment.
• Israel carried out deadly air raids on the Jabalia refugee camp over the past two days, bringing the death toll there to about 200 and injuring nearly 800 people in just 24 hours, according to Gaza’s Government Media Office. More than 100 people remain missing. Satellite images from Maxar Technologies show how intense bombardment left a crater in the neighbourhood. Israel’s military claims the second attack killed a senior Hamas leader.
• Another phone and internet blackout swept Gaza on Wednesday, according to Palestinian telecom provider Paltel.

Human impact and fighting

• Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF) said more than 20,000 injured people are still in Gaza.
• There were predawn Israeli air raids across the Gaza Strip, including in the vicinity of al-Quds hospital, said the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Missiles and shells fired by Israeli warplanes and tanks also killed several people in neighbourhoods like Tal al-Hawa, according to Palestinian news agency WAFA. Ambulances have been struggling to reach the affected areas due to continued bombardment.
• On Wednesday night, the Israeli army claimed it killed Muhammad A’sar, identified by them as the head of Hamas’s “antitank missile units”.
• Al Jazeera Arabic reported “Violent clashes” between Palestinian fighters and Israeli forces in northwest Gaza City on Thursday morning. Palestinian armed groups have killed an Israeli soldier in a firefight, according to the Israeli army. Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, also told Al Jazeera Arabic that they fired antitank shells, targeting at least two Israeli tanks and bulldozers.
• Fighting is also continuing at the Lebanon-Israel border as Hezbollah claimed it shot down an Israeli drone for the second time this week. Israel’s army confirmed its drone was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.

Diplomacy

• For the first time since October 7, United States President Joe Biden called for a “humanitarian pause” in the Gaza Strip, according to The Associated Press news agency.
• Jordan recalled its ambassador to Israel as a protest against the war on Gaza, according to a statement from its Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• In Iran, Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei called on Muslim states to cease oil and food exports to Israel in response to their bombardment of Gaza.
• On Wednesday, Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, said Israel and Palestine should adopt a two-state solution, according to Reuters news agency. On Sunday, he had also called for a ceasefire in the war.
• Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman Al Saud met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday to discuss ways to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East.

Clashes in the occupied West Bank

• The death toll in the occupied West Bank since October 7 now stands at 130, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
• On Wednesday, a senior Fatah leader was arrested in an Israeli raid on Jenin, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Imran Khan.
• Armoured Israeli vehicles were spotted driving through Nablus, while Israeli forces were seen carrying out an operation outside a residential neighbourhood, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.