Mapping major events in the Israel-Palestine war

A Palestinian man carries a wounded girl at the site of Israeli strikes, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza
A Palestinian man carries a wounded girl at the site of an Israeli attack in Khan Younis on October 15 [Yasser Qudih/Reuters]

As the conflict between Israel and Palestine enters its 28th day, these are the most recent developments on the ground.

Mapping major events over the past few days

The map below summarises recent Israeli bombardment of Gaza, violence across the occupied West Bank, and clashes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah at the Israel-Lebanon border.

Click on the arrows below to see where these events have unfolded.

November 1 - 4

  • Israel carried out deadly air raids on the Jabalia refugee camp in recent days, killing more than 200 people. It also targeted several medical facilities, including the vicinity of al-Quds and al-Shifa hospitals, and a school hosting displaced people in the Saftawi neighbourhood.
  • The Israeli army said it had “completed the encirclement of the city of Gaza” amid reports of violent clashes between Palestinian fighters and Israeli forces in Gaza City.
  • Some foreign passport holders and injured Palestinians have been allowed out of Gaza for the first time since the war began, crossing to Egypt through the Rafah checkpoint.
  • The death toll in the occupied West Bank since October 7 now stands at 145, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Israeli raids continued across the occupied territory in the towns of Nablus, Jenin, Hebron and Bethlehem.
  • Rockets fired from southern Lebanon caused widespread damage in the northern Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona on November 2, as skirmishes on the Israel-Lebanon border intensified.

INTERACTIVE-LIVE-TRACKER-GAZA NOV4-2023-1045GMT

Read more: Is­rael-Gaza war in maps and charts: Live Track­er

Understanding the besieged Gaza Strip

The Palestinian enclave - home to some 2.3 million people - has been under an Israeli air, land and sea blockade since 2007. The Gaza Strip comprises five governorates: North Gaza, Gaza City, Deir el-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah.

North Gaza extends for 10km (6 miles) and shares the only crossing into Israel through Beit Hanoon, also known as the Erez crossing. North Gaza is home to the Jabalia refugee camp, the largest in the Gaza Strip.

Gaza City is the largest and most populous city within the Strip, with more than 750,000 residents. At the heart of the Rimal neighbourhood is Shifa Hospital – the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip.

Deir el-Balah is one of Gaza’s largest agricultural producers. It has a population of 320,000 and is home to four refugee camps: Nuseirat, Al Bureij, Al Maghazi and Deir el-Balah.

Khan Younis is home to some 430,000 people. At its centre is the Khan Younis refugee camp, where about 90,000 people live.

Rafah is the southernmost district of Gaza with a population of about 275,000. Rafah is also the name of the crossing with Egypt that is located here.

INTERACTIVE - Gaza besieged summary events October 15-80-1697393473
(Al Jazeera)

How has the war unfolded?

A fireball erupts during Israeli bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip on October 14, 2023.
A fireball erupts during Israeli bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip on October 14, 2023.

October 7

On Saturday morning, at about 6:30am (03:30 GMT), Hamas fired a huge barrage of rockets into southern Israel, with sirens heard as far away as Tel Aviv and Beersheba.

The group said it launched 5,000 rockets in the initial barrage. Israel’s military said 2,500 rockets were fired.

About an hour later, fighters crossed into Israel in an unprecedented multipronged operation through land, air and sea. Most fighters entered through breaches in security barriers separating Gaza and Israel.

Near the Re'im military base, partygoers were attending the Supernova music festival, where Hamas fighters killed many attendees. Hamas social media accounts shared footage appearing to show captives being taken alive into Gaza.


Hamas’s surprise attack came after Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in recent days and after a record number of Palestinians were killed by Israel in recent months.

At 9:45am (06:45 GMT), blasts were heard in Gaza, and at 10am (07:00 GMT), Israel’s military spokesperson said the air force was carrying out attacks in Gaza.

Gun battles continued between Israeli forces and Palestinian fighters in several areas of southern Israel.

INTERACTIVE - GAZA-ISRAEL-OCT9-2023-1696836729
(Al Jazeera)

October 8

By Sunday, Hamas fighters were engaged in battles with Israeli forces in the border towns, with rocket attacks being launched from Gaza into cities such as Sderot and Ashkelon.

The Israeli army said they were evacuating settlements adjacent to the Gaza fence.

Israeli forces launched strikes that levelled buildings in Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah. Additionally, Reuters, citing three security sources, reported that projectiles launched from Lebanese territory hit an Israeli military position in the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms early in the morning.

[Al Jazeera]
[Al Jazeera]

October 9-10

Two days after Hamas’s initial infiltration into Israel, the Israeli government announced a “total blockade'' on Gaza, including a ban on water and food, as part of its retaliatory measures. Israel said it was also amassing 100,000 troops on the southern border.

Rockets were launched from Gaza into Israel for a third day, including an attack on the Israeli town of Rahat. The Qassam Brigades also fired rockets in the direction of Jerusalem.

Israeli forces intensified bombing of Gaza, striking refugee camps, mosques, residential buildings and educational institutions. Israeli air attacks also caused disruptions at the Rafah crossing, connecting the Gaza Strip to Egypt.

October 11

Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli forces were dropping white phosphorous on the al-Karama neighbourhood, a claim that was later verified by Human Rights Watch (HRW). White phosphorus is a lethal chemical capable of burning human skin and disintegrating tissues deep inside the body.

By day five, the Gaza Strip’s only power station ran out of fuel, affecting essential services, including hospitals. Air raids on Gaza also hit the Palestine Red Crescent headquarters and United Nations buildings where a dozen UN workers were killed.

INTERACTIVE - Electricity outages in Gaza strip-1697094518
[Al Jazeera]

October 12-13

By day six, strikes in Gaza were reported in Beit Lahiya, Jabalia refugee camp, Sabra, Al Zaytoun, Al Nafaq, Tal Al Hawa, Khan Younis, Mukhabarat, Shati refugee camp and Nuseirat refugee camp.

On Friday morning, the Israeli military ordered all 1.1 million Palestinians living north of Wadi Gaza to relocate south within 24 hours, raising fears that an Israeli ground operation was imminent. An order that many called out as impossible. Hamas continued to launch rockets towards southern Israeli cities such as Ashkelon.

INTERACTIVE - The Wadi Gaza move south Israel population-1697173147
(Al Jazeera)

On Friday night, amid escalating battles on Lebanon’s southern border with Israel, Reuters cameraman Issam Abdallah was killed and six other journalists, from Reuters, Al Jazeera and AFP, were injured.

In the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli forces killed a number of Palestinians. At least 55 Palestinians were killed and more than 1,100 others wounded within a week.

October 14-15

On Saturday, the Israeli army announced that it would allow the safe movement of Palestinians in Gaza from Beit Hanoon to Khan Younis via Gaza's two main roads -  al-Rashid and Salah al-Din. However, Israeli air strikes continued to target Gaza, including routes being used by Palestinian civilians to escape.

On Sunday, Israel declared its northern border with Lebanon a closed military zone after deadly clashes with Hezbollah. Israel also struck the airports in Syria’s Aleppo and Damascus in an apparent effort to prevent Iran from using Syria to enter the conflict.

Hamas’s Qassam Brigades said it fired 20 rockets from Lebanon on two Israeli settlements. Separately, Lebanon’s Hezbollah also said it had targeted barracks in Israel’s Hanita with guided missiles and said it had inflicted casualties on “enemy ranks”.


October 16

The Israeli government extended the timeframe for everyone to leave the north of Gaza. According to the United Nations, one million people have been displaced in Gaza within the first 10 days of the war, with limited access to food, water, fuel and electricity.

It comes as hundreds of foreign nationals gathered outside the Rafah border crossing in Gaza, waiting for an exit into Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Egypt said Israel has not allowed the Rafah crossing to open.

Israel continued its bombing campaign over Gaza with overnight air raids in multiple locations. Israeli troops have been gathering around Gaza in preparation for a ground invasion.

October 17

An air raid on al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City at about 7pm local time (16:00GMT) killed at least 471 people, triggering global outrage at the slaughter of people, many of whom were taking shelter from relentless Israeli bombing of the besieged enclave.


As a result, hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets of West Bank cities to protest against the air raid. Further demonstrations also took place throughout the region including in Amman, Tunis, Cairo and Istanbul among other cities.

Israeli aerial bombardments throughout the day struck several buildings in Khan Younis, Rafah and Deir el-Balah in southern Gaza. An Israeli attack killed six people in a United Nations-run school in al-Maghazi refugee camp in Deir el-Balah.

Hezbollah said it fired guided missiles towards Israeli tanks near the Israel-Lebanon border. The Israeli army also said it launched munitions towards southern Lebanon.

October 18

Israel again called on residents in Gaza City and the northern part of the besieged enclave to evacuate to the south. Israeli air raids struck multiple areas in Gaza including a bakery in the Nuseirat refugee camp. Air strikes also hit a mosque in the al-Tuffah neighbourhood in Gaza City and an area adjacent to a UNRWA-run school where hundreds had taken refuge in Khan Younis. Areas around al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City’s Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood were also struck, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said.

Fighting and attacks along the Israel-Lebanon border continued with Israeli forces saying they responded to attacks in the Shtula area.

The US president said an agreement had been reached with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to open the Rafah crossing to allow about 20 trucks carrying humanitarian aid into Gaza.

INTERACTIVE - What is the Rafah crossing map-GAZA_ISRAEL_Oct 16_2023
(Al Jazeera)

October 19

Air raids in Gaza killed and injured multiple people in a residential compound west of Rafah. Air attacks were also carried out in the Jabalia refugee camp, Rafah, Khan Younis, the Nuseirat refugee camp and al-Zahra. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said a quarter of the enclave’s residential buildings, or more than 98,000 housing units, had been destroyed in Israeli air raids.

The Church of Saint Porphyrius, a Greek Orthodox church in central Gaza City, where displaced Christians and Muslims had gathered, was hit in an Israeli air raid.

Interactive_Church_Mosque bombings_Gaza
(Al Jazeera)

Fighting continued along the Israel-Lebanon border, with reports of Israeli missiles fired in the direction of Kafr Shuba and Odaisseh.

At least nine Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, with dozens more arrested. That brings the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank since the Gaza war erupted on October 7 to at least 75.

October 20

Israel conducted air raids in Gaza overnight, killing dozens of people. Some of the locations hit included the al-Bureij refugee camp in Deir al-Balah, as well as residential units in Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah. An Israeli air attack also destroyed the historic Great Omari Mosque in the northern Gaza Strip.

Away from Gaza, at least 13 Palestinians, including seven children, were killed in Israeli raids and settler violence in the occupied West Bank.

On the Israel-Lebanon border, an Israeli soldier was killed and three others were injured by an antitank missile. The Israeli army said it struck Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon overnight, while the Lebanese army said a journalist was killed in the Israeli air strike.

The Rafah border crossing finally opened on Saturday, with the first aid trucks seen entering Gaza.

October 21-22

Over the weekend, Gaza witnessed the most violent bombardment by Israeli forces since the conflict started, killing more than 400 people, mostly women and children, in 24 hours. Israeli strikes hit different areas in southern and northern Gaza, including Rafah city, Khan Younis and Deir el-Balah.

Gaza’s healthcare system continued to suffer, with strikes hitting the vicinity of al-Shifa and al-Quds hospitals. The director of al-Shifa hospital said it was on the brink of “real disaster”, with its fuel possibly running out in the next 48 hours.

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(Al Jazeera)

Aid trucks continued to enter Gaza after the Rafah crossing reopened, with 17 more trucks arriving on Sunday. However, experts called the aid only “a drop in the ocean” and said more than 100 trucks a day would be required to meet the humanitarian needs of the besieged Gaza Strip.

Israel launched a rare air attack on the occupied West Bank, hitting a mosque inside the Jenin refugee camp and killing two people.

Tens of thousands of Israelis were evacuated from towns close to the country’s northern border with Lebanon amid increasing skirmishes between the Israeli army and Hezbollah.

October 23

Israel continued pounding Gaza with bombs overnight and into early Tuesday morning. Hamas said 140 Palestinians were killed in Israeli air attacks that hit northern Gaza’s al-Shati refugee camp and the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis.

Hamas launched two drone attacks on Israel, targeting military bases in the Negev or Naqab desert of southern Israel. It also launched rockets towards the Israeli city of Beersheba.

Hamas released additional captives — two elderly Israeli women, who were then taken to a hospital in Tel Aviv and reunited with their families. The women’s husbands continue to be held in Gaza.

October 24

More than 700 Palestinians have been killed in overnight Israeli air raids on Gaza. Some of the areas hit include Rafah, Khan Younis, al-Shati refugee camp and al-Balad in Jabaliya, al-Bureij refugee camp and the Nuseirat neighbourhood. Artillery shelling also took place in Deir el-Balah.

According to Foad Najem, general manager of al-Wafa hospital in Gaza City, the area around the hospital was also targeted. Israeli bombs hit the vicinity of the Palestine Red Crescent headquarters and al-Amal hospital in Khan Younis, the Palestinian Health Ministry says.

Israeli air raids hit Ramesh, Markaba, Houla, Shebaa and Kafr Shuba in Lebanon. Border towns like Bustan, Thera and Dayareen have been evacuated because of the continuing clashes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters. More than 19,000 people have been internally displaced in Lebanon, according to the UN migration agency.

For the first time in months, Israeli police closed Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and stopped Muslim worshippers from entering the compound, according to the Islamic Waqf Department, which is in charge of the holy site. It comes as Israeli forces launched a new wave of night raids in the occupied West Bank.

According to the Palestine Red Crescent, eight aid trucks entered Gaza via Rafah, carrying water, food and medicine.

The armed wing of Hamas says it fired rockets towards Tel Aviv where sirens sounded in response to the missile attack from Gaza. A rocket shot from Gaza reached the Israeli settlement of Alfei Menashe.

October 25-27

Israel intensified its bombardment of Gaza as internet and mobile services collapsed, with residents facing a near-total communications blackout. An extended series of large explosions lit up the sky over Gaza City after nightfall on Friday as Israeli air raids and artillery pounded northern Gaza.

Over the past 72 hours, Israeli air strikes hit dozens of areas, including residential places in Jabalia and Tal al-Hawa in the north, al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, and near Red Crescent headquarters and al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. The Israeli attack on al-Nuseirat refugee camp also killed the wife, son, daughter and grandson of Wael Dahdouh, Al Jazeera Arabic’s bureau chief in Gaza.

Israel’s army carried out ground incursion into Gaza in at least three locations — east of al-Breij, in the central area of the Gaza Strip, east of Gaza City and in the north of the Gaza Strip.

An apartment block in Tel Aviv was hit after Hamas fired a rocket from Gaza. Al-Quds Brigades said it also launched attacks towards Ashkelon, Ashdod, and Sedrot near the fence with Gaza.

The death toll of Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank since October 7 rose to 110, with at least 1,900 injured. Israeli raids near Jenin refugee camp and Qalqilya killed four Palestinians on Friday.

Fighting continued across the Israel-Lebanon border, with attacks reported near the border town of Aita al-Shaab. Israeli attacks hit the Tyre district in south Lebanon and a mattress factory there on Wednesday, while small-arms fire was exchanged.

October 28-31

Israel’s military said it was “expanding” ground operations in Gaza, with the besieged territory under the heaviest bombardment since the start of the war.

Israel ordered the "immediate" evacuation of al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City, where thousands of patients and displaced people are housed. It also bombed the vicinity of al-Quds Hospital, al-Shifa Hospital, the Indonesian Hospital, the Turkish Hospital and the European Hospital.

Israeli forces are trying to enter the Gaza Strip from four directions and to separate northern Gaza from central and southern parts.

Away from Gaza, Israeli forces have continued to raid several areas in the occupied West Bank amid rising tensions in the territory. At least 123 Palestinians have been killed and 1,980 others detained by the Israeli army in the occupied West Bank since October 7, according to Palestinian sources.

In the north, clashes continued between Israeli forces and Lebanon's Hezbollah group. Israel fighter jets struck rocket launchers in Syria and Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, claiming it was in response to earlier rocket launches into Israeli territory.

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies