This timeline of the Gaza war covers events from 7 October until 27 October 2023.
October 2023
7 October
At 6:30 a.m. IST, air raid sirens were activated in southern and central Israel in response to Hamas missiles. Concurrently, Muhammad Deif, the leader of the Hamas' military wing, announced in a ten-minute recorded message published online the start of "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood", and that "the enemy will understand that the time of their rampaging without accountability has ended", urging Palestinians to attack Israeli settlements with whatever weapons they had. Approximately 1,200 Israeli civilians and soldiers were killed in the Hamas-led attack, while around 250 others were kidnapped. 06:56 First militants arrive to Be’eri and initiate the Be'eri massacre. 07:00: The Supernova Music Festival near the Re'im kibbutz was attacked by Hamas militants, some of whom arrived via motorized paragliders. Of the approximately 3,000 to 5,000 people at the festival, 364 were killed and 40 abducted. 07:40: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that Hamas militants had entered southern Israel and asked residents of Sderot and other cities to remain indoors. 08:15: Sirens were activated in Jerusalem following a rocket barrage that landed in the forested hills on the city's western edge.Timeline of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war Retrieved 4 February 2024 08:23: Israel declared a state of alert for war, activating its reservists, in response to continued rocket attacks. 08:34: Israel announced that it had begun counteroffensive operations against Hamas. 10:47: The Israeli Air Force (IAF) began attacks in Gaza. 11:35: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made his first statement about the conflict via Twitter, declaring that Israel is at war. 12:21: the IDF began operations to relieve cities in southern Israel as the number of rockets launched from Gaza increased to over 1,200. 12:29: The United States made its first statement, through the National Security Council, which condemned the terrorist attack and reaffirmed US support for Israel. 16:08: President Joe Biden spoke with Netanyahu and expressed his condolences and support, later declaring during a speech that US support for Israel was "...solid and unwavering". 18:00: The Israeli security cabinet said on 8 October that a state of war had officially begun at this time. It was later discovered that the 7 October rocket attacks included a strike on a putative nuclear missile site. The rocket hit the grounds of Sdot Micha military base, on the outskirts of East Jerusalem. Bruno Mars' concert in Tel Aviv scheduled that evening was cancelled due to the attack on Israel.
8 October
Israel formally declared a state of war under Article 40A for the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. 300,000 reservists are called up, the most in the nation's history. Its declared aim is to eliminate Hamas's military capabilities and end its rule over the Gaza Strip. Evacuations of residents in Israel living near the Gaza Strip were ordered, and Netanyahu appointed former brigadier general Gal Hirsch as the government's point man on missing and kidnapped citizens. A total lockdown was imposed on the West Bank by the IDF. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the deployment of the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean. The US Air Force augmented its F-35, F-15, F-16, and A-10 squadrons in the region. Hamas condemned the US Navy deployment as "aggression against the Palestinian people". The Israeli Air Force conducted strikes on sites in Gaza City, including destroying Palestine Tower which housed around 100 apartments, a cinema, and Hamas radio stations. Rockets from Gaza were fired at the Israeli city of Ashkelon, and intercepted with the Iron Dome system.
9 October
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a "total" blockade of the Gaza Strip that would cut electricity and block the entry of food and fuel, adding that "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly." The IAF flew C-130 and C-130J heavy transport planes to various locations in Europe to collect hundreds of off-duty IDF personnel to be deployed in the conflict. Alim Abdallah, deputy commander of the 300th Brigade of the IDF's 91st Division, was killed by a Hezbollah attack at the Lebanese border. OCHA confirmed that in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, "between 7 and 9 October, as of 16:00, 15 Palestinians, including four children, were killed by Israeli forces in various areas across the West Bank."
10 October The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) announced that four of its employees had died in airstrikes in Gaza. The IAF struck more than 70 targets in and around Daraja and Tuffah districts of Gaza City. Advanced weaponry from the US arrived in Israel, its first such shipment of the war. President Biden noted in a briefing that "Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people's right to dignity and self-determination. Its stated purpose is the annihilation of the State of Israel and the murder of Jewish people." and characterized its assault as "an act of sheer evil". Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi announced that any intervention in Gaza by the US would result in their intervention. Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) revoked all work permits issued to Gaza residents, stripping Gazan workers of their legal status under Israeli law and triggering a wave of administrative detentions. OCHA confirmed that "Between 7 and 10 October, as of 16:00, 19 Palestinians, including three children, were killed by Israeli forces in various areas across the West Bank." Al Jazeera reported that an Israeli airstrike hit a house in Deir el-Balah killing 18 people and injured 23 others including five children and three women.
11 October Israeli warplanes attacked and destroyed several buildings in and around the Islamic University of Gaza. The sole power plant in Gaza ceased operations after running out of fuel because of Israel's blockade. Pope Francis called for the release of all hostages held by Hamas and expressed concern over Israel's "total siege" of Gaza."Pope Francis calls for 'the immediate release' of all hostages taken by Hamas, expresses concern for Gaza civilians". Retrieved 4 February 2024 Hezbollah took responsibility for attacks made against IDF forces with "precision missiles".hezbollah Retrieved 26 February 2024 The Israel Border Police fatally shot two Palestinians in East Jerusalem.Israeli forces kill two Palestinians in Jerusalem and West Bank Retrieved 4 February 2024 The United States held talks with Egypt regarding a humanitarian corridor via its Gaza border crossing near the city of Rafah. The middle-east eye said that Israeli forces struck the Gaza–Egypt Rafah Border Crossing. Israeli forces killed at least 27 Palestinians during clashes in the West Bank since October 7. It is reported that the entire West Bank has been placed under an Israeli lockdown. The Rafah Museum was destroyed by an air strike.
12 October
US military equipment arrived at Nevatim Airbase, and the USS Gerald Ford strike group arrived in the eastern Mediterranean.US navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford in Eastern Mediterranean sea amid Israel-Hamas conflict Retrieved 26 February 2024 The IAF struck more than 200 targets in Gaza.US navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford in Eastern Mediterranean sea amid Israel-Hamas conflict Retrieved 26 February 2024 The IDF carried out artillery strikes in Syria after a number of mortars were launched toward northern Israel. Israel announced that Gaza would not receive water, fuel, or electricity until the hostages were freed. Israel confirmed strikes on the International Airports of Damascus and Aleppo in Syria.
13 October An internal leaked US State Department e-mail advised senior diplomats to avoid three phrases in their public statements: "de-escalation/ceasefire", "end to violence/bloodshed", and "restoring calm". Accordingly, the word "ceasefire" was scarcely mentioned on subsequent communications. Gazans began fleeing to the south of the enclave (de facto beyond Wadi Gaza) after an IDF warning the day before of combat operations of 24 hours notice. The UN, warning of a humanitarian catastrophe, urged Israel to rescind its evacuation order, as did Amnesty International. An evacuation route on Salah al-Din street was bombed; the Gaza health ministry claimed 70 dead. Hamas told Gazans in the northern region (some 1.1 million people) to remain in place. The Vatican offered mediation. The IDF launched localized raids on Hamas cells. Turkish aid arrived in Egypt bound for Gaza. Tensions are reportedly high in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. Israel refused entry to Palestinians younger than 60 who came for Friday noon prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque. Israeli forces have killed at least 35 Palestinians in the West Bank since October 7, authorities said. 16 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank, for a total of 51 since October 7, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
14 October The IDF announced two routes with safe passage between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. IDT (07:00–13:00 UTC) for mass evacuation."Israel Announces Another 'Safe Passage' for Gazans to Move South"; . Retrieved 4 February 2024 Israel and Egypt announced that the Rafah crossing would be opened to foreign nationals from noon to 5:00 p.m. The US authorized the departure of non-emergency personnel from its embassy in Jerusalem. Red Crescent ambulances in Gaza were struck by the IAF. The IAF bombed a building in southern Khan Yunis. The commander of Hamas's aerial unit, who was intimately involved in planning the 7 October attack, was killed by an Israeli airstrike. UNRWA announced on Twitter that its shelters were no longer safe, deeming it an unprecedented situation. It also said water was running out. Israel said that the war could take months. A record number of 360,000 reservists had reported for duty. During a meeting with UN diplomat Tor Wennesland, Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian asserted that Iran will intervene in the war if Israel continues its military operations or launches a ground invasion against Gaza. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said "the noose around the civilian population in Gaza is tightening". According to a statement by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, a rocket damaged the upper two floors of the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital cancer treatment center, which contained the ultrasound and mammography wards, and injured four staff members.
15 October Israel Border Police arrested more than 50 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. Minor clashes between Hezbollah and the IDF continued in and around the Shebaa Farms and elsewhere at the Lebanon–Israel border. Israel informed US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that water pipes had been turned back on in southern Gaza. The Egyptian Red Crescent, WHO, and other NGOs and volunteer groups began stockpiling humanitarian supplies at Rafah Crossing. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini noted that Gaza's supply of clean drinking water was running out, stating at a press conference that Gaza "was running out of life". Four Gazan hospitals were rendered inoperable while the IDF demanded that 21 hospitals in northern Gaza evacuate according to the WHO. The Committee to Protect Journalists said at least twelve journalists had been killed and eight wounded to date, while two others were missing. They variously free-lanced or worked for Agence France-Press, Ain Media, Al-Aqsa Radio, Al-Ghad, Al-Jazeera, Al-Khamsa News, Fourth Authority News Agency, Khabar Agency, Israel Hayom, Sky News Arabia, Reuters, Sowt Al-Asra Radio (Radio Voice of the Prisoners, and Smart Media.