Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says country has entered 'second stage' of war with Hamas

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Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Turkey is becoming "The Squad" of NATO after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared Israel a war criminal in its fight against Hamas terrorists.

"Seems that Turkey, particularly senior leadership, is setting itself up to be 'The Squad' of NATO," Graham wrote. "Very disappointing and destabilizing."

Graham's post linked to a Fox News Digital report about the recent comments from Erdogan condemning Israel as a war criminal for its retaliation against Hamas.

"Israel has been openly committing war crimes for 22 days, but the Western leaders cannot even call on Israel for a ceasefire, let alone react to it," Erdogan told a crowd in Istanbul.

"We will tell the whole world that Israel is a war criminal. We are making preparations for this. We will declare Israel a war criminal," the Turkish president added.

Following Erdogan's comments, Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen said Israel is recalling its diplomats from Turkey so that it can conduct a reevaluation of Israel-Turkey relations.

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The United Nations' World Food Programme said Saturday the humanitarian organization has lost contact with their aid teams in Gaza amid the ongoing war between Israeli forces and Hamas terrorists.

"The silence is deafening," WFP chief Cindy McCain wrote on X. "As conflict rages on, I am extremely worried for the safety of all humanitarian workers and civilians. We are at a tipping point. Humanity must prevail."

This comes during Israel's continued expansion of its ground attack against Gaza after cutting communications to the region. The residents of Gaza are now left without cellphone or radio service as Israeli forces attack Hamas from the ground, sea and air.

"With communications cut in #Gaza, our lifesaving food assistance is at a standstill. We cannot reach staff and partners, or the people who rely on us," McCain said in another post on X. "We urgently need the ability to operate and sustained access for humanitarian assistance. Every minute counts."

The Israeli Defense Forces said Sunday morning that it has attacked more than 450 military targets belonging to Hamas terrorists over the course of the past day.

"In the last day, IDF warplanes attacked over 450 military targets of the terrorist organization Hamas throughout the Gaza Strip," the IDF wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Among the targets that were attacked were military headquarters, observation posts, and anti-tank firing positions of the terrorist organization," the post added.

More than 8,700 people have been killed in Gaza and Israel since Hamas launched its largest attack against Israel in decades on October 7, leading to retaliatory action from Israeli forces. Thousands more have been wounded, and many others have been taken hostage by Hamas and raped, tortured and murdered.

Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said Hamas terrorists hide inside or under buildings occupied by civilians to use the civilians as human shields.

Hagari said Hamas embeds themselves among civilians in schools, mosques and hospitals.

"Hamas terrorists operate inside and under civilian buildings, precisely because they know the IDF distinguishes between terrorists and civilians," Hagari said in a video message posted to social media.

Hagari explained that this is why the IDF has been urging civilians in Gaza to evacuate Hamas strongholds. He emphasized that civilians should leave to a safer area where they can receive food, water and medicine.

However, connectivity to Gaza has been cut as Israel expands its ground attack in the region.

More than 8,700 people have been killed in Gaza and Israel since Hamas launched its largest attack against Israel in decades on October 7, leading to retaliatory action from Israeli forces. Thousands more have been wounded, and many others have been taken hostage by Hamas and raped, tortured and murdered.

The newly appointed chair of New York City's Commission on Racial Equity (CORE) has an alarming history of sharing antisemitic on social media, according to a new report.

Linda Tigani, who entered the role on Thursday, has consistently shared posts on X that include the phrase "from the river to the sea," a widespread call used by Hamas militants and anti-Israel activists to express their disdain for the Jewish state, the New York Post first reported Saturday.

"FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA! PALESTINE WILL BE FREE!!" Tigani wrote in a July 2020 post, which included a clip from the "Day of Rage" rally in Brooklyn.

Demonstrators who took part in the "Day of Rage" reportedly chanted "'Death to Israel' and ‘Death to America’ in Arabic in response to Israel announcing plans to annex parts of the West Bank."

In November 2022, Tigani wrote similar words in a post that included a video of a Palestinian artist and cook.

"Beautiful. From the River to the Sea #PalestineWillBeFree," she said at the time.

Fox News' Kyle Morris contributed to this report.

Social media users tore into U.K.’s "Sex Workers’ Union" this week after the pro-prostitution organization put out an official declaration of its support for the Palestinians. 

X users mocked the statement, with some mentioning the irony that Palestinians would most likely not be supportive of sex workers’ liberated views on human sexuality. 

One quipped it’s like "Chickens" being "in solidarity with foxes."

The official X account for the Sex Workers’ Union shared a statement to the platform Thursday titled, "Our statement of solidarity with Palestine." The post received nearly five million views in less than two days.

The document, which contained the organization’s logo and an image of the Palestinian flag, claimed that "genocidal violence" is being "enacted upon the Palestinian people by the settler colony of Israel."

It stated, "We cannot stand back and watch as the state of Israel continues to enforce an illegal occupation, blockade and apartheid, forcing the people of Gaza to live within the largest open air prison in lands they have been continually dispossessed from." 

"The escalating violence, specifically the indiscriminate destruction of Gaza, of homes, hospitals, schools, churches, mosques, and the Rafah crossing, as well as the collective punishment of the civilian population of Palestine must be met with global condemnation and most importantly, direct action."

The statement did express sympathy for some Israelis, stating, "We mourn for the loss of civilian lives, of Palestinians, Israelis and foreign nationals, who have been made victims of the ongoing occupation and conflict."

Towards the end of the document, the union added, "As sex workers, we stand against the violence of borders, imperial and colonial violence, and all state sanctioned violence against oppressed and marginalized peoples."

It concluded with the pro-Palestinian slogan that Israelis and their allies understand as a call to eradicate the Jewish state of Israel, declaring, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."

The post received a "Community Note" fact-check from X shortly after going up, which read, "Gaza has not been occupied since 2005." The note also stated, "Added context: The majority of Jews perceive ‘From the River to the Sea’ as a call for genocide and dissolution of Israel due to the statements links to terrorist groups. Claiming support of Jews and saying this is counterfactual."

The Sex Workers’ Union website describes the organization as one that works "towards ending the stigma and discrimination that sex workers face and promoting the decriminalisation of sex work. 

Fox News' Gabriel Hayes contributed to this report.

Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday in a statement that it has "deep concern" about Israel's recent ground incursion of the Gaza Strip.

The foreign affairs ministry also said the development could harm the safety of hostages.

"This is dangerous and would have significant security and humanitarian consequences in the Gaza Strip, especially on the safety of civilians and hostages, and warns of its disastrous repercussions on the security and stability of the region and on mediation and calm efforts," the statement reads.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses that this incursion is a flagrant violation of the resolution adopted by the General Assembly," it added.

Qatar's statement comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that the "second stage" of its war with Hamas is beginning.

"This is the second stage of the war whose goals are clear - to destroy Hamas' governing and military capabilities and to bring the hostages home," Netanyahu said. "We are only at the start."

"We made the decision to expand ground operations unanimously – both in the War Cabinet and in the political-security cabinet. We did so in a prudent and informed manner, out of a commitment to ensuring the fate of the state and ensuring the safety of our soldiers. The commanders and fighters who are now fighting in enemy territory know that the people, and the leadership of the people, stand behind them," Netanyahu said.

An aide to Los Angeles City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez resigned from his position after making antisemitic jokes about comedian and actress Amy Schumer. 

Soto-Martinez’s senior adviser Josh Androsky made derogatory puns involving Schumer’s physical appearance and the Holocaust on Friday morning, prompting critics like L.A. Mayor Karen Bass to denounce him. 

By that same evening, the councilmember had accepted his staffer’s resignation.

As the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday, Androsky interacted with a thread on X, formerly known as Twitter, targeting Schumer that was started by the account for the podcast "TrueAnon."

TrueAnon mocked the "Trainwreck" actress for her social media posts criticizing pro-Palestinian protests against Israel. In one post, the podcast's account stated that Schumer is "particularly sensitive to Jewish deaths due to her experience in the holocaust."

In an Instagram post, Schumer spoke about a relative who survived the Holocaust, and some of the hardships she faced while growing up Jewish. 

She captioned one of the posts she published in the wake of Hamas’ attack against Israel: "… I didn’t pick a side. Were[Sic] just begging for our friends to not let them try and exterminate us again."

Adding a pun incorporating the name of a Nazi concentration camp and Schumer’s figure, TrueAnon posted, "The nazis named a concentration camp after her. It was called Da Cow."

Androsky replied to the thread, saying, "it’s f----- up that you would say this about her when you know it was actually Cowschwitz."

At another point, he repeated a similar version of the pun before deleting the posts and his account altogether later that day. 

Androsky’s former boss denounced his aide shortly after seeing the posts. 

"With antisemitism on the rise in recent years and especially in recent weeks, cracking jokes about the holocaust isn’t just disgusting, it’s dangerous," he wrote.

Soto-Martinez added: "These antisemitic and misogynistic posts sickened me, and I have accepted his resignation effective immediately."

Bass praised the resignation in a Friday statement.

"The anti-Semitic and misogynistic comments made today were reprehensible, disgusting and dangerous and in no way represent the city family," she said. "Especially now, City Hall must be a beacon of hope, not hate. I'm glad the staffer responsible has resigned."

Soto-Martinez did not immediately reply to FOX News Digital’s request for comment. 

Fox News Gabriel Hayes contributed to this report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday announced that his forces have entered the "second stage" of its war with the terrorist group Hamas, calling the fight a "second War of Independence." 

"The war inside the Gaza Strip will be long and difficult, and we are prepared for it," Netanyahu said during a press conference in the evening, local time. "This is our second War of Independence."

"The war inside the Gaza Strip will be long and difficult, and we are prepared for it," he added, saying that the war is now "my life's mission."

Netanyahu spoke at the end of a difficult week for Israel, with more discussion and frustration on both sides of the conflict as some world leaders called for a humanitarian pause or a ceasefire. The United Nations voted on several motions and passed one calling for a ceasefire, which Israel outright rejected and labeled "despicable." 

Tension remained high as Israel continued to make incursions into Gaza ahead of a much-anticipated ground invasion: Allies had reportedly urged Israel to hold back while negotiations over the 220 hostages dragged on, which frustrated Israeli leadership who accused Hamas of using the negotiations to delay and regroup. 

Instead of a wide-scale ground invasion, Netanyahu announced Saturday the "second phase of the war, whose goals are clear: The destruction of Hamas’s military and governmental capabilities, and the return of the hostages home." 

"We decided to expand ground operations unanimously – both in the War Cabinet and in the political-security cabinet," Netanyahu said. "We did so in a prudent and informed manner, out of a commitment to ensuring the fate of the state and ensuring the safety of our soldiers."

"We did so in a prudent and informed manner, out of a commitment to ensuring the fate of the state and ensuring the safety of our soldiers," he continued. "The commanders and fighters who are now fighting in enemy territory know that the people, and the leadership of the people, stand behind them."

Netanyahu invoked the history of the Jewish people, recalling Joshua Ben-Nun, Judah Maccabee and Bar Kochba – heroes of the Jewish people – as well as famous victories in the Six Days War and Yom Kippur War, as well as the famous refrain, "never again, never again."

He reiterated the warnings about how Hamas operates – using civilians as human shieldsand hiding beneath hospitals to carry out their operations while manipulating international law for protection. He claimed that Israel’s allies in the "Western world and … the Arab world, understand today that if Israel does not win, they will be next in line in the campaign of conquest and murder of the axis of evil."

In an Op-Ed published Saturday in The New York Times, former U.S. envoy to the Middle East Dennis Ross claimed that he had spoken with allies across the Middle East during the past two weeks and found that Arab officials understood "that Hamas must be destroyed in Gaza," since any perceived victory for the terrorists "will validate the group’s ideology of rejection, give leverage and momentum to Iran and its collaborators and put their own governments on the defensive."

Netanyahu leaned on that existential threat at the peak of his speech, stressing that the war on Hamas is a fight "to be or to cease," but he insisted that Israel would succeed, saying, "we will be and we will win" but admitting the war would not end quickly.  

Fox News' Peter Aitken contributed to this report.

New York City officials closed the Brooklyn Bridge down temporarily due to the massive number of protestors. (Peter Gerber for Fox News)

Thousands of Pro-Palestine protestors forced city officials to close the Brooklyn Bridge down on Saturday after they gathered in New York City amid Israel's war against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

"Protest Activity: All lanes on the Brooklyn Bridge are closed in both directions," the New York City Emergency Management Department wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Consider alternate routes."

The Brooklyn demonstration marked three weeks since Hamas fighters launched a surprise attack against Israel on the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, as 1,400 Israelis were murdered Oct. 7. Hamas's health ministry estimates that around 7,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began.

Protestors were seen holding signs that read, "By any means necessary" and "NYC stands with Gaza" while waving Palestinian flags. 

"Israel (U.S.) murdered 7,028 civilians, 2,913 children, [and] 1,709 women," one sign read. "Great job everyone."

A crowd of Hasidic Jews also marched for Palestine, holding anti-Zionist signs that read "Judaism condemns the state of ‘Israel’ and its atrocities" and "Torah demands all Palestine be returned to Palestinian sovereignty."

The demonstration was one of many pro-Palestinian rallies in the Big Apple this month. One that took place in Times Square on Oct. 9 blamed Israel for the Hamas terrorist attacks against its citizens, while another saw protesters temporarily shut down Grand Central Terminal in Midtown Manhattan on Friday.

"We're going to liberate Palestine," one demonstrator told a pro-Israel crowd at the time. "We already liberated parts of it already. So get ready to get barbecued."

The latest protests came as the war between Israel and Hamas continues to escalate. On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will expand its ground operations into Gaza.

"This is our second independence war," the Israeli leader said during a presser. "We will fight on the land, air and from the sea. We will fight on the ground and under the ground. In this war, we stand together – this is the fight of our life."

Fox News Digital reached out to the NYPD for more information, but has not heard back.

Fox News Digital's Andrea Vacchiano, Chris Pandolfo and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman will visit the White House on Monday for talks with several senior Biden administration officials, according to Axios.

The trip has been scheduled for a while, according to the report, however the timing comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the "second stage" of its war with Hamas.

There's growing fear that the war could escalate into regional conflict.

Salman is expected to meet with Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Saturday criticizing Israel, stating that "Any ground operation by Israel would threaten the lives of Palestinian civilians and result in inhumane dangers," according to the report.

The IDF says it is striking Hamas targets in Gaza, Fox News' Trey Yingst reported late Saturday night.

Several rocket strikes could be seen and heard near the Gaza border in Israel late Saturday night.

It comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday the country is entering the "second stage" of its war with Hamas.

"This is the second stage of the war whose goals are clear - to destroy Hamas' governing and military capabilities and to bring the hostages home," Netanyahu said. "We are only at the start."

"We made the decision to expand ground operations unanimously – both in the War Cabinet and in the political-security cabinet. We did so in a prudent and informed manner, out of a commitment to ensuring the fate of the state and ensuring the safety of our soldiers. The commanders and fighters who are now fighting in enemy territory know that the people, and the leadership of the people, stand behind them," Netanyahu said.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Fox News on Friday that this war could draw on for months, not days and weeks.

Fox News' Trey Yingst contributed to this report.

Elon Musk said that Starlink will provide communication links to "internationally recognized aid organizations" in Gaza.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Musk said "Starlink will support connectivity to internationally recognized aid organizations in Gaza."

The announcement drew criticism from Communications Minister of Israel Shlomo Kari, who responded "Israel will use all means at its disposal to fight this."

"HAMAS will use it for terrorist activities. There is no doubt about it, we know it, and musk knows it. HAMAS is ISIS," Karhi said. "Perhaps Musk would be willing to condition it with the release of our abducted babies, sons, daughters, elderly people. All of them! By then, my office will cut any ties with starlink."

Musk responded to Kari, stating that thus far "no Starlink terminal has attempted to connect from Gaza."

He added if a Starlink terminal attempts to connect from Gaza, the company will "take extraordinary measures to confirm that it is used *only* for purely humanitarian reasons."

"Moreover, we will do a security check with both the US and Israeli governments before turning on even a single terminal," Musk said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan used the momentous platform of a rally to celebrate his country’s 100th anniversary to accuse Israel of committing war crimes and lambaste Western allies for their responses.

"Israel has been openly committing war crimes for 22 days, but the Western leaders cannot even call on Israel for a ceasefire, let alone react to it," Erdogan told the crowd in Istanbul, who waved Palestinian flags.

"We will tell the whole world that Israel is a war criminal. We are making preparations for this. We will declare Israel a war criminal," he said.

Saturday marked 100 years since the declaration of the Republic of Turkey (renamed Turkiye in international arenas), replacing the Ottoman Empire after its post-World War I collapse. Erdogan spoke for an hour, reiterating his belief that Hamas are not terrorists and labeling Israel an "occupier."

Erdogan’s speech on Saturday outraged Israel so much that Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen recalled diplomats from Turkey "in order to conduct a reevaluation of the relations between Israel and Turkey," according to his post on social media platform X. 

Israeli’s Foreign Ministry then condemned Erdogan’s statements, saying that "Erdogan’s attempt to defend a terrorist organization and his inflammatory statements won’t change the horrors seen by the world that proves Hamas is ISIS." 

Turkey in the immediate aftermath of the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7 had denounced the violence and condemned deaths caused by the group, but as Israel rolled out its response, Erdogan shifted his support and started to refer to Hamas as "freedom fighters." 

In a speech before the Turkish parliament on Wednesday, Erdogan called Hamas "a group of mujahideen defending their lands," Israeli outlet TPS reported.  

Turkey’s position is a sharp break with the rest of its NATO allies, but it has not considered Hamas a terrorist organization — a designation that the U.S., the European Union and several countries in the Middle East support. 

Turkey also has ties to Hamas, hosting some of its members and facilitating investment for to the group. On October 18, the U.S. Department of the Treasury placed sanctions on "ten key Hamas terrorist group members, operatives and financial facilitators in Gaza and elsewhere, including Sudan, Turkiye, Algeria and Qatar." 

The Treasury specifically highlighted four members who stay in Turkey and serve as "portfolio managers" for Hamas’s international investments. The investment network they oversee extends through Turkey and Algeria. 

Sinan Ulgen, a former Turkish diplomat and director of the Centre for Economic and Foreign Policy Studies, an Istanbul-based think tank, said that Gaza's worsening humanitarian crisis and pressure from political allies had prompted Erdogan to sharpen his rhetoric.

Turkey "will protect its principles and share these with the international community, but it needs to do this with a more delicate diplomacy if it expects to play such a diplomatic role," Ulgen told Reuters.

Reuters and Fox News Digital's Peter Aitken contributed to this report.

Israel has entered the second stage of its war with Hamas, and has a goal of destroying Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a speech on Saturday night local time.

"This is the second stage of the war whose goals are clear - to destroy Hamas' governing and military capabilities and to bring the hostages home," Netanyahu said. "We are only at the start."

"We will destroy the enemy above ground and below ground," he added.

Netanyahu said that the war cabinet made the decision to expand on its ground operations.

"We made the decision to expand ground operations unanimously – both in the War Cabinet and in the political-security cabinet. We did so in a prudent and informed manner, out of a commitment to ensuring the fate of the state and ensuring the safety of our soldiers. The commanders and fighters who are now fighting in enemy territory know that the people, and the leadership of the people, stand behind them," Netanyahu said.

He said the goals of the second stage are clear: "the destruction of Hamas' military and governmental capabilities, and the return of the hostages home."

Reuters contributed to this report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the second stage of its war with Hamas will be "long and difficult."

His comments came during a press conference announcing a "second stage" of the war, which include sending ground forces into the Gaza Strop as well as expanding operations by air and sea.

"We destroyed our enemy from the air and we paved the way for our ground forces to go inside Gaza," Netanyahu said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday renewed his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.

Guterres also requested the unconditional release of all hostages and the delivery of humanitarian aid to the 2.3 million people living in the Palestinian territory. 

“This situation must be reversed,” he said Saturday in a statement following his meeting in Doha with Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani. “This is the moment of truth. Everyone must assume their responsibilities. History will judge us all.”

He warned that the ongoing escalation, including relentless Israeli bombardment and a communication blackout, would have devastating impacts and undermine “the referred humanitarian objectives.”

Israel has rejected calls for a ceasefire, asserting that doing so would give Hamas terrorists time to regroup and plan more attacks on its people. The Israeli military in recent days has escalated its ground operations and airstrikes in Gaza with the objective of eradicating Hamas' military capabilities and rescuing some 230 hostages held by Hamas. 

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested that some of the activities of pro-Palestinian student groups may be violating federal law. The governor added that in response to Students for Justice's support for the Palestinians in the wake of the attack on Israel, he is going to "deactivate" the group in his state.

Pro-Hamas protests have cropped up in urban areas across the country, from large cities like New York and Washington to places like Allentown, Pa., where Muslim activists rallied this week at a monument dedicated to Pennsylvania's Civil War volunteers to declare purported "Gaza genocide" at the hands of Israel.

However, across Europe there have been prohibitions on such activity, including in Germany, where police reportedly cracked down on a pro-Palestinian demonstration near Berlin's Brandenburg Gate this week.

In Florida, DeSantis said he has tried to curb the activities of groups such as Students for Justice in Palestine, telling FOX News he ordered the states' universities to disband chapters on their campuses.

"If you look at how Florida's universities respond to this for our college presidents, you didn't see them behave like Harvard president and [officials at the University of Pennsylvania]. They put out a very clear statement saying that what Hamas did was barbaric, that we stand with Israel and that we are going to make sure that our Jewish students are able to … be protected on our campuses," he said.

DeSantis called the pro-Palestinian student group "very radical" and claimed some involved don't delineate themselves from the governing terrorist group Hamas itself.

"They say we're not standing in solidarity with Hamas. They say they are the same movement," he said.

Therefore, he posited, it is different to be protesters who are in support of a wrongful or controversial entity than it is to consider oneself one-in-the-same.

"You don't have a First Amendment right to provide material support to terrorists. So we have deactivated the Students for Justice in Palestine groups on university campuses and our state university system in the state of Florida. And I think we're the first state to do that," he said, in an apparent nod to a federal law – 18 USC 2339b – that deems "providing material support or resources to foreign terrorist organizations" illegal.

Fox News Digital's Charles Creitz contributed to this update.

A smoke plume billows after Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern of Gaza Strip on October 28, 2023 amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (Photo by SAID KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images)

The Israel Defense Forces have warned residents of Gaza City that the area is now a "battlefield" as Israel escalates its airstrikes and ground incursions.

“To the residents of the Gaza Strip: The Gaza governorate (Gaza City) has become a battlefield. Shelters in northern Gaza and Gaza governorate are not safe,” leaflets dropped by fighter jets warn, according to AFP.

The Israeli military is warning Gazans to "evacuate immediately" to the south.

Israel has amassed hundreds of thousands of troops at the Gaza border in the past three weeks since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks that killed as many as 1,400 Israelis. Soldiers have been awaiting orders to begin a full-scale invasion of Gaza to eradicate Hamas' military capabilities and rescue more than 230 hostages currently held by terrorists.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a press conference at 8:30 p.m. local time to give an update on the war against Hamas. It will be Netanyahu's first time facing press questions since the war started.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a rally organised by the AKP party in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza, in Istanbul on October 28, 2023. Erdogan's Islamic-rooted party staged a massive pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul on October 28, 2023 that the Turkish leader said had drawn a crowd of 1.5 million. He unleashed a scathing attack at Israel and its Western supporters after taking the stage with a microphone in his hand. "The main culprit behind the massacre unfolding in Gaza is the West," Erdogan told the Turkish and Palestinian flag-waving crowd. (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended a massive pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul on Saturday, where he announced his country is preparing to proclaim Israel a "war criminal" for its attacks on Gaza.

Erdogan spoke to hundreds of thousands of people and said Western countries were responsible for the thousands of deaths in Gaza for failing to stop Israel's airstrikes.

“Israel, we will proclaim you as a war criminal to the world,” Erdoga said. “We are making our preparations, and we will declare Israel to the world as a war criminal.”

Erdogan, whose government recently restored full diplomatic ties with Israel, has stepped up his criticism of the country. Earlier this week, he asserted that the Hamas militant group was not a terrorist organization but a liberation group fighting for its lands and people.

Participants at the rally waved Turkish and Palestinian flags, chanting “God is great.” Yusuf Islam, the musician formerly known as Cat Stevens, took part in the rally.

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

Palestinian nurse Haneen Abu Daka, who seeks to increase her income by working in a strawberry field after hospital duty amid deteriorating economic conditions, walks as she works in Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City January 24, 2020. Picture taken January 24, 2020. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

The Israel Defense Forces released interrogation videos purporting to show captured Hamas terrorists who participated in the Oct. 7 attack discussing an alleged terrorist hideout under Gaza's largest hospital.

The footage was released one day after IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Hamas terrorists have created an underground complex beneath the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza.

"Hamas terrorists operate inside and under Shifa hospital — and other hospitals in Gaza — with a network of terror tunnels," Hagari said Friday. "Shifa is not the only hospital — it is one of many. Hamas-use of hospitals is systematic."

The Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest medical care facility in Gaza, with 1,500 beds and over 4,000 staff members.

"We have concrete evidence that hundreds of terrorists flooded into the hospital to hide there after the massacres of October 7," he added.

A senior Hamas leader called the allegations "baseless" in a statement reported by the Times of Israel.

Fox News Digital's Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this update.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now meeting with families of hostages being held by terrorist groups in Gaza. 

Netanyahu's office said earlier he would meet with the families of those taken captive when Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israel on Oct. 7, butchering hundreds of civilians, the Times of Israel reported. 

The families have expressed concerns that the hostages will be put in danger by IDF operations in Gaza. IDF said military aircrafts attacked about 150 underground terrorist targets in northern Gaza overnight into Saturday in the ongoing war against Hamas.

The Israeli Defense Forces said Hamas terrorists were killed while underground combat zones and other underground terrorist infrastructures were also destroyed.

However, the military's claim it is targeting tunnel infrastructure has prompted fear among the families that military leaders are being cavalier with the lives of the hostages, who are believed to be held inside the tunnels.

IDF said there are more than 230 hostages of all ages confirmed to have been taken captive during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, in which Hamas infiltrated Israel and murdered at least 1,400 people, including at least 310 soldiers. 

The Associated Press contributed to this update. 

Palestinians pass by the destruction after the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip in Rafah on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Hatem Ali)

The top United Nations human rights official condemned the expanded Israeli operations in Gaza, saying the bombardment and incursions have taken the crisis to "a new level of violence and pain." 

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk’s comments came in a statement Saturday as Gaza remained cut off from the outside world following a communication blackout. Turk said U.N. workers on the ground in Gaza lost contact with the agency. 

He said the communication blackout has added to the misery and suffering of civilians in the Palestinian territory, with ambulances and civil defense teams no longer able to locate the wounded.

"The humanitarian and human rights consequences will be devastating and long-lasting,” Turk said. “Given the manner in which military operations have been conducted until now, in the context of the 56-year-old occupation, I am raising alarm about the possibly catastrophic consequences of large-scale ground operations in Gaza and the potential for thousands more civilians to die.”

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

A Cooper Union college student says protesters were "calling for the murder of Jews" when she was barricaded into the school library after a pro-Palestine rally attempted to enter the space. 

"Once the protest was over, a group of religious Jewish Cooper Union students ended up in the library," student Taylor Roslyn Lent told "The Story" on Thursday. "When the rally decided to try and get into the library as well – very angry and very loud – the school barricaded the library doors and locked us in there, along with some other students, to keep us safe from the rally, that they allowed to enter into the building." 

Video shows students attempting to study while protesters banged on the doors chanting "Free Palestine." 

"Personally, I don't feel threatened by pro-Palestinian rallies or anything in that sense," Lent said. "Everyone has their own right to be doing that, but I definitely did feel threatened when there were chants calling for the murder of Jews being chanted at me from my fellow students." 

The university president acknowledged the incident in a press release saying while "there is room for productive debate and dissent," there is "no tolerance for hate or threatening conduct."

"On Wednesday, there was a planned student walk-out outside of the Foundation Building, part of a larger effort across New York City and nationally," the statement said.  "Students convened in front of the Foundation Building at 1 p.m.; it was a peaceful protest. However, we want to make clear that language displayed on the protest signs may have suggested that the students were speaking on behalf of the college – they were not. The signs carried and posted on the sidewalk in front of the building represented the views of those who created them."

The president said the university "(condemns) discrimination of any kind, including antisemitism and Islamophobia" as well as  "hateful and threatening acts of any kind – written, spoken, visual, or physical."

The New York Police Department said there was "no direct threat" to the Jewish students during the ordeal.

"There was no damage, and there was no danger to any students in that school," an NYPD official said.

The official claimed the students were not barricaded.

Fox News Digital's Maria Lencki contributed to this update.

Demonstrators protest in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in London, Britain, October 28, 2023. REUTERS/Susannah Ireland

Thousands of people took to the streets of London on Saturday and demanded the U.K. government call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. 

Aerial footage showed large crowds setting off on the march organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, with the protest due to end outside the Houses of Parliament after passing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Downing Street office.

Sunak's government has called for a humanitarian pause in Israel's relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip but, like the Biden administration, has not called for a ceasefire. Britain has echoed Washington in standing by Israel's right to self-defense after the brutal Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7, in which some 1,400 Israelis were murdered, mostly civilians. 

"The superpowers at play are not doing enough at the moment. This is why we're here: we're calling for a ceasefire, calling for Palestinian rights, the right to exist, to live, human rights, all our rights," protester Camille Revuelta told Reuters.

"This is not about Hamas. This is about protecting Palestinian lives," she added.

Reuters contributed to this update.

The World Health Organization has issued an urgent appeal to "the humanity in all those who have the power to do so to end the fighting now” in Gaza.

In a statement, the said health workers, patients and civilians were affected by a total communications blackout in Gaza as Israel pounded the Palestinian territory with the fiercest airstrikes since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.

“There are more wounded every hour. But ambulances cannot reach them in the communications blackout. Morgues are full. More than half of the dead are women and children,” it said.

“The WHO reiterates its calls for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire and reminds all parties to the conflict to take all precautions to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure,” the statement added.

WHO expressed “grave concerns” about reported bombardment near the Indonesia and Shifa hospitals in the northern half of Gaza.

On Friday, the Israel Defense Forces alleged that Hamas has created an underground military base beneath the largest hospital in Gaza.

The IDF released images and accompanying graphics claiming an extensive command post exists under Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza.

"Hamas terrorists operate inside and under Shifa hospital — and other hospitals in Gaza — with a network of terror tunnels," said IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari. "Shifa is not the only hospital — it is one of many. Hamas-use of hospitals is systematic."

The Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest medical care facility in Gaza, with 1,500 beds and over 4,000 staff members.

Fox News Digital's Timothy H.J. Nerozzi and the Associated Press contributed to this update.

Columbia University graduate, billionaire investor and Omega Advisors CEO Leon Cooperman had harsh words for Ivy League students who are sharing anti-Israel sentiment on campus.

"These kids at the colleges have sh-- for brains," Cooperman told "The Claman Countdown" host Liz Claman on Wednesday. "We have one reliable ally in the Middle East. That's Israel. We only have one democracy in the Middle East. That's Israel. And we have one economy tolerant of different people, gays, lesbians, etc. That's Israel. So they have no idea what these young kids are doing."

"Now, the real shame is, I've given to Columbia probably about $50 million over many years," he continued. "And I'm going to suspend my giving. I'll give my giving to other organizations."

Cooperman doubled down on his stance to no longer donate to the Ivy League school, expressing his disgust over staff members who refuse to condemn terrorist acts.

"I told [Columbia] that they should fire this professor that made the comments he made. I mean, war is hell. This war is not good for anybody," Cooperman said. "But to praise what Hamas did is disgraceful. Disgusting."

Fox Business' Kristen Altus contributed to this update.

Palestinians inspect the damage of destroyed buildings following Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City, Friday, Oct. 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Abed Khaled)

Israel has not heeded calls to stop the siege of Gaza as Western allies have urged for a "humanitarian pause" to the relentless airstrike campaign.

The United States, European Union, United Kingdom and some G7 allies including Japan have each shown concern for the 2.3 million Palestinians currently caught in the crossfire as Israel wages war to destroy Hamas. Several foreign officials have asked Israel to pause the offensive to allow food, water, medicine and fuel to reach desperate Palestinian civilians and to give time to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.

However, Israel says any respite from fighting benefits Hamas, which it is determined to destroy, and which it says diverts aid to its fighters.

"Israel is opposed to a humanitarian pause or ceasefire at this time," Lior Haiat, Israel's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said on Friday, while a senior Israeli official said calls for a pause in fighting appeared in "poor faith."

Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan made similar comments, telling the General Assembly that a "ceasefire" would give Hamas "time to rearm itself, so they can massacre us again." 

Reuters contributed to this update.

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL - OCTOBER 25: Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speak during a press conference in Tel Aviv, Israel on October 25, 2023. Gallant said Thursday a planned ground offensive in the Gaza Strip will begin when conditions allow it. (Photo by Elad Malka (IMoD)/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has agreed to meet with representatives of several families whose loved ones are held captive by Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

Gallant said the meeting will happen Sunday, according to Israeli media. 

The families have expressed concerns that the hostages will be put in danger by IDF operations in Gaza. IDF said military aircrafts attacked about 150 underground terrorist targets in northern Gaza overnight into Saturday in the ongoing war against Hamas.

The Israeli Defense Forces said Hamas terrorists were killed while underground combat zones and other underground terrorist infrastructures were also destroyed.

However, the military's claim it is targeting tunnel infrastructure has prompted fear among the families that military leaders are being cavalier with the lives of the hostages, who are believed to be held inside the tunnels.

IDF said there are more than 230 hostages of all ages confirmed to have been taken captive during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, in which Hamas infiltrated Israel and murdered at least 1,400 people, including at least 310 soldiers. 

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

Over 600 alumni, faculty, and students of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are pleading with the university’s president to "prevent the propagation of slogans, messages, and hateful acts that may threaten the safety of Jewish and Israeli students" after calls for "intifada" rang out at an anti-Israel protest last week.

A list of 607 people associated with the school, including a graduate of 1953, wrote a letter to MIT President Sally Kornbluth Monday citing "deep concern, fear, and disappointment" after chants of "one solution, intifada revolution" and "from the [Jordan] river to the [Mediterranean] sea, Palestine will be free!" rang out at a rally in support of the Hamas terrorist attacks that killed over 1,400 Israelis Oct. 7. 

"While we fully support the principles of free speech and the right to peaceful assembly, it is essential that we also prioritize the safety and well-being of all members of the MIT community," the letter states. 

The letter says in addition to the use of these derogatory messages, several attendees of the event used hateful language and messages toward Jewish and Israeli bystanders. In one case, "a perpetrator aggressively held their bicycles as intended to harm a Jewish MIT student, stating that ‘[your] ancestors did not die in the Holocaust so they could kill Palestinians.’"

Fox News Digital's Brianna Herlihy contributed to this update.

Colleges should expect more vocal board members and less generous donors if they continue letting students force "woke" decisions on administrators, a former University of Pennsylvania trustee said following widespread anti-Israel rallies. 

"A university is not run by the students, the university is run by the board of trustees who represent all the alumni," the former trustee, CSMI CEO and charter school magnate Vahan Gureghian, told Fox News. "Presidents of these universities need to take heed before they make these woke decisions that adversely impact the reputation of these elite institutions because they have awakened the sleeping giant of donors who are now saying, ‘I'm not just going to write a check anymore and automatically give them money no matter what they say or do.’"

Several top universities, including UPenn, have drawn criticism for allowing pro-Palestinian student groups to rally and express anti-Israel sentiments . Several major donors have cut off support from the Ivy League school, and drove Gureghian and a board of advisors member to resign.

Fox News' Teny Sahakian contributed to this update.

The terror group Hamas claims Israel's overnight ground incursion was a failure.

Hamas said in a statement Saturday that its military arm, Qassam Brigades, used anti-tank Kornet rockets and mortar shelling to repel the attack and claimed its fighters inflicted casualties among Israeli troops. The militant group did not provide evidence of its claims, the Associated Press reported.

Qassam Brigades said late Friday its fighters were clashing with Israeli troops in the town of Beit Hanoun in northwestern Gaza and in Al-Bureij in central Gaza.

Meanwhile, Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, said it fired a barrage of rockets targeting Kissufim kibbutz in Israel, northwest of the Negev desert. 

A steady stream of rocket fire aimed at Israeli communities near the border with Gaza was reported Saturday morning, according to the Times of Israel. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Israeli forces including active infantry, armored, engineer and artillery participated in the ground operation overnight and are continuing to fight. He said there were no casualties to Israeli forces. 

"We continue to effort achieving our goals: dismantling Hamas, security of our borders and the national effort of the return of our hostages. All those together will be taking into consideration in assessing the situation," Hagari said. 

Regarding the expected invasion of Gaza, Hagari said, "we will receive the right operational decision when those goals are our compass." 

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

The families of hostages held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza warned they will begin protesting if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant do not meet with them Saturday.

A spokesperson for the families said they plan to gather at a central square in Tel Aviv. They want the meeting because of increased apprehension about their loved ones after Israel ramped up attacks on Gaza overnight Friday.

The military's claim it is targeting tunnel infrastructure has prompted fear among the families that military leaders are being cavalier with the lives of the hostages, who are believed to be held inside the tunnels.

IDF said there are more than 230 hostages of all ages confirmed to have been taken captive during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, in which Hamas infiltrated Israel and murdered at least 1,400 people, including at least 310 soldiers. 

Israel's military said its main objectives in the war are to eliminate Hamas' military capabilities and rescue the hostages. 

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

President Biden said in a letter to House and Senate leaders that the U.S. airstrikes against Syria on Thursday represented "necessary and proportionate action consistent with international law" within "the United States' inherent right of self-defense as reflected in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter."

As I have reported previously, militia groups affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have perpetrated a series of attacks against United States personnel and facilities in Iraq and Syria," Biden wrote. "Since October 17, 2023, these militia groups have conducted numerous attacks using unmanned aerial systems and indirect fire, injuring several United States service members.  A United States contractor suffered a fatal cardiac incident while moving to shelter during one of these attacks.  These attacks have placed under grave threat the lives of United States personnel and of Coalition forces operating alongside United States forces."

"In response to this series of attacks and continuing threats of future attacks, at my direction, on the night of October 26, 2023, United States forces conducted targeted strikes against facilities in eastern Syria," he continued. "The precision strikes targeted facilities used by the IRGC and IRGC-affiliated groups for command and control, munitions storage, and other purposes.  The strikes were intended to establish deterrence and were conducted in a manner to limit the risk of escalation and avoid civilian casualties.  I directed the strikes in order to protect and defend our personnel, to degrade and disrupt the ongoing series of attacks against the United States and our partners, and to deter Iran and Iran-backed militia groups from conducting or supporting further attacks on United States personnel and facilities."

The president added, "I directed this military action consistent with my responsibility to protect United States citizens both at home and abroad and in furtherance of United States national security and foreign policy interests, pursuant to my constitutional authority as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive and to conduct United States foreign relations.  The United States took this necessary and proportionate action consistent with international law and in the exercise of the United States' inherent right of self-defense as reflected in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.  The United States stands ready to take further action, as necessary and appropriate, to address further threats or attacks."

The military action comes against Syria comes amid the war in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas.

More than 8,700 people have been killed and thousands more wounded in Gaza and Israel since Hamas launched its largest attack against Israel in decades on Oct. 7, leading Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare war on the terrorist group.

WASHINGTON, DC October 26, 2023: National Security Council spokesman John Kirby during the daily press briefing in the James Brady Room at the White House on Thursday October 26, 2023. (Photo by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The U.S. is not “drawing red lines” for Israel in its war with Hamas, White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said in a Friday press briefing over the phone.

“We’re going to continue to support them” but “since the very beginning we have, and will continue to have, conversations about the manner that they are doing this.”

On Friday, Israel’s military said it was expanding ground operations in Gaza three weeks into the war.

Kirby said the U.S. is continuing its humanitarian efforts in Gaza, noting that 10 additional trucks with supplies had gotten through – for a total of 84 – but that the U.S. is aware that fuel there “is only anticipated to last a couple of days.”

He added, that the administration is "doing everything we can possible to bring" American citizens trapped in Gaza "home and to secure their release. 

Kirby said the U.S. is still evaluating the impact of airstrikes against Iranian-backed militias and “we will not hesitate to take further actions in our own self-defense.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Israeli military aircrafts attacked about 150 underground targets in the northern Gaza Strip over Friday night amid the ongoing war against Hamas terrorists.

The Israeli Defense Forces said Hamas terrorists were killed while underground combat zones and other underground terrorist infrastructures were also destroyed.

The IDF said the head of the Hamas air force was eliminated.

More than 8,400 people have been killed in Gaza and Israel since Hamas launched its largest attack against Israel in decades on Oct. 7, leading to retaliatory action from Israeli forces. 

Thousands more have been wounded, and many others have been taken hostage by Hamas and raped, tortured and murdered.