Gaza War Timeline: 24 November 2023 – 11 January 2024

A four-day pause in fighting began at 7:00 a.m. on 24 November 2023, following the start of Israeli ground operations on 27 October in response to Hamas's terrorist attack of 7 October.[1][2] Qatar, Egypt, and the United States mediated the arrangement after weeks of negotiations.[3]

The agreement centered on staged releases of hostages held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Its initial terms provided for at least 50 Israeli women and children to be released in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, at a ratio of three prisoners for each hostage. A further day of pause was available for every 10 additional Israeli hostages released.[4][5] On the first day, 200 aid trucks entered Gaza, together with four fuel trucks and four trucks carrying cooking gas; Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories said the fuel was intended for essential humanitarian infrastructure.[6][4]

Israel's stated war objectives remained releasing the hostages, eliminating Hamas, and ensuring that Gaza would not again threaten Israeli residents.[3] A Tel Aviv University Peace Index survey conducted roughly two and a half weeks after 7 October found that 58 percent of respondents believed the war's goals were not clear enough. Among Jewish respondents, 63 percent identified eliminating Hamas as the government's most important goal, ahead of returning the hostages.[7]

The pause took effect at 7:00 a.m. on 24 November.[4][1] A rocket launched from Gaza fifteen minutes later was intercepted by Iron Dome, and Israel did not respond.[4] On the first day, Hamas released 13 Israeli hostages, 10 Thai nationals, and one Filipino national, while Israel released 39 Palestinian women and minors.[4]

On 25 November, Hamas delayed the second release for several hours before diplomatic pressure helped the transfer proceed. Hamas then released 13 Israeli hostages and four Thai nationals. The Israeli group included seven children aged 3–16 and six women aged 18–67.[4] Among them was nine-year-old Israeli-Irish hostage Emily Hand. Ireland's prime minister said an "innocent child who was lost has now been found," prompting Israel's foreign minister to stress that she had been kidnapped rather than lost.[4]

On 26 November, Hamas released nine children, four women, four Thai workers, and Russian-Israeli Roni Kariboy, whose release had been requested by Russian President Vladimir Putin.[4] The children included four-year-old American-Israeli Abigail Idan, whose parents had been killed on 7 October. Eighty-four-year-old Elma Avraham was taken directly to Soroka Hospital in serious condition. Israel released 39 Palestinian women and minors and allowed 200 aid trucks into Gaza.[4]

The exchanges were accompanied by disputes over the agreement. Israel alleged that Hamas had breached an understanding that children would be released with their mothers when 13-year-old Hila Rotem was freed without her mother, Raya, who was released later.[8][4] Families believed after the first three days that 18 children and 43 women remained captive. Released hostages and their relatives described confinement in tunnels, limited food, and difficulty readjusting to daylight.[4]

Israeli soldier Yoni Heilman described the pause in a personal diary as a "complicated new reality." He wrote that soldiers wanted the hostage-release agreement to proceed but were uneasy as they watched what he described as enemy positions being rebuilt, tunnels re-dug, and observation positions redeployed.[9] In a 27 November entry, Heilman recounted seeing a convoy of 14 freed hostages cross the border and reunite with their families after 51 days in captivity.[9]

On 27 November, Israel and Hamas agreed to extend the original four-day pause by two days. The extension called for Hamas to release 20 Israeli civilian hostages while Israel released 60 Palestinian prisoners.[8][4] Eleven hostages were freed that day, including an Israeli-Russian man.[10]

On 28 November, Hamas released 11 Israeli hostages—nine children and two mothers—after reported attacks on Israeli troops and the discovery of an explosive device near Rantisi Hospital.[4] The IDF also announced that three soldiers abducted on 7 October had been confirmed dead. On 29 November, Hamas released 10 hostages, including one American, while two Russian-Israelis were released separately at Putin's request.[4]

The pause was extended by one further day on 30 November. Under the extension, Hamas was to release 10 hostages and the bodies of three Israelis while Israel released 30 Palestinian prisoners.[10] Eight Israelis were ultimately released that day after Hamas argued that the two Russian-Israelis freed separately on 29 November should count toward its quota.[4] Mia Schem and Amit Soussana were transferred to the Red Cross in the afternoon, followed later by Aisha al-Ziyadna, Bilal al-Ziyadna, Nili Margalit, Shani Goren, Ilana Gritzewsky, and Sapir Cohen.[11]

Approved sources give different totals for the full pause. The Jewish Virtual Library itemizes 105 people released from Gaza—81 Israelis, 23 Thai nationals, and one Filipino—while the Congressional Research Service and Britannica give a total of 110 hostages. The Congressional Research Service reports 250 Palestinian prisoners released, whereas Britannica and the Israel Education Network give 240.[3][12][13][4] The sources do not reconcile these figures, which may reflect differences in scope, nationality, or whether separately negotiated releases were included.

The pause ended on 1 December 2023 after negotiations failed to produce another extension. Israeli and U.S. officials said Hamas had not supplied the required list of hostages and had resumed rocket attacks. Israel's Prime Minister's Office also said Hamas had not released all the women covered by the agreement.[14] Hamas blamed Israel and said it had offered exchanges involving older hostages and bodies that Israel rejected.[14]

A Begin-Sadat Center account states that the pause was due to continue until 7:00 a.m. unless extended, but that Hamas initiated rocket fire and ground raids at 5:42 a.m.—78 minutes before the deadline.[15] The IDF reported striking approximately 200 targets in Gaza by mid-afternoon, including locations in northern Gaza, Khan Yunis, and Rafah.[14] Rocket fire resumed sharply: 214 rockets were reported on the first day after the pause and 177 on the second.[16] Damage to homes and vehicles was reported in Israeli communities, three people were lightly injured in Ness Ziona while heading to shelter, and five soldiers were wounded by a mortar shell near Nirim.[14]

Humanitarian access contracted as the fighting resumed. Around 200 aid trucks had entered Gaza daily during the pause; on 1 December, only dozens were admitted and no fuel was allowed through. The United States urged Israel to restore deliveries to the levels reached during the pause.[17] Israeli reporting stated that 137 hostages remained in Gaza.[14]

Israeli ground operations expanded southward in early December. On 4 December, witnesses described tanks, armored personnel carriers, and bulldozers operating around Khan Yunis as fighting impeded travel on the Salah al-Din road.[18] The IDF designated a section of that road northeast of Khan Yunis a battle zone and directed civilians toward alternative routes, including the al-Rashid coastal road and al-Shuhada Street.[18]

On 6 December, Israeli forces entered Khan Yunis, Gaza's second-largest city and the hometown of Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif.[3] The city was the territory of Hamas's Khan Yunis Brigade and was considered strategically important to the southern phase of the campaign. The Begin-Sadat Center described armored forces breaching defenses before infantry completed an encirclement from the east, north, and west while leaving a southern evacuation route open.[15] The IDF used leaflets, Arabic-language radio messages, and telephone calls to urge civilians to move west toward the coast or south toward Rafah.[15]

The IDF described 6 December as the most intense day of fighting since the war began, with simultaneous close-quarters combat in Jabalya, Shajaiya, and Khan Yunis.[2] For 7–13 December, the Begin-Sadat Center reported intensified fighting in eastern Gaza City and Khan Yunis, the capture of more than 500 people the IDF identified as Hamas members, and screening of those detained.[15]

The same account reported that Israel installed pumps and pipes to transfer seawater into captured tunnel shafts, with the stated purpose of forcing occupants out or drowning them. It cautioned that the method's effectiveness was uncertain and that the process could take weeks.[15]

On 15 December, Israeli troops fighting in the Shejaiya neighborhood mistakenly killed three unarmed Israeli hostages who were attempting to approach or surrender to them.[12][4] The men were Yotam Haim, Alon Shamriz, and Samar Talalka. They were believed to have escaped or been abandoned by their captors.[4]

The men emerged from a building without shirts, apparently to show that they were not carrying explosives, and one carried a white cloth. Soldiers nevertheless opened fire. The IDF said the troops had failed to follow the rules of engagement, and Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi accepted responsibility.[4]

The Begin-Sadat Center reported that video from a reconnaissance dog had recorded the hostages speaking Hebrew. It also noted allegations that Hamas had previously used Hebrew recordings to lure Israeli troops toward booby-trapped buildings, complicating identification during the fighting.[15] The deaths brought widespread grief in Israel and intensified calls from hostage families for negotiations to accelerate.[4]

On 8 December, the United Arab Emirates introduced a UN Security Council draft describing Gaza's humanitarian situation as "catastrophic" and calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.[19] The United States vetoed the draft. U.S. representative Robert A. Wood argued that an unconditional ceasefire would leave Hamas able to regroup and repeat the 7 October attack. Secretary-General António Guterres had invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter before the vote, allowing him to bring matters he believed threatened international peace and security to the council's attention.[19]

On 12 December, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution A/RES/ES-10/22, "Protection of Civilians and Upholding Legal and Humanitarian Obligations," by 153 votes in favor, 10 against, and 23 abstentions. The United States and Israel voted against.[20] The resolution demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, compliance with international law, the unconditional release of all hostages, and humanitarian access. A U.S.-proposed amendment condemning Hamas's 7 October attack was rejected, and the adopted resolution did not mention Hamas by name.[21]

On 22 December, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2720 by 13 votes to none, with the United States and Russia abstaining.[22][23] It called for urgent steps to expand humanitarian relief, safe and unhindered access, conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. It also provided for the appointment of a Senior Humanitarian Coordinator for Gaza and did not demand an immediate permanent ceasefire.[22][23]

From 14 to 24 December, fighting in Gaza City gradually declined while combat in Khan Yunis remained intense.[15] Hamas increasingly used small-scale hit-and-run attacks rather than trying to hold fixed positions, employing small groups operating from tunnels with anti-tank weapons, explosives, and snipers.[24] Israeli forces dropped leaflets over al-Buraij urging residents to evacuate before airstrikes. The Begin-Sadat Center reported that 40 Israeli soldiers were killed over those 11 days and that the bodies of seven people abducted on 7 October were recovered, five of them from one tunnel.[15]

On 26 December, Israeli forces began a ground offensive in central Gaza, including areas around Deir al-Balah and al-Buraij where Hamas forces were positioned in refugee camps.[3] During the period from 25 December through 4 January, fighting in Gaza City and its northern suburbs decreased substantially and the IDF withdrew five brigades from northern Gaza.[15] Seven brigades remained engaged in Khan Yunis, up from an original four, while the 551st and 14th Brigades were expected to return to civilian life after the earlier release of Division 252.[25] Israeli officials sought to complete a transition toward lower-intensity operations by the end of January.[12]

The IDF reported neutralizing more than 30,000 bombs during its first seven weeks of ground fighting in Gaza.[15] The Begin-Sadat Center described them as largely factory-manufactured fragmentation charges, hollow charges, self-forming slugs, and explosives designed to collapse buildings. Many were reportedly wire-controlled and connected to cameras used to observe target areas.[15]

On 10 January, Israeli forces discovered a large tunnel complex beneath Khan Yunis, which the IDF announced the following day.[26] The military said the Commando Unit, Yahalom Combat Engineering Unit, and special forces found the complex connected to a wider network beneath a civilian area. Investigators determined that hostages had been held there. The tunnel contained ventilation, electricity, and plumbing systems and was estimated to have cost millions of shekels. The IDF reported locating more than 300 tunnel shafts during underground operations in the area.[26]

On 2 January 2024, an explosion in Dahiya, a southern Beirut neighborhood dominated by Hezbollah, killed senior Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri and two operatives from Hamas's Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades.[27] Al-Arouri was a founding member of the brigades, had helped develop Hamas's military capabilities in Lebanon, and served as a liaison to Hezbollah and Iran.[27]

Israel did not officially claim responsibility for the strike. An Israeli spokesperson said, "whoever did this, it's not an attack on Lebanon or Hezbollah."[27] The operation was nevertheless widely attributed to Israel.[27][12] Hezbollah called the strike an act of aggression against Lebanon and vowed a response, while Qatari officials said al-Arouri's killing could make negotiations for another hostage-prisoner agreement more difficult.[27][12]

By 8 January 2024, an estimated 1.9 million of Gaza's approximately 2.1 million residents had been displaced, many of them more than once.[12] Roughly one million people had fled south following Israel's mid-October evacuation call for northern Gaza. Operations in Khan Yunis and other parts of southern Gaza contributed to major overcrowding in Rafah governorate.[12]

Humanitarian organizations warned of acute malnutrition and mortality approaching famine thresholds amid shortages of water, food, and fuel, poor sanitation, and deteriorating hospital functionality.[12] Some supplies resumed through the Kerem Shalom crossing in late December, and aid continued to enter through Egypt, but intense fighting and restricted access hampered distribution.[12]

Rocket fire toward Israel declined over the same period. Air-raid warnings had stopped during the November pause before 214 rockets were reported on the first day of renewed fighting and 177 on the second. The rate subsequently fell to nine sirens across Israel on 18 December and ten on 20 December, compared with 100–300 warnings per day during the first week after 7 October.[16]

As of 10 January, the Congressional Research Service reported more than 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals killed since 7 October, including 35 U.S. citizens, and more than 180 Israeli soldiers killed since the start of ground operations.[12] An unofficial estimate issued by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center on 11 January placed the total number of Israeli civilians and security personnel killed at approximately 1,300, including 520 soldiers and officers. It reported that 185 soldiers had been killed since the ground maneuver began and that 132 civilian and military hostages remained in Gaza.[28]

Palestinian casualty figures were attributed to Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health. The Meir Amit center reported that the ministry's cumulative figure as of 1:15 p.m. on 10 January was 23,357 killed and 59,410 wounded.[28] The Congressional Research Service reported more than 23,000 Palestinians killed as of 10 January and stated that more than 60 percent of Gaza's housing units had reportedly been destroyed or damaged.[12] The figures did not distinguish civilians from combatants and were not presented by the cited sources as independently verified totals.

In early January, Israeli forces began moving from high-intensity conventional operations in parts of northern Gaza toward lower-intensity counter-guerrilla operations.[15][12] Israeli officials had withdrawn thousands of troops and sought to complete the transition by the end of January. The IDF appeared to control much of northern Gaza above ground while continuing operations farther south and inside Hamas's tunnel network.[12]

On 3 January, the IDF confirmed that hostage Sahar Baruch had been killed during a failed rescue attempt and that Hamas continued to hold his body.[4] On 4 January, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant proposed a postwar framework that would retain Palestinian administrative mechanisms staffed by people unaffiliated with Hamas, give Israel broad responsibility for preventing security threats, and create a multinational task force involving the United States and European and Arab states to address civil affairs and reconstruction.[12]

On 29 December 2023, South Africa instituted proceedings against Israel at the International Court of Justice, alleging violations of the Genocide Convention in Gaza.[29][29] The court opened hearings on South Africa's request for provisional measures on 11 January 2024, with Israel scheduled to respond on 12 January.[29]

South Africa asked the court to order Israel to halt military operations in Gaza. Advocate Adila Hassim argued that Israel's conduct showed a systematic pattern from which genocidal intent could be inferred. These were South Africa's allegations and legal arguments, not findings by the court.[29]

Israel rejected the case as baseless.[29] The proceedings concerned only South Africa's request for provisional measures and did not constitute a final determination of whether genocide had occurred. Adjudication of the merits was expected to take years.[29][29]

On 11 January 2024, U.S. forces, together with the United Kingdom and with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands, struck targets in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.[30] The strikes responded to Houthi attacks on international commercial shipping in the Red Sea. President Joe Biden stated that more than 50 nations had been affected by 27 attacks and that more than 2,000 ships had diverted their routes to avoid the Red Sea.[30] The targets were described as facilities used to endanger freedom of navigation.[30]

Tel Aviv University's Peace Index surveys tracked Israeli attitudes during the period. In November 2023, 58 percent of respondents said the war's goals were not clear enough, including roughly two-thirds of opposition-party voters and 48 percent of coalition voters.[7] Among Jewish respondents, 63 percent identified eliminating Hamas as the government's most important goal, ahead of returning the hostages.[7]

By January 2024, 53 percent of respondents still believed the government had no clear war goals. That view was held by 69 percent of opposition voters and 38 percent of coalition voters.[31] Among Jewish respondents, 51 percent considered the IDF's firepower appropriate, up from 37 percent in November, while the share saying the IDF was using too little firepower fell from 58 percent to 43 percent.[31]

The approved sources disagree on the number of people released during the November pause. The Jewish Virtual Library gives 105 releases from Gaza—81 Israelis, 23 Thai nationals, and one Filipino—while the Congressional Research Service and Britannica report 110 hostages.[12][13][4] The sources also differ on whether 240 or 250 Palestinian prisoners were released. These discrepancies may reflect differences in scope or counting methods, but the sources do not reconcile them.

The parties also gave conflicting accounts of the pause's collapse. Israeli and U.S. officials said Hamas failed to provide the required hostage list and resumed rocket attacks. Hamas blamed Israel and said it had offered alternative exchanges involving older hostages and bodies.[14]

Palestinian casualty figures were produced by Gaza's Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health and did not distinguish civilians from combatants.[12][28] The Beirut strike that killed Saleh al-Arouri was attributed to Israel in reporting but was not officially claimed by Israel at the time.[27] South Africa's claims before the ICJ remained legally unresolved on 11 January; the opening hearing did not constitute a merits finding that Israel had committed genocide.[29][29]