Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Israel — as the country continued its large scale strike on Hamas in Gaza overnight.
More than 1,300 Israelis, including 220 soldiers, have been killed. 22 Americans are dead, and 17 are unaccounted for. Just over 1,200 Palestinians have died in Gaza and the West Bank.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has formed a wartime unity cabinet, and vows to "crush and destroy" Hamas.
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Airstrikes by Israel continue in Gaza, where an official said that the only power station in the territory has stopped working. Terrorists are holding as many as 150 hostages in the territory.
Blinken plans to talk with Egypt about allowing safe passage of Americans and civilians out of Gaza.
In a new development overnight, Israeli defense forces confirmed that there were intelligence signals the night before the terror attack on Israel, but at the time, it was not understood these were preparations for an attack.
Sending help to Israel
So many people watching those horrific images overseas want to do something to help out.
That’s why the Israeli American Council of New England got the idea to start collecting donations to send directly to people in Israel.
They actually called over to villages there, and asked what supplies people may need and then put out the call for donations – and people answered.
The IAC began receiving donations of things like diapers, clothing, flashlights, headlamps, and batteries.
They say they sent their first shipment of 5 tons worth of goods two days ago and it already arrived yesterday.
“It was good for the local population to feel a little humanity because rather than staying at home and grieving about what’s going on, they’re acting – giving the opportunity to act on it actually was therapeutic," Israeli American Council of New England Co-Chair Daniel Serfaty said.
If you want to donate and can’t come to the IAC offices on Centre Street in Newton, they’ve also created an Amazon wish list.
