Live updates | Intense bombardments strike in southern Gaza on 11th day of Israel-Hamas war

Palestinians are describing intense bombardments early Tuesday near two towns in southern Gaza, where Israel had ordered civilians to seek refuge

Palestinians described intense bombardments early Tuesday near two towns in southern Gaza, where Israel had ordered civilians to seek refuge.

Thousands of people trying to escape Gaza are gathered in Rafah, which has the territory’s only border crossing to Egypt. Mediators are pressing for an agreement to let aid in and refugees with foreign passports out. The U.S. hoped to break a deadlock with President Joe Biden set to head to Israel and Jordan on Wednesday.

Aid workers warned that life in Gaza was near complete collapse because of the Israeli siege that followed a Hamas attack on Israel.

The war that began Oct. 7 has become the deadliest of five Gaza wars for both sides. The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,778 Palestinians have been killed and 9,700 wounded. More than 1,400 Israelis have been killed, and at least 199 others, including children, were captured by Hamas and taken into Gaza, according to Israel.

Currently:

1. U.S. President Joe Biden will visit Israel on Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced.

2. A shortage of potable water continues across Gaza, leading humanitarian workers to warn of the risk of disease from drinking untreated water.

3. Overwhelmed doctors at the territory’s largest hospital struggle to care for patients as supplies of water, fuel and medicine run dangerously low.

4. Hundreds of civilians killed in the Hamas attacks have yet to be identified by Israeli forensics teams.

Here's what's happening in the latest Israel-Hamas war:

PALESTINIANS REPORT HEAVY SHELLING WHERE ISRAEL ORDERED CIVILIANS TAKE REFUGE

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip — Palestinians in Gaza reported intense bombardments early Tuesday near the southern towns of Khan Younis and Rafah, where Israel ordered civilians to seek refuge.

Israeli bombs hit areas west and southeast of Khan Younis and west of Rafah, according to local reports. Thousands of people trying to escape Gaza are gathered in Rafah, which contains the territory’s only border crossing to Egypt, as international mediators press for a deal to allow aid in and refugees with foreign passports out.

Details of causalities were not immediately available.

NEW YORK GOVERNOR ANNOUNCES A TUESDAY VISIT TO ISRAEL

NEW YORK — Gov. Kathy Hochul said she will travel to Israel on Tuesday for a “solidarity mission.”

She said she plans to meet with diplomatic leaders and communities devastated after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants on Israeli towns.

“During these difficult times, it’s more important than ever for New York to show up in support of Israel,” Hochul said.

New York has the largest percentage of Jews among all the U.S. states, according to the American Jewish Population Project at Brandeis University.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN TO VISIT ISRAEL WEDNESDAY, US SECRETARY OF STATE ANNOUNCES

TEL AVIV, Israel — President Joe Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday to show support for the U.S. ally amid concerns the Israel-Hamas war could become a larger regional conflict, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

Biden will then go to Jordan to meet with Arab leaders, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.

Blinken's announcement followed hours of talks with Israeli officials, as well as an invitation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

As the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip grows more dire, Blinken also said the U.S. and Israel had agreed to develop a plan to enable humanitarian aid from donor nations to reach civilians in Gaza, "including the possibility of creating areas to help keep civilians out of harm’s way.”

“We share Israel’s concern that Hamas may seize or destroy aid entering Gaza or otherwise prevent it from reaching the people who need it,” Blinken said.

IRAN WARNS OF POSSIBLE PREEMPTIVE ACTION AS GAZA GROUND OFFENSIVE NEARS

JERUSALEM — Iran’s foreign minister has warned that “preemptive action is possible” if Israel moves closer to its looming ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.

The comments by Hossein Amirabdollahian follow a pattern of escalating rhetoric from Iran, whose theocracy provides support to Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israel cannot “do whatever it wants in Gaza and then go after other resistance groups after it’s done with Gaza,” he told state television. “Therefore any preemptive action is possible in the coming hours.”

He did not elaborate on what form any action might take.

“If the limited and extremely tight windows of opportunity available to the United Nations and political actors are not used over the coming hours, opening new fronts against the Zionist regime is inevitable,” he said.

UN HUMANITARIAN CHIEF PUSHES FOR AID TO BE ALLOWED INTO GAZA

UNITED NATIONS — Calling this “the worst of times,” the U.N. humanitarian chief said the United Nations is in “deep discussions” with the Israelis, Egyptians and others about getting aid through the Rafah crossing, “hugely helped” by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken who has been traveling in the region.

Martin Griffiths, who is heading to Cairo on Tuesday “to try to help in the negotiations,” said in an interview with the U.N. Monday that he was hoping for “some good news” soon.

Griffiths said the U.N.’s “overwhelming priority” is to get access to Gaza, saying humanitarian rules of war are being violated.

“You cannot ask people to move out of harm’s way without assisting them to do it,” by providing safe places and humanitarian aid, and right now Israel has not made these provisions for Gazans moving from the north to the south, Griffiths said.

He also called for the immediate release of all hostages taken from Israel, many of them children, women, the elderly and the sick, which he said is “unacceptable” and illegal.

EUROPEAN COMMISSION VOWS TO TRIPLE AID TO GAZA

TIRANA, Albania — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Monday that the European Union will increase humanitarian aid to Gaza starting with two flights this week via Egypt.

She said the Commission has tripled humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza to 75 million euros ($79 million) and would “keep working with our partners in the region to assess and address the needs on the ground.”

Von der Leyen denounced the “heinous” Hamas attacks and said “Israel has the right to defend itself in line with humanitarian international law."

The Commission head was speaking in Tirana at the end of a summit with Western Balkan leaders.

PENTAGON SENDS DEPLOYMENT NOTICES TO 2,000 U.S. TROOPS

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has sent “prepare to deploy” orders to about 2,000 U.S. troops to be ready to respond to the Israel-Hamas war, two U.S. officials said on the condition of anonymity to discuss a decision that has not been announced yet.

The troops would cover a variety of support roles, such as additional medical support or explosive ordnance support, such as providing additional security at gate crossings, one of the officials said.

They would not be sent to Israel but could be sent to countries in the region, one of the officials said. The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the orders.

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Associated Press writer Tara Copp contributed to this report.