May 8, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

Israeli officials privately expressed to US officials “deep frustration” on the pause in a shipment of bombs, as well as the US media briefings on the matter, according to a source briefed on the matter. 

The officials raised concerns "that the move may jeopardize the hostage deal negotiations at a critical moment," the source told CNN.

The source did not say at what level the conversations took place.

"The Israelis also emphasized that the pressure should be directed towards Hamas, not towards Israel, and reiterated their expectation that the US will continue to stand with Israel as it fights to defeat Hamas," the source said.

The Israeli government and its Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit said the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza was reopened on Wednesday, but, on the Palestinian side, the Gaza crossings authority denies any aid trucks have entered the strip. 

What COGAT says: The crossing was reopened following "its closure due to rocket fire by the Hamas terrorist organization toward the area of the crossing yesterday (Tuesday)."

The agency released video showing at least eight aid trucks entering the crossing, where workers on forklifts could be seen unloading them. It was not clear from the video whether any of the trucks had crossed into Gaza after undergoing security inspections and being offloaded.

CNN could not independently verify when the video was filmed. 

What Palestinian border authorities say: The Border Crossings Commission denied Israeli claims, saying no trucks had crossed. It also said Palestinian employees were fired on when they were approaching the crossing, an incident that was confirmed by the Israel Defense Forces. 

"The IDF is currently reviewing the circumstances surrounding an incident of fire toward a vehicle with Palestinian workers who were on their way to work at the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom Crossing," the Israeli military told CNN. "Several people were injured and are receiving initial medical treatment at the scene by IDF troops."

Despite denials on the Palestinian side, the IDF also reiterated "the Kerem Shalom Crossing is open for the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip and that the operational activity on the Gazan side of the crossing is continuing."

The White House’s public optimism on a potential ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas remains unchanged Wednesday amid continuing efforts to secure an agreement.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that the US assessment is that the gap between the two parties can be closed.

She called it a "top priority" of the administration to surge aid and return hostages.  

“We're gonna continue to be optimistic. We're gonna continue to make this a priority. We know how important it is to get this done," she said.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed that the United States is pausing a shipment of “high-payload munitions” to Israel due to possible ground operations in Rafah without a plan for civilians in the southern Gaza city.

CNN previously reported that the US last week had paused the shipment of 1,800 bombs weighing 2,000 pounds and 1,700 bombs weighing 500 pounds to Israel amid concerns over their potential use in a Rafah incursion. 

“We’ve been very clear … that Israel shouldn't launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace,” Austin said.

Austin added that the US has not made "a final determination" about what will happen with the weapons shipment, and he emphasized that the shipment was not part of the supplemental spending package recently passed by Congress that included lethal aid for Ukraine as well as Israel.

Austin was interrupted during his answer by Code Pink protesters who yelled “Free Palestine” before being escorted out of the room.

Hospitals in the south of Gaza only have three days of fuel left, "which means services may soon come to a halt," the chief of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted to X that the closure of the Rafah border crossing "continues to prevent the (United Nations) from bringing fuel. Without fuel all humanitarian operations will stop. Border closures are also impeding delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza."

Israel's military seized control of the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing, an Israeli military official said Tuesday. Video from the Israel Defense Forces showed Israeli flags raised on the Palestinian side of the crossing.

It is the sole crossing between Gaza and Egypt and a crucial entry point for humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Palestinian medical teams said they discovered a third mass grave inside the Al-Shifa Hospital medical complex, retrieving an additional 49 bodies, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said in a statement on Wednesday. 

The ministry shared video showing the recovery of the remains from inside the hospital grounds in Gaza City. According to the health ministry, it is the seventh mass grave found inside hospitals in Gaza. Aside from the three uncovered at Al-Shifa, one mass grave at Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia and three at the Nasser medical complex in Khan Younis were discovered. 

Gazan authorities said they have recovered 520 bodies in total from the graves. 

CNN reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the discovery of the additional mass grave inside Al-Shifa but has yet to hear back. 

CNN cannot independently verify death toll numbers due to lack of international media access inside Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Wednesday afternoon with CIA Director Bill Burns to discuss ceasefire and hostage negotiations, an Israeli official said.

The Israeli war cabinet is now set to convene at 7:30 p.m. local time Wednesday to discuss the state of those negotiations.

A 4-month-old baby was among the dead who were brought to the only functioning hospital remaining in Rafah over the last 24 hours. On Wednesday, the Kuwait Specialized Hospital said 35 bodies were brought to the facility over the past day, including nine children.

The majority of those killed were in their 20s and 30s, it added.

Another 129 injured people were also brought to the hospital over the past 24 hours. The hospital’s media officer, Saber Muhammad, warned on Wednesday that the hospital was “too small with limited capabilities,” and could therefore not deal with huge numbers of casualties.

The Kuwait Specialized Hospital became the only functioning hospital remaining in the southernmost Gaza city after the Al-Najjar Hospital went out of service when Israeli forces declared eastern Rafah a red zone.

There are field hospitals remaining in Rafah

; however, those are also struggling to stay functional. Doctors Without Borders said on Wednesday that it is discharging patients from the Rafah Indonesian Field Hospital to prepare for a possible evacuation. 

The European Gaza Hospital east of Khan Younis is also taking in casualties from Rafah, with one body of a person killed by artillery shelling overnight arriving there on Wednesday morning. 

“Roughly 50,000 people” have left the southern Gazan city of Rafah in the last 48 hours as a result of Israel’s evacuation order, a senior staffer at the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) told CNN on Wednesday.

Top international officials have condemned Israel's military operation in the city, describing the impact on Palestinian civilians as potentially "devastating."

Below are the latest updates: