People walk in a camp for displaced people in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip by the border with Egypt on April 28, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP via Getty Images)(NEW YORK) As the Israel-Hamas war approaches the seven-month mark, renewed negotiations are underway to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, as Israeli forces continue to prepare for an apparent invasion of the southern Gaza town of Rafah.Meanwhile, President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke in a phone call over the weekend, discussing increasing the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza and plans for a possible military operation in Rafah, according to the White House.Here s how the news is developing:May 01, 6:49 PMHamas says it will not negotiate if Israel carries out Rafah operationOsama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, said in a statement that cease-fire negotiations with Israel will cease if i
MoMo Productions/Getty Images(NEW YORK) Weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations have hit their lowest level ever reported since the pandemic began, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.There were 5,615 COVID hospitalizations in the most recent week data that is available. In comparison, there were over 150,000 weekly admissions at the peak of the Omicron variant circulating in early 2022."The significant decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths to these new lows is encouraging, showing that our public health measures and vaccination efforts have paid off," said Dr. John Brownstein, chief innovation officer at Boston Children’s Hospital and an ABC News medical contributor.Forecasts of new hospitalizations from the CDC indicate that admissions will likely remain stable for the next four weeks."It’s important to continue monitoring for new variants and maintaining protective health behaviors to prevent possible surges," Brownstein
Disney/Scott KirklandDon t Worry Darling director Olivia Wilde and X-Men movie producer Simon Kinberg are teaming up with Barbie star and producer Margot Robbie for a big-screen bow of the comic book Avengelyne.According to Variety, the project will have Robbie appearing as the heroic avenging angel who was brought to life by Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld and Cathy Christian in 1995; Warner Bros. is reportedly eyeing a seven-figure deal to bring it to theaters. Avengelyne will have even more star power behind the scenes: The trade says Oscar-nominated Poor Things screenwriter Tony McNamara will be behind the keyboard.In an exclusive statement to the trade, Liefeld revealed Kinberg "told me he had a perfect fit for the material and asked me to trust him."The artist continues, "Next thing I m meeting with Margot Robbie and Olivia Wilde and the connection was electric! They told me that they wan
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute(NEW YORK) In the race to understand the potential habitability of Saturn s icy and active moon, Enceladus, scientists could have a newfound understanding of the moon s defining stripes and eruptions.Enceladus harbors a global, subsurface ocean more than 30 miles deep, that periodically erupts jets of ice crystals and plumes of gas above its South Pole, which were first recognized by NASA s Cassini spacecraft in 2005.During the 13-year mission studying Saturn and its 146 moons, the Cassini spacecraft was able to capture material ejected into space by Enceladus jets.Enceladus, named after a giant in Greek mythology, is the sixth-largest of Saturn s many moons and spans approximately 310 miles in diameter, according to NASA.Over nearly 20 years, scientists have explored the chemical makeup in Enceladus jets, and in a June 2023 study, researchers determined that the salt-rich frozen liquid and gas plumes contain the key ingredients needed to sus
ABC News(JERUSALEM) "Every single day, I ve watched small children die."Those are the words of Nurse Brenda Maldonado from Washington State, describing to ABC News what she witnessed over the past two weeks.During that time, Maldonado said, she had been working in two of Gaza s main hospitals. Her deployment to work as a healthcare professional there was organized by Med Global, a Chicago-based nongovernmental organization.There are currently believed to be only ten partially functioning hospitals in all of Gaza, according to the World Health Organization. Most of those are in central and southern Gaza.Maldonado divided her time between the Al-Aqsa Hospital, in central Gaza, and the European Hospital, near Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, tending to those in need in one of the most difficult environments in which to work in the world.Maldonado said what she has seen during her time in Gaza will stay with her forever."It doesn t get easier," she told ABC News. "