♪ ♪ [ ch >> juju: tonight, racing home. >> i was lucky enough to get a ticket. >> juju: israelis around the world heading back toss motherland to fight. >> we're going to go in, we're going to ensure we only come out when every single one of the last hamas terrorists are gone. >> juju: hamas continues its relentless assaults as israel retaliates. conditions in gaza increasingly desperate. >> there's no fuel, there's no power. hops are on the brink of

collapse because no medical supplies are being let in. >> juju: at least 100 hostages, perhaps a dozen of them american, still being held captive. what's being done to find them. and how we got here. gaza's political history and how hamas came to seize power in what some call the world's largest open-air prison. prime minister benjamin netanyahu's new united wartime cabinet pledging to crush the terrorist group. >> hamas is relentless. the forces of civilization must support israel in defeating hamas. >> juju: this special edition of "nightline," "israel at war," will be right back.

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they feel every single one of us can make the stars align. because when we come together, hope and joy will sh full of stars. i'll think of saw you, you. >> thanks for joining us tonight . while the skies over israel and gaza are streaked with rocketsd with rocks for the fifth day, taking a bloody toll on both sides of the border, as israel's army mobilizes for a ground offensive, hundreds of thousands of reservists are being called to serve with others enlisting voluntarily. but joining them, israelis from every corner of the world rushing back to their homeland to take up arms and fight for israel. >> all of my unit was called up.

my brothers' units were called up. there was no way i was going to stay in new york and try, you know, and hope or pray. >> reporter: as bombs rain down on israel and carnage was unleashed by hamas militants -- >> i was lucky enough to get ticket. >> reporter: he packed up his belongings and headed to the airport. an israeli defense force reservist, he says even with years of military training, this is far beyond anything he's witnessed before. >> now we're ready with all the gear. >> juju: are you prepared for what that kind of combat looks like? >> i don't know if anyone can just wake up one day and be prepared. but mentally, we're all there. physically, we're all there. we're going to go in, we're going to ensure that we only come out when every single one of the last hamas terrorists are gone. >> juju: leiv one of 360,000 israeli reservists answering the call to fight for their country.

many living around the globe now heading home. like these young people flying from peru. in a viral video chanting "long live the israeli nation" posted by instagram user natasha raquel. this young couple from new york now separated from war. >> he happened to be in israel for his best friend's wedding last week. he was set to come back sunday but courageously volunteered to go back to reserves. >> reporter: and the parents like new jersey-born chiropractor scott lawrence, whose four children flew from spain and san francisco to israel to serve. >> we are painfully proud that our children have a higher purpose than themselves. there's a mixed feeling. as a parent. >> juju: this mobilization of troops back to israel happening as the death toll in the country keeps mounting. the israeli military says more

than 1,200 people, including 189 soldiers, have died in israel since saturday. my colleague, matt gutman, was in ashkelon north of the gaza border today where humes rockets are still bombarding israel. >> above us, you can see so many streaks of smoke crisscrossing the sky. >> juju: across that border, the israeli military's punishing retaliatory air strikes have taken a deadly toll. the palestinian ministry of health says that more than 1,100 people have been killed and that 5,003 have been injured in gaza. so many of them children. doctors without borders say that today, every single patient at one of their gaza clinics was a child between 10 and 14. 21-year-old afaf najar tells us she can't stop shaking. >> there is nothing we can do.

even in the place i'm in is already almost out of water. almost out of food. >> reporter: and amid the chaos, 17 americans still missing. some believed to be among the dozens of hostages taken by hamas. earlier today, secretary of state antony blinken speaking before heading to israel. >> we have a number of americans who remain unaccounted. we are working very closely with the government of israel to determine their whereabouts and if they have been taken hostage by hamas, to work to secure their release. we stand with israel. we'll continue to do so. >> reporter: and israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu making an historic announcement. the creation of a unity government, working with his political adversaries after years of widespread political unrest that spilled out onto the streets. for the fifth day, taking a bloody toll on both sides of the border, as israel's army mobilized for a ground offensive. hundreds of thousands

of reservists are being called to serve with others enlisting volunteer only, but joining them, israel forces from every corner of the world, rushing back to their homeland to take up arms and fight for israel. >> all of my unit was called nagar, shalom meuhedet vasari. >> oyefeso garayua midas that feeling of unity extends to israelis like noy offering his service offering his service. he first joined the israeli military in 2009 while he was living in canada. >> i was in the paratroopers unit. it was the regular three-year-long military service that for israeli citizens is compulsory. ever year since then, eve been doing reserve duty once a year for three to four weeks. >> reporter: the entrepreneur with an mba from michigan is preparing for more than his own journey back to israel. >> the army isn't always ready to have over 500,000 soldiers come, mobilize, partake in a war. so you have equipment that needs to be upgraded. you have food. you have even the small things like toilet paper that needs to be provided for hundreds of thousands of soldiers. >> juju: what did you say to your parents? >> no one wants to say good-bye. no one wants to say, i don't

know if i'll come back. no one wants to face that reality. >> juju: your mom has three sons going into the army? >> yeah, three boys. we all enlisted on the first day. >> juju: i can't imagine what your mother's going through. >> yeah. if you have three sons, you didn't know what was going on with them, you had to text them, are you okay, are you okay? it's not may what a mother wants to do. >> juju: while thousands of israelis make their way back to the country with a sense of duty, millions of palestinians wondering where they might find safety. in terms of gaza, what are you hearing about conditions there? >> we have a reporter in gaza, but it has been extremely difficult to even get in touch with him because of the power blackouts. today the sole power plant in gaza ran out of fuel, meaning gazans are going to be plunged into complete darkness. >> reporter: she grew up in texas, an american journalist

who's lived in the west bank for seven years. >> gaza officials are warning hospitals or the brink of collapse because no medical supplies are being let in, there's no fuel, there's no power. at the same time, you have more than 80% of gazans who rely on humanitarian aid, are not receiving food supplies or the aid that they typically do receive. so things are getting worse by the moment. >> juju: we're talking about fuel running out at the electricity plant, water being out for days. how is that affecting life? >> in terms of fleeing the air strikes, there is nowhere to flee in gaza. i mean, you have a population of more than 2 million people, almost half of which are children, living in one of the most densely populated places on the earth. there are no bomb shelters to go to in gaza. >> there are heavy air strikes above us, and they are close.

we can hear them. was that one of the bombs? we don't know where they are bombing. my god. we're not allowed to go in or out of gaza. they bombed the crossing. no one can go in, no one can go out of gaza strip. we are living under siege, and they are trying to kill us in all ways. >> reporter: 21-year-old tala herzala, a palestinian student in gaza, has been sharing videos of her family home. >> these are our bags that we packed. if we had to leave the because at any as he first joine israeli military in 2009 while he was living in canada. >> i was in the paratroopers unit and, you know, it was the regular three year long military service that for israeli citizens is compulsory. and every year since then i've been doing reserve duty once a year for about 3 to 4 weeks. >> but the entrepreneur with an mba from michigan is preparing f books know, i took them anyway. >> we can't sleep.

they bombed everything, literally everything. hospitals, schools, universities. >> reporter: with israeli troops massing at the gaza border, noy is in position awaiting orders with the protracted ground war all but certain. what is the mood among your comrades in arms? >> people who just finished the army and they're 21. people who are 62 years old. people with kids. people with wives. people with families in homes. and no one wants to be here, but it's just our duty, our duty is calling. we are coming to public duty. people are sad. people are nervous. people are scared. we're also ready. we're going to go in, we're going to do our mission. >> juju: when we come back, how gaza became so contested and how hamas rose to power in the region. . my university

is bombed, but i don't know. i took them anyway. we can't stay back. they bombed everything. they literally bombed everything. hospitals schools, universities with israeli troops massing at the gaza border, noy is in position awaiting orders with the protracted ground war all but certain, what is the mood among your comrades in arms? >> well, you have people safetg that matters. we designed smarter ways to detect motion for fast emergency response. we create hd cameras so you can see what's happening in your home from anywhere. all powered by fast protect technology exclusively from simplisafe for faster police response. now install our advanced system your way. >> have a pro set it up or easily do it yourself. >> there's no safe like simplisafe type two diabetes. simplisafe type two diabetes. discover i got the power of 3. i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. i'm under 7. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. i'm lowering my risk. adults lost up to 14 pounds. i lost some weight. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles.

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the words fall out? honestly i want to say be brave. for you. say what's experts say. >> but they lost. >> not really. not where it c. think of saw you, you. >> juju: the gaza strip. it's a narrow region along the east coast of the mediterranean, roughly the size of philadelphia. but in many ways, it's become the crux of the conflict between israelis and palestinians. how did 139 square miles become so complicated and so combustible to so many? the gaza strip. >> it's a narrow region along the east coast of the mediterranean, roughly the size of philadelphia. but in many ways it's become the crux of the conflict between israelis and

palestinians. so how did 139mi■s become so complex and so combustible to so many. long before hamas's shocking and gruesome attacks on israel? this past weekend to see baby carriages holes in them and blo who goes up to a baby and kills a baby? >> juju: there existed a long and complicated history between the israelis and the palestinians. created in 1948, israel became a symbol of security and belonging for the jewish people. >> israel wasn't born out of the ashes of the hol holocaust, it was worn on a pledge of "never again." that's something that's haunted every generation of israeli leaders, including benjamin netanyahu. that's part of the resonance of this attack, that this is the worst single loss of jewish life in one day since the holocaust. >> juju: 1948 is also remembered as the nakvah, or catastrophe, by the palestinians. hundreds of thousands of whom were forced out of or fled their homes. 20 years later, the then fledgling jewish nation was besieged by its neighbors. >> the country was attacked by syria and egypt.

it's the yom kippur war. but those were armies, state armi armies. >> reporter: after the six-day war, israel won, seizing control of the territories of gaza, the west bank, and the golan heights. by the 1980s as palestinian anger grew over the israeli presence, hamas emerged with one key goal -- eradication of israel. >> if you read their charter, if you see what hamas is all about, they really, really hate jews. they are violently anti-semitic. they want to carry out another genocide. they want to destroy the state of israel. >> juju: a glimmer of hope in 1993. the historic oslo accords signed by israel and the palestinian liberation organization, giving palestinians some self-government. but hamas never recognized the deal, continuing to attack israel with suicide bombers and other deadly assaults. by 1997, the united states designated hamas a terrorist organization. its militants striking with

lethal precision over the past weekend. >> you have to ask, what objective are they actually accomplishing? ultimately, i would argue that extreme violence backfired. because in fact, it did lead to the downfall of al qaeda. it led to the downfall of islamic state. i predict it will lead to the downfall of hamas. >> reporter: 2005, the palestinian authority was left in charge. in a stunning development, hamas won parliamentary elections taking control the following year. there have been no elections in gaza since. israel and egypt imposed a blockade in 2007 that partially sealed off the territory from the outside world. the israeli government saying the move was meant to protect their citizens from hamas. with more than 2 million residents, the gaza strip is one of the most densely populated areas on earth with 80% of the population estimated to be living in poverty. nearly half the population is under 14 years old.

resources and access are strictly controlled by israeli authorities. the palestinian resistance grew. some used tunnels like these going under the border to launch attacks in israel. >> there's no question that this was a very sophisticated and clever assault. and like all successful insurgent forces what hamas managed to do was to find kind of low-tech counters to negate the firepower and surveillance advantage of their adversaries. >> juju: with support from iran, hamas would launch rocket attacks into israel and face retaliatory air strikes and israeli military crackdowns. since 2019, hamas has been led by a group of decentralized leaders, many who have gone underground, including ismail haneya, chosen as hamas' political leader in 2017. most people don't know much about ismail. the u.s. declared him a terrorist, yet he's the nominal

leader? >> probably in qatar, his base of operations. there are other shadowy figures who are much more directly involved in directing hamas military operations. it's not just one individual. this is not like an osama bin laden figure that you want to eliminate. >> juju: for nearly three decades, the leader most often behind the israeli response, benjamin netanyahu. he's long been affectionately nicknamed "bei bei," educated at top u.s. schools, mit and harvard. he's served as the lo longest-tenured prime minister in history. what explains his staying power? >> netanyahu has a bloc, a base of voters who really, you know, come out for him time and time again. for them, they call him king bebe. he's managed to lock his base. >> juju: his increasingly

right-wing base cheering the expansion into the west bank. >> the right-wing government's policies have meant in recent years that resources have been diverted from protecting these very fragile southern communities in israel and instead battalions were sent to the west bank to protect jewish settlers. >> juju: netanyahu's leadership has often been mired in controversy. >> he's standing trial for corruption on three charges. but he himself has really kind of cultivated the far right as an influential bloc. >> juju: throughout much of this year, hundreds of thousands of israelis took to the streets to protest the far-right judicial reforms that would diminish the power of the judiciajudiciary. clearly in recent months, we saw a lot of domestic about did that weaken their defensive stance? >> israel's enemies thought

israel was weak because of this division over the bill netanyahu was pushing. >> juju: as hundreds of thousands of israelis mobilize for combat, many of those dissenters shifting focus. a country now bound together against hamas. >> people are volunteering to fight. israelis are getting on airplanes and coming back to israel so they can fight because they are so horrified by what's happened. i think there is much greater resiliency, strength, and adaptability in democracies than their enemies often realize. i think hamas will learn that, now it has awoken the sleeping tiger of israel. >> juju: "nightline" continues when we come back. for alarm, so dad brought nose was caue puffs plus lotion to save it from harm. puffs has 50% more lotion and brings soothing relief. don't get burned by winter nose. a nose in need deserves puffs indeed. america's #1 lotion tissue. she found it. the feeling of finding the psoriasis treatment she's been looking for. sotyktu is the first-of-its-kind,

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♪ >> juju: of course, we'll have much more on the war in israel with complete coverage overnight and on "good morning america." that's "nightline" for tonight. thanks for staying up with us. we'll see you right back here tomorrow. good night, america. we made it! bmo has arrived. hello? you said it.