JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military has sought to assure the public it can achieve the two goals of its war on Hamas simultaneously — toppling the strip’s militant rulers and rescuing some 230 hostages abducted from Israel.

But as the army ramps up airstrikes and ground incursions on the blockaded enclave, laying waste to entire neighborhoods in preparation for a broader invasion, the anguished families of hostages are growing increasingly worried those aims will collide — with devastating consequences.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the nation Saturday night that the military has opened a “second stage” in the war against Hamas by sending ground forces into Gaza and expanding attacks from the ground, air and sea.

Casting the war as a fight for his country’s very survival, he warned that the assault would only intensify ahead of a broad ground invasion into the territory.

JERUSALEM (AP) — As an Israeli ground offensive in the Gaza Strip looms in its most devastating war yet with Hamas, one of the greatest threats to both its troops and the 2.3 million Palestinians trapped inside the seaside enclave is buried deep underground.

An extensive labyrinth of tunnels built by the Hamas militant group stretches across the densely populated strip, hiding fighters, their rocket arsenal and over 200 hostages they now hold after an unprecedented Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian air defense shot down over 30 Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea and the Crimean peninsula overnight Saturday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Sunday.

“The air defense systems in place destroyed 36 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the Black Sea and the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula,” the ministry wrote on Telegram.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday invited the U.S. business community to grab the new opportunities from China's high-quality growth and high-level opening up and contribute to the improvement of China-U.S. ties.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during a meeting with representatives of U.S. business community and other sectors in Washington.

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Two days after cellular and internet service abruptly vanished for most of Gaza amid a heavy Israeli bombardment, the crowded enclave was coming back online Sunday as communications systems were gradually being restored.

(AP) --- Police across Maine were alerted just last month to “veiled threats” by the U.S. Army reservist who would go on to carry out the worst mass shooting in the state’s history, one of a string of missed red flags that preceded the massacre.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A fight between two groups turned deadly in Florida when a shooting in a Tampa street during Halloween festivities resulted in two deaths and 18 people hospitalized early Sunday morning, police said. One suspect is in custody and at least one more is being sought.

At least two shooters opened fire just before 3 a.m. on the 1600 block of East 7th Avenue in the Ybor City area, Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw said during a press conference at the scene.

TOKYO, Oct 29 (NNN-NHK) – Japan has logged the 1,000th case of organ donations from brain-dead people, 26 years after the country’s organ transplant law came into force in 1997, according to the Japan Organ Transplant Network.

The 1,000th donor was a man in his 60s, who had been declared brain-dead at a hospital in western Japan, based on the law, the network said. His organs were harvested yesterday, and his heart, lungs, liver and kidneys were to be transplanted to recipients.

JERUSALEM, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Elon Musk said on Saturday that SpaceX's Starlink will support communication links in Gaza with "internationally recognized aid organizations", prompting Israel's communication minister to say Israel would fight the move.

Musk said in a post on social media platform X that it was not clear who has authority for ground links in Gaza, but we do know that "no terminal has requested a connection in that area".

BEIJING, Oct 29 (APP): Pakistan National Pavilion at the Sichuan Agriculture Expo in Chengdu has introduced the famous touristic sites in Pakistan and displayed a number of the agricultural goods produced by the country.

More than a dozen Pakistani companies displayed their agricultural products here. The Pavilion attracted great interest from the participants attending the Expo.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, Moin ul Haque, inaugurated the Pavilion.

Russia. October 29. /TASS/: Russia is sparing no effort for the release of hostage kept by Hamas, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Sunday.

"We are doing our best on all the tracks. First, this is political work in international formats, in the United Nations, to lobby the most important thing - namely, to cease fire, stop violence, to achieve what is generally called de-escalation," she said in an interview with the Voskresny Vecher (Sunday Evening) With Vladimir Soloviov on the Rossiya-1 television channel.