Monday morning news: October 30, 2023

SOUND: [Gaza war]

Israel offensive » The sounds of war continue to echo through the streets of Gaza as Israeli forces pound Hamas targets.

HAGARI: [Speaking Hebrew]

Israeli Defense Force spokesman Daniel Hagari said the IDF surged more troops into the Gaza Strip over the weekend.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking Hebrew]

And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “We must defeat Hamas,” calling it an “existential test” for his country.

Israel–UN debate » But some global leaders, including top United Nations officials continue to condemn Israel’s military response.

As the death toll climbs in Gaza UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says we are witnessing a humanitarian crisis.

GUTERRES: More than 2 million people with nowhere safe to go are being denied the essentials for life—food, water, shelter, and medical care—while being subjected to relentless bombardment.

But in Washington, Republican Sen. J.D. Vance told CBS’ Face the Nation that Hamas controls the entire territory.

VANCE: So if you deliver a large amount of humanitarian assistance, who’s it going to go to? The children in Gaza or the Hamas fighters on the frontline?

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan says Israel is taking measures to minimize civilian casualties, but at the same time …

SULLIVAN: It is absolutely true that Hamas is doing everything in its power to put those people in harm's way, to use them as human shields, to hide rocket infrastructure and other forms of terrorist infrastructure among civilian areas.

U.S. officials say it’s impossible to get a credible estimate of casualties in Gaza. But they do believe that number is likely in the thousands.

GOP field » With the next Republican presidential debate just nine days away, the field is thinning out.

Former Vice President Mike Pence over the weekend announced he is pulling the plug on his campaign.

PENCE: I came here to say it's become clear to me: This is not my time.

Pence heard there at an event in Las Vegas.

Donald Trump again will not participate in next week’s debate. Only three other Republicans have qualified to take part. Pence was not among them.

Talk show host Larry Elder also dropped out of the race last week.

Maine shooter » Police in Maine are still working to make some sense out of a senseless act of violence. Investigators digging into last week’s deadly mass shooting say one thing is perfectly clear.

Maine Commissioner of Public Safety Mike Sauschuck:

SAUSCHUCK: At this point we certainly know that there's a strong mental health cloud over this, what happened, the true tragic scenarios at the both of those locations. We know that there's definitely a mental health nexus to that.

Police across Maine were alerted just last month to “veiled threats” by the U.S. Army reservist one of a string of missed red flags that preceded the massacre.

The 40-year-old shooter killed at least 18 people and wounded many more in Lewiston, Maine last Wednesday. Police later found him dead apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

UAW latest » The United Auto Workers union is ramping up pressure on GM to come to terms on a new labor deal by expanding its strike at General Motors plants.

The company is the final holdout among Detroit’s big-3 automakers after both Ford and Stellantis reached tentative deals with the union over the past week to end a weekslong strike.

UAW President Shawn Fain:

FAIN: At Stellantis, we not only secured a record contract, we have begun to turn the tide on the war on the American working class.

Fain credited his union with—quote—“saving the American dream.”

In the talks between the union and GM, retirement benefits are reportedly one of the main sticking points. The company has more retirees than its Detroit rivals.

Pharmacy strike » Meantime, some pharmacy staff at Walgreens and other large chains are planning to walk off the job today over what they call unsafe working conditions. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: It’s not a union strike. Organizers say it’s a grassroots protest which they’re calling “Pharmageddon.”

The walkout could affect hundreds of stores across several chains.

The workers say pharmacy technicians in particular are underpaid and overworked.

A national survey last year by an industry group showed roughly three out of four pharmacy workers felt they didn’t have enough time to safely perform their duties.

Employees have staged other scattered walkouts at various chain locations over the past month.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: A battle over where to draw the lines in South Carolina.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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