Follow the latest updates on the Israel-Gaza violence here.
The US Navy is sending an aircraft carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean, boosting air squadrons in the region, and will supply the Israel forces with materiel including munitions, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Sunday.
The strike group is led by the nuclear-powered USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier, and accompanied by several support vessels including guided missile cruisers and destroyers.
The news comes a day after Israel announced it was at war following an unprecedented attack by Hamas that has left hundreds dead and prompted the call-up of thousands of Israeli reservists.
Washington has received that reports that "several Americans" are among the dead, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
“We’re working overtime to verify that,” Mr Blinken said on CNN. “At the same time, there are reports of missing Americans. We're working to verify those."
Mr Austin said the US has also taken steps to bolster air force F-35, F-15, F-16 and A-10 fighter aircraft squadrons in the region.
“In addition, the United States government will be rapidly providing the Israel Defence Forces with additional equipment and resources, including munitions,” the Pentagon chief said in a statement.
“The US maintains ready forces globally to further reinforce this deterrence posture if required.”
He said the first security assistance was on the move and would arrive within days.
The transfer of munitions to Israel is likely going to add strain to the Pentagon's supplies, which are stretched thin as it tries to provide for Ukraine's armed forces in their counter-offensive against Russia.
In January, the Pentagon reportedly started pulling ammunition from a stockpile it had in Israel and transferring it to Ukraine.
The Pentagon did not comment on supply strains.
“Strengthening our joint force posture, in addition to the materiel support that we will rapidly provide to Israel, underscores the United States' ironclad support for the Israel Defence Forces and the Israeli people,” Mr Austin said.
US President Joe Biden spoke earlier with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express “deep sympathy for all those missing, wounded, and killed", the White House said.
“He pledged his full support for the government and people of Israel in the face of an unprecedented and appalling assault by Hamas terrorists", including taking families as hostages.
An unknown number of Americans are among the hostages that Hamas took as it attacked Israel from the Gaza Strip, the Israeli ambassador to the US said on Sunday.
Michael Herzog was asked on CBS News if there were Americans among the soldiers and civilians that the Palestinian militant group abducted in southern Israel.
“I understand there are but I don't have details,” he said.
Saturday's attack came as Israel and Saudi Arabia appear to be getting closer to making a historic deal to establish diplomatic ties. Mr Blinken said Hamas might have been trying to prevent that from happening.
“Certainly that could have been part of the motivation,” he said.
The Israel Gaza conflict – in pictures
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People survey the damage from a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip in Tel Aviv. AP -
Fire and smoke rise following an Israeli air strike, in Gaza city. AP -
A missile explodes in Gaza city during an Israeli air strike. AFP -
New York City Police hold back Israeli supporters during a protest between Palestinian and Israeli demonstrators. EPA -
Relatives of an Israeli missing since a surprise attack by Hamas militants near the Gaza border during a press conference in Ramat Gan, Israel. AP -
A relative of an Israeli missing since the attack by Hamas militants near the Gaza border sheds tears during a press conference in Ramat Gan, Israel. AP -
Palestinians inspect the rubble of a building after it was struck by an Israeli air strike, in Gaza city. AP -
A car burnt during an infiltration by Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip, near Sderot, Israel. AFP -
Israeli border police take cover by a vehicle, near Sderot. Reuters -
Israeli police check the occupants of a vehicle near Ashkelon, Israel. Bloomberg -
Lebanese soldiers overlook the Israeli town of Metula at the Lebanese side of the border in Kfar Kila, Lebanon. AP -
Women mourn during a funeral of a family killed in Israeli strikes on the Palestinian city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. AFP -
Soldiers walk past an Israeli police station damaged during battles to dislodge Hamas militants who were stationed inside. AFP -
Palestinian firemen check the remains of a residential building destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City. AFP -
People walk around the ruins of a building destroyed in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City. AFP -
A Palestinian woman's home which was damaged during Israeli airstrikes on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
Israelis inspect the rubble of a building in Tel Aviv after it was hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip. AFP -
Palestinians search for casualties in a house destroyed by Israeli strikes in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters -
A Palestinian man reacts next to the ruins of a house destroyed in Israeli strikes in Khan Younis. Reuters -
Israeli troops unload 155 mm artillery at an undisclosed location on the border with the Gaza Strip. AFP -
A Palestinian man stands in front of the rubble of Gaza city's Al-Watan Tower, which was destroyed in Israeli airstrikes. AFP -
People near a mosque destroyed in Israeli airstrikes in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
People examine a building destroyed in Israeli air strikes in Gaza city. AFP -
Israeli troops gather at an undisclosed location on the border with the Gaza Strip. AFP -
Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip. Reuters -
Fire and smoke rises amid an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. AFP -
Palestinians inspect the ruins of the Palestine Tower after an Israeli missile struck. EPA -
Rockets launched from the Gaza Strip landed in Tel Aviv. Reuters -
Black smoke rises after an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. EPA -
The departure board at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv displays a host of cancelled flights. AFP -
A building hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip. Getty Images -
A police officer stands near a burned car at a scene in Tel Aviv. Getty Images -
A woman walks past a damaged site after a rocket landed in Tel Aviv. Reuters -
Israeli police inspect the damage from a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip. AP -
Firefighters, rescue and security workers at the site, where a rocket hit a residential building in Tel Aviv. EPA -
Residents of the Israeli city of Netivot bordering the Gaza Strip wait to be evacuated to central Israel. AFP -
Israeli ambulances wait to evacuate wounded residents from the city of Sderot. EPA -
A car amid the rubble of a destroyed tower after an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. AFP
