A Merkava battle tank column amassed in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon on Oct. 11, 2023.

The death toll is rising in Israel and the Gaza Strip, as missiles rain down and hostilities head into the fifth day of hostilities, according to CNBC’s live blog tracking developments on the Israel-Hamas war.

Israeli military said it is amassing troops near the Gaza Strip, as part of its response following a brutal multi-pronged attack from Palestinian militant group Hamas over the weekend.

Israel has since ordered a “complete siege” of the Gaza Strip — cutting off supplies of water, fuel, electricity and food to the area and its over two million inhabitants.

The US, whose State Secretary Antony Blinken is due to arrive in Israel on Thursday, is discussing a possible humanitarian corridor from the Gaza Strip with Egypt, amid U.N. concerns over damage against civilians. The Hamas terrorist offensive of Saturday also targeted civilian sites, including a music festival.

Rippling into the financial sphere, the Israeli crisis could impact the oil markets, a top Russian official warned. Crude prices are typically sensitive to political turbulence in the Middle East, where much of the world’s oil production is based.

Meanwhile, 17 U.K. nationals, including children, are feared dead or missing following the Saturday terrorist attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas against Israel, British public broadcaster BBC said Wednesday.

The news agency cited an anonymous official U.K. source. CNBC has not independently verified the report.

Roughly 1,200 Israelis have died since the weekend start of the conflict, with at least another 973 killed in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.