Israeli military faces one of its deadliest days as ground operations expand in Gaza. Here's the latest

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his government's condolences Sunday after 10 Israeli soldiers were killed during military operations in Gaza on Saturday.

It was one of the deadliest days for Israeli troops since the conflict began, and the deaths bring the total number of Israeli soldiers killed in the Gaza ground offensive to at least 153, according to a CNN count.

"This is a difficult morning, after a very difficult day of fighting in Gaza," Netanyahu said.

The prime minister reiterated Israel's commitment to the war, saying that "we are continuing with full force, until the end, until victory, until we achieve all of our goals."

The update on the Israeli military deaths came as Israel announced Saturday it had expanded the ground operation of its forces in the southern and northern Gaza Strip. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it engaged in fierce battles over the weekend and destroyed and seized weapons and underground infrastructure from Hamas.

Meanwhile in Gaza, at least 20,258 people have been killed in the enclave since October 7, with another 53,688 people wounded, according to a statement from the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in the enclave on Saturday.

Here are other top headlines to catch up on:

• IDF says it truck 200 targets: The IDF said on Sunday that its ground, aerial and naval forces struck approximately 200 targets in Gaza over the past day after announcing it was expanding its ground operations. In northern Gaza, the IDF said its troops located a Hamas weapons compound inside a civilian structure, which was located adjacent to schools, a mosque and a medical clinic.
• Doctors accuse Israeli troops of atrocities at hospital in Gaza: Israeli soldiers raiding a hospital in northern Gaza desecrated the bodies of dead patients with bulldozers, let a military dog maul a man in a wheelchair, and shot multiple doctors even after vetting them for terror links, according to allegations by staff and patients. The claims relate to an eight-day operation by the IDF at the Kamal Adwan Hospital last week, which the military alleges was being used as a command and control center by Hamas.
• Israel's military decisions are not influenced by other countries: Decisions involving Israel's military operations are based on its own assessments and not influenced by other countries, Netanyahu said Sunday, following claims that he was dissuaded from launching a strike against Hezbollah on the advice of US President Joe Biden.
• US and Israeli leaders discuss "phasing" of war: Netanyahu's comments came a day after Biden and the Israeli prime minister discussed “objectives and phasing” of the Israel-Hamas war during a call Saturday, according to the White House. Biden told reporters that he had a long conversation with Netanyahu, and he did not press for a ceasefire. Netanyahu said he expressed his appreciation for the US position at the United Nations Security Council.
• Christmas canceled in Bethlehem: Local leaders made the decision last month to scale back festivities in solidarity with the Palestinian population, as heavy fighting raged between Israel and Hamas in the devastated Gaza Strip. Many here have ties to Gaza through loved ones and friends, and a sense of misery has fallen upon the city revered by Christians as the birthplace of Jesus Christ. Meanwhile, Pope Francis asked Christians to think of those suffering on Christmas due to war, referencing those in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Israel and Ukraine.