Israel orders a 'full siege' of Gaza after surprise attack.

What Indigenous Peoples' Day is about. Doctors reveal their favorite fall foods for heart health. October 9, 2023 | [VIEW IN BROWSER]( This is TODAY September 6, 2023 | [VIEW IN BROWSER]( This is TODAY The death toll continues to rise after the surprise attack by Hamas on Israel over the weekend, which led the Israeli defense minister to declare an all-out assault on the Gaza Strip this morning. Plus, a mom who gave a note to a pediatrician to help avoid her daughter from being body-shamed, and the autumn foods that doctors eat for heart health. The Latest   [Israel orders 'full siege' of Gaza after surprise Hamas attack.]( Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered a ["full siege"]( of the [Gaza Strip]( this morning in the wake of unprecedented attacks by Hamas. "No power, no food, no gas, everything is closed," Gallant said. "We are fighting human animals and we act accordingly." The [Israeli army said it has regained control]( of multiple areas from Hamas fighters after reports that fighting was ongoing at up to eight locations inside Israel, an Israeli official said. More than 1,000 people have been killed since Hamas' surprise attack on Saturday, including at least 700 in Israel, according to officials. The number of people killed in Gaza since the surprise Hamas attack and retaliatory Israeli airstrikes has risen to 493, the Palestinian health ministry said this morning. In a harrowing scene on Saturday, Hamas militants [killed 260 people at a music festival]( in the Israeli desert, a nongovernmental Israeli rescue organization said. Also, dozens of Israelis [have been taken hostage]( by Hamas, Israeli government officials said. [Here's the latest](. [What is Indigenous Peoples' Day? Why it's being celebrated today.]( Indigenous peoples across the country will honor and celebrate their community and also teach the lasting effects of colonialism today as part of [Indigenous Peoples' Day](. The day serves as a [counter-celebration to Columbus Day](, a federal holiday in honor of Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, who sailed to the Americas in 1492. Indigenous communities have protested the celebration of Columbus, whose arrival set "in motion a genocide of the people who were already here," Shannon Speed, a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation and director of the UCLA American Indian Studies Center, told NPR in 2019. [Learn more here](. [📝 A mom slipped a note to a pediatrician to avoid her daughter being body-shamed.]( Ahead of her [9-year-old daughter's trip to the pediatrician](, North Carolina mom Caroline Hardin [wrote a letter]( asking the doctor to “refrain from using qualitative words like ‘good’ or ‘bad’ when discussing weight.” Hardin shared the letter on TikTok, where it generated a host of supportive comments. Most importantly, her daughter's pediatrician took it to heart. “The doctor came in and asked, ‘Can I show you the growth chart with no numbers on it?’ And I gave her the thumbs-up,” Hardin told us. “We left the appointment feeling so good.” [Continue reading](. [🍠6 doctors reveal what they eat during the fall for gut, brain and heart health.]( Dr. Adrienna Jirik, a gastroenterologist at Cleveland Clinic, told us there's something about fall that "makes me want to nestle in my kitchen, slow down, take a deep breath, reflect, sip on some hot cider and cook." Same! But how do you maintain healthy eating among all those hearty fall foods? We [spoke with 6 doctors about what fall foods they eat](, and it's clear a trip to the farmers market is in order. Seasonal squash, stew loaded with vegetables and sheet pan roasts are all on their menu. And pumpkin pie (yessss) is a dessert favorite. [See them all here](. Start TODAY   Achieve your life and health goals with easy tips. You've probably heard it a million times when you tell someone you're stressed: "Just breathe." But if you want a real anxiety reliever, it goes beyond a few deep breaths and then plowing back into your day. TODAY fitness contributor Stephanie Mansour has [6 yoga breathing exercises]( that are more deliberate and controlled than normal breathing. Box breathing, lion's breath and the forceful exhale of "breath of fire" are just some of the techniques that can help you the next time that traffic jam or neighbor's dog that won't stop barking is ready to put you over the edge. [See Stephanie demonstrate them all here](. What's for dessert?   Allow us to do the meal-planning for you. If they're enough to satisfy two giant NFL stars, you know [Donna Kelce's chocolate chip cookies]( will be a game-changer for your dessert. They're the same cookies Mama Kelce presented her sons Travis and Jason before the Chiefs and Eagles played each other in the Super Bowl in February, and she also baked a batch for the TODAY family during her recent appearance on the show. If chocolate chip cookies aren't your thing, we also have [Taylor Swift's Chai Sugar Cookie recipe](. No connection between the two whatsoever. Nope, not one bit. Daily Delight   A little pick-me-up before you go. One Cowboys fan has much better memories of "Sunday Night Football" than the ones from last night's tough loss to the unbeaten San Francisco 49ers. Haley Waterman's [water broke while she and her husband, Tyler, attended the Cowboys' game]( against the New England Patriots on "SNF" a week earlier. A team of medics took Haley to an ambulance as she [gave a thumbs-up on her way out]( of the stadium. "I definitely had tears rolling down my face. But my husband wanted a picture and I said, 'I ain't gonna make us look bad.' I put my game face on," she told us. While Tyler's favorite team, the Patriots, took the loss, he was a winner in the end when they welcomed daughter Delaney Lou at 4:11 a.m. on Oct. 2. Now comes the bigger question: Will she root for the Cowboys or Patriots?   Thanks for letting us in your inbox! See you again tomorrow morning. Written by Scott Stump | Edited by Philip Caulfield and Shane Lou Want to refer a friend?[Subscribe here]( Send us Feedback Follow us on Facebook More TODAY Newsletters 30 Rockefeller Plaza New York, NY 10112 [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Unsubscribe](listvar=sub_today) | [Privacy]( | [Contact]( [MANAGE SUBSCRIPTION]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE](listvar=sub_today) | [PRIVACY]( | [CONTACT](