JERUSALEM (AFP) – Israel relentlessly pounded the Gaza Strip yesterday as fighting raged with Hamas around the Gaza Strip and the death toll from the war against the Palestinian militants surged above 1,100.
The Israeli army said it hit more than 500 targets in the blockaded and impoverished Gaza Strip in overnight clashes, while fighting persisted in seven to eight locations inside Israel around the enclave.
It came two days after Hamas launched a barrage of rockets and sent a wave of fighters in a massive attack that took Israel by surprise.
On Sunday, the Israeli government officially declared war on the militant group that controls Gaza and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Israel to prepare for a “long and difficult” conflict.
Israeli air strikes have hammered the impoverished and blockaded Gaza Strip, an enclave of 2.3 million people, with officials there reporting at least 413 Palestinian deaths.
“Overnight IDF fighter jets, helicopters, aircraft and artillery struck over 500 Hamas and targets in the Gaza Strip,” the military said in a statement.
“We’re still fighting. There are between seven to eight open places around Gaza (where) we have still warriors fighting terrorists,” military spokesman Richard Hecht told reporters.
“We thought by yesterday (Sunday) we would have full control. I hope we will by the end of the day,” he added.
Thick plumes of smoke billowed from the Palestinian enclave as the strikes continued in the early hours of the morning, an AFP correspondent reported.
The conflict has had global impact, with several countries reporting nationals killed, abducted or missing.
At least four United States (US) citizens were killed in the attack, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, adding that the toll was likely to rise. Thailand said at least 12 of its nationals were also killed while Nepal reported 10 deaths. They were all labourers working in Israel. Israeli attacks have levelled several Gaza residential towers and destroyed a mosque in Gaza’s Khan Yunis, as well as hitting the central bank.
