Israel Army Attacks Gaza Backed By Air Strikes
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
(Worthy News) – Israeli troops attacked the Gaza Strip early Friday, backed by artillery, tanks, and warplanes, Israel’s military confirmed.
The Israel Defense Forces said they were conducting air and ground assaults in the Palestinian enclave from where nearly 2,000 rockets were fired on Israel in recent days.
Israeli military spokesman Luitenant Col. Jonathan Conricus initially “there are ground troops attacking in Gaza.” But he later clarified that Israeli troops had not entered Gaza, suggesting the possibility of artillery fire from the outside. He provided no further details.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had warned he would react to the relentless rocket attacks that brought life in the southern part of the Jewish state to a standstill.
“I said we would extract a very heavy price from Hamas,” Netanyahu said in a videotaped statement. “We are doing that, and we will continue to do that with heavy force.”
Several barrages fired by suspected Hamas militants who rule Gaza targeted the seaside metropolis of Tel Aviv, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) away.
Israel’s expected military massive reaction came just after midnight. The Israeli military said Friday that air and ground troops struck Gaza in what appeared to be the heaviest attacks yet.
RED FLAMES
Masses of red flames illuminated the skies as the deafening blasts from the outskirts of Gaza City jolted people awake, witnesses saw.
The strikes were so intense that people inside the city, several kilometers (miles) away, could be heard screaming in fear, reporters said.
Similar screams were also heard when Israel was attacked by rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.
Israel’s army did not immediately detail the number or type of troops that had crossed the border into Gaza.
However, the Israeli military had readied at least three brigades of troops for action along the frontier, raising the prospect of an all-out ground invasion of Gaza.
And Israel on Thursday said it was calling up 9,000 reservists ahead of a possible ground invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory.
MEDIATION FAILS?
Egyptian mediators reportedly rushed to Israel for cease-fire efforts but showed no signs of progress.
It came amid rising death tolls on both sides. Gaza’s Health Ministry said the death toll has climbed to 109 Palestinians, including 28 children and 15 women, with 621 people wounded.
The Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups have confirmed 20 deaths in their ranks, though Israel says that number is much higher. Seven people have been killed in Israel, including a 6-year-old boy, authorities said.
The conflict escalated late Monday after hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israeli police were injured in clashes around the al Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem, Islam’s third most sacred site. Jews also revere the area as the site of Biblical temples.
The fighting began while Israel celebrated “Jerusalem Day” Monday, marking its capture of eastern sections of Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Hamas, claiming to be the defender of Jerusalem, fired a barrage of long-range rockets toward the city in response to what it said were Israeli provocations during the earlier clashes with Palestinian protesters.
ISRAEL VIOLENCE
Israel quickly responded with a series of airstrikes attacking hundreds of targets in Gaza.
The strikes set off scores of earth-shaking explosions across the densely populated territory, residents said.
Violence has also spread to several diverse cities in Israel where Arab Israelis have clashed with Jewish Israelis.
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The situation is especially tense in the city of Lod, where four days of rioting included a synagogue and dozens of cars being set on fire, Israeli media reported.
In nearby Ramle, several synagogues were reportedly vandalized by rioters, and a Muslim cemetery was set on fire.
The United Nations Security Council was to gather Sunday to discuss the worst conflict between Israel and Palestinians in years.
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