Death toll in Israel rises to 1,200
In Israel, the death toll from Hamas attacks has risen to 1,200. During the night, Israel's air force bombed more than 200 targets in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas shelled Tel Aviv, among other places.
The number of deaths in Israel from major attacks by the radical Islamic group Hamas has risen to at least 1,200. Israeli state broadcaster Kan reported this early in the morning. At least 3,000 others were injured. The “Jerusalem Post” and other media also reported these figures, citing the broadcaster. An Israeli military spokesman later confirmed 1,200 dead and more than 2,700 injured in Saturday’s major Hamas attack.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Air Force continued its counterstrikes in the Gaza Strip during the night. Dozens of fighter jets attacked more than 200 targets in the Al-Furqan area, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said early this morning. For the third time in 24 hours, large-scale attacks were carried out in the Gaza Strip. More than 450 targets were hit.
Al-Furqan, a neighborhood in the northern Gaza Strip, is used by Hamas as a terrorist center. The IDF said that numerous terrorist attacks against Israel were carried out from there.
UN: 180,000 people homeless in Gaza
Hamas-affiliated media reported the attacks hit homes in Gaza City and the southern city of Khan Younis. Five people were killed in an attack on a house in the Sabra district of Gaza City, a doctor said. Residents asked for help on social media and reported numerous collapsed buildings. In some cases up to 50 people are trapped and rescue workers cannot reach them.
The number of Palestinians killed in Israel’s airstrikes in the Gaza Strip has risen to at least 950. The Ministry of Health in Gaza said around 5,000 more people were injured.
According to the United Nations (UN), more than 180,000 people are homeless in the Gaza Strip, many living on the streets or seeking protection in schools. A municipal building used as an emergency shelter was hit. Survivors reported numerous deaths. “No place in the Gaza Strip is safe, as you can see, everywhere is being bombed,” said Ala Abu Tair, 35, who had sought refuge with his family in Abassan Al-Kabira, near the border.
Fire from both sides
Since Saturday, Israeli attacks have destroyed more than 22,600 homes and ten health facilities and damaged 48 schools, according to the Palestinian Foreign Ministry. Hamas repeatedly uses civilians as protective shields in its positions in the Gaza Strip.
While Israel bombed the Gaza Strip, Hamas fired rockets toward Tel Aviv and the center of the country. Rockets were also fired towards Israel from Lebanon and Syria.
In the evening, the first transport plane carrying “sophisticated” American ammunition arrived at the Nevatim air base in southern Israel, the Israeli internet newspaper “The Times of Israel” reported, citing the Israeli Defense Forces. The ammunition enables “significant attacks and preparations for further scenarios”.
Netanyahu: “Brutality not seen since the Holocaust”
Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the USA, the EU and Israel, caused the worst massacre of civilians since the founding of Israel in a major attack on the border area on Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the attack “brutality the likes of which has not been seen since the Holocaust.” Hundreds were “massacred” and families wiped out in their homes, Netanyahu said in a telephone conversation with US President Joe Biden on Tuesday. “They took dozens of children, tied them up, burned them and executed them. They beheaded soldiers.”
