Posted by At least 300,000 Israeli reservists were called up on Monday in preparation for a possible ground invasion of Gaza, while Israeli airstrikes continued throughout the day.
Israel’s defense minister has promised a “complete siege” of the coastal strip, and on Monday, fighting broke out again between Israeli soldiers and Islamist Hamas terrorists at the border with Gaza.
Secretary General of the United Nations António Guterres pleaded for calm, saying that while he understood “Israel’s legitimate security concerns,” he was distraught that the “extremely dire” situation for civilians in Gaza “will only deteriorate exponentially.”
However, Israeli commanders have promised enormous and prolonged response for Hamas’ fatal attacks on Israel from the Gaza strip on Saturday.
Fears of a wider and bloodier battle were stoked as Israeli gunships attacked targets in southern Lebanon.
Israel’s response, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “will change the Middle East.”
According to a statement, Netanyahu warned leaders from Israeli towns in the south that Hamas would suffer “a harsh and terrible” response. “This is just the start.”
In a state of emergency, he pleaded with the opposition to form a government.
In a nationally televised address, he declared, “We are engaged in a mission for our homeland, a war to secure our existence, a war that we will win.”
Netanyahu said Israelis would no longer be at odds with one another. All of us are one.
Israel’s latest death toll from Saturday’s Hamas attacks: 900 people dead, 2,600 injured. This is the biggest civilian carnage in Israel’s modern history.
Since then, official statistics indicate that over 4,500 missiles have been launched at Israel.
Meanwhile, at least 687 people were killed and over 3,800 were injured due to Israeli airstrikes on densely populated Gaza, as reported by the health ministry there.
At least 150 people, including women, children, and the elderly, were captured by Hamas terrorists and returned to Gaza.
According to NAN, it is thought that several nationalities are represented among the detainees, including Israelis.