GAZA/OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Israel bombed what it
said were underground tunnels used by Hamas and Hamas fired rocket barrages at
Israeli cities as fighting spilled into a second week on Monday amid mounting
international calls for a ceasefire.
اضافة اعلان
There was no sign of any imminent end to the most serious
hostilities in years between Israel and Hamas in
Gaza, where 2 million
Palestinians live.
The sound of explosions roared overnight as dozens of
Israeli fighter jets bombed what the military said was an underground tunnel
system used by Hamas. Witnesses said roads, security buildings, and training
camps had been attacked in and around Gaza City.
After Gaza rockets were fired at the Israeli cities of
Beersheba and Ashkelon, Israeli aircraft struck nine residences belonging to
high-ranking Hamas commanders, the military said. Some of the homes were used
for weapons storage, it said.
Later in the morning, Palestinian media reported that Israel
had struck a factory in the northern Gaza Strip. Video on social media showed a
column of thick black smoke rising into the air.
There were no reports of casualties on either side of the
border.
World concern had already deepened after an Israeli air
strike in the Gaza Strip that destroyed several homes on Sunday and which
Palestinian health officials said killed 42 people, including 10 children, and
persistent rocket attacks on Israeli towns.
Injecting more urgency into Washington's calls for calm, US
Secretary of State
Antony Blinken wrote on Twitter: "All parties need to
deescalate tensions — the violence must end immediately", after he spoke
with Egypt's foreign minister about ongoing violence in Israel, the Gaza Strip,
and the occupied West Bank.
At a UN Security Council meeting on Sunday, the United
States said it had made clear to Israel, the Palestinians and others that it
was ready to offer support "should the parties seek a ceasefire".
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's campaign in
the Gaza Strip was continuing at "full force", and that deterrence
had to be achieved to prevent future conflict with Hamas.
"We are acting now, for as long as necessary, to
restore calm and quiet to you, Israel's citizens. It will take time,"
Netanyahu said in a televised address after his security Cabinet met on Sunday.
The Gaza Health Ministry put the death toll since the
hostilities flared at 197, including 58 children and 34 women. Ten people have
been killed in Israel, including two children, Israeli authorities say.
Hamas began its rocket assault last Monday after weeks of
tensions over a court case to evict several Palestinian families in East
Jerusalem, and in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near
the city's Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site, during the Muslim holy
month of Ramadan.
Sustained calm
US President Joe Biden said his administration is working
with all parties towards achieving a sustained calm.
"We also believe Palestinians and Israelis equally
deserve to live in safety and security and enjoy equal measure of freedom,
prosperity, and democracy," he said in a pretaped video aired at an event
marking the Muslim Eid Al-Fitr holiday on Sunday.
In New York, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the
Security Council that the United Nations was "actively engaging all sides
toward an immediate ceasefire" and urged them "to allow mediation
efforts to intensify and succeed." UN envoys have helped to mediate past
truces between Israel and Hamas.
Washington, a strong ally of Israel, has been isolated at
the United Nations over its objection to a public statement by the Security
Council on the violence because it worries it could harm behind-the-scenes
diplomacy.
Jordan's King Abdullah said his Kingdom was involved in
intensive diplomacy to halt the bloodshed.
The Israeli military said that Hamas, has fired more than
2,800 rockets from Gaza over the past week.
An Israeli anti-missile system intercepted many of the
rockets, while some fell short of the border.
Hamas said its attacks were in retaliation for Israel's
"ongoing aggression against civilians", including the air strike in
Gaza City on Sunday that destroyed a number of homes.
The Israeli military said civilian casualties were
unintentional and that its jets attacked a tunnel system used by militants,
which collapsed, bringing the homes down. Hamas called it "pre-meditated
killing".
On US network CBS' "Face the Nation" program,
Netanyahu defended another Israeli air strike a day earlier that destroyed a
12-storey building where the Associated Press and the Al Jazeera TV network had
offices.
He said the structure also housed the militant group's
intelligence office, making it a legitimate target. He said Israel had passed
information about the building to US authorities. A US intelligence official
did not respond to a request for comment.
The Associated Press has condemned the strike and called on
Israel to present evidence that Hamas was in the building.
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