Israel says pressing on with Gaza offensive (Adds Netanyahu comments)
By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Jeffrey Heller
GAZA/JERUSALEM, May 19 (Reuters) - Israel said on Wednesday it was not setting a timeframe for an end to hostilities with Gaza as its military pounded the Palestinian enclave with air strikes and Hamas militants unleashed new cross-border rocket attacks.
Palestinian medical officials said 219 people had now been killed in 10 days of aerial bombardments which have destroyed roads, buildings and other infrastructure, and worsened the already dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Israeli authorities put the death toll at 12 in Israel, where repeated rocket attacks have caused panic and sent people rushing into shelters. Regional and U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire have intensified but so far failed.
Israel says it has no ‘timeframe’ for ending strikes in Gaza
Israeli forces continued to bombard Palestinian territory well into Tuesday morning. Photo: Mahmud Hams/AFP Reuters Reuters
Israel today said it was not setting a timeframe for an end to hostilities with Gaza as its military pounded the Palestinian enclave with air strikes and Hamas unleashed new cross-border rocket attacks.
Palestinian medical officials said 219 people had been killed in 10 days of aerial bombardments which have destroyed roads, buildings and other infrastructure, and worsened the already dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Israeli authorities put the death toll at 12 in Israel, where repeated rocket attacks have caused panic and sent people rushing into shelters. Regional and US-led diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire have intensified but so far failed.
Since then, Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes that it says have targeted Hamas’ infrastructure, and Hamas and other militant groups embedded in residential areas have fired more than 3,700 rockets at Israeli cities, with hundreds falling short and most of the rest intercepted or landing in open areas.
At least 227 Palestinians have been killed, including 64 children and 38 women, with 1,620 people wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not break the numbers down into fighters and civilians. Hamas and Islamic Jihad say at least 20 of their fighters have been killed, while Israel says the number is at least 130. Some 58,000 Palestinians have fled their homes.
By Press Association 2021
Palestinians use a water tanker to try to extinguish a fire at a paint factory after it was hit by an Israeli airstrike, in Rafah, Gaza Strip (Yousef Masoud/AP)
Israeli air strikes killed at least six people across the Gaza Strip and destroyed the home of a large extended family.
The military said it widened its strikes on militant targets to the south amid continuing rocket fire from the Hamas-ruled territory.
Residents surveyed the piles of bricks, concrete and other debris that had once been the home of 40 members of al-Astal family.
They said a warning missile struck the building in the southern town of Khan Younis five minutes before the airstrike, allowing everyone to escape.