LIVE UPDATES: Siren sounds in Tel Aviv; 16 Palestinians killed in IDF strikes in Gaza
Two armed Palestinians shot dead after crossing border into Israel; Israeli government approves call-up of 40,000 reservists; PM orders IDF to prepare for Gaza ground offensive.
Haaretz.com
Jul. 8, 2014
Israel launched a series of airstrikes on Gaza militants early on Tuesday, dubbing the offensive “Operation Protective Edge.” More than 50 targets were hit in the offensive.
Meanwhile, rocket fire on Israel’s south continued. According to the IDF, eight projectiles were launched between 2 and 6 A.M.
Militants in Gaza fired more than 85 rockets toward Israel on Monday evening, with Hamas openly claiming responsibility for some of the launches for the first time since the current round of fighting began. The rockets hit several major cities in the south and, also for the first time in the current fighting, caused alarms to go off in central Israel and Jerusalem. The barrages lightly wounded two Israelis and caused property damage.
The Israel Defense Forces called up 1,500 infantry and Border Police reservists in preparation for further escalation, after the security cabinet decided on Monday afternoon to intensify attacks against Hamas and other terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip. A senior official said the ministers want to refrain from a large-scale military operation for now, but they instructed the army to prepare for significant expansion of its current operations.
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