29/07/2014 12:44
Israel targets Hamas-controlled sites, warns of 'prolonged campaign'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned in a televised speech of a "prolonged" campaign in Gaza.
Hamas also signaled defiance. Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader whose house was struck in an airstrike early Tuesday, said in a statement that "destroying stones will not break our determination."
The tough words by both sides came amid mounting international appeals for an unconditional cease-fire.
However, Hamas has said it will not stop fighting until it wins international guarantees that a seven-year-old border blockade of Gaza will be lifted. Israel said its troops will not leave Gaza until they have demolished several dozen Hamas military tunnels under the Gaza-Israel border. Late Monday, Netanyahu signaled that Israel is insifying its air- and ground campaign.
Early Tuesday, Israel warplanes struck a series of targets in Gaza City, including Haniyeh's house and government offices, while Gaza's border area with Israel was hit by heavy tank shelling. Flares turned Gaza's night sky orange, and by daybreak, a cloud of thick dust from explosions hung over Gaza City.
The overall Gaza death toll rose to at least 1,110, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Israel says it has lost 53 soldiers, along with two civilians and a Thai worker.