At least 155 killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza
Israeli aircraft launched air attacks across Gaza on Saturday, killing at least 155 people, including the Hamas police chief and other officials, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources.
The Hamas military wing issued a statement saying it had fired a rocket toward the Israeli city of Askelon, and Israeli sources confirmed one Israeli was killed and two hurt when the rocket made a direct hit on a house.
Palestinian medical sources said 250 people were wounded in the air raid in Gaza.
The strikes followed several days of rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel.
A statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Israeli aircraft attacked "a series of Hamas targets and infrastructure facilities."
"The Air Force activity came as a result of the continuation of terror activity by Hamas terror organization from the Gaza Strip, and the duration of rocket launching and targeting Israeli civilians," the IDF statement said.
Hamas immediately threatened violent retaliation against Israel.
Inside one Gaza hospital, doctors appeared overwhelmed; the floors were covered with wounded men and some children.
"Many killed and many injured," a Gaza-based reporter said. "People are running in the streets."
The Egyptian government sent 20 ambulances, along with medical personnel, to Rafah at its border with Gaza to help with the wounded, an Egyptian official said.
The reporter, who is not being named for safety reasons, said the attacks were the biggest he had seen in his decades in Gaza.
Hamas police stations were hit, killing many senior police commanders, the reporter said.
Maj. Gen. Tawfeeq Al-Jaber, a senior commander in the Hamas police force, was killed, Palestinian sources said.
The IDF said the targets "include Hamas terror operatives that operated from the organization”s headquarters, training camps and weaponry storage warehouses."
"The IDF will continue its operations against terror in accordance with constant state assessments held by the IDF Chief of General Staff. This operation will be continued, expanded and intensified as much as will be required," the IDF said.
A tenuous six-month truce between the Hamas government in Gaza and Israel expired a week ago. Under the Egyptian-brokered deal, Hamas agreed to end militant attacks on Israel from Gaza, and Israel agreed to halt raids inside the territory and ease its blockade on humanitarian goods.
Israel on Friday opened three border crossings for the first time in 10 days to allow food, medical supplies and other humanitarian goods into Gaza, but Palestinian rocket attacks continued.