Israel masses ground troops as Hamas rockets rain down

Israel has launched a withering air and ground assault on Gaza in response to repeated Hamas rocket attacks in the most bloody confrontation seen in the region since 2014.

Rescue workers retrieve a body from the rubble in Gaza. Picture: Getty Images

Israel has launched a withering air and ground assault on Gaza in ­response to repeated Hamas ­rocket attacks in the most bloody confrontation seen in the region since 2014.

As tensions continue to soar, Jerusalem is preparing for a possible ground invasion of Gaza, with three brigades of Israeli troops massing at the border, as the international community scrambles to avoid further bloodshed.

Gaza’s health ministry said at least 119 Palestinians, including 31 children, had been killed, while ­Israel said nine people, including a six-year-old boy and an Israeli ­soldier, had been killed by Hamas rockets.

Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, vowed to extract a “very heavy price” from Hamas, saying military action against Gaza, which has involved airstrikes, artillery and tank attacks, would continue for as long as necessary. “I said we’d exact a very steep price from Hamas, and that’s what we’re doing … the last word has not been said and this operation will continue for as long as it’s necessary,” he said.

But Hamas, which has launched almost 2000 rockets into Israel, vowed to continue its ­attacks. “We have much more to give,” a Hamas spokesman known as Abu Obaida said. “The decision to hit Tel Aviv, Dimona and Jerusalem is easier for us than drinking water. Your technology and assassinations don’t scare us.”

The last time Israel’s forces ­invaded Gaza was during 2014 when a two-month conflict left about 2200 people dead.

The sharp escalation of violence followed clashes in Jerusalem between Palestinians, police and right-wing Jews.

Tensions have been fuelled by a push by Israeli settlers to evict ­several Palestinian families from their homes in East Jerusalem. Earlier this week more than 300 people were injured in clashes ­between Israeli police and Arab protesters in Jerusalem.

Mr Netanyahu said Israel was fighting “a campaign on two fronts”, one of which was Gaza and the other was in Israeli cities that had been gripped by the “anarchy” of mob violence. “I again call on the citizens of Israel not to take the law into their own hands; whoever does so will be punished severely,” he said. “We will act with full force against enemies from without and lawbreakers from within in order to restore calm to the state of Israel.”

US President Joe Biden said he had spoken to Mr Netanyahu about how to end the fighting, but Mr Biden was careful not to criticise Israel’s response, saying “there had not been a significant overreaction”.

He said the goal was to “get to a point where there is a significant reduction in attacks, particularly rocket attacks that are indiscriminately fired into population centres”.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for calm, citing the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.

“Out of respect for the spirit of Eid, I appeal for an immediate de-escalation and cessation of hostilities in Gaza and Israel,” he tweeted. “Too many innocent civilians have already died. This conflict can only increase radicalisation and extremism in the whole region.”

The Israel Defence Forces were forced to issue a “clarification”, saying “there are currently no IDF ground troops inside the Gaza Strip” after a military spokesman earlier claimed that there were “ground troops in Gaza”.

However, the prospects of a ground-invasion are rising as Israel gathers its troops at the border while Hamas refuses to curtail its rocket attacks.

The military assault on Gaza followed days of fighting in which Israel has responded to Hamas rocket attacks with more than 600 strikes against targets it described as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad weaponry and infrastructure.

Israeli authorities say Hamas has fired at least 1750 rockets towards Israel, including 300 that fell short of their target. Israel claims that its Iron Dome missile-defence system has had a 90 per cent interception rate.

Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since the militant group seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.