After the major attack on Israel, the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip continued shelling its arch-enemy during the night. There were heavy rocket attacks against several cities, including the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv. In response, the Israeli military bombed additional Hamas command centers. According to media reports, at least 300 people have died in Israel so far. Around 1,590 people were injured. At least 232 people were killed and almost 1,700 injured on the Palestinian side in the Gaza Stripas the local Ministry of Health announced.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a tough reaction in the Gaza Strip. “We will turn all the places where Hamas is organized and hides into islands of rubble,” Netanyahu said in a speech on Saturday evening. He called on residents of the Gaza Strip: “Flee from there now, for we will act everywhere and with all our might”. The war will take time, said Netanyahu. “There are still challenging days ahead.”
According to the military, Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, fired more than 3,000 rockets at Israel during the day on Saturday, according to the military. At the same time, armed Palestinians advanced into Israel by land, sea and air that morning. According to the military, several Israelis were abducted to the Gaza Strip. A military spokesman spoke of a “significant number”. Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU, USA and Israel, spoke of dozens of abductees.
Meanwhile, in the background on Saturday evening in Israel there were talks about the formation of an emergency government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered the two opposition leaders Jair Lapid and Benny Gantz to join such a government, a spokesman for Netanyahu’s Likud party said. Lapid had previously signaled his willingness to do so. However, according to media reports, a meeting between Lapid and Gantz was said to have failed to reach an agreement.