The Guardian
2:51 PM - 14 Nov 12 · Details
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Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have held a news conference on the attack.
Netanyahu said that Hamas and Islamic Jihad "intentionally hurt our citizens while hiding behind their own citizens," Haaretz reports.
Barak said Israel is not interested in engaging in war, "but Hamas' provocation in the past days has made it imperative that we act sharply and decisively."
Updated
Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren says the scope of the assault on Gaza "depends on Hamas":
The scope of the IDF's defensive operation depends on Hamas & whether it takes the decision to cease firing missiles on our homes.
President Obama has opened his news conference at the White House. He begins with a discussion of the American economy. After a five-minute statement he begins to take questions. The first one is about the scandal surrounding fallen CIA chief David Petraeus.
We now are seeing multiple reports that Israeli warships are firing from the Mediterranean into Gaza, which has a densely packed population of about 1.5m people living inside 140 square miles.
The IDF confirms the Israeli Navy is striking Gaza.
Haaretz and the IDF say that at least 10 rockets fired from Gaza have been intercepted by the Iron Dome system.
Updated
IDF: 'recommend' Hamas lies low 'in the days ahead'
The IDF has just sent a tweet that appears to announce a major operation on Gaza lasting days. The extent to which Israeli ground troops are involved or will be involved is unclear.
We recommend that no Hamas operatives, whether low level or senior leaders, show their faces above ground in the days ahead.
Updated
Reports of explosion at Zahar home retracted
Haaretz has walked back its earlier report that an explosion had hit the home of Hamas co-founder Mahmoud al-Zahar:
Contrary to earlier report, #Palestinians say explosion took place in house of Rashid Abu Shabak, not Mahmoud al-Zaharhtz.li/QGH47V
President Obama is expected to appear shortly at a pre-planned news conference, at which he was to speak about his re-election and plans for his second term.
Meanwhile Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Warren released a statement in support of Israel:
"We're monitoring the situation closely," Warren said. "We stand by our Israeli partners in their right to defend themselves against terrorism."
The YouTube user Gaza Now has uploaded a video purporting to capture Gaza City this evening with smoke rising from many attack sites. The provenance of the video could not be independently verified.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called for an urgent Arab League meeting on Israel's strikes on Gaza, Reuters reports.
Abbas' urgent call was reported by Egypt's news agency MENA, quoting a Palestinian official in Egypt.
"Barakat al-Fara, the Palestinian ambassador in Cairo and the Palestinian representative in the Arab League, announced that based on instructions from President Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian state had asked for an urgent meeting of the Arab League to discuss the Israeli offense on Gaza strip," MENA said.
Many Twitter users inside Gaza echo an entry that just appeared on Haaretz's live blog reporting an "explosion in house of Hamas cofounderMahmoud al-Zahar, in Gaza."
Zahar, who is in his late 60s, met last month with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It is unclear whether he was wounded in the apparent attack.
Mahmoud al-Zahar, Hamas leader in Gaza and Palestinian Foreign Minister. Photograph: Martin Godwin
The Christian Science Monitor's Dan Murphy:
Wow, Zahar. No confirmation that he's been hit. But if he has been, well, he's the strategic brains of Hamas in Gaza.
UPDATE: Haaretz has walked back its report that Zahar's home has been hit:
Contrary to earlier report, #Palestinians say explosion took place in house of Rashid Abu Shabak, not Mahmoud al-Zaharhtz.li/QGH47V
Updated
As many commenters have noted, the latest assault on Gaza coincides with early campaigning for Israel's parliamentary elections, planned for 22 January.
The IDF says the current assault was provoked by hundreds of missile strikes out of Gaza. Political observers note the attack reflects on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who was to meet with his senior security cabinet "after sundown" tonight, as a strong leader.
The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party has issued a defiant statement condemning the assault, the BBC's Shaimaa Khalil reports.
A statement by #MuslimBrotherhood's #FJP:#Egypt "will not allow the Palestinians to be subjected to Israeli aggression as in the past" #Gaza
Updated
The assault continues.
