Israel air strikes kill 26 Palestinians, rockets fired from Gaza
The Israeli military said the civilian casualties were unintentional. It said its jets attacked a tunnel system used by militants, which collapsed, bringing the homes down. Hamas, the militant group that controls Gaza, called it « pre-meditated killing ». As the UN Security Council convened to discuss the worst Israeli-Palestinian violence in years, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s campaign in Gaza was continuing at « full force ». Netanyahu also defended an Israeli air strike on Saturday that destroyed a 12-storey building where the Associated Press and the Al Jazeera TV network had offices. He said the structure also housed a militant group’s intelligence office and was thus a legitimate target. « We are acting now, (and) for as long as necessary, to restore calm and quiet to you, Israel’s citizens. It will take time, » Netanyahu said in a televised address after meeting with his security cabinet. The death toll in Gaza jumped to 192, including 58 children, its health ministry said, amid an intensive Israeli air and artillery barrage since the fighting erupted last Monday. Ten people have been killed in Israel, including two children, Israeli authorities say. RESCUE EFFORTS At the homes destroyed during the Israeli attack in a Gaza neighbourhood early on Sunday, Palestinians worked to clear rubble from one of the wrecked buildings, recovering the bodies of a woman and man. « These are moments of horror that no one can describe. Like an earthquake hit the area, » said Mahmoud Hmaid, a father of seven who was helping with the rescue efforts. The Israeli military said its aircraft had targeted at a Hamas tunnel system that ran beneath a road in Gaza City.
