<\/p>\n
Israeli troops fought to regain control of the desert around the Gaza Strip and evacuate people from the embattled border area on Monday, as the death toll from the conflict with Hamas surged above 1,100 by the third day of clashes.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israel on Sunday to prepare for a \u201clong and difficult\u201d conflict a day after Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise assault<\/a> from Gaza, firing a barrage of rockets and sending a wave of fighters who gunned down civilians and took at least 100 hostages.<\/p>\n More than 700 Israelis have been killed since Hamas launched its large-scale attack, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Monday \u2014 its worst losses since the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.<\/p>\n Gaza officials reported at least 413 people killed in the impoverished and blockaded enclave of 2.3 million people, which was hammered by Israeli air strikes on 800 targets ahead of what many feared may be a looming ground invasion.<\/p>\n Tens of thousands of Israeli forces were deployed to battle holdout Hamas fighters in the south, where the bodies of civilians had been found strewn on roads and in town centres.<\/p>\n \u201cThe enemy is still on the ground,\u201d military spokesman Daniel Hagari said as a second night fell after the massive opening attack.<\/p>\n The conflict has had a global impact, with several other countries reporting nationals killed, abducted or missing \u2014 among them Brazil, Britain, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Nepal, Thailand and Ukraine.<\/p>\n Oil prices soared more than four per cent Monday, sparking concerns about possible supply shocks from the crude-rich region. Brent jumped 4.7pc to $86.65 and West Texas Intermediate was up 4.5pc at $88.39 in early Asian business.<\/p>\n President Joe Biden ordered US ships and warplanes to move closer to Israel in a show of support on Sunday, while sending fresh military aid after attacks by Hamas.<\/p>\n The Pentagon said it was sending the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and its accompanying warships to the eastern Mediterranean, while boosting fighter aircraft squadrons in the region.<\/p>\n US Central Command confirmed on Sunday afternoon that ships and planes had begun moving to their new posts.<\/p>\n The White House, which said that \u201cseveral\u201d American citizens had been killed in the violence, has moved quickly to affirm US backing for Israel after Saturday\u2019s surprise attack from the Gaza Strip, vowing \u201crock solid\u201d support and warning other parties to stay out of the conflict.<\/p>\n Biden on Sunday spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and \u201cconveyed that additional assistance for the Israeli Defense Forces is now on its way to Israel with more to follow over the coming days,\u201d the White House said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe leaders also discussed ongoing efforts to ensure that no enemies of Israel believe they can or should seek advantage from the current situation,\u201d it said in a statement.<\/p>\n The US president further \u201cpledged his full support for the Government and people of Israel in the face of an unprecedented and appalling assault by Hamas terrorists.\u201d<\/p>\n Hamas later accused the United States, a major supplier of arms to Israel, of \u201cactual participation in the aggression against our people\u201d by moving the aircraft carrier.<\/p>\n US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he was sending forces to \u201cbolster regional deterrence efforts\u201d after discussions with Biden.<\/p>\n As well as the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier, this deployment includes a guided missile cruiser and four guided missile destroyers, Austin said in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe United States government will be rapidly providing the Israel Defense Forces with additional equipment and resources, including munitions,\u201d added Austin, who also spoke with his Israeli counterpart on Sunday.<\/p>\n The movement of US ships and planes and the aid to Israel \u201cunderscores the United States\u2019 ironclad support for the Israel Defense Forces and the Israeli people\u201d.<\/p>\n The United States on Sunday afternoon led calls for condemnation of a Hamas assault on Israel at the United Nations Security Council.<\/p>\n \u201cI expect to hear from the other Council members very strong condemnation of these heinous acts of terrorism committed against the Israeli people and their government,\u201d senior US diplomat Robert Wood told reporters.<\/p>\n A number of Americans were killed in the violence, a US National Security Council spokesperson said Sunday evening, without giving any further details. Earlier Sunday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Americans may also have been taken hostage in the attacks.<\/p>\n He told ABC<\/em> that \u201cthis is a massive terrorist attack that is gunning down Israeli civilians in their towns, in their homes, and as we\u2019ve seen so graphically, literally dragging people across the border with Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, you can imagine the impact this is having throughout Israel. And the world should be revolted at what it has seen.\u201d<\/p>\n State and local authorities throughout the United States \u2014 including in New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Houston \u2014 said there would be increased security presence at US synagogues in the coming days, though there was no specific threat.<\/p>\n Western capitals have condemned<\/a> the attack by Hamas, which Washington and Brussels consider a terrorist group.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s foes have praised the assault, including Iran whose President Ebrahim Raisi voiced support when he spoke with the leaders of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group.<\/p>\n Pro-Palestinian protests took place in the United States, Iraq, Pakistan and other countries, while Germany and France were among nations stepping up security around Jewish temples and schools.<\/p>\n In the Egyptian city of Alexandria, a police officer opened fire \u201cat random\u201d on Israeli tourists on Sunday, killing two of them and their Egyptian guide before he was arrested.<\/p>\n Netanyahu \u2014 who leads a hard-right coalition government but has received pledges of support from political opponents \u2014 has vowed to turn Hamas hideouts \u201cto rubble\u201d and urged Palestinians there to flee.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are embarking on a long and difficult war that was forced on us by a murderous Hamas attack,\u201d Netanyahu wrote<\/a> on X, formerly Twitter.<\/p>\n Israeli attacks have reduced several Gaza residential towers to rubble and destroyed a mosque in Gaza\u2019s Khan Yunis as well as the central bank.<\/p>\n Shock and dismay gripped Israel after at least 100 citizens were captured by Hamas and abducted into Gaza, with images circulating on social media of bloodied hostages.<\/p>\n Yifat Zailer, 37, said she was horrified to see online video footage from Gaza that showed her cousin and the woman\u2019s children, aged nine months and three years.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the only confirmation we have,\u201d she told AFP<\/em>, her voice breaking with emotion, and adding there was no information on her cousin\u2019s husband or her elderly parents.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter the army took control of the kibbutz, they weren\u2019t at home,\u201d she said. \u201cWe assume they were kidnapped \u2026 We want to know what their condition is, we want them to return safe. They\u2019re innocent civilians.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel also came under attack from the north when Lebanon\u2019s Hezbollah launched guided missiles and artillery shells Sunday \u201cin solidarity\u201d with the unprecedented Hamas offensive, without causing any casualties.<\/p>\n Israel responded with artillery strikes across the UN-patrolled border.<\/p>\n \u201cWe recommend Hezbollah not to come into this,\u201d said army spokesman Richard Hecht. \u201cIf they come, we are ready.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel was stunned when Hamas launched<\/a> their multi-pronged offensive on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, with at least 3,000 rockets raining down as fighters infiltrated towns and kibbutz communities and stormed an outdoor rave where many revellers were shot dead.<\/p>\n Panicked Israelis hiding in their homes told reporters that the fighters were going door to door and shooting civilians or dragging them away.<\/p>\n \u201cIsrael was caught flat-footed by the unprecedented attack,\u201d said Jonathan Panikoff, director of the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative. \u201cI\u2019ve heard multiple comparisons to 9\/11, and many Israelis are struggling to understand how this could have happened.\u201d<\/p>\n Hamas has labelled its attack \u201cOperation Al-Aqsa Flood\u201d and called on \u201cresistance fighters in the West Bank\u201d and \u201cArab and Islamic nations\u201d to join the battle.<\/p>\n Its attack came half a century after the outbreak of the 1973 conflict called the Yom Kippur War<\/a> in Israel, sparking bitter recriminations for what was widely seen as an enormous intelligence failure<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a very bad failure here,\u201d said Sderot resident Yaakov Shoshani, 70. \u201cThe Yom Kippur War was small compared to it, and I was a soldier in the Yom Kippur War.\u201d He recalled the terror of the attack on the town near Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cI held a kitchen knife and a large screwdriver, and I told my wife that, if something happens, to make sure to read the Kaddish<\/em> (prayer) over me, if you stay alive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so we stayed close to each other at home, shut everything and turned off the lights.\u201d<\/p>\n Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh has predicted \u201cvictory\u201d and vowed to press ahead with \u201cthe battle to liberate our land and our prisoners languishing in occupation prisons\u201d.<\/p>\n An Israeli survivor of the attack on Sderot, Yitzhak, 67, said he now expected the army to \u201cconquer Gaza house by house, clean the area there properly, and not leave Gaza until they get the very last rocket out of the ground\u201d.<\/p>\n Many Gaza residents voiced defiance. \u201cWe will not give up, and we are here to stay,\u201d said Mohammed Saq Allah, 23. \u201cThis is our land, and we will not abandon our land.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nUS deploying ships closer to Israel, sends munitions<\/h2>\n
\n\u201cWe can confirm the deaths of several US citizens,\u201d the spokesperson said, offering \u201cdeepest condolences\u201d to victims and their families.<\/p>\n\u2018No respite\u2019<\/h2>\n
Abducted to Gaza<\/h2>\n
\u2018We will not give up\u2019<\/h2>\n