Israel and the Gaza Strip are at war. Since Hamas launched a surprise and spectacular offensive on Israel on Saturday morning, the eruption of violence has left more than 300 dead and 1864,<> wounded on the Israeli side, Hebrew media reported Sunday morning.
The armed group Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a rocket and artillery attack on Sunday morning, saying it was "in solidarity" with the Palestinian people. The group said in a statement that the attack targeted three posts, including a "radar site" in the Shebaa Farms, a piece of land occupied by Israel since 1967 and which Lebanon claims as its own.
In response, Israeli artillery struck southern Lebanon on Sunday in response to fire from the area, the IDF said in a statement issued shortly before 07:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. "Israeli artillery is in the process of striking the area of Lebanon from which a fire originated," the statement said.
Ground Combat
On Saturday night, ground fighting between Israeli soldiers and "hundreds" of undercover fighters continued into the night in "22 locations," according to an Israeli army spokesman. The infiltrators captured several Israelis on Saturday, the number of whom remains unclear. The spokesman simply mentioned a "grave situation involving hostages" within a 20-kilometer radius of the eastern Gaza Strip.
As of Sunday morning, Israeli security forces were still searching parts of southern Israel for infiltrators. An unknown number were captured or killed by security forces. Others returned to Gaza with hostages, including women, children and the elderly, according to local accounts.
According to the Times of Israel media outlet, hostages in Kibbutzim Beeri and Ofakim were freed by security forces overnight, and a police station in Sderot overrun by terrorists was also liberated. Ten terrorists were killed in the operation, according to authorities, Israeli authorities said.
Schools closed
Shortly before 22:00 a.m. on Sunday (256 GMT Saturday), the Israeli army struck several buildings in Gaza as rocket fire continued from the territory, according to AFP journalists. The army claims they were Hamas "command centers." Hamas' health ministry claimed Sunday that 1788 Palestinians have been killed and <>,<> others wounded in the Gaza Strip in recent hours, most of them killed in Israeli retaliatory strikes.
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What happened today is unprecedented in Israel," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged, vowing that the army would use "all its might" to "destroy the capabilities" of Hamas. "It is a war ... And we will win it," he said of the deadliest escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in decades. "All these places where Hamas is hiding... We're going to make ruins of it." "We are on the verge of a great victory," Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said.
The conflict caused significant disruption at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International Airport, and many airlines canceled flights to Tel Aviv over the weekend. Schools will remain closed on Sunday, the beginning of the week in Israel.