Israel-Palestine|The attacks

 

Israel-Palestine|The attacks 

US sends aircraft carrier to eastern Mediterranean 

 

The United States is sending the world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, to the Eastern Mediterranean after Hamas's attack on Israel. 

 

This is announced by Defense Minister Lloyd Austin according to AP. The ship, with a crew of 5,000 men, along with cruisers, destroyers and fighter planes will be put on standby to help Israel.  

 

"The United States has forces deployed around the world that stand ready to strengthen this deterrent position if necessary," Austin said in a statement. 

 

 

Smoke over Gaza. Fatima Shbair / AP  

 

Israel-Palestine|Voices on the conflict  

Expert: On the verge of becoming a major regional crisis - likely to involve Hezbollah as well  

 

Israel's war against Hamas looks set to develop into a much wider conflict in the region, says Sky News defense analyst Michael Clarke.  

 

Although the United States has said it does not have concrete evidence that Iran was involved in the Hamas attack, "it is impossible to believe that (Iran) did not know about it, and a lot of Iranian weapons are said to have been used," he continues. 

 

- I note that Iran was very quick to congratulate Hamas earlier, so this is already becoming a very big regional crisis.  

 

The world's major concern – that Lebanon and Hezbollah are drawn into the conflict, backed by Iran – is a highly likely scenario, says Clarke.  

 

 

Mourning in Israel and Gaza. AP   

 

The death toll has exceeded 1,000 in Israel and Gaza - several thousand have been injured  

 

Death toll rises after Hamas attack and Israel's response. In total, more than 1,000 people have now died.  

In Israel, over 700 people have been killed, according to the authorities, according to the Times of Israel. 2,100 have been injured, and over 100 are said to have been kidnapped.  

 

According to the latest update from Palestinian authorities, 370 people have been killed in Israel's counterattack. 

 

The number of injured is stated at 2,200. Israel says it has bombed 800 Hamas targets in Gaza, killing hundreds of Hamas fighters, and capturing dozens. 

 

Israelis inspect devastation in Tel Aviv. Oded Balilty / AP  

 

Desperate families search for their missing relatives: "I'll do anything" 

 

People in Israel are looking for answers to what happened to their missing relatives, several media reports. Both Israeli soldiers and civilians - including several children - are believed to have been taken hostage by the terror group Hamas as part of the weekend's attacks.  

 

Reuters writes that hundreds of people have gathered at a police station near the border with Gaza, hoping for good news. A mother tells the news agency that she handed in her son's hairbrush so that the police can compare his DNA with dead bodies. The son was at an outdoor party when Hamas gunmen struck. 

 

- The last I heard was when he called from the car and said he was trying to get away when they shot at him. I will do anything to find out what happened.  

 

According to CNN, the Israeli military does not know exactly how many have been kidnapped at the moment, but that it is at least tens.  

 

Magnus Ranstorp/Israeli woman at memorial site. TT/AP  

 

Voices about the conflict Terrorist: This is Israel's 9/11  

 

The Hamas attack is Israel's equivalent of the September 11 attacks on the United States. Terror researcher Magnus Ranstorp tells TT.  

 

The attack - which was carried out from land, sea and air - changes the rules of the game, according to Ranstorp. The deterrence of the Israeli military and intelligence services has been damaged, and now they must do everything to restore it, he continues. 

 

- Israel will respond to this extremely harshly against Hamas. Israel will not be satisfied until the leaders of Hamas have been killed, whether they are in Gaza or abroad, says Ranstorp.