Key Points
- Israel has hammered the Gaza Strip with its fiercest air strikes in decades.
- This is despite a threat from Hamas to kill hostages every time Israel strikes.
- US President Joe Biden has denounced Hamas and stressed US support for Israel.
Israel has bombed Gaza ahead of a potential ground assault against Hamas while US President Joe Biden condemned the Palestinian militant group's surprise attack as "sheer evil" and issued a warning seemingly aimed at its Iranian backers.
Israel's death toll reached 1,200 with more than 2,700 wounded, its military said, from Hamas gunmen's hours-long rampage after breaching the fence around Gaza on Saturday.
Retaliatory strikes on the blockaded enclave have killed 1,055 people and wounded 5,184, Palestinian officials say.
Biden denounced Hamas and stressed US support for Israel following Hamas' attacks.
"There are moments in this life and I mean this literally when the pure unadulterated evil is unleashed on this world. The people of Israel lived through one such moment this weekend," Biden said.
"This is an act of sheer evil."
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, speaking to soldiers near the Gaza fence, said Israel's attacks would only intensify.
"Hamas wanted a change and it will get one. What was in Gaza will no longer be."
The military said dozens of its fighter jets struck more than 200 targets in a neighbourhood of Gaza City overnight that it said had been used by Hamas to launch its attacks.
The Israeli military said its troops had killed at least 1,000 Palestinian gunmen who infiltrated from Gaza.
Palestinian media said Israeli airstrikes had hit homes in Gaza City, the southern city of Khan Younis and in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Residents on social media said many buildings had collapsed, sometimes trapping as many as 50 people.
The United Nations said more than 180,000 Gazans had been made homeless, many huddling on streets or in schools.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said Israeli strikes had since Saturday destroyed more than 22,600 residential units and 10 health facilities and damaged 48 schools.
In another sign of the crisis widening, Israeli shelling hit southern Lebanese towns after a rocket attack by the powerful armed group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran.
The significant escalation is the latest in a long-standing conflict between Hamas and Israel.
Hamas, in its entirety, is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Some countries list only its military wing as a terrorist group.
The UN though did not condemn Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist organisation, due to insufficient support from member states to do so during a 2018 vote.
Israel's next move could be a ground offensive into the Gaza Strip.
The violence, which has claimed more than 2,000 lives, has prompted international declarations of support and public demonstrations for both Israelis and Palestinians and appeals for an end to the fighting and protection of civilians.
UN aid chief calls for immediate release of hostages
The head of the United Nations humanitarian relief agency on Tuesday called for the immediate release of hostages on both sides.
"My message to all sides is unequivocal: The laws of war must be upheld," UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said in a statement.
"Those held captive must be treated humanely. Hostages must be released without delay.
"Civilians must be allowed to leave for safer areas. And humanitarian relief and vital services and supplies to Gaza must not be blocked."
Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, told CNN the number of hostages in Gaza was between 100 and 150.
The Palestinian foreign ministry said Israeli strikes had since Saturday destroyed more than 22,600 residential units and 10 health facilities and damaged 48 schools.
The British, French, German, Italian and US governments issued a joint statement recognising the "legitimate aspirations" of the Palestinian people, and supporting equal measures of justice and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians alike. They also said they would remain "united and coordinated" to ensure Israel can defend itself.
Qatari mediators held urgent calls to try to negotiate freedom for Israeli women and children seized by Hamas in exchange for the release of 36 Palestinian women and children from Israeli prisons.
