Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Thirty People Dead as Netanyahu Vows to Intensify Gaza Attacks

THE GUARDIAN: Medics on both sides put death toll at 28 Palestinians and two Israelis after day of fierce confrontation

Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to increase the intensity of attacks on Gaza, after a day of ferocious confrontations that left 30 people dead as Israeli jets and Palestinian militants traded airstrikes and rockets.

As medics on both sides put the death toll at 28 Palestinians, including 10 children, and two Israelis, the Israeli prime minister said there would be no pause. “It was decided that both the might of the attacks and the frequency of the attacks will be increased,” he announced.

Residents in Gaza City reported bombings on high-rise buildings, as families spent the night cowering in basements. On Tuesday evening, a 13-storey tower housing apartments and the offices of officials from Hamas, the Islamist group that rules inside Gaza, was hit by an Israeli airstrike and collapsed. Residents had earlier been told to evacuate. In response, Hamas’s military wing said it had fired 130 rockets towards Tel Aviv, and air raid sirens and then explosions were heard in the coastal city. » | Oliver Holmes in Jerusalem | Tuesday, May 11, 2021