1,000 people dead in Isreal-Gaza war

Following the big surprise attack from Gaza by the Palestinian militant group, the number of fatalities in the Israel-Gaza conflict has increased to around 1,000.

After Hamas launched a barrage of missiles at Israel on Saturday and sent in fighters who shot dead civilians and kidnapped at least 100 others, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu braced the startled and grieving nation for a "long and difficult" war to come.

Israel has suffered its heaviest losses since the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, when it came under attack from a coalition led by Egypt and Syria, and the conflict has heightened Middle Eastern tensions.

“Israel was caught flat-footed by the unprecedented attack. I’ve heard multiple comparisons to 9/11, and many Israelis are struggling to understand how this could have happened, ” said Jonathan Panikoff, director of the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative.

Israeli airstrikes on 800 targets in Gaza, which many feared may be the start of a ground invasion, resulted in at least 370 deaths, according to officials, while many more were injured throughout the battle zone.

To combat stubborn Hamas fighters in the south, where bodies of civilians had been discovered scattered over roadways and in town centres, tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers had been sent there.

“The enemy is still on the ground,” said military spokesman Daniel Hagari as a second night fell after the attack, adding that Israel was reinforcing its military strength near the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli army engaged in fierce gun fights as it attempted to capture the desert areas close to the coastal enclave, free Israeli hostages, and evacuate all nearby areas.

“We’ll reach each and every community until we kill every terrorist in Israel,” vowed Hagari, a day after Hamas fighters launched their shock offensive and surged into Israel using vehicles, boats and even motorised paragliders.

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