By Ken Afor
As Israel called up an unprecedented 300,000 reservists and imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip, fueling concerns that it was planning a ground assault, the Islamist militant Hamas movement threatened to execute an Israeli captive every time it bombed a Palestinian home without warning.
Hamas’ warning follows a devastating attack by the militant organisation over the weekend. The violence – which has already claimed more than 1,500 lives – has led to calls for an end to hostilities and the protection of civilians as well as international statements of support for Israel.
Israeli TV stations reported that 900 Israelis had died as a result of the Hamas attack, along with at least 2,600 injuries and dozens of captives.
A music festival in the desert where some of the hostages were taken place saw 260 Israelis, the majority of them young, shot to death.
In a ferocious speech, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed vengeance and accused Hamas – which is backed by Iran – of killing children who were tied up and other atrocities.
He declared: “This vile enemy wants war, and it will get war.”
Israeli airstrikes on the blockaded enclave since Saturday have resulted in at least 687 Palestinian deaths and 3,726 injuries, according to the Health Ministry of Gaza.
According to media reports and eyewitness accounts, the strikes also destroyed some roads and homes, as well as apartment buildings, a mosque, and hospitals.
The private Palestinian Telecommunication Co., offices were also bombed by Israel which might have an impact on services for mobile phones, landlines, and the internet.
On Monday, the strikes persisted well into the night. The Israeli military claimed to have struck targets in the Gaza Strip from the sea and the air, including a weapons depot it claimed belonged to Islamic Jihad and Hamas targets near Gaza’s coast.
The threat to kill Israelis among the dozens of hostages after the surprise attack on Saturday morning was made by Hamas spokesperson Abu Ubaida on Monday.
He declared that for every surprise Israeli bombing of a civilian home, Hamas would broadcast the execution of an Israeli captive.
The Israeli military did not react to that threat right away. In the deadly cross-border incursion over the weekend, according to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, more than 100 people were captured by Hamas.
