• published: 20 Jul 2014
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Indiscriminate bloodshed continues in Gaza as 20 more Palestinians are killed in Israeli shelling as hospitals overflow with women and children The number of dead are said to include the son, daughter-in-law and two small grandchildren of senior Hamas leader Israeli aircraft have struck more than 2,000 targets in Gaza and killed over 300 Palestinians since start of the fighting Israel lost its first soldier during the offensive after Sgt. Eitan Barak, 20, was killed behind enemy lines He was a member of Battalion 931 of the Nahal Brigade, one of the IDF's five major infantry formations At least 20 people have been killed in a dawn strike in Gaza - including the son, daughter-in-law and two small grandchildren of a senior Hamas leader. Gaza City's Shijaiyah neighbourhood has come under heavy tank fire as Israel widened its ground offensive against Hamas, causing hundreds of residents to flee. The dead and wounded have rep[reportedly been left in streets, with ambulances unable to approach. Early this morning, dozens of wounded from Shijaiyah were rushed to Gaza City's central Shifa Hospital. Frantic parents carried children wounded by shrapnel and the emergency room quickly overflowed, forcing doctors to treat some patients on mattresses in a hallway. Throughout the night, loud explosions shook Gaza as Israeli flares lit up the night sky and fighter jets flew low over the densely populated territory. The mass casualties in the district in northeast Gaza appeared to be the heaviest since Israel launched its offensive on the Palestinian territory on July 8 after cross-border rocket strikes by militants intensified. The Hamas military wing said its fighters exchanged fire with Israeli forces in Shijaiyah and a nearby neighborhood. The sound of gunfire could be heard from the centre of the city. The heavy fighting came as U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon headed to Qatar to try to push stalled cease-fire efforts forward. Hamas last week rejected an Egyptian call on both sides to halt hostilities, saying it first wants guarantees that Israel and Egypt will significantly ease their border blockade of Gaza. Hamas has sought involvement of other countries, such as Qatar, in any cease-fire negotiations, saying Egypt cannot be the sole mediator. The Islamic militant group is deeply distrustful of Egypt's rulers, who last year deposed a Hamas-friendly government in Cairo. Since the start of Israel-Hamas fighting almost two weeks ago, 353 Palestinians have been killed and 2,700 wounded, according to Gaza Health Ministry official Ashraf al-Kidra. One-fourth of the deaths have been reported since the start of the ground offensive late Thursday. Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra said overnight airstrikes killed 12 people while the the death toll from the offensive has gone up to more than 340 Palestinians. An Israeli soldier was killed after the start of the ground operation, probably by friendly fire, and an Israeli civilian was killed earlier this week. The sound of tank fire and heavy machine guns mixed with the mosques' morning call to prayer along the Gaza-Israel border. The Israeli military said three soldiers were wounded in overnight fighting, one seriously. Israeli troops were staying close to the border and have yet to enter. Yesterday Israeli bulldozers demolished more than a dozen tunnels in the Gaza Strip and Palestinian authorities reported intensified airstrikes and shelling Israeli soldiers uncovered 34 shafts leading into about a dozen underground tunnels, some as deep as 30 meters, that could be used to carry out attacks, the military said. Still, Palestinian gunmen disguised in Israeli uniforms managed to infiltrate Israel from Gaza using another tunnel and today killed two Israeli soldiers and injured several others, the military said. At least one Palestinian was killed in the clash. Hamas said 12 of its fighters participated in the attack and that the group took some of the soldiers' weapons back to their hideouts. In two other confrontations, Palestinian gunmen jumped out of tunnels and shot at soldiers who returned fire. Two of the gunmen were killed. Another militant died when the explosive vest he was wearing went off, the military said. In one instance, the militants were found with tranquilizers and handcuffs, indicating they 'intended to abduct Israelis,' according to the military. Israel launched the ground operation late Thursday after hundreds of airstrikes on the Hamas-ruled territory failed to halt unrelenting rocket fire that has increasingly targeted major Israeli cities. Prime Minister David Cameron and US president Barack Obama have discussed the worsening situation in Gaza during a phone conversation, Downing Street said. A No 10 spokeswoman said: 'Both leaders reiterated their support for Israel's right to take proportionate action to defend itself from the barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza.'