More than 3,600 people, including Israeli and Palestinian civilians and soldiers, have died since Hamas launched an attack on an apparently peaceful Israel on Saturday.
By Tuesday evening, however, the Israeli army had already recaptured some of the Gaza border areas, which were invaded by Hamas militants on Saturday. Hundreds of Hamas fighters were also driven out of numerous towns and kibbutzim.
Meanwhile, Israel continues to carry out airstrikes on the Palestinian enclave. However, Hamas militants threaten to kill hostages every time Israel launches an attack on a civilian target without warning.
As of last night, the ongoing airstrikes have forced more than 260,000 people to flee their homes in the Gaza Strip.
Israel says Hamas gunmen have killed more than 1,200 people and wounded more than 2,700 in Israeli cities, towns and kibbutz communities in recent days.
In the kibbutz of Beeri, armed militants of Hamas killed more than 100 people.
The Israeli army said on Tuesday it had found the bodies of 1,500 Islamist militants in the southern areas after retaking control of the area.
Eight Palestinian journalists have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to media unions and officials.
Unrest also broke out in the occupied West Bank, where 15 Palestinians have died since Saturday.
Meanwhile, Hamas appealed to “resistance fighters in the West Bank”, as well as in “Arab and Islamic nations” to join the fight.
This is how the attack unfolds
Hundreds of Palestinian militants caught Israel off guard on Saturday (on the Jewish holiday Simchat Torah) when they fired a total of 5,000 rockets from Gaza into Israel at 06:30.
Explosives and bulldozers were used to breach the security fence around the Palestinian enclave.
After this, many Hamas militants attack the Supernova music festival in the vicinity of Kibbutz Reim, near Gaza. Shots were fired at hundreds of young Israelis and foreigners as they tried to flee.
At least 270 festival-goers were found dead after the attack. Many were taken hostage.
According to Israel, Hamas took about 150 hostages, among them 14 Thai citizens, two Mexicans and an unknown number of Americans and Germans.
By Sunday, Israel had declared war on Hamas.
The statement has since sparked thousands of airstrikes inside Gaza.
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza on Monday, which means “no electricity, no food, no water and no gas” for the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army has deployed tens of thousands of troops to Gaza since the attack and called up 300,000 reservists.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has warned that his country’s military campaign is only the beginning of a sustained war. Netanyahu pledged to destroy Hamas hideouts in Gaza.
