FROM THE ENCOUNTER IN BEIRUT. The clashes in Jerusalem have spread to all fronts. Israel has sent four battalions of reinforcements to the West Bank and mobilized its forces on the border with the Gaza Strip. Between yesterday and this night Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched over two hundred rockets into Israeli territory. The aviation with the star of David reacted with 36 raids aimed “at militant infrastructure”. The victims are at least 24. The Palestinians, and the UN, however, denounce the killing of three children. For Israel, however, only military targets were hit. The military leaders urged the inhabitants of southern cities not to leave their homes and always keep close to shelters.
Countries around the world have called for calm. The United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom have urged that tensions be lowered as soon as possible. Violence escalated tonight after Palestinian militants fired rockets into Jerusalem. In response, the Israeli army launched airstrikes against militant targets in the Gaza Strip. Hamas had threatened to strike after hundreds of Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police in Jerusalem yesterday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated that Hamas has “crossed the red line” and that Israel would respond “with great force”.
In recent days, there has been the worst violence in Jerusalem in years, with clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters in the Old City. The clashes occurred due to growing Palestinian anger over the threatened eviction of families from their homes in East Jerusalem by Jewish settlers, fueled by a month of altercations between protesters and police in the predominantly Arab part of the city. The Palestinian Red Crescent said more than 700 Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli security forces in Jerusalem and the West Bank.