JERUSALEM, Undefined -- Israeli forces battled holdout Hamas fighters and pounded targets in the Gaza Strip on Sunday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of a 'long and difficult' war ahead after the Palestinian militants launched a massive surprise attack.
A plume of smoke rises above buildings in Gaza City during an Israeli air strike, on October 8, 2023. Israeli forces battled holdout Hamas fighters and pounded targets in the Gaza Strip on October 8 as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of a"long and difficult" war ahead after the Palestinian militants launched a massive surprise attack.
"Our mission for the upcoming 24 hours is to evacuate all residents" from areas around the Gaza Strip, he told journalists amid the fighting that has left hundreds dead on both sides. The worst fighting in decades has killed more than 200 Israelis and wounded over 1,000, leaving bodies of civilians strewn on roads, while on the Gaza side at least 313 have died and over 1,700 were reported wounded.
Gun battles raged Sunday between Israeli forces and Hamas fighters in multiple locations, including at a police station in Sderot where special forces"neutralised 10 armed terrorists", police said. Netanyahu -- who leads a hard-right government but has received support from political opponents during Israel's national emergency -- has vowed to turn Hamas hideouts"to rubble" and urged Palestinians there to flee as air strikes continued.
Israel's army massed tanks in the north after earlier firing artillery on Lebanon in response to a shot from the area.Hamas has labelled its major attack"Operation Al-Aqsa Flood" and called on"resistance fighters in the West Bank" as well as in"Arab and Islamic nations" to join the battle. Under the cover of the rocket barrage, hundreds of Hamas fighters tore through the militarised Gaza border fence and crossed into Israel.
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