蜜芽传媒

Loud explosions have been heard in the Gaza Strip into the night and clouds of smoke are billowing in the air as Israel continues pounding the territory, three days after Hamas militants鈥� bloody assault inside Israel. Power cuts and infrastructure damage have severely impacted the area. Images published on the 蜜芽传媒 website by our team show clouds of smoke billowing over buildings, lit from beneath by flames sparked by an Israeli air strike.

Meanwhile the armed wing of Hamas which rules Gaza has threatened to start killing the hostages it is holding in Gaza, if Israel bombs more civilian homes in Gaza without prior warning. The leaders of the US, Britain, France, Germany and Italy have condemned Hamas for its attack on Israel, saying (in a joint statement) that there was no legitimacy for what they called its "appalling acts of terrorism".

Newsday heard from Tamara Alrifai, spokesperson for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, who says the agency is providing shelter for displaced people looking for somewhere safer to stay within Gaza and expects the figure to increase.

鈥淥ur schools received up to 137,000 internally displaced people up to last night... so 83 of our schools that usually have classrooms and children have become shelters. The situation is very difficult because of the limited clean drinking water and other supplies, and 18 of our own buildings were damaged by strikes nearby.鈥�

(Pic: Smoke rises over Gaza after Israel's retaliatory raids and air strikes in the Palestinian enclave; Credit: EPA)

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