And the Israeli military has ordered the 1.1 million residents of
northern Gaza to evacuate to the south within 24 hours.
Israel sent more than 300,000 reservists to its border with
Gaza ahead of a possible ground invasion into the territory.
Hamas is telling residents of Gaza to remain in their homes.
Despite Israel's warning,
the UN is urging Israel to rescind the order saying that
evacuating so many people will be
impossible without devastating humanitarian consequences.
Meantime,
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Tel Aviv earlier today for
meetings with his Israeli counterpart and the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
He spoke in Tel Aviv a short time ago
as the US Secretary of Defense, I am here in person
to make something crystal clear.
America's support for Israel is ironclad.
There is never any justification for terrorism
and that's especially true
if it is rampaged by Hamas
and anyone who wants lasting peace and security for this region
must condemn
and isolate Hamas.
Austin's visit comes after the Secretary of State
Anthony Lincoln's trip to the country yesterday.