Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Hamas is the “enemy of civilisation” and will be “crushed”.
Speaking alongside US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Israel, Mr Netanyahu thanked Washington for its support since Hamas’s co-ordinated multi-pronged assault at the weekend – adding the militant group should be treated “exactly as ISIS was treated”.
Mr Netanyahu said “no country should harbour” Hamas militants – and those that do should be sanctioned – as he condemned the “murder of children in front of their parents”, the “burning of people alive” and “beheadings”.
Reiterating the US’s support for Israel, Mr Blinken told Mr Netanyahu he stood before him “not only as US Secretary of State, but also as a Jew”.
Israel prepares for ground invasion – follow live conflict updates
“The message that I bring to Israel is this – you may be strong enough on your own to defend yourselves, but as long as America exists you will never, ever have to,” he said.
Warning against any “adversary” thinking of “taking advantage of the current crisis” to attack Israel, he added: “The United States has Israel’s back.”
While Israeli civilians are kept hostage by Hamas and Israel continues to bombard Gaza, Mr Blinken said it is “so important” to take every possible precaution to avoid harming innocent people.
During his visit to the Middle East, Mr Blinken will try to help secure the release of those hostages – with Israel claiming they have identified 97 captives – and hold talks about a humanitarian corridor in Gaza.
Some of the hostages are American.
It comes as Israel continues to block goods from entering the Gaza Strip, warning it will not break its siege until all hostages taken by Hamas are freed.
The Red Cross has pleaded for fuel to be allowed in to prevent hospitals from “turning into morgues” in the area which is home to 2.3 million people.
Palestinians look at the destruction of a house in the aftermath of a strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip
Burnt cars are abandoned in a car park near where a festival was held before an attack by Hamas gunmen in southern Israel
In a sign of the conflict’s potential to spread further across the Middle East, Syria’s pro-government media reported Israeli airstrikes targeted airports in the country on Thursday.
Al-Watan Daily and Dama Post did not give further details other than both airports – in the capital Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo – were out of service with runways damaged.
In the fight with Hamas, the Israelis say they are destroying the group’s ability to govern following Saturday’s surprise attack.
Bodies of civilians killed in Hamas’s attacks show signs of torture “unlike anything seen before”, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said.
While many anticipate the bombardment of Gaza will precede a ground offensive, IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) spokesperson Lt Col Richard Hecht said no decision has been made on a ground operation yet.
“Anyone who will come near the fence will be shot – anyone,” he said on Thursday morning, adding Hamas is still trying to come into Israel through the sea. “No one’s coming in, no one’s coming out.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Bombardment at dawn in Gaza City
Read more:
What would Israel’s ground attack look like?
How Hamas militants prepared for brutal ground assault
Meanwhile, the UN has said about 340,000 people have been displaced in Gaza, where a Sky News team spoke to a mother who found her home had been “bombed entirely”.
“There’s nothing left,” she said. “There’s nothing visible in the house. It’s been bombed entirely… where shall I go?”
In Gaza’s Al Shati refugee camp, residents were sifting through rubble with their bare hands to search for survivors.
Rescue workers say they lack fuel and equipment to dig victims out of collapsed buildings.
