In Israel and the Occupied Territories, the toll from Israel’s attack on Gaza Wednesday has reached 13 dead, with another 45 people wounded. The dead included a 12-year-old boy. Israeli tanks backed by warplanes pushed at least a mile into the Gaza Strip in the largest operation since Hamas seized full control earlier this month. The attacks came after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered the disbanding of all Palestinian armed groups. Abbas aide Yasser Abed Rabbo said the Israeli attack will guarantee Palestinian militants reject Abbas’ order to put down their arms. Hamas has offered a long-term truce with Israel in return for a contiguous Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. But Israeli Parliament member Ephraim Sneh said the attacks will continue until Hamas renounces violence and recognizes Israel’s “right to exist.”

Ephraim Sneh: “We don’t need to look for a reason to confront. Hamas is there to attack Israel, and it is our right, if not our duty, to carry out preventive measures to forestall the measure and to pre-empt it. And this is what we are doing, and we will keep on doing it as long as Gaza is a base for terror organizations.”