UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council called Saturday for a cease-fire in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict centered on the Gaza Strip. 
 
 A council statement approved by all 15 members calls for de-escalation of the violence, restoration of calm, and a resumption of direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians aimed at achieving a comprehensive peace agreement based on a two-state solution. 
 
 The statement calls for "the reinstitution of the November 2012 cease-fire," which was brokered by Egypt, but gives no time frame for when it should take effect. 
 
 Palestinian U.N. envoy, Riyad Mansour stressed, however, that the Palestinians' understanding is that the cease-fire should go into effect immediately. 
 
 "We will observe very closely whether Israel will abide by this call and we hope they do," Mansour told reporters. "If they don't, we have a lot in our arsenal, and we will not allow the Security Council to rest for a minute. It is its job to maintain international peace and security, and it is its job to stop this aggression against our people." 
 
 In a sign of increasing international pressure to end the conflict, British Foreign Secretary William Hague also called for a cease-fire Saturday and said he would meet with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and the foreign ministers of Germany and France in Vienna on Sunday to discuss a halt to the fighting. Mansour said Arab foreign ministers will also meet Monday "to continue the effort to stop the aggression against our people." 
 
 The press statement, which is not legally binding but reflects international opinion, is the first response by the U.N.'s most powerful body, which has been deeply divided on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 
 
 The United States, Israel's most important ally, has defended the Israeli attacks in response to the barrage of rockets fired into Israel from Gaza, which is controlled by the militant group Hamas. But other council members have decried the escalating Israeli attacks which Mansour said have killed or injured more than 1,000 Palestinians. There have been no fatalities in Israel from the continued rocket fire. 
 
 A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, reiterated American support for Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas attacks. 
 
 "That said, we remain concerned about the risk of further escalation and reiterate the need for all sides to do everything they can to protect the lives of civilians and restore calm," the official said. "The United States remains ready to help facilitate a cease fire and hope an end to the current violence can be quickly brought about." 
 
 The council statement does not directly mention either the Hamas rocketing or the Israeli response. 
 
 Instead, it expresses "serious concern regarding the crisis related to Gaza and the protection and welfare of civilians on both sides" and calls for "respect for international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians." 
 
 Mansour said the Arab and Islamic world and the Palestinians' international supporters were "outraged" that the Security Council dragged its feet in responding to the Israeli offensive, which began Tuesday. 
 
 He said a proposed Security Council resolution, drafted by the Palestinians and their supporters, "contributed to pressuring the Security Council to adopt this statement." 
 
 If the Israelis do not respond immediately to the cease-fire call, Mansour said one option is to go back to the council to pursue approval of the draft resolution, which if adopted would be legally binding. 
 
 The initial draft, obtained by The Associated Press, would condemn all violence against civilians in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and call for "an immediate, durable and fully respected cease-fire." 
 
 It expresses "grave concern" at the escalating violence and deteriorating situation in the Palestinian territories due to Israeli military operations, particularly against Gaza,, and at the heavy civilian casualties including among children. But it makes no mention of the rockets fired into Israel from Gaza, which would likely make it unacceptable to the United States, which as a permanent council member has veto power. ||||| The Israeli air force expanded its offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza early Wednesday, as rocket fire on Israel's south, center and coastal plain continued. 
 
 Israel has attacked hundreds of targets in Gaza on Wednesday and more than 180 rockets have been fired from Gaza during the same period, according to Israel Defense Forces estimates. Long-range rockets have been launched at Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and as far north as Hof Hacarmel Regional Council, near Haifa. Iron Dome interceptor missiles have in the last 24 hours intercepted dozens of rockets over Israeli cities. 
 
 SUBSCRIBE TO HAARETZ AND GET FULL COVERAGE 
 
 IDF strikes on Gaza overnight targeted some 120 underground launchers and 10 tunnels, a naval police base and domestic security offices, and the homes of eight senior Hamas member which the army says served as command centers and were used in coordinating the rocket fire on Israel's south. 
 
 A top Islamic Jihad militant was killed in the strikes, as well as five other Palestinians. Two more Palestinians, including an elderly woman, were killed as the strikes continued on Wednesday. 
 
 Click here for Tuesday's live blog. 
 
 Latest updates: 
 
 Keep updated: Sign up to our newsletter Email * Please enter a valid email address Sign up Please wait… Thank you for signing up. We've got more newsletters we think you'll find interesting. Click here Oops. Something went wrong. Please try again later. Try again Thank you, The email address you have provided is already registered. Close 
 
 2:52 A.M. Rocket intercepted over Ashkelon, three land in open areas near city. 
 
 2:37 A.M. Rocket alerts sound in Eshkol and Hof Ashkelon regional councils. 
 
 2:26 A.M Palestinian news agency Ma'an reports that seven people were killed in Israeli airstrikes tonight in the vicinlty of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. According to the report, which is based on a statement made by the Gaza ministry of health, women and children are among the dead. 
 
 1:32 A.M. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will brief the UN Security Council on Thursday on the escalating Israeli-Palestinian hostilities, which he described as a "troubling and volatile" situation. 
 
 "Gaza is on a knife edge," Ban told reporters on Wednesday. "I firmly condemn the multiple rocket attacks launched from Gaza on Israel. Such attacks are unacceptable and must stop." 
 
 "I also urged (Israeli) Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu to exercise maximum restraint and to respect international obligations to protect civilians. I condemn the rising number of civilian lives lost in Gaza," he said. 
 
 Ban spent the day speaking with regional and world leaders, including Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, the king of Saudi Arabia and the emir of Qatar. 
 
 "Regional leaders have a vital role to play and I urged President Sissi and others to help facilitate a return to the November 2012 ceasefire agreement," Ban said. "The risk of violence expanding further still is real. Gaza, and the region as a whole, cannot afford another full-blown war." 
 
 skip - 
 
 1:26 A.M. Iron Dome intercepts two rockets over Be'er Sheva; One rocket lands in open area; none wounded. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 1:17 A.M. Rocket alert sounds in Be'er Sheva area, Hof Ashkelon Regional Council (Haaretz) 
 
 00:30 A.M. All told, 82 rockets and mortar shells hit Israel on Wednesday, and 21 rockets were intercepted. The IAF struck 326 targets in the Gaza Strip throughout the day. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 00:04 A.M. Two rockets intercepted above Kiryat Malachi. (Shirley Seidler, Gili Cohen) 
 
 skip - 
 
 July 10, 2014: 
 
 11:44 P.M. Several rockets land in open areas in Be'er Tuvia. Three lightly wounded when car they were driving in hits electric post during sounding of siren. 
 
 11:21 P.M. Alarms sound in Kiryat Gat, Gan Yavne, and Shafir, Be'er Tuvia, Yoav, Gderot, Hevel Yavne and Hof Ashkelon Regional Councils. 
 
 skip - 
 
 11:15 P.M. Alarms sound in Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Sdot Negev, Be'er Tuvia and Yoav Regional Councils. 
 
 Palestinians report that one man was killed and eight wounded when a car carrying reporters was attacked in Gaza City. The man, Hamdi Shahab (49) was an employee of a 'Media 24,' a local media agency. Three of the wounded are in serious condition. (Shirley Seidler, Jack Khouri) 
 
 11:00 P.M. One rocket lands in Sdot Negev Regional Council, none wounded. 
 
 Operation Protective Edge, day 2 
 
 10:39 P.M. More information emerges on the scuba divers spotted on near the Gaza coast: The IDF says the armed men were identified near Israeli territory. A military force opened fire at the suspects and large force are currently canvasing in attempt to locate them. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 10:10 P.M. An IDF force spotted a short while ago what appeared to be two armed scuba divers on the northern coast of the Gaza Strip approaching Israeli territory. The force is taking measures to stop the men, presumed to be militants. 
 
 On Tuesday, five armed Palestinians crossed the border into Israel, near the beach of Kibbutz Zikim. A gun battle ensued in which the Palestinians were shot dead by a force from the Givati Brigade. A solider sustained a light injury in the incident. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 9:43 P.M. A leading Hamas representative, Osama Hamdan, says Israel is refusing to negotiate a new cease-fire deal. He adds that Hamas' strained relationship with Egypt has nothing to do with the country's failure, as mediator, to reach an agreement with Israel. 
 
 9:35 P.M. Palestinian death toll in Gaza rises to 51, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 Magen David Adom emergency services says 68 people were treated since the operation commenced on Tuesday. Nine suffered light injuries while seeking shelter, and 59 were treated for shock. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 8:59 P.M. Palestinian President Abbas says that Israel is waging war against all Palestinians. "This is not a war against one faction, or against Hamas, but against the entire Palestinian people." He adds that "difficult days for all of us remain ahead." 
 
 8:50 P.M. Israeli forces bomb the home of Ahmed Ghandour, a top Hamas member responsible for rocket fire in the northern Gaza Strip. Homes of four other Hamas members were attacked, including that of rocket specialist. 
 
 In the last hour, the military carried out strikes against 80 targets in Gaza, mainly against rocket launching sites. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 8:42 P.M. Public shelters in Dimona have been open since Tuesday, but according to residents they are in bad shape. In Yeruham, however, shelters will be opened Wednesday night after they were locked when the sirens went off earlier. City Hall is now meeting to decide on whether schools should be opened Thursday. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 8:34 P.M. Gaza rocket explodes in an open area north of Yavne, central Israel. A fire erupted in the area. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 8:08 P.M. Netanyahu appeals to world leaders. The prime minister spoke Wednesday afternoon with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. 
 
 During these conversations, Netanyahu stressed that no country would accept incessant rocket fire on its territory, nor infiltrations by sea or through cross-border tunnels. Hamas, he said, was committing a double war crime, by trying to deliberately harm Israelis while using Gaza’s civilians as human shields. Therefore, Hamas was responsible when there are accidental civilian casualties in Gaza. 
 
 Netanyahu added that Hamas is recognized by the world as a terror organization, and the international community must forcefully condemn the ongoing fire by Hamas and other terror groups on Israeli cities. (Barak Ravid) 
 
 8:03 P.M. Hamas leader Khaled Meshal calls on the international community to make it clear to Netanyahu that the Palestinians will not live under occupation. In a press conference in Qatar, Meshal said the Israeli prime minister isn't interested in reconciliation between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority and is attempting to undermine it. 
 
 Meshal accuses Netanyahu of starving people by blocking the payment of salaries in Gaza and by ignoring the recent hunger strike by the administrative detainees in Israeli prisons. He reiterated that Hamas had no clue who had kidnapped the three teenagers in Gush Etzion, but welcomed the attack. 
 
 “The kidnapping was the start of things as far as Netanyahu is concerned. As if the occupation, the settlements and the blockage don’t constitute a blatant violation of Palestinian rights. Whoever wants calm in return for calm isn’t going to get it.” 
 
 He says the blueprint for achieving quiet was “an immediate halt to the aggression and bombings, and it’s time to end the occupation. You Israelis: Take your complaints to Netanyahu and his extremist government, which are the reason you are in bomb shelters. 
 
 "The enemy will see things it’s not expecting,” Meshal continues. “Israel is stronger than us in weapons and technology, but we are facing a great campaign and ask for our people’s patience so we can win.” 
 
 Meshal calls on the various factions in the West Bank and Gaza “to take responsibility, and together we will face the mighty Israel and achieve liberation.” He also calls on the Palestinian Authority and its security forces to join the campaign. “We are brothers,” he says. “Stand up for your nation and its rights.” (Jack Khoury) 
 
 7:54 P.M. Iron Dome intercepts a rocket over Dimona, two other projectiles explode in open areas near the city. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 7:49 P.M. Rocket sirens go off in communities near Dimona and Yeruham. (Shirly Seidler and Gili Cohen) 
 
 7:32 P.M. Home Front Command orders public shelters to be opened in Haifa and Hof Hacarmel Regional Council. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 7:19 P.M. Iron Dome defense system intercepts a rocket over Ashkelon. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 7:15 P.M. Gaza rocket hits a house in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council. The family was out, but heavy damage was reported. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 6:55 P.M. A rocket hit an art gallery in a community in Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council. None wounded, damage done to the building. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 6:47 P.M. IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION: Thousands of Israelis have received an SMS in Haaretz's name alleging that rockets have struck Haifa. This message was not from Haaretz. (Haaretz) 
 
 6:40 P.M. In the last two days, Israel has struck more Hamas targets than it had in all of Operation Pillar of Defense, Israel's eight-day offensive in 2012, a top Israel Air Force commander says. Military aircrafts dropped more than 400 tons of explosives since Monday night, after a heavy rocket barrage was fired at Israel. 
 
 “We think Hamas was surprised by Israel’s actions over these two days. We are systematically hitting their infrastructure, where Hamas commanders operate,” he added. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 6:31 P.M. Seventy-two rockets have exploded in Israel so far on Wednesday, according to military figures. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 6:24 P.M. One Egyptian soldier and four others wounded in an explosion in the Egyptian town of Rafah, near the border with Gaza and Israel, according to security sources. They said the blast occurred after an armored tank drove over an explosive device. (Reuters) 
 
 6:21 P.M. Rocket sirens sound in Gaza envelope communities. (Israel Radio) 
 
 6:10 P.M. One of the mortar shells that recently fell in the Eshkol Regional Council landed between two houses in a residential area. Damage reported to property. The other rounds fell in open areas. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 5:58 P.M. Rocket sirens go off in Ashkelon. (Israel Radio) 
 
 5:54 P.M. The Israeli military since Wednesday morning bombed 31 tunnels in Gaza, in addition to 60 concealed rocket launchers, rocket storage sites and 12 buildings it says were used as command centers. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 5:26 P.M. Six mortar shells fall in the Eshkol Regional Council. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 5:15 P.M. Iron Dome interceptors shoot down a rocket over the greater Tel Aviv, the third since Tuesday. The IDF is currently examining whether another rocket was fired at the metropolitan area. 
 
 A rocket explosion in an open area near Ofakim sparks a fire. (Gili Cohen and Shirly Seidler) 
 
 4:56 P.M. The Iron Dome anti-rocket defense system has achieved a nearly 90 percent success rate since Monday night, an improvement over its performance during Operation Pillar of Defense in November 2012, the IDF says. 
 
 4:44 P.M. Rocket explodes in agricultural fields in the Merhavim Regional Council, damage done to property. Also, three rockets damaged buildings and a road in a residential area in the Eshkol Regional Council. Three other rockets exploded in an open area in the council's jurisdiction. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 4:31 P.M. Forty-eight rockets hit Israeli territory since midnight, 14 more were intercepted by Iron Dome defense systems across the country. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 4:20 P.M. Rocket explosion sparks a fire in an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council. Four other rockets explode in the council's jurisdiction. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 4:18 P.M. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a series of security consultations at the Israel Defense Force's Southern Command on Wednesday, as militants in the Gaza Strip continued to fire rockets as far as 125 km away. 
 
 Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon, IDF Chief Benny Gantz and GOC Southern Command Sami Turgeman took part in the discussion 
 
 "We've decided to escalate even further our attacks on Hamas and on the terrorist organizations in Gaza," Netanyahu said at the end of his visit. "The IDF is prepared for every possibility. Hamas will pay a heavy price for the fire against Israeli citizens. The security of the citizens of Israel takes precedent over everything. Our army is strong, our home front is steadfast, and our nation is unified. This combination is our response to the terror organizations that want to harm us. We are all united in the mission to stop the terror organizations and bring back the quiet. The operation will expand and continue until the fire on our communities is over and the quiet is back." (Barak Ravid) 
 
 4:03 P.M. The death toll in Gaza Strip rises to 42 since the operation began on Tuesday, according to Palestinian sources. A mother and her child were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis and three bodies were found in the al-Maghazi refugee camp near Deir al-Balah in the center of the Strip. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 3:55 P.M. Rocket explosions spark fire in open areas near Sderot, firefighters en route. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 3:45 P.M. The Israeli scouts evacuate 800 campers from a summer camp in Ya'ar Ofer, north of Zichron Ya'akov. 
 
 3:00 P.M. IDF confirms rocket siren near Zichron Ya'akov and Hof Hacarmel, located more than 120 kilometers from the Gaza Strip, was not false alarm and that a rocket had been detected. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 2:58 P.M. Two additional rockets intercepted over Sderot. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 2:40 P.M. Hamas claims responsibility for the rocket fire on Israel's north. The attack was aimed at Haifa, the group says. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 2:30 P.M. Fires break out at two locations in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council due to rocket explosions. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 2:24 P.M. Rocket sirens sound in Zichron Ya'akov and Hof Hacarmel Regional Council, north of Hadera. Sirens also sound in the Sharon plain. (Eli Ashkenazi) 
 
 2:20 P.M. Two rockets fired from Gaza are intercepted over the southern Israeli city of Sderot. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 2:00 P.M. The Iron Dome intercepts a rocket fired from Gaza toward the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 1:53 P.M. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will convene the Palestinian leadership at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday at his bureau, during which he expected to sign the necessary documents for joining international organizations. Inter alia, he has requested to join the International Criminal Court in The Hague, a senior official told Haaretz. 
 
 1:30 P.M. Knesset Member Ahmed Tibi accuses the IDF of committing war crimes in Gaza by "purposefully wiping out entire families." (Jack Khoury) 
 
 1:24 P.M. Three rockets explode in the Be'er Tuvia Regional Council; no damage reported. Two other rockets hit, one in a town in the Yoav Regional Council and another in an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 1:11 P.M. A rocket explodes in a town in the Eshkol Regional Council; the siren fails to sound. Another rocket explodes near a kibbutz in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council, sparking a fire. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 12:40 P.M. A father and son were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, the Palestinian news agency Ma'an reports. 
 
 12:30 P.M. Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon says during a security briefing that the operation against Hamas is to be expanded in the coming days. According to Ya'alon, the Israeli strikes in Gaza have destroyed weapons, terror infrastructure, command centers, Hamas institution, government buildings and terrorists' homes. 
 
 "We are killing terrorists of different ranks, and this operation will persist and intensify," he says. "For our part, this doesn't have to be a short battle. We will continue hitting Hamas and other terrorist groups hard." 
 
 12:10 P.M. A spokesman for the Egyptian president says that intensive efforts to negotiate a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas are ongoing. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 12:09 P.M. A rocket explodes near Kiryat Malakhi, sparking a fire at a farm. Two other rockets hit open areas in the Eshkol Regional Council. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 12:05 P.M. Sirens go off in Be'er Tuvia and Gedera; sounds of explosions ensue. Evidently, rockets fired toward the area were intercepted. 
 
 Iron Dome intercepts three rockets fired toward Ashdod. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 11:50 A.M. The IDF confirms that an antiaircraft missile, evidently a Strela, was fired toward an Israeli air force plane after the start of Operation Protective Edge. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 11:36 A.M. Palestinian sources say an 80-year-old woman has been killed in an IDF attack on central Gaza. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 10:40 A.M. Rocket intercepted over Ashkelon, another strikes near school; several people suffering from shock (Shirley Seidler). 
 
 10:25 A.M. Vandals spray paint anti-Arab slogans in several Jerusalem neighborhoods; police open an investigation. (Nir Hasson) 
 
 10:10 A.M. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asks Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi to intervene in the escalating violence between Israel and militants in Gaza. Abbas says he has spoken with Hamas leaders, who are interested in a cease-fire. The Egyptian envoy in the Palestinian Authority says that talks between the sides are ongoing but an agreement has yet to be reached. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 10:05 A.M. The rockets that were fired on central Israel earlier Wednesday were aimed at Ben-Gurion Airport, Palestinian sources report. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 The Iron Dome intercepts a rocket fired toward Ashdod. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 9:54 A.M. An IAF strike in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza kills a motorcyclist and wounds one other person. 
 
 Israel strikes targets in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, July 9, 2014. AP 
 
 Hamas claims responsibility for rockets fired on Tel Aviv earlier Wednesday. (Jack Khoury) 
 
 9:40 A.M. The Israel Air Force strikes targets in the Gaza Strip. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 9:33 A.M. 24 Palestinians have been killed and 200 wounded since start of operation on Monday night, according the Gaza health ministry. 
 
 8:50 A.M. The Iron Dome missile defense system intercepts two rockets fired toward central Israel. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 8:42 A.M. Two rockets explode in the Eshkol Regional Council; a farm is damaged. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 8:30 A.M. Rocket sirens ring across central Israel; explosions heard. (Haaretz) 
 
 8:26 A.M. Two rockets explode near a town in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council. (Shirley Seidler) 
 
 8:15 A.M. Since the launch of the IAF's Operation Protective Edge on Monday night, 225 rockets were fired from Gaza toward Israel; 40 were intercepted by the Iron Dome. The air force has struck 434 targets in Gaza so far as part of the operation. 
 
 8:00 A.M. School and summer camp activity in Jerusalem and in towns within 40 kilometers of Gaza will only take place in buildings with bomb shelters. Schools in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council are closed. 
 
 School and camp activity in Kiryat Malakhi, Gan Yavneh and Ashdod has been cancelled. Summer events in the latter city have been cancelled as well, the weekly market remains closed and gatherings of more than 300 people have been forbidden. (Nir Hasson, Shirley Seidler) 
 
 7:15 A.M. The Nahal Brigade joins two other IDF brigades deployed near Gaza in preparation for a ground operation. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 7:00 A.M. Some of the rockets fired toward central Israel on Tuesday were manufactured by Hamas, a senior IDF officer says. In anticipation of further attacks, the Israel Air Force has rearranged the deployment of Iron Dome missile defense batteries. 
 
 The IAF will continue striking the homes of key Hamas militants on Wednesday. According to the officer, residents of the buildings that were previously targeted have tried to avert the attacks by going up to the roofs en masse. Such ploys will not be effective, the officer says, adding that the IAF has been warning residents in several ways to evacuate the buildings ahead of time. 
 
 "If the pilot has signaled (an impending strike), go outside, this house will be destroyed," the officer says." (Gili Cohen) 
 
 6:50 A.M. Gaza rocket explodes in an open area in Sdot Negev Regional Council. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 6:18 A.M. The Israeli military strikes 160 targets in the Gaza Strip overnight. The IDF says some of the targets were homes of eight top Hamas members, which were used as headquarters. The homes included those of Khan Yunis division commander Muhammad Sinwar and Rafah division commander Ra'ed Atar. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 Some 120 underground launchers and 10 tunnels also targeted overnight, as well as a naval police base and domestic security offices. (Gili Cohen) 
 
 5:10 A.M. The European Union condemns rocket fire from Gaza toward Israel, calling for an immediate cease-fire. A statement published by the office of foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says the EU "strongly condemns the indiscriminate fire into Israel by militant groups in the Gaza Strip." 
 
 The statement also deplores the "growing number of civilian casualties, reportedly among them children, caused by Israeli retaliatory fire." The EU calls on Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza "to do their utmost to achieve an immediate ceasefire." 
 
 5:01 A.M. Man suffers smoke inhalation after a rocket that exploded earlier in an open area near Rishon Letzion sparked a fire. (Israel Radio) 
 
 2:21 A.M. Due to the rocket attacks on Tel Aviv, the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv says that is will operate with minimal staffing until further notice. (Haaretz) 
 
 1:35 A.M. Three Grad rockets explode in open areas near Be'er Sheva. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 1:25 A.M. Rocket sirens go off in Be'er Sheva and the vicinity. (Shirly Seidler) 
 
 1:03 A.M. The death toll in a recent Israeli airstrike on Gaza rises to six, according to Palestinian sources. A top member of the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, Hafez Hamad, was killed in the attack, and five others including several family members. Israeli planes also targeted the house of a top Hamas official in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. (Jack Khoury and GIili Cohen) 
 
 12:15 A.M. Three Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip. Twenty Palestinians were killed in the past 24 hours. (Jack Khoury) ||||| Associated Press An Israeli soldier rides on top of an armored personal carrier close to the Israel-Gaza border on Thursday. 
 
 Israel began mobilizing tens of thousands of troops Thursday and extended its aerial and artillery attacks on the Gaza Strip to a third day early Friday, while Palestinian militants mounted their deepest-ever missile strikes into the heart of Israel. 
 
 Israel began mobilizing thousands of troops Thursday, extending its aerial and artillery attacks on the Gaza Strip early Friday, while Palestinian militants mounted their deepest-ever missile strikes into the heart of Israel. Photo: REUTERS. 
 
 Israel hit the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and artillery shells for a second straight day Thursday and Hamas ramped up rocket fire at Israel, as both sides widened hostilities in the conflict's bloodiest escalation in four years. Charles Levinson has the latest from Tel Aviv on The News Hub. 
 
 A video released by the Israeli Defense Force on Wednesday shows an air strike on Hamas in Gaza City that it says killed Ahmed Jabari, the commander of the Hamas military wing in Gaza. Israeli and Hamas officials confirmed Mr. Jabari was killed in the attack by the Israel Air Force. 
 
 After Friday prayers at the Azhar mosque in Cairo, worshipers chanted anti-Israel slogans in response to the clashes between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Video by WSj's Sam Dagher via #WorldStream. 
 
 The exchanges, which have killed 19 Palestinians and three Israelis, broadened a conflict that had erupted into the open Wednesday. Israel responded to escalating missile strikes from Gaza militants by launching a blitz of airstrikes that day that killed the top military commander of Hamas, the Islamist militant group and political movement that runs Gaza. 
 
 It was unclear whether Thursday's troop movements were designed to intimidate Israel's foes or to lay the groundwork for an invasion. Israel's leaders have said they are ready to launch a ground assault if rocket fire continues. 
 
 Early Friday, Israeli aircraft pummeled rocket launching operations of Gaza militants, the Associated Press reported. 
 
 "The situation has all the elements and dynamics that could lead us down the road to a place we haven't been before," said Steve Cook, a Mideast specialist at the Council on Foreign Relations. "It's a very dangerous situation, and it's difficult to say what the Israelis should do." 
 
 The conflict's course from here on out rests largely with Israel and its neighbor, Egypt—the two nations that form the cornerstone of U.S. policy in the region, but which have seen ties fray in the months since an Islamist government came to power in Egypt. 
 
 Conflict in Gaza Strip, Israel View Slideshow European Pressphoto Agency Smoke rises from a Hamas site after an Israeli air strike in the center of Gaza city on Friday. 
 
 U.S. efforts to calm the situation depend largely on Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, analysts said. Before becoming president earlier this year, he was a top leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, which has close ideological links to Hamas. With his election, he inherited oversight of billions of dollars in annual U.S. military support and a U.S.-brokered Israeli-Egyptian peace deal that has defined regional security for three decades. 
 
 On Thursday, Mr. Morsi ordered Egypt's prime minister to lead a delegation into Gaza on Friday, Egyptian state television reported. The visit would pose an unprecedented challenge to Israel, perhaps forcing it to scale back its military operations while the delegation is there. Mr. Morsi's activist response to Israeli-Palestinian violence marks a stark reversal from the more hands-off policies of his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak. 
 
 President Barack Obama and administration officials have been in contact with leaders of Israel and Egypt—staunchly supporting Israel's operation while pressing the Egyptians to rein in Hamas, officials said. 
 
 Enlarge Image Close Associated Press A rocket is launched Thursday by militants in the northern Gaza Strip. 
 
 "I'm not going to speculate on where this might go, beyond saying that we all want to see a de-escalation of the violence and that the onus rests squarely on Hamas," said State Department spokesman Mark Toner. "It needs to stop its rocket attacks." 
 
 On Thursday, a Palestinian rocket narrowly missed Tel Aviv, setting off incoming-missile warning sirens in the city for the first time since Iraqi Scud missiles hit Israel during the 1991 Gulf War. 
 
 Thursday's three Israeli fatalities came when a Palestinian rocket struck an apartment complex in the southern Israeli town of Kiryat Malachi, marking the first deaths on the Israeli side in the conflict and the deadliest single rocket strike ever on Israel from Gaza. Three soldiers were wounded in Israel by a rocket strike later Thursday. 
 
 In addition to the 19 Palestinians killed in two days of Israeli attacks, 200 were wounded, Gaza health officials said. Those numbers seemed likely to rise as Israel resumed heavy aerial bombardments late Thursday. 
 
 In much of southern Israel and in Gaza, schools remained closed and most residents hunkered down indoors, sheltering from airstrikes and rockets. 
 
 Shortly after nightfall, Israel's military began mobilizing 30,000 reserves. Convoys of buses packed with infantrymen, and flatbeds hauling tanks and armored vehicles, rumbled down Israel's highways toward the Gaza Strip. 
 
 Enlarge Image Close Jim Hollander/European Pressphoto Agency People huddle for safety in southern Israel after sirens warn of a rocket attack from militants in Gaza. 
 
 "We are in the process of expanding the campaign," Israel's top military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, told Israel's Channel 2 television. 
 
 Earlier Thursday, Gen. Mordechai said military commanders had approved dozens of new targets in Gaza. Leaflets fluttered from the skies over Gaza around midday, warning residents to stay clear of Hamas personnel and installations ahead of continuing Israeli attacks. Army tanks fired shells at targets inside the coastal territory. 
 
 For many Palestinians, a more supportive government in Egypt would be their first sense of change from an Arab Spring that until now has largely passed them by. Hamas is an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the two retain close ties. 
 
 "This time we know that this is a new Egypt—a new Arab world," said Haidar Eid, an associate professor of political science at Al Aqsa University in the Gaza Strip. "We are expecting the Arab World to do something." 
 
 Many Israelis and Palestinians argue that it was the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt that helped emboldened Palestinian factions, including some elements of Hamas, to take a more defiant and confrontational approach to Israel that helped trigger this current flare-up. 
 
 After nearly four years of calm along the Gaza border, Palestinian militants have slowly stepped up their mortar and rocket attacks on Israel in recent months. Hamas, which in recent years had acted to prevent rival militants from firing at Israel, began to join in the firing itself, in what some observers believed was a response to rival factions' mounting criticism of the group for refusing to confront Israel. 
 
 Enlarge Image Close Associated Press In Ashdod, Israel's Iron Dome defense system deploys against an incoming missile. 
 
 The days leading up to the Israeli attack saw a series of tit-for-tat skirmishes between Israel and Palestinian militants. 
 
 Israel has now struck more than 250 targets in the Gaza Strip, the military said. Gaza-based militants have fired around 300 rockets at Israel since the conflict began, Israel's military says. The country's newly deployed Iron Dome missile defense system, which is partially U.S.-funded, has knocked 105 of them out of the sky, the military said. 
 
 In other recent conflicts—Israel's 2006 Lebanon War, and 2009's operation against Hamas in Gaza—Israel intensely shelled suspected militant positions to soften resistance ahead of ground invasions. Israel's latest shelling has been more limited. 
 
 Both previous operations were followed by several years of calm. Both also were far bigger in scope, taking a massive toll on the civilian populations, killing hundreds of civilians and scorching Israel's image internationally. 
 
 The relatively lower casualty numbers in this assault would seem to indicate that Israel, for its hawkish talk, is mounting a significantly more restrained and pinpoint approach so far to operations than it has at times in the past. 
 
 That may help explain why international support for the Israeli offensive has remained strong. The U.K. on Thursday issued a statements of support for Israel. That followed similarly robust backing from Washington a day earlier. 
 
 "Hamas bears principal responsibility for the current crisis," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said. 
 
 —Joshua Mitnick in Kiryat Malachi, Israel, contributed to this article. 
 
 Write to Charles Levinson at charles.levinson@wsj.com 
 
 A version of this article appeared November 16, 2012, on page A1 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: No Headline Available.
– The Israeli military says it is ordering Palestinians living in the northern Gaza Strip to evacuate the area "for their own safety." In a statement today, the military said it would send messages to residents overnight to leave the area. Brig. Gen. Motti Almoz, the chief military spokesman, said Israel planned to hit the area with heavy force in the next 24 hours as it steps up an offensive against Gaza militants. Officials say the area has been used to fire rockets at Tel Aviv. The death toll in Gaza has hit at least 135 and more than 920 have been injured after five days of airstrikes, the Hill reports. Meanwhile, more than 200 rockets fired from Gaza have gotten through Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system, and rockets are coming from southern Lebanon as well. Also today, the UN Security Council called today for a cease-fire in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict centered on the Gaza Strip. A council statement approved by all 15 members calls for de-escalation of the violence, restoration of calm, and a resumption of direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians aimed at achieving a comprehensive peace agreement based on a two-state solution. The statement calls for "the reinstitution of the November 2012 cease-fire," which was brokered by Egypt, but gives no time frame for when it should take effect. (Click for more on that.)