No other option than a military operation, Israeli officials say

The Israeli Government has said the air strikes on Gaza strip on Saturday and Sunday were in “self defence” and that “there was no other option than a military operation.” Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni released a statement on Sunday saying that Israel had tried “everything to reach calm without using force.”

“Israeli citizens have been under threat of daily attacks from Gaza for years,” the statement reads. “Only this week hundreds of missiles and mortar shells were fired at Israeli civilian communities.”

The statement comes after two days of air attacks on Gaza Strip that have left about 286 people dead and more than 700 injured. The Israeli Air Force destroyed Hamas’s main Gaza security complex on Sunday, the Reuters news agency reported.

Meanwhile Hamas leader in Gaza Ismail Haniya said, “Palestine has never witnessed an uglier massacre.” Foreign media reported that the Palestinian groups have vowed to take revenge by conducting suicide bombings in Israel’s cafes and streets.

The UN Security Council has called for an end to the violence. According to the resolution adopted on Sunday, the UN Security Council has demanded an urgent ceasefire and the start of negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel. Israeli officials claim they will continue fighting until they have “a new security environment in the south.”