Gaza death toll reaches 280

Baku, Azerbaijan, July 19

Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

The number of killed in Gaza in a military operation of the Israeli air force has reached 280, Al Jazeera said on July 19.

Al Jazeera reported that most of the victims are civilians, and at this point Gaza Strip is facing an acute shortage of drinking water and medicine.

Yesterday morning, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a land invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Israeli troops launched the land phase of military operations 10 days after the commencement of the "Operation Enduring Rock", which was limited to remote strikes from air and sea.

On July 18, Turkey made an initiative to convene an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the UN Council on Human Rights, with regard to the land operation in Gaza, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.

Davutoglu stressed that he expects such an initiative from other countries as well. He also condemned Israel's ground operation in the Gaza Strip.

Following the discovery of corpses of three abducted Jewish teenagers on July 12 in the West Bank of the Jordan River, the Israeli government accused the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas.

Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said that new military operations would be launched in the Gaza Strip in revenge on Hamas for the killing of the teenagers.

Earlier on July 2, the 17-year-old Muhammed Abu Khudair was kidnapped and killed in Jerusalem, which led to rocket strikes on Israeli cities from the Gaza Strip.

Then on July 8, Israel announced the beginning of a military operation dubbed "Protective Edge" in the Gaza Strip.

Edited by S.I.