Israel, Hamas exchange fire in Gaza as violence enters second week

GAZA CITY－Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes on what it said were militant targets, leveling a six-story building in downtown Gaza City, while Palestinian militants fired dozens of rockets into Israel early on Tuesday as the war entered a second week.

Explosions from the airstrikes echoed through the predawn darkness in Gaza City, sending flashes of orange across the night sky. The strikes toppled the Kahil building which contains libraries and educational centers belonging to the Islamic University. Clouds of dust hung over the site as it was reduced to piles of concrete rubble.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from the strikes.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday it fired more than 100 munitions at 65 militant targets, including rocket launchers, a group of fighters and the homes of Hamas commanders the army said were being used for military purposes. More than 60 fighter jets took part in the operation.

The UN Security Council was due to hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday. The session, the fourth since the conflict escalated, was called after the United States, a key Israel ally, blocked adoption of a joint statement calling for a halt to the violence for the third time in a week on Monday.

US President Joe Biden, having resisted joining other world leaders in calling for an immediate end to hostilities, told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday he backs a cease-fire, but stopped short of demanding a truce.

The Biden administration greenlighted a $735 million sale of precision-guided weapons to Israel, US media reported on Monday.

The US Congress was officially notified of the proposed sale on May 5, nearly a week before the conflict between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants in Gaza flared, The Washington Post reported.

Some Democrats raised concerns about the sales as the Israeli military continued its airstrikes in Gaza, causing civilian casualties.

"While I have supported security assistance to Israel, including by funding the Iron Dome defense system, I have serious concerns about the timing of this weapons sale," House Democrat Joaquin Castro said in a statement.

"The message it will send to Israel and the world about the urgency of a cease-fire, and the open questions about the legality of Israel's military strikes that have killed civilians in Gaza."

European Union foreign ministers will also hold urgent talks on the violence on Tuesday, said the bloc's top diplomat Josep Borrell, who has conducted "intense" diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the fighting.

So far, at least 213 Palestinians have been killed in heavy airstrikes, including 61 children and 36 women, with more than 1,400 people wounded, the Gaza Health Ministry said.

Twelve people in Israel, including two Thai workers, have been killed in rocket attacks launched from civilian areas in Gaza toward civilian areas in Israel.

Xinhua - Agencies