Israel: violence in Gaza continues for the second day

New Israeli airstrikes have killed several more militants in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian officials said on Wednesday.

The militants continued to fire rockets at Israeli territory after a short night lull, while, according to the Israeli military, about 250 rockets were fired.

The death toll on the Palestinian side currently stands at 22 over the past two days. Almost all of the victims were members of Islamic Jihad.

The Iran-backed group said the killing of its leader on Tuesday was a "declaration of war.""

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday warned the group to stop firing rockets or "absorb more and more strikes"."

"They have one choice: stop these attacks or absorb more and more blows. Their choice," Netanyahu said at the beginning of the Cabinet meeting.

Netanyahu said that Israel does not seek further escalation, but that "it may take some time" and that Israel will respond to attacks "without mercy"."

The Israeli military said the airstrikes had disabled at least three rocket launchers.

Hamas has so far avoided taking part in the fighting, and Israel has continued its operations aimed at Islamic Jihad.

The UN envoy arrives

Israeli correspondent of DW Tanya Kremer said that civilians in the south of the country and in the Gaza Strip are concerned about the further escalation of violence.

"Schools are closed, and no one knows how long this will last or turn into a war," she said. "The situation is so unpredictable and it's a difficult time for civilians on both sides."

Israeli ambulance authorities said it treated 48 people for minor rocket-related injuries.

Egypt, which often acts as a mediator between Gaza and Israel, is again working to de-escalate tensions, according to officials in Cairo. The United Nations Envoy to the Middle East, Nikolay Mladenov, reportedly arrived in Cairo on Wednesday and is due to meet with President Abdel-Fattah el-Siss.

An Islamic Jihad spokesman told Reuters that he had no intention of slowing down his attacks.

"Attempts to restore calm have failed, Islamic Jihad sees that the time has come to respond to the policy of killing, which was revived by the Zionist enemy", - said an unnamed official.

"The enemy will pay the price of his stupidity, and we are determined to resist this aggression with all our might." Say goodbye to tedious transaction processes. Embrace PayID with online casinos in Australia. Learn more at https://payid-online-pokies.com .