Israeli forces have launched numerous missile attacks on Gaza, killing at least 6 after a bomb struck a bus in Tel Aviv, injuring 16. It is the eighth day of Israel’s ‘Pillar of Defense’ campaign, which has killed over 130 Palestinians so far.
Israeli war jets pummeled Gaza’s Al-Yarmouk football stadium with more than 10 consecutive attacks, Al Jazeera reports. Several casualties were reported following the assault.The IDF claimed they are striking key Hamas targets, while the Palestinian Authority criticized the attacks for killing civilians.The escalation of attacks comes off the back of a bomb attack on a Tel Aviv bus that left 16 people injured. Israel’s government called an emergency meeting in response to the first terrorist bombing in the city since 2006.Israeli authorities have raised security in the area to a level 4 alert and have begun a manhunt for the two suspects.Hamas spokesperson, Sami Abu Zuhri praised the Tel Aviv bus bombing to the press, but did not say Hamas was behind it. He said that Hamas viewed the explosion as “a natural response to the Israeli massacres…in Gaza.”"Palestinian factions will resort to all means in order to protect our Palestinian civilians in the absence of a world effort to stop the Israeli aggression," Abu Zuhri said.US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton traveled to Israel and the West Bank in order to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Gaza.Clinton also met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on her diplomatic trip to the region, where she vowed that US support for Israel is “rock solid,” and that “the rocket attacks from terrorist organizations inside Gaza on Israeli cities and towns must end.”The US blocked a UN Security Council proposal by Morocco for a ceasefire on Tuesday evening, calling it “unbalanced.” US officials argued that the proposal failed to identify “the root cause of the current escalation,” which they claim is the continuing barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza directed against Israel.The statement would have been adopted automatically had the US not blocked it. Other members of the Security Council criticized America for blocking the statement, with Russia accusing Washington of attempting to “filibuster” negotiations.