Gaza Pummelled By Fresh Israeli Strikes, More Than 200 Dead In A Week

The strikes caused widespread power cuts and damaged hundreds of buildings, local authorities said.

Israeli air strikes hammered the Gaza Strip pre-dawn Monday, after a week of violence between the Jewish state and Islamist militants left more than 200 people dead as international calls for de-escalation went unheeded. Overnight Sunday to Monday, Israel launched dozens of strikes in the space of a few minutes across the crowded coastal Palestinian enclave controlled by Islamist group Hamas, according to AFP journalists at the scene. The strikes caused widespread power cuts and damaged hundreds of buildings, local authorities said. No casualties were immediately reported. West Gaza resident Mad Abed Rabbo, 39, expressed "horror and fear" at the intensity of the onslaught.