October 24, 2023

GAZA/JERUSALEM, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Israel's military said it was preparing for "unrelenting attacks" to dismantle Hamas while former U.S. President Barack Obama warned that "any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human costs could ultimately backfire."

The Palestinian health ministry said the Gaza death toll had topped 5,000 in two weeks of Israeli air strikes in response to Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel in which the Islamist militant group killed more than 1,400 people.

Israel pounded hundreds of targets in Gaza from the air on Monday as its soldiers fought Hamas militants during raids into the besieged Palestinian strip where civilians are trapped in harrowing conditions.

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