Gaza Mayor: Israeli Airstrikes Caused Extensive Damage on Monday

SMA NEWS – GAZA

Gaza’s mayor said Israeli airstrikes Monday on the Gaza Strip have caused extensive damage to roads and other infrastructure, while the Israeli military said they destroyed 15 kilometers (nine miles) of militant tunnels and the homes of nine alleged Hamas commanders.

“If the aggression continues we expect conditions to become worse,” said mayor Yahya Sarraj, The Associated Press reported.

The UN has warned that the territory’s sole power station is at risk of running out of fuel, and Sarraj said Gaza was also low on spare parts.

Gaza already experiences daily power outages for between eight and 12 hours and tap water is undrinkable.

Mohammed Thabet, a spokesman for the the territory’s electricity distribution company, said it has fuel to supply Gaza with electricity for two or three days.

Airstrikes have damaged supply lines and the company’s staff cannot reach areas that were hit because of continued Israeli shelling, he added.

The war broke out last Monday, when Hamas fired long-range rockets at Jerusalem after weeks of clashes in the holy city between Palestinian protesters and Israeli police. The protests were focused on the heavy-handed policing of a flashpoint sacred site during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families by Jewish settlers.

Since then, the Israeli military has launched hundreds of airstrikes that it says are targeting Hamas’ militant infrastructure.

At least 188 Palestinians have been killed in the strikes and 1,230 people wounded.