At least 300 Israelis have been killed so far and dozens kidnapped, Israel’s Embassy in Turkey said, quoting Israel’s Ministry of Health.
Close to 2,000 people are being treated in hospitals – 19 of them are in critical condition, it said.
In total, 313 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 2,000 injured in Gaza from Israeli retaliatory air strikes since Saturday, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Palestinian militant group Hamas launched its biggest attack on Israel on Saturday, with rocket strikes, killings and hostage taking.
In turn, Israel launched a retaliatory wave of air strikes on Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel was “at war”. Hamas, which rules Gaza, would “pay an unprecedent price,” he added.
Mr Netanyahu said that the war had been “forced on us by a murderous attack by Hamas”, and the first stage would end in the coming hours when most of the militants on Israeli territory had been wiped out
Clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants are ongoing in several parts of southern Israel, according to media reports.
Haaretz reports that Israeli forces fought 10 armed fighters at a police station in Sderot, close to the Gaza border, although it says the area is now believed to be under Israeli control.
The newspaper quoted the Israeli army as saying it had taken back control of most areas in the south overnight, but added clashes were continuing in Be’eri, also close to the Gaza border, Sderot, and four other southern locations that it did not specify.
