Israeli military officials said early Tuesday that they had carried out airstrikes targeting at least 50 sites in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip as part of a new offensive aimed at halting rocket attacks by militants as President Barack Obama urged both sides to exercise restraint.

Israelli Army spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner told The Associated Press that the military attacked four houses belonging to militants, as well as concealed rocket launchers and other sites. Most of the sites were targeted in airstrikes, and three were attacked from the sea.

Lerner says the army will gradually increase attacks on Gaza, and is recruiting reservists for a potential ground invasion.

The latest operation comes after militants fired dozens of rockets at southern Israel on Monday, setting off air raid sirens and forcing hundreds of thousands of Israelis to stay indoors. A Twitter statement from the Israeli army said the offensive, dubbed "Operation Protective Edge," is intended to "stop the terror Israel's citizens face on a daily basis."

Gaza health official Ashraf Al-Kedra told The Associated Press that at least nine Palestinian civilians were brought to a Gaza hospital with light to moderate injuries from the airstrikes, including several who suffered from shock. He said some of the injured Palestinians were treated and released.

The latest violence came as Israel pressed forward with its investigation of six Jewish youths suspected of abducting and killing a Palestinian teenager, and Israeli leaders sought to calm an emotional debate over whether the country's politically charged atmosphere led to the gruesome crime. An Israeli official said three of the youths had confessed to the attack.

Tensions have been high since three Israeli teenagers kidnapped June 12 in the West Bank were later found dead, followed by last week's slaying of the Palestinian youth in what many suspect was a revenge attack.

In an opinion piece published Tuesday in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Obama called it a "dangerous moment" for the region where a vaunted U.S. peace effort recently collapsed. Writing in emotional terms, he said he couldn't imagine the pain suffered by the parents of the three Israeli teens, but was also heartbroken by the senseless murder of a Palestinian teenager who many suspect was killed in revenge.

"All parties must protect the innocent and act with reasonableness and restraint, not vengeance and retribution," Obama said.

Obama's comments — published in Hebrew, Arabic and English — reflected growing U.S. concern about tit-for-tat violence spiraling out of control as the fragile situation in Israel appears to deteriorate.

After the bodies of the three Israelis were discovered, Obama issued a brief written statement, but hasn't spoken about the situation publicly. Haaretz said the op-ed was intended for the newspaper's upcoming peace summit and written before June 30, the day the three Israeli teens were found dead. But it referenced events that occurred later, suggesting the op-ed was updated.

Obama also offered strong praise for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is under pressure as Israel seeks to use the murder of the three Israelis to discredit his newly formed unity government with Hamas.

"In President Abbas, Israel has a counterpart committed to a two-state solution and security cooperation with Israel," Obama said. He offered no parallel praise for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Throughout the unrest, the Israeli army says Gaza militants have launched approximately 300 rockets and mortars into Israel, including 80 on Monday alone. The military said that 40 rockets were launched in a single hour after nightfall, setting off air raid sirens up to 50 miles from Gaza.

Twelve rockets were intercepted by rocket-defense batteries, it added, while the others landed in open areas. It was the deepest penetration of rocket strikes in the current round of fighting and raised the likelihood of an even tougher Israeli response.

The army later said that eight more rockets and mortars were fired at Israel from Gaza starting shortly before midnight and into early Tuesday, and an additional rocket was intercepted above the Israeli town of Sderot, close to the border with Gaza.

Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, a senior military official, gave a special interview in Arabic to Al-Jazeera, warning that Hamas would bear the consequences for the escalation. Eight Palestinian militants were killed in fighting Monday, the highest death toll yet.

Israeli security officials had said late Monday that Israel was leaning against a massive operation and would likely increase the pressure gradually with stronger and more numerous retaliatory attacks. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal military deliberations with reporters. Israeli Cabinet ministers voted in favor of more intense airstrikes, Channel 2 TV said.

In Washington on Monday, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. condemns the rocket fire. "We also support Israel's right to defend itself against these attacks," she said.

Israel has launched two broad military operations in Gaza in the past five years, most recently in 2012, when eight days of heavy fighting ended in an Egyptian-mediated truce.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/07/08/israel-carries-out-new-airstrikes-against-targets-in-gaza/

Abbas, the same man that funded and ran Black September and personally was involved in financing and planning of the Munich Massacre. At the time he was the KSM of Hamas! Not so hard to believe actually since he pals around with people like Bill and Bernadette Ayers, Reverend Wright and Hanoi Jane.

The designated terrorist organization Hamas is now officially part of the Palestinian Authority, which receives $500 million in annual aid from the U.S.

Hamas and Fatah, two rival Palestinian factions that are often violently at odds with one another, entered into a unity government on June 2. Since Hamas is a U.S.- and European Union-designated terrorist organization, the new government appears to be ineligible for American money under the U.S.'s own laws.

For the Obama administration, the deal is another gamble in a region where U.S. policy has had mixed results recently. It could usher in a new political order that would transform Palestinian politics, leading to the first elections in nearly a decade.

At the same time, it could mean that the U.S. is bending its own rules to subsidize a group that it considers to be a terrorist organization.

Hamas started this firing over 100 rockets into Israel and then the slaughter of three Israeli teenagers. Israel has vowed to end Hamas once and for all, and I for one hope they succeed. Hamas may have their little rockets but Israel has Nuclear capabilities which would end this war once and for all.

I just read Israel is still launching non stop stacks and preparing for a ground invasion and wont stop until they crush Hamas. That takes some balls, especially when the Fuhrer of their biggest ally just screwed them over and praised a KNOWN terrorist Abbas. Israel knows it is going at it alone and is still taking on the task and they are gonna get hit from all ends on it and it maybe the tipping point for the entire middle east.

Maybe the Arabs are just so uncivilized over there they need oppressive and brutal rulers like Khomeini, Ali Khamenei, Mohammud Omar, Saddam Hussein, Assad to keep them in line. Unfortunately those leaders are or were so radical they target us or inspire others to target us and our allies like Israel.

He always said he would "stand with Islam and the Muslims".... problem is, he don't care if they are terrorist factions or not as long as they stand against the Imperial West (USA) and the infidels he's trying so hard to destroy!

Yup, your right. Unfortunately it has alienated key allies like Israel, Germany, UK, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Iraq to name a few. I still remember when he supported the Muslim Brotherhood over the people of Egypt and now their President El-Sisi has sated America is no friend of Egypt. You realize if they block us from the Suez Canal it would hurt us financially and military wise.

We have about the biggest dumb $hit as a President that I have ever seen.

Seems it hasn't gotten through his thick Skull yet,that Hamas is the Gazan Wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, and that Fatah is generally in Agreement with the Goals of Hamas!

The Palestinians should ask Egypt to help rid themselves of Hamas. If not the Israeli's will do it for them, the hard way.

I believe they both should back down from each other for more are going to be killed... they need a cease fire on both sides now ...
they are both are allies ... and talks should start... both sides have many losses now... no matter who started ... talks are the only winning way to this ... war never really wins... war kills have we not figured that out by now ...

Israel is not allied with Hamas

So why in the F@3k is this any of our business?
I wonder why you all get so excited and fired up about Hamas and Israel?
We should stay the hell out of their business...if they want to fight, let them fight.

This is no reason the attack the President of the United States of America.

Attack our liar-in chief? The destroyer of our nation? We would never!

It might mess up the golf course or our beautiful Rose Garden. He's never seen anywhere else...... unless you are rich and invited to a fund raiser

Fundraising is Hard Work!

Yep. right next to golf and ignoring or pretending responsibility

But he and Michelle do love those multi-million dollar trips at taxpayer expense aboard Air Force One to raise a few hundred thousand for his democratic buddies political races!.... the same ones who are too busy to meet him at the airport

Basically.... whether you support the party or its agenda you are forced to pay for the advancement of of them!

I too respect the Office, but as long as that office continues to send our sons and husbands to jungles and deserts around the world we the people will have a vested interested. I agree WE SHOULD stay the feck out of their business....just wish the Command In Chief agreed.

Hello I am a Muslim Palestinian and I'd like to inform you that el-sisi in Egypt is on the same page of the Zionists he's there little baby and just like the others jordans king and qatars prince all are betrayal to the Muslim community the real Muslims are behind bars or dead , there nothing in the Muslim religion against Christians or Jews its all created by them for energy control like natural gas and oil. Do you really think they can't solve it by solar energy??? Or water current energy or windmills, this is how we all will be enslaved,did the gas price go down after iraqs war. ? NO !! its going up and its related to everything like factories and transportation and Iran is a terrorist state because of nuclear **** ?? Really ?? No. its because they don't own their central bank

why don't you define "Real Muslim" to us?

Not gonna happen. There has been war in the Middle East for thousands of years, it will not stop now. Even if something happened and Israel ceased to exist there will still be war there. It's not just Israel, the Muslims cant get along with each other with the different factions of them the Sunni's and the other ones then the extremists. No matter what happens, if Islam is involved there wil never be peace in the Middle East.

I hope Israel does not give in to international pressure and eliminate Hamas and the other terrorists from Gaza and the Middle East once and for all.

Because Israel is one of our closest allies and Hamas is an international terrorist organization who has carried out attacks on the United States and our interests for years. Hamas and the PLO and Abbas showed who they really were when they launched a terrorist attack and attacked and killed people at the one non political event that brings the world together the Olympics.

There are plenty of reasons to attack Fuhrer Obama's policies and statements. He has done nothing but hurt our country internally and world wide.