Israel Does Not Plan to End Its Military Assault on Gaza

On Wednesday, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has no timetable for ending the current military operation in Gaza. 

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Israeli media on Tuesday reported on a possible Egyptian-mediated cease-fire that would go into effect Thursday morning. Netanyahu, however, made no mention of that possibility.

After a meeting with foreign ambassadors, Netanyahu vowed that his country "did everything it could" to prevent the wave of violence, referring to police actions in East Jerusalem or the postponement of the court decision on the eviction of Palestinian families in the Seij Yarrah neighborhood.

This meeting came after days of mediation attempts and international calls for a truce. But Israel's intentions seem to be moving in the opposite direction.

Netanyahu said there are two ways to "restore tranquility" for his compatriots: conquer Gaza, "and that is always a possibility, or be able to deter them" from attacking Israeli territory.

"We are engaged now in applying forceful deterrence, but we are not ruling anything out," he warned, hinting at a possible ground incursion into Palestinian territory.

"If democracies around the world attack Israel for it instead of Hamas, they will act clumsily and irresponsibly," Netanyahu added.

So far, Israeli bombardments have resulted in 219 Palestinian casualties in Gaza, including 63 minors. In Israel, on the other hand, missiles launched by Palestinian militias have killed 12 people, including two minors.