LIVE. At least 250 killed in Hamas attack, 232 killed in Israeli retaliation in Gaza – Netanyahu vows revenge after “black day” | Israel-Palestine conflict

The police forces of London and Berlinn respond on Saturday evening to “several incidents” in the cities following the conflict between Hamas and Israel. In a message on deploy additional manpower to ensure the safety of residents. The police are taking demonstrations into account in the coming days.

According to the British police images of incidents also shared on social media. It is not clear whether this concerns demonstrations or violent incidents, for example.

The Berlin police report on X that the attack on Israel was celebrated in the Neukölln district. Local media reported that pastries were distributed with a message praising “the resistance of the Palestinian people.” District Mayor of Neukölln Martin Hikel mentioned this in a television interview “a horrible glorification of a terrible war”. Because violent and anti-Israel slogans were shouted, officers decided to break up the demonstration.

The United States and Israel held an “in-depth discussion” on Saturday about the need military support to Israel against the offensive of the Palestinian radical group Hamas. This was announced by a senior White House official.

Washington could announce something about this starting Sunday, but right now the rules are political chaos within the US Congress. “Congress probably has a role to play in this, but without a speaker of the House of Representatives, it is an unprecedented situation we are dealing with,” it said.

Moreover, according to the American official, it is “too early to say” whether Iran is “directly involved” in Hamas’ offensive. Currently, the US has “no indication” of this. Yet “there is no doubt” that Hamas is “financed, equipped and armed” by the regime in Tehran, among others, the same source said.

Antony Blinken, the head of US diplomacy, said on Saturday his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Choukri spoke on the phone in the hope that Egypt, which acts as a mediator between Israel and Hamas, could put an end to the latter’s offensive.

According to Israeli media, the death toll on the Israeli side has risen to at least 250. 1,590 others were also injured. At least 232 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip in Israeli counterattacks, according to the latest figures from the Gaza Health Ministry.

An Israeli commander, Lt. Col. Yonatan Steinberg, has been killed, the country’s military said. Steinberg was the commander of the Nahal Brigade, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

France and Germany introduced extra security measures on Saturday at Jewish and Israeli buildings such as synagogues, schools and monuments.

In Berlin, a number of people took to the streets in the Neukölln district to celebrate the attacks. Pastries were also reportedly handed out with a message praising “the resistance of the Palestinian people”. District Mayor of Neukölln Martin Hikel called this “a horrible glorification of a terrible war” in a television interview.

Police security of Jewish and Israeli institutions in Germany has been immediately scaled up, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told Bild newspaper. German authorities are closely monitoring “possible supporters of Hamas in the Islamist corner”., she adds. The Israeli flag will be projected on the Brandenburg Gate on Saturday evening as a show of support.

In France, there was already a heightened state of security around synagogues in Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Strasbourg because of the Jewish holidays celebrated this month. Gérald Darmanin, France’s interior minister, has called for further tightening of surveillance. This has already happened in Strasbourg and Marseille, sources told the French news agency AFP.

Darmanin calls for a “visible and systematic presence” of police and the deployment of soldiers from the special military unit Sentinelle, which was created after terrorist attacks in France in early 2015 to protect the territory against terrorism. The Ministry of the Interior will discuss the security situation on Sunday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to condemn Hamas’ attack on Israel.

Blinken also called on Abbas to “continue and intensify measures to restore peace and stability in the occupied West Bank,” according to a State Department statement.

The head of US diplomacy reiterated “the unequivocal condemnation of Hamas’s terrorist attacks on Israel, and called on all leaders in the region to condemn them,” the text said.

Bruno Mars has canceled a performance he was supposed to give in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening. The American singer also performed on Wednesday in the Yarkon Park stadium, which can accommodate 63,000 people. But concert organizer Live Nation reported to ‘The Times of Israel’ that Mars will not perform on Saturday due to Hamas’s attack on Israel.

Earlier in the day, Live Nation reported that the singer and his management were “monitoring the situation”. Mars played in Israel for the first time on Wednesday. He said he was happy to finally be able to perform in the country.

The Mars concerts in Tel Aviv were both sold out to the last seat.

Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip live in fear and uncertainty. “It is very uncertain what the coming night and days will bring, how long this will last.” This is what Esther from the Dutch Plant an Olive Tree foundation tells us, which is committed to “just peace with equality for all citizens, including the right of return for Palestinian refugees.” Her in-laws in Gaza are “very scared,” she adds.

“In previous Israeli military attacks on Gaza, there was sometimes one ‘knock on the roof’a kind of warning that a building was about to be bombed. That’s not happening now“, says Esther. Because of that according to her many civilian casualties.

The Hamas attack is seen as a surprise attack, but Esther argues that it is not that unexpected if you look at history. “The Palestinians have been oppressed for 75 years. There is a feeling of ‘this far and no further’. People have nothing left to lose.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday he would take revenge on what he said was a “black day” for Israel. He said the army will hit back at Hamas in Gaza with full force.

“The Israeli army will use all its power to destroy Hamas”, Netanyahu said in a brief televised statement. “We will attack them to the bitter end and take violent revenge for this dark day they have brought on Israel and its people,” he said.

An Israeli airstrike leveled an apartment building in central Gaza City on Saturday, after Israel vowed to impose an “unprecedented” price in response to an attack on Israel by the militant Hamas movement.