Israelis in south seek shelter from strikes

Residents of southern Israel sought shelter on Friday after two days of escalated violence on the border with Gaza.

In Reim, families and friends gathered in shelters to seek protection from rockets sent from Gaza.

A Hamas rocket killed three Israelis in the town of Kiryat Malachi on Thursday morning.

Two days of Israeli air strikes have killed 19 Palestinians, including seven militants and 12 civilians, among them six children and a pregnant woman.

Israel said on Friday it would suspend military action in the Gaza Strip during a short visit to the Palestinian territory by Egypt's prime minister.

In an unprecedented display of solidarity with Hamas militants embroiled in a conflict that risks spiraling into all-out war, Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil will spend three hours in the enclave.

Sources said he would explore the possibility of brokering a ceasefire amid news that Israel was calling up thousands of reservists ahead of a possible ground invasion.

The latest upsurge in the long-running conflict came on Wednesday when Israel killed Hamas’ military mastermind Ahmed al-Jaabari in a precision air strike on his car.

Israel has been shelling the coastal enclave from land, air and sea.

Israel says its offensive responded to increasing missile salvoes from Gaza. Its bombing has not yet reached the saturation level seen before it last invaded Gaza in 2008, but Israeli officials have said a ground assault remains possible.