The US is warning Iran to stay out of Israel’s conflict with Hamas as American weapons begin flowing to its Middle East ally after the weekend’s terror attack, and as Israel called up an unprecedented 300,000 reservists for the conflict.
With the death toll climbing past 1500, including 900 Israelis, Hamas threatened to start killing Israeli hostages and broadcast the executions in response to any retaliatory air strikes that came without warning.
The warnings came as Israel’s military said it had regained control of the border, as it laid siege to Gaza and cut off electricity, fuel, food and water to the strip of land that is home to 2 million people. Preparations were well under way for a possible ground invasion.
“We have only started striking Hamas,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a nationally televised address.
“What we will do to our enemies in the coming days will reverberate with them for generations.”
The conflict – and the threat it could spill into a broader regional conflict involving Iran and its proxy militias – meant the oil price held on to its biggest gains for six months. The S&P/ASX 200 rallied back above 7000 – its best one-day performance this month – amid dovish signs from the US Federal Reserve over interest rates.
The Albanese government is working on contingency plans to rescue stranded Australians from Israel using both commercial and military aircraft, as many major airlines suspended flights to and from the main airport at Tel Aviv.
Read the article by Andrew Tillett in the Financial Review.