Death toll rises in Gaza

The death toll in the Gaza Strip rose above 25 early Wednesday morning, as Israeli warplanes struck "terror targets." Local residents in the Palestinian territory awaited continued bombings and feared a possible ground invasion, after the Israeli government authorized the military to call up some 40,000 reservists for the aerial offensive.

The exact number of casualties varied across sources on Wednesday. Overnight, Israel reportedly struck the home of a Hamas commander in the northern Gaza city of Beit Hanoun, killing both him and several members of his family, according to the news agency AFP. An airstrike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah claimed another life early Wednesday.

The worst attack on Tuesday occurred in the town of Khan Yunis, where six people, including children, were killed. Hamas responded by vowing that "all Israelis have now become legitimate targets for the resistance."

Israel launched "Operation Protective Edge" the previous day in response to increase rocket attacks from Hamas militants to the country's west. The recent discovery of the bodies of three missing Israeli teens and revenge murder of a Palestinian teen exacerbated an already tense diplomatic situation.

EU condemns Hamas rocket fire

Hamas fired on Tel Aviv and Jerusalem late on Tuesday. Authorities in the Holy City confirmed that one missile had struck the Ramat Raziel, located roughly 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the city's southwest and that the remaining two missiles had landed in the outlying periphery. No injuries were reported.

The European Union condemned "the indiscriminate fire into Israel by militant groups in the Gaza Strip," in a statement from the office of EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.

Calling on both sides to cease fire, it also commented on the Israeli offensive against Gaza citizens.

"The EU deplores the growing number of civilian casualties, reportedly among them children, caused by Israeli retaliatory fire. The safety and security of all civilians must be of paramount importance," the statement added.

Netanyahu sidelined by 'hawks,' says Primor

Former Israeli ambassador to Germany Avi Primor, who chairs the Israel Council on Foreign Relations, told the German newspaper Frankfurter Rundschau on Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as Israel's army and intelligence chiefs did not want a ground offensive in Gaza "because he knows that it will solve nothing."

But, "hawks," such as Foreign Minister Avigdor Liebermann and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, had taken over Netanyahu's governing Likud party and exercised "great weight," Primor said.

"These are fanatics who are not intent on a political solution," Primor said. "Moderates have been pushed out of the party."

It was improbable that the United States would intervene in the conflict before the mid-term US congressional elections in November, Primor added.

Obama calls for restraint

In a guest article for Thursday's edition of the German weekly newspaper Die Zeit, US President Barack Obama urged Israel and the Palestinians to show restraint.

"At this time of danger, everyone involved must protect the innocent and act in a sensible and measured way, not with revenge and retaliation," Obama said.

kms, ipj/mz (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)