Gaza siege on until hostages freed

Israel said yesterday there would be no humanitarian break to its total siege of Gaza Strip until all its hostages were freed, after the Red Cross pleaded for fuel to be allowed in to prevent overwhelmed hospitals from "turning into morgues."

Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, which rules the strip, for the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust, when hundreds of gunmen poured across the fence and rampaged through towns Saturday.

The gunmen killed at least 1,200 people, mostly civilians gunned down in homes or on streets, and carried scores of hostages back to Gaza.

The scale has emerged after Israeli forces regained control of towns, finding homes strewn with bodies, including women who were raped and killed and children who were shot and burned.

Israel has put the enclave, home to 2.3 million people, under a total siege and launched the most powerful bombing campaign in the 75-year history of the conflict, destroying whole neighborhoods. More than 1,350 people have been killed and over 5,000 wounded in Gaza. Its sole power station has been switched off and hospitals are running out of fuel for generators.

"The misery caused by this escalation is abhorrent," said Fabrizio Carboni, regional director of the Red Cross. "Hospitals lose power, putting newborns in incubators and elderly patients on oxygen at risk. Kidney dialysis stops, and X-rays can't be taken. Without electricity, hospitals risk turning into morgues."

Energy Minister Israel Katz said there would be no exception to the siege without freedom for hostages.

"Humanitarian aid to Gaza? No electrical switch will be lifted, no water hydrant opened and no fuel truck enter until Israeli hostages are returned. Humanitarian for humanitarian. And nobody should preach us morals," Katz said.

Israel has formed a unity war government, called up hundreds of thousands of reservists in preparation for what could be a ground assault on Gaza.

? Israeli strikes knocked Syria's two main airports out of service yesterday, Syrian state media said.

The "simultaneous" strikes "damaged landing strips in the two airports, putting them out of service."