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Israel has sent armoured vehicles and ground forces into the Gaza Strip in the latest stage of its week-long offensive against Hamas.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said the intention was to take control of areas from which Palestinian militants have been firing rockets into Israel.

Earlier, Israel intensified air and artillery attacks on the territory.

Witnesses say military convoys crossed into northern Gaza at four separate points, supported by helicopters.

Reports say there have been clashes between the advancing Israeli soldiers and Hamas fighters. Both sides say they have inflicted casualties but there has been no independent confirmation of the claims.


Hamas has held the people of Gaza hostage ever since their illegal coup against the forces of (Palestinian) President Mahmoud Abbas
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France has strongly criticised the Israeli land campaign. The British Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, said the escalation of the conflict would cause alarm and dismay.

The US said it had told Israel's government that military action must be "mindful of the potential consequences to civilians."

The State Department also said Washington is "deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation" in Gaza, but said in a statement that Hamas holds the people of Gaza hostage.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has appealed for an immediate halt to Israel's ground operation.

In New York the UN Security Council has convened an emergency session to discuss the situation in Gaza.

Israel has carried out more than 800 strikes on the Gaza Strip since the offensive started eight days ago, including 40 on Saturday.

The UN has warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis, and believes 25% of more than 400 Palestinians killed by Israel so far were civilians. Israel says about 80% of those killed were Hamas militants. Four Israelis have been killed by rocket fire from Gaza.

'Not war-hungry'

An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed ground operations had begun and said the objective was "to destroy the Hamas terror infrastructure in the area of operations".


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"We are going to take some of the launch areas used by Hamas," Maj Avital Leibovitch told reporters.

Israeli officials have described the offensive as a "limited" operation.

Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the ground campaign against Hamas "will not be easy or short, but we are determined".

"Our aim is to force Hamas to stop its hostile activities against Israel and Israelis from Gaza, and to bring about a significant change in the situation in the southern part of Israel," he told a news conference.

"We have carefully weighed all our operations. We are not war-hungry, but we shall not allow a situation in which our towns, villages and civilians are constantly targeted by Hamas."

Mr Barak also said Israel would "keep a sensitive eye" on its northern border with Lebanon, where it fought a short but bloody war with the Shia Hezbollah movement in 2006.

"We hope the situation will remain calm. Nevertheless, we are ready and alert to face any unwanted development in that area," he added.


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Timeline: Week of attacks

The BBC's Paul Wood in Jerusalem says this is probably just the first wave of the assault, since there are said to be some 10,000 Israeli troops and hundreds of tanks massed on the border with Gaza.

The office of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has also announced that the government has ordered the urgent call-up of "tens of thousands" of extra military reservists.

Just before the ground offensive began, Hamas issued a statement promising that Palestinian children would be picking over the ruins of Israeli tanks and the body parts of Israeli soldiers.

The militant group's exiled political leader, Khaled Meshaal, earlier warned Israel against a ground offensive, saying that a "black destiny" awaited Israeli forces if the entered Gaza.

"We will not break, we will not surrender or give in to your conditions," he said in a speech from the Syrian capital, Damascus.

A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the offensive as "a vicious aggression".

Our correspondent says this promises to be a very bloody encounter.

Evening prayers

Earlier on Saturday, at least 13 people were killed in one Israeli raid when a missile struck a crowded mosque in Beit Lahiya, Palestinian medics said.

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Witnesses said more than 200 people had been inside the Ibrahim al-Maqadna mosque for evening prayers when it was struck.

Correspondents say Israel has accused Hamas of using mosques to hide weapons and ammunition, but this is the first time a mosque has been hit at prayer time.

Militants in Gaza fired more rockets into southern Israel on Saturday, one of which hit the port of Ashdod, injuring two people.

Ceasefire calls

Tens of thousands of demonstrators meanwhile protested worldwide against Israel's military operations, calling for an immediate ceasefire.

The biggest rally was in Paris where more than 20,000 people gathered. About 10,000 people protested in London.

Demonstrations also took place in Brussels, The Hague, Amsterdam, Ankara and Cyprus.

In Israel itself, tens of thousands of Israeli Arabs gathered in the town of Sakhnin to protest against their government's actions.