Current Gaza violence could be 'four times more intense' than 2014 war

Peace efforts may be running out of time to stop a further escalation of violence, analysts warn

Israeli artillery in action as the escalation continues between the Israeli army and Hamas at the Gaza Border. EPA

Mourners attend the funeral of Palestinian Rashid Abu Ara, 16, who was killed during clashes with Israeli troops in village of Aqaba near Nablus, north of the West Bank. AFP

A heavily damaged house in a residential area in the city of Yehud, in central Israel. AFP

Parents of Palestinian man Abdulsalam Al-Ghazali, who was killed amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, react during their son funeral in Gaza City. Reuters

Residents look at a car that was hit in an Israeli air strike, on the main road in Gaza City. Three people who were in the vehicle died. AP

Palestinians mourn the death of relatives outside a hospital in Beit Lahia following a series of Israeli air strikes on the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. AFP

Israeli Arabs treat a sheep that was wounded by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, where nearby a father and his daughter were killed, in the village of Dahmash near the Israeli city of Lod. AP

An injured man receives treatment at the scene after a rocket launched from the Gaza strip struck in Giv'atayim, Israel. Getty

A man looks at the damage in the aftermath of overnight Israeli air strikes on Gaza. EPA

A Jewish man at a burnt-out synagogue after overnight riots between Arab and Jewish residents in Lod, Israel. EPA

Relatives of Palestinian Rashid Abu Arra, 16, who was killed during clashes with Israeli troops in the village of Aqqaba near Nablus at the hospital morgue in Tubas in the occupied West Bank. AFP

Rubble from the Hanadi tower after an Israeli air strike on Gaza City. EPA

Israeli security forces pass burnt-out vehicles in Holon near Tel Aviv. AFP

A huge crater in Gaza City caused by the Israeli air strikes. AFP

A broken mannequin near a tower building in Gaza City that was hit by Israeli air strikes during the flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence. Reuters

Fires at sunrise in Khan Yunish after an Israeli air strike on targets in the southern Gaza strip. AFP

Palestinian rescuers move an elderly woman from a building in Gaza City after Israeli air strikes in the area. AP Photo

Palestinians evacuate after their tower building was hit by Israeli air strikes, in Gaza City. Reuters

The remains of a rocket, destroyed by Israel's Iron Dome aerial defence system, which was fired by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from the Gaza strip. AFP

An Iron Dome aerial defence system battery is seen in the foreground as fire rages at Ashkelon's refinery, which was hit by Hamas rockets the previous day, in the southern Israeli city. AFP

Palestinians stand next to the remains of a tower building which was destroyed in Israeli air strikes, in Gaza City. Reuters

A Palestinian man holds an injured girl awaiting medical care at al-Shifa hospital, after an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. AFP

People take shelter in the basement of a building in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv as alarm sirens wailed after 3:00 a.m. after rockets were launched towards Israel from the Gaza Strip. AFP

Israeli border police vehicles drive past an extinguished burnt vehicle in Lod near Tel Aviv, after rockets were launched towards Israel from the Gaza Strip controlled by the Palestinian Hamas movement. AFP

An Israeli police officer gestures to a Palestinian woman and her daughter, frightened by clashes outside of the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem. AP Photo

Israeli firefighters walk by a car with a fallen tree on it after it was hit by a rocket fired from Gaza towards Holon, Israel. Reuters

Palestinians inspect a destroyed Hanadi tower after Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. EPA

Arab Israelis gesture and wave Palestinian flags during the funeral of Mousa Hassouna in the central Israeli city of Lod near Tel Aviv. Hassouna was killed during clashes with Israeli security following an anti-Israel demonstration over tensions in Jerusalem. AFP

Rescuers rush to help among the rubble in front of Al Sharouk tower, that collapsed after being hit by an Israeli air strike, in Gaza city on Wednesday. AFP

Palestinians view the smouldering remains of Al Sharouk tower, which collapsed after being hit by an Israeli air strike. AFP

Smoke and flames rise from Al Sharouk tower, as it collapses after being hit by an Israeli air strike in Gaza City. AFP

Al Sharouk tower block collapses after being hit by an Israeli air strike. AFP

A man peers out to survey destroyed buildings in Gaza city, following Israeli air strikes. AFP

A plume of black smoke rises into the air in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli air strike on the area, which is controlled by the militant Hamas movement. AFP

Parts of a broken mannequin lie scattered near a building that was hit by Israeli air strikes in Gaza city. Reuters

A Palestinian woman mourns her son Rasheed Abu Arra, who was killed during confrontations with Israeli forces, at his funeral in the village of Aqaba, near the West Bank town of Tubas. AP Photo

Women mourn at the funeral of Palestinian Rasheed Abu Arra, who was killed during confrontations with Israeli forces, in the town of Aqaba, near Tubas, in the West Bank. Reuters

Israel's Iron Dome air defence system intercepts a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip, above the southern Israeli city of Ashdod. AFP

The last time Israel and armed Palestinian groups in Gaza fought a war in 2014, militants fired 4,000 rockets at Israel over the 49-day conflict.

Since the latest flare-up of violence led to rocket fire on Monday evening, over 1,000 were fired in just 48 hours.

Palestinian militants in Gaza appeared to be firing at Israel at as much as four times the average rate of the previous conflict, which stood out for its intensity and led to a ground invasion and 2,300 dead in the strip – mostly civilians – as well as six civilians in Israel and 70 soldiers.

People in Gaza have reported intense bombardments from Israel that eclipse the 2014 conflict or other skirmishes since.

The Israeli military has released fewer details on the number of airstrikes carried out than it has about the numbers of rockets fired towards Israel. But as of Wednesday afternoon, it said that 500 airstrikes had hit the coastal enclave.

That puts it at about 166 air strikes a day into the densely populated area – roughly the same frequency as during the 2014 conflict.

The death toll in Gaza on Wednesday rose to 53 Palestinians, including 14 children and three women, according to the Health Ministry.

More than 300 people have been wounded, including 86 children and 39 women.

Six people in Israel, including three women and a child, have been killed by rocket fire and dozens of people were wounded.

Even at a comparable rate of fire to 2014, the Israeli airstrikes are nonetheless intense and the number of strikes does not account for size and type of munitions being used.

Recent videos from Gaza showed the impact of Israeli strikes, with whole areas of a main streets engulfed in fire and debris.

Videos uploaded to social media on Tuesday night showed scores of rockets and Israeli "Iron Dome" missile interceptors lighting up the night sky over the Gaza-Israel border.

On Tuesday night, an Israeli strike brought down a multi-storey building that the military said housed Hamas offices.

Shock and awe

During the 2014 conflict, Israel opened the conflict with barrages of very heavy air attacks – applying a tactic derived from the US dubbed "shock and awe". The move aimed to stun the opposition into submission.

But, it seemed to have limited effect and a bloody ground invasion followed within 10 days as the army decided that militants would have to be uprooted from tunnel complexes and other hidden positions.

The Israeli army has hinted that another ground incursion is not off the table today either.

Lt Col Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, on Wednesday said two infantry brigades had been sent to the Gaza border area.

Michael Stephens, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, warned that a ground war could be inevitable.

"Netanyahu has been placed in a situation where he must respond with firmness, or risk looking weak. As a result the IDF will have to enter Gaza and go in hard. After 1000 rockets being fired into Israel, there is no chance that they will not carry out an operation," he says.

Compared to 2014, the escalation over the last week appears to have caught Israel less well prepared – forcing the military to cancel a massive month-long training exercise and recall and divert units.

Defence Minister Benny Gantz warned on Wednesday that the Israeli military “will continue to attack and bring complete and long-term peace”.

Operation Protective Edge

The last war, dubbed Operation Protective Edge by Israel, began on July 8, 2014, with the Israelis attacking 223 targets in Gaza, continuing the next day with another 326 raids, according to a report from the US defence think tank Rand.

That soon tailed off to an average of 190 per day, to a total of 1,700 targets hit during the 50 day campaign.

But Joe Truzman, an analyst at the Foundation for Defence of Democracies, warned that the high intensity in the first few days did not mean the current violence would be shorter.

In 2014, Hamas and other groups went on for over a month firing rockets, [but] there’s a lot of reports already that they’re back to their 2014 levels of rocket stockpiles,” he said.

“They may have even more rockets now or rather, more accurate rockets. So, that's a huge issue. They can go on for quite some time."