Fighting between Israeli forces and the Palestinian group Hamas intensified today, with more than 500 killed on both sides after an attack on Israel prompted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to warn they were “embarking on long and difficult war”.

The latest escalation has killed at least 232 Palestinians and some 250 Israelis.

Here are the top updates on this big story

The conflict’s bloodiest escalation in decades saw Hamas carry out a massive rocket barrage and ground, air and sea offensive, that Israel’s army, said had killed more than 300 Israelis and wounded 1,000. Gaza officials said intense Israeli air strikes on the coastal enclave had brought the Palestinian death count to at least 232, with nearly 1,700 wounded.

Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to avenge what he said was a “black day” for Israel. “The IDF (army) is about to use all its force to destroy Hamas’s capabilities. We’ll strike them to the bitter end and avenge with force this black day they brought on Israel and its people,” he said.

He warned Palestinians living near Hamas sites in Gaza to leave as he vowed to turn its hideouts into “rubble” following its surprise attack. “I’m telling the people of Gaza: get out of there now, because we’re about to act everywhere with all our force,” he said.

The Israel military suffered significant losses as the Palestinian group claimed to have captured dozens of soldiers.

Hamas fighters fired thousands of rockets and breached Gaza’s security barrier, attacking nearby Israeli towns and military posts. They also opened fire on residents and passersby.

The group labelled its attack “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” and called on “resistance fighters in the West Bank” as well as in “Arab and Islamic nations” to join the battle. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said the group was on the “verge of a great victory”.

Hamas released images of several Israelis taken captive. Bodies were strewn on the streets of the Israeli town of Sderot near Gaza and inside cars, the windscreens shattered by hails of bullets.

In response to the deadly attacks, the Israel defense forces also declared a “readiness for war”. The forces launched “Operation Swords of Iron”, striking a number of targets in the Gaza Strip.

As the UN Security Council called an emergency meeting today, US President Joe Biden voiced “rock solid and unwavering” support for Israel and warned “against any other party hostile to Israel seeking advantage in this situation”.

The escalation follows months of rising violence, mostly in the occupied West Bank, and tensions around Gaza’s border and at contested holy sites in Jerusalem.

Backed by a barrage of rockets, Hamas militants stormed from the blockaded Gaza Strip into nearby Israeli towns, killing dozens and abducting others in an unprecedented surprise attack during a major Jewish holiday Saturday.

A stunned Israel launched airstrikes in Gaza, with its prime minister saying the country is now at war with Hamas and vowing to inflict an “unprecedented price.”

In an assault of startling breadth, Hamas gunmen rolled into as many as 22 locations outside the Gaza Strip, including towns and other communities as far as 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the Gaza border. In some places they gunned down civilians and soldiers as Israel’s military scrambled to muster a response.

Gunbattles continued well after nightfall, and Hamas held hostages in standoffs in two towns. Hamas occupied a police station in a third town, where Israeli forces struggled until Sunday morning to finally reclaim the building.