The leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip called on Arab states, especially Egypt, to halt Israel's assault on the Palestinian enclave, which was launched earlier on Wednesday.
"We call on our Arab brothers, and especially Egypt ... and the new Egyptian presidency, to suppress this barbaric campaign in defence of Gaza and its people," Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister of Hamas's Gaza government said in a statement.
"I call for an urgent Arab summit to confront the brutal aggression," he added.
