Schools and businesses are closed today near Israel's southern border as the conflict intensifies along the Gaza Strip. Security officials in that country are warning residents to seek shelter in underground bomb shelters when the sirens warning of an attack occur.

Israel, on Wednesday initiated a blistering attack across the border that killed the head of military wing of Hamas and eight others. It was then that the military wing of Hamas stated to Israel that they had “opened the gates of Hell.”

Israel has launched several air attacks, Israeli war planes have attacked several targets across the border into Palestinian territory. The Israeli operation was called by Israeli military “Operation Pillar of Defense.” Militants on the other side of the border have launched numerous rockets back at Israel, one strike killing three Israelis in an apartment complex in Kiryat Malachi where three units were destroyed. Three others were injured in that aerial attack.

Israeli officials say that the strikes were in response to the almost daily rocket attacks into Israel by Hamas militants. They have warned Hamas that they should not show their heads above ground for the next few days. It is reported that Israeli’s military has killed 15 Palestinians in the Gaza since yesterday and wounding another 188 in 200 attacks.

Israeli military has said that the Palestinians have fired 160 rockets into Israeli territory on Thursday, bringing the total rockets fired into Israel at 245. Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense system has intercepted 80 of those rockets according to military officials.

Israei tanks and troops have been gathering along the border with the strip since the operation began and Israel is not ruling out a ground attack into the Gaza Strip. If a ground assault into the Gaza takes place, it is sure to be quite different than the 22-day operation that took place four years ago. During that ground campaign, Israel was able to count on Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak. Mubarak closed Egypt’s borders to the Gaza Strip isolating the Palestinians. That campaign killed over 1,200 Palestinians.

Already, Egypt’s new president, Mohamed Morsi, has called back its ambassador to Israel in response to this latest outbreak of violence. This time around, there is a definite possiblity that Egypt will open its borders to humanitarian aid to the Palestinians and even Islamic fighters to counter Israel’s advance into the territory if a large scale ground campaign takes place.

Although Morsi had no other comment on the situation taking place between Israel and the Gaza Strip, other Muslim Brotherhood leaders are saying that another incursion into the strip will not be tolerated.

Further escalation in the conflict also risks the possibility of endangering the 1979 peace accord with Egypt.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Ramin Mehmanparast has urged other countries to cut ties with Israel in a statement where he called the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip “organized terrorism.”

Leaflets have been dropped into the Gaza Strip by aircraft warning Palestinians to stay clear of areas that are conrolled by Hamas militants.