Israel forms emergency government and steps up Gaza offensive as brutality of Hamas attacks laid bare

Israel has formed an emergency government and war management cabinet, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz jointly announced Wednesday, in the wake of Hamas' surprise attacks on border communities that killed at least 1,200 people and injured thousands more.

Gantz, a former defense minister, will join Netanyahu and current defense minister Yoav Gallant in a wartime cabinet.

"There is time for war and time for peace. This, now, is the time for war," Gantz said during a televised address.

The government will not pass any laws or make any decisions that do not concern the conduct of the war, the announcement said.

Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza following Hamas' October 7 onslaught, when armed militants poured over the heavily-fortified border into Israel, raiding homes, rampaging through farms and communities and taking as many as 150 hostages back to Gaza.

Since Israel began airstrikes on the Palestinian enclave Saturday at least 1,055 people have been killed in Gaza, including hundreds of children, women, and entire families, according to the Palestinian health ministry. It said a further 5,184 have been injured.

Israel has ordered a "complete siege" on the enclave, including halting supplies of electricity, food, water and fuel. On Wednesday, Gaza's only power station stopped working after running out of fuel, the head of the Gaza power authority Galal Ismail told CNN.