MOSCOW, October 7. /TASS/. Israel's response to the actions of the Palestinian Hamas movement will be both military and political, Israeli Ambassador to Moscow Alexander Ben Zvi said in an interview with TASS.

"Of course, the answer will be both military and political. Over 3,000 rockets have been fired at our land, and armed terrorist groups have infiltrated various Israeli cities and kibbutzim," he said.

"It has already been officially stated that 22 people were killed and more than a hundred wounded. <...> This is, in general, truly a state of war," the diplomat stated.

Early on Saturday morning, rocket attacks were launched on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Alarm signals have sounded continuously since 06:28 Moscow time in many localities across the country, including the Tel Aviv area and its environs.

The military operation of the Israel Defense Forces in the Gaza Strip in response to the massive rocket fire launched on Saturday from the Palestinian side is now called "Iron Swords,"the army press service reported. The Israeli army has launched attacks on the Gaza Strip after massive rocket fire from the Palestinian enclave, the army press service reported earlier on Saturday.

The militant wing of the Palestinian movement Hamas issued a statement that during the operation in Israel it captured about 35 Israeli soldiers and settlers. The operation initiated by Palestinian radicals in Israeli territory next to the Gaza Strip is a response to Israel's aggressive activities against one of Islam's holiest sites, the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem's Old City, Chief of Hamas's Political Bureau Hamas Politburo Ismail Haniyeh said.