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JERUSALEM–The United Nations and Egypt are pressing Israel and militants in Gaza to agree on an immediate cease-fire as both sides exchanged fire for a second consecutive day, raising fears of a wider conflict that would deepen civilian woes in the blockaded Palestinian enclave.
Israel’s military carried out airstrikes again Saturday targeting what it said were Palestinian Islamic Jihad members and sites across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 15 people, including a senior militant commander and a 5-year-old girl, since Friday. At the same time, Palestinian militants have launched hundreds of rockets at the country’s south and center, setting off air-raid sirens and sending thousands of Israelis to running bomb shelters.