People are beginning to feel like rats in a cage as Israel pummels the tiny territory with missiles and steps up preparations for a possible ground invasion.

The Israeli Defence Forces struck 200 targets overnight; tanks and troops are massing on Gaza’s borders; up to 75,000 reservists are being called up. The immediate area around Gaza has been declared a closed military zone.

The psychological impact on Gaza’s population of the current offensive is as much a weapon of war as the bombing itself. People in Gaza City say their children are terrified and unable to sleep. Explosions rock the ground and rattle windows throughout the night; daylight brings little respite from the barrage of missiles unleashed on the 1.5 million people crowded into the enclave. Gaza has no public bomb shelters and there is no air raid warning system.

Click here for full story.