Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman today snapped a 20-month political alliance with Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu, the first fallout of a simmering discontent over the fractious ruling coalition's response to frequent attacks by Palestinian Hamas militants.
Israeli troops backed by tanks and drones on Thursday continued to pound Gaza in its operation against Hamas, defying mounting calls for restraint and a United Nations vote to investigate the deadly offensive that has killed 720 Palestinians and 34 Israelis.