White House: Closely following Israeli strikes on Gaza, call for deescalation

The White House said on Tuesday it was closely following Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip that killed three Palestinian militant leaders, and that it was aware of reports that 10 civilians were "tragically killed" in the strikes. "We call for all parties to deescalate the situation," a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said.

"Israel has the right to protect itself and defend its people from indiscriminate rocket attacks launched by terrorist groups," it added.