Israeli troops have raided the Gaza Strip in the first ground invasion after six days of air strikes. Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has asked the UN for international protection. CCTV’s Roee Ruttenberg reports.

Israeli boots on the ground in Gaza

Israeli troops have raided the Gaza Strip in the first ground invasion after six days of launching air strikes. Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has asked the UN for international protection. CCTV's Roee Ruttenberg reports.

Follow Roee Ruttenberg on Twitter @RoeeRuttenberg

Less than one day after Israeli troops raided a rocket launching facility north of Gaza City, tanks lined up at the Gaza frontier on Sunday for the first disclosed Israeli ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.

However, the offensive has so far failed to stop Hamas from launching rockets into Israel, where more sirens went off Sunday.

The week-long offensive has also included over 1,300 airstrikes into Gaza, and so far over 160 Palestinians have been killed.

Thousands of Palestinians have also fled their homes in Gaza after Israel warned that it was preparing to strike particular neighborhoods.

Israel says that it is launching the campaign in defense of its citizens from the over 800 rockets launched by Hamas into Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also accused Hamas of using its citizens as “human shields” in defense of criticisms that Israel’s military offensive in civilian areas is a violation of humanitarian law.

As the international pressure for a ceasefire grows, Netanyahu also faces pressures from his own government to continue the attacks. This makes the future of the conflict difficult to determine.