Israeli soldiers drive their tank on the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip , Monday, Jan. 5,... 
(AP)
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Holmes said Gaza was in the grip of an "increasingly alarming" humanitarian crisis and was running low on clean water, power, food, medicine and other basics.
Israeli leaders say there is no humanitarian crisis and that they have allowed the delivery of vital supplies.
On Tuesday the Israeli military said three soldiers were killed and 24 wounded in a friendly fire incident when an Israeli tank shelled a building in which they had taken cover Monday night during fighting outside Gaza City. The military said a colonel who commanded an infantry brigade was among the wounded.
In a separate friendly fire incident, also Monday, a paratroops officer was killed in northern Gaza, the army said. In all, six soldiers have been killed since the offensive began.
Israeli forces detained 80 Palestinians — some of them suspected Hamas members — and transferred several to Israel for interrogation, said military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to release the information.
Israel's operation has sparked anger across the Arab world and has drawn criticism from countries such as Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, which have ties with Israel and have been intimately involved in Mideast peacemaking.
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Barzak reported from Gaza City, Weizman from Jerusalem.
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