Israel hopes displays of military might will pressure Palestinians into turning against the Hamas-linked militants who abducted an Israeli soldier.
But the tactic could backfire — many Palestinians rallied around Hamas on Friday as Israel continued to bombard the Gaza Strip with warplanes and ground artillery.
The primary goal of the strikes is to force Hamas to release Cpl. Gilad Shalit, who was captured Sunday when militants from Gaza attacked an Israeli outpost, killing two other soldiers.
The wider objective appears to be stirring popular dissent against Hamas, which won elections in January but has been widely snubbed politically and financially by the West for its refusal to reject its hard-line charter against Israel.
In Rafah — a once-bustling border crossing with Egypt — banners and graffiti celebrated Hamas as heroic for humbling Israel with the brazen assault, and for resisting the backlash.
'The more pressure Israel puts on us, the more it strengthens Hamas' position,' said Adel Abubeid, a 37-year-old father of six. 'If Hamas, before the kidnapping, had 70 percent of the Palestinian street, now it has 300 percent.'
Abubeid voted for Hamas' rival, the long-governing Fatah party. His support began to switch as Israel and its Western allies tightened the screws on Hamas, including cutting back aid that left the Palestinian authorities nearly bankrupt.
Gaza was hit much harder by the aid cutoff than the larger and more developed West Bank.
Border controls on Gaza had been getting steadily more restrictive for years. The area was virtually sealed off from Israel after the withdrawal of troops and settlers last year. The euphoria of autonomy in Gaza quickly faded in the reality of a shattered economy and the loss of even menial jobs in Israel.
For Abubeid and others, Sunday's attack on Israel was a welcome distraction — even with the threat of more military action and hardships.
'Hamas would be disgraced in our eyes if it gave back this soldier without any concessions,' said Abubeid, who earned about $1,800 a month in Israel before losing his job. 'The economic pain doesn't matter. We Palestinians can live on bread and salt.'
The International Committee of the Red Cross said its officials were in talks with Israeli authorities to try to get the military blockade of Gaza lifted for aid shipments.
Abu Kayed, a 50-year-old unemployed restaurant worker, tried to sell his camel to pay for food and rent. His family counts on help from Hamas-backed charities.
'Hamas is more popular now than it has ever been,' said Kayed, who has six children. 'I don't understand why all the world is crying out for one soldier. We Palestinians are treated like dust.'
Some Gazans, however, blamed Hamas for their troubles.
'I was expecting my situation to be very good' after the Israeli withdrawal, said Ismail el-Shaikh, a 22-year-old who works in a pizza parlor. 'I thought the beaches would be open. I thought I would travel, and I expected more economic projects to enter Gaza.'
'That didn't happen,' he added. 'Hamas came instead and the situation is more difficult.'