Both sides adapt as they try to minimise civilian casualties in latest Gaza conflict
Palestinian militants are firing longer-range rockets at Israel, which is using drones and new weapons to try to minimise civilian casualties
With pinpoint airstrikes on militant targets in the Gaza Strip and Iranian-made rockets flying deep into Israel, the current conflagration between Israel and Hamas reflects the vast changes that have taken place on the battlefield in just four years.
Israel, armed with precise intelligence and newly developed munitions, has carried out hundreds of surgical airstrikes in a campaign meant to hit militants while avoiding the civilian casualties that have marred previous offensives.
Hamas, meanwhile, has not been stopped from firing its new longer-range rockets that shocked Israelis by reaching the areas around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem for the first time, and has revealed a variety of new weapons.
This battle zone is the result of meticulous efforts by both sides to beef up their abilities since a three-week Israeli offensive in Gaza that ended in January 2009.
At that time, Israel inflicted heavy damage on Hamas. But the operation caused widespread damage to the civilian infrastructure and killed hundreds of civilians. The toll drew heavy international criticism and war crimes accusations. Thirteen Israelis were also killed in the fighting.
In four days of fighting, Israel has sought to hit clear militant targets - relying on painstaking intelligence gathered through a network of informers, aerial surveillance and other high-tech measures.