Palestinian Death Toll Rises

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Smoke rises after rockets were fired from near Gaza City. AFP/Getty Images

Israel threatened to broaden its offensive against Hamas after the Islamists rejected a truce, and the army warned tens of thousands of Palestinians in northern Gaza to clear out by Wednesday morning.

Despite the continued fighting, the White House called a cease-fire proposed by Egypt on Monday a "live option" and urged Hamas to accept the terms and stop firing rockets from Gaza into Israel.

"Hamas chose to continue the battle and it will pay a price for that decision," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Tuesday as the conflict entered its second week. "When there is no cease-fire, our answer is fire.''

A short lull in airstrikes and rocket attacks during a cease-fire on Tuesday between Israel and Hamas allowed Gaza City residents to get out and do some shopping at an open-air market. Video by WSJ's Nicholas Casey.

Before the truce proposal emerged, Israel had been threatening a ground invasion of Gaza, massing troops and equipment on its southern border with the Palestinian territory. On Sunday, Israel similarly warned residents of Beit Lahiya, a town of about 70,000 in northern Gaza, to clear out. More than 17,000 fled their homes, many to United Nations shelters.

The Israeli military said late Tuesday night that it was telephoning residents of northern Gaza to warn them to evacuate homes "for their own safety."' A spokeswoman said they had warned residents of Beit Lahiya and the neighborhoods of Shajaiyeh and Zeitoun.

She wouldn't say exactly what the army planned, or how many residents were being warned. The Israeli daily Haaretz reported that some 100,000 automated calls went out to Gaza.

An Israeli was killed Tuesday by a Palestinian rocket, the first death on the Israeli side in an eight-day conflict that has left at least 194 Palestinians dead, according to the Gaza health ministry. The man, a civilian, was hit by shrapnel from a rocket near the Erez border crossing between Israel and Gaza, the military said.

Gaza residents said most of Beit Lahiya had already emptied out even before the latest warnings. But many residents in other parts of northern Gaza have decided to stay. Residents were told to clear out by 8 a.m. local time Wednesday.

Mohammed Arafah AbuHaloob, an 80-year-old resident of Beit Lahiya, had evacuated to Gaza City once already after Israelis threatened to strike the town. When no attack came, he returned home. On Tuesday night, he received two automated calls telling him to leave immediately and he fled to Gaza City with only a plastic bag of medication, he said.

Israel has said the majority of rockets launched from Gaza come from the north.

Israel's security cabinet decided Tuesday morning to suspend airstrikes on Gaza in line with the cease-fire proposal. There was a lull starting at about 9 a.m. But Gaza militants fired 47 rockets during the suspension, according to Israel, which then started up strikes again.

Hamas rejected the cease-fire, saying it wasn't consulted by Egypt first and insisting that its various demands be addressed in any agreement. Israel said that from 9 a.m. on, Palestinians launched about 142 rockets from Gaza and 24 were intercepted.

An Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire to end a weeklong air war between Israel and Hamas appears to be crumbling. WSJ's Tamer El-Ghobashy and Nick Casey join Simon Constable on the News Hub to discuss. Photo: Getty

Israel conducted at least 33 strikes on Gaza on Tuesday but said it would not provide a full tally until Wednesday.

Egyptian officials said they were still confident a truce deal could be reached and were keeping up their efforts. President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi planned to host Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo on Wednesday. Mr. Abbas is head of the moderate Fatah faction that only recently reconciled with Hamas after a long-running rivalry. He has expressed support for the Egyptian proposal.

At the same time, Mr. Netanyahu faced renewed pressure from within his own government for a ground invasion of the 36-mile-long coastal strip, which is about twice the size of Washington, D.C. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman accused the prime minister of being overly cautious and said Israel had no alternative but to embark on an "all-out reconquest of the Gaza Strip."

"The Israel Defence Forces must finish this operation in control of the entire Gaza Strip," Mr. Lieberman said in a news conference.

In another sign of rising political friction within Israel over the letup in airstrikes, Mr. Netanyahu dismissed his deputy defense minister, Danny Danon, after he said Mr. Netanyahu had made a mistake in accepting the cease-fire.

Secretary of State John Kerry accused Hamas of putting innocent lives in danger to "play politics."

"I cannot condemn strongly enough the actions of Hamas in so brazenly firing rockets in multiple numbers in the face of a goodwill effort to operate a cease-fire," Mr. Kerry said.

Hamas spokesman Samy Abu Zohry said the proposed truce didn't meet any of Hamas's demands, including an end to Israel's blockade of Gaza and the release of prisoners.

"Hamas was fighting for Palestinians, not a cease-fire," he said at a news conference in Gaza.

Throughout the day, vapor trails could be seen through the skies as rockets were launched east of Gaza City. At around noon, a loud explosion was heard, what residents and the Gaza government said was an Israeli attack on an empty field adjacent to a home.

In the hours before Israel resumed strikes, the streets in Gaza began to fill again as residents started to emerge, some after many days inside. One market in Gaza City filled with shoppers as stalls hawked apples and oranges, while a vendor shouted prices through a megaphone. But by late afternoon, pedestrians had vanished in many areas, and even gas stations were empty.

Palestinians inspect a destroyed building after an Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahya on Tuesday. Zuma Press

Nafiz Abu Shabar, the head of plastic surgery at al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, sat at his desk wondering how long supplies would last.

"We've had shortages, but none like this before," he said. An Israeli and Egyptian blockade against Gaza had left it short of supplies even for daily needs, let alone for casualties the hospital now faces, he said.

"This is not justified by any means," he said.

Patients sat in recovery as more arrived. Mai Hamada, 31 years old, lay in bandages in a private room with burns covering a quarter of her body. Ms. Hamada, who suffers from cerebral palsy, was the victim of an Israeli attack on a center for the disabled on Saturday.

"What did we do to deserve this?" she said.

In addition to the 194 Palestinians killed, some 1,500 have been wounded, according to Palestinian health officials. At least 17,000 civilians in Gaza have fled their homes, according to the United Nations. At least 60 Israelis have been injured.

In a seaside neighborhood of Ashdod, a red police ribbon cordoned off a small earthen crater from a rocket that landed in a stone paved yard. The strike marked a rare miss by the country's Iron Dome System interceptor system and came shortly after the cease-fire was supposed to begin. The explosive shrapnel left pock marks on the entrance to the apartment building next door and shattered windows. Ana Friedman, a resident, said a neighbor telephoned her to come home urgently from work. When she arrived, she found the floor of her home littered with shards of glass.

"I started to cry,'' she said. "It was sad and depressing…especially after they announced a cease-fire." From our standpoint, it was supposed to be a cease-fire."

Instead of the truce, Mrs. Friedman and her husband, Yuri, now say that Israel's government should order a ground invasion—even if it means a spike in Israeli casualties. Mr. Friedman said he got a reservist military call-up to his combat engineer unit for a possible ground operation, but was later released. Standing amid the mess of his apartment, Mr. Friedman volunteered to go back to the unit to fight in Gaza.

"I would do anything,'' he said. "Anything so it will end.''

During Tuesday's lull in Gaza, Ismail Abdullah, a Palestinian relief worker, said he wanted Hamas to stop firing rockets.

"There is no place safe in Gaza," Mr. Abdullah said as he bought apples at a neighborhood stall. "People want to live."

—Ahmed Abuhamda and Jeffrey Sparshott contributed to this article.

Palestinians in southern Gaza look at a rocket hit by an Israeli airstrike amid other wreckage Abed Rahim Khatib/Zuma Press

Inside the Chinese Market That Produces 45% of the World’s Tablets

Shenzhen’s tablet makers have developed into a major force.

 

Eva Dou/The Wall Street Journal

Where do China’s cheap tablets come from?

Shopping for a tablet in Shenzhen can be a dizzying experience. In the southern Chinese metropolis’ main electronics market, Huaqiangbei, dozens of nearly identical Android tablets jostle for space on the shelves.

The brands are unfamiliar – Ramos, Teclast, Ployer, Colortab and Iaiwai. The white slates look vaguely reminiscent of iPads, but sell for as little as 299 yuan ($48). Where did so many unknown tablet makers come from and how can they make these devices so cheaply?

Silicon Valley has recently taken an interest in doing business with Shenzhen’s low-cost tablet makers, casting a spotlight on these small companies that have collectively become a major force. Analysts say Shenzhen’s tablet makers churn out around 45% of the world’s tablets — mostly sold in China and other developing markets — putting pricing pressure on big players like Apple and Samsung.

Many of these Shenzhen tablet makers started out making simpler electronics, such as MP3 players.

“Because we made MP3 players, it gave us the background to move to more advanced devices like tablets,” said Wan Qiuyang, Chief Executive of Shenzhen-based tablet maker Ramos.

But it’s still a big technological gap between MP3 players and tablets, and these small companies were able to make the jump with speed. The key has been chipmakers like Taiwan’s Mediatek and China’s Rockchip, who do much of the technical work for the manufacturers and then sell them a template for making the devices, analysts say.

By spreading the research costs across all their customers, these chipmakers are able to provide a much cheaper tablet solution than if any one manufacturer did all the development in-house. The templates also allow small Chinese firms with limited R&D resources of their own to enter the tablet sector.

Antonio Liu, analyst at market research firm IDC, says that these chipmakers, along with the cluster effect, have helped Shenzhen make low-cost tablets and react quickly to new trends.

“They have the panel makers there, the processor vendors, manufacturers,” he said. “It’s become a closed-off and high efficiency ecosystem.”

A final factor has been the gradual shift in China away from knock-off devices toward the country’s own brands. Many of the Shenzhen tablet manufacturers started off making iPad knock-offs – and truth be told, the majority of the local-brand tablets at Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei market are still white, iPad-esque devices.

But Ramos, for one, has been putting more effort into its own designs, such as a flinty-green 8-inch slate that it recently unveiled in collaboration with Intel.  

“We want to build our own brand,” said Mr. Wan. “We want to partner with international firms and learn to become a more global company.”

Novartis and Google to Work on Smart Contact Lenses

ZURICH—Novartis AG and Google Inc. are joining forces to work on a smart contact lens that monitors blood-sugar levels and corrects vision in a new way, the latest in a series of technology products designed to monitor body functions.

On Monday, the two companies said Novartis's Alcon eye-care division would license and commercialize "smart lens" technology designed by Google[x], a development team at the search engine...

Million-Strong Crowd Welcomes Home Winning German Team

Germany's World Cup-winning team returned to Berlin from Brazil to hordes of cheering fans. Around a million people awaited the champions at Tegel Airport and on the "fan mile" in front of the Brandenburg Gate, where players took to the stage to sing, dance and, of course, show off the World Cup trophy. WSJ's Harriet Torry reports. (Photo: AP)

BERLIN—Around a million people lined the streets of downtown Berlin on Tuesday to welcome home their victorious national team from Brazil, days after Germany took its fourth World Cup title in six decades.

Supporters clad in the national colors of red, black and gold gathered at the "fan mile" in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate—the first time the national team has celebrated a World Cup win at the landmark spot at the heart of reunified Germany. Many more watched as an open-air bus carried the team to the city center. Passenger trains and boats passing by the parade slowed down or stopped and sounded their horns.

A spokesman for the city police said the crowd numbered around a million and the atmosphere was "peaceful and jolly" among the huge numbers of people who streamed into the capital from all over the country to celebrate. Some fans spent the night waiting at the fan mile to secure a prime view of their sporting heroes.

The crowds got their first glimpse when the team's Lufthansa LHA.XE +1.62% jet flew low over central Berlin as it arrived from Rio de Janeiro, to a wave of cheers and applause.

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Germany's Per Mertesacker celebrates the German team's championship after returning to Berlin.ZUMAPRESS.com

Sporting events provide rare glimpses of patriotism in Germany, a nation still aware of its scarred history of division and dictatorship. Until Germany hosted the World Cup in 2006, national emblems were rarely seen decorating homes or clothing.

But fans on Tuesday decked themselves out in flags, face paint, garlands and the team shirts of their favorite players such as Mario Götze, who scored the winning goal for Germany on Sunday night.

"We are all world champions!" German coach Joachim Löw said in the victory ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate, which was broadcast live on national television.

A fan holds up a banner reading "I love it when a plan comes together" and depicting actor George Peppard as the character Lieutenant Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith from the TV series "The A Team" as supporters gather at the "fan mile" in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, Tuesday, to welcome players and home members of Germany's national football national team after winning the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

For German fans, the World Cup win was a timely reward for a long slog.

"What happened is no miracle, it's the result of 10 years of hard work by the guys and Jogi Löw," said Marcus Caspers, 50, who works in the nearby parliamentary buildings and slipped out of the office wearing a Germany ribbon to welcome the team Tuesday morning.

The World Cup provided several weeks of distraction—and ultimately victory—for a country currently struggling with crises on several flanks: to the east in Ukraine, to the south with the continuing euro crisis, and to the west in an acrimonious spying dispute with the U.S.

But the World Cup title, German media have often said in recent days, represents a coming-of-age for modern reunited Germany. A leading conservative-leaning newspaper, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, said in a front-page editorial the victory stood for "a mature and—for all the desire to grumble—a self-content Germany, on the soccer field as well as in politics." Berlin's left-wing Tageszeitung sounded a similar note with a nod to powerful German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"Now Germany is dominant again," the Tageszeitung said. "If one wants, one can discover in this an allegory for how Merkel's Germany sets the pace for Europe."

The U.S., which lost 0-1 to Germany during the tournament, hung a congratulatory sign on the side of its embassy, which overlooks the Brandenburg Gate and the adjoining Pariser Platz. Spectators gathered on the balconies of hotels and offices to catch a glimpse of the team.

In the blazing sunshine, fans sipped beer and soft drinks as players waved their trophy, cracked jokes about Argentina, and booted soccer balls into the cheering crowd—to a musical backdrop of performances by German pop stars and the popular folk-pop bands known as "Schlager."

Engineer Klaus Tegtmeier made the five-hour drive from his home near the city of Duisburg, close to the Dutch border, with his two young sons. He said they slept in their car to be first in line at the fan mile at 6 a.m.

Don't Blame Your Shoes

Feet Are Getting Bigger, and Many People Wear Shoes That Don't Fit Right

Your feet may change in size and shape even through adulthood, but most adults don't get their feet measured. WSJ's Elizabeth Holmes discusses on Lunch Break with Tanya Rivero. Photo: Getty

When was the last time you had your foot measured to check your shoe size?

If the answer is more than a year ago, there is a good chance your shoes are causing you some kind of pain, from pinched toes to unsightly calluses. Foot shape and size can change in small but meaningful ways throughout adulthood, yet time-starved shoppers increasingly order shoes online and forgo proper sizing by a trained salesperson.

The need for better-fitting shoes comes with the news that our feet, like the rest of us, are getting bigger. The average shoe size is up about two sizes since the 1970s, according to a study released last month from the College of Podiatry, a U.K. professional group. Emma Supple, a consulting podiatrist for the College of Podiatry, says she believes the findings apply outside the U.K. as well. "We've all gotten taller and we need big feet to hold us up," she says.

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U.S. shoe makers including Stuart Weitzman and Cole Haan report average sizes are creeping up. And retailers are watching the extended-size market carefully. Nordstrom has seen strong sales of larger sizes, says Anne Egan, national merchandise manager for salon shoes. It has held special in-store events for extended-size customers, including women who wear up to a size 14 and men who wear up to a size 20. Long Tall Sally, a U.K.-based apparel and footwear retailer that gets almost half its sales from North America, sells the most shoes in U.S. sizes 12 and 13, says Chief Executive Andrew Shapin. Size 15, added earlier this year, now makes up 10% of its footwear business.

No matter how big or small your feet, though, your shoes could be hurting them—or even causing permanent harm. In the U.K study, involving 2,000 adults, more than a third of men and nearly half of women admitted buying shoes that didn't fit properly. Shoes with a narrow "toe box," the industry term for the front part of the shoe, can push the big toe in and create or accelerate a bunion, says Steven L. Haddad, a Glenview, Ill., orthopedic surgeon and president of the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society. It can also constrict the toes, resulting in what are known as "hammertoe deformities."

"It's like when your mom said, 'Don't make that face, it will stay that way,' " he says. "It does actually stay that way when you put so much pressure on the toe over a long period of time."

Designers often weigh fashion against function in the quest to grab a share of the U.S. shoe market, where sales are expected to top $68 billion this year, according to Euromonitor International. To make shoes more visually appealing, manufacturers can fiddle with proportions, such as the height of the heel or the width of the "last," the mold on which a shoe is formed.

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Nordstrom's Neil M President oxford, in sizes 7 to 17.Nordstrom Inc.

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Cole Haan's Pinch Grand Penny loafer, one of the company's best-sellers, is available in multiple widths.Cole Haan

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Allen Edmonds prefers to size customers in stores before they buy shoes like the Rutledge Cap-Toe oxford. Allen Edmonds

Stuart Weitzman, founder and creative director of his eponymous shoe line, says he has learned to resist temptation. "I won't make a last narrower in the front than it should be to give it a sleeker look—that's like wearing a girdle," he says. Three decades ago, the company's average size was a 7, and the company made shoes up to size 10. Now, the average is 8, and his company makes shoes up to size 12, he says.

Mr. Weitzman starts with a design based on looks alone, then goes about making it comfortable and functional. If it can't be done, he discards the design. "I've learned not to miss it," he says.

Stilettos top the list of pain-causing styles; the high and often-thin heels place all the weight on the front of the foot. But all kinds of shoes have pain potential, according to a 2014 survey from the American Podiatric Medical Association. About a quarter of people who wear flats, boots or flip-flops reported the shoes made their feet hurt. Two thirds of respondents said they wanted more-comfortable shoes.

Ballet flats are "just as bad as wearing high heels," says Alison Garten, a Washington D.C.-area podiatrist, lamenting their lack of support. "It's like walking around barefoot." She estimates that shoes are to blame for the problems of as many as 40% of her male patients and 60% of female.

Podiatrists are split about the effect that shopping on websites like Zappos and Piperlime has on shoe fit. Some are concerned that professional fitting has been eliminated. Yet online shoppers, in the comfort of home, often try on more than one size and often late in the day, which is the best time to shop for shoes because feet are at their largest. One reminder for all shoppers: Don't buy shoes too tight and expect to wear them in, says Jamie Lewin, director of design and trend at Piperlime, owned by Gap Inc. "I would never guarantee anything to stretch."

Variability across brands, and even within a single brand, can make it difficult to find the right size on your own. Shoppers who always choose the same size don't get the best fit 45% of the time, says Matt Wilkinson, chief executive and a co-founder of Shoefitr, a company that works with retailers to give shoe-shoppers more information about size and fit.

Retailers such as Nordstrom offer Shoefitr as a tool on their e-commerce sites. Shoefitr uses a 3-D imaging device to take up to 300 measurements on a single style. It then creates a 3-D drawing to show where the fit is tighter or looser than average, as well as the arch and footprint. Online shoppers answer questions about what size they typically wear and see the drawings. Shoefitr recommends a size based on how the style fits. To date, it has measured more than 100,000 shoes from 1,200 brands.

Cole Haan tests the fit of styles roughly 20 times during the 14-month development process. "Fit is our number one priority," says Steve Beccia, senior director of product development for men's and women's footwear. In each of its sourcing countries, the company has fit-models whose feet match the measurements of a standard women's-size 6 and a men's-size 8.5. Cole Haan measures length and width, as well as the instep volume. Feedback from the models on how shoes feel is used to adjust the lasts and patterns.

At brands known for a precise fit, such as men's footwear brand Allen Edmonds, fitting a shoe requires a professional. Julie Scott, a master fitter for Allen Edmonds and manager of two stores in New York City, says 95% of her customers don't know their proper shoe sizes. They don't realize that, with just a few millimeters' difference, "you can manipulate sizes," she says. A 10.5 D isn't far from an 11 C, a slightly longer, narrower shoe.

In one extreme case, Ms. Scott worked with a customer who usually wore a size 9.5 EEE, the widest offered. The ball of his foot was too far forward and the shoe was very tight, she says. She fitted him with a size 12C, a much narrower shoe.

Ms. Scott always uses a shoehorn and the sloped edge of a stool to put the shoe on a customer's foot. She listens carefully for a "swoosh," the satisfying noise a foot makes when sliding into a well-fitting shoe. She prefers not to show the customer the size she is asking him to try until after he tries the shoe on. "They look at you like you are nuts," she says.

Allen Edmonds is one of the few remaining shoe retailers to offer a variety of widths. It is expensive to do so, with extra costs for making the lasts and producing the shoes.

Offering width options fosters special loyalty from the customer who needs a certain width. "She can't go anywhere else," Mr. Weitzman says. He often stops people on the street wearing his shoes to get feedback. "I don't remember when the first thing anyone said to me was, 'I just think this is the most gorgeous shoe,' " he says. "The first line I always hear is, 'I can't believe how comfortable they are.' "