Bank of Jerusalem site before its database was deleted. (Google cache)

As part of Anonymous's #OpIsrael, it appears the hacktivists have wiped the Bank of Jerusalem from the web. The site currently loads a mostly blank page with the message, "Couldn't connect to the database server." A tweet appearing to tie the site outage to Anonymous's support of the people of the Gaza was posted on @YourAnonNews:

Bank of Jerusalem database has been deleted | bankjerusalem.co.il| #OpIsrael #Anonymous

— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) November 16, 2012

Anonymous quickly mounted OpIsrael after the Israel Defense Force tweeted a declaration beginning of Operation Pillar of Defense, an offensive targeting Hamas. Israel calls Hamas an "Iranian proxy for terror attacks" against them.

Most of the top-trending pastes on Pastebin are related to OpIsrael, including this message, which says in part:

Anonymous does not support violence by the IDF or by Palestinian Resistance/Hamas. Our concern is the for the children of Israel and Palestinian Territories and the rights of the people in Gaza to maintain open lines of communication with the outside world.

In a new statement released Friday evening, Anonymous defended its actions by repeating that it did not support violence and insisting "Anonymous has not used any anti-Semitic language during our campaign. Nor have we vocalized any support for Palestinian military operations or resistance groups. Our goal was to protect the rights of Palestinian people who are threatened with silence as Israel has made attempts to shut down cell phone and internet service throughout Gaza."

The Bank of Jerusalem is Israel's seventh largest financial institution and is listed among Dun & Bradstreet Israel's 100 Largest Enterprises. In addition to taking the Bank's site offline, Anonymous has also struck Tel-Aviv's city page an Israeli government commerce site and Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, just to name a few.

The IDF's Twitter banner. (Screengrab)

In what is surely a weird moment for Twitter, bastion of cat-fights between tech bloggers and hashtag memes entirely devoted to stupid crap people do when they drink, Israel's Defense Forces today announced a major operation against Hamas. As Fast Company noted, this "was the first confirmation made to the media of an official military campaign" via Twitter.

The IDF's announcement is serious business. The tweets speak for themselves:

The IDF has embarked on Operation Pillar of Defense.

— IDF (@IDFSpokesperson) November 14, 2012

All options are on the table. If necessary, the IDF is ready to initiate a ground operation in Gaza.

— IDF (@IDFSpokesperson) November 14, 2012

The IDF has embarked on an operation against Hamas, an Iranian proxy responsible for terror attacks on Israel. #Iran #Gaza

— IDF (@IDFSpokesperson) November 14, 2012

Earlier Wednesday the IDF tweeted that it had struck it's "first target," Hamas military leader Ahmed Al-Jabari.

Hamas confirmed Al-Jabari's death and according to the Telegraph, said the official's death had "opened the gates of hell."

At 1 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Hamas was a top-trending topic on Twitter in the United States, just behind "Marlins."