SINGAPORE The Israeli shekel fell to an almost eight-year low against the U.S. dollar on Monday as conflict in the Middle East escalates.

Fighters from Islamist group Hamas killed 700 Israelis and abducted dozens more as they attacked Israeli towns on Saturday. In response, Israeli air strikes hit housing blocks, tunnels, a mosque and homes of Hamas officials in Gaza on Sunday.

The currency pair is not particularly active during Asian hours. The shekel was last down more than 3% against the dollar at 3.9581.

(Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)