- 8 apr 2011
The IOF used white phosphorus bombs in its latest aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Interior Ministry in Gaza said that the IOF troops fired on Thursday 3 white phosphorous bombs at the Gaza Strip.
In a statement on Friday the Ministry said that at 18:50 on Thursday, three bombs were fired at Juhr al-Deek neighbourhood to the east of the central Gaza Strip district.
The Israeli occupation aggression against the Gaza Strip has been escalated over the past few weeks and was intensified in the past few days especially after the article by Judge Goldstone effectively withdrawing the conclusions of his report on Israeli war crimes in the Gaza during the 2008-2009 aggression.
http://fwd4.me/zFk
majds GAZA - BREAKING: Israeli strike toward the area of UNRWA schools in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip. Palestine
marmite Breaking: Al Khuzandar gas station in Al Twam Gaza Palestine is on fire.
GazaYBO Gaza Al-Khuzundar Gas Station is on Fire! Via @journeytogaza That's A HUGE problem!!!
GazaYBO Gaza Youth Break Out
The Number is beyond 15! The media isn't covering well and we hardly get the news!
Masses participate in the funeral of the victims of latest Israeli aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- Tens of thousands of people participated on Friday afternoon in the funerals of a number of martyrs in the Rafah and Khan Younis districts in the southern Gaza Strip.
PIC correspondent said that participants in the funeral chanted against the latest crimes being committed by the Israeli occupation against the Gaza Strip which have so far resulted in the death of 11 people and the wounding of dozens.
They also called on Palestinian factions to retaliate to occupation crimes and expressed appreciation for acts of defence carried out by those factions in the face of these latest crimes.
The occupation has escalated its aggression on the besieged strip targeting civilian homes killing some of them, even ambulances were not spared and a number of paramedics were wounded while trying to carry out their humanitarian duties.
http://fwd4.me/zFd
majds GAZA BREAKING: Martyrs toll rise to 14. Palestine
ECESG Breaking: Gaza medics declared emergency state across Gaza
Omar_Gaza Mahmoud Wael Al Jaru, a child martyr, passed away now after Israeli shelling on a residential area near shuhada cemetery RIP
Palaestina Voice from Palestine Gaza BREAKING: one of last two martyrs is a child and name Mahomud Wael Aljaro
ANimer Ahmad Nimer Israeli navy destroyers shelling Gaza
AmoonaE GAZA - UPDATE: Israeli gunboats (as the one in the pic) open fire at fishing boats West of Rafah. @GazaNowGNN http://twitpic.com
Cleric: Time up for Mideast dictators
Senior Iranian cleric Kazem Seddiqi
A senior Iranian cleric says the awakening of Muslim nations in North Africa and the Middle East will end the tyranny of Western-led dictators in the region.
There has been a wave of [Islamic] awakening in regional nations and they revolted because they reached their capacity limit for [tolerating] oppression and there is no way for oppression to continue in the region, ISNA quoted Hojjatoleslam Kazem Seddiqi as saying on Friday.
The cleric highlighted the West's hypocrisy in its claims to support the popular protests in Arab countries and the war it has waged in Libya.
Today, the innocent people of Libya are being killed by both NATO forces and the country's evil and oppressive ruler [Muammar Gaddafi] whose mercenaries engage in killing and crime, he said.
The West says it has gone there to help people but has not been able to stop Gaddafi's aggression and crimes, Hojjatoleslam Seddiqi noted.
Tehran's interim Friday Prayers leader singled out the United States as the supporter and creator of dictators in Arab countries, adding that Washington's time is up and that it has started to decline and lose its regional strongholds one after another.
Seddiqi regretted the violent government crackdown against protesters in Bahrain and criticized the Saudi-led military crackdown on the popular movement in the small Persian Gulf nation.
We are surprised by the conduct of Saudi and UAE rulers. How come when Gaza was under the most severe attacks by the Zionist regime [of Israel], they did not support [Palestinians]? he questioned.
The Ayatollah dismissed Sunni-Shia differences as the root of Riyadh and other Arab ruler's side-taking with Manama, arguing that the Arab world's inaction on the killing of hundreds of Sunni Muslims in Israel's December 2008-January 2009 offensive against the Gaza Strip indicates that Arab leaders submit to the will of the US and UK.
The cleric referred to the detention and killing of protesters who are demanding their right to civil liberties and explained how government forces prevent the injured from being treated in hospitals.
Hojjatoleslam Seddiqi compared Manama's use of violence against anti-regime demonstrators to Israeli crimes against the Palestinians and condemned the use of force against peaceful protesters.
We have condemned these crimes and assure the people of Bahrain that the fruit of Jihad is victory, he said.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173727.html
Jess_Gaza Just heard a very huge explosionnnnnnn
the secondddddddddd
te thirdddddddd
Jnoubiyeh Hundreds of Egyptians are now protesting near the Nile against the Zionist entity's bombardment of civilians in illegally besieged Gaza.
29 oct 2012, 13:01 , Respect -
Maria 8 apr 2011
Update: 13 killed in Gaza, dozens injured in series of strikes
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli air strikes and artillery fire have hit Gaza nine times Friday, killing eight, and bringing the total number of dead over the past 24 hours to thirteen, half of who were civilians.
A mother and daughter, and elderly man were killed in two separate strikes near Khan Younis, a fourth - identified as an Al-Qassam Brigades fighter - was killed near Gaza City, and two unidentified men was killed when a shell hit his home east of Gaza City.
A statement from Israel's military acknowledged civilian casualties, saying that the military "regrets that the Hamas terrorist organization chooses to operate from within its civilian population, using it as a 'human shield'."
The military reported "heavy rocket and mortar fire," emanating from Gaza Friday afternoon. A later statement said a total of five mortars and eight projectiles had been fired from Gaza on Friday.
DFLP fighters claimed to have fired two projectiles at targets from the northern Gaza Strip. A statement said the fire was a "response to Israel's lack of commitment to the truce [and its] continuing of shelling of our unarmed people."
In the early evening, Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades said fighters launched six projectiles and three mortars on an Israeli military post east of Rafah.
Friday attacks have been reported as follows:
6:30 Shell lands on home east of Gaza City, two civilians killed, medics say.
5:30 Israeli warships fire on shoreline near Rafah, no injuries.
4:30 p.m. An Apache helicopter fired one missile on residents of Beit Lahiya, killing Raed Shehada, 27. Medics identified him as a member of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades, he was from the Ash-Shati refugee camp. A second man was injured, and medics said both were taken to the Kamal Udwan Hospital in Jabaliya.
In the Az-Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City a resistance fighter was said to have "escaped death," a statement from resistance groups said. The strike was aimed at a metal workshop, which was damaged.
Medics confirmed that there were no injuries reported from the area.
3:00 p.m. Air strikes hit a smuggling tunnel between Egypt and Gaza. No injuries were reported, but witnesses said a large fire broke out in the area following the blast.
Witnesses said the tunnel had been used to smuggle fuel into Gaza. Since January, Gaza's power plant stopped using industrial fuel from Israel, and instead began relying on fuel imported from Egypt via the tunnels. The engineer responsible for developing the purifying mechanism for the fuel was abducted by Israeli intelligence officers while on vacation in the Ukraine. He is currently in prison on charges of assisting the resistance in Gaza.
2:00 p.m. Israeli artillery fire hits the Al-Farahin area east of Khan Younis. A mother and child were killed and another of her children injured.
Israeli media reported shortly before the strike that five projectiles launched from Gaza landed near Ashkelon, with no injuries.
Medics later confirmed that Najah Kudeih, 45, and her daughter Nidal, 21, were killed, while a second daughter, Nida, 18, was seriously injured. Three others were wounded.
1:30 p.m. A 55-year-old man was killed by an Israeli air strike which hit in the Qarara area east of the city. Medics identified the man as Talal Abu Taha, 55.
9:45 a.m. An airstrike combined with artillery hit the town of Khuza'a, east of Khan Younis, killing two.
Israel's military said in a statement that "forces identified two terrorist squads from the Hamas terrorist organization," adding that air and artillery fire were used and the military "identified hits."
Hamas' military wing, the Izz Ad-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, named those killed as Abdallah Al-Qarra and Muataz Abu Jamea.
8:00 a.m. An Israeli strike hit in an open area east of Rafah, no injuries were reported.
7:00 a.m. Israeli shelling on Rafah airport in southern Gaza injured three, witnesses reported.
Thursday strikes kill five
Air strikes hit what was described by the Israeli military as positions in and around Gaza City where projectiles had been fired from on Thursday, and other raids hit targets in the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis.
The strikes killed four, identified as resistance fighters affiliated with Hamas. A statement from the Al-Qassam Brigades identified those killed as leader Salah Tarabin, 38, Musab al-Sufi, 18, Muhammad Almanmom, 25, and Khaled Aldbari, 23.
Thursday afternoon, Artillery fire also hit the southern Gaza Strip, with witnesses saying artillery fire injured five people, including a small child, and killed Mahmoud Al-Manasra, 50, who died after shells landed near his home in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City.
In total, more than 40 people were wounded across the Gaza Strip overnight.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=376717
11 killed in Gaza, dozens injured in series of strikes
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli air strikes and artillery fire have hit Gaza eight times Friday, killing six, and bringing the total number of dead over the past 24 hours to eleven, almost half of who were civilians.
A mother and daughter, and elderly man were killed in two separate strikes near Khan Younis, and a fourth unidentified man was killed in the most recent strike near Gaza City.
A statement from Israel's military acknowledged civilian casualties, saying that the military "regrets that the Hamas terrorist organization chooses to operate from within its civilian population, using it as a 'human shield'."
The bombings were said to have been in retaliation for the launching of a projectile from the Gaza Strip, which hit a school bus in southern Israel, injuring two people on Thursday. The strike was claimed by Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades.
The military also reported "heavy rocket and mortar fire," emanating from Gaza Friday afternoon. A later statement said a total of five mortars and eight projectiles had been fired from Gaza on Friday.
DFLP fighters claimed to have fired two projectiles at targets from the northern Gaza Strip. A statement said the fire was a "response to Israel's lack of commitment to the truce [and its] continuing of shelling of our unarmed people."
Thursday afternoon strikes hit a home east of Gaza City, killing one, and late at night four others were killed in strikes across the Strip.
A Thursday move from Hamas to prevent further Israeli strikes appears to have gone unaccepted, after the party said it had gotten most armed Palestinian factions in Gaza to sign on to a ceasefire pledge.
It was not immediately clear whether the air strikes had signaled an end to the truce, or whether the firing of rockets was carried out by a recalcitrant group who had not signed up to the ceasefire.
Friday attacks have been reported as follows:
4:30 p.m. Two air strikes hit Gaza, one near Gaza City and a second near the northern border, killing one and injuring a second.
3:00 p.m. Air strikes hit a smuggling tunnel between Egypt and Gaza. No injuries were reported, but witnesses said a large fire broke out in the area following the blast.
2:00 p.m. Israeli artillery fire hits the Al-Farahin area east of Khan Younis. A mother and child were killed and another of her children injured.
Israeli media reported shortly before the strike that five projectiles launched from Gaza landed near Ashkelon, with no injuries.
Najah Kudeih
Medics later confirmed that Najah Kudeih, 45, and her daughter Nidal, 21, were killed, while a second daughter, Nida, 18, was seriously injured. Three others were wounded.
1:30 p.m. A 55-year-old man was killed by an Israeli air strike which hit in the Qarara area east of the city. Medics identified the man as Talal Abu Taha, 55.
9:45 a.m. An airstrike combined with artillery hit the town of Khuza'a, east of Khan Younis, killing two.
Israel's military said in a statement that "forces identified two terrorist squads from the Hamas terrorist organization," adding that air and artillery fire were used and the military "identified hits."
Hamas' military wing, the Izz Ad-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, named those killed as Abdallah Al-Qarra and Muataz Abu Jamea.
8:00 a.m. An Israeli strike hit in an open area east of Rafah, no injuries were reported.
7:00 a.m. Israeli shelling on Rafah airport in southern Gaza injured three, witnesses reported.
Thursday strikes kill five
Air strikes hit what was described by the Israeli military as positions in and around Gaza City where projectiles had been fired from on Thursday, and other raids hit targets in the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis.
The strikes killed four, identified as resistance fighters affiliated with Hamas. A statement from the Al-Qassam Brigades identified those killed as leader Salah Tarabin, 38, Musab al-Sufi, 18, Muhammad Almanmom, 25, and Khaled Aldbari, 23.
Thursday afternoon, Artillery fire also hit the southern Gaza Strip, with witnesses saying artillery fire injured five people, including a small child, and killed Mahmoud Al-Manasra, 50, who died after shells landed near his home in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City.
In total, more than 40 people were wounded across the Gaza Strip overnight.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=376717
imPalestine Israeli drones fly intensively above Gaza City now as a few resistance missiles were fired onto Israel.
Jess_Gaza Israeli warplanes have targeted Al-Soudaneya area in western Gaza, and another open area in northern Gaza city
Palaestina israeli terrorist attacks on Gaza continue, one martyr after shelling of northern Gaza Palestine
Omar_Gaza bREAKING: TILL NOW 4 new martyrs in Gaza after Israel's shelling on several areas Northern and Western
Breaking: Israel is suing phosphoric bombs again on eastern Gaza
AmoonaE GAZA - UPDATE: Israel is using phosphoric bombs again on eastern Gaza. STAY HOME!!!
Jess_Gaza 2 martyrs were reported so far, one of them is Raed Sh-hada, belongs to Al-Qassam brigades
AmoonaE GAZA - UPDATE: AlQassam brigades firing back! Predict 2nd war VERY DAMN SOON! Israel shelling us since yesterday non-stop!
Jess_Gaza: Heavy bullet shots fired at the centre of Gaza strip in a residential area GAZA
TeamPalestina UPDATE: occupation forces bombed a target near Musab bin Omair mosque in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City
IDF says civilians may have been harmed by Gaza strike
Air Force craft bombed two rocket-launching cells firing mortar shells towards Israel from a neighborhood in Khan Younis. The IDF stated that civilians may have been harmed by the strike. Palestinian sources say three people were killed.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054091,00.html
majds GAZA -BREAKING: Israeli warplanes renewed bombing of tunnels.
GazaTVNews The IOF have resumed airstrikes on the Rafah area. Fire reported in a tunnel
nicolealjazeera Nicole Johnston A fuel tunnel is burning at Rafah after being hit by an Israeli airstrike.
Update: Israeli strikes kill six Palestinians
At least six Palestinians have been killed in two separate new Israeli attacks on the impoverished Gaza Strip, medical sources have announced.
An Israeli airstrike hit an area near the city of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza on Friday morning, killing two Palestinians, a Press TV correspondent reported.
In a separate incident, at least four more Palestinians were also killed in an Israeli tank shelling in Rafah. Dozens of others have also been injured.
The deaths bring the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks to 11 since Thursday.
On Thursday, Israeli forces attacked the Gaza Strip, killing at least five people and injuring dozens of others.
The Israeli army has confirmed that its planes and ground forces have targeted the Gaza Strip.
Israel has been regularly bombarding Gaza ever since its 22-day war on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians -- many of them women and children.
The assaults come as Tel Aviv has imposed an all-out siege on the coastal enclave since June 2007.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted on Thursday that the Tel Aviv regime would not stop short of taking any military action against the Gaza Strip.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173686.html
GazaTVNews Gaza TV 50 year old Najah Qudaih and her daughter Nedal, 19, have been murdered by an IOF shell that hit their house
imNadZ Nader BREAKING Israeli warplanes are targeting Khanyounis leaving 4 martyrs behind so far
majds GAZA - UPDATE: Khan Younis martyrs names: Mother Najah Qudaih (50), Daughter Nedal Qudaih (19). Talal Abu Taha (54) was walking near home.
Israeli strikes kill five Palestinians
At least five Palestinians have been killed in two separate new Israeli attacks on the impoverished Gaza Strip, medical sources have announced.
An Israeli airstrike hit an area near the city of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza on Friday morning, killing two Palestinians, a Press TV correspondent reported.
In a separate incident, at least three more Palestinians were also killed in an Israeli tank shelling in Rafah. Dozens of others have also been injured.
The deaths bring the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks to 10 since Thursday.
On Thursday, Israeli forces attacked the Gaza Strip, killing at least five people and injuring dozens of others.
The Israeli army has confirmed that its planes and ground forces have targeted the Gaza Strip.
Israel has been regularly bombarding Gaza ever since its 22-day war on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians -- many of them women and children.
The assaults come as Tel Aviv has imposed an all-out siege on the coastal enclave since June 2007.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted on Thursday that the Tel Aviv regime would not stop short of taking any military action against the Gaza Strip.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173686.html
majds Gaza - BREAKING: Injuries in the Israeli shelling targeted Khan Younis. Palestine
Palaestina Voice from Palestine continued israeli shelling of besieged Gaza, 1 martyr and 3 injuries in Khan Younis
continued israeli shelling of Khan Younis, 3 martyrs including 2 women and 4 injured.
homes, schools and mosques targeted in israeli shelling of Khan Younis in Gaza Palestine
reports of mother and her daughter killed in Khan Younis after israeli shells hit their home
Israeli air strike kills two Hamas members
Two Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli air strike on the Gaza Strip, officials on both sides have said, following an offer of a ceasefire from Hamas after a surge in cross-border violence.
The attack on the southern city of Khan Younis, killed two members of the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, which has fired missiles into Israel in response to Israel's killing of three of its members last week.
A Palestinian rocket attack on an Israeli school bus on Thursday also saw an escalation of violence between the two sides, with as many as five people killed in renewed violence along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel on Thursday. Dozens more have been injured, medical sources said.
Both sides have said they hoped to avoid further violence, but an Israeli cabinet minister said the strikes would continue.
"We are acting as we see fit so that this type of fire will not continue, and so that the people behind the fire will regret it,'' Matan Vilnai, in charge of the home front, told Army Radio.
Nicole Johnston, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Gaza, said Hamas "really doesn't want to risk an escalation of violence with Israel, and that is very clear simply by the fact they said they would stick to the ceasefire".
She said only one faction in Gaza had said it would not stick to the ceasefire. "It's one thing for factions and groups to say that they will abide by the ceasefire, but it's another thing to see them actually stick to it," she said.
In Thursday's bus attack, Gaza fighters hit an Israeli school bus near the border with an anti-tank rocket, badly wounding the driver and a 16-year-old boy. The boy remains unconscious in the intensive care ward of an Israeli hospital.
The al-Qassam Brigades said it had shot two missiles early in the day, one of which had hit the school bus. The Brigades said the attack came in reponse to Israel's killing of three of its members last week.
A senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera: "The Israelis are trying to impose a new formula in Gaza. They are trying to prevent us from taking any benefits in the region.
"They are trying to escalate the situation ... The coming few days will carry a lot of developments if things continue like this."
Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, has urged western powers to intervene and called on Palestinians "not to give Israel an excuse to hit Gaza".
Israel has been using its latest cutting-edge missile-defense system for the first time since Thursday.
The Iron Dome system scored a direct hit on an incoming Palestinian rocket aimed at an Israeli city, shooting it down, Israel said.
http://fwd4.me/zCJ
Middle East Monitor Residents of Gaza reporting fresh strikes from the air, IDF tanks seen moving from the West.
29 oct 2012, 13:01 , Respect -
Maria 8 apr 2011
Netanyahu: Israel will use all necessary force in Gaza
BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Israel will use "all necessary force" to stop Gaza fire and harm to Israeli civilians, the country's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Voice of Israel radio station Thursday evening.
His words should not be doubted, Netanyahu was reported saying at a press conference in Prague, as thousands of rockets were now aimed at Gaza.
The prime minister, who arrived in Prague following talks in Berlin with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, will meet Friday with Czech President Václav Klaus.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=376678
Israel Fears West Bank Escalation
Israeli military leaders expressed fears that the current state of calm in the West Bank, induced by the tight security cooperation with the Palestinian Security Forces, could collapse at any given moment.
During a Thursday meeting with soldiers of the Etzion Brigade, Commander of the West Bank division of the Israeli Army, Nitzan Alon, said that the army estimates that the current state of relative calm in the West bank will not last long, and that Israel estimates that further escalation is a possibility.
Alon claimed that Palestinian factions in Gaza are seeking an escalation in the West Bank, and that the Israeli army is preparing for every possible scenario.
Israeli military sources stated that the recent period witnessed an increase in Palestinian attacks, and that Palestinian factions are likely planning to attack Israeli targets in the West Bank.
On Friday morning, the Israeli Army killed two fighters of the Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
At least three residents were wounded in the attack, and three more residents were wounded by Israeli artillery shells targeting an area east of Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
The Friday attacks were carried out despite a ceasefire declared by the Hamas movement in Gaza.
On Thursday, five Palestinians were killed and at least 39 were injured in a number of Israeli attacks targeting Gaza. One of the slain residents died as medics could not reach him due to the intensity of the Israeli bombardment in Rafah.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61028
Israeli airstrike kills 2 Palestinians
At least two Palestinians have been killed after Israeli fighter jets pounded near the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, medics say.
The Friday morning strike hit Khuza'a, an area near the border that lies ine eastern Khan Younis, a spokesman for the emergency services told AFP.
On Thursday, Israeli forces attacked the Gaza Strip, killing at least five people and injuring dozens of others.
The Israeli army has confirmed that its planes and ground forces have targeted the Gaza Strip.
Israel has been regularly bombarding Gaza ever since its 22-day war on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians -- many of them women and children.
The assaults come as Tel Aviv has imposed an all-out siege on the coastal enclave since June 2007.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted on Thursday that the Tel Aviv regime would not stop short of taking any military action against the Gaza Strip.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173686.html
Five Palestinians Killed, 40 Injured By Israeli Missiles In Gaza
By: Saed Bannoura
Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported on Thursday that five Palestinians were killed and at least 40 residents, including children, were wounded in several Israeli air strikes and a ground attacks that were initiated on Thursday at noon.
A fighter of the Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas movement, was killed when the army bombarded Al Shouka area, in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. The fighter was identified as Saleh Al Tarabeen.
Three residents, identified as Mohammad Al Mahmoum, 22, Mos'ab Al Soufy, 17, and Khaled Ad-Dabary, 23, were killed when the army bombarded Al Jaradat area in Rafah.
On Thursday at noon, resident Mahmoud Al Manasra, 50, was killed, and at least five residents, including a child, were injured when the army fired more than 20 artillery shells into Al Shijaeyya neighborhood, east of Gaza City.
Furthermore, four Palestinians were moderately wounded when the army fired three shells into the Gaza International Airport in Rafah. The airport remains nonoperational since 2000, and was repeatedly bombarded and bulldozed by the army.
The army also bombarded several homes east of Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip; causing damage; no injuries were reported.
One child was wounded by an Israeli artillery shell that hit Al-Qarara area, east of Khan Younis.
The Israeli Air Force fired missiles at a training camp using by the Al Qassam Brigades of Hamas in Beit Lahia, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, and also bombarded an open area close to the Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
In southern Gaza, the army fired a missile at a local ambulance causing damage and mildly wounding the driver.
Medical sources reported that another ambulance was targeted by the Israeli Air Force in Rafah, and that eight Palestinians, including children, were wounded.
Five Palestinians, including a journalist, identified as Mohammad Al Madhoun, were wounded when the army bombarded a Police training base west of Jabalia, in northern Gaza. The reporter was seriously wounded.
A Palestinian farmer was also wounded when the Israeli Air Force fired missiles into the Al Waha area, north west of Gaza city.
Several Air Strikes also targeted areas east of Dir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, and Al Hawouz area in addition to the Al Rantissi Base, north of Gaza, leading to excessive damage.
Visiting Cairo, Palestinian Chief Negotiator, Dr. Saeb Erekat, told the Maan News Agency that the Israeli threats and escalation jeopardize the security of the region, and that Israel must halt all of its violations against the Palestinian people.
Meanwhile, Israeli Army spokesperson, Avichai Adraee, told Maan that the army is evaluating the situation and could resort to a larger scale attack against Gaza.
He added that what the army is conducting right now is only a routine operation that precedes a larger attack likely to be carried out after the army and the political leadership in Israel evaluate the situation.
Adraee further stated that the Hamas movement is responsible for the latest escalation.
Also on Thursday, two Israelis, including a school student, were wounded when a shell fired from Gaza hit a school bus in southern Israel.
Furthermore, the Al Qassam Brigades of Hamas fired shells at the Sofa military base, near the Gaza border.
The Brigades said that attack comes in retaliation to the assassination of three fighters who were killed in an Israeli air strike in Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli army chief of Staff, Benny Gant, visited the military base and toured the area speaking to locals urging them to remain calm, adding that the army will do whatever it can to ensure their security, even if this means a military operation against Gaza.
Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, said that the army is acting against the attacks and will do whatever it can to ensure they stop.
He further stated that the Iron Dome system that was installed to intercept shells fired from Gaza is operational, but added that Israel cannot claim that the system provides full protection.
On Thursday night, approximately at 11, Palestinian factions in Gaza declared a ceasefire while Israeli tanks were seen moving towards the border area.
http://fwd4.me/zB9
imNadZ Nader
RT @imPalestine: update: Israeli warplanes now bomb the tunnels area along Gaza/Egypt borders. Gaza
NalanSarraj
i still can hear the noise of their terrorist helicopters above my tired head ! Israel leave us alone ! Gaza occupation palestine
AmoonaE
GAZA - UPDATE: Israeli apaches launche at least one missile on Eastern Gaza, F16 targeting tunnels area South of the Strip.
MikeFitzAU A Gaza friend reports that her house is shaking from Israeli F16 attack. She fears for her children.
SafaJoudeh Huge explosions moments ago in Gaza
palinoia JeJe Alfarra Eastern Gaza was hit!! VERY hard!!
imPalestine Now right from my sear, Apaches can be heard hovering above Gaza city.
AmoonaE UPDATE: 3 more missiles just rocked East of the Strip.
Sameh_Habeeb Palestine Telegraph Did you Know? Gaza people has no bunkers while Israelis have thousands to keep them safe!
SafaJoudeh Israel missile strikes on Eastern Gaza city, Tufah neighborhood. Israeli military said strikes to continue thru the night
Sameh_Habeeb Palestine Telegraph Israeli air raid northern Gaza now.
AmoonaE GAZA - UPDATE: Resistance reported to be shooting at the Apaches bombing the Strip with heavy guns.
SoulFya Gaza medical sources say that most of the 40 injuries from Israel -i missile strikes & mortar shelling today were children
29 oct 2012, 13:01 , Respect -
Maria 8 apr 2011
IOF troops target a petrol tanker injuring one person
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Interior Ministry in Gaza said that IOF troops targeted on Friday a petrol tanker to the west of Salahuddin Gate in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah setting it on fire.
The civil defence department stated on Friday afternoon that its workers tried to put out the fire resulting from the targeting of the petrol tanker and said that a citizen suffered burns.
The occupation continues its escalation against the besieged Gaza Strip killing 11 citizens and wounding dozens over the past 24 hours.
http://fwd4.me/zG2
GazaYBO Breaking : A new explosion in Gaza city now!
It's confirmed; Breaking : A subaru car was targeted in khanyonis by an israeli airstrike! It's confirmed that there are injuries!
marmite_news Breaking : 3 martyrs in the last attack at the car in Rafah
GazaYBO Gaza Youth Break Out Breaking : A new explosion on southern Gaza (Rafah)
The airstrike Targeted a house and many injuries are reported on a local radio!!!!!!!!! Ya Rab
TeamPalestina new shelling in Rafah, on the home of Jalal Abu Amor and the presence of a fire. Gaza
GazaYBO Gaza Loud explosions ! Don't know where but it's shaking my house!
Breaking : The last target in Gaza city is a car!
AmoonaE GAZA - UPDATE: F16s just hit a target north of Gaza, targeting a group of militants near Jabaliya. No news about casualties
Sameeha88 Al shawa square is targeted by an f16. People are rushing to help. The closest shelling so far. Allah yestor gaza
Solarah Gaza Doctor Ambulances.. Ambulances .. Ambulances.. !!!! heading to hospitals in the north of Gaza Jabalia
TeamPalestina bombed a civilian car in the courtyard of al-Shawa in the neighborhood of the stairs in the center of Gaza City car was parked No injuries
GazaTVNews Several loud explosions have rocked several parts of Gaza in the past 10 minutes. Ambulances can be heard all across the besieged strip.
Jnoubiyeh 10 more Palestinian civilians just arrived at Shifa Hospital. Israel obviously isn't content with at least 16 dead & over 90 wounded.
(2:33) ??? ???? ???????
29 oct 2012, 13:01 , Respect -
Maria 8 apr 2011
Nine Killed in Gaza; Death Toll Reaches 14 Since Thursday
Gaza PNN Nine Palestinians were reported killed, among them a mother and her daughter, and one child. As Israeli bombardment continues in the Gaza Strip bringing death toll to 14 since Thursday.
One man and a child were killed, 11 others injured, when Israeli tanks targeted a group of civilians near the Hiteen School in Gaza City. Meanwhile, medical sources announced that Ahmad Ghoourab, 31, died of wounds he sustained during Israeli shelling earlier on Friday morning.
Earlier on Friday Israeli attacks targeting part of the Gaza Strip left six people killed and 50 others injured. Among those killed on Friday was Najah Kadih, 45, and her daughter Nidal, 20. They were killed when an unmanned drown fire a missile at a group of people in Abasan village, southern Gaza Strip. Three civilians were injured in the attack as well.
In the nearby Khaz'a village, an Israeli fighter jet fired a missile at a group of people, killing Abdullah al-Qarrar and Mo'taz abu Jamih.
In another attack on Friday Talal Abu Taha, 54, was killed when Israeli tanks bombarded the road connecting Rafah city and Khan Younis, also in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
Four civilians were injured when Israeli tanks shelled people homes close to the borders in Rafah city on Friday as well.
The latest attacks bring the total number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli army bombardment in Gaza to 10 since Thursday. Yesterday 5 Palestinians were killed and 40 injured by land air and sea bombardment to Gaza by Israel.
Israeli tanks, unmanned drones, and fighter jets intensified bombardment on Gaza since Thursday, when a homemade shell fired from Gaza hit a bus in the Negev injuring two Israelis one critically. Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for the attack on the bus and said it comes as response to continued Israeli attacks on Gaza.
The Israeli army announced that on Friday a number of homemade shells were fired from Gaza and hit areas in the Negev casing damage but no injuries.
http://fwd4.me/zFm
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 9 apr 2011
Health Minister: Internationally banned weapons used in Israeli aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- Gaza Minister of Health Bassem Naeem has confirmed that Israel has used internationally banned weapons during its ongoing attack on the Gaza Strip that has left 17 Palestinians dead and injured around 60, most of them women, children and the elderly.
Most of the injuries took place on all parts of the bodies while fragments have not yet been found, he explained, adding that that indicates that white phosphorous and other chemical weapons had been used in the attacks.
The systematic and programmed aggression has indiscriminately affected women, children and the elderly, the minister said after rounds in the Shifa Hopital Saturday morning to inspect those wounded during the past three days of aggression.
Naeem also confirmed that the Israeli strikes directly targeted medical teams injuring two paramedics. He said the emergency commission had coordinated with relevent organizations to ensure those teams would arrive at the scenes of attacks without being intercepted.
We are astonished at the silence of the world community over these crimes. There are many world parties that have been pressuring the Palestinians to keep a calm and restrain from responding, Naeem said.
He also warned the aggression coupled with the Israeli siege on the region could create a health disaster as he announced the depletion of more than 150 medicines and medical supplies.
He said the government in Gaza has received a positive stance from many parties abroad, including Egypt. He expressed hope that the new Egyptian government would open up the Rafah crossing on its borders with Gaza once and for all.
http://fwd4.me/zJC
marmite_news Real World News Breaking: Israeli raid on Al Zaytoon neighborhood minutes ago, 4 reported injuries 1 is critical!
LSal92 Leila @imNadZ yes I've just read the 4 are injured, 1 in critical condition. Since Thursday, 25 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza by Zionist terrorists, 3 killed so far today.
marmite_news Real World News Just heardddddd two huge explosions northern Gaza
LSal92 LeilaOne more explosion heard in Northern Gaza. Total of 3 explosions so far
marmite_news Real World News Breaking News: Heavy Israeli bombardments take place central, eastern and northern Gaza City
Jess_Gaza 2 injuries reach Al-Shefa hospital in Gaza! civilians not militants btw!
GazaTVNews Gaza TV Northern and Eastern Gaza has come under heavy attack from the IOF in the past 15 minutes
Qassam field commander assassinated in Israeli raid
GAZA, (PIC)-- One of the field commanders of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, was killed in a pre dawn Israeli raid along with his assistant, medical sources said on Saturday.
They told the PIC that an Israeli reconnaissance plane fired a missile at their car in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, killing Tayseer Abu Sunaima and his assistant Mohammed Awaja.
They pointed out that a third Qassam fighter Shadi Al-Zatma was seriously wounded in the air strike.
Thus the number of victims of the Israeli aggression on the Strip since Thursday reached 16 including 7 of the Qassam Brigades while 65 citizens were injured.
http://fwd4.me/zHV
Angered Arabi says Israel must commit to calm
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil al-Arabi called for an urgent meeting on Friday evening, that included his aides and Arab diplomats, to discuss developments in the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Israeli aggression culminated that day in the killing of five Palestinians and the injury of more than 30 others after raids were carried out against several civilian targets and structures. Medical crews were some of those targets. Israel has threatened to continue the escalation using various means.
The Egyptian foreign minister requested the said meeting as he was angered over what was happening in Gaza, Egyptian diplomats told the Palestinian Information Center. He had also contacted several foreign ministers from other Arab countries.
Arabi expressed worry over the recent escalation on the Strip and said that Egypt strongly condemned the Israeli air strikes and missiles fired at several sites there.
He also said that Egypt had exerted great efforts to stop the escalation between the Palestinians and the Israelis before the situation worsens.
We hope everyone will commit to the calm for the sake of the safety and security of their citizens, he said.
Earlier at noon, more than 2,000 Egyptians gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Cairo demanding an exit of the ambassador and closure of the embassy.
Hundreds had prior to that burned Israeli flags in Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo. Pro-Palestinians marched there and demanded an end to the Israeli siege on Gaza, an opening of the Rafah border crossing and that Palestine tops the Egyptian list of foreign priorities.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Brotherhood group in Egypt has called on Arab and Muslim governments to address and put an end to the Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip.
Statements expected to be issued by the Arab world and the international community condemning the attacks are no longer enough to stop the bloodshed of people innocent and besieged for years, said Dr. Moussa Mursi, the group's media spokesman.
He called for financial and military support of the Palestinian resistance fighters, also appealing to de facto Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to respond quickly without limitation or condition to reconciliation efforts, which are mong the prime targets in the current Israeli onslaught.
http://fwd4.me/zHM
Gazan killed in Israeli tank shelling
Another Palestinian has been killed after Israeli tanks pounded the Gaza Strip in a fresh round of attacks against Gazans, medics say.
An Israeli tank round killed a Palestinian in an eastern neighborhood of Gaza City early Saturday, AFP quoted medics as saying.
The medics added that another Palestinian was also injured by the Israeli tank fire.
Both the European Union and the United Nations called on Israel to halt its deadly strikes against Palestinians as Israeli fighter jets and tanks hammered the besieged coastal strip during the past days.
The Saturday death brings to 19 the number of people killed in Gaza in the past 24 hours -- the deadliest attacks in the territory since Israeli-imposed war on Gaza that ended in January 2009.
The devastating 22-day assault, code-named Operation Cast Lead, killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and inflicted a damage of $1.6 billion on the region's already-stagnant economy.
Israel has stepped up airstrikes and ground incursions into Gaza over the past weeks. Many Palestinians have lost their lives in the attacks.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173822.html
Israeli warplanes kill 3 Palestinians
A fresh Israeli airstrike on Rafah in the besieged Gaza Strip has killed at least three Palestinians, bringing the death toll since Thursday to 18, Palestinian medics reported.
Israeli warplanes fired two missiles which hit a private vehicle in the southern Gaza city of Rafah early Saturday morning, killing all three occupants, Palestinian medics and witnesses said.
Three other Israeli raids hit a tunnel near Rafah, the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north of the Gaza Strip, and a car east of Gaza City, without claiming any victims, a Press TV correspondent quoted witnesses as saying.
Friday was the deadliest day in Gaza since the end of the 22-day Israeli-imposed war on Gaza in December 2008 and January 2009. Israeli fighter jets and tanks hammered the besieged coastal strip, killing ten people.
The devastating 22-day assault, code-named Operation Cast Lead, killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and inflicted a damage of $1.6 billion on the region's already-stagnant economy.
Israel has stepped up airstrikes and ground incursions into Gaza over the past weeks. Many Palestinians have lost their lives in the attacks.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173806.html
Israeli army strikes Gaza after school bus hit Deconstructed
First, let's look at what has happened in Gaza in the past week:
* On Friday, April 1, Israeli forces assassinated a 24-year-old member of a Palestinian resistance group in Gaza. http://fwd4.me/zGM
* On Saturday, April 2, the Israeli air force assassinated three members of the group. http://fwd4.me/zGN
* On Tuesday, April 5, Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian in northern Gaza, reportedly unarmed and not part of any resistance groups. http://fwd4.me/zGO
* On Wednesday, April 6, at dawn Israeli forces bombarded Gaza in three air strikes, injuring four people, including two women (one of them pregnant) and a child. http://fwd4.me/zGP
* On Wednesday afternoon hundreds of children in Gaza participated in a march asking the international community to protect them against ongoing Israeli raids and attacks. http://fwd4.me/zGQ
* On Wednesday night the Israeli Air Force bombarded several areas of Gaza, causing extensive damage; at least one resident was injured. http://fwd4.me/zGR
* On Thursday morning, April 7, the resistance group that had suffered four assassinations fired mortars http://fwd4.me/zGS at a nearby Israeli town, which injured two people on an almost empty school bus, the bus driver and the one student (16) who hadn't already been dropped off. http://fwd4.me/zGT
* Thursday at noon Israeli forces bombarded Gaza, killing five people and injuring over 40. http://fwd4.me/zGU
* Thusday evening Palestinian resistance forces all agreed to a ceasefire to try to prevent the violence from increasing. http://fwd4.me/zGV
* Israel ignored this and continued its air strikes against Gaza, killing still more Gazans.
* In all, Israeli forces killed 14 people within 24 hours and injured dozens. http://fwd4.me/zGW
* Among those killed were a mother, her 21-year-old daughter, and an elderly man.
Following is how AP http://fwd4.me/zGX reported on this. This story is on hundreds of newspaper websites around the country:
Israeli army strikes Gaza after school bus hit http://fwd4.me/zGX
By MATTI FRIEDMAN
JERUSALEM (AP) Israeli aircraft and ground forces struck Gaza on Friday, killing two Hamas gunmen and three civilians
No mention in either the headline or the lead paragraph that Israeli forces killed a total of 14 people in the past 24 hours, including a mother, her daughter (injured another of her children), and an elderly man, and that they injured dozens of others.
in a surge of fighting sparked by a Palestinian rocket attack on an Israeli school bus the day before.
No mention that this rocket attack was sparked by Israeli forces killing five Gazans in the preceding few days.
Just over two years after rocket fire from Gaza triggered
Israel had already broken the cease fire three times, http://fwd4.me/zGY killing seven Palestinian, which is what triggered the rock fire.
a devastating Israeli military offensive in the territory,
which killed approximately 1400 Palestinians, http://fwd4.me/zGZ at least 773 of them civilians hundreds of them children.
Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers seemed on the brink of another round of intense violence.
AP still chooses not to mention the five Palestinians in Gaza that Israeli forces had killed in preceding days.
In Thursday's attack, Gaza militants hit an Israeli school bus near the border with a guided anti-tank missile, injuring the driver and badly wounding a 16-year-old boy. Most of the schoolchildren on the bus got off shortly before the attack.
By Friday morning, Israel's ongoing retaliation
AP calls the Israeli action retaliation (for two injured, one with minor injuries) but fails to calls that the rocket attack retaliation (for the killing of five people).
had killed 10 Gazans five militants, a policeman and four civilians and wounded 45. The dead Friday included three civilians killed by Israeli tank fire and two militants killed in an air strike, both near the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis.
Still no mention of the mother and children.
Hamas, which had largely held its fire since Israel's last major offensive, claimed responsibility for the bus attack.
Had the bus been full, broader Israeli retaliation would have been all but inevitable and the region already destabilized by the popular revolts sweeping the Arab world could have been drawn into another war.
It's odd to put such speculation in a news article, especially when AP left out so many newsworthy facts.
It is unclear if Hamas was trying to provoke a new conflagration, if it was not fully in control of all of its fighters, or if it believes Israel would pull back before invading Gaza again.
Again, it's odd to put such speculation and commentary in a news article, especially when AP left out so many newsworthy facts.
Israel was condemned internationally after the last incursion.
Incursion is an odd word for the massive invasion by Israeli forces that was condemned in detailed reports http://fwd4.me/zGa issued by numerous highly respected international organizations.
Hamas said the rocket attack was in retaliation for the killing of three fighters in an airstrike earlier in the week. At around midnight Thursday, with Gaza rocked by explosions, the organization announced a cease-fire.
This was actually announced earlier and included all sectors of the Gazan resistance. The announcement about this also spoke of the 21-year-old killed on Tuesday, whom AP never mentions in the report.
But the Israeli strikes continued, hitting Hamas facilities and smuggling tunnels.
And many other facilities. AP also fails to mention that the tunnels are a response to Israel's suffocating siege of Gaza, noted by groups such as Christian Aid http://fwd4.me/zGc .
Electricity lines and transformers were damaged, causing power blackouts in some parts of the territory, according to Jamal Dardsawi, a spokesman for Gaza's Electric Distribution Company.
While AP speculated about what would have happened if the nearly empty Israeli bus had been full, there is no mention here about what electricity blackouts are actually doing to Gazan patients on respirators, in hospital operating rooms, etc.
In Israel, studies at some schools near Gaza were canceled Friday because of concerns for the students safety.
No mention of schools in Gaza, whose students have been injured, one killed, and parents killed and injured.
Palestinian militants launched nine mortars and rockets into Israel, causing damage to at least one building, the military said. Israeli casualties have been kept low thanks to reinforced rooms and early warning systems.
and the fact that the Israeli military, thanks to Americans $8 million per day to Israel, is the fourth or fifth most powerful military in the world.
Matan Vilnai, the Israeli Cabinet minister in charge of the home front, told Army Radio that Israel was acting to deter attacks. We are acting as we see fit so that this type of fire will not continue, and so that the people behind the fire will regret it, Vilnai said.
Israel's education minister, Gideon Saar, said in a briefing with reporters that any civilian casualties in Gaza were unintentional and that Israel did not target anyone except the terrorists.
AP fails to report that numerous international investigations have found evidence indicating that Israel has often targeted civilians.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned the bus attack and expressed concern over civilian casualties in Israel's strikes. He called for de-escalation and calm to prevent any further bloodshed.
Thousands of rockets from Gaza have hit Israeli towns and cities since 2001.
AP fails to mention that these have killed a total of approximately 20 Israelis. AP also fails to mention that during the same period Israeli forces have killed thousands of Gazans http://fwd4.me/zGd , including numerous children http://fwd4.me/zGe .
Israel's attempts to stop the rockets have included military incursions and covert operations abroad aimed at disrupting Hamas efforts to procure arms.
AP again gives the Israeli narrative. It fails to report that Israeli military incursions and covert operations preceded Gazan rockets.
In February, a Palestinian engineer was seized from a sleeper train in Ukraine and showed up several days later in Israel,
The normal way to report this would be to state that Israel kidnapped a Palestinian engineer in the Ukraine.
where he has been charged with masterminding Hamas rocket program.
Once again, AP emphasizes Israeli claims without including countering claims.
Last year a Hamas operative was assassinated in Dubai, and Israeli agents are widely assumed to have been responsible. Israel identified the man as a Hamas agent responsible for obtaining weaponry from Iran.
Again, we get the Israeli narrative, and only the Israeli narrative.
This week, Sudan accused Israel of being behind an explosion that killed two in Port Sudan. The blast was thought to be linked to arms smuggling to Gaza. Israel would not comment.
AP doesn't bother supplying any information about the two human beings in Port Sudan who were just killed http://fwd4.me/zGf .
Ibrahim Barzak contributed reporting from Gaza City, Gaza Strip.
Yet, the story was written and edited in Israel by Matti Friedman, a journalist who may have family ties to the Israeli military.
In case anyone is curious about what occurred before this period, March had seen increased Israeli hostilities, including tightening the siege and a gradual escalation of Israeli military attacks that killed at least 11 Palestinians and injured over 40. http://fwd4.me/zGh
http://fwd4.me/zGL
Jnoubiyeh Sarah Abdallah Israeli gunboats have started firing on Gaza City. Palestinians in the Strip are now being attacked by land, air and sea
Jess_Gaza Gunboats are targeting several places in Gaza city right now
Ambulance team member killed by Israel few hours ago in Gaza during its new crime "Operation Scorching Summer"
Palaestina GAZA BREAKING: Rafah martyrs names: Tayser Abu Sneena. Shadi AlZatma, Mohammad Awaja
Palestinians: IDF strikes targets across Gaza Strip
Palestinian sources in Gaza said Air Force aircraft bombed a training camp in the northern Strip belonging to Hamas, as well as tunnels in the southern part of the Strip, near Rafah.
The Palestinians said that the Air Force also hit a car traveling in Gaza City. At this time there are no reports of injuries in the strikes.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054194,00.html
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 9 apr 2011
Israeli army kills 10 more Palestinians
Ten more Palestinians have lost their lives and dozens of others, including children, have been injured in separate Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip, reports say.
On the deadliest day of the shelling of the strip on Friday since the end of the Gaza war two years ago, Israeli tanks and warplanes struck heavily on the northern Gaza territory, AFP reported.
The devastating 22-day assault, code-named Operation Cast Lead, on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and inflicted a damage of $1.6 billion on the region's already-stagnant economy.
In the latest Israeli shelling of Khan Younis, two people were killed and ten others, including children, were left injured. In Rafah, Israeli tank shelling claimed the lives of four people.
Another missile strike, near the northern town of Beit Lahiya, killed one Palestinian on the spot, while another one died of his wounds in a hospital, witnesses said.
As dusk fell, a shell slammed into a cemetery in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City, killing two people, one of them a 10-year-old boy, and wounding 10 others, some of them also children, according to Palestinian medics.
The total death toll over the past 24 hours has risen to 15 Palestinians, and at least 57 others were wounded, 12 of them seriously, medics said.
Israel in recent days has intensified its air and ground attacks against Gaza. The attacks are often launched under the usual pretext of responding to the purported firing of projectiles.
The Israeli military had no immediate comment.
Meanwhile, in the Egyptian capital of Cairo, up to 2,000 protesters gathered outside the Israeli embassy to protest the strikes.
The mostly youthful crowd waved Palestinian and Egyptian flags and chanted, The people demand the liberation of Palestine.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173802.html
Gaza children caught in the crossfire
(1:49) Gaza children caught in the crossfire
Civilians particularly children have borne the brunt of the latest flare up in violence between Hamas and Israel.
Families urge for children to be spared but with both sides refusing to back down, the prospects of a ceasefire seem unlikely.
In three days of fighting 18 Palestinians have been killed and dozens injured, while two Israelis have been wounded.
IDF: Shalit abductor killed
Senior Hamas man involved in IDF soldier's abduction killed in Gaza strike, army says.
Senior Hamas member Taysir Saliman Abu-Saname, killed by the IDF in a southern Gaza Strip strike early Satruday, was involved among other things in Gilad Shalit's abduction, IDF officials said.
The sources said the Shalit family was informed of the news
Abu-Saname held several senior posts in Hamas' military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. He was also involved in the firing of rockets on the southern Israel city of Eilat, military officials said.
Hamas denies claims
However, Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for Hamas' armed wing, said Saname killing "will not affect our work" and dismissed Israel's claims.
He said Israel "does not have the information about Shalit's capture to be able to say who among our leaders had a role in its execution."
Ubaida also accused Israel of "looking for an achievement as a cover for their crimes."
Army: 11 terror cells struck
Overall, IDF aircraft and armored forces struck some 11 terror cells in the northern and southern Gaza Strip, including terrorists firing rockets and mortar shells at Israel, the army said Saturday evening.
The Air Force bombed another 15 terror targets in the Strip, including outposts, smuggling tunnels, and sites used to store and produce weapons. The army said that the targets were hit accurately.
Meanwhile, terror groups fired more than 120 rockets, mortar shells and missiles at Israel in the past two days, including more than 50 on Saturday.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054445,00.html
France condemns 'senseless violence' between Israel, Hamas
France has condemned on Saturday what it called a "senseless spiral of violence" between Hamas and Israel, after several days of deadly crossfire from both sides.
"We urge the parties to make every effort to break this spiral of senseless violence and killing, and to respect a lasting truce, " French Minister of Foreign Affairs Bernard Valero said in a statement. "France condemns the escalating violence that has resulted in recent days from a series of rockets and mortars fired into southern Israel, and Israeli military operations, " he added.
http://fwd4.me/zJK
Labor's Herzog: Israel close to retaking Gaza
Israel is close to conquering the Gaza Strip again, former Welfare Minister and Labor party leadership candidate Isaac Herzog warned.
In a meeting with the party's young guard, Herzog said: "We're close to conquering Gaza than we are to a lull. a wise government would take aggressive diplomatic initiative vis-à-vis the Palestinian authority, while at the same time engaging in an all-out war against terror and Hamas this is the only way to reach a long-term solution."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054380,00.html
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 10 apr 2011
Settlers murder investigation turns into collective punishment
Army roadblock inside the Awarta
The army has taken control over the village of Awarta, which lies near the settlement of Itamar, where 5 members of the Fogel family were murdered. According to reports, hundreds of Palestinians have been arrested, some beaten; all young men were forced to give DNA samples; settlers have built an outpost on the village's land, which is now guarded by the Israeli army.
Ever since the terrible murder http://fwd4.me/zND of five members of the Fogel family in the settlement of Itamar, the nearby village of Awarta is going through what is officially a murder investigation, but looks more like a form of collective punishment some would say organized revenge led by the IDF and Israel's Internal Security Service (Shin Beit).
A door which was forced by soldiers, in Awarta
The events have been going on since March 12, when thousands of soldiers entered the village and began house-to-house searches, accompanied by dogs and Shin Bet interrogators.
Hundreds of Awarta's 6,000 residents were arrested and questioned. According to locals, the soldiers have taken over four houses in the village and turned them into an improvised interrogation facility. Several of the Palestinians said they were beaten by the soldiers and by their interrogators.
According to reports, all the village's men between the ages of 15 and 40 were forced to give fingerprints and DNA samples.
A view from Awarta. to the right: the hill now occupied by settlers
On Thursday, Palestinian news agency Maan reported that another 100 of the village's women had been arrested and interrogated. http://fwd4.me/zNE
Awarta has been under curfew from the previous Saturday until Wednesday, and human right activists have been allowed entrance into the village. Once the curfew was lifted, activists from the Israeli NGO Checkpoint-Watch managed to get to Awarta and report some of the events in the village.
The Israeli media hardly reported the events in Awarta, and the only articles that discussed the curfew and the mass arrests were a translated report of a New York Times http://fwd4.me/zNF story by Isabel Kershner, and a few comments by Akiva Eldar, http://fwd4.me/zNG both published by Haaretz a while ago.
At the time of writing, dozens of the village's people are still under arrest. Their exact number is unknown.
Broken window in a house in Awarta
I have contacted the IDF spokesperson unit this morning (Sunday) with a series of questions regarding the mass arrests, forced DNA sampling, searches and other activities against the people of Awarta. Late afternoon, I received the following reply:
Since the Itamar murder investigation is still under way, theses issues are still being checked [which "issues"?]. IDF soldiers are present at the outpost due to the high tension in the region.
Advocacy groups for Israel and government spokesmen often claim that even under the military occupation, the West Bank is governed by the rule of law. Some people say that Palestinians are not confronted by Israeli soldiers and that they are free to run their own business under the governing of the Palestinian Authority.
As events in Awarta prove, this is no more than propaganda. When it matters to Israel, IDF soldiers do whatever they want, wherever they want. Palestinians have no basic legal rights. No Miranda, no Habeas Corpus. When the army decides, it can detain thousands of people and invade hundreds of homes, like it is doing in Awarta right now. No warrant is needed, no specific suspicion against someone is necessary (so far, there hasn't been one public charge against a resident of Awarta). If Palestinians are beaten, or if their property is destroyed or looted, there is nobody they can turn to.
There have been at least four murder cases of Palestinians from the region by settlers from Itamar in recent years. In the last case, the perpetrator was released on bail and didn't show up for trial. In the one before, the settler who shot a 24 year-old Palestinian farmer in front of witnesses was never tracked down. Itamar wasn't placed under curfew, nor were dozen of men rounded up by the police (in criminal cases the settlers are under jurisdiction of civilian authorities, not the army).
This is the occupation's rule of law. One law for Jews, another for Palestinians.
http://fwd4.me/zNC
Foreign Ministry lauds Egyptian stance against Israeli aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has lauded Egypt for helping to protect the Palestinians during the recent Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has demanded an end to Israeli violence and restoration of calm in the region, the ministry confirmed in a statement on Sunday.
The massacres perpetrated by the [Israeli occupier] in Gaza call for a serious stand from the Arab and Islamic nation at the leadership and popular levels so as to ensure an end to the aggression and expose the [Israeli occupier's] practices, the statement says.
The ministry said it has mobilized from the first moments of aggression to reveal the seriousness of the situation to the world and create a high-profile political movement in order to curb the attack.
Meanwhile, more than ten thousand students at the esteemed Al-Azhar University in Cairo have taken to the streets to condemn the massacre of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Organized by students from the Muslim Brotherhood, the demonstrators waived Palestinian flags next to Egyptian ones and roared several pro-Palestinian phrases that shook Nasr city, which runs along university city where they marched.
Events ended at midnight Saturday after they prayed in congregation for those who have died in Gaza and in the January 25 revolution and for the defeat of Israel.
http://fwd4.me/zMa
Ihsanoglu calls for protecting the Palestinians, Turkey denounces the aggression
JEDDAH, (PIC)-- The Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, has called for providing international protection for the Palestinian people in face of the Israeli aggressions.
He said in a press release on Sunday that the world powers should intervene to halt the Israeli aggression on the unarmed Palestinian people and prosecute those who committed war crimes against them.
Ihsanoglu strongly denounced the brutal Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip that left tens of casualties in violation of international laws and norms.
He noted that the aggression coincided with the ongoing Judaization, settlement activity, arrests, confiscation of land, and demolition of Palestinian homes in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
For its part, Turkey denounced the exaggerated and disproportionate operations of the Israeli army against the the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The Turkish foreign ministry urged Israel to end the hostility and to act wisely and moderately, adding that the region should not enter a new cycle of violence.
http://fwd4.me/zMS
AL proposes no-fly zone over Gaza
Arab League's Secretary General Amr Moussa
Amid successive deadly attacks by Israel on the Gaza Strip, the Arab League plans to press the United Nations to impose a no-fly zone over the coastal sliver.
The organization's Secretary General Amr Moussa said on Sunday that he plans to present the UN Security Council with the proposal, AFP reported.
The Israeli military has been launching back-to-back attacks on the impoverished enclave over the past four days, killing more than 19 Palestinians and injuring over a dozen others.
Tel Aviv has been recurrently bombarding Gaza ever since its 22-day war on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and inflicted a damage of $1.6 billion on the region's already-stagnant economy.
The offensives are often launched under the usual pretext of responding to the firing of projectiles.
The Israeli hostility rages on while Tel Aviv refuses to lift an all-out blockade it imposed on Gaza in mid-June 2007 in cooperation with the recently ousted regime of Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak.
The siege has deprived the Gaza population of food, fuel and medicine, triggering stunted growth and malnutrition among most Palestinian children.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/174088.html
Arab League wants Gaza no-fly zone
Moussa. New demand
Turkey strongly condemns 'excessive and disproportionate reprisals of Israel that have injured and killed civilians,' urges Jewish state to employ good sense and moderation.
Arab League Chief Amr Mussa said Sunday that the organization would ask the United Nations Security Council to impose a no-fly zone over Gaza, which Israel has pounded with air strikes in response to rocket fire.
Turkey on Sunday denounced what it termed Israel's "excessive and disproportionate" strikes on Gaza in retaliation for a Palestinian antitank missile attack last week.
"We strongly condemn the excessive and disproportionate reprisals of Israel that have injured and killed civilians in Gaza," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement urging Israel to employ good sense and moderation.
"The region cannot be allowed to enter into a new spiral of violence," it added.
Turkish PM Erdogan. Frequent outbursts against Israel
Israel has launched a string of deadly air strikes across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 18 people and wounding nearly 70, according to Palestinian medical sources, after an antitank missile fired from the coastal enclave hit a school bus in Israel last Thursday, seriously wounding a teenager.
The latest confrontation is the deadliest since an Israeli offensive in December 2008 that claimed the lives of some 1,400 Palestinians.
Relations between Israel and Turkey, once close allies, have sharply deteriorated in recent years amid Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's frequent outbursts against Israeli policies towards the Palestinians
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054848,00.html
Bahar calls on Arab League to make decisions as Israel attacks
GAZA, (PIC)-- Deputy speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) Dr. Ahmed Bahar has called on the Arab League to take a responsible and courageous stance against the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, as the league is set to convene on Sunday.
We don't want condemnation and denunciation, but rather want decisions on the ground to stop the aggression, end the blockade and reconstruct [Gaza], Bahar said.
He also called on the Arab League to abide by commitments made in the Amman summit in March 2001 that emphasized the need for a special tribunal to prosecute Israeli war criminals.
Commenting on the latest Israeli aggression, Bahar said: The savage Zionist aggression over the last three days, which has led to the death of 19 and injury of more than 70, most of them children, women and elderly and the [Israeli occupier] has used banned weapons in order to subjugate our people and make them waive their basic rights is nothing new for this deformed entity, but rather it is a natural event in the Zionist Talmudic policy that aims to eradicate our people and their resistance.
Bahar also called on United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to use powers vested in him under Article 99 of the UN charter to go to the Security Council to prosecute war criminals and addressed calls to the Egyptian Supreme Council of the Armed Forces and other Arab and Muslim leaders to intervene during the brutal attack.
He emphasized the need to highlight the Goldstone report on the agenda of the upcoming UN General Assembly meeting.
http://fwd4.me/zM3
New Yorkers protest US policies
(2:34) New Yorkers call for peace, democracy - Press TV News
Thousands of Americans have staged a protest rally in New York City to voice concerns over US war and foreign policies as well as the economy and the persisting reduction of social programs.
Scores of peace, labor and community activists took to the streets of the major commercial city on Saturday to call for peace and solidarity with Muslims and an end to US wars abroad, a Press TV correspondent reported.
I am sick and tired of the elite trying to rule the country, the elite that is only one percent (of the society), ruling the country and getting us into wars that we do not need. Not paying our fare share of taxes while we suffer cutbacks in social programs, a demonstrator said.
The protesters called on Washington to create more job opportunities in a bid to revive the fragile US economy.
More than 500 organizations also came together from communities across the US to call for an end to government harassment of Muslim immigrants and people of color.
They also called for the restoration of peace and democracy.
Demonstrators shouted Intifada, Intifada, an Arabic word meaning uprising and resistance. It is most commonly used as a term for popular resistance against oppression.
During the event, keynote speakers stressed that it was time to end US support for the illegal occupation of Palestine and the war in Libya.
We are one with the people of Egypt, of Yemen, of Palestine. We are one in opposing the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are one with the five million people of Libya, said Vinie Burrows, an American activist.
The participants in the event stressed that the march was about building unity between the antiwar movement and the Muslim community and to challenge Islamophobia.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173995.html
Palestinians: IDF attacks terrorists in Gaza
Palestinian sources report the Air Force attacked in the northern Gaza Strip, shooting at terrorists responsible for rockets towards Ashkelon.
It is unclear at this time whether Palestinians were injured during the shooting.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054696,00.html
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 10 apr 2011
Army fires on Iraq Burin during olive tree planting
Bullets and tear gas were fired upon Palestinians and internationals whilst they planted olive trees on the land legally owned by the village of Iraq Burin yesterday.
The popular committee asked for a group of internationals to assist them in planting olive trees on the village land which is close to an army out post and the illegal Israeli settlement of Bracha. The trees were successfully planted even under the aggressive presence of the Israeli Army.
As the trees where being planted one army jeep came close and was a looming presence as local people took the chance to go further into the land to pick akoub (a plant used for cooking.)
After some 20 minutes, another jeep turned up, and the heavily armed soldiers started moving towards the people. One of the soldiers was seen aiming his gun directly at one of the boys.
Graves of the murdered youngsters
When one boy, who in a symbolic act of resistance, threw a stone towards the soldiers in the far distance, they responded by firing shots and tear gas directly at the people, who had to run and duck to avoid being hit. More shots where fired at the youth but it is not clear if they were live or rubber coated steel bullets. However, what was clear was the completely disproportionate use of weapons and force on people partaking in a peaceful act of planting trees.
Despite the dangerous aggression of the Israeli army all 50 olive trees were planted on the hillside and three in the local cemetery one for each of the boys that were killed in the village in the last year. On 19th March 2010, 16-year-old Muhammed Qadus, together with his cousin Asaud Qadus were shot and killed by the Israeli Army during a peaceful demonstration. On the 27th January this year, 19-year-old Oday Maher Hamza Qadous was shot dead by a settler on the hilltop just outside the village.
http://palsolidarity.org/2011/04/17504/
Abu Zuhri: Calm will return when Israel stops attacks
GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian factions are not concerned with escalating the military confrontation with the Israeli occupation forces, Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for Hamas, said on Sunday.
Abu Zuhri said in a press statement that the ball was now in the Israeli court, stressing that the Palestinian people were acting in self defense.
He explained that if Israel stopped its aggression then it would be only natural that the Palestinian factions would return to calm.
Well informed sources said that Israel was interested in returning to calm especially after the Palestinian crude rockets forced more than one million Israelis into the shelters.
The sources told the PIC reporter that precarious calm returned to the Gaza Strip after midnight Saturday, noting that there were no new Israeli raids and no rockets fired at Israeli targets.
They said that the Palestinian factions put the condition that Israel should stop its raids in order to return to calm.
http://fwd4.me/zLV
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 10 apr 2011
Gov't: Parties offered a lull in Gaza
GAZA, (PIC)-- Spokesman for the Palestinian government Taher Al-Nunu revealed that several parties intervened to maintain reciprocal and simultaneous calm in the Gaza Strip.
Spokesman Nunu in a press release on Saturday said that parties, without naming them, made a truce overture to the Palestinians and Israelis.
The spokesman also called on the Arab League, which held an emergency meeting yesterday, to find effective mechanisms stopping the Israeli aggression immediately against Gaza.
Hamas's armed wing Al-Qassam Brigades had declared its refusal to keep unilateral calm as Israel was bombing and massacring civilians in Gaza.
The Israeli army has killed 48 Palestinians, including seven children, since the beginning of this year and wounded several others, especially since last Thursday which saw Israeli military escalation.
The Palestinian government also expressed, in a separate statement, its thanks to the Arab League for responding to its appeal for holding an urgent session to discuss the Israeli aggression against Gaza.
The government said it hopes the Arab countries can develop effective mechanisms to stop Israel's attacks.
For its part, the Palestinian ministry of interior called on the UN and its security council to immediately intervene to hold an emergency meeting to stop further bloodshed and massacres against civilians in Gaza.
The ministry said it contacted different Arab and international parties in order to control the situation and curb Israel's attacks.
http://fwd4.me/zLS
Egypt makes contacts to halt Israel's attacks on Gaza
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian diplomatic sources said the Egyptian leadership made on Friday extensive contacts to bring an immediate end to Israel's military attacks on the densely-populated Gaza Strip.
The sources added that Egypt made high-level contacts with all parties including the European union and the US administration and Palestinian factions to put an end to Israel's military operations in Gaza.
Egyptian minister of foreign affairs Nabli Al-Arabi looked angry when he arrived at his office on Friday and called for holding an urgent meeting with his aides and a number of Arab diplomats in order to discuss the military escalation taking place in Gaza, according to the sources.
Upon his arrival, he also spoke over the phone with his Arab counterparts in this regard.
In a telephone call, minister Arabi said Egypt condemns Israel's aerial and artillery attacks on Gaza.
http://fwd4.me/zLQ
President Obama to send Israel $205m for Iron Dome
President Obama is to send Israel $205 million to fund additional Iron Dome batteries in the south, IDF Radio" (Galei Zahal) reported this morning. The decision comes after the missile defense system successfully intercepted nine Grad and Kassam missiles from Gaza over the weekend, and today the government is expected to approve the deployment of more Iron Dome batteries in the south.
The situation in the south remains tense. More than 120 rockets were fired on Israel's southern cities and villages surrounding the Gaza Strip over the weekend.
This morning three mortar shells were fired into Israel from Gaza. The shells fell in open areas causing damage to the electricity supply in the Eshkol Region but there were no injuries reported.
As a result of the situation, day care centers and special education schools will remain closed in Ashdod, Ashkelon, Beersheva, Kiryat Gat and Netivot. Schools are anyway closed due to the Passover vacation.
The condition of 16 year old Daniel Viflic who was mortally injured when an anti-tank missile hit the school bus he was traveling on near Kibbutz Sa'ad last Thursday remains critical, and he has not regained consciousness.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on April 10, 2011
http://fwd4.me/zLM
Rights group: World silence at Israel will encourage further aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- World silence has given Israel a pretext to continue its war crimes, as the militant state had launched a previous attack on Gaza that left hundreds dead and thousands injured, proving Israel's condescending attitude towards international law, the Addameer prisoners' support and human rights association said.
The group warned of continued attacks after the death toll of the last three days of Israeli aggression had climbed to 17, including two women, a child and severlal civilians, while scores more have sustained various injuries.
Addameer has called on the world community to shoulder its responsibilities to protect civilians and their property as Israeli military and political leaders threaten to take more victims in the Gaza Strip.
The group called on the states that signed the fourth Geneva convention to declare a clear stance against Israel's refusal to abide by those conventions on the Palestinian territories as Israel has also signed the treaty.
In a separate statement, the Al Mezan center for human rights has classified the recent attacks on the Strip as war crimes and called on the world community for urgent action to stop Israel's abuses.
The group has called on the UN General Assembly to ensure that the International Criminal Court investigate accusations of war crimes listed in the Goldstone report as recommended by the UN Human Rights Council.
http://fwd4.me/zLH
PM: Further fire will meet harsh response
Weekly government meeting focuses on rising tensions in south. Prime Minister Netanyahu says Israel considering strategy vis-à-vis Hamas aggression, while Interior Minister Yishai suggests broader aerial offensive.
Sunday's government meeting focused, naturally, on the escalation in southern Israel and the tensions on the Gaza border.
Palestinian terror groups fired some 120 rockets on southern Israel, some of which were successfully intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system.
The meeting opened with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informing the ministers of a weekend meeting he held with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Benny Gantz and Shin Bet Chief Yovel Diskin, during which Israel's strategy vis-à-vis Hamas' aggression was discussed.
Netanyahu went on to note what he called a major achievement for the IDF: "From a defensive aspect, Israel noted a significant achievement by the Iron Dome system, whose missile intercepts resonated worldwide.
"Still, it is obviously only a partial response, and we need an offensive as well. From am offensive aspect, the IDF dealt Hamas and other terror groups massive blows in terms of lives and equipment," he said."
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said it was only a matter of time until Israel topples Hamas' rule in Gaza: "While the situation remains unclear, Israel will not abide the existence of a terror regime in Gaza Strip in the long run. The more Hamas provokes us, the closer the days come when we will defeat it in Gaza."
As for claims that Iron Dome batteries suffer from insufficient deployment, Steinitz said that "We will never be able to provide cross-country protection. The big cities yes, but not every city."
Meanwhile, the government is expected approve outfitting four new Iron Dome batteries, early next week.
The US administration promised the defense establishment $205 million in funding for the project, but the funds have yet to be delivered. The Israeli government intends to go ahead with the project in the meantime, in order to deploy the new batteries as soon as possible.
Defense establishment officials were pleased with Iron Dome's performance over the weekend, saying the number of missile defense batteries must be increased to meet terror threats in all sectors, not just the southern one.
The defense establishment aims to eventually have 12-13 Iron Dome batteries, which will become a part of the Magic Wand defense system, meant to counter medium-range missiles.
The Irom Dome system and the future Magic Wand system are meant to provide interlacing defense, in the same manner that the Patriot and Hetz defense systems do.
Just prior to the meeting, Interior Minister Eli Yishai said that Israel should launch a wide-scale airstrike in the south, adding that "Restraint may be a show of strength, but if you apply it for too long it becomes a weakness. We have to make the effort to pursue a less-conventional, harsher response.
"I'm not saying we should embark on another (Operation) Cast Lead, a ground operation in completely unnecessary, but aerially target bases, crossings, roads and the infrastructure that allows them to hit the south.
"We need to be more forceful, instead of being sluggish, as we have been so far," he said.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054619,00.html
Hamas threatens escalation amid Gaza tensions
(1:49) Gaza children caught in the crossfire
In Gaza, Hamas says it will continue firing rockets into Israel, if the Israeli army does not stop attacking Gaza with airstrikes and tank fire.
In three days of fighting, 18 Palestinians have been killed and dozens injured. And two Israelis were wounded on Thursday.
Hamas declares Gaza emergency amid Israeli strikes
By Mai Yaghi
GAZA CITY (AFP) -- The Gaza Strip's Hamas rulers have declared a state of emergency in the wake of confrontations with Israel that have left 18 people dead in the deadliest clashes since a devastating war more than two years ago.
A truce declared by Palestinian armed groups in the enclave unravelled even before it could take hold, when Israeli air strikes hit several locations across the Strip, prompting militants to fire dozens of projectiles into southern Israel, in a new wave of back and forth violence.
"The interior ministry has decreed a state of emergency. All security forces must work 24 hours a day along with the civil defence and medical services to protect and save inhabitants taken as targets by the Zionist occupier," ministry spokesman Ihab al-Ghussein declared.
The violence, the worst since 2009, has cost the lives of 18 Palestinians since Thursday in the Gaza Strip. They included Tayssir Abu Sneneh, a head of Hamas's armed wing the Ezzedin al-Qassam Brigades, and at least six civilians.
The Israeli army said in a statement that Sneneh was implicated "directly and physically" in the abduction of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit and had recently been told to carry out "a terrorist attack from the Sinai Desert, using rockets, against the Israeli city of Eilat."
Shalit, 24, who has French nationality, was captured in Israel in June 2006 by three armed Palestinian groups, one coming under Hamas.
The violence continued Saturday with Palestinians firing some 50 salvos of projectiles at Israel, and Israelis responding with air raids that killed four.
An Israeli raid in eastern Gaza City on Saturday evening killed a member of the An-Nasser Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, and wounded two other Palestinians, a medic said.
Israeli tanks wounded another Palestinian in the strip's north. The man has not been identified as a combatant.
On Saturday morning, an Israeli tank round killed a Palestinian and wounded a second in an eastern neighbourhood of Gaza City. Again, it remained unclear whether the casualties were civilian.
The deaths took to 18 the number of Palestinians killed, including at least six militants and a 10-year-old boy, since an anti-tank round was fired at an Israeli school bus near kibbutz Nahal Oz, close to Gaza, on Thursday.
At least 57 Palestinians were wounded, 12 seriously, medics said.
But a senior Israeli security official said the Islamist group ruling the Gaza Strip had asked for a ceasefire.
"The political branch of Hamas has sent a message asking for an Israeli ceasefire" in exchange for a halt to Palestinian attacks, the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
He said Israeli operations would continue for as long as Israel felt "its people cannot lead normal lives" because of the threat of Palestinian attack.
He also indicated that Defence Minister Ehud Barak had indefinitely postponed a trip to Washington because of the gravity of the situation.
Thursday's attack on the school bus critically wounded a teenager and injured the driver. Israeli media Saturday cited Hamas sources as saying they were unaware that children were traveling in the bus, saying that the road was targeted because it is often used by Israeli military vehicles.
"The attack on a school bus yesterday crossed the line... Whoever tries to hurt and murder children, his blood will be on his own head," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday.
An Israeli military statement issued late Saturday night made clear that the weekend's strikes had come in response to the bus incident, saying that "Over the past 48 hours, in response to the incident in which a children's bus was hit with an anti-tank missile near Sa'ad on Thursday, April 7th 2011, combined Israel Air Force, Armored and Infantry forces are operating in the Gaza Strip in order to restore the calm to Israel's southern communities."
Israel's retaliatory strikes have made the confrontation the deadliest since the end of Operation Cast Lead, the offensive Israel launched in December 2008 that claimed the lives of some 1,400 Palestinians -- more than half civilians -- and 13 Israelis, including 10 soldiers.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton condemned the rocket fire from Gaza but also urged Israel to show restraint, urging "an immediate cessation of all violence" and prompting an Israeli diplomat's "dismay" at her "choice of words."
Ma'an staff writers contributed to this report.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=377205
Lieberman wants to topple Hamas
Yisrael Beiteinu to demand that toppling of Hamas rule in Gaza be designated a 'strategic target'.
Tough stance: The Yisrael Beiteinu party intends to demand that the ruling Likud party apply clause 11 in the coalition agreement, designating the toppling of Hamas' rule in the Gaza Strip as a strategic Israeli target.
The issue is expected to be raised in Yisrael Beiteinu's conference, to be held Wednesday. The party's chairman, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, will be seeking his colleagues' backing to lead the move.
Thus far, Israeli governments have refrained from declaring that toppling the Hamas regime is a strategic target for Israel. The Olmert government avoided such declaration even during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza about two years ago.
However, Lieberman demanded that the issue appear in the coalition agreement with Likud, and now aims to press the ruling party to apply the clause.
'Resume settlement construction'
The diplomatic chapter of the coalition agreement asserts that "the government will work determinedly and regularly against terror groups threatening Israel and do everything needed in order to eradicate them. A strategic target for the State of Israel would be the toppling of Hamas' rule in Gaza."
Meanwhile, Ynet learned that another issue expected to be brought up during Yisrael Beiteinu's upcoming conference is the party's demand to resume construction in Judea and Samaria. The event will also feature discussions on the party's positions on issues pertaining to security, foreign affairs, the economy, aliyah and settlement activity.
The party's convention is being held once every four years and is expected to be attended by some 450 representatives, elected at the various party branches in the past three months.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054470,00.html
IDF: Ball in Hamas' court
All eyes on Gaza: Army to monitor situation in Strip closely in coming hours, says strikes on Gaza to end only after Hamas forces all terror groups to hold fire; terrorists to be judged by actions, not words, senior official says.
War or truce? IDF officials will be closely monitoring developments in the Gaza region Saturday night and Sunday morning, with Hamas' actions determining whether the current round of fighting will be ending, or further escalating.
Army officials said late Saturday that IDF strikes on Gaza will only end after all terror groups in the Strip hold their fire.
"The moment Hamas takes the decision to stop firing, it must enforce this on all other organizations," a military source told Ynet. "Hamas did it before, and we expect it to happen again."
"We exacted a heavy price from Hamas since Thursday, by hitting several targets and assassinating senior commanders," the source added.
While IDF officials are not openly referring to an equation of "quiet in exchange for quiet," the decision taking shape in closed-door sessions Saturday evening was not to escalate the situation should Hamas hold its fire.
"We'll examine our actions not in line with declarations, but rather, based on the actions (of terror groups) on the ground," a senior military official said following a series of consultations. "We'll be able to operate firmly and powerfully if needed."
Hamas fires at empty areas
However, despite the desire to see the current round of fighting drawing to an end, IDF officials warned that any incident that claims Israeli lives may change the picture completely.
"We are not facing time constraints, and the offensive can be expanded," a senior officer told Ynet. "In a reality that includes a defense system like Iron Dome, extending the fighting is even easier."
Indications that the current escalation may be nearing its end despite the heavy fire from Gaza include Hamas' attempt to keep the level of terror low. The group mostly refrained from targeting major cities Saturday, with 90% of rockets hitting open, unpopulated areas.
Moreover, Hamas did not utilize its longer-range and more accurate weapons, while the IDF mostly targeted terror cells during the day rather than pre-determined sites.
"It indeed appears that we are at the end of this round, but we must keep in mind that this is a rather volatile front, and one spark is enough to change the picture," a security source said.
Given the tense situation in the south, the IDF Home Front Command warned that despite Iron Dome's success in intercepting incoming rockets it does not provide full-proof protection.
The army stressed that emergency procedures should be followed by southern residents and recommended that gatherings of more than 500 people in unfortified locations be called off.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054464,00.html
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 10 apr 2011
9 more detained in latest Awarta sweep
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 11 apr 2011
Municipality: Israel shelled drinking water tank in Gaza city
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Gaza municipality accused the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) of targeting sources of potable water in Gaza city during the military escalation a few days ago.
It said in a statement on Monday that an IOF army tank fired a shell at the 12-meter high Mintar water tank, which fell inside and polluted it.
The municipality said that it had to stop pumping water from there to inhabitants of eastern Shujaia suburb causing a water shortage problem.
It said that water was pumped from another well to the suburb to alleviate the water crisis, which is still affecting the populace.
The municipality charged Israel with commiting war crimes and crimes against humanity by targeting the citizens' water sources, and asked the world community to assume its responsibility in bridling the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.
http://fwd4.me/zOe
SABAWI: The horrible truth about Gaza
The media coverage of Israel's ongoing bombardment of Gaza that left many dead and many more injured echoes Israel's claim that it was part of an escalation that began on Thursday when Hamas militants fired an anti-tank missile at an Israeli school bus, critically wounding a teenager and lightly injuring the driver. Such claims ignore the reality that systematic violence against the Palestinians has never stopped.
In fact, in the weeks before the school bus incident between 16-29 March, according to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Israel has killed a total of 14 Palestinians, including six civilians, and injured 52 Palestinians, including at least 40 civilians (19 children).
In that same period, three Israeli civilians were injured. OCHA's report makes it clear that all the civilian fatalities and 19 of the Palestinian injuries occurred as a result of Israeli tank shelling and mortar fire.
So while both Hamas and Israel have targeted civilians, Israel has used force far more lethally against the civilian population. And as tragic as the wounding of an Israeli boy on a bus is, his injury was not a trigger to Israel's bombardment of Palestinians in Gaza which has continued on and off for the better part of this last decade and certainly was not what started this current escalation .
Unfortunately, Palestinian deaths and injuries and Israeli incursions don't make the daily news in Australia. But the death of every child, man and woman is indeed felt deeply in the close-knit community of Gaza and the rest of Palestine. Failing to understand this is failing to understand the impact of the human tragedy on this conflict. On the political level, this failure to comprehend the human tragedy and how it inflames Arab and Muslim public opinion has (and continues to have) disastrous consequence for world peace and security. Western audiences are spared the images of grieving Palestinian mothers and fathers, but in the Arab and Muslim world, such images are a constant reminder of the brutality of the Israeli occupation and of the hypocrisy of the world powers supporting it.
This gap in reporting leaves many with the false impression that since Israel's Operation Cast Lead, there has been calm between Israel and the Palestinians. But reality tells a different story. In fact, since Cast Lead and up to February this year, Israeli Human Rights organization B'Tselem reported a total of 151 Palestinians killed in the OT, 19 of them were minors. During that same period 9 Israeli civilians were also killed by Palestinians including 1 minor. These statistics as horrid as they are don't even begin to describe the daily violence of occupation including the travel restrictions, the lack of access to medical care, clean water and electricity.
Indeed, the violence of Israel's occupation comes in many forms. Perhaps the most poignant of which is Israel's collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza. Keeping the economy on the brink of collapse, confirmed as an Israeli policy by diplomatic US cables revealed by Wikileaks, is the goal of the inhumane siege that has made 55 percent of the population in Gaza food-insecure and 10 percent of Gaza's children a victim to stunting and malnutrition. Israel's periodic attacks, incursions and invasions that involve the killing of large numbers of civilians and the systemic destruction of agricultural lands, demolition of homes and destruction of civilian infrastructure have not stopped for one day since the siege intensified in 2007. Restricting the movement of people, prohibiting patients and students from leaving Gaza, prohibiting loved ones and relatives visitation rights to the world's largest open air prison is a form of violent and extreme collective punishment that targets the entire population.
Let us not forget that 75 percent of Gaza's population is made up of refugees denied for 63 years the right to return to their homes inside what is now Israel. Israel's denial of the rights of refugees and its 43 year old occupation and colonization of Gaza and the West Bank is at the root of all the violence. Those who point at the latest set of incidents as the cause for the violence are simply missing the big picture.
http://fwd4.me/zOP
IDF estimates round of violence over
Military sources believe relative truce in south will be followed by wide-scale confrontation. 'Hamas has been busy rebuilding its forces for the past two years, and this can only mean we're facing an all-out clash,' says senior officer.
One round of escalation may be over, but the IDF is already preparing for the next one despite sporadic rocket fire from the Gaza Strip on Sunday, military officials estimate that the relative lull will be followed by a large confrontation at the Strip.
Last month, after terror organizations fired Grad rockets at Beersheba and Ashdod for the first time since Operation Cast Lead, voices within the military echelons claimed Israel's reaction was too restrained. This time, however, the voices are different.
"Everyone knows that the IDF has much greater power and capabilities, and many in the public believe that we should use all our force," a security establishment official told Ynet.
"But on the ground, the reality is much more complicated, and there are other considerations, including unwanted escalation on the other side. Therefore the balancing point is very important. We need to know how to transmit a message to the other side, while at the same time knowing where and when to stop," the source added.
While some regarded the response to the firing of an anti-tank missile at a school bus as being too harsh, IDF senior officials are in agreement that the next round of battle is only a matter of time.
"The Hamas in the Gaza Strip has been busy rebuilding its forces for the past two years, and this can only mean that we are facing an all-out confrontation," said a senior IDF officer.
Military officials have voiced concern that the deterrence effect achieved following Operation Cast Lead has been undermined, and that Hamas might carry out a terror attack that will spark another round of fighting.
"The dynamics in this area is based on results, that is to say an event with harsh results triggers a broader reaction, and therefore the situation is highly explosive and sensitive," said the officer.
Sources within the IDF estimated that the clashes around the border fence will continue, "Everyone is on high alert; it's clear that the terror organizations have a high motivation level, and therefore the soldiers know that the next event will take everyone by surprise," he said.
Meanwhile, a senior Palestinian source claimed Monday that Israel and the Palestinian factions had reached an unwritten agreement for a state of calm. Al-Sharq al-Awsat quoted the source as saying Egypt was working to strike a deal and has asked UN envoy to the Middle East Robert Serry to help in negotiations. According to the source, Israel pledged to halt strikes in Gaza in exchange for a halt in rocket fire.
'Wide-scale operation not in our interest'
The political echelon shared the feeling that the current round of violence is close to an end. Jerusalem officials estimated at the end of the Security Cabinet meeting that Hamas and Israel would cease fire.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that if Hamas were to cease fire, Israel would do the same. However, Jerusalem officials denied that Israel had reached an understanding on a truce with Hamas, despite a Palestinian declaration.
Addressing the possibility of a wide-scale operation in Gaza, a cabinet minister told Ynet that "in any event, it is not in our interest to launch an extensive operation until after Independence Day, so for now we seek to calm things down. However, if the rocket fire is resumed and Israel hit, there's no telling what will happen."
Defense establishment officials believe that during Tuesday's Security Cabinet meeting, the ministers will approve funding of more than $200 million for four additional Iron Dome missile defense system batteries. The move is expected to be approved by the government on Sunday.
The new batteries will be activated only in a year or two, and the defense establishment seeks to purchase a total of 12 or 13 batteries.
Addressing Iron Dome's operational abilities against the Gaza rocket fire, a state official said that "although the system is functioning in an outstanding manner, it's not obvious that we'll be able to deal with a massive barrage of missiles for long, mainly because of financial constraints.
"Therefore, our current goal is to restore calm and lead to a truce. All ministers who attended today's cabinet meeting agreed that Israel must avoid an operation in Gaza and act according to Hamas' conduct."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4055060,00.html
29 oct 2012, 13:02 , Respect -
Maria 11 apr 2011
Israeli Navy Opens Fire At Palestinian Fishing Boats
The Israeli Navy opened fired on Sunday evening at Palestinian fishing boats near the Khan Younis port, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip; damage was reported, no injuries.
Local sources reported that the fishing boats came under Israeli navy fire while in the area allotted for fishing before chasing them to the shore.
The Israeli navy repeatedly attacked and fired at Palestinian fishing boats and fishermen leading to dozens of casualties and inflicting damage to several boats.
http://fwd4.me/zNl