Israeli assault on Gaza enters 2nd week with no end in sight
GAZA CITY, (AFP)
Israeli warplanes continued to pound Gaza on Saturday as the assault
on Hamas entered its second week, with the Islamist group’s leader
warning of a “black destiny” if ground troops are sent in.
Hamas’s Syrian-based chief Khaled Meshaal told Israel that “if you
commit the stupidity of launching a ground offensive then a black
destiny awaits you.
“You will soon find out that Gaza is the wrath of God,” Meshaal said
in pre-taped remarks as the death toll rose from bombing and concerns
grew about the humanitarian situation in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian
territory.
The United States gave Israel free rein on whether to invade the
overcrowded enclave, insisting that the key to a ceasefire is Israel’s
demand for Hamas to permanently halt rocket fire.
“So I think any steps they are taking, whether it’s from the air or
on the ground or anything of that nature, are part and parcel of the
same operation,” said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe.“Those will
be decisions made by the Israelis.”
President George W. Bush, meanwhile, urged all able parties to press
Hamas to stop firing on Israel to facilitate a lasting ceasefire.
“The United States is leading diplomatic efforts to achieve a
meaningful ceasefire that is fully respected,” Bush said in his weekly
Saturday radio address, the text of which was released late on Friday.
“I urge all parties to pressure Hamas to turn away from terror, and
to support legitimate Palestinian leaders working for peace.”
Bush said Hamas was responsible for the latest violence and rejected
a unilateral ceasefire that would allow Hamas to continue to fire on
Israel.
“This recent outburst of violence was instigated by Hamas — a
Palestinian terrorist group supported by Iran and Syria that calls for
Israel’s destruction,” Bush said.Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met
with senior ministers as tanks and troops stood at the ready on the Gaza
border.
A missile fired by an Israeli jet slammed into a house in southern
Gaza, killing three boys, aged from seven to 10.
It was one of more than 58 fresh raids carried out on Friday.
A 12-year-old girl died of her wounds after the bombing of a house
near Gaza City belonging to a member of Islamic Jihad, and two gunmen
from the armed wing of Hamas were killed in Jabaliya after firing
rockets, medics said.
On Saturday, an army spokesman said air attacks on “Hamas
infrastructure” were continuing into the predawn hours.
At the same time, the armed wing of Hamas said it had repelled a
patrol of Israeli special forces attempting to cross the border into
Gaza.
A spokesman said the army was “not familiar with the incident,”
adding that no soldiers had crossed into Gaza since the beginning of the
air campaign on December 27.
Since then, at least 435 people have been killed, including 66
children, and 2,150 wounded, according to Gaza medics.
The bombardment has demolished dozens of houses and heightened
concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, where most of the 1.5
million residents depend on foreign aid.“The protection of civilians,
the fabric of life, the future of the peace talks and of the regional
peace process has been trapped between the irresponsibility of the Hamas
attacks and the excessiveness of the Israeli response,” Robert Serry,
the UN envoy for the Middle East, told reporters in Jerusalem.
Max Gaylard, the UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian
territories, said “there is a critical emergency in the Gaza Strip right
now ... By any definition this is a humanitarian crisis and more.”
Thousands of Hamas faithful attended the funeral of Nizar Rayan — a
firebrand hardliner who was killed with his four wives and 11 children
on Thursday.Hamas vowed to avenge the death of the most senior Hamas
leader killed by Israel since Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi in 2004 and warned
that it could resume suicide attacks against Israel for the first time
since January 2005.
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Gaza and the occupied
West Bank after Hamas called for a “day of wrath.” Police fired tear gas
at rock-throwing youths in annexed east Jerusalem.
With a ground offensive widely expected and no ceasefire in sight,
the Israeli army opened a border crossing to allow an estimated 400
people with foreign passports to leave Gaza. |