ENB:GAZA -Olmert: Israel at war in Gaza
A GIRL IN GAZA
Olmert: Israel at war in Gaza
At least five Palestinians have been killed in another round of
Israeli air raids on the Gaza Strip. The latest offensive came as Ehud Olmert, Israel's prime
minister, said on Thursday that the country was at "war" against
fighters in the Gaza Strip.
Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence minister, later ordered the
closure of all crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip, in
response to rockets fired from the territory. Earlier, an Israeli air attack on a car in the northern Gaza Strip
killed a civilian and two Palestinian fighters, identified by Hamas
as members of the Islamic Jihad group.
The Israeli army confirmed the air raid. The civilian, a woman,
had been riding on a donkey cart nearby. The other two Palestinians killed in an earlier air raid were
identified by Hamas as Raed Abu al-Foul, a leader of the
Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), and his wife. A PRC spokesman, in response to the killings, said: "It is too
late for the enemy to try to stop our rockets, we have hundreds
of rockets and they are ready to be fired at the Zionist
settlements near Gaza Strip. "One martyr goes to heaven and thousands rise to fire more
rockets and to fight the Zionist entity." Palestinian fighters have fired a steady stream of rockets into
Israel. Olmert claim Up to 17 Qassam rockets fired from Gaza reportedly landed on
the Israeli town of Sderot on Thursday.
Though no people have died in the Palestinian rocket attacks,
one house was severely damaged. Olmert on Thursday vowed to force Palestinian fighters halt
their rocket attacks. "A war is going on in the south, every day, every night," he said. "We cannot and will not tolerate this increasing fire at Israeli
citizens ... so we will continue to operate, with wisdom and
daring, with the maximum precision that will enable us to hit
those who want to attack us." Jacky Rowland, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Gaza, said that
the Israeli prime minister's words would not come us a surprise
for people in Gaza. "They feel it's been war for a very long time now." At least 25 people have been killed in Gaza over the past three
days, including the son of Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior Hamas
leader. Hamas says its fighters launched around 80 rockets and mortars
towards Israel on Wednesday. An Ecuadorean volunteer working on an Israeli farm was killed
by a Palestinian sniper the day before. Rare unity In a rare show of unity, both Hamas and its rival Fatah, led by
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, declared three days
of mourning when 18 people were killed on Tuesday in Gaza. Abbas also reportedly called al-Zahar to offer condolences for
his son's death and described the killings as "a massacre" and "a
slaughter against the Palestinian people". Nabil Amer, an adviser to Abbas, held Israel responsible "for
every drop of blood that is shed in the Gaza Strip". Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official hailed the renewed contact
between the rival Palestinian factions, saying now is the time for
the two sides to return to the negotiating table. Ghazi Hamad, a senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera: "I
appreciate this step from President Abbas and I hope it will be
a good start to bridge the gap between Hamas and Fatah. This
proves that we are still brothers in one homeland and in one
society, despite the political differences. Hamas has run the Gaza Strip since June, after forcing out
Fatah forces from the territory. Abbas wields control over only
the West Bank.
At least five Palestinians have been killed in another round of
Israeli air raids on the Gaza Strip. The latest offensive came as Ehud Olmert, Israel's prime
minister, said on Thursday that the country was at "war" against
fighters in the Gaza Strip.
Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence minister, later ordered the
closure of all crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip, in
response to rockets fired from the territory. Earlier, an Israeli air attack on a car in the northern Gaza Strip
killed a civilian and two Palestinian fighters, identified by Hamas
as members of the Islamic Jihad group.
The Israeli army confirmed the air raid. The civilian, a woman,
had been riding on a donkey cart nearby. The other two Palestinians killed in an earlier air raid were
identified by Hamas as Raed Abu al-Foul, a leader of the
Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), and his wife. A PRC spokesman, in response to the killings, said: "It is too
late for the enemy to try to stop our rockets, we have hundreds
of rockets and they are ready to be fired at the Zionist
settlements near Gaza Strip. "One martyr goes to heaven and thousands rise to fire more
rockets and to fight the Zionist entity." Palestinian fighters have fired a steady stream of rockets into
Israel. Olmert claim Up to 17 Qassam rockets fired from Gaza reportedly landed on
the Israeli town of Sderot on Thursday.
Though no people have died in the Palestinian rocket attacks,
one house was severely damaged. Olmert on Thursday vowed to force Palestinian fighters halt
their rocket attacks. "A war is going on in the south, every day, every night," he said. "We cannot and will not tolerate this increasing fire at Israeli
citizens ... so we will continue to operate, with wisdom and
daring, with the maximum precision that will enable us to hit
those who want to attack us." Jacky Rowland, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Gaza, said that
the Israeli prime minister's words would not come us a surprise
for people in Gaza. "They feel it's been war for a very long time now." At least 25 people have been killed in Gaza over the past three
days, including the son of Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior Hamas
leader. Hamas says its fighters launched around 80 rockets and mortars
towards Israel on Wednesday. An Ecuadorean volunteer working on an Israeli farm was killed
by a Palestinian sniper the day before. Rare unity In a rare show of unity, both Hamas and its rival Fatah, led by
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, declared three days
of mourning when 18 people were killed on Tuesday in Gaza. Abbas also reportedly called al-Zahar to offer condolences for
his son's death and described the killings as "a massacre" and "a
slaughter against the Palestinian people". Nabil Amer, an adviser to Abbas, held Israel responsible "for
every drop of blood that is shed in the Gaza Strip". Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official hailed the renewed contact
between the rival Palestinian factions, saying now is the time for
the two sides to return to the negotiating table. Ghazi Hamad, a senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera: "I
appreciate this step from President Abbas and I hope it will be
a good start to bridge the gap between Hamas and Fatah. This
proves that we are still brothers in one homeland and in one
society, despite the political differences. Hamas has run the Gaza Strip since June, after forcing out
Fatah forces from the territory. Abbas wields control over only
the West Bank.
Israel pounds besieged Gaza
At least 46 civilians were injured in the attack, according to hospital officials [AFP]
A Palestinian civilian has been killed and over 40 injured in an
Israeli missile attack that destroyed the deserted, Hamas-run
interior ministry in Gaza City. The building, destroyed on Friday, was situated in the heart of a
residential neighborhood but had been vacant since it was
severely damaged in a air raid two years ago.
A woman was killed and at least 46 other civilians were injured
in the attack, hospital officials said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said the attack, against what
she called "a Hamas headquarters", was part of Israel's
campaign against rocket fire coming from the Palestinian
territory. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, speaking from Gaza, reported that
the attack on the interior ministry was one of three simultaneous
missile attacks on Gaza. Your Views How will Israel's incursions impact peace talks?
Send us your views "We're now learning there were three air strikes," she said. "It seems Israel is trying to target what it is identifying as some
kind of security infrastructure of the Hama authorities. The irony
is that in most cases, these are not buildings that are actually
being used by Hamas forces." The recent air attacks bring the number of Israeli air raids on
Friday to four. "It seems to the people of Gaza that Israel is carrying out more
or less indiscriminate attacks from the air and from the ground,"
Rowland reported. "The biggest air strike - the one against the interior ministry
building - has, as far as we can tell, largely claimed civilian
victims." Crossings closed The attack came a day after Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence
minister, ordered the closure of all crossings into the Gaza Strip. In video
Picking up the pieces after Gaza air raids The closure is set to cut off the flow of vital supplies into the
Palestinian enclave, which has been run by Hamas since the
group seized control in June last year. "This measure, which will remain in effect for several days,
covers both commercial traffic and persons," an Israeli official
said. Shlomo Dror, a defence ministry spokesman, said the decision
is meant to pressure the Hamas to halt rocket fire at southern
Israel. "It's time that Hamas decide to either fight or take care of its
population. It's unacceptable that people in Sderot are living in
fear every day and people in the Gaza Strip are living life as
usual." Israel kept all crossings into Gaza closed on Friday morning,
meaning that about 20 trucks of food scheduled to pass during
the day would not be allowed through, Dror said. The UN agency in charge of Palestinian refugees, UNRWA,
condemned the Israeli move. "This can only lead to the deterioration of an already dire
situation," said Christopher Gunness, an UNRWA spokesman,
said. The closure "can only lead to the further radicalisation of a
depressed and demoralised people". At 'war' At the same, Israel is pushing ahead with its military offensive
against fighters in both Gaza and the West Bank. On Thursday, Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, said in a
statement that his country was at "war" against fighters in the
Gaza Strip. The Israeli military has particularly intensified its operations in
Gaza, with at least 32 people killed during the past week. In
response, Hamas has begun firing rockets at Israel for the first
time in months. Some 150 rockets and mortars have struck since Tuesday, the
Israeli army said.
Abbas issues settlement warning
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, says he intends to
ask the US president to curb Israel's settlements in the West
Bank when he visits the Middle East this week. George Bush has called the expansion of Jewish settlements an
"impediment" and said he would discuss it with Ehud Olmert,
the Israeli prime minister, during his trip.
"We wish for him [Bush] first to ask the Israelis to stop the
settlement building and ... guarantee once more the ending of
the occupation that happened in 1967," Abbas said on Monday
after attending Orthodox Christmas services in Bethlehem. Bush is due to arrive in the region on Wednesday to attempt to
push forward peace negotiations begun in Annapolis last
November. Deadly attacks Bush's visit comes as stepped-up Israeli attacks have killed
eight Palestinians in the last two days.
On Monday the Israeli army said it killed two armed
Palestinians, including a woman, in northern Gaza and shot dead
an armed man in the north of the West Bank.
Israeli forces moved into Gaza after a series of rocket attacks
from the territory into southern Israel.
Ehud Barak, the defence minister, ordered the escalation,
saying more effective missiles are available in Gaza, referring to
a Palestinian rocket that struck the Israeli city of Ashkelon
recently.
Five Israeli soldiers were wounded, one seriously, by return fire
on Sunday.
Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister, protested that
Israeli incursions, including a three-day operation in Nablus,
were "sabotaging" efforts by the Palestinian Authority to bring
security to the West Bank.
Since the conclusion of the US-mediated Annapolis talks, Israel
has conducted almost daily raids on targets in the Palestinian
territories.
Mounting toll
During the final days of November, the day after Annapolis six
Palestinians were killed and 22 injured, according to the
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights.
In December the Israeli army killed 68 people and about 63
were wounded.
ask the US president to curb Israel's settlements in the West
Bank when he visits the Middle East this week. George Bush has called the expansion of Jewish settlements an
"impediment" and said he would discuss it with Ehud Olmert,
the Israeli prime minister, during his trip.
"We wish for him [Bush] first to ask the Israelis to stop the
settlement building and ... guarantee once more the ending of
the occupation that happened in 1967," Abbas said on Monday
after attending Orthodox Christmas services in Bethlehem. Bush is due to arrive in the region on Wednesday to attempt to
push forward peace negotiations begun in Annapolis last
November. Deadly attacks Bush's visit comes as stepped-up Israeli attacks have killed
eight Palestinians in the last two days.
On Monday the Israeli army said it killed two armed
Palestinians, including a woman, in northern Gaza and shot dead
an armed man in the north of the West Bank.
Israeli forces moved into Gaza after a series of rocket attacks
from the territory into southern Israel.
Ehud Barak, the defence minister, ordered the escalation,
saying more effective missiles are available in Gaza, referring to
a Palestinian rocket that struck the Israeli city of Ashkelon
recently.
Five Israeli soldiers were wounded, one seriously, by return fire
on Sunday.
Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister, protested that
Israeli incursions, including a three-day operation in Nablus,
were "sabotaging" efforts by the Palestinian Authority to bring
security to the West Bank.
Since the conclusion of the US-mediated Annapolis talks, Israel
has conducted almost daily raids on targets in the Palestinian
territories.
Mounting toll
During the final days of November, the day after Annapolis six
Palestinians were killed and 22 injured, according to the
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights.
In December the Israeli army killed 68 people and about 63
were wounded.
-------------------------------------------
Casualties of conflict
* In 2007, Israeli security forces killed 373 Palestinians (131 of
them civilians, 53 under the age of 18). Palestinians killed 13
Israelis (including seven civilians).
* Palestinians killed in 2007 far below previous years' figures,
especially in 2006 when Israeli forces carried out large-scale
military operations in Gaza.
* The 2007 figure is also the lowest number of Israelis killed
since the second Palestinian intifada began in 2000, slightly
lower than the 17 Israelis civilians killed in 2006.
* Sharp rise in number of Palestinians killed in factional fighting
in 2007: 344 in fighting between Hamas and Fatah.
* More Palestinians are being arrested, with 13 per cent
increase in those held without charge or trial. * In the West Bank, Israelis have placed severe movement
restrictions on Palestinians with 459 roadblocks and 66 manned
checkpoints.
Source: B'Tselem, Israeli human rights group
them civilians, 53 under the age of 18). Palestinians killed 13
Israelis (including seven civilians).
* Palestinians killed in 2007 far below previous years' figures,
especially in 2006 when Israeli forces carried out large-scale
military operations in Gaza.
* The 2007 figure is also the lowest number of Israelis killed
since the second Palestinian intifada began in 2000, slightly
lower than the 17 Israelis civilians killed in 2006.
* Sharp rise in number of Palestinians killed in factional fighting
in 2007: 344 in fighting between Hamas and Fatah.
* More Palestinians are being arrested, with 13 per cent
increase in those held without charge or trial. * In the West Bank, Israelis have placed severe movement
restrictions on Palestinians with 459 roadblocks and 66 manned
checkpoints.
Source: B'Tselem, Israeli human rights group
---------------------------------------------
And so far in January the death toll among Palestinians has risen
to 19 whilst 25 have been injured.
On the other side, 11 Israelis were killed in 2007 - two since
Annapolis.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Mark Regev, spokesman for Ehud
Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, defended the Israeli military
operations.
He said: "We've got a situation where the Palestinian security
services need to get their act together need to rebuilt, need to
be retrained. They need to have their capabilities improved.
"That's not just the Israeli position, that's the position of the
Arab world, the Europeans, of everyone who has following this
process. And so I will say publically and clearly: when
Palestinain security is ready to meet the challenges, then Israeli
security will not have any need to act.
"If Israel, were to allow a security vaccum to develop in the
West Bank ... who would enter that security vaccum? Only the
extremeists. And not only would innocent people be killed, but
you would see the peace process be killed."
Mixed progress
Despite the violence, Israeli and Palestinian peace negotiators
met on Monday to discuss a plan for tackling the fate of
Jerusalem and other "core issues" - future borders and
Palestinian refugees - as part of the revived peace process.
Both sides said they hoped to announce agreement on how they
will conduct so-called final status negotiations.
The talks in occupied Jerusalem between Tzipi Livni, Israel's
foreign minister, and Ahmed Qurei, former Palestinian prime
minister, will be followed up on Tuesday when Olmert and
Abbas meet.
Olmert ordered last week a de-facto halt to new Israeli projects
in the West Bank, but has not called off plans to build hundreds
of new homes in an area near Jerusalem known to Israelis as
Har Homa and to Palestinians as Jabal Abu Ghneim.
The construction is a violation of a ruling from the Israeli
attorney-general to stop applying the "absentee" law in East
Jerusalem and has provoked criticism from Washington.
Abbas said on Monday that a future Palestine should be
founded alongside Israel, with "Jerusalem as capital of the two
states: East Jerusalem for Palestinians and West Jerusalem for
the Israelis".
And so far in January the death toll among Palestinians has risen
to 19 whilst 25 have been injured.
On the other side, 11 Israelis were killed in 2007 - two since
Annapolis.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Mark Regev, spokesman for Ehud
Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, defended the Israeli military
operations.
He said: "We've got a situation where the Palestinian security
services need to get their act together need to rebuilt, need to
be retrained. They need to have their capabilities improved.
"That's not just the Israeli position, that's the position of the
Arab world, the Europeans, of everyone who has following this
process. And so I will say publically and clearly: when
Palestinain security is ready to meet the challenges, then Israeli
security will not have any need to act.
"If Israel, were to allow a security vaccum to develop in the
West Bank ... who would enter that security vaccum? Only the
extremeists. And not only would innocent people be killed, but
you would see the peace process be killed."
Mixed progress
Despite the violence, Israeli and Palestinian peace negotiators
met on Monday to discuss a plan for tackling the fate of
Jerusalem and other "core issues" - future borders and
Palestinian refugees - as part of the revived peace process.
Both sides said they hoped to announce agreement on how they
will conduct so-called final status negotiations.
The talks in occupied Jerusalem between Tzipi Livni, Israel's
foreign minister, and Ahmed Qurei, former Palestinian prime
minister, will be followed up on Tuesday when Olmert and
Abbas meet.
Olmert ordered last week a de-facto halt to new Israeli projects
in the West Bank, but has not called off plans to build hundreds
of new homes in an area near Jerusalem known to Israelis as
Har Homa and to Palestinians as Jabal Abu Ghneim.
The construction is a violation of a ruling from the Israeli
attorney-general to stop applying the "absentee" law in East
Jerusalem and has provoked criticism from Washington.
Abbas said on Monday that a future Palestine should be
founded alongside Israel, with "Jerusalem as capital of the two
states: East Jerusalem for Palestinians and West Jerusalem for
the Israelis".
Israeli strike kills Gaza civilians
At least six Palestinians, including three civilians from the same
family, have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza and the West
Bank.
family, have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza and the West
Bank.
Hamas responded to Wednesday's deaths by launching more
than three dozen rockets into Israeli territory and demanding an
end to peace talks.
The killings came as George Bush, the US president, expressed
optimism that peace would come to the region as he wrapped
up his Middle East tour. They also came a day after 18 other Palestinians were killed, in
an attack Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, termed a
"massacre" against his people. 'Unintentionally hit' As Palestinians held a general strike over Tuesday's killings, an
aircraft missile aimed at fighters from the Palestinian armed
group, Islamic Jihad, in Gaza City hit the wrong car and killed a
13-year-old boy, his father and an uncle. Medics said the bodies were so mutilated that it was hard to
identify them. Major Avital Leibovich, an Israeli military spokeswoman, said
the civilians' car destroyed in the earlier attack had been
"unintentionally hit". Israeli officials said another vehicle had been the intended target
of the attack. Islamic Jihad said that one of its cars was hit in the attack, but
that its fighters had escaped. A second Israeli air strike on a car killed two Palestinians in the
central Gaza Strip, the ruling Palestinian faction, Hamas, said. A
third raid, soon after, left no casualties. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, reporting from Gaza, said
residents were constantly looking up in the sky, fearful of more
attacks. West Bank firefight In the West Bank town of Qabatiya, near the city of Jenin,
Israeli forces killed Walid al-Ubaidi, the leader of Islamic
Jihad's al-Quds Brigades, in a gunfight and wounded and
arrested two other fighters.
An Israeli army spokesman said al-Ubaidi was killed during an
exchange of fire with troops who came to arrest him. The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad
group, confirmed his death. Gaza was at a standstill on Wednesday as Palestinians held a
general strike in mourning for 18 people killed in an Israeli raid
the day before, the enclave's bloodiest day since Hamas seized
control of the territory in June last year. Palestinian unity In a rare show of unity, both Hamas and the Fatah faction led
by Abbas declared three days of mourning for those killed in
Tuesday's raids, ordering the closure of government offices,
businesses, shops and schools. "The strike shows that we and Gaza are one people in the face
of Israeli massacres," said Majdi Maraqa, a shop owner in the
West Bank city of Ramallah. Abbas had on Tuesday described the killings as "a massacre"
and "a slaughter against the Palestinian people". "Our people cannot keep silent over these massacres. These
massacres cannot bring peace," he had said. Abbas said the Gaza operation on Tuesday, had severely
damaged the peace efforts relaunched by Bush in the US city of
Annapolis less than two months ago. Tuesday's attack also killed Hussam al-Zahar, the son of
Mahmoud al-Zahar, a Hamas leader and the foreign minister in
the unity government that Abbas sacked when Hams took over
Gaza. That killing prompted the first official contact between Abbas
and Hamas since June. A Hamas spokesman said Abbas called al-Zahar to offer his
condolences. He said the "conversation was very friendly and the two leaders
spoke at length about the current political situation and they
both stressed the unity of the Palestinian people regardless of
the differences". Bush blamed Hamas said two other Palestinians were killed in a second air raid on Wednesday [AFP] Khaled Meshaal, the group's exiled political chief, said he held
Bush and Israel accountable for the deaths of the Palestinians
killed during Israel's raids on the Gaza Strip. "We would like to tell George Bush that this is the real terrorism. Arabs and Muslims are not the terrorists," Meshaal
said at a press conference in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on
Wednesday. He said: "An Israeli official said that Bush gave Olmert the green
light to launch a full scale military incursion on Gaza. "Therefore I hold the American administration responsible for what happened yesterday in Gaza. Bush is a man of war and
crime, not peace and security." Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
than three dozen rockets into Israeli territory and demanding an
end to peace talks.
The killings came as George Bush, the US president, expressed
optimism that peace would come to the region as he wrapped
up his Middle East tour. They also came a day after 18 other Palestinians were killed, in
an attack Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, termed a
"massacre" against his people. 'Unintentionally hit' As Palestinians held a general strike over Tuesday's killings, an
aircraft missile aimed at fighters from the Palestinian armed
group, Islamic Jihad, in Gaza City hit the wrong car and killed a
13-year-old boy, his father and an uncle. Medics said the bodies were so mutilated that it was hard to
identify them. Major Avital Leibovich, an Israeli military spokeswoman, said
the civilians' car destroyed in the earlier attack had been
"unintentionally hit". Israeli officials said another vehicle had been the intended target
of the attack. Islamic Jihad said that one of its cars was hit in the attack, but
that its fighters had escaped. A second Israeli air strike on a car killed two Palestinians in the
central Gaza Strip, the ruling Palestinian faction, Hamas, said. A
third raid, soon after, left no casualties. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, reporting from Gaza, said
residents were constantly looking up in the sky, fearful of more
attacks. West Bank firefight In the West Bank town of Qabatiya, near the city of Jenin,
Israeli forces killed Walid al-Ubaidi, the leader of Islamic
Jihad's al-Quds Brigades, in a gunfight and wounded and
arrested two other fighters.
An Israeli army spokesman said al-Ubaidi was killed during an
exchange of fire with troops who came to arrest him. The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad
group, confirmed his death. Gaza was at a standstill on Wednesday as Palestinians held a
general strike in mourning for 18 people killed in an Israeli raid
the day before, the enclave's bloodiest day since Hamas seized
control of the territory in June last year. Palestinian unity In a rare show of unity, both Hamas and the Fatah faction led
by Abbas declared three days of mourning for those killed in
Tuesday's raids, ordering the closure of government offices,
businesses, shops and schools. "The strike shows that we and Gaza are one people in the face
of Israeli massacres," said Majdi Maraqa, a shop owner in the
West Bank city of Ramallah. Abbas had on Tuesday described the killings as "a massacre"
and "a slaughter against the Palestinian people". "Our people cannot keep silent over these massacres. These
massacres cannot bring peace," he had said. Abbas said the Gaza operation on Tuesday, had severely
damaged the peace efforts relaunched by Bush in the US city of
Annapolis less than two months ago. Tuesday's attack also killed Hussam al-Zahar, the son of
Mahmoud al-Zahar, a Hamas leader and the foreign minister in
the unity government that Abbas sacked when Hams took over
Gaza. That killing prompted the first official contact between Abbas
and Hamas since June. A Hamas spokesman said Abbas called al-Zahar to offer his
condolences. He said the "conversation was very friendly and the two leaders
spoke at length about the current political situation and they
both stressed the unity of the Palestinian people regardless of
the differences". Bush blamed Hamas said two other Palestinians were killed in a second air raid on Wednesday [AFP] Khaled Meshaal, the group's exiled political chief, said he held
Bush and Israel accountable for the deaths of the Palestinians
killed during Israel's raids on the Gaza Strip. "We would like to tell George Bush that this is the real terrorism. Arabs and Muslims are not the terrorists," Meshaal
said at a press conference in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on
Wednesday. He said: "An Israeli official said that Bush gave Olmert the green
light to launch a full scale military incursion on Gaza. "Therefore I hold the American administration responsible for what happened yesterday in Gaza. Bush is a man of war and
crime, not peace and security." Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
No comments:
Post a Comment