Source : Campaign for Migrants Rights E-mail : campaignformigrantsrights@yahoo.com Tel :00212-15619532 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7817926.stm | |||||||
The Red Cross has accused Israel of failing to fulfil its obligation to help wounded civilians in Gaza. ICRC staff found four weak and scared children beside their mothers' bodies in houses hit by shelling in Zeitoun. The Israeli military has not yet responded to the accusation, but said it worked closely with aid groups so that civilians could get assistance. Meanwhile the UN said it was suspending aid operations in Gaza because of the danger to staff from Israeli attacks. "We have suspended our operations in Gaza until the Israeli authorities can guarantee our safety and security," said Chris Gunness, spokesman for the United Nations relief agency Unwra. "Our installations have been hit, our workers have been killed in spite of the fact that the Israeli authorities have the co-ordinates of our facilities and that all our movements are co-ordinated with the Israeli army. "It is with great regret that Unwra has been forced to make this difficult decision." Earlier, Unwra said one person had been killed and two injured when a fork-lift truck on a UN aid mission came under Israeli tank fire at Gaza's Erez crossing.
The Israeli army has not commented on that claim but has said it is looking into the matter. The aid agencies' concerns come amid fears the conflict with Gaza militants may spread, with at least three rockets fired from Lebanon into northern Israel, prompting Israel to reply with artillery. The incident followed Israel's heaviest bombardment so far of Gaza in nearly two weeks of conflict, with 60 air strikes targeting Hamas facilities. Palestinian medical officials said at least 10 Gaza residents had been killed on Thursday. More than 700 Palestinian and 11 Israeli lives are said to have been lost since the offensive began 13 days ago. For a second day, Israeli forces observed a three-hour pause in fighting to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. The first of what Israel said would be a daily ceasefire, on Wednesday, allowed aid agencies into the territory for the first time in days. Efforts have continued to broker a full ceasefire - a senior Israeli official is in Cairo to hear details of a plan put forward by Egypt and France. A Hamas delegation is expected in the Egyptian capital at some stage for parallel "technical" talks, Egyptian diplomats said. 'Access denied' The International Committee of the Red Cross accused Israel of failing in its international obligations after its staff were met with "shocking" scenes.
Aid workers had been denied access to the site for days, it added. "This is a shocking incident," Pierre Wettach, ICRC head for Israel and the Palestinian territories said in a statement. "The Israeli military must have been aware of the situation but did not assist the wounded. Neither did they make it possible for us or the Palestinian Red Crescent to assist the wounded." Correspondents say the criticism is unusually strong, coming from an agency considered to be neutral. The Israeli army told Reuters news agency that any serious allegations would be properly investigated once a formal complaint was received. Meanwhile, Amnesty International accused both sides of using civilians as human shields. Advertisement Aftermath of rocket strike from Lebanon into northern Israel At least three Katyusha rockets were fired from southern Lebanon into the northern Israeli area of Nahariya early on Thursday. One hit a nursing home, leaving at least two people slightly wounded and a number of others suffering from shock, Israeli officials said.
Israel immediately responded with five artillery shells into Lebanon, calling it a "pinpoint response at the source of fire". The rocket fire was condemned by Lebanon's prime minister. The rocket attacks from Lebanon have raised concerns about a wider war in the region, says the BBC's Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen. In Gaza, Israel continued its offensive overnight with 60 air strikes targeting police sites, 10 Hamas tunnels, weapons storage facilities, launching pads "and a number of armed gunmen", the Israeli army said. Casualty claims in Gaza have been difficult to verify independently. While the BBC has had Palestinian producers reporting from Gaza, Israel only allowed Western TV crews to enter on Wednesday, embedded with its army. | |||||||
Showing posts with label gaza. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gaza. Show all posts
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Israel accused over Gaza wounded
The Israeli military must have been aware of the situation but did not assist the wounded - neither did they make it possible for us or the Palestinian Red Crescent to assist the wounded 
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Statement: HRM Queen Rania on the children of Gaza
Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah UNICEF Eminent Advocate for Children
Statement to the Press on Gaza - In Amman, Jordan
Our Humanity is Incomplete
Statement to the Press on Gaza - In Amman, Jordan
Our Humanity is Incomplete
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” ... Article one, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person” … Article three, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Over the past 41 years, the people of Gaza have been living under occupation. Over the past 18 months, they have been living under siege. And for the past 10 days, the people of Gaza have been subject to a cruel and continuous military attack.
Either the declaration is not so universal, or the people of Gaza are not human beings, worthy of the same “universal” rights. This is the message the world is sending out today.
Today, I am here with representative members of the UN family, to share with you the extent of the humanitarian crisis that is Gaza.
But not only is there a humanitarian crisis in Gaza... there is a crisis in our global humanity. Nelson Mandela once said that “our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.” Today, I tell you, our humanity is incomplete without theirs. It is incomplete. It is not universal.
This is the message I am sending world leaders: Our humanity is incomplete when children, irrespective of nationality, are victims of military operations.
More than seventy dead children. Close to six hundred injured. What does the world tell to their mothers? To the Palestinian mother who lost five daughters in one day? To the mothers watching their children cry in pain, huddle in fear, and deal with more trauma than any of us will experience in an entire lifetime?
That they are collateral damage?
That their lives don’t matter?
That their deaths don’t count?
That the children of Gaza do not have “the right to life, liberty and security”?
What do we tell them?!
It is imperative that every nation acts to end the fighting, and open all crossings, especially Karni, to permit the uninterrupted passage of wheat, fuel, medicine, and other vital supplies.
At the very least, we must push for a ceasefire, a humanitarian ceasefire, a ceasefire for children, to help the wounded, to look for those buried under the rubble, to tend to the sick and elderly trapped in their homes, and to bring in vital medical supplies, equipment and staff.
At the very least, governments should… governments must contribute to UNRWA’s emergency appeal for $34 million to meet the immediate needs of Gaza’s innocent civilians.
The children of Gaza, the dead and the barely living... their mothers... their fathers are not acceptable collateral damage; their lives do matter, their loss does count. They are not divisible from our universal humanity – no child is, no civilian is.
DEMOCRACY NOW RELATED ARTICLES IN ENGLISH:
Monday, January 05, 2009
- Headlines
- A Debate on Israel’s Invasion of Gaza: UNRWA’s Christopher Gunness v. Israel Project’s Meagan Buren
- Israeli Professor Under Hamas Rocket Fire, Neve Gordon Condemns Israeli Invasion of Gaza
- Report from Gaza City: Palestinian Journalist Sameh Habeeb on Gaza Under Siege
- US Blocks UN Security Council Vote Calling for Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza
DEMOCRACY NOW RELATED ARTICLES IN SPANISH:
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