An explosion is seen during an Israeli missile strike in the northern Gaza Strip on the border with Israel, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2008. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)
The Gaza Strip has had its fair share of bad days over the years, from the spark for the first Palestinian uprising to the razing of Rafah to the Hamas takeover.
So to say that Saturday was the deadliest day in decades for Palestinians is saying something.
Israel is in the midst of carrying out its own version of "shock and awe" by dropping more than 100 tons of bombs on Gaza that have killed more than 250 people, injured hundreds more and set off a volatile new phase of the conflict with Hamas.
The images broadcast here were graphic and striking. The Al Jazeera English report below captures the extent of the devastation caused by the initial strikes.
The attack caught Hamas off-guard, and Israel's Yedioth Ahronoth reports that the Israeli government used calculated deception to catch the Gaza rulers by surprise.
Israeli officials and the Israeli media suggested that Israeli leaders would confer today on an attack, creating the impression that nothing would happen over the weekend.
Israel then launched the attack on the Jewish Sabbath.
Israel continues to bomb Gaza. It has hit a Gaza City mosque across from the main hospital, police stations, security centers and more.
Gaza militants are responding with sporadic rocket fire, including one that hit Ashdod - the farthest into Israel that a Gaza rocket as ever hit.
Israel has moved tanks to the Gaza border and is calling up reserves as it warning that it may soon launch a ground offensive.
Meanwhile, Israel is barring international reporters from getting into Gaza to report on the situation.
Aside from a few days, Israel has prevented journalists from getting into Gaza for nearly two months, a move that has raised serious questions about Israel's commitment to freedom of the press.
The Foreign Press Association, of which McClatchy is a part, is taking the issue to Israel's Supreme Court this week.
So far, Israel has offered no serious rationale for preventing reporters from going into Gaza.
In the meantime, local Palestinian journalists, including McClatchy's Ahmed Abu Hamda, are risking their lives to cover the unfolding conflict where there are no front lines and no way to ensure their safety as they rush from bomb site to bomb site.
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Posted by: G | December 28, 2008 at 06:19 AM
You can bomb the world to pieces, but you cant bomb it into peace.
Godspeed.
los
Posted by: Carlos Townsend | December 28, 2008 at 11:38 AM
Amnesty International press release 12/28/08 on Gaza:
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/civilians-must-be-protected-gaza-and-israel-20081228
Posted by: Edie | December 28, 2008 at 03:26 PM
Al Jazeera isn't seen as a credible news source. It's a modern day version of the Soviet era Pravda newspaper.
Posted by: Gene | December 28, 2008 at 08:36 PM
Journalists have been fooled by "Pallewood" in the past so why should we believe the images they send out now.
Pictures lie. This is especially true in the age of photoshop.
Posted by: Gene | December 28, 2008 at 09:02 PM
More than anything, this is such a shame. The disproportionate response will do nothing, but make matters horribly worse and embolden Hamas' cause. Israel had the chance, once again, to be the "bigger person," and they squandered it and showed the world how barbaric they can be. We protested in in New York City against it today and the protests must continue. This is beyond wrong.
Posted by: Julia Hurley | December 28, 2008 at 09:09 PM
Even the title of this post shows which side of the issue you are on.
Objective Journalism. Haw, that's a bigger myth than Santa Claus.
Why should Israel let journalists in when their goal is to just distort facts and aid the enemy with their propaganda efforts? Israel has every right to protect itself against people who would do it harm under the guise of "journalism".
Posted by: Steve | December 29, 2008 at 01:55 AM
Thanks, Dion. You are a journalist, and a damned good one at that. One way you can tell is by how the state-worshiping hasbaraniks suddenly come to attack when their beloved warfare state is having "PR difficulties."
Posted by: Dan A. | December 29, 2008 at 04:09 AM
I have seen Obama’s quote that he would do everything in his power to stop rockets from coming into the place where his daughters sleep but I wonder under what conditions he would accept his daughters being subjugated by occupiers/colonizers. If there are any then he should be barred from taking office. And if there are none then what excuses does he have to accept that happening to someone else. Any person that excuses occupation/colonization has a spurious and corrupt humanity.
Israelis have occupied the Palestinians’ land for decades, denying them the vote and common human rights on the basis of race, religion and national origin. Recently they have embargoed the Palestinians and tried to annul their election for selecting for themselves people that would fight for their human rights instead of kowtowing to the whims of occupying squatters.
Of course we know the psychopaths Bush and Blair will probably expedite the shipment of cluster bombs to Israel to use on civilian population centers like they did with Israel’s attacks on the population of Lebanon.
If you support Israel then may your children and your children’s children suffer under occupiers as heartless as Bush, Blair and the Israelis.
Posted by: cjacks | December 29, 2008 at 09:38 PM