Worldfocus » Matt Rees http://worldfocus.org International News, Videos and Blogs Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:24:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 en Violence in Gaza escalates as Israel mounts attacks http://worldfocus.org/blog/2008/12/29/violence-in-gaza-escalates-as-israel-mounts-attacks/3399/ http://worldfocus.org/blog/2008/12/29/violence-in-gaza-escalates-as-israel-mounts-attacks/3399/#comments Tue, 30 Dec 2008 01:25:56 +0000 Worldfocus http://worldfocus.org/?p=3399 Israel’s air force has bombarded the Gaza Strip for three full days. The country’s defense minister is calling it “a war to the bitter end” against Hamas, the Palestinian militant movement that has ruled Gaza for two years and whose charter calls for Israel’s destruction.

Israel says it is not at war with the people of Gaza but with the Hamas leadership, and that its operation will be “widened and deepened as needed.” Israeli forces have built up along the border.

The Arab world has reacted strongly to the Gaza offensive. Syria has suspended indirect peace talks with Israel. Egypt, while condemning the Israeli assault, has also come under fire from some Arabs and Muslims for its links with Israel, including efforts to extend a six-month cease fire in recent weeks.

For more on the violence in Gaza, see our interview with Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Sallai Meridor. 

Worldfocus speaks with experts on the ground in Gaza and elsewhere about the escalating situation.

Matt Rees, GlobalPost correspondent in Jerusalem

Alon Ben-David, defense correspondent with Channel 10 News in Israel

Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for Hamas in Gaza City

Hasan Khalaf, the director general of al-Shifa hospital in Gaza

Worldfocus speaks with several experts on the ground in Gaza and surrounding regions about the ongoing attacks, including Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for Hamas, and Hasan Khalaf, a hospital director in Gaza. /files/2008/12/th_gaza_karhoum1229.jpg /files/2008/12/th_gaza_karhoum1229.jpg ]]> http://worldfocus.org/blog/2008/12/29/violence-in-gaza-escalates-as-israel-mounts-attacks/3399/feed/