Hundreds killed or wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza

At least 140 people, including many children, have been killed during co-ordinated Israeli attacks on Hamas police compounds in Gaza. Around 200 people were injured as the majority of police installations across the Gaza Strip were destroyed by Israeli warplanes and combat helicopters which fired at least 30 missiles. Television pictures showed uniformed bodies lying in a pile as the wounded writhed in pain. Rescuers carried those showing signs of life to cars and ambulances, while others tried to revive the unconscious. One police compound had been hosting a graduation ceremony for new personnel when it was attacked. Gaza police chief Tawfiq Jabber is among the dead. Several of the rescuers beat their heads and shouted: "Allahu akbar (God is greatest)." At least ten columns of thick black smoke could be seen billowing across the area. There has been widespread damage to buildings. The strikes paralysed the mobile phone network, making it difficult to contact medical sources to check for casualties. The Israeli military confirmed they had conducted strikes, saying they targeted "terrorist infrastructure". A statement by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said its aircraft had attacked a series of Hamas targets and infrastructure facilities in the Gaza Strip. "All Israeli pilots returned safely to their bases", it said. The statement added: "The IDF will continue its operations against terror in accordance with constant status assessments by the IDF Chief of General Staff. This operation will be continued, expanded and intensified as much as required. The Air Force activity came as a result of the continuation of terrorist activity by the Hamas terror organisation from the Gaza Strip, and the continuation of rocket launching and targeting Israeli civilians." Elsewhere in Gaza, at least two people were killed and 30 wounded from an attack in Khan Younis, a refugee camp in the south. At one site, there was a huge crater in the ground. Nearby medics carried people into an ambulance. The attacks followed a decision by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's security cabinet to widen reprisals for cross-border Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel. He had warned Hamas to stop firing rockets or pay a heavy price - ensuring that the easing of tension was short-lived. On Friday, about a dozen rockets and mortar bombs were fired from Gaza after Israel eased a blockade of the Strip bowing to international pressure to reopen border crossings. One accidentally struck a northern Gaza house killing two Palestinian sisters, aged five and 13, and wounding a third, Palestinian medics said. Israel withdrew its forces and settlers from Gaza in 2005 and Mr Olmert has said he does not wish to re-occupy the coastal strip. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni discussed the crisis on Thursday with President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, which borders Gaza to the west and which brokered the truce in June. Mr Mubarak urged restraint on both sides.

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ITN | December 27, 2008

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