31 Jul 2014

US calls on Israel to do more to protect Gaza civilians

The Pentagon calls on Israel to do more to protect civilian life during its military operations in Gaza, saying the conflict was taking too high a toll on the population.

Gaza officials said more than 1,370 Palestinians, most of them civilians, and 56 Israeli soldiers have been killed so far in the three week conflict.

Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren told a news briefing that civilian casualties in the battered enclave “have been too high”. In a statement, he added: “It’s become clear that the Israelis need to do more to live up to their very high standards – their very high and very public standards – for protecting civilian life”.

However, the US allowed Israel to tap a local US arms stockpile in the last week to resupply it with 40mm grenades and 120mm mortar rounds, a defence official revealed. “They didn’t ask for it from there but we gave it to them so we could rotate our stocks,” the official said.

More troops called up

Israel’s security cabinet approved the continued assault on Gaza, saying earlier today that it was close to achieving its goal of destroying all the cross-border tunnels which it says are being used by militants to attack Israel.

The military said 16,000 reservists were being called up at short notice in the coming hours.

“The army has issued 16,000 additional mobilisation orders to allow troops on the ground to rest, which takes the total number of reservists to 86,000,” said an army spokeswoman.

Israel also sent a delegation to Egypt, which has been trying, with Washington’s blessing, to broker a ceasefire.

A fatal attack on a UN school in Gaza in the early hours of Wednesday, which killed 15 people, drew international condemnatiom.

The school was sheltering thousands of Palestinians forced to flee their homes and appears to have been hit by Israeli artillery. Israel said it does not target civilians and is investigating the incident.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “It is outrageous. It is unjustifiable. And it demands accountability and justice.”

In an emotional interview, aspokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine refugees, Christopher Gunness, broke down in tears on live television while being interviewed about the school attack.

There r times when tears speak more eloquently than words. Mine pale into insignificance compared with #Gaza‘s RT http://t.co/JdS0AMTto1

— Chris Gunness (@ChrisGunness) July 31, 2014

Inside the UN Gaza school ‘shelled by Israel’ – watch Paul Mason’s report

Israel said its forces were attacked by guerrillas near the school, in northern Jabalya, and had fired back. It did not comment immediately on another incident, in nearby Shejaia, in which Palestinian officials said 17 people were killed by Israeli shelling near a produce market.

Gaza officials say at least 1,361 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in the battered enclave and nearly 7,000 wounded.

Fifty-six Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza clashes and more than 400 wounded. Three civilians have been killed in Palestinian shelling in Israel.

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