Palestina

Aid agencies ramp up Gaza operations after conflict

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Aid agencies poured resources into the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Tuesday, providing basic essentials to tens of thousands of Palestinians in need of emergency aid after three weeks of devastating conflict. Israel, which controls border entry points into Gaza, said it hoped to triple the number of …

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France signals easing conditions for Hamas talks

PARIS (Reuters) – France signaled on Tuesday that it might be prepared to hold talks with Hamas even if the Palestinian Islamist group does not recognize Israel as Paris and other Western powers have demanded for years. The “Quartet” of Middle East mediators — the United States, the European Union, …

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TIMELINE: Israeli-Hamas violence

(Reuters) – Voicing shock at stark scenes of destruction, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, and Israel was poised to withdraw its troops. Here is a timeline of events since a six-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip ended last month. December 19, …

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IAEA to look into Gaza uranium ammunition claim

VIENNA (Reuters) – The U.N.’s nuclear watchdog said Tuesday it would look into a claim by Vienna-based Arab ambassadors that Israel may have used ammunition containing depleted uranium in Gaza attacks. The International Atomic Energy Agency said the request was made in a letter addressed to Director General Mohammed ElBaradei …

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U.N. chief Ban sees “heartbreaking” Gaza damage

GAZA (Reuters) – U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, voicing shock and anger at the “heartbreaking” devastation, visited the Gaza Strip on Tuesday to pledge aid for Palestinians after Israeli attacks killed 1,300 and made thousands homeless. Israel had withdrawn most of its force before U.S. President Barack Obama was inaugurated — …

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Iran Lauds Independent Countries’ Support for Gaza

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in separate letters to independent heads of state, praised them for boycotting Israel and supporting the oppressed people in Gaza. The Iranian president called cut of commercial and political ties with Israel a “revolutionary and valuable stance”. Ahmadinejad in his letters expressed his confidence …

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Hamas and Israel separately announce Gaza ceasefire

GAZA (Reuters) – Hamas said on Sunday it would cease fire immediately along with its Islamist allies in the Gaza Strip and give Israel, which already declared a unilateral truce, a week to pull its troops out of the territory. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in …

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Obama welcomes Israeli ceasefire in Gaza

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President-elect Barack Obama welcomes Israel’s ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and is committed to helping Israelis and Palestinians work toward peace, a spokesman said on Sunday. Obama will say more on the situation in Gaza after he is inaugurated on Tuesday, spokeswoman Brooke Anderson said in …

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Gazans grapple with scale of death and destruction

GAZA (Reuters) – After 22 days of devastating Israeli air strikes and shelling, shocked Palestinians emerged onto the rubble-strewn streets of the Gaza Strip on Sunday to collect their dead and inspect their shattered homes. Women sat weeping amid the ruins of their houses, hiding their faces, many too distressed …

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Europeans and Arabs say turn truce into permanent peace

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (Reuters) – European and conservative Arab leaders said on Sunday Israel and the Palestinians must turn a shaky ceasefire in Gaza into a permanent peace that prevents any recurrence of violence. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the host of a summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm …

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