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Last update- #15- 12:30 AM ET 1/6/2009
Live Video Coverage Of Israel’s Attack On Gaza
Unconfirmed- The ground war has begun
Listen in the background at about 59 seconds, you can hear what sounds like a UAV.MOBILE BULLETIN 0035GMT 03 Jan 09 / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp2aoZQ9AnI
Update#1- 10:15pm ET 1/2/09
US ok's Israeli Gaza ground attack
Russian intelligence: USA participating in Israeli war on Gaza
Israel keeps ban on foreign journalists in Gaza- Warning Graphic Image- child
Update#2- 10:45pm ET 1/2/09
Senior leadership in Israel has given the thumbs up for a ground invasion
Bush Says 'One-Way Cease-Fire' in Gaza Will Not Work
In his weekly radio address - released one day early - Mr. Bush reiterated the official White House stand on the conflict. He said Hamas started the cycle of violence.
"This recent outburst of violence was instigated by Hamas - a Palestinian terrorist group supported by Iran and Syria that calls for Israel's destruction," he said.
Update#3- 12:55Am ET 1/3/09
Hamas says it repels Israeli patrol at Gaza border
GAZA CITY: The armed wing of Hamas said on Saturday its fighters had repelled a patrol of Israeli special forces troops trying to cross the border into the Gaza Strip.
IRAN: Hamas has secret anti-Israel weapon in Gaza, cleric says Hamas possesses a “new weapon” to face Israeli armor in case Israel decides upon a ground invasion into the Gaza Strip, a senior Iranian official and ranking cleric told worshippers in Tehran.
Israel fears Hamas strike on Dimona nukes
Hamas retaliatory attacks have alarmed Israel with officials anticipating that the Dimona nuclear complex might become the next target. Dimona is home to the widely-speculated Israeli nuclear warheads.
UN warns of health crisis in Gaza The UN has warned that Israel's ongoing military offensive in Gaza is causing a serious health and food crisis. The UN's chief aid co-ordinator for the territory, Maxwell Gaylard, says a "critical emergency" is unfolding although humanitarian shipments are increasing.
Update#4- 2:45Am ET 1/3/09
Hamas warns Israel of 'black destiny'
Meshaal said this war is not only against Hamas and Gaza but also against all Palestinians and the Muslim world.
Hamas says Israel must not to "commit the stupidity" of taking its offensive to the next level, warning that its resolve cannot be broken.
"If you commit the stupidity of launching a ground offensive, a black destiny will await you," Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal said in a recorded speech on Friday.
'Hezbollah may respond to Gaza incursion'
Turkey and Egypt are reportedly planning to warn Israel that any ground offensive in the Gaza Strip would trigger a response by Hezbollah.
Citing Turkish sources, the Lebanese daily al-Hayat reported Tuesday that the two countries are seeking to warn Tel Aviv that Hezbollah might open a new front against Israel in Southern Lebanon, should Israeli army launch a ground incursion into the costal sliver.
Israeli jets 'violate Lebanese airspace'
Israeli warplanes have reportedly flown low over south Lebanon as the regime's forces started their second day of attacks on Gaza Strip.
"At least five aircraft overflew the Bint Jbeil region (south of Beirut) and headed for the port town of Tyre" farther north, a Lebanese security official told AFP.
Update#5- 5:00Am ET 1/3/09
Israel ground attack “imminent” in Gaza
The last few foreigners have been allowed to leave Gaza, with an all-out Israeli assault believed to be imminent. Hundreds of tanks and ground troops are massed outside the enclave; air raids continued overnight but reports from the border suggested they were fewer than yesterday, which may indicate a ground invasion could happen at any time.
Hamas rockets continue to target southern Israel despite President Bush denouncing them as an act of terror, and warning no ceasefire can happen until they stop.
Israeli army tells foreign journos to blog off
The Israeli Supreme Court is pushing the country's government to allow limited access to the conflict zone for the international media.
“All the pictures that are coming out of Gaza are being filmed by Hamas’ people, or people under the control of Hamas. Many of the pictures have been censored, like sometimes when the Israeli army shoots and dozens of people are left dead. The only pictures we see are pictures of dead children. If there were independent journalists inside, maybe they’d be criticising the Israeli operation, but at least they’d be giving a different side about what is happening,”
No end in sight: week Two of Israeli blitz on Gaza
In the latest 25 raids carried out overnight and early on Saturday, missiles demolished a school in northern Gaza, killing a guard in a strike the Israeli army claimed targeted "a college used as a base for firing a large number of rockets."
Missiles also slammed into Gaza City port and a strike killed Mohammad al-Jammal, 40, who sources in Gaza said was a local commander of Hamas's armed wing.
Resistance fighters responded overnight with seven rockets and mortar rounds without causing any casualties, the Israeli army said.
Top Hamas military leader killed
An Israeli air strike killed a senior commander of Hamas' armed wing on Saturday while the Islamist group's leader warned the Israeli Army, currently massing on the border, would be defeated if it invaded Gaza.
The overnight air strike in Gaza killed Abu Zakaria al-Jamal, a senior leader of Hamas' armed wing, the Islamist group said.
Iran students seek govt nod for suicide attacks
Hardline student groups appealed to the Iranian government to authorize volunteer suicide bombers to leave Iran and fight against Israel in response to the Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip.
“Volunteer student suicide groups are determined to go to Gaza. You are expected to issue orders to the relevant authorities in order to pave the way for such action,” the students asked Ahmadinejad in an open letter.
Arab rulers responsible for Israeli genocide in Gaza
The head of the Berlin-based Palestinian community lashed out at western-backed Arab governments, holding them responsible for what he termed "the massacres by the (Israeli) occupying power."
Talking to IRNA in Berlin, Ahmed Muhaisen expressed "deep frustration" over the reaction of the Arab leaders, singling out Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Update#6- 4:00pm ET 1/3/09
Israel Starts Ground Strike in Gaza to Halt Rockets
Israeli forces moved into the Gaza Strip, broadening an eight-day offensive against Hamas aimed at forcing the Islamist Palestinian group to stop firing rockets at the Jewish state’s southern cities.
“A few hours ago Israeli forces went into Gaza as part of the ongoing operation there. From the beginning, I said that the operation would be broadened as necessary, and now it is necessary,” Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in a televised news conference from Tel Aviv.
“Israeli forces plan -- inter alia -- to take control of the launch areas from which most of the missiles that have hit Sderot, Ashkelon and Ashdod in recent weeks and months have been fired,” according to an e-mailed statement from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s office.
The ground offensive is likely to increase casualties on both sides, with Israel running the risk of finding itself in a quagmire with no easy exit strategy and facing increased international pressure to call a cease-fire. The operation comes after Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said on Channel Two that Israel was “determined” to meet the goals of the operation against Hamas.
“The objective of this stage is to destroy the terrorist infrastructure of the Hamas in the area of operation,” the Israeli army said in an e-mailed statement.
Israel Sends Troops In To Gaza
Israeli forces have launched a ground attack on sites in Gaza they say are being used by Hamas to fire rockets into Israel.
Major Avital Leibovich, of the Israeli Defence Force (IDF), told Sky News its soldiers were targeting "infrastructure" built by the Palestinian militant group, which controls the territory.
It follows a week of Israeli air strikes and a heavy artillery bombardment along the Gazan border in retaliation for rocket attacks by the militants.
Israeli ground forces cross border into Gaza
Israeli tanks and troops have launched a ground invasion to reoccupy parts of the northern Gaza strip as the military escalated its assault on the Palestinian enclave in an attempt to curb Hamas rocket attacks on Israel.
With Israel's chief military spokesman warning that the attack would take "many long days", the Israeli Cabinet also authorised the call of thousands more reservists. As Israeli tanks and infantry crossed into northern Gaza reports began to emerge of fighting between Hamas and Israeli troops. The invasion comes after Hamas warned Israeli forces entering Gaza faced a "black destiny" and vowed that they would be defeated
Israel fires artillery shells into Gaza
Israel unleashed an artillery bombardment on Gaza today for the first time in its week-long offensive, prompting increased speculation that a ground invasion is about to begin.
Israeli TV commentators said shelling could be used to clear Hamas-laid minefields ahead of a possible ground invasion. Israeli troops are massed on the border waiting for orders to go in.
Update#7- 7:40pm ET 1/3/09
The ground assault continues over Northern Gaza. There isn't much to tell at this time, normal [if you can call war normal] war stuff happening. Sure hope a dirty bomb or nuke doesn't go off. Hospitals are over flowing in Gaza. Palestinians are urged to make their way to the Southern border between Gaza and Egypt to escape. Egypt wants no part of this as they fear it will involve them in a war they want no part of. Haven't heard anything new from Lebanon, Syria, or Iran. The UN security cancel holds emergency meeting tonight calling for an immediate cease fire.
We'll stay on top of things the best we can and update as necessary.
Here are links to some Images and Videos of what has been happening the past 2 weeks. >>>>Warning<<<< some of these images contain Graphic content..... Videos of Israeli attacks: http://www.4law.co.il/egoz2.html
Gaza Kill and Maim Photos: http://cryptome.info/0001/gaza-kill/gaza-kill4.htm
Update#8- 9:40pm ET 1/3/09
Intense fighting reported as Israeli troops cross into Gaza
JERUSALEM - Israeli tanks and soldiers punched into the Hamas-led Gaza Strip on Saturday night as the nation's eight-day-old military campaign to destabilize the hard-line Islamist rulers moved into a more volatile phase.
Backed by Apache helicopters, Navy warships and artillery batteries, the Israeli ground forces moved into northern Gaza in an attempt to seize control of open fields and orchards along the border that have been regularly used by Palestinian militants to fire crude rockets into southern Israel.
Israel sends troops into Gaza, raising stakes in Hamas fight
The Israeli military sent ground troops into the Gaza Strip Saturday night as helicopters, tanks, artillery and soldiers launched the more dangerous phase of the nation’s attempt to destabilize Hamas. Israeli military officials said the ground forces would try to seize control of open fields, orchards and border areas used to fire rockets into southern Israel. Witnesses said Israeli tanks were moving into the area as Apache helicopters provided cover.
Arabs demand UN call for immediate cease-fire
UNITED NATIONS – Arab nations demanded Saturday that the United Nations Security Council call for an immediate cease-fire following Israel's launch of a ground offensive in Gaza, a view echoed by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Libya circulated a draft statement to council members before emergency council consultations began expressing "serious concern at the escalation of the situation in Gaza" following Israel's ground assault and calling on Israel and Hamas "to stop immediately all military activities."
The 15-member council then met behind closed doors to discuss a proposed presidential statement that would also call for all parties to address the humanitarian and economic needs in Gaza, including by opening border crossings.
"We need to have from the Security Council reaction tonight to bring this latest addition of aggression against our people in Gaza to an immediate halt," Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian U.N. observer told reporters.
Mansour said 3,000 Palestinians have been killed and injured since Israeli warplanes starting bombing Gaza a week ago. More than 480 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and four killed in Israel.
Hamas chief spokesman: we will fight until the last breath
As night fell on the eighth day of the bloody conflict, both sides remained defiant, vowing to stand their ground and accusing the other of breaking a cease-fire that had been in place until last month.
Not long after Israel's ground incursion began, Hamas vowed to "fight until the last breath" and warned Israel that "Gaza will be your cemetery."
"You will not live in peace until our Palestinian people live in peace," Hamas chief spokesman Ismail Radwan said in a statement on Palestinian network Al-Aqsa.
"We will not abandon the battlefield, and we will stay on the thorny course and we will fight until the last breath."
Update#9- 11:46pm ET 1/3/09
According to sources, Two(2) Special forces units of Israels army are surrounded by Hamas and Powerful explosions rattling Eastern Gaza.
Update#10- 1:15am ET 1/4/09
Since the Ground war has started in Gaza so much is happening that it's hard to keep up with. Information overload if you will. That being the case, updates to this post will become fewer. There is only so much you can actually tell of war anyway. You know...stuff like, Some troops died there, some terrorists died there, a rocket exploded there, some civilians were killed here,..............you understand.
Right now at 12:57 AM ET 1/4/2009 Sunday Morning - while I watch the live video the battle continues in Gaza and Gaza City. Smoke, air raid siren, etc.....Air attacks and massive explosions in Gaza City, also sounds like more UAV's in the background. Other small arms fire could also be heard.
I'll watch how the war progresses as I'm sure you are and keep you posted on any major events taking place, also any other important related information. Stuff like, Weapons of Mass destruction being used. Hopefully a Nuclear or Biological weapon wont be used. Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Somalia becoming involved or something happening in the Gulf of Aden. Don't forget the other areas either. A lot of shit, and recently, has happened in the middle-east in a short period of time. I feel like a lot more is going to happen too. I only hope it doesn't reach the shore of America.
Update#11- 10:30pm ET 1/4/09
It has been reported that Israel is using weapons of mass destruction. Or at the least, weapons that are so bad they have been banned from use, even in war. There are reports that munitions with depleted uranium have been detected and white phosphorus bombs which are not illegal if used as a smokescreen have been used. Also the mention of Cluster Bombs being used.
White phosphorus
: the smoke-screen chemical that can burn to the bone— White phosphorus bursts into a deep-yellow flame when it is exposed to oxygen, producing a thick white smoke
— It is used as a smokescreen or for incendiary devices, but can also be deployed as an anti-personnel flame compound capable of causing potentially fatal burns
— Phosphorus burns are almost always second or third-degree because the particles do not stop burning on contact with skin until they have entirely disappeared — it is not unknown for them to reach the bone
— Geneva conventions ban the use of phosphorus as an offensive weapon against civilians, but its use as a smokescreen is not prohibited by international law
— Israel previously used white phosphorus during its war with Lebanon in 2006
— It has been used frequently by British and US forces in recent wars, notably during the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Its use was criticised widely.
Cluster bomb
:
The cluster bomb CBU-87 is dropped from a plane. It weighs about 430 kg and carries about 200 bomblets. This bomb can be dropped from a wide range of aircrafts from many different countries. The bomb can fly about 9 miles by itself before the bomblets are released. A short time before the bomblets are released the cluster bombs begin to spin. The canister opens at an altitude between 100m and 1000m. The height, velocity and rotation speed determine what area will be covered by the bomblets. Each bomblet is the size of a soft drink can. They deploy a little parachute that stabilizes them and makes sure that they descend with their nose down. Each of the bomblets holds hundreds of metal pieces, which can pierce armour. Depending on the altitude from which the bomblets were released and on the wind conditions, the bomblets can cover an area of up to 200m by 400m. When the bomblets explode, they cause injury and damage across a wide area. The blast of one bomblet can cause deadly shrapnel injuries of in a radius of up to 25 meters.
Other related information-
An Israeli soldier was killed today, the first since Israel launched its ground operation.
Gaza: medical personnel say a woman and four of her children were killed during an Israeli ground operation today.
Terrorists as they call them continued firing rockets and mortar shells in to southern Israel.
A United Nations Security Council statement calling for an immediate cease-fire between Israel and Gaza was blocked by the Bush administration
Update#12- 12:10am ET 1/5/09
If you'll recall in update #10 above, I was saying how much information was coming in that it became difficult to keep up with it. Now it is just the opposite. Little is being reported as the war in Gaza continues. It was only a hour or so ago that I was watching the live feed and attacks were still happening. Since that time it's almost like theres no war in Gaza. Or maybe it's like I also said earlier, "There is only so much you can actually tell of war anyway. You know...stuff like, Some troops died there, some terrorists died there, a rocket exploded there, some civilians were killed here,..............you understand."
None the less...heres the latest.
IDF battling Hamas terrorists near Beit Lahia, Beit Hanoun
As Israel's Operation Cast Lead against Hamas terror infrastructure in Gaza entered its tenth day, IDF soldiers were holding fights against Hamas gunmen near the Gaza Strip border on Sunday overnight, Israel Radio reported.
Hamas terrorists were firing mortar shells and using grenade launchers on IDF tanks. No Israeli casualties were reported.
The air force was assisting ground troops, the station reported.
Fighting concentrated around Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya.
Meanwhile, the military infiltrated Hamas's television and was broadcasting a call to Palestinian non-combatants not to serve as human shields to Hamas terrorists.
Analysis: While Israel fights in Gaza, Egypt and Saudi Arabia take on Iran
These latest events bring home the extent to which events in Gaza cannot be understood in isolation from the broader regional picture. Some analysts are maintaining that the Hamas escalation in Gaza which preceded the current operation was the result of a coordinated Iranian initiative.
Analysis: Don't forget the Iranian connection
Among the many negative consequences of the Second Lebanon War in summer 2006 was the distraction it provided from Iran's nuclear program.
So focused was the international community on 34 days of fighting, and so inarticulate was Israel in explaining that it was (indecisively) confronting the Iranian takeover of southern Lebanon, that Teheran slipped gratefully into the global shadows, there to quietly advance its progress toward the bomb.
Today, there is a danger of the same process repeating itself.
Hizbullah is an Iranian creation. Hamas is not. But it has drawn itself increasingly into Iran's orbit.
Much of its imported weaponry, and the expertise with which it now produces and refines its own rockets, have been provided by Iran.
Update#13- 4:21 AM ET 1/5/2009
Breaking 4:21 AM ET 1/5/2009 >>>>>
Hamas's rocket hits Hatzor air base Hamas says its Grad rockets have landed in the Hatzor Air Base near the Israeli town of Ashdod.The al-Aqsa TV channel reported that Hamas's rocket movements have hit the air base for the fist time since Israel launched its attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Hamas says it has targeted the Israeli air base of Hatzor for the first time.
Update#14- 7:10pm ET 1/5/09
Hamas counter-attacks Israeli troops on Gaza City boundary, threatens to rocket Tel Aviv
To further show they were not cowed, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza threatened to bring out its long-range rockets and launch them against Rehovot, Rishon Lezion and Tel Aviv, key cities of Israel's heartland, if the Israeli offensive persisted.
Rockets still pounding Israel
Overnight in Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli Air Force struck more than 30 targets, including a mosque storing large numbers of weapons, an underground bunker in Gaza City, tunnels near the Egyptian border used to bring terrorists in and out of Gaza, Hamas members' homes and a rocket launcher, according to the Israel Defense Forces spokesman's office.
Long-range Grad rockets struck Beersheba, Yavne, Ashdod and Ashkelon throughout Monday. A Grad missile struck an empty kindergarten in Ashdod, while a Kassam rocket damaged a home in Sderot, where several people were treated for shock.
Iranian commander: Cut oil sales to Israel backers
An Iranian military commander called on Islamic countries to cut oil exports to Israel's supporters in response to the Jewish state's offensive in Gaza, the official IRNA news agency reported on Sunday.
IRNA, giving only his last name, quoted commander Bagherzadeh as saying oil was "one of the powerful elements of pressure" on the Jewish state's Western backers in the "unequal war" faced by Palestinians in Gaza.
"Pointing at Westerners' dependence on the Islamic countries' oil and energy resources, he (Bagherzadeh) called for cutting the export of crude oil to the Zionist regime's supporters the world over," IRNA said.
Hamas plans to defeat Israeli force with epic "last stand" at Gaza City
DEBKAfile's military sources report that Hamas does not propose to put its entire 15,000-strong army in harm's way against the expected Israeli military invasion. It will confine its resistance to small pockets and sabotage and let Israel troops occupy most of Gaza Strip territory.
Israel on high alert at Lebanon border
Israeli Forces along the border with Lebanon have been put on high alert amid concerns that Hezbollah might respond to the onslaught in Gaza.
Update#15- 12:30 AM ET 1/6/2009
Israeli ground forces enter Kahn Yunis the largest city in southern Gaza. More of the same....sounds of UAV's and helicopters, visuals of impacts of ordinance....explosions, fire, smoke. No sounds or visuals of fighter jets or bombers. Incoming artillery / missiles leaving smoke trails in the sky.
Check back for updates and other information related to the War in Gaza
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