RAMALLAH – Anger has swept across the West Bank over the ongoing Israeli military operation on the Gaza Strip that killed 15 Palestinians and wounded 100 in 24 hours. Laila Ghannam, the Ramallah Governor, said that “what Israel has committed against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is a massacre and a crime against humanity.” On the second day of an assault Israel said might last many days and culminate in a ground attack, its warplanes bombed targets in and around Gaza city, where tall buildings trembled. Plumes of smoke and dust furled into a sky laced with the vapor trails of outgoing rockets. The sudden conflict, launched by Israel with the killing of Hamas's military chief, pours oil on the fire of a Middle East already ablaze with two years of revolution and an out-of-control civil war in Syria. Palestinian allies, led by Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, denounced the Israeli offensive. “The Israelis must realize that this aggression is unacceptable and would only lead to instability in the region and would negatively and greatly impact the security of the region,” Morsi said. The new conflict will be the biggest test yet of Morsi's commitment to Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel, which the West views as the bedrock of Middle East peace. The Muslim Brotherhood, which brought Morsi to power in an election after the downfall of Hosni Mubarak, has called for a “Day of Rage” in Arab capitals Friday. The Brotherhood is seen as the spiritual mentors of Hamas. The offensive began Wednesday when a precision Israeli airstrike assassinated Hamas military mastermind Ahmed Al-Jaabari, and Israel shelled the enclave from land, air and sea. The Israeli army said 156 targets were hit in Gaza, 126 of them rocket launchers. It said 200 rockets had struck Israel since the start of the operation, 135 of them since midnight. Expecting days or more of fighting and almost inevitable civilian casualties, Israeli warplanes dropped leaflets in Gaza telling residents to stay away from Hamas and other activists. The United States condemned Hamas, shunned by the West as an obstacle to peace for its refusal to renounce violence and recognize Israel. The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting late Wednesday to discuss the Israeli assault. It called for a halt to the violence, but took no action. In France, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said: “It would be a catastrophe if there is an escalation in the region. Israel has the right to security but it won't achieve it through violence. The Palestinians also have the right to a state.” Oil prices rose more than $1 as the crisis grew. A second Gaza war has loomed on the horizon for months as waves of Palestinian rocket attacks and Israeli strikes grew increasingly intense and frequent. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, favored in polls to win a Jan. 22 general election, said Wednesday the Gaza operation could be stepped up. His cabinet has granted authorization for the mobilization of military reserves if required to press the offensive, dubbed “Pillar of Defense” in English and “Pillar of Cloud” in Hebrew after the Israelites' sign of deliverance in Exodus. Hamas has said the killing of its top commander in a precision, death-from-above airstrike, would “open the gates of hell” for Israel. It appealed to Egypt to halt the assault. – With agencies (Sickening double standards — P8)
