Gazan exiles aghast at Israeli assault
By Wafa Amr
RAMALLAH, West Bank, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Gazans living in the occupied West Bank and around the world sit glued to television news channels, often grabbing the phone to check on family and friends caught up in Israel's 17-day-old war on Hamas militants.
Alert for any word on air strikes or tank fire near the homes of their loved ones, the exiles need constant reassurance on their fate -- more than 900 Palestinians have been killed and 3,600 wounded, many of them civilians, since the war began.
Israel has lost 10 soldiers in the Gaza Strip offensive, as well as three civilians killed by Hamas rocket fire.
Some exiles have their own bones to pick with Hamas, which seized Gaza from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's forces in 2007, or with Abbas himself, but all are furious at Israel.
Nadia, whose husband is a Fatah activist, was forced to flee Gaza with her family after the Hamas takeover. Like many in the same predicament, she lives in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
"I call my sisters and mother several times a day," she said, refusing to give her full name to protect her relatives in Gaza. "We cry every time we speak. My sister tells me every time she looks out the window, she sees families fleeing their homes, dragging their children and blankets with nowhere safe to go."
Gaza's 1.5 million residents cannot leave. The tiny enclave's borders with Israel and Egypt are sealed.
Palestinians outside the coastal strip say they are shocked and angered by the destruction Israel is wreaking on Gaza's towns and cities in pursuit of its declared goal of halting Hamas rocket attacks on Israeli territory*
Gazans watching footage of the bodies of children, women and old people being dug from the rubble of their homes ask what crimes these victims have committed to deserve death.
CIVILIANS PAYING PRICE
Some are also disgusted by Hamas leaders, mostly in hiding or exile, or by Abbas for failing to halt the carnage.
"We feel abandoned by Abu Mazen (Abbas) and his Palestinian Authority. What have they done to help us?" asked Hazem, a former security official in the southern Gaza Strip.
Damascus-based Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has said the Islamist group will not consider a ceasefire until Israel ends its assault and lifts its punishing blockade of Gaza. While some applaud Meshaal and are swayed by claims of victory by Hamas leaders appearing on Arab satellite television channels, others say civilians are paying the price as Hamas seeks to turn their suffering into political gains.
"We get Khaled Meshaal on television claiming victory. What a shame. While hundreds of civilians are getting killed, Hamas leaders are in hiding, despicable," fumed Gaza businessman Omar Sarraj, who lives in Cairo. "Being a leader means you must be responsible for the people, not throw them to their deaths."
Hamas won a parliamentary election in 2006, but the Islamist group has ruled only in Gaza since defeating its Fatah rivals there. It is hard to tell whether its popularity has eroded since it let a six-month truce with Israel lapse in December.
Fatma, a Gaza resident, said by telephone that a bullet had wounded her daughter in the head two days ago. She cannot comprehend why civilians are bearing the brunt of the war.
"People are in a state of shock and carry a lot of hatred for Hamas," she said. "Civilians are dying. My house was bombed, why wasn't (Hamas leader) Ismail Haniyeh's house bombed?"
Israeli aircraft have flattened the homes of many Hamas military commanders, but have so far spared those of politicians since the assault on Gaza began on Dec. 27.
For many Gazans living outside the strip, anguish about the safety of relatives trapped in a war zone is dominant.
"Every time I call my sister, she cries and tells me maybe this will be the last time we speak," said Amani, a school teacher who resides in Jordan. (Editing by Alistair Lyon)
RAMALLAH, West Bank, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Gazans living in the occupied West Bank and around the world sit glued to television news channels, often grabbing the phone to check on family and friends caught up in Israel's 17-day-old war on Hamas militants.
Alert for any word on air strikes or tank fire near the homes of their loved ones, the exiles need constant reassurance on their fate -- more than 900 Palestinians have been killed and 3,600 wounded, many of them civilians, since the war began.
Israel has lost 10 soldiers in the Gaza Strip offensive, as well as three civilians killed by Hamas rocket fire.
Some exiles have their own bones to pick with Hamas, which seized Gaza from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's forces in 2007, or with Abbas himself, but all are furious at Israel.
Nadia, whose husband is a Fatah activist, was forced to flee Gaza with her family after the Hamas takeover. Like many in the same predicament, she lives in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
"I call my sisters and mother several times a day," she said, refusing to give her full name to protect her relatives in Gaza. "We cry every time we speak. My sister tells me every time she looks out the window, she sees families fleeing their homes, dragging their children and blankets with nowhere safe to go."
Gaza's 1.5 million residents cannot leave. The tiny enclave's borders with Israel and Egypt are sealed.
Palestinians outside the coastal strip say they are shocked and angered by the destruction Israel is wreaking on Gaza's towns and cities in pursuit of its declared goal of halting Hamas rocket attacks on Israeli territory*
Gazans watching footage of the bodies of children, women and old people being dug from the rubble of their homes ask what crimes these victims have committed to deserve death.
CIVILIANS PAYING PRICE
Some are also disgusted by Hamas leaders, mostly in hiding or exile, or by Abbas for failing to halt the carnage.
"We feel abandoned by Abu Mazen (Abbas) and his Palestinian Authority. What have they done to help us?" asked Hazem, a former security official in the southern Gaza Strip.
Damascus-based Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has said the Islamist group will not consider a ceasefire until Israel ends its assault and lifts its punishing blockade of Gaza. While some applaud Meshaal and are swayed by claims of victory by Hamas leaders appearing on Arab satellite television channels, others say civilians are paying the price as Hamas seeks to turn their suffering into political gains.
"We get Khaled Meshaal on television claiming victory. What a shame. While hundreds of civilians are getting killed, Hamas leaders are in hiding, despicable," fumed Gaza businessman Omar Sarraj, who lives in Cairo. "Being a leader means you must be responsible for the people, not throw them to their deaths."
Hamas won a parliamentary election in 2006, but the Islamist group has ruled only in Gaza since defeating its Fatah rivals there. It is hard to tell whether its popularity has eroded since it let a six-month truce with Israel lapse in December.
Fatma, a Gaza resident, said by telephone that a bullet had wounded her daughter in the head two days ago. She cannot comprehend why civilians are bearing the brunt of the war.
"People are in a state of shock and carry a lot of hatred for Hamas," she said. "Civilians are dying. My house was bombed, why wasn't (Hamas leader) Ismail Haniyeh's house bombed?"
Israeli aircraft have flattened the homes of many Hamas military commanders, but have so far spared those of politicians since the assault on Gaza began on Dec. 27.
For many Gazans living outside the strip, anguish about the safety of relatives trapped in a war zone is dominant.
"Every time I call my sister, she cries and tells me maybe this will be the last time we speak," said Amani, a school teacher who resides in Jordan. (Editing by Alistair Lyon)
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