Tuesday, November 5, 2024

195 killed in Isareli air strikes on Gaza

World powers call for peace, Hamas responds by firing rockets
Afp, Gaza City
At least 195 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip on Saturday in massive Israeli air strikes on the Hamas-run enclave, said the head of Gaza emergency services Moawiya Hassanein.
Another 300 people were wounded, some 120 of them seriously in the attacks.
An Israeli man died as Hamas swiftly responded to the air raids by firing rockets into the Jewish state.
As Israel warned that the bombardment was “just the beginning,” Hamas told Israelis living near their Gaza stronghold to “prepare the funeral shrouds.”
In Gaza, thick clouds of smoke billowed into the sky and mangled, bloody, charred corpses littered the pavement around Hamas security structures in the coastal strip where the bombardment sowed panic in the streets, television images showed.
The deadly attacks came after days of escalating violence around the besieged coastal strip that the Islamist Hamas movement has run since June 2007, with militants firing rockets and Israel vowing a fiery response.
Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas told AFP from Saudi Arabia that he was in “urgent contact” with numerous countries to stop “the cowardly aggressions and massacres in the Gaza Strip.”
The bombardment sparked international calls for a stop to the violence, with Russia, France and the European Union calling for an end to the bloodletting by both sides.
The European Union, the bloc’s current president France, Britain and Russia urged both sides to stop the fighting, the United States said Israel should avoid civilian casualties, while in the Middle East the Arab League and its members singled out Israel for blame.
The Organisation of the Islamic Conference on Saturday slammed as a war crime Israel’s air raids on the Gaza Strip that are reported to have killed at least 195 Palestinians.
“The latest Israeli massacre is a war crime and shows what little regard Israel has for international law and the 4th Geneva convention on the protection of civilians in time of war,” OIC chief Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said in a statement.
The United States urged Israel Saturday to avoid civilian casualties as it pounded Hamas targets in Gaza, but warned the Islamist movement must halt its rocket attacks “if the violence is to stop.”
“The United States urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza,” US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said in Waco, as US President George W. Bush closed out 2008 on his Texas ranch.
Egypt, which brokered a six-month Israeli-Hamas truce that expired on December 19, slammed the Israeli strikes.
“Egypt condemns the Israeli military aggression on the Gaza Strip and blames Israel, as an occupying force, for the victims and the wounded,” President Hosni Mubarak said in a statement.
He gave instructions for the Rafah terminal — the only one that bypasses Israel — to be opened to allow wounded Palestinians to be evacuated “so they can receive the necessary treatment in Egyptian hospitals,” it added.
Hamas called on its fighters to “avenge with force against the enemy” while its militants warned Israelis living near the border to “prepare the funeral shrouds,” vowing that the Islamists’ response “was on its way.”
Israel, which put its communities around Gaza on a state of alert, warned the deadly strikes were “just the beginning,” said an army spokesman.
“The operation will continue and will be expanded as necessary in accordance with the assessments of the army and the defence establishment,” said a statement from Defence Minister Ehud Barak’s office.
The Israeli onslaught was launched “following… the incessant attacks on Israeli citizens in the south of the country….” and was aimed to “bring the rocket fire to an end,” said a statement from Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s office.
An army spokesman said that Israeli warplanes had carried out the strikes “to stop the terrorist attacks of the past several weeks against Israeli civilian installations.”
“We had warned the civilian population in the Gaza Strip of our attacks and Hamas, which hides within this population, is solely responsible for this situation,” he told AFP.
Saturday’s bombardments hit and destroyed Hamas security structures across the Gaza Strip, the group said. A training base of its military wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, was pounded in the north of the territory.
The mid-morning air raids followed days of rocket and mortar attacks on Israel by militants inside Gaza, which the Jewish state had warned would be met with harsh reprisals.

Courtesy: thedailystar.net

Related News

Tourist access to suspend in St Martins in February

News Desk : dhakamirror.com The government has decided that tourist access to Saint Martin’s Island will be suspended in February to protect the island’s fragile ecology and ensure environmental preservation. Tourists will be allowed to visit the island from November to January, with overnight stays prohibited in November. In December and January, tourists can stay ... Read more

Public univs to accommodate 37pc GPA 5 achievers

Shahin Akhter Around 63 per cent of examinees securing a Grade Point Average of 5 in this year’s Higher Secondary Certificate and equivalent examinations will not be able to get admitted to the public universities across the country due to lack of seats. Though the private universities in the country have sufficient seats to accommodate ... Read more

297 killed by lightning in eight months

News Desk : dhakamirror.com At least 297 people have been killed and 73 injured in incidents of lightning strikes across the country between February and September this year, according to Save the Society and Thunderstorm Awareness Forum (SSTAF). In the eight months, lightning strikes killed 152 people while they were doing agricultural works, SSTAF said ... Read more

Flood death toll climbs to 59, over 5.4 million affected

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Fifty-nine people, including 41 men, six women and 12 children, died in the devastating flood as deaths of five more people were reported on Saturday. So far, 14 deaths have been reported in Cumilla, six in Chattogram, 23 in Feni, nine in Noakhali, three in Cox’s Bazar, and one each in ... Read more

Flood death toll reaches 13, 4.5m affected in 11 districts

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Around 13 people have been killed and 4.5 million affected by floods in 11 districts of Bangladesh, the disaster management and relief ministry said Friday, reports AFP. Thousands of people awaiting emergency rescue remained beyond electricity and mobile network coverage as a flash flood unleashed by heavy rains and an onrush ... Read more

Bangladesh ex-prime minister Khaleda Zia freed

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia has been officially released. Former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was released on Tuesday, a day after Sheikh Hasina’s resignation as PM and fleeing the country amid an unprecedented student-led mass uprising against her authoritarian regime. The decision was revealed ... Read more

Eid-ul-Azha on June 17

News Desk : dhakamirror.com The holy Eid-ul-Azha will be celebrated in Bangladesh on June 17 (Monday) as the crescent moon of the Zilhaj month was sighted in Bangladesh’s sky on Friday evening (7 June). The National Moon Sighting Committee came up with the decision after reviewing information about the sighting of the moon at a ... Read more

Cyclone Remal: 40 dead animals found, 17 rescued hurt in Sundarbans

News Desk : dhakamirror.com The forest department officials on Tuesday said that so far they found 39 dead deer and a pig in the Sundarbans after the severe cyclone Remal that hit the forest on Sunday. Primarily they have estimated infrastructural damage of Tk 6.27 crore in the forest while the total damage, including animals ... Read more

Cyclone Remal claims at least 14 lives, affects nearly 37.58 lakh people in 19 districts

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Following its devastating impact into Bangladesh on Sunday night, Cyclone Remal has affected over 37.58 lakh people in 19 districts and taken at least 14 lives. While the cyclone has weakened into a deep depression, hundreds of villages in the southern parts of the country remain submerged. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department ... Read more

Alert issued as Cyclone Remal develops

News Desk : dhakamirror.com A weather alert has been issued by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) as a low-pressure system in the southwest and west central Bay of Bengal gains strength, potentially developing into Cyclone Remal by Saturday. The system, currently moving northeastward, is expected to transform into a depression by early Friday. By Saturday, ... Read more

Cyclone ‘Remal’ likely to hit Bangladesh coasts on 26 May: Meteorologist

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Cyclone Remal is likely to make landfall between 6:00am and 12:00pm on 26 May in Bangladesh, affecting coastal areas from the Barguna in Barishal Division to Cox’s Bazar in the Chattogram Division, a meteorologist said today (21 May). The front of the cyclone may begin to enter coastal areas after 6:00am, ... Read more

5 consecutive days holiday for Eid-ul-Adha

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Government employees are scheduled to get five consecutive days off on Eid-ul-Azha. This includes two days of weekly holidays (Friday and Saturday) followed by another three days for Eid, according to government holiday list. Eid-ul-Azha is likely to be celebrated on June 17 this year.

Heavy rains, storms forecast for entire week

Schools open today after heatwave closures News Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) forecasts heavy rainfall with thunderstorms across the country this week, starting on Tuesday and lasting through Saturday. As per the analysis of mathematical model of rainfall index, Bangladesh is likely to witness heavy to very heavy rainfall with thunderstorms starting ... Read more

Waiting for the rain

Tawsia Tajmim As the sun blazes relentlessly, desperate craving rises for rain, for nothing soothes Mother Nature quite like its cool embrace. After a brutal month-long heatwave, residents of Chattogram, Sylhet, and Dhaka finally caught a break with some rain on 2 May. However, the downpour was not strong enough to completely wash away the ... Read more

Hajj registration extended till Jan 18

News Desk : dhakamirror.com The government, in a notice issued yesterday, extended the Hajj registration deadline for 2024 until January 18. It said aspiring Hajis would have to primarily deposit Tk 2.05 lakh, while the rest should be paid by February 29 for final registration. One has to pay Tk 5,78,840 under the general package, ... Read more

Dense fog disrupts communications across Bangladesh

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Cold and dense fog continued to disrupt life with road, air and waterways communication remaining suspended in the early hours of Tuesday as Bangladesh braces for this winter’s first cold wave likely to set in today. Authorities also confirmed until Tuesday the death of 14 people in cold-related diseases and road ... Read more

27,000 GPA 5 achievers not to get seat in public universities

Shahin Akhter Over 27,000 GPA 5 achievers in this year’s HSC and equivalent examinations cannot be admitted to the public universities due to fewer seats. A total of 92,595 examinees secured GPA 5 out of total 10,67,852 passed in the Higher Secondary Certificate examinations this year. But there are around 65,400 seats at the public ... Read more

Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jolts Dhaka, other parts of Bangladesh

News Desk : dhakamirror.com A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck Bangladesh this morning, the United States Geological Survey said, with no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake jolted different parts of the country including Dhaka around in Ramganj of Cumilla at 9:35am, reports The Daily Star quoting Meteorologist Rubayet Kabir of Bangladesh Meteorological Department. The quake ... Read more

250cc Bajaj Pulsar N250 launched in Bangladesh

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Uttara Motors, the manufacturer and distributor of Bajaj motorcycles in Bangladesh, has recently launched The Pulsar N250 motorcycle. Pulsar N250 comes with a price tag of Tk339,999 and is available in three different colours. The motorcycle with a 250 cc oil-cooled engine has got dual channel antilock braking system (ABS). Indian ... Read more

HSC, equivalent exam results tomorrow

News Desk : dhakamirror.com The results of this year’s Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and its equivalent examinations will be published tomorrow. The copy of the results will be handed over to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina tomorrow morning. Later in the day, the results will be officially announced by Education Minister Dipu Moni at a press ... Read more