Ban Ki-moon avoids condemning Israel over massacre in UNRWA school

[ 08/01/2009 - 12:55 AM ]

NEW YORK, (PIC)--

Ban Ki-moon, the secretary-general of the United Nations has deliberately avoided issuing a condemnation of the Israeli army bombing of an UNRWA school in Gaza city that killed and wounded hundreds of civilians.

Around 50 innocent Palestinian citizens were killed, and tens others were wounded in the cruel IOF troops' massacre in Al-Fakhoura school, which is run by the UNRWA, and where tens of Palestinian families sought refuge after the IOF troops forced them out of their homes.

Ki-moon, who spoke in the UNSC session Tuesday night over the Israeli war on Gaza, was satisfied by saying that the massacre was "unacceptable and should not be repeated" without blaming Israel for the carnage.

He also refrained from blaming the IOF troops over the killing of three UN workers gunned down with IOF bullets although he secretly expressed solidarity with the UN workers in Gaza few days prior to the carnage.

However, he stressed that the UNRWA has informed the Israeli authorities about the locations of its facilities in the tiny Strip in the hope that they will be spared Israeli shelling.

Three UNRWA schools in addition to around 20 others local schools sheltering around 15000 Palestinians refugees fleeing the Israeli shelling of their homes were also bombed by the Israeli warplanes.

According to sources in the UNSC, Ki-moon has warmly welcomed the Israeli ambassador to the UN Gabriella Shaliv before the session was held that, according to the sources, explains his condemnation of the Palestinian rockets fired on Israeli settlements in retaliation to the IOF brutal aggressions on Gaza.

Close to 700 Palestinian civilians were killed, and more that 3100 others were injured, hundreds of them in serious condition, since the Israeli aggression started 12 days ago.

For its part, the UNRWA held an investigation over the bombing of the school, and asserted that no Palestinian fighters were hiding inside or in the peripheral of the school, refuting Israeli claims that the school was a haven for Palestinian fighters.

Mubarak tables ceasefire plan, demands stop of resistance rocket attacks first

[ 07/01/2009 - 11:00 AM ]

CAIRO, (PIC)--

Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak on Tuesday suggested in the presence of his French counterpart Nicloas Sarkozy a cease-fire initiative of three points and called on the Palestinian resistance to stop its rocket attacks first.

The initiative did not include a point about the cessation of Israeli aggression, but called for an immediate ceasefire for a limited period.

Mubarak's initiative stipulated that Israel and the Palestinian factions must agree on a limited ceasefire in order to provide safe corridors to deliver aid to Gaza people.

The second point of the initiative included a call on the Palestinian resistance not to repeat the current escalation and the third point underlined the need for resuming the Egyptian role in the file of the inter-Palestinian dialog.

For his part, Sarkozy said in Cairo that Mubarak demands a cessation of Palestinian rocket attacks first, confirming his keenness on Israel's security.

The Israeli Haaretz newspaper on Tuesday said that the Egyptian president expressed to an EU delegation of foreign affairs ministers in Cairo his fears of any possible victory of Hamas over Israel in the fighting in Gaza.

According to the newspaper, the delegation briefed Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni on the meeting with Mubarak held on Monday in Cairo.

The newspaper pointed out that despite the fact that Hamas sent on Monday its delegates to hold discussions with Egyptian officials in Cairo about the current situation in Gaza, Mubarak told the EU delegation that Hamas must not be allowed to win this battle.

UNHCR: Egypt did not respond to our call to allow in fleeing Gazans

[ 07/01/2009 - 04:53 PM ]

GENEVA, (PIC)--

The UN high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) said that it had not received any response from the Egyptian authorities to its call on the neighboring countries of the Gaza Strip to allow the passage of civilians fleeing the war on Gaza. 

UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond told journalists in Geneva that the agency was not trying to encourage Palestinians to leave Gaza, but it aims to ensure the application of an important principle represented in the right to flee from violence and have access to a safe haven.

The UNHCR had stressed on Monday the need to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza from all sides including Egypt and Israel.