Israel, Hamas Ignore U.N. Call for Cease-Fire
Nearly 800 Gazans killed and more than 3,000 injured as violence continues.
JERUSALEM, Jan. 9, 2009 — -- Both Israel and Hamas rejected a U.N. resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and the Israeli Cabinet meets today to determine whether to expand its 2-week-old offensive.
In response to the U.N. resolution, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in a statement said, "Israel has acted, is acting and will continue to act only according to its calculations, in the interest of the security of its citizens and its right to self-defense."
"The state of Israel has never agreed that any outside body would determine its right to defend the security of its citizens," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in reaction to the U.N. resolution. "The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] will continue operations in order to defend Israeli citizens and will carry out the missions with which it has been assigned in the operation."
Olmert cited fresh rocket launchings today by Hamas as proof that a cease-fire "is not practical and will not be honored" by Hamas.
The Web site Ynet quoted Osama Hamdan, a Hamas representative in Lebanon, as saying that the group is not bound by the resolution "…we stress that no one has consulted with us. This resolution does not take the Palestinian interest into consideration and does not address lifting the siege or opening the crossings."
The top leadership of the Israeli Cabinet is meeting today to consider whether to accept the U.N. resolution or expand its activities in Gaza. Thousands of Israeli reservists have been rushed through retraining programs during the last two weeks. They are now considered ready for action in Gaza if the go-ahead to expand the operation is given.
At the same time it appears that the efforts of Egyptian officials to negotiate a deal have ended without resolution.
Amos Gilad, Israel's representative from the Defense Ministry, left for Cairo Thursday morning to discuss ways to strengthen the Gaza-Egypt border defenses against weapons smuggling.
He was back in Israel by Thursday night with no deal in hand. It is expected he will brief the Israeli political leaders today on his talks with Egyptian officials.
As diplomacy lurches forward, the violence continues on both sides.
Palestinian sources in Gaza say one woman was killed and four people were injured by an Israeli airstrike in the northern city of Jabaliya. The Palestinian Ministry of Health also says 10 bodies were discovered in An-Nuseirat refugee camp in the center of Gaza this morning. In the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiyah two women and a child were reported killed by an Israeli attack.
Nearly 800 Palestinians have been killed and more than 3,000 have been injured. The United Nations says among the dead are 257 children. Ten Israeli soldiers have been killed in the fighting.
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