MEMO's Diary of the War Crimes in Gaza - Day Thirteen

Thursday, 8 January 2009 – DAY THIRTEEN

For the 13th consecutive day, the IOF had continued their full-scale offensive on the Gaza Strip; more Palestinian civilians were killed and more civilian facilities were destroyed. Medical crews of the Palestine Red Crescent Society, in coordination with the ICRC, were able to recover 4 corpses from al-’Atatra area. Those victims had been killed earlier during the offensive, but could not be reached as the IOF obstructed humanitarian access. The IOF willfully targeted Palestinian civilians, including medical crews.

In Beit Lahia town, IOF warplanes attacked a number of Palestinians near Al-Salaam Mosque, killing three of them. In the meantime, the IOF continued their ground operations in the Gaza Strip.

In the early morning, they moved into the east of al-Qarara village, north of Khan Yunis. In Rafah, the IOF warplanes continued to bombard the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.

The death toll of this day was 33 Palestinians, including 22 civilians; 8 children and 3 women. This number includes also includes 3 Palestinians who died of wounds they sustained earlier during the offensive.