Gazans don't trust Israeli ceasefire

[DogPoundPup]

Latifa Ghaban, huddling with her children and grandchildren at a UN-run school in the shell-shocked town of Beit Lahiya, still thinks it too dangerous to go back to her home, which was struck by tank fire.

"We will not return to our house unless there is an Israeli-Palestinian agreement and a complete stop to the war," the 56-year-old woman says.

"The Jews struck our house, they killed my son and they wounded my husband," she says. "I won't return because I am scared for the rest of my children."

The school provides some safety, but not enough, as Latifa and others discovered earlier Saturday when Israeli munitions rained down on the building, setting parts of it alight and terrifying the 1600 people sheltering there.

Edited to 4 paragraphs to conform to DU's fair use policy for copyrighted material

Lithos
DU Moderator

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,24928040-5001028,00.html

[ProgressiveProfessor]

1. One would think they would not trust Hamas either

[DogPoundPup]

2. The Gazan economy has been destroyed by the crippling economic blockade

the U.S. and Israel have maintained since Hamas was elected to power. This collective punishment is both cruel and contrary to Israel's interests. The blockade must be lifted, not to reward Hamas but to win Gazans away from Hamas. Gaza's desperate economic conditions empower Hamas.

[Duckhunter935]

3. I agree the blockade should be lifted

But I am a realist that the rockets will not stop and will in all liklyhood get worse as they will be easier get. And if the borders are fully opened I would expect IEDs to become used more as they are proven effective.