Israeli tanks and bombs yesterday (15 January) hit a building in Gaza used by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). According to UN sources, at least three of its employees were wounded. UNRWA representative in Gaza, John Ging, said that because phosphorus bombs were used, it was difficult to extinguish ensuing fires, and poisonous gases were created.

According to Ging, Israel bombed the UN’s store of food, medicine and other aid. Witin one and a half hours, the fire became uncontrollable. The aid agency distributes food to 750,000 of the 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza.

Phosphorus bombs

Using phosphorus bombs as a weapon of attack counts as a war crime. The International Red Cross is of the opinion that there should be a complete ban on phosphorus being used against human beings and the third protocol of the Geneva Convention on Conventional Weapons restricts the use of "incendiary weapons," with phosphorus considered to be one such weapon. However, Israel is not a signatory to this third protocol.

Condemnation by Ban

UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon has condemned Israel. Ban, who was in the region to press for an end to the violence, described the two hits on the UN compound as "intolerable". "I conveyed my strong protest and outrage to the defence minister and the foreign minister. The defence minister said it was a grave mistake. He assured me that extra attention will be paid to UN facilities and staff and this will not be repeated."

Israel struck the compound where up to 700 Palestinians were sheltering shortly after Ban had arrived in Israel. Israel's prime minister, Ehud Olmert, said that Israeli troops had retaliated against Hamas militants who were firing from within the compound. He later apologised, saying the response was "harsh".

A hospital shelled

In another attack, the Israeli army shelled a hospital near Tal El Hava. Around 500 people are estimated to have been in the building, and many are entrapped in the building.

In a terse statement the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said the damage to the al-Quds hospital was "completely and utterly unacceptable based on every known standard of international humanitarian law".

1,100 dead, over 5,000 wounded

As Israeli forces are closing in on Gaza city, the Palestinian death toll lies at 1,100, while over 5,000 have been wounded.

The international organisation CARE has announced that it is interrupting its food and medical aid distribution to Gaza. According to Al-Jazeera, a ship with aid was turned away from the coast of Gaza by the Israel navy and sent to Cyprus.

On 7 January, CARE announced that a worker for its food distribution project in Gaza,Mohammed Ibrahim Samouni, was killed in an aerial bombing.

The Israeli army has also bombed the offices of the Foreign Press Association in Gaza. The FPA has called on Israel to stop these attacks. (TK/AG)

* This article made use of www.haaretz.com , www.guardian.co.uk, www.care.org