Civilians caught in the crosshairs in Gaza

By Donatella Rovera, Amnesty International’s Senior Crisis Researcher

The children are playing outside again, despite the torrential rain. They were stuck indoors during eight days of relentless Israeli bombardments.

By the time that ended in excess of 160 people were dead – including more than 30 children and scores of other unarmed civilians.

For the duration of the onslaught they were stuck indoors – at home, seeking refuge with relatives or in schools which the UN refugee agency turned into temporary shelters for thousands of families forced from their houses by the bombings.

Not that staying indoors was necessarily safe either. Many died or were injured in their homes or those of their neighbours when the bombs fell.

Continue reading this blog on AlJazeera.com

Read more:Investigating Rocket Attacks in Israel (Blog, 27 November 2012)
Israel/Gaza conflict: UN must impose arms embargo, send international monitors immediately (News story, 19 November 2012)