Day 18 update of the Gaza Carnage

18th day Gaza carnage update:

"13.01.2009"

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Israel rains bombs on 'own soldier'
Source: Press TV
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2009 07:45:00 GMT

The Hamas military wing has revealed that Tel Aviv has launched airstrikes against a house where a captured Israeli soldier was kept.

Four Hamas fighters and the soldier were targeted by an Israeli warplane in a northern area of the coastal slither, reads a Monday statement from the al-Qassam Brigades.

"The planes of the Zionist enemy bombed the house and destroyed it completely, thus putting an end to the life of its soldier," the statement continues.

"They preferred this horrific death for their soldier to him being imprisoned by the Mujahideen of al-Qassam," adds the statement.

Prior to Israel's ground offensive inside the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Hamas had warned that sending Israeli troops into the area would prompt operations for more Shalit-like captures.

Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was captured two years ago in a cross-border operation by Palestinian fighters.

"If you commit a foolish act by raiding Gaza, who knows, we may have a second or a third or a fourth Shalit," Hamas leader Khalid Mashaal had warned.

The Israeli bombing of and ground incursion into the besieged Gaza Strip, which began on December 27, have so far killed at least 940 Palestinians and wounded 4400 others, many of whom were women and children.

"We are still planning to capture more [Israelis] in the future and we are certain that our attempts will succeed," added the al-Qassam Brigades in its Monday statement.

Three days into the Israeli offensive inside the Gaza Strip, media reports indicated that Gilad Shalit had been wounded in Israeli air strikes.

A website close to Hamas quoted a Palestinian source as saying that "the Israeli soldier held by Hamas was injured in one of the Israeli air strikes."

Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai responded that Tel Aviv pays much attention to the situation of the captured soldier.

"We take Gilad into account in every action we take in Gaza, his situation is a consideration, [but] I believe the less we talk about this matter, the better," he said.

Many Israelis believe the war on Gaza is a clear subjugation of Corporal Shalit's safety to broader military goals.

The controversy surrounding Tel Aviv's inability to secure Shalit's release is one of the issues dominating the Israeli political landscape ahead of parliamentary elections set for February 20.



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