Sixth Day of Gaza Massacre

Left: These are the homemade rockets that Israel has used as its casus belli to bombard Gaza for a week straight. Although, in recent times the Gaza strip has seen a relative upgrade of its supply of projectiles. Yet, by the standards of US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Hamas' missiles would be considered firearms. (Ma'anImages / Wissam Nassar)

“Between slavery and death, we do not have any choice. We fear nothing.”

Israel continues to bomb the Gaza Strip for a sixth straight day as the New Year dawned. Gaza's bloody new year was seen with hundreds of its people murdered and many hundreds more injured. In its latest attacks Israeli air force sorties have left at least 21 Palestinians dead, including 11 children and nine women. Medical sources in Gaza reported the death toll had been lifted to 419 and the number of injured to about 2,100 by the end of Thursday, January 1, 2009, roughly 250 of them critically.

Meanwhile, Israel announced that it would permit some 400 foreigners living in the Gaza Strip to exit the war zone on Friday.

Left: An Israeli army soldier prays next to a tank near the northern Israeli-Gaza Strip border.

As for the other 1.5 million Palestinians living in the besieged coastal strip, no evidence indicated that the onslaught would end anytime soon and residents are preparing for a ground invasion over the weekend, which seems eminent.

Israel is marshaling this massacre with the most modern military machines donated to it by the US, including all kinds of ground, air and naval weaponry to pound the overcrowded enclave of 1.5 million defenseless Palestinians.

Hundreds of tons have been dropped on Gaza, its children, iwomen, elderly and men. It is a war that is targeting everything on the ground, including mosques, universities, hospitals and apartment buildings. Even private homes and fishing boats on the coast have been pummeled by Israeli ordinance. Nothing is sacred or immune as Israel tries to drive home the lesson that it is in control and all must heed its power. A material point of these attacks on Gaza is to rehabilitate the "deterrent factor" of Israeli military power, which was exposed as limited during the 2006 Lebanon war.

This war does not target just Hamas and the government as Israel's propaganda machine has been purveying throughout the world's media outlets. It is targeting Palestinians, their livelihood and their cause. Even though, the Palestinians in Gaza are facing wanton killing, shelling, assassinations and destruction at the hands of a formidable, calculating and cruel occupation armed forces, their resolve and steadfastness in the face of these enormous odds remain unshaken. Evidently, the ability of a sieged people to sacrifice knows no bounds. The will of the Palestinian people and the rightful claims to their land and liberty will never be allowed to be blown away. This Zionist storm too, will pass.

Left: Israeli troops take position near the northern Israeli-Gaza Strip border.

Israel has poised on its crossings with Gaza with an estimated 6,500 troops amassed with assorted tanks, armored personnel carriers and armored bulldozers as well as, supporting artillery and helicopter units. Another 2,500 more soldiers approved by the Israeli Knesset on Wednesday, December 31, 2008, were called up to the "border." The IDF has recommended a major ground invasion of the Gaza Strip as the relentless week-long bombardment has yet to yield an Hamas' surrender or, suffocate their incessant will to resist the occupation -- within resistance groups' capabilities -- however infinitesimal these means may prove. The Israeli view is that in the least, an invasion will avail beneficial cease fire terms and at most, see the overthrow of Hamas and the installment of people who obey directives from Tel Aviv.