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Rarely heard voices: Gaza voices

The Middle East is yet again in crisis. Lebanon is confronted with an "internal" war, said to be the worst since the civil war 15 years ago. In Gaza, there is conflict between Palestinians and Israel is attacking Palestinians in that strife-torn area.

There seems little doubt that Israel is using the present problems in Gaza as the catalyst or front for "taking" out Palestinians. Now, it is threatening to kill the Palestinian PM. As Times on Line reports:

"Israeli politicians said that they would no longer differentiate between elected Hamas members of the Palestinian parliament and its militant leaders. “None of them are immune,” said Danny Yatom, who sits on the Israeli security cabinet. “Hamas has one political and military leadership. They act as a unified body and will be targeted as such.”

Khaled Meshaal, the Hamas leader-in-exile who lives in Damascus, was listed as Israel’s No 1 target. Mohammed Dief, Israel’s most-wanted man, was also cited alongside politicians such as Mr Haniya."

Meanwhile, Al Jazeera reports:

"Internal clashes in the Gaza Strip, in combination with the renewed Israeli attacks, have claimed the lives of more than 65 people over the past week.

Though there is now yet another negotiated ceasefire, many ordinary Palestinians fear the worst."

Laila El-Haddad, from Al Jazeera, has spoken to and reports on four Gaza residents about how the internal violence and the Israeli siege have affected their lives, how they are coping, and whether they are optimistic about what the future holds. It is an insight into something rarely reported in perhaps other than the Middle East media.

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