OneWorld.net (U.S.)

OneWorld.net's take: A series of attacks and counterattacks earlier this week may signal the end of the five-and-half-month ceasefire that has been the single most important factor in reducing civilian casualties in Israel and Palestine over the last eight years, says an international human rights monitor.

• Palestinian and Israeli flags. © OneWorld.netAccording to his Web site, Barack Obama has pledged to "bring to the White House an unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security" and "will ensure that Israel can defend itself from any threat." Speaking at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the U.S. president-elect continued: "Across the political spectrum, Israelis understand that real security can only come through lasting peace. And that is why we - as friends of Israel - must resolve to do all we can to help Israel and its neighbors to achieve it.” Click here to read more about Obama's stance on Israel and his intent to work towards "a two-state solution, with both states living side by side in peace and security."

• Despite a reduction in violence over the last few months, the Israeli blockade on Gaza, initiated in June 2007 when Hamas control became confined to that region, "has left the population, 1.5 million Palestinians, trapped and with few resources. They are surviving, but only just. Some 80 per cent depend on the trickle of international aid that the Israeli government allows in," says human rights watchdog Amnesty International. Click here to read more about the blockade's impact on health care, education, the economy, and daily life in Palestine.

• Oneworld UK has characterized the protracted conflict between Israel and Palestine as "highly destructive Israeli military operations, Palestinian civilian uprising and terrorist activities." This violence has claimed the lives of over 4,000 Palestinians -- mainly civilians -- and over 1,000 Israelis.

Gaza ceasefire at risk

From: Amnesty International

November 5, 2008

A spate of Israeli and Palestinian attacks and counter-attacks in the past 24 hours could spell the end of a five-and-a-half-month ceasefire. This would once again put the civilian populations of Gaza and southern Israel in the line of fire.

A Palestinian boy dumps garbage in a Gaza City street. Fuel shortages caused by the Israeli blockade, have paralyzed services

© AP/PA Photos/Copyright Kevin Frayer

The killing of six Palestinian militants in Gaza by Israeli forces in a ground incursion and air strikes on 4 November was followed by a barrage of dozens of Palestinian rockets on nearby towns and villages in the south of Israel. The Palestinian attacks caused no casualties or damage, but there is a real risk that any further armed actions by either side would risk igniting another deadly campaign.

The ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Hamas last June and has been in force since then. It has been the single most important factor in reducing civilian casualties and attacks on civilians to the lowest level since the outbreak of the uprising (intifada) more than eight years ago.

The ceasefire has brought enormous improvements in the quality of life in Sderot and other Israeli villages near Gaza, where before the ceasefire residents lived in fear of the next Palestinian rocket strike. However, nearby in the Gaza Strip the Israeli blockade remains in place and the population has so far seen few dividends from the ceasefire. Since June 2007, the entire population of 1.5 million Palestinians has been trapped in Gaza, with dwindling resources and an economy in ruins. Some 80 percent of the population now depend on the trickle of international aid that the Israeli army allows in.

A Palestinian pharmacist serves a customer during a routine power outage in Gaza City

© AP/PA Photo/Hatem Moussa

Before the ceasefire came into force on 19 June 2008, in the first half of the year, some 420 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces, half of them unarmed civilians, including some 80 children. In the same period, Palestinian armed groups killed 24 Israelis, 15 of them civilians, including four children.

In the past eight years, the Israeli-Palestinian violence has cost the lives of some 4,750 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis. Most of the victims on both sides have been unarmed civilians, including some 900 Palestinian children and 120 Israeli children.

"If the current ceasefire breaks down and daily attacks resume, the civilian populations in both Israel and Gaza will pay the highest price," said Donatella Rovera of Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Programme. "Both sides need to step back from the brink and avoid, at all costs, a return to the vicious spiral of violence which has cost so much in human lives."

For more information about the Israel-Palestine conflict and the ceasefire, visit Amnesty International.