27th December 2008 – A family in Rafah say they have received a menacing phone call from the Israeli Ministry of Defence, warning that “any house that has guns or weapons will be targeted next without further warning or any announcement”.
At the end of a day where Israeli air-strikes killed at least 225 Palestinians in Gaza, with hundreds more injured, residents of Rafah were then subject to further threats from the Israelis. According to international Human Rights activists based in the area, the aggressive communication has caused widespread panic as the family called neighbours to find out if they had received the same call.
Palestinian Human Rights Activist Fida Qishta said:
” We received a call at about 9:45pm from the Israeli Ministry of Defence. It said that any house with guns or weapons would be targeted next. They said that this would happen without warning or any announcement”
“I hope that its not just our house. We do not have any guns”
Haaretz have reported that thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have received the same message.
For more information:
Adam Taylor – ISM Media Office in Ramallah – +972 598503948