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Global protests against Gaza attacks

— Photo: Xinhua

Devastating attacks: A doctor inspects the damage in a children’s hospital in Gaza City after an Israeli airstrike, on Thursday.

DUBAI: Israeli warplanes have bombed homes of top Hamas leaders amid a spate of demonstrations against the attacks held across several continents on Friday. As the conflict in Gaza entered its seventh day, Israeli warplanes bombed 15 homes belonging to Hamas activists before dawn on Friday. The Gaza death toll has now risen to 427. Gaza is facing the threat of an imminent ground offensive with Israeli troops and equipment amassed along its border. On Friday, the Israeli government allowed around 300 Palestinians having foreign passports to exit from Gaza.

There has been an outpouring of pro-Gaza demonstrations across several continents after prayers on Friday afternoon. In the West Bank, thousands of Palestinians demonstrated in Ramallah, shouting slogans in support of Gaza residents. Some exhorted fighters to “hit Tel Aviv” with their rockets. The Hamas had earlier issued a call for observing Friday as “the day of wrath.”

Defying the cold weather and the savagery of the Israeli attacks, thousands took to the streets in war-ravaged Gaza. The demonstrators also participated in the funeral of Hamas field commander Nizar Rayan, who was assassinated during an air strike on his home on Thursday.

Egyptian police arrested at least 40 members of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood on Friday to prevent large-scale demonstrations in support of Gaza.

At Cairo’s Al-Azhar mosque, around 100 demonstrators shouted slogans against Israel and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. There was a huge turnout of people in Tehran after prayers.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told demonstrators that Gaza residents were justified in their belief that some Arab countries had betrayed them. “We are calling for an immediate ceasefire, a halt to the attack and aid for the population of Gaza as well as an end to the blockade of the Palestinian territory and the opening up of all crossings,” he said.

In Afghanistan, demonstrations were held in Kabul and Herat, where protesters burnt the effigy of Israeli President Shimon Peres.

The Gaza fall-out was also prominently felt in South Asia.

In Srinagar, hundreds burnt Israeli flags and raised slogans against Israel and the U.S. Many held aloft banners and portraits of Lebanese Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. A large demonstration was also held in Dhaka. The impact of the Gaza bloodbath was felt in Indonesia, Philippines and Australia where a large number of people stepped out to protest.

Meanwhile, British telecommunications firm FreedomCall has snapped its tie up with Israel’s MobileMax on account of Israel’s military operation in Gaza.

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