Arabs protest attack on Gaza; some violence

The fighting in Gaza has entered a third week, defying international outrage and calls for a ceasefire. Overnight, Israeli planes and tanks hit targets said to be rocket launch sites, weapons caches and tunnels used for smuggling arms.

Eight members of one family were reported killed when a tank shell hit their home in Jabaliya. Both Israel and Hamas rejected a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire. Israel’s outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said it was unworkable, while Hamas complained they had not been consulted.

Medical officials in Gaza say nearly 800 Palestinians have died in the fighting, more than a third of them children. Israel says ten soldiers have died, as well as three civilians hit by Hamas rockets fired over the border.

The resounding silence from many Arab governments as Israel has pounded Gaza has sparked mass demonstrations across the Middle-East. In Amman, Jordan, the protests turned violent when riot police tried to stop them marching on the Israeli embassy. A television cameraman was hurt and so was a young Spanish protestor. Five people were arrested.

In Algeria, a journalist was seriously injured in a protest. In Alexandria, in northern Egypt, 50,000 people gathered after Friday prayers. The march was led by members of the Muslim Brotherhood demanding the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador, and the opening of the Rafah border crossing adjoining Gaza so that people can flee the fighting.