Hundreds of Palestinians cried vengeance against Israel today at the funeral of a child killed the day before by Israeli soldiers in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah.
"We will avenge you," the crowd cried, waving Palestinian and Hezbollah flags, during the funeral in the Yibna refugee camp, near Rafah, of Khalil al-Moghrabi (11) shot in the head by Israeli soldiers yesterday.
About 1,000 people turned out for the funeral, where effigies of Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon and the Israeli flag were set ablaze, while masked gunmen fired their weapons in the air in a show of defiance.
Three other children were wounded in yesterday’s shooting. An Israeli spokesman said the army had opened fire in the area after being attacked with hand grenades and petrol bombs.
Masked Palestinians, who claimed to be from the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades -the armed branch of the Islamist Hamas movement --, said over loud speakers they "were going to launch suicide attacks within Israel to avenge the blood of the martyrs."
Meanwhile a Palestinian cabinet minister and an Israeli MP joined a meeting today of peace activists aimed at renewing dialogue between the two sides after nine months of deadly violence.
Palestinian information and culture ministerMr Yasser Abed Rabbo and former Israeli minister Mr Yossi Beilin joined the meeting in the West Bank town of Ar-Ram at the office of Palestinian MP and civil rights campaigner Ms Hanan Ashrawi.
"The purpose of this meeting was to explain and bring together the views of both sides about the situation and to try to avoid an escalation of violence," Ms Ashrawi said, adding the two sides agreed to leave the door open for further such encounters.
In addition to Mr Beilin, an architect of the 1993 Oslo peace accords, were renowned Israeli writers Mr Amos Oz and Mr David Grossman and several members of the left-wing Meretz party.
AFP