Civilians bear the brunt of Israeli air strikes

Gaza Samira Abu Al Eish, 48, aimlessly makes her way between the debris inside her damaged apartment in the northern Gaza Strip, but her thoughts are far away — at the hospital where her son, Muath, lies in a critical condition.

The 21-year-old was wounded in an Israeli airstrike that hit their neighbour's house early on Monday as aerial bombings in the Gaza Strip entered the fourth day, claiming the lives of 25 Palestinians, five of whom were civilians.

"He ran to save and help our neighbours, but the second missile hit him," the mother said.

"I don't want my house… I do not even care about it… I just need my son back," she added.

Residents claim that the house targeted belonged to a commander from the Islamic Jihad movement.

Not far away from the two damaged homes in Jabalya, five-year old Rafei lies in a bed at the Kamal Odwan hospital, grasping his mother's hand while begging her to relieve his pain. The mother could only touch her son helplessly. "The drone hurt my head and leg and killed my cousin," Rafei recalled.

"I was preparing Rafei's breakfast before sending him to kindergarten when Ayoub, his cousin, called him downstairs," the mother said.

They were playing with their dog. Moments later, she heard the sound of an airstrike close to her home. She ran to check on her son. But, Ayoub had been killed instead.

"What does my kid have to do with resistance?" she said, crying. "I wish I can know what my kid has done to Israel to deserve this."

— Abeer Ayyoub is a journalist based in Gaza

Ceasefire: Violence ebbs in Gaza

Israel halted its airstrikes against resistance fighters in Gaza Strip early Tuesday and rocket fire from the Palestinian territory ebbed as a ceasefire ending four days of clashes appeared to be taking effect.

Both sides had indicated they have no interest in seeing the fighting spiral into all-out war, and an Egyptian security official reported early yesterday that Egyptian intelligence officials had brokered a truce.

There was no official truce announcement from Israel or Gaza's Hamas rulers, but Israeli Cabinet Minister Matan Vilnai told Israel Radio the latest outbreak of violence "appears to be behind us."

— AP