Firefighters try to extinguish a blaze caused by an Israeli tank shelling in the Gaza City’s industrial area.

GAZA CITY: As the Palestinian carnage enters a fifth day, there has been no concrete action from any country or leader that could halt savage Israeli attacks against defenseless Gazans.

Israel widened its air assault on Saturday, hitting a mosque it said was hiding rockets, as Palestinians said their death toll from the five-day offensive rose to over 125.

The military said it has struck more than 1,100 targets. Officials in the territory said that besides a mosque, the strikes also hit Hamas-affiliated charities and banks, as well as a home for the disabled, killing two women.

Hamas said it hoped the mosque attack would galvanize support for it in the Muslim world.
“(It) shows how barbaric this enemy is and how much it is hostile to Islam,” said Husam Badran, a Hamas spokesman in Doha, Qatar. “This terrorism gives us the right to broaden our response to deter this occupier.”

Sarit Michaeli of the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem said that while using human shields violates international humanitarian law, “this does not give Israel the excuse to violate international humanitarian law as well.”

It’s the holy month of Ramadan, when people throughout the Muslim world meet with friends and family, buy presents for loved ones and break a day-long fast each evening amid colorful street scenes.

But not in Gaza City. The ceaseless Israeli bombing campaign has turned the frenetic hub of the Gaza Strip into a virtual ghost town, emptying streets, closing shops and keeping hundreds of thousands of people close to home where they feel safest from the bombs.

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