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| Church fear after missile strike | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The Church in Wales fears a mobile dental clinic it has funded for 10 years in Gaza has been caught up in an Israeli attack on a health centre. | |
| The clinic's van was based at Shij'ia Family Health Care Centre which was hit by a missile strike. | The clinic's van was based at Shij'ia Family Health Care Centre which was hit by a missile strike. |
| The clinic had treated casualties in the Israeli offensive against Hamas, which has killed over 900 Palestinians. | |
| The Israeli military told charity Christian Aid there were terrorist operations near the health centre. | The Israeli military told charity Christian Aid there were terrorist operations near the health centre. |
| The health centre, run by the Near East Council of Churches (NECC), was evacuated after a telephone warning gave staff and patients 15 minutes to leave, said Archbishop of Wales Barry Morgan. | |
| The mobile dental clinic is a familiar sight in Shujaiya district of Gaza | The mobile dental clinic is a familiar sight in Shujaiya district of Gaza |
| The Church in Wales said a warning shot was then fired at the building followed by a direct hit from missiles fired by an Israeli jet. | |
| The missile strike destroyed the building, which Christian Aid said was clearly marked with the insignia of the Red Cross and had ambulances parked outside, and its contents, including hundreds of thousands of pounds of medical equipment. | The missile strike destroyed the building, which Christian Aid said was clearly marked with the insignia of the Red Cross and had ambulances parked outside, and its contents, including hundreds of thousands of pounds of medical equipment. |
| No-one was injured in the attack in the Shujaiya district of Gaza City. | No-one was injured in the attack in the Shujaiya district of Gaza City. |
| The Church in Wales said it was concerned for the "very existence" of the dental clinic, which is funded by its Jubilee Fund. | The Church in Wales said it was concerned for the "very existence" of the dental clinic, which is funded by its Jubilee Fund. |
| Archdeacon Philip Morris said more than 5,000 people in the mostly Muslim local population were given free dental treatment by the mobile clinic in 2007. | Archdeacon Philip Morris said more than 5,000 people in the mostly Muslim local population were given free dental treatment by the mobile clinic in 2007. |
| Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, says it is difficult to get information from Gaza | |
| He said: "The dental clinic van, with its Welsh red dragon stickers, is a familiar sight in Gaza City, and wherever it parks, men, women and children queue up outside it for treatment. | |
| "But now the concern of the Church in Wales is for the very existence of the dental clinic and the offices of the NECC based in the centre of Gaza City and very close to buildings destroyed by air strikes. | "But now the concern of the Church in Wales is for the very existence of the dental clinic and the offices of the NECC based in the centre of Gaza City and very close to buildings destroyed by air strikes. |
| "Normal life does not exist. People are simply too scared to leave their homes even to seek medical help. These are fears shared by NECC's own staff. class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/7821512.stm">Analysis: Where is Israel heading? class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/7820680.stm">Why Gaza war looks set to go on class="" href="/1/hi/in_pictures/7824750.stm">In pictures: Advance continues | |
| "Doctors and nurses are travelling to the clinics in marked cars for their safety, despite fears that private cars will be targets for the bombings." | "Doctors and nurses are travelling to the clinics in marked cars for their safety, despite fears that private cars will be targets for the bombings." |
| He added the church was waiting to hear news of the dental clinic van, which it is thought was parked outside the clinic. | He added the church was waiting to hear news of the dental clinic van, which it is thought was parked outside the clinic. |
| The Church in Wales is writing to the Israeli ambassador demanding an explanation for the bombing of the health centre. | The Church in Wales is writing to the Israeli ambassador demanding an explanation for the bombing of the health centre. |
| Last week, Dr Morgan, who has visited Gaza twice in previous years, called for an immediate ceasefire to the hostilities. | |
| He said: "While understanding how Israel feels, surrounded as it is by Arab nations, the fact is that it is the stronger nation, both militarily and economically. | He said: "While understanding how Israel feels, surrounded as it is by Arab nations, the fact is that it is the stronger nation, both militarily and economically. |
| "As such, it needs to heed the UN resolution and Red Cross requests for it to stop the bombardments and for there to be a ceasefire. | "As such, it needs to heed the UN resolution and Red Cross requests for it to stop the bombardments and for there to be a ceasefire. |
| GAZA CRISIS BACKGROUND Profile: Gaza StripQ&A: Gaza conflictWho are Hamas?Middle East conflict: History in maps | |
| "The scale of its attacks are disproportionate and likely to be counter productive, stirring up yet more hatred to be perpetuated by yet another generation of angry people." | "The scale of its attacks are disproportionate and likely to be counter productive, stirring up yet more hatred to be perpetuated by yet another generation of angry people." |
| Israel has said it will not call off its offensive until it has stopped the rocket attacks and prevented arms being smuggling into Gaza. | |
| Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said: "We are working towards those two goals while at the same time keeping an eye on the diplomatic initiatives." | |
| Diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire are continuing in Cairo. However, the Israeli foreign ministry said there was no guarantee that Hamas - the Palestinian militant group that controls Gaza - will respect any ceasefire agreement. |