● 以色列轟炸有多間傳媒進駐的大樓。 資料圖片【原文】下文摘錄自香港《文匯報》5月16日︰
以色列（Israel）繼續空襲（airstrike）加沙地帶（Gaza Strip），截至5月15日，軍事行動已造成近140名巴人（Palestinian）喪生，當地巴人難民營（refugee camp）成為襲擊目標，以軍同時針對傳媒辦公室，3座合共有超過20間傳媒包括美聯社（Associated Press）進駐的大樓先後遭炸毀，有記者指以軍蓄意針對傳媒，試圖阻撓記者揭露以軍戰爭罪行。
其中一幢被轟炸的瓦哈拉大樓高10層，13間傳媒於該處設有辦公室，以軍5月11日進行空襲前預先發出警告（warning），要求大樓內的人疏散（evacuate）。以軍12日再空襲14層高、有7間傳媒進駐的沙魯克大樓，同樣事先警告，大樓內的人及時撤出，未有傷亡報告，但兩幢大樓嚴重損毀。到了15日，以軍再空襲另一幢大樓，美聯社、卡塔爾半島電視台（Al Jazeera）等媒體均在內設有辦公室，以軍在行動前一小時致電通知大樓業主，要求立即疏散，業主要求以軍通融多10分鐘但不果，大批記者立即倉皇逃出。
以色列軍方發聲明證實攻擊傳媒大樓，稱行動符合國際法（international law），指巴勒斯坦伊斯蘭抵抗運動（Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement）（哈馬斯）的情報人員和武裝分子藏身大樓。美聯社表示，所有職員和自由撰稿記者均安全疏散，美聯社主席兼行政總裁普魯特（Gary Pruitt）其後發表聲明，對以軍摧毀美聯社，及其他媒體辦公室所在的大樓，感到震驚和可怕，他們正要求以色列政府提供今次事件的相關資料，並透過美國國務院（U.S. Department of State）尋求更多資料，形容今次事件將令全世界更難得知加沙發生的事情。
在中東（Middle East）地區採訪多年的加拿大（Canada）女記者巴特利特（Eva Bartlett）表示，以色列以往在戰事中犯下不少戰爭罪行，例如在2009年向加沙平民投放白磷彈（white phosphorus shell）、轟炸醫院和收容無家可歸者的學校，但以色列現時封鎖邊境，阻止記者進入加沙，令傳媒難以實地報道，更蓄意轟炸傳媒大樓，試圖令媒體無法報道以色列的戰爭罪行。她近日與曾在沙魯克大樓工作的記者阿里（Shadi Ali）通電話，引述對方指以色列在2009年、2012年和2014年亦曾攻擊沙魯克大樓，部分樓層被夷平。阿里估計在外國記者無法進入加沙採訪下，以軍將更肆無忌憚。
除軍事衝突外，民間衝突亦蔓延至約旦河西岸（West Bank），以色列軍方向巴勒斯坦示威者發射催淚彈（tear gas）和實彈（live ammunition），巴人則扔汽油彈（petrol bomb）還擊，據報至少10名巴人死亡。以色列北部和東部分別接壤黎巴嫩（Lebanon）和約旦（Jordan）邊境，亦爆發反以色列示威。
美國副助理國務卿（Deputy Assistant Secretary of State）阿姆爾（Hady Amr）15日飛抵以色列斡旋，他強調以色列有權自衛。以往同樣有份調停以巴衝突的埃及（Egypt）則無功而還，消息指埃及提出的一年停火（ceasefire）方案，獲哈馬斯（Hamas）同意，但以色列拒絕接受。
編按︰以巴雙方最終在埃及斡旋下，宣布自5月21日凌晨起停火，結束歷時11天的衝突。
Israel attacks media towers in an attempt to silence criticism
【譯文】Israel continued to slam the Gaza Strip with airstrikes, with military operations killing nearly 140 Palestinians as of 15 May. The Israeli army targeted not only at the local Palestinian refugee camps, but also media offices, destroying three Gaza City buildings housing the offices of the Associated Press and 20 other media outlets. Some journalists accused the Israeli military of deliberately bombing media offices in an attempt to prevent them from exposing Israel's war crimes.
Among those being destroyed, the 10-storey Al-Jawhara tower was the home of 13 media outlets, and advanced warning of the strike on 11 May was given by the Israeli army, ordering people inside to evacuate. The military again attacked the 14-storey Al-Sharouk tower housing 7 media offices on 12 May with advanced warning, and people were evacuated in time with no casualties reported. Yet, the two buildings involved were heavily damaged. The Israeli air force destroyed another tower block in Gaza City housing the offices of the Associated Press and Al Jazeera on 15 May, and contacted the building owner requesting immediate evacuation one hour prior to the strike. When the request of allowing 10 more minutes for evacuation was rejected by the air force, plenty of journalists immediately fled in a hurry.
Israel's military issued a statement claiming that the attack on the media towers conformed with international law, as the building was used by the intelligence personnel and armed forces of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement （Hamas）. The Associated Press stated that all staff and freelance journalists were evacuated safely. The Associated Press President and CEO Gary Pruitt had later released a statement saying that they were shocked and horrified that the Israeli military destroyed the buildings housing the Associated Press's bureau and other news organizations. They were seeking information from the Israeli government and were engaged with the U.S. Department of State for more details, describing that it would make it difficult for the world to know what was happening in Gaza due to this incident.
Eva Bartlett, a Canadian independent journalist who spent years on the ground covering conflict zones in the Middle East, said that Israel had committed many war crimes in the past, such as firing white phosphorus shells over civilians in Gaza in 2009, and bombing hospitals and schools for the homeless.
Now that Israel was blocking the border and preventing reporters from entering Gaza, and even deliberately destroying media towers in an attempt to obstruct media coverage of Israel's war crimes. She recently spoke by phone with Shadi Ali, a producer who had worked at the Al-Shorouk tower, saying that Israel had attacked the building in 2009, 2012, and 2014, with certain floors being destroyed completely. Ali estimated that the military might behave even more unscrupulously when foreign journalists were blocked from entering Gaza for interviews.
In addition to military conflicts, civil conflicts also happened in the West Bank. The Israeli military fired tear gas canisters and live ammunition against Palestinian demonstrators, while Palestinians threw petrol bombs to fight back, and at least 10 Palestinians were reported to have died. Besides, anti-Israel protests happened along Israel's northern border with Lebanon and eastern border with Jordan.
The U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Hady Amr arrived Israel for a meeting and affirmed the country's right to defend itself. On the other hand, the mediation efforts of Egypt, which had also been involved in mediating the Israel-Palestine conflict in the past, were in vain, as its proposed one-year ceasefire plan was reportedly agreed by Hamas but rejected by Israel.●龐嘉儀
Q&A
1. 以色列於何年宣布立國？
2. 以色列主要由哪個族群所組成？
3. 以色列至今控制了巴勒斯坦約多少土地？
4. 哈馬斯信奉哪種宗教信仰？
Answer
1. 1948年
2. 猶太民族（Jews）
3. 90%
4. 伊斯蘭教（Islam）