Palestinians go on strike in protest as violent clashes pile agony on civilians

PALESTINIANS across Israel and the occupied territories have gone on strike over Israel’s policies.

The rare collective action comes as Israeli air strikes rain down on Gaza and militants fire dozens of rockets from the Hamas-ruled territory.

With the war in Gaza showing no sign of abating and truce efforts apparently stalled, the general strike and expected protests could widen the conflict after a spasm of violence in Israel and protests across the occupied West Bank last week.

Yesterday’s air strikes toppled a six-storey building that housed libraries and educational centres belonging to the Islamic University, leaving a massive mound of rubble.

Israel warned the building’s residents ahead of time and there were no reports of casualties. Israel said it was targeting militants, their tunnels and rocket launchers.

Heavy fighting broke out May 10 when Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers fired long-range rockets towards

Jerusalem in support of Palestinian protests against Israel’s heavyhanded policing of the Al-aqsa Mosque compound, a flashpoint site sacred to Jews and Muslims, and the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families by Jewish settlers.

At least 213 Palestinians have been killed in heavy air strikes since, including 61 children and 36 women, with more than 1,440 people wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Medical supplies, fuel and water are running low in Gaza. Ten people in Israel, including a five-year-old boy and a soldier, have been killed in ongoing rocket attacks launched from civilian areas in Gaza.