Today marks the 14th anniversary of the 2008 Israeli occupation’s offensive against the besieged Gaza Strip, during which more than 80 Israeli warplanes launched violent airstrikes against more than 100 government and security facilities.  

The indiscriminate onslaught that left more than 360 Palestinians martyred, most of them were Palestinian security forces pulled from under the rubble, was a milestone in the history of the Palestinian people who have defended their rights, constants, land, and holy places.

The onslaught came after a six-month, Egyptian-brokered ceasefire agreement between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli occupation that had broken it more than once, prompting the former not to extend it.

All-out onslaught

For eight consecutive days, the Israeli occupation warplanes launched intensive airstrikes against several areas across the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian resistance, in return, fired homemade rockets at the neighbouring colonial settlements to the blockaded enclave. 

The Israeli occupation’s raids targeted hundreds of civilian facilities, including homes, mosques, schools, charity organisations, and hospitals.

On January 3, 2009, the Israeli occupation military mounted a ground offensive against the Gaza Strip; hundreds of tanks along with warplanes heavily pounded the besieged territory.    

After the Israeli occupation failed to achieve its goal through its aerial and ground attacks, it resorted to internationally-prohibited weapons, foremost among them white phosphorus and depleted uranium, whose traces appeared on the bodies of some martyrs, according to reports by experts and EU groups.

23 days after the atrocious Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, the then-prime minister of the Israeli occupation Ehud Olmert declared a unilateral truce without withdrawing his troops from the besieged strip. One day later, the Palestinian resistance announced a ceasefire giving the Israeli occupation one week to pull its military out of the Gaza Strip.

Statistics

During the Israeli onslaught, nearly 1,330 Palestinians were martyred, mostly civilians, women, and children, and 5,500 were injured, some of whom still suffer from permanent disabilities.   

The Palestinian resistance announced that it had launched more than 1,500 homemade projectiles at Israeli occupation targets in response to the fierce offensive.

Interior Minister, Said Seyam, and senior Hamas official, Nizar Rayan, were among the martyrs assassinated by the Israeli occupation forces during that onslaught.

The Palestinian resistance managed to stand steadfast in the face of the Israeli occupation military and benefited from it by developing its capabilities to defend its people against any potential aggression.