`Stop the war in Gaza`

A group of expats and Koreans from Amnesty International Korea collected over 500 signatures over the weekend in protest of the war Israel had been waging in the Gaze Strip. The signatures were written on postcards and signatories were encouraged to write personal messages.

Tom Rainey-Smith, from New Zealand, is a member of Amnesty in Korea and helped to organize the campaign. He reported that together with three different Amnesty International groups in Korea, around 15 people had taken part in the postcard-signing drive.

Israel invaded Gaze three weeks ago in response to a barrage of rocket attacks from Palestinian militants.

The damage in Gaza is said to be devastating, but Israel has refused to embed journalists with its military. According to reports, 4,000 buildings have been destroyed, with another 20,000 badly damaged.

Thirteen Israelis have been killed since the Dec. 27 offensive began, and according to Palestinian sources, more than 1,300 Palestinians have died.

Israel declared a one-week cease-fire on Sunday, while a Hamas leader claimed a "great victory" over Israel, despite the high death toll.

Amnesty Korea G48 is an official group of Amnesty International and consists of both foreign and Korean members.

They meet every first Saturday of the month at different places in Seoul. For more information, e-mail Amnesty International at amnestyseoul@gmail.com. See www.amnesty.org and www.amnesty.or.kr for information on the internet.

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(mattlamers@heraldm.com)