Al Jazeera English - Middle East - Gazans mark anniversary of war: "Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are marking one year since the start of Israel's 22-day offensive on the territory, which left hundreds dead and damaged millions of dollars worth of infrastructure.
Hamas officials held a ceremony on Sunday outside the destroyed Palestinian Legislative Council building in Gaza City - one of the first targets of the assault.
Air raid sirens were turned on at 11:20am (9:20 GMT), the exact time that the aerial bombardment began.
Ismail Haniya, the deposed Palestinian prime minister, was expected to unveil a plaque commemorating the 1,600 people that Hamas officials say were killed during the war.
Other estimates put the Palestinian death toll closer to 1,400, the majority of whom were civilians, including around 400 children.
Thirteen Israelis were also killed during the war - 10 soldiers and three civilians.
A month of events are planned to commemorate the war in Gaza.
Sombre mood
Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros, who was among one of the few international broadcasters to report on the war from inside the territory, was at the scene.
in depth
She said that 'the message here isn't just one of sombreness and sadness to mark one of the darkest phases of Palestinian history, but also one of defiance by the Hamas government, who continue to maintain control, law and order here in the Gaza Strip'.
The stated aim behind Israel's 'Operation Cast Lead' was to cripple the ability of Hamas and other Palestinian groups from launching rockets into southern Israel.
Avital Leibovich, an Israeli military spokesperson, told Al Jazeera on Sunday that the operation had been successful.
'This [goal] was achieved as, a year after the operation, we are seeing very little rocket fire. In that sense, it has been a success,' she said.
Palestinian armed groups have slowed, but not stopped, their indiscriminate rocket attacks, but the factions claim that is by choice."
Hamas officials held a ceremony on Sunday outside the destroyed Palestinian Legislative Council building in Gaza City - one of the first targets of the assault.
Air raid sirens were turned on at 11:20am (9:20 GMT), the exact time that the aerial bombardment began.
Ismail Haniya, the deposed Palestinian prime minister, was expected to unveil a plaque commemorating the 1,600 people that Hamas officials say were killed during the war.
Other estimates put the Palestinian death toll closer to 1,400, the majority of whom were civilians, including around 400 children.
Thirteen Israelis were also killed during the war - 10 soldiers and three civilians.
A month of events are planned to commemorate the war in Gaza.
Sombre mood
Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros, who was among one of the few international broadcasters to report on the war from inside the territory, was at the scene.
in depth
She said that 'the message here isn't just one of sombreness and sadness to mark one of the darkest phases of Palestinian history, but also one of defiance by the Hamas government, who continue to maintain control, law and order here in the Gaza Strip'.
The stated aim behind Israel's 'Operation Cast Lead' was to cripple the ability of Hamas and other Palestinian groups from launching rockets into southern Israel.
Avital Leibovich, an Israeli military spokesperson, told Al Jazeera on Sunday that the operation had been successful.
'This [goal] was achieved as, a year after the operation, we are seeing very little rocket fire. In that sense, it has been a success,' she said.
Palestinian armed groups have slowed, but not stopped, their indiscriminate rocket attacks, but the factions claim that is by choice."
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