MIDEAST-CONFLICT-GAZA

A Palestinian man helps a wounded woman in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on December 31, 2008. Two people died early on January 1 in New Year Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip, raising the toll since Israeli military operations began on December 27, 2008 to 397, according to the head of the territory's emergency services. A woman died during the raid on a house occupied by a member of Gaza's ruling Hamas in Rafah, near the Egyptian border, Moawiya Hassanei told AFP. The doctor said that targeted militants were absent, with the victims reported to be neighbours. AFP PHOTO/SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images)