France testing whether nicotine could prevent coronavirus

Experts are not encouraging people to pick up smoking or use nicotine patches as a protective measure against the virus

Nicotine could protect people from contracting the coronavirus, according to new research in France, where further trials are planned to test whether the substance could be used to prevent or treat the deadly illness.

The findings come after researchers at a top Paris hospital examined 343 coronavirus patients along with 139 people infected with the illness with milder symptoms.

They found that a low number of them smoked, compared to smoking rates of around 35 percent in France’s general population.

“Among these patients, only five percent were smokers,” said Zahir Amoura, the study’s co-author and a professor of internal medicine.

The research echoed similar findings published in the New England Journal of Medicine last month that suggested that 12.6 percent of 1,000 people infected in China were smokers. That was a much lower figure than the number of regular smokers in China’s general population, about 26 precent, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The theory is that nicotine could adhere to cell receptors, therefore blocking the virus from entering cells and spreading in the body, according to renown neurobiologist Jean-Pierre Changeux from France’s Pasteur Institut who also co-authored the study.

The researchers are awaiting approval from health authorities in France to carry out further clinical trials.

They plan to use nicotine patches on health workers at the Pitie-Salpetriere hospital in Paris — where the initial research was conducted — to see if it protects them against contracting the virus.

They have also applied to use the patches on hospitalised patients to see whether it helps reduce symptoms and also on more serious intensive care patients, Amoura said.

The researchers are looking into whether nicotine could help to prevent “cytokine storms”, a rapid overreaction of the immune system that scientists think could play a key role in fatal COVID-19 cases.

But with further research needed, experts are not encouraging people to pick up smoking or use nicotine patches as a protective measure against the virus.

“We must not forget the harmful effects of nicotine,” said Jerome Salomon, France’s top health official.

“Those who do not smoke should absolutely not use nicotine substitutes”, which cause side effects and addiction, he warned.

Tobacco is the number one killer in France, with an estimated 75,000 deaths per year linked to smoking.

France is one of the hardest hit countries by the coronavirus in Europe, with more than 21,000 deaths and over 155,000 reported infections.

جرمنی میں نئے متاثرین میں اضافہ

جرمنی کے محکمہ صحت کے اعداد و شمار کے مطابق کورونا وائرس کے مصدقہ متاثرین میں 3609 کے اضافے کے بعد کل تعداد 137439 ہوگئی ہے۔

دوسری طرف 242 نئی ہلاکتوں کے اضافے کے ساتھ کل اموات 4110 ہوگئی ہیں-

جبکہ جانز ہاپکنز یونیورسٹی کے مطابق اب تک ملک میں 141000 سے زیادہ متاثرین موجود ہیں اور 4,352 اموات پیش آچکی ہیں۔

کووڈ 19 سے سب سے زیادہ متاثرہ ممالک کی فہرست میں اس وقت جرمنی پانچویں نمبر پر ہے۔

Yemen, Red Cross says

Immediate ceasefire needed in Yemen, Red Cross says

(CNN)The Red Cross on Saturday called for an immediate 24-hour ceasefire in battle-torn Yemen, saying many more people recently wounded in airstrikes and ground fighting will die if not tended to soon.

The call came just before the U.N. Security Council met late Saturday morning to discuss the situation in the Arabian Peninsula nation, where Shiite rebels are pitted against external Arab air forces and fighters loyal to Yemen's displaced Sunni president.

A pause was needed especially in and near the southern Yemeni port city of Aden, where intense fighting has happened in the past two weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. Food, water, medical items and personnel need to get into these areas, the group said.

"Otherwise, put starkly, many more people will die. For the wounded, their chances of survival depend on action within hours, not days," Robert Mardini, the ICRC's head of operations in the Near and Middle East, said.

Another Red Cross official said people are running out of food, water and fuel.

"Medical supplies need to be here yesterday. The situation is difficult,"said Marie-Claire Feghali, a spokeswoman for the ICRC who is in the capital, Sanaa. "We need to save the lives that can be saved."

Meanwhile, residents of Sanaa, witnessed the fiercest Saudi strikes since the air assault started last week. Military facilities, including two bases, within the city limits have been targeted, three senior security officials in Sanaa said.

At the Security Council, Russia submitted a draft resolution calling for a halt to the airstrikes that a nine-country regional coalition, led by Saudi Arabia, has been conducting against the rebels in Yemen for more than a week.

The meeting adjourned with no decision announced.

One diplomat said the draft was missing what the envoy called key elements. It doesn't call for the Houthis to stop fighting, and it does not call for political talks between the belligerents, the diplomat told CNN on condition of anonymity.

Hundreds killed
Yemen has been descending into chaos in the weeks since Houthi rebels -- minority Shiites who have long complained of being marginalized in the majority Sunni country -- forced Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi from power in January.

LIVE UPDATES: Palestine News:Operation Protective Edge

LIVE UPDATES: Operation Protective Edge, day 24

U.S. State Department says sides agree to 72-hour humanitarian truce; White House says 'little doubt' UNRWA school in Gaza was hit by IDF fire; Netanyahu says tunnels will be destroyed, either way; ministers order military to press on with Gaza op.

As Israel's Operation Protective Edge entered its 24th day on Thursday, the security cabinet has ordered the military to press on with the offensive in the Gaza Strip, focusing on the destruction of Hamas' tunnel network.

An Israeli delegation traveled to Cairo on Wednesday for several hours of talks over Egypt’s efforts to broker a truce in Gaza. An official said Israel will continue to allow temporary humanitarian cease-fires in certain areas.

Three Israel Defense Forces soldiers were killed and 12 wounded on Wednesday afternoon in the Khan Yunis area of south Gaza, bringing the death toll in the military to 56. Three Israeli civilians have been killed in the current round of fighting.

In Gaza, the death toll in the Israeli operation has topped 1,360 according to Palestinian health officials. More than 6,500 Palestinians have been wounded in the Israeli strikes.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has declared Gaza a "humanitarian disaster area" and urged the international community to protect and provide relief to the battered enclave. In a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, he accused Israel of committing war crimes.

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For Wednesday's live updates,

Latest updates [Thursday]:

1:18 A.M. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says Gaza ceasefire a 'lull of opportunity,' imperative that sides make best efforts to find common ground.

The UN representative in Jerusalem, Robert Serry, has "received assurances" that all parties have agreed to the pause, according to a joint statement released by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and United States Secretary of State John Kerry.(Reuters, DPA)

1:15 A.M. According to the Palestinian news agency Ma'an, 84 Palestinians were killed over the last 24 hours in the Gaza Strip, and 258 were wounded. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the Palestinian death toll since fighting began is now 1,442, and the number of wounded has risen to 8,295. According to the Ma'an report, the Strip's Housing Ministry estimated the damage caused by the IDF operation as totaling $4 billion, and that 5,238 buildings have been completely destroyed. (Haaretz)

12:55 A.M. Hamas says will abide by three-day Gaza truce to begin on Friday.

"Acknowledging a call by the United Nations and in consideration of the situation of our people, resistance factions agreed to a 72-hour humanitarian and mutual calm that begins at 8 a.m (0500 GMT) on Friday as long as the other side abides by it," Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

"All the Palestinian factions are united behind the issue in this regard," Abu Zuhri said. (Reuters)

12:39 A.M. Israel and Hamas have agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire in their conflict in the Gaza Strip starting on Friday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Thursday.

The ceasefire will begin at 8 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) on Friday, Aug. 1, they said in a joint statement. The statement said "forces on the ground will remain in place" during the truce, implying that Israeli ground forces will not withdraw.

"We urge all parties to act with restraint until this humanitarian ceasefire begins, and to fully abide by their commitments during the ceasefire," Kerry and Ban said. "This ceasefire is critical to giving innocent civilians a much-needed reprieve from violence."

Israeli and Palestinian delegations will immediately travel to Cairo for negotiations with the Egyptian government to reach a durable ceasefire, the statement said (Reuters)

11:42 P.M. Call for residents of towns in Zikim to stay indoors canceled. Announcement made due to fears, now refuted, of suspected security-related incident. (Shirly Seidler, Gili Cohen)

11:03 P.M. Israel will be required under international law to take responsibility for helping Palestinian civilians if there are any further large-scale displacements from the fighting in Gaza, UNRWA chief Pierre Krähenbühl tells the United Nations Security Council.

Diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the council debated a statement to condemn the deadly attacks on UN schools, the rockets hidden in vacant schools and the deaths of UN staff, but could not reach agreement. (Reuters)

10:56 P.M. Entrance to the Al Aqsa Mosque will be limited to men over 50, due to concerns of violent clashes. Police forces are expected to be deployed in the area. (Yaniv Kubovich)

22:54 P.M. Hundreds of riot police in Paris deployed near the Israeli Embassy Thursday for the first major pro-Israel rally since the start of the latest Gaza war.
Several thousand people turned out for the rally, waving signs with slogans like "Gaza hostage of Hamas" and "We protest for peace."

The demonstration happened amid persistent reports the Jewish Defense League faces a government ban. JDD militants stepped in to assure security at synagogues during pro-Gaza protests, but were blamed for provoking violence at pro-Palestinian rallies. (AP)

10:41 P.M. Officials in Ramallah are increasingly getting the impression that Israel is not interested in reaching a cease-fire agreement based on the Egyptian proposal, Haaretz has learned. Rather, they believe, Israel seeks to complete its military mission and withdraw unilaterally to the Gaza Strip border, as it did in the 2005 disengagement. (Jack Khoury)

10:07 P.M. Residents of Zikim, Yad Mordechai asked to lock themselves in homes until further notice, due to suspected security-related incident near Gaza border. (Gili Cohen)

9:36 P.M. The White House says there is little doubt it was Israeli artillery that hit a UNRWA school in Gaza, and is describing the shelling as "totally unacceptable and totally indefensible."

White House spokesman Josh Earnest cited statements from the UN blaming Israel for the shelling, as well as the Israeli government's acknowledgement that it was firing in the area of the school. Earnest says that while the U.S. supports a full investigation into the matter, "it does not appear there's a lot of doubt about whose artillery was involved." (AP)

9:31 P.M. Rocket sirens sound in Ashkelon, Gaza-bordering regions (Haaretz)

8:55 P.M. "The Hamas leadership must be taken out," says coalition chairman Yariv Levin, considered one of the more influential MKs in the Likud party. "We can't leave the Gaza Strip as it is today. We need to create a wide swath of land beyond the border, that will be a no-man's-land that the Palestinians will not be allowed to enter. The area needs to be flattened, in the sense that there will be no houses that tunnels can be dug under."

"We definitely should aim at hurting the Hamas leadership," added Levin. "It is important that Hamas know it will pay a personal price for the continuation of the fighting. Such people are dead men walking." (Jonathan Lis)

8:11 P.M. Two IDF solider wounded by sniper fire in Shujaiyeh (Gili Cohen)

8:10 P.M. Mortar shells hit house, barn in Eshkol Regional Council; rocket siren sounded, no injuries reported. (Shirley Seidler)


An Israeli woman surveys the damage after a rocket fired by Gaza militants landed in the southern town of Kiryat Gat. July 31, 2014 (Reuters)
7:50 P.M. UNRWA spokesman in Gaza Chris Gunness says the IDF is responsible for yesterday's artillery strike on the UN-run school in Jabalia, where 15 Palestinians were killed. Speaking on Israel's Channel 2, Gunness said the conclusion was made after checking the shooting's trajectory. He also said the accusations that weapons found inside UNRWA schools were returned to Hamas are lies, and that the arms were in fact turned over to disarmament experts.(Haaretz)

7:42 P.M. Number of Israelis wounded from mortar fire attack near Gaza border rises to eight. (Shirley Seidler and Gili Cohen)

7:40 P.M. Rocket hits high-voltage electricity line, cuts power to nine communities near Gaza border. (Shirley Seidler)

7:37 P.M. Ministers Sa’ar, Shalom critizise handling of Gaza op, say goal of IDF operation should have been to topple Hamas’ reign. For full story, click here (Barak Ravid)

7:31 P.M. Call for residents of towns in Sdot Negev to stay indoors canceled. Announcement made due to fears, now refuted, of suspected security-related incident. (Haaretz)

7:13 P.M. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says there’s “no promise” of a negotiated cease-fire between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip.


A Palestinian man covers his face to protect him from the smoke billowing from a milk factory hit by an Israeli strike, north of Gaza City on July 31, 2014 (AFP)
Kerry told reporters Thursday in New Delhi that the U.S. remains hopeful that a cease-fire is achievable, and he said the sooner it happens, the better.

He urges both sides to begin, quote, “bona fide negotiations” to stop the bloodshed.

The violence is now in its fourth week and has killed over a thousand Palestinians living in Gaza and several dozen Israeli troops fighting there. (AP)

7:10 P.M. The French Interior Ministry is considering placing a ban on the radical Jewish group Ligue de Défense Juive. The ministry announced it is “analysing” its legal options against the group, which has been accused of provoking pro-Palestinain demonstrators in the Paris area in recent days, the Independant reports. (Haaretz)

6:52 Several mortar shells and rockets hit open areas in Eshkol Regional Council (Shirley Seidler)

6:40 P.M. Interior Minister Gideon Sa'ar confronted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a cabinet meeting on Thursday over the goals of the Gaza operation. A source who took part in the meeting says Sa'ar told the prime minister that the goal of the operation should have been to topple Hamas' reign in Gaza.

 “I wasn’t one of those (ministers) to go out in public, in front of the media, and say we need to topple the Hamas regime but today I am saying it here that that should have been the operation’s objective,” the source quoted Sa’ar as saying.

In response, Sa’ar told Haaretz, “I am legally obliged to avoid responding to things that were said in the cabinet meeting even if those quotes are incorrect.” (Barak Ravid)

6:02 P.M. Two people wounded by rocket-fire in Kiryat Gat; one, a 30-year-old man, was hospitalized in serious condition. The rocket, one of several shot at the southern city, struck the third floor of a residential building. Three other rockets were intercepted above Kiryat Gat, and another landed in an open area within the city limits. Seven people are being treated for shock.

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Shortly after the rocket struck in Kiryat Gat, July 31 2014 (Matan Shimonov)
6:00 P.M. Rocket alerts sound across Tel Aviv metropolitan area, and Gaza border-regions. Iron Dome intercepts rocket over Tel Aviv. (Gili Cohen, Shirley Seidler)

5:55 P.M. Rocket alerts sound in Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gaza-bordering regions (Haaretz)

5:50 P.M. UNRWA's Gaza Spokesman Chris Gunness says eight of the UN's refugee agency killed in Gaza. (Haaretz)


5:31 P.M. Rocket alerts sound across western Negev, Ashkelon region (Haaretz)

4:57 P.M. Rocket alerts sound in Gaza-bordering regions (Haaretz)

4:25 P.M. Hamas heads publish several statements simultaneously, in which they declare imminent victory. "The Palestinian people will be marking their victory in the very near future," Hamas official Mahmoud al-Zahar said. Khalil al-Haya, a member of Hamas' diplomatic bureau, said Netanyahu was "searching for a way out" after suffering 'blows from the resistance forces,' and added that "the only way out was an acceptance of the resistance's terms." Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum, meanwhile, said "Netanyahu is leading his army into the unknown. His allies have pulled him into a failing operation, the results of which he fails to understand." (Jack Khoury)

3:53 P.M. IDF strikes car in eastern Gaza, killing two and wounding one (Jack Khoury)

3:33 P.M. Rocket sirens sound in Ashkelon, Gaza-border region (Haaretz)

2:50 P.M. Three mortar shells hit near towns in Eshkol Regional Council. Rocket alerts were sounded. Security forces are conducting sweeps near the Gaza border fence in Hof Ashkelon Regional Council, after a rocket struck in the vicinity. (Shirley Seidler)

2:38 P.M. The UN's top human rights official is accusing Israel and Hamas militants of committing war crimes in the latest Gaza war.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay says that by placing and firing rockets within heavily populated areas both sides are committing "a violation of international humanitarian law, therefore a war crime."

Pillay also told reporters Thursday in Geneva that she sees "a recurrence of the very acts" from the 2009 Gaza war in which the UN concluded Israel deliberately targeted civilians and might have committed war crimes, along with Hamas. (News Agencies) Read full article

2:36 P.M. Mortar shell explodes in Eshkol Regional Council (Shirley Seidler)

2:04 P.M. An IDF soldier was lightly wounded by sniper fire shot from inside a mosque in Shujaiyeh. IDF responded with tank fire. (Gili Cohen)

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IDF soldiers atop a tank, outside near Gaza. July 31, 2014 (Reuters)
1:21 P.M. Rocket explodes in an open area in Sdot Negev Regional Council. (Shirly Seidler)

1:18 P.M. Malaysia denied Thursday that it is providing training for Hamas fighters in Gaza.

Deputy Home Affairs Minister Wan Junaidi Jaafar said the government has never allowed the country to be used as a training ground for Hamas fighters, even if Malaysia supports the Palestinians.

"It does not matter what kind of freedom fighting group they belong to, even those against Israel, we have never given permission to have such trainings here," he told the Astro Awani television station. "The report is incorrect."

A Hamas commander told Shin Bet commanders he and 10 other militants were sent to Malaysia to practice flying paragliders four years ago.

Malaysian leaders both from the opposition and the government have criticized the Israeli government for its continued Gaza operation. (DPA)

1:02 P.M. Nearly one quarter of the population of Gaza has been displaced over the three weeks of Israel's operation: Some 225,178 people have sought refuge in 86 UNWRA schools across the Strip. The head of UNWRA told Haaretz that the organization has demanded a number of times in recent days that Israel, as an occupying force, deliver the necessary humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. (Amira Hass)


Palestinians wait to receive food supplies from a UN food distribution center in Khan Yunis. July 31, 2014 (Reuters)

b P.M. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel was determined, regardless of ceasefire efforts, to complete the destruction of tunnels that Palestinian militants have built under the Gaza-Israel border.

"We are determined to complete this mission with or without a cease-fire," Netanyahu said in public remarks at the start of a cabinet meeting in Tel Aviv. "I wont agree to any proposal that will not enable the Israeli military to complete this important task for the sake of Israel's security." Read full article

11:59 A.M. Barrage of rockets fired at Sderot and nearby towns on Gaza border as Prime Minister Netanyahu addresses public in live address from Cabinet meeting.

11:55 A.M. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opens cabinet meeting at the Defense Ministry compound in Tel Aviv.


Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon in Tel Aviv, July 31,2014.(Reuters)
11:44 A.M. Rocket aimed at Ashkelon lands in Gaza territory. Seventeen rockets and mortars fired at south Israel since midnight. (Shirley Seidler)

11:24 A.M. Five mortar shells explode in open areas in Eshkol Regional Council. Two rockets explode in open areas in Ashkelon. (Shirley Seidler)

11:16 A.M. Rocket alarm sirens sound in Ashkelon.

11:01 A.M. Rocket alarm sirens sound in Gaza border town.

10:31 A.M. Rocket alarm siren sounds in Gaza border town.

10:27 A.M. Five Palestinians killed overnight and early morning on Thursday: Three in Khan Yunis, one in Rafah, and another who succumbed to wounds in hospital. The Gaza Health Ministry places the death toll from three weeks of the operation at 1,364 - of that number 315 children and 166 women. The number of wounded has risen to 6,785, of them 2,307 children and 1,529 women. (Jack Khoury)

9:25 A.M. Rocket alarm sirens sound in Eshkol Regional Council.


An IDF soldier prepares a Merkava tank, near the Gaza border. July 31, 2014 (AFP)
9:23 A.M. Mortar shell explodes in open area in Eshkol Regional Council. No damages reported. (Shirley Seidler)

8:37 A.M. Rocket explodes in open area near Be'er Sheva. No injuries. (Shirly Seidler)

8:30 A.M. Rocket alarm sirens sound in Be'er Sheva.

8:00 A.M. IDF attacked 19 targets in Gaza overnight, including five houses which were reportedly used as command centers. (Gili Cohen)

6:45 A.M. The IDF decided on Wednesday to call up 16,000 additional reserve troops in order to allow the military "room to breathe," a senior officer says. Their deployment will begin on Thursday, raising the number of reserve soldiers called up so far to 86,000. (Gili Cohen)

4:30 A.M. U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaks with Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and reiterates "the United States' support for Israel's security and its right to defend itself," according to a statement released by the Department of Defense.


A Palestinian firefighter near the wreckage of a house, in Gaza City July 31, 2014 (Reuters)
"Secretary Hagel also expressed the United States' continued concern about the rising number of Palestinian civilian deaths and loss of Israeli lives, as well as the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza," the statement said.

"Secretary Hagel stressed the need for a humanitarian ceasefire that ends hostilities and leads to a permanent cessation of hostilities based on the November 2012 ceasefire agreement, and reaffirmed the U.S. view that any process to resolve the crisis in Gaza in a lasting and meaningful way must lead to the disarmament of Hamas and all terrorist groups."

According to the statement, Ya'alon thanked Hagel for his support for the defense of Israel, particularly the Iron Dome missile interception system.

3:20 A.M. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Hamas is solely responsible for the death and destruction in Gaza, The Canadian Press reports.

"Obviously no one likes to see the suffering and loss of life that has occurred," Harper was quoted as saying. "That said, we hold the terrorist organization Hamas responsible for this. They have initiated and continue this conflict and continue to seek the destruction of the state of Israel."

2:00 A.M. A delegation comprised of Hamas and PLO representatives is prepared to depart for cease-fire talks in Cairo "at any moment," the Palestinian Safa news agency reports, citing a senior Hamas official. The official reportedly said that the truce proposal that is to be discussed is different from the one previously brought forth by Egypt. An itinerary for the trip has yet to be set.

12:10 A.M. CNN reports that the United States has agreed to an Israeli request for several types of ammunition as the ground battle in Gaza is entering its third week.

According to CNN, the items being bought are 120mm mortar rounds and 40mm ammunition for grenade launchers. Those will come from a stockpile the United States keeps in Israel, which is worth more than $1 billion, officials said.

It’s not an emergency sale, a U.S. defense official told CNN. (Jacob Kornbluh)


Weapons in a house in Gaza. Photo by IDF Spokesperson
12:01 A.M. J Street issues statement on Gaza conflict, calling for "the fighting to end through a sustainable ceasefire agreement."

"J Street strongly supports Israel’s right to defend itself proportionately against the threat of relentless rockets and to destroy tunnels leading into Israel. At the same time, we see no military victory over an ideology and no military solution to a fundamentally political conflict. We adamantly oppose calls for Israel to “reoccupy Gaza.”

"We support efforts by President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry as well as the engagement of other countries such as Egypt to bring about an immediate ceasefire. Any such ceasefire must account for Israel’s security concerns, specifically from rockets and tunnels, as well as Palestinian humanitarian needs, and should be structured to lead to negotiations to establish arrangements related to security, political issues and humanitarian assistance. We support the inclusion of the Palestinian Authority in the ceasefire and in the negotiations around security, political arrangements and humanitarian assistance.

"We are deeply offended by attacks on and mischaracterizations of the Secretary’s efforts to resolve this crisis and his relationship to the state of Israel. We believe his pursuit of not only a cease-fire, but a two-state solution represents the highest possible form of friendship to Israel and all the people of the region, and we salute and support the Secretary for his efforts." 

Palestine news:In Gaza

In Gaza, Crowded Morgue Performs Muslim Burial Rituals For Airstrike Victims

Palestinian Ahmed Jadallah, center, 75, prepares a body for burial at the morgue of Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, July 24, 2014. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) | ASSOCIATED PRESS

BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip (AP) — In the morgue at a small Gaza hospital, the anguished cries of those who lost loved ones in Israeli airstrikes fell silent Thursday when Ahmed Jadallah began attending to the corpses, one by one, on his wooden work table.

With swift, steady movements, Jadallah swaddled a toddler in a white burial shroud and later gently cleaned the soot-stained face of the child's father — Islamic rituals that momentarily reassured the grieving.

Father and son had been killed earlier in the day, along with the child's grandparents and uncle, when an airstrike on an adjacent house sent debris flying into the family's living room.

Over the past three decades, the 75-year-old Jadallah has dressed hundreds of "martyrs" — those killed in conflict with Israel. He said that his volunteer work fulfills an Islamic commandment and that he hopes it will earn him a place in paradise.

Despite his faith, he has found it harder to deal with the casualties from this round of fighting with Israel than from previous ones, especially when children end up on his table.

Nearly 790 Palestinians have been killed, including 190 children, and close to 5,000 wounded in more than two weeks of battle between Israel and Gaza's Hamas militants, according to Palestinian health officials.

"This is the toughest military operation we have witnessed," Jadallah said at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza town of Beit Lahiya.

Jadallah's life mirrors the area's turbulent history: the 1948 Mideast war over Israel's creation; the Israeli capture of Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem in 1967; two Palestinian uprisings, one starting in 1987 and one in 2000; the Hamas takeover of Gaza in 2007; and three rounds of Israel-Hamas fighting in 2008-09, in 2012 and now, in an outbreak that began July 8.

Jadallah was born in 1939 in the Palestinian village of Isdud, in an area that is now part of the Israeli port city of Ashdod. Jadallah and his family fled to Gaza in the 1948 war, eventually settling in the Jebaliya refugee camp, close to the Kamal Adwan hospital.

Over the years, Jadallah made a decent living in Gaza selling vegetables he bought from Israel and producing concrete blocks for construction. In the 1980s, he began volunteering to dress those killed in confrontations with Israel for burial.

"I approach this job from a religious perspective and hope God will reward me for this," he said.

Under Islamic rules, those who die a natural death are usually washed before burial, while those killed in a holy war are buried as they are, even if bloody, reflecting the idea that they are already pure enough to return to God.

"I specialize in martyrs," Jadallah said.

Jadallah's job is to wrap them in the customary white burial shrouds, secure the shrouds with strips of cloth according to specific rules and wash their faces.

On Thursday, the morgue's refrigerators held eight bodies of those killed in Israeli airstrikes overnight. Among the dead were five members of the Abu Aita family from the Jebaliya refugee camp — Ibrahim, 66; his wife, Jamila, 55; sons Ahmed, 31, and Mohammed, 40; and Ahmed's son Adham, 4.

Their neighbors, the Ajramis, said they had received a warning from the Israeli military early Thursday that their four-story home would be targeted in an airstrike, and they fled with minutes to spare, but word didn't reach the Abu Aitas in time. The missile badly damaged the Ajrami home, and the debris killed five of the Abu Aitas.

After daybreak, relatives of those killed began arriving at the morgue, a small space that barely accommodates Jadallah's work table and three refrigerators for storing the bodies.

One woman whose husband had been killed in a different airstrike shouted hysterically in the waiting area, fighting with relatives trying to stop her from seeing his body. They eventually gave in, but she fainted after Jadallah let her look inside the refrigerator.

Two Hamas policemen manned the iron door to the morgue, trying to keep down the number of people getting inside so Jadallah could work.

As he pulled a body from a refrigerator and placed it on a large metal tray on the table, one of the policemen called out the name of the dead and asked the closest relatives to come in.

After the initial wailing and chaos, calm usually descended on the room as mourners watched Jadallah work.

He ripped narrow strips of white cloth that he draped like belts around each body to secure the burial shroud. Depending on the size of the body, he uses three or five such belts; it has to be an odd number.

Jadallah bandaged the heads of those who had suffered grave skull injuries and used water-soaked bandages to wipe soot and blood off the faces. He lifted the heavy trays and pushed the table himself, despite his age.

Once a body was prepared, relatives were called into the morgue and carried out the dead on an orange stretcher. Some chanted "takbir," praising God as the Almighty, usually followed by the response "Allahu akbar," or God is great, as they left with the body.

Jadallah, a father of six, said he shares the pain of those around him, even if he doesn't betray emotion while working. After handling so many of the dead over the years, he said he finds it hard to forgive Israel, let along consider the possibility of a peace agreement.

Israel has said it is striking Hamas targets in Gaza to harm the militant group's ability launch attacks at Israel, whether by firing rockets or sending infiltrators through tunnels.

Jadallah said conditions in Gaza, home to 1.7 million people, have steadily deteriorated since he was a boy, mainly because of overcrowding and the 7-year-old border blockade by Egypt and Israel.

"Spilling blood is not something small," he said. "But the war was imposed on us. Even if they (the Israelis) kill dozens, we don't care. We will get back our homeland."

Associated Press writer Yousur Alhlou in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Israel Hits 30 Gaza Homes, Kills Senior Militant

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli aircraft struck 30 houses in the Gaza Strip early Friday, killing a leader of the militant Islamic Jihad group and two of his sons, as Israel's Security Cabinet was to decide whether to expand its operation or consider ideas for a cease-fire.

Israeli ground troops and Hamas gunmen fought intense battles in the north and center of the territory, Palestinian officials said.

The Israeli military said it hit 45 sites in Gaza, including what it said was a Hamas military command post, while Gaza militants continued to fire dozens of rockets at Israel, with one hitting an empty house.

On the 18th day of fighting, Israel's Security Cabinet was to convene later Friday to consider international cease-fire proposals, an Israeli defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the deliberations were taking place behind closed doors.

One plan calls for a five-day humanitarian truce during which Israel and Hamas would negotiate new border arrangements for blockaded Gaza, said Hana Amireh, a senior Palestine Liberation Organization official in the West Bank, who is involved in cease-fire efforts.

Hamas has said it will not halt fire without international guarantees that Egypt and Israel will open Gaza's border crossings and end their seven-year-old blockade. Israel and Egypt are reluctant to ease the blockade, fearing this will enable Hamas to tighten its grip on Gaza.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal has "put so many preconditions on a cease-fire so as to make it impossible."

Israeli media reported that the military also wants more time to continue destroying rocket sites and tunnels from Gaza into Israel, which Hamas has used to launch attacks. The military says it has found 31 tunnels but only destroyed about one-third of them so far. Israel has mobilized over 65,000 reserve forces during the fighting.

In Jerusalem, hundreds of Palestinians protested in the traditionally Arab east of the city after Muslim noon prayers, and a dozen protesters threw rocks and fireworks at Israeli police, who fired stun grenades and water cannons. Thousands of Israeli security forces had been deployed for possible Palestinian protests.

The night before, thousands of Palestinians protesting the Gaza fighting clashed with Israeli security forces in the West Bank and in east Jerusalem in one of the biggest protests in the territory in years. One Palestinian was killed and dozens were wounded, according to Palestinian medical officials.

In Gaza, the Palestinian death toll reached 828, after 115 were killed on Thursday in one of the deadliest days of fighting, said Ashraf al-Kidra, a Palestinian health official. More than 5,200 Palestinians have been wounded since July 8, he said.

During the same period, 35 Israelis, among them 33 soldiers, and a Thai worker were killed. Included in the count is an Israeli reservist killed Friday, the army said.

Early Friday, Israeli warplanes struck 30 houses throughout the Gaza Strip, including the home of Salah Hassanein, a leader of the military wing of Islamic Jihad, the second-largest militant group in Gaza after Hamas.

Hassanein and two of his sons were killed in the airstrike, said Gaza police spokesman Ayman Batniji and al-Kidra. The Israeli army confirmed the strike.

Over the past two weeks, Israeli aircraft have repeatedly hit homes of Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders. Most had gone into hiding, but the strikes killed a leader of an Islamic Jihad rocket squad, a Hamas commander and a son of senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Haya, according to the Israeli military.

Such strikes have also claimed the lives of a large number of civilians. A Gaza human rights group said earlier this week that close to 500 homes have been damaged or destroyed in direct hits from the air, and that more than 320 people have been killed in their homes as a result of military strikes.

Germany's two largest airlines said they are not yet resuming flights to Israel even though the European Aviation Safety Agency has lifted a recommendation that airlines refrain from flying to Tel Aviv.

Air Berlin says flights to Tel Aviv remain suspended at least through midday Friday, while Lufthansa says all Friday flights to the airport have been canceled because of ongoing security concerns after a Gaza rocket landed about a mile away from Israel's international airport.

Lufthansa's cancellations apply to subsidiaries Germanwings, Austrian Airlines, Swiss and Brussels Airlines as well.

___

Barzak reported from Gaza City. Associated Press writer Karin Laub in Gaza City, Gaza Strip contributed to this report.

NewsNow: Palestine war Israel News

Israel's offensive in Gaza has 'killed more children than fighters', say human rights groups

Humanitarian chiefs have accused Israeli generals of waging a "war on children" and say a third of the dead are under 18

Babies placed alongside dolls and doll parts with fake blood, symbolizing the death of children in Gaza, are seen during a demonstration for Palestine, in Berlin.








By Richard Spencer, and David Blair
 in Gaza9:16PM BST 22 Jul 2014

More children than Palestinian fighters are being killed in the offensive on Gaza, according to the latest United Nations statistics, despite Israel's claims to be waging a targeted military campaign.
Gaza's health ministry said that 580 Palestinians had been killed, including 155 children.
The UN's Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said that, as of Tuesday morning, 149 children had been killed, compared with 87 confirmed members of armed groups. Even including unconfirmed combatant deaths, more children would still have died.
The Palestinian monitoring group Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights has given The Telegraph the names of 132 of the dead, all under the age of 18.
In addition, Save the Children said almost a third of those injured were children. Less than a quarter of all casualties are thought to be Hamas militants.


"This is why we described the ongoing operation as a war on children," said Osama Damo, a Save the Children official in Gaza.
Dr Ashraf Al-Qidra, a health ministry spokesman, said that 84 women were also among the dead and a total of 3,650 people had been wounded.
On Tuesday, an air strike destroyed six floors of Salam Tower in the centre of Gaza City, killing at least 11 people including Ibrahim Al-Kilani, a professor of engineering, his wife and their five children. All had earlier fled from Shejaiya, where more than 70 people died in the biggest Israeli bombardment of the war on Sunday.
The impact of the conflict on children has been brought home in part by social media, which has streamed distressing photographs of small, mutilated corpses around the world. One incident, in which four boys were killed while playing football on a beach, was particularly striking, partly because journalists had been playing with them shortly beforehand and witnessed what had happened.
Human Rights Watch said in a statement that investigations of cases where there were similar casualties with no apparent military objective suggested Israel had committed war crimes.
"Israeli forces' failure to direct attacks at a military target violates the laws of war," a statement said. "Israeli forces may also have knowingly or recklessly attacked people who were clearly civilians, such as young boys, and civilian structures, including a hospital – laws-of-war violations that are indicative of war crimes."
Israel says that Hamas bears responsibility for civilian deaths because it launches rockets from and stores weapons in civilian areas.
"All civilian casualties are unintended by us, but intended by Hamas," Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said on Sunday. "They use telegenically dead Palestinians for their cause."
On Monday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Ron Dermer, compared the Hamas rocket attacks, responsible so far for two Israeli civilian deaths, to the Blitz and said the Israeli Defence Forces should win the Nobel Peace Prize "for fighting with unimaginable restraint".
Israel does issue warnings before some buildings are attacked. Inhabitants of a block on Omar Mukhtar Street in Gaza City received a telephone warning and all 200 were able to escape before it was destroyed at 5.30am.
Aid agencies point out that, unlike in other wars, Palestinians, enclosed by the security fence around Gaza, cannot flee. As of last night, 118,000 people were sheltering at UN schools and other facilities. But even there they may not be safe. The UN Relief and Works Agency said a girls' school housing refugees had suffered a "direct hit from Israeli shelling" yesterday. It was unclear whether any casualties had been inflicted.
On the Israeli side, 29 people have been killed, all but two soldiers.
In Cairo, attempts to negotiate a ceasefire seemed to take a step forward. Hamas and the Palestinian Authority were believed to be discussing a temporary ceasefire of five days in which talks for an easing of the joint Israeli-Egyptian blockade of Gaza could begin, though Hamas has yet to agree. It was unclear whether that would be acceptable to the Israelis. Last week they accepted an Egyptian unconditional ceasefire proposal, but have since begun a ground invasion and say that will not be stopped until it has destroyed the network of tunnels Hamas uses to infiltrate fighters into Israel.
Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, said it was his "hope and belief" that there would be an end to the fighting soon. After meeting John Kerry, the US secretary of state, in Cairo on Monday, he went to Jerusalem and the West Bank for talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders yesterday.

Major American and European airlines suspend flights to and from Israel

22.07.2014 15:04
A number of major US and European airlines are immediately suspending flights to and from Israel after a rocket attack near Ben-Gurion International Airport. US Airways, Lufthansa and Delta are some of the companies grounding their planes.

Israeli soldier missing, presumed dead in Gaza

Israeli soldiers from the Golani Infantry Brigade on Saturday ahead of their deadly engagement in Gaza. Photo: AFP/Jack Guez Jerusalem: An Israeli soldier is missing in the Gaza Strip and presumed dead, two days after the Islamist Hamas group announced it had captured a soldier during clashes. Israel's Channel 10 News said the military believed the man was killed along with six other troops in an attack on an armoured vehicle on Sunday. 

NewsNow: Palestine News

Gaza conflict: Barack Obama 'concerned' by increasing deaths as Israeli shells hit hospital killing four

Palestinian death toll rises further after reports of the shelling of a hospital in the central Gaza Strip which wounded at least 20 hospital staff

By David Blair in Gaza City and Raziye Akkoc

6:08PM BST 21 Jul 2014

Israeli tanks bombarded a hospital in the Gaza Strip, killing four people, and an air strike claimed the

lives of 24 members of the same family.
On the 14th day of Operation Protective Edge, the Palestinian death toll climbed above 530 while Hamas, the radical Islamist movement, managed to launch another 50 rockets at Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv.
Perhaps a dozen tank shells struck al-Aqsa hospital in the central town of Deir al-Balah, exploding inside the intensive care unit, the administration building and the surgery department. The Gaza health ministry said four people were killed and another 60 injured, including medical staff.
Further south, an air strike destroyed a home in the town of Khan Younis, killing 24 members of the Abu Jamaa family.
Meanwhile, Israel resumed its bombardment of the suburb of Shejaiya in Gaza City, where at least 70 people were killed on Sunday in the heaviest barrage of the campaign. Pillars of smoke rose from the area and explosions echoed over the rooftops.

23 killed in Gaza 'in 2 hours'

Published today (updated) 21/07/2014 22:33

(MaanImages)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli artillery shelling and airstrikes across the Gaza Strip killed 23

Palestinians over only two hours late Monday, bringing the day's death toll to over 100.

Spokesman for the ministry of health Ashraf al-Qidra said 11 Palestinians including five children were killed, and others were injured in an Israeli strike on Israa tower in central Gaza City.

Eight of them were identified as Ibrahim Deeb Ahmad al-Kilani, 53, Yasir Ibrahim Deeb al-Kilani, 8, Elias Ibrahim Deeb al-Kilani, 4, Sawsan Ibrahim Deeb al-Kilani, 11, Reem Ibrahim Deeb al-Kilani, 12, Taghrid Shabaan Mohammad al-Kilani, 45, Mahmoud Shabaan Mohammad Dirbas, 37 and Ayda Shabaan Mohammad Dirbas, 47.

A Ma'an reporter said they included a father, mother their four children, and the mother's brother and sister.

Meanwhile Jihad Mahmoud al-Mughrabi, 22, died of injuries sustained in Khan Younis, while Fadi Bashir al-Abadla, 22, was killed in a separate attack.

Medical sources said that three others were killed as Israeli forces targeted a group of people in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. Al-Qidra identified them as Fadi Azmi Bureim, Othman Salim Bureim, and Salim Abdul Majid Bureim.

As Palestinians broke their Ramadan fasts Monday evening, two people were killed in a strike near the al-Shamaa mosque in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood in southern Gaza City.

The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine said one of its leaders, Zakaria Abu Daqqa, was killed in a drone strike in Khan Younis.

Two others were injured in a strike on a motorbike in al-Qarara.

Three more Palestinians were killed in an airstrike on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, where Israeli airstrikes destroyed the al-Dahlan family house in the al-Nasr neighborhood.

One Palestinian died of injuries sustained in the head in strikes on Rafah.

Also, Rajai Jihad Abu Daghma, 38, died in a hospital in Cairo on Monday.

Al-Qassam Brigades announces: "We captured an Israeli soldier"

 Published on Monday, 21 July 2014 02:25
 arrestedisraelisolders

Gaza/PNN/

Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced on Sunday night that they had captured an Israeli soldier east of Gaza.

Abu Obaida the spokesman of the Al-Qassam Brigades said in a press conference "The Israeli soldier is called Aaron Shaul and his number is 6092065. He was captured during the cattle in the Al-Shujaiyya neighborhood during which we also killed fourteen Israeli soldiers and wounded more than fifty.

Hamas said in a statement: "The Israeli soldier was captured in an ambush east of Gaza City and this is a great victory for the resistance".

Palestinians celebrated it in several Palestinian cities as they hope this will contribute to the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

top news in india

Narendra Modi's Swearing-In: Hamid Karzai, Sheikh Hasina, Mahinda Rajapaksa to Attend

New Delhi: Narendra Modi has invited the leaders of Pakistan, Bangladesh and other South Asian neighbours to his oath ceremony as prime minister next Monday, in a bold step to embark on a policy of regional engagement. (Modi to Be Sworn In As India's 15th PM on May 26)

Afghanistan premier Hamid Karzai has reportedly confirmed he will attend. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa is also likely to attend as are Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Maldives President Abdulla Yameen, say sources. (It's New Government's prerogative, Says Congress)

The BJP's southern ally MDMK is opposed to Mr Rajapaksa's participation. MDMK chief Vaiko and many other Tamil political parties allege that civilian casualties of the Tamils peaked during the last leg of the war against LTTE with Mr Rajapaksa at the helm of affairs. (World Leaders Congratulate Narendra Modi)

Pakistan's high commission has received the invitation, which is issued formally by the foreign ministry. But sources say that instead of attending the ceremony himself, PM Nawaz Sharif will send a representative. After his own election last year, Sharif's administration had also suggested that the Indian PM be invited to attend his inauguration ceremony, but Dr Singh declined. (Rashtrapati Bhavan Rolls out the Red Carpet for Narendra Modi and His Guests)

The move by Mr Modi signals a huge shift in the BJP's position on Pakistan leaving behind much of the rhetoric of election campaign and is welcomed by Kashmiri leaders.

"Excellent move by @narendramodi to invite SAARC leaders, especially Pak PM for his swearing in. Hope this is beginning of sustained talks (sic)," Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted. Minutes later he again posted, "At the same time I can't help wonder what BJP would have said if a PM designate Rahul Gandhi had done the same thing."

The Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti echoed the praise. "It's good omen to invite Pak PM on Modi's swearing-in ceremony," she said.

Mr Modi's huge victory in the general election gives him the political capital that his predecessor Manmohan Singh, weakened by a raft of graft scandals and public discontent at home, did not have. The BJP has indicated that Mr Modi will work to a re-crafted foreign policy. (Twitter Friendship Blossoms Between Modi and Japanese PM)

Narendra Modi Asks Officials: Should We Downsize Government?

New Delhi: With days left before he and his new  team are sworn in Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi is already setting the agenda.

Top bureaucrats of all key ministries have been called to make presentations to the cabinet secretary of their achievements in the past 5 years and their  goals for the future. (Clearing Projects Worth 20 Lakh Crores Could Be Modi's First Task)

The third question is controversial: it asks 'what in your view should not have happened?' 

Some officials NDTV spoke to off camera say they sense a political undertone to the question, and that they might opt out from answering it.  

We spoke to the Secretary, Fertilisers Shantikanta Das as he was leaving to make his presentation before the Cabinet Secretary. He told us the Prime Minister's Office is also being kept in the loop.

Crucially, they are also being asked -- informally --  their view on whether government should be downsized, by clubbing ministries to ensure better coordination. For instance, should the Coal and Power Ministries be brought under a single Energy Ministry.

Sources in the Coal Ministry say they have conveyed that they are against such a move, while Power is said to be in favour of it. 

This is said to be in keeping with Mr Modi's election-time mantra of maximum governance, minimum government, and is an indication that he might opt for a leaner cabinet. 

Modi is reaching..........

Modi is reaching out to India's Muslims
– and they may vote for him

BJP efforts to win over Muslims, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, could well be effective if voters see it 

as a safe option

BJP Leader Narendra Modi Campaigns In Gujarat
'If Modi is to come to power, it will likely be as part of a ­coalition. This has forced the BJP to scramble for as many votes as possible.' Photograph: Kevin Frayer/Getty
On an unlit lane in Juhapura, a Muslim neighbourhood of Ahmedabad, the largest city in India's western state of Gujarat, 20-year-old Muslim Faizan Mansuri plays cricket on his smartphone. Juhapura, where I have lived since 2012, has few paved roads or sewage systems and each year about 2,000 children are denied an education because of a lack of schools. Once a mixed Hindu and Muslim area in the 1970s, today almost all of us 400,000 residents are Muslim.

Faizan, who is voting for the first time, believes this election is about the economy and looking forward: "I know about the riots, I know about the problems Muslims face in this country, but I am going to vote for [Narendra] Modi. He is good for the economy and if Modi becomes prime minister, he will be able to improve the economy in time for my graduation in 2016 when I start searching for a job."

Faizan's comments would make Modi, the front-running prime ministerial candidate representing the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), drool as he tries to woo India's Muslim vote in this election.

In order for any single party to form the government, it needs to secure 272 of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament that will select India's next PM. Most argue that the BJP will fall short of this total as no single party has secured a majority of seats since 1989. If Modi is to come to power, it will likely be as part of a coalition. This has forced the BJP to scramble for as many votes as possible, including reaching out to a segment the Hindu nationalist party has often ignored: India's Muslims.

India has the world's second largest Muslim population with about 176 million Muslims making up 14% of the population. The election will be largely decided on by the outcome of two states: Uttar Pradesh, which has 200 million residents and 80 seats in the Lok Sabha, with a Muslim population of 18%; and Bihar which has about 100 million and 40 seats with a Muslim population of 16.5%.

The BJP has been in overdrive for the past few months trying to win over these two states and their large Muslim populations. In March, Modi gave a speech in Bihar to a predominantly Muslim audience at which he boasted that Muslims in Gujarat are wealthier and better educated than in any other parts of India. Supporters of Modi even released a music video showing Muslim men and women dressed in odd-looking hats and scarves with feathers stuck in them. I can confirm Muslims in India do not dress like this. In some ways, the BJP's outreach efforts resemble a comedy skit by the American duo Key and Peele where the Tea Party is shown as all too eager to embrace a black supporter so they can clean up their image of being a predominantly white movement.

In fact the BJP is so serious about embracing Muslim voters that in its election manifesto, the party promised the restoration of Muslim heritage sites and a commitment to promoting Muslim education. The manifesto did not, however, explain why Modi's government opposed efforts to provide funds for the reconstruction of the mosques and shrines destroyed in the 2002 Gujarat riots, or why they tried to block funds for minority scholarships in Gujarat.

And yet despite this, Modi's outreach plan is working. MJ Akbar is one of India's most celebrated Muslim writers who once compared Modi to Hitler. In March, Akbar announced he was joining the BJP. But can Modi convince other Muslims to vote for him? And does he really need their support?

According to a poll by the Indian broadcaster NDTV, 8% of Muslims in the key state of Uttar Pradesh are expected to vote for Modi. In Gujarat, this number is even higher – about 15%. The reasons for this are varied. Some Muslims in Gujarat support the BJP because they are frustrated with the Congress party which, like the BJP, has also instigated and benefitted from religious riots. Others support the BJP because they believe Modi will bring India out of its economic slump. But some Muslims support Modi, at least in Gujarat, out of fear.

A Muslim physician in Ahmedabad had his clinic burned down during the riots of 2002. Today the halls leading to his office are filled with tiles depicting Hindu gods and goddesses that he hopes may act as a deterrent during future riots in Gujarat, which he fears is a matter of when, not if. In this election, he will be voting for Modi's BJP when Gujarat heads to the polls on 30 April. "I vote for my safety now," he says. "I have two children and maybe if Hindus know I am a BJP voter, they will see me as one of the good Muslims."

This is the BJP effect: it has convinced many Hindus in India that the rational, forward-thinking, patriotic Muslims are the ones who support Modi and the bad Muslims are those who speak critically of Modi record, including his alleged role in the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The BJP would like voters to believe that its new Muslim supporters have been fully welcomed as equals to the party's predominantly Hindu base. But the reality is quite different. When the cameras and tape recorders are switched off, Muslim supporters of the BJP say they understand that they are an accessory – not a companion – in Modi's efforts to become India's next prime minister.

• This article was amended on 23 April 2014. The original article stated that 292 of 543 seats need to be secured for a single party to form government when in fact it is 272.