RAY SUAREZ: Israel's assault on Palestinian militants in Gaza escalated today with new attacks by air and sea. Israeli warplanes pounded the Palestinian parliament building, while navy ships fired on Hamas positions along the coast. And a leading member of Hamas was among the dead.
We have a report from Julian Manyon of Independent Television News.
JULIAN MANYON: Another massive bomb marked the latest stage in Israel's campaign. The target was a Hamas military leader. He died along with his family when their home was flattened. Angry crowds tore at the rubble to drag them out.
The dead man was one of the Islamic movement's top commanders. Nizar Rayyan trained suicide bombers and had urged a fresh wave of suicide attacks in Israel. His death is a significant blow for Hamas.
An Israeli government minister has accused the Palestinians of exaggerating the number of their civilian causalities. But at Gaza's main hospital, wounded civilians are coming in thick and fast. One was a local journalist. And another cameraman had the narrowest of escapes.
Israel wants to show that the air strikes are surgical. Earlier this week, it released this video of what it said were Hamas militants and a truckload of rockets being destroyed.
Eight people died, but there is now evidence that they may have been civilians and that the bombing may have been a terrible mistake.
Ahmed Sanur says the truck was moving oxygen cylinders from his workshop and the dead were all his relatives.
AHMED SANUR, truck owner (through translator): We heard a boom in the sky, and all I saw was our young men laying on the ground. Some were dead. Some were on fire. And I couldn't do anything to help them.
JULIAN MANYON: The Israeli army says it stands by its video release and the claims to the contrary are an attempt by Hamas to manipulate the media.
But the truth is that it's the Israeli government's policy of barring independent journalists from Gaza that is making it difficult to establish the full truth of what is happening there.
Israel's prime minister says they'll treat Palestinian civilians with kid gloves. But in the border areas of the Gaza Strip, Palestinians are evacuating their homes before a possible ground assault. They know the danger, and they fear it will get much worse.
RAY SUAREZ: Israel's foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, insisted today there's no humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. In Paris, she rejected international calls for a humanitarian truce.
TZIPI LIVNI, foreign minister, Israel: At the end of the day, Hamas is a problem not only to Israel, but to entire Palestinian people. They are the problem to those who understand what is the nature of Hamas.
So what we are doing now is changing the equation, making it a better reality to our citizens, stopping the rockets on Israel. And I think that even now, after few days of operation, we achieved changes.
RAY SUAREZ: The death toll from six days of violence rose to more than 400 today. Some 1,700 others have been wounded. We'll have more on the situation in Gaza right after this news summary.
The U.S. officially gave back control of a key part of Baghdad to Iraqis today. The heavily guarded Green Zone now reverts to Iraqi authority under terms of a security deal with the U.S.
A handover ceremony took place at Saddam Hussein's former presidential palace. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki proposed January 1st be known as Sovereignty Day from now on.
NOURI AL-MALIKI, prime minister, Iraq (through translator): I'd like to congratulate you and the Iraqi people on this day for which we have waited for more than 17 years. We have the right to consider this day as the day of sovereignty, and it is the beginning that Iraq will regain every particle of its soil, as well as all of its will and sovereignty.
RAY SUAREZ: Today's transfer also puts U.S. troops under Iraqi authority, and it gives Iraq control of its airspace.
RAY SUAREZ: The Russian gas monopoly, Gazprom, made good on its threat to cut gas supplies to Ukraine today. The move came after negotiations failed in a dispute over outstanding payments and a new shipment deal for 2009.
Europe gets a quarter of its gas from Russia, but most of it is delivered through pipelines that cross Ukraine. In Moscow, a Gazprom spokesman said efforts were underway to avoid disruption to the rest of Europe.
SERGEI KUPRIYANOV, Gazprom spokesman (through translator): Starting from 10:00 in the morning, gas deliveries for Ukraine have been cut down by 100 percent. That is by 110 million cubic meters per day. The deliveries for export to Europe through Ukraine have been increased by approximately 20 million cubic meters, up to 326 million cubic meters per day.
RAY SUAREZ: Ukraine's leaders also vowed today to guarantee the flow of gas to Europe through its territory. A White House spokesman pressed for a quick resolution, but no new talks between Ukraine and Russia are planned.
Back in this country, Americans welcomed in the new year. Cleaning crews got to work in New York City after a toe-numbing cold night in Times Square.
And in Pasadena, California, the Rose Parade drew thousands of spectators.
In Chicago, Wrigley Field was turned into a hockey rink for an outdoor game between the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks. And five college football bowl games were also being played today.
Former Democratic Sen. Claiborne Pell of Rhode Island died today after a long battle with Parkinson's disease. Pell was first elected to the Senate in 1960 and served six terms. He said his greatest achievement in Congress was the Pell Grant, direct college aid for low- and middle-income students. Claiborne Pell was 90 years old.
Helen Suzman, the South African anti-apartheid activist, died today at her home in Johannesburg. She was one of the few white lawmakers to speak out against the injustices of racist rule. She served in South Africa's parliament for 36 years, 13 of those as the sole member of the opposition.
Suzman was also a long-time friend of Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first black president. She was nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize. Helen Suzman was 91 years old. And we'll have more on her at the end of the program tonight.
