Algerians observe moment of silence in solidarity with Gaza

Algerian officials on Thursday declared Algeria's solidarity with the distressed population in the Gaza Strip by observing a moment of silence, a symbolic gesture of support for Palestinians as Israel continues to pummel the embattled enclave.
Officials on Wednesday announced that a moment of silence lasting a minute, as well as a short five-minute pause from work, would be observed mid-day Thursday in all public and private Algerian institutions in remembrance of the Gazan victims of Israeli airstrikes and in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
State-run television broadcasted live pictures from government offices as Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and his cabinet stood in remembrance for five minutes.
Trade Unions and human right activists in different parts of the nation also staged sit-ins in public squares, as they chanted slogans denouncing Israel's aggressive campaign against Gaza, urging world powers to do more to prevent the killing of Palestinian children.
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika pledged to send an aid package worth around 25 million U.S. dollars to Gaza.
The enclave, ruled by the militant Islamist Hamas movement, has been under fire of Israel Defense Forces since July 8. Israel's ensuing air and ground campaign has claimed more than 1,300 Palestinian lives, the majority of whom were civilians, including children, women, the elderly, and the disabled.
The Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip, which was launched on July 8 amid rocket attacks on Israel by Palestinian militants, has also claimed the lives of 56 Israelis, including 53 soldiers.