page_title: Timeline of Operation Pillar of Defense
section_title: 20 November
hierarchical_section_title: Timeline of Operation Pillar of Defense / Timeline / 20 November
caption_attribution_description: English: Wreckage of Hamas Governmental building in Gaza, after Israeli rocket strike. Part of Operation Pillar of Defense
context_page_description: Operation Pillar of Defense was a military operation carried out in the Gaza Strip by the Israel Defense Forces starting on 14 November 2012, following rocket attacks on Israeli territory launched from Gaza during the preceding days.
context_section_description: More than 80 rockets were fired towards Southern Israel. An Israeli Bedouin civilian was killed in Palestinian rocket fire that struck the Bedouin village of Rejwan in the Negev. Palestinian militants fired 18 rockets at Beersheba. At least 9 were intercepted by the Iron Dome, while three landed in the city. One landed near a bus, which suffered shrapnel damage, another damaged a vehicle, and the third landed in a soccer field. Rockets were also fired at Ashkelon; one was intercepted and another landed in an open area. The city's Barzilai Medical Center relocated its emergency room to its fortified basement after rocket shrapnel struck near the hospital's maternity ward. There was also rocket fire at Ofakim. For the second time, sirens sounded in Jerusalem, and two rockets were fired at the city, but landed in an open area of the West Bank between two Palestinian villages. Dozens of rockets struck Kiryat Malakhi, Sderot and Ashdod. Thirteen rockets were fired at the Eshkol Regional Council, killing an Israeli soldier deployed in the vicinity of Gaza and an Israeli civilian. Later during the day, a rocket struck Eshkol wounding five people. Two rockets were fired at Jerusalem. A rocket struck a six-story building in Rishon LeZion injuring four people.
  Israeli aircraft and artillery struck eleven militant cells and thirty rocket launchers in Gaza. Three Hamas fighters were killed, two of whom were involved in rocket attacks. It was reported that the IDF had destroyed 50 weapons smuggling tunnels since the start of the operation. Drones attacked two cars in Sabra, Gaza, killing six, some of whom were injured beyond identification. Four people were killed at Gaza's Baghdad street. In Zeitoun, Gaza, two children were killed by Israeli airstrikes while they were playing soccer.
  Hamas gunmen in Gaza executed six Palestinians who were accused of collaborating with Israel. According to a Hamas security source quoted on Hamas' Aqsa Radio, the men were "caught red-handed" with cameras and hi-tech equipment. The body of one of the alleged collaborators was chained to a motorcycle and dragged through the streets.
  In the West Bank, Palestinians protested the Israeli attacks at multiple locations. In some instances, protesters threw stones and Molotov cocktails at IDF troops and Israel Border Police gendarmes, who responded with crowd-dispersal means. One Palestinian man was shot dead in Halhul after attacking a soldier, and another Palestinian was shot while throwing a Molotov cocktail at an Israeli neighborhood in Hebron. In addition, Palestinians pelted Israeli civilian vehicles, attempted to block a road, and laid stones which caused damage to civilian vehicles.
  The building housing Agence France-Presse's office was hit by Israel. Three rockets were reported to have hit the building. No one was injured. IDF says they were targeting a Hamas intelligence operations center on 7th floor of the building. An missile strike killed three Palestinian journalists in their cars. Two of the journalists were cameramen for Al-Aqsa. Another missile killed an employee for Al Quds Educational Radio while he was driving in his car. Israel acknowledged the attack, claiming they had ties to militants and were Hamas operatives.
  United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Tel Aviv in a visit to Israel to try to promote a ceasefire. She had talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. She did not meet with Hamas, due to the United States designating Hamas as a terrorist organization. Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi declared on the 20th that there would be a deal that day. However, talks failed and violence continued. A Hamas spokesman said later that night that a deal was close.
caption: Wreckage of Hamas Government building, after an Israeli strike
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