Thursday, January 15, 2009

War Crimes?

As, in my opinion, the operation in Gaza is approaching a cease fire issues of human rights and war crimes are coming more to the fore.

From a friend living on the border of Gaza, he writes "I saw on the news last night and I was boiling over with anger and was afraid to check my blood pressure, when I heard "Israeli groups call for IDF 'war crimes' probe" and then later " forum of Israeli human rights organizations on Wednesday called on the country's political and military leadership to launch a domestic probe into "suspected war crimes" committed during Operation Cast Lead.

"http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231950849606&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

I immediately wrote a response to the Jerusalem Post:-

I as a resident of a community on the Gaza border,Kibbutz Nahal Oz,want to know why do you (the human rights organisations) keep silent when Israel is being attacked and yet raise all hell when Israel defends herself.Why do you have your press conference in Jerusalem and not Sederot,Ashkelon,Ashdod,Beersheva or even my Kibbutz. I consider all of you Israelis and Jews at this conference traitors to your country and to your people.

If common sense is to prevail and we want to talk in legal terms about war crimes, then surely the following incidents clearly come under the category of "War Crimes":-

a) Shooting rockets and grenades purposely on civilian targets in Israel.
b) Shooting these rockets from within Palestinian civilian compounds such as schools or in close proximity of hospitals or residential buildings.
c) Storing weapons and ammunition in schools, mosques, public offices and buildings and the sort.· Regularly using their own civilians as human shield; particularly children, often forced to be in the most dangerous spots.
d) During fighting with the Israeli forces the Hamas fighters, who wore uniforms at the beginning, changed to civilian clothing or IDF uniforms and continued to fight.
e) Hamas fighters have routinely hid among civilians in hospitals.
f) To the kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Schalit, Hamas did not provide the most elementary rights of war prisoners, such as information given to the other side and Red Cross visits, rights Israel grants even to convicted Hamas terrorists.
g) Children and minors were routinely used by Hamas for military tasks, both battle and auxiliary. The Hamas regime has also educated, indoctrinated and trained children and minors to murderous hatred, to will and techniques to kill.
h) The Hamas leadership embezzled aid money received for the peaceful needs of Gaza’s population and used these extensive funds for war efforts; weaponry, military equipment and constructions, and an enormous military build-up.

Will common sense prevail, maybe I am being naive??

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The UN rep said "thousands of tons of food were burning". Has anyone raised the question as to why they had "thousands of tons" of food in storage when they are crying "humanitarian crisis". We used to call this crying with a loaf of bread under your arm.......