12 sept 2014
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Some 43 reserve soldiers serving in Israel's top electronic surveillance unit have refused to wiretap Palestinians living under Israeli occupation, according to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency.
In a letter addressed to Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and army chiefs, some 43 reserve soldiers of Unit 8200 said that they now refuse to perform any military tasks which would consolidate Israel's occupation of Palestinian lands, Israeli radio reported. The soldiers assert that the information collected by their unit is being used to pile pressure on Palestinian civilians to recruit them to spy for Israel. |
Established in 1952, Unit 8200 is the largest army unit responsible for intelligence gathering, according to Al Ray.
This move comes two weeks on the tail of a devestating seven-week Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip, in which over 2,000 Palestinians -- mostly civilians -- were killed and nearly 11,000 others injured.
Approximately 1/4 of the slain were children.
At least 72 Israelis – 67 soldiers and five civilians – were also killed in the onslaught, according to Israel's official tally.
This move comes two weeks on the tail of a devestating seven-week Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip, in which over 2,000 Palestinians -- mostly civilians -- were killed and nearly 11,000 others injured.
Approximately 1/4 of the slain were children.
At least 72 Israelis – 67 soldiers and five civilians – were also killed in the onslaught, according to Israel's official tally.
Senior Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh on Friday urged the Palestinian leadership to sign the Rome Statute and hold Israel accountable for its crimes in Gaza at the International Criminal Court.
Haniyeh said in a statement that "signing the Rome Statute is the right for every victim and stalling is neglecting their rights and an offense to the image of Palestinians."
The Palestinian leadership must not "neglect" the rights of the victims of Israel's military assault on Gaza, Haniyeh said, urging President Mahmoud Abbas to sign the Rome Statute.
Hamas signed a proposal for the Palestinians to apply to join the ICC in August.
The PLO had in 2009 asked the ICC's prosecutor's office to investigate alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Israeli military in Gaza.
There has so far been no probe as Palestine is not an ICC member state and its status as a state is uncertain in some international institutions.
However, the PLO in late November 2012 obtained the status of observer state at the United Nations, opening the door for an ICC investigation.
Haniyeh said in a statement that "signing the Rome Statute is the right for every victim and stalling is neglecting their rights and an offense to the image of Palestinians."
The Palestinian leadership must not "neglect" the rights of the victims of Israel's military assault on Gaza, Haniyeh said, urging President Mahmoud Abbas to sign the Rome Statute.
Hamas signed a proposal for the Palestinians to apply to join the ICC in August.
The PLO had in 2009 asked the ICC's prosecutor's office to investigate alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Israeli military in Gaza.
There has so far been no probe as Palestine is not an ICC member state and its status as a state is uncertain in some international institutions.
However, the PLO in late November 2012 obtained the status of observer state at the United Nations, opening the door for an ICC investigation.
Israeli navy forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen in Gaza early Friday, witnesses said, in the third incident off Gaza's coast this week.
Naval boats opened fire at fishermen off the coast of Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, with no injuries reported.
Fishermen fled the area immediately.
An Israeli army spokeswoman told Ma'an that "several vessels deviated from the designated fishing zone" and turned back after Israeli forces fired warning shots.
On Wednesday, Israeli forces opened fire at a fishing boat which had allegedly gone beyond an Israeli-restricted fishing zone.
A day earlier, Israeli gunboats intercepted a Palestinian fishing boat near Beit Lahiya and detained four fishermen from the al-Sultan family.
The Aug. 26 agreement stipulated that Israel would immediately expand the fishing zone off Gaza's coast, allowing fishermen to sail as far as six nautical miles from shore, and would continue to expand the area gradually.
The restrictions crippled Gaza's fishing industry and impoverished local fishermen.
Naval boats opened fire at fishermen off the coast of Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, with no injuries reported.
Fishermen fled the area immediately.
An Israeli army spokeswoman told Ma'an that "several vessels deviated from the designated fishing zone" and turned back after Israeli forces fired warning shots.
On Wednesday, Israeli forces opened fire at a fishing boat which had allegedly gone beyond an Israeli-restricted fishing zone.
A day earlier, Israeli gunboats intercepted a Palestinian fishing boat near Beit Lahiya and detained four fishermen from the al-Sultan family.
The Aug. 26 agreement stipulated that Israel would immediately expand the fishing zone off Gaza's coast, allowing fishermen to sail as far as six nautical miles from shore, and would continue to expand the area gradually.
The restrictions crippled Gaza's fishing industry and impoverished local fishermen.
11 sept 2014
Member of Hamas's political bureau Mousa Abu Marzouk said that the indirect talks with Israel are expected to resume in Cairo next week to finish discussing several contentious issues. In a political symposium held Wednesday in Gaza, Abu Marzouk added that his Movement has not been told about a specific date for the next week's talks.
The Hamas official explained that the talks are intended to address outstanding issues that have not been settled during the ceasefire meetings, especially with regard to the blockade on Gaza and the entry of construction materials.
On August 26, the Israeli and Palestinian sides had reached a long-term truce under the auspices of Egypt. The deal obliged Israel to open its commercial crossings with Gaza and expand the fishing zone, and delayed the discussion of unsettled issues for no later than one month after the ceasefire agreement.
Despite its obligations under the truce agreement that had been signed two weeks ago, Israel has not started taking concrete steps to lift its blockade on Gaza or end its movement restrictions at Gaza crossings.
The Hamas official explained that the talks are intended to address outstanding issues that have not been settled during the ceasefire meetings, especially with regard to the blockade on Gaza and the entry of construction materials.
On August 26, the Israeli and Palestinian sides had reached a long-term truce under the auspices of Egypt. The deal obliged Israel to open its commercial crossings with Gaza and expand the fishing zone, and delayed the discussion of unsettled issues for no later than one month after the ceasefire agreement.
Despite its obligations under the truce agreement that had been signed two weeks ago, Israel has not started taking concrete steps to lift its blockade on Gaza or end its movement restrictions at Gaza crossings.
British journalist Jonathan Cook criticized Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu for casting Hamas as the terrorist group ISIS, affirming that Hamas is a moderate liberation movement. "Netanyahu’s depiction of Hamas and ISIS, or Islamic State, as branches of the same poisonous tree is a travesty of the truth," Cook stated in an article he posted on his personal website on Wednesday.
"The two have entirely different, in fact, opposed political projects. ISIS wants to return to a supposed era of pure Islamic rule, the caliphate, when all Muslims were subject to God’s laws (sharia). Given that Muslims are now to be found in every corner of the globe, the implication is that ISIS ultimately seeks world domination," he explained.
"Hamas’s goals are decidedly more modest. It was born and continues as a 'national liberation movement,' seeking to create a Palestinian state. Its members may disagree on that state’s territorial limits but even the most ambitious expect no more than the historic borders of a Palestine that existed a few decades ago," the journalist added.
The journalist defended Hamas's revolutionary execution of collaborators with Israel as "necessary" during the unequal war it had fought in Gaza and "incomparable" to the wanton beheading of US journalist James Foley by ISIS.
"The extra-judicial execution of collaborators may be ugly, but it has a long tradition among resistance movements fighting asymmetrical wars. Militants among the Marxist revolutionaries of Latin America and the Catholic nationalists in Ireland, as well as the Allied resistance in Nazi Europe and the Jewish underground against the British in Palestine, had nary a Muslim in their ranks but they brutally punished those who betrayed them."
He elaborated that the ISIS quickly took over vast tracts of Iraqi and Syrian lands in a murderous and uncompromising campaign against anyone who rejects their specific interpretation of Islam, but Hamas, as political and resistance movement, has shown itself as both pragmatic and accountable to the Palestinian public.
"It (Hamas) won the last national election, in 2006, and after its recent fight against Israel in Gaza is by far the most popular Palestinian movement. Despite being in control of Gaza for eight years, it has not implemented sharia law nor targeted the enclave’s Christians. Instead it has recently formed a unity government with its secular political rivals in Fatah."
"Hamas leader Khaled Meshal has joined Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, in demanding the most diminutive Palestinian state possible, inside the 1967 borders. Netanyahu’s fundamentalist right wing are the ones refusing to negotiate, with either Hamas or Abbas," Cook noted.
"In casting a popular resistance movement like Hamas as ISIS, Netanyahu has tarred all Palestinians as bloodthirsty Islamic extremists. And here we reach Israel’s real goal in equating the two groups."
He also pointed to the fact that Netanyahu’s comparison is similar to the one made by Ariel Sharon who accused, after the 9/11 attacks on the US, the late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat of having been a Qaeda leader.
"Israel's intelligence officials even called the destruction of the Twin Towers a 'Hanukkah miracle,' a view echoed by Netanyahu years later when he described the attack as beneficial, adding that it had 'swung American public opinion in our favor,'" the British journalist stated.
"Sharon reveled in calling Arafat the head of an 'infrastructure of terror,' justifying Israel’s crushing the uprising of the second intifada. Similarly, Netanyahu’s efforts are designed to discredit all, not just the Islamic variety of Palestinian resistance to Israel’s occupation. He hopes to be the silent partner to Barack Obama’s new coalition against ISIS," he stressed.
"The two have entirely different, in fact, opposed political projects. ISIS wants to return to a supposed era of pure Islamic rule, the caliphate, when all Muslims were subject to God’s laws (sharia). Given that Muslims are now to be found in every corner of the globe, the implication is that ISIS ultimately seeks world domination," he explained.
"Hamas’s goals are decidedly more modest. It was born and continues as a 'national liberation movement,' seeking to create a Palestinian state. Its members may disagree on that state’s territorial limits but even the most ambitious expect no more than the historic borders of a Palestine that existed a few decades ago," the journalist added.
The journalist defended Hamas's revolutionary execution of collaborators with Israel as "necessary" during the unequal war it had fought in Gaza and "incomparable" to the wanton beheading of US journalist James Foley by ISIS.
"The extra-judicial execution of collaborators may be ugly, but it has a long tradition among resistance movements fighting asymmetrical wars. Militants among the Marxist revolutionaries of Latin America and the Catholic nationalists in Ireland, as well as the Allied resistance in Nazi Europe and the Jewish underground against the British in Palestine, had nary a Muslim in their ranks but they brutally punished those who betrayed them."
He elaborated that the ISIS quickly took over vast tracts of Iraqi and Syrian lands in a murderous and uncompromising campaign against anyone who rejects their specific interpretation of Islam, but Hamas, as political and resistance movement, has shown itself as both pragmatic and accountable to the Palestinian public.
"It (Hamas) won the last national election, in 2006, and after its recent fight against Israel in Gaza is by far the most popular Palestinian movement. Despite being in control of Gaza for eight years, it has not implemented sharia law nor targeted the enclave’s Christians. Instead it has recently formed a unity government with its secular political rivals in Fatah."
"Hamas leader Khaled Meshal has joined Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, in demanding the most diminutive Palestinian state possible, inside the 1967 borders. Netanyahu’s fundamentalist right wing are the ones refusing to negotiate, with either Hamas or Abbas," Cook noted.
"In casting a popular resistance movement like Hamas as ISIS, Netanyahu has tarred all Palestinians as bloodthirsty Islamic extremists. And here we reach Israel’s real goal in equating the two groups."
He also pointed to the fact that Netanyahu’s comparison is similar to the one made by Ariel Sharon who accused, after the 9/11 attacks on the US, the late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat of having been a Qaeda leader.
"Israel's intelligence officials even called the destruction of the Twin Towers a 'Hanukkah miracle,' a view echoed by Netanyahu years later when he described the attack as beneficial, adding that it had 'swung American public opinion in our favor,'" the British journalist stated.
"Sharon reveled in calling Arafat the head of an 'infrastructure of terror,' justifying Israel’s crushing the uprising of the second intifada. Similarly, Netanyahu’s efforts are designed to discredit all, not just the Islamic variety of Palestinian resistance to Israel’s occupation. He hopes to be the silent partner to Barack Obama’s new coalition against ISIS," he stressed.
A Palestinian doctor has launched a campaign calling for boycotting Israeli hospitals after all the massacres that had been committed by Israel during its last war on the Gaza Strip, Al-Jazeera satellite channel said. According to a report by the channel, doctor Ahmed Shahin tore off outside the UNICEF office in Gaza an invitation from an Israeli hospital to bring his little son, who suffers from brain paralysis, for medical treatment.
"This invitation does not mean anything to me, and I am not honored to carry it," Shaheen said.
"Israel finds nothing wrong when bombing the Gaza people and then offering their treatment," he added.
Doctor Shahin lost his 16-year-old son in an Israeli military attack on Jabaliya town during the last war.
The doctor expressed hope that human rights groups could move to hold Israel accountable for what it had done in Gaza and help provide medical treatment for his younger son.
In another context, the Palestinian website for security affairs Al-Majd said that many of the wounded civilians who had been admitted to Israeli hospitals and their relatives were exposed to extortion by the Israeli intelligence.
One of the relatives who escorted his son told Al-Majd website that intelligence officers tried to lure most of the Gaza patients in Israeli hospitals and their family members who escorted them into working for them or providing them with information about the resistance.
He affirmed that the patients and their relatives rejected all offers and temptations, although they knew they would become vulnerable to harassment and delays upon their return to Gaza.
"This invitation does not mean anything to me, and I am not honored to carry it," Shaheen said.
"Israel finds nothing wrong when bombing the Gaza people and then offering their treatment," he added.
Doctor Shahin lost his 16-year-old son in an Israeli military attack on Jabaliya town during the last war.
The doctor expressed hope that human rights groups could move to hold Israel accountable for what it had done in Gaza and help provide medical treatment for his younger son.
In another context, the Palestinian website for security affairs Al-Majd said that many of the wounded civilians who had been admitted to Israeli hospitals and their relatives were exposed to extortion by the Israeli intelligence.
One of the relatives who escorted his son told Al-Majd website that intelligence officers tried to lure most of the Gaza patients in Israeli hospitals and their family members who escorted them into working for them or providing them with information about the resistance.
He affirmed that the patients and their relatives rejected all offers and temptations, although they knew they would become vulnerable to harassment and delays upon their return to Gaza.
Sweeping rallies, organized by pro-Palestine organizations, flared up across the European continent to celebrate Gaza’s latest triumph over the Israeli occupation and demanding a final end to its blockade. Such celebratory festivities match up with the pro-Palestine campaigns staged in various European countries since the early moments of the Israeli offensive, Majed al-Zeer, head of the Conference of Palestinians in Europe, told Quds Press.
“These moves manifest of both a pre-war and post-war unity between Palestinians,” he maintained.
“The celebrations signal the launch of a new post-offensive phase,” he added, pointing to the cooperation among various pro-Palestine organizations in Europe.
“The learned messages and the cultivated fruits of victory require serious commitment, strategic planning, and a constructive academic and cultural approach that builds on former achievements,” he said.
“These moves manifest of both a pre-war and post-war unity between Palestinians,” he maintained.
“The celebrations signal the launch of a new post-offensive phase,” he added, pointing to the cooperation among various pro-Palestine organizations in Europe.
“The learned messages and the cultivated fruits of victory require serious commitment, strategic planning, and a constructive academic and cultural approach that builds on former achievements,” he said.
EU’s ambassador in Israel, Lars Anderson, on Wednesday warned that violence would resume in Gaza due to the huge despondency and damage wrought by the recent 51-day long Israeli offensive on the besieged enclave. Talking on behalf of the EU, Anderson called for the return to Cairo talks so as to prevent any potential scenarios triggering violence in the Strip, either in the short or long runs.
The EU agrees that the return to the status quo is not an option, Anderson stated, adding: “We need to make sure the enforced Gaza siege would be lifted.”
At least 2,150 Palestinians were mass-murdered while some 11,100 sustained wounds in the Israeli offensive that continued for 51 days unabated on Gaza Strip starting July 7.
The EU agrees that the return to the status quo is not an option, Anderson stated, adding: “We need to make sure the enforced Gaza siege would be lifted.”
At least 2,150 Palestinians were mass-murdered while some 11,100 sustained wounds in the Israeli offensive that continued for 51 days unabated on Gaza Strip starting July 7.
The United States government has reportedly threatened the Palestinian Authority (PA) with economic sanctions if Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas continue to insist on presenting his plan for the end of Israel's illegal occupation to the United Nations.
Israeli news publication "Walla" quoted both American and Israeli sources in reporting that Secretary of State John Kerry threatened the Palestinian delegation if they were to approach the UN with such a resolution.
He warned, according to the Palestinian News Network (PNN), that pursuit of such a course would leave the PA in a difficult position, facing economic sanctions -- fundamentally contrary to the State Department's continued narrative of continuing peace talks and a vast spectrum of denunciatory rhetoric, in addition to contrary statements surrounding settlement expansion and numerous other Israeli violations, including those of longstanding International Law.
--------The IMEMC's coverage of Secretary of State John Kerry's progress, or lack thereof, in securing peace in the Middle East, is extensive.
Mr. Kerry, who is a member of the Middle East Quartet, reportedly warned that Washington would not only impose these measures, but would equally try to convince its allies to adopt a similar stance.
See related: Kerry Plan Includes Palestinian Recognition of Israel as Jewish State
Kerry Asks Jordan, Saudi Arabia, To Support Palestinian Recognition Of “Jewish State”
Note: The second report linked above, which was in fact sourced in Israel, has been adamantly denied as being accurate, by the US State Department.
US officials, as if by default, reportedly believes that the future of the Palestinian state should be determined through negotiations with Israel, regardless of several failed attempts at such an approach, in the past, and the Israeli government's continued failure to keep their own political promises -- even in light of the vulgar attrocites recently committed by the military, on the Gaza Strip, over the course of the summer months.
According to the PNN, presenting the Palestinian case to the UN is seen by Washington as a unilateral decision on the Palestinian State, which goes against its vision of negotiations with Israel as being fundamental.
Economic sanctions, thus, serve to discourage such a move by the PA.
Related: US Implies to Block Abbas' UN Resolution Proposal
Mustafa Barghouti, General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, in speaking to the PNN, dismissed the threat and asserted that the PA is within its legitimate rights in approaching the UN and can go equally to the International Criminal Court.
Barghouti additionally highlighted the fact that the United States "talks about the need to respect human rights everywhere and respect international law," and now asks:
"Why is it forbidden for Palestine to exercise this right?"
Israeli news publication "Walla" quoted both American and Israeli sources in reporting that Secretary of State John Kerry threatened the Palestinian delegation if they were to approach the UN with such a resolution.
He warned, according to the Palestinian News Network (PNN), that pursuit of such a course would leave the PA in a difficult position, facing economic sanctions -- fundamentally contrary to the State Department's continued narrative of continuing peace talks and a vast spectrum of denunciatory rhetoric, in addition to contrary statements surrounding settlement expansion and numerous other Israeli violations, including those of longstanding International Law.
--------The IMEMC's coverage of Secretary of State John Kerry's progress, or lack thereof, in securing peace in the Middle East, is extensive.
Mr. Kerry, who is a member of the Middle East Quartet, reportedly warned that Washington would not only impose these measures, but would equally try to convince its allies to adopt a similar stance.
See related: Kerry Plan Includes Palestinian Recognition of Israel as Jewish State
Kerry Asks Jordan, Saudi Arabia, To Support Palestinian Recognition Of “Jewish State”
Note: The second report linked above, which was in fact sourced in Israel, has been adamantly denied as being accurate, by the US State Department.
US officials, as if by default, reportedly believes that the future of the Palestinian state should be determined through negotiations with Israel, regardless of several failed attempts at such an approach, in the past, and the Israeli government's continued failure to keep their own political promises -- even in light of the vulgar attrocites recently committed by the military, on the Gaza Strip, over the course of the summer months.
According to the PNN, presenting the Palestinian case to the UN is seen by Washington as a unilateral decision on the Palestinian State, which goes against its vision of negotiations with Israel as being fundamental.
Economic sanctions, thus, serve to discourage such a move by the PA.
Related: US Implies to Block Abbas' UN Resolution Proposal
Mustafa Barghouti, General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, in speaking to the PNN, dismissed the threat and asserted that the PA is within its legitimate rights in approaching the UN and can go equally to the International Criminal Court.
Barghouti additionally highlighted the fact that the United States "talks about the need to respect human rights everywhere and respect international law," and now asks:
"Why is it forbidden for Palestine to exercise this right?"
Rocket warning sirens in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel
Rocket warning sirens were reported in Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel on Thursday evening, sparking fears of a possible rocket from Lebanon.
The sirens were later reported to be a false alarm.
Rocket warning sirens were reported in Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel on Thursday evening, sparking fears of a possible rocket from Lebanon.
The sirens were later reported to be a false alarm.
Palestinian taking sleep in school shelters during the 51-day Israeli offensive
The spokesperson of Hamas in Gaza, Sami abu-Zuhri, said the Human Rights Watch probe findings were evidence to Israel’s falsifications.
Abu Zuhri said that the HRW findings that there were no clear military targets in the parameters of three UN-run schools bombed by Israel testify to the false allegations of 'Israel'.
'Israel' justified its attacks on the school by claiming that the Palestinian resistance used the schools as military sites during the offensive.
The HRW said on Thursday that "Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the HRW pointed out.
In a relevant comment, the spokesperson considered the Israeli army’s recent decision to open its own criminal investigation into some war incidents as worthless.
The HRW conducted an investigation into three attacks and found that the Israeli targeting of the three school were randomly, accusing the occupation of committing war crimes against the Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip during its offensive.
The spokesperson of Hamas in Gaza, Sami abu-Zuhri, said the Human Rights Watch probe findings were evidence to Israel’s falsifications.
Abu Zuhri said that the HRW findings that there were no clear military targets in the parameters of three UN-run schools bombed by Israel testify to the false allegations of 'Israel'.
'Israel' justified its attacks on the school by claiming that the Palestinian resistance used the schools as military sites during the offensive.
The HRW said on Thursday that "Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the HRW pointed out.
In a relevant comment, the spokesperson considered the Israeli army’s recent decision to open its own criminal investigation into some war incidents as worthless.
The HRW conducted an investigation into three attacks and found that the Israeli targeting of the three school were randomly, accusing the occupation of committing war crimes against the Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip during its offensive.
The Palestinian Embassy in Germany has reported that 42 Palestinian children, wounded during Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip, arrived in the country for medical treatment in a number of specialized German Hospitals in Medical Centers.
The Palestinian Embassy said the transfer of the injured Gazan children came through coordination conducted between the Embassy and the Association of Palestinian physicians and Pharmacists in Berlin and Brandenburg, and in association with the Friedensdorf Foundation, the sponsor of the children’s travel and treatment.
The Embassy stated that physicians and a medical crew from Gaza and Germany, as well as the Medical Advisor of the Palestinian Embassy in Egypt, also accompanied the children.
The wounded children were received in Germany, in an official ceremony held by the Palestinian Embassy in Berlin, the Palestinian Community in the country, representatives of the Friedensdorf Foundation and representatives of German Hospitals who will be providing the children with the needed medical treatment.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said that at least 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, during Israel’s war and aggression on the besieged and impoverished coastal region.
At least 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Eleven of them, including two children, died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
The Palestinian Embassy said the transfer of the injured Gazan children came through coordination conducted between the Embassy and the Association of Palestinian physicians and Pharmacists in Berlin and Brandenburg, and in association with the Friedensdorf Foundation, the sponsor of the children’s travel and treatment.
The Embassy stated that physicians and a medical crew from Gaza and Germany, as well as the Medical Advisor of the Palestinian Embassy in Egypt, also accompanied the children.
The wounded children were received in Germany, in an official ceremony held by the Palestinian Embassy in Berlin, the Palestinian Community in the country, representatives of the Friedensdorf Foundation and representatives of German Hospitals who will be providing the children with the needed medical treatment.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza said that at least 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, during Israel’s war and aggression on the besieged and impoverished coastal region.
At least 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Eleven of them, including two children, died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
www.hrw.org
Human Rights Watch says that Israel is likely to have committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, this just a day after the army announced that five criminal investigations were being directed towards incidents involving its forces.
The group stated, Thursday, that in three cases it has examined, Israel caused "numerous civilian casualties in violation of the laws of war", according to AFP.
The recent 50-day military assault on the region saw more than 2,100 Palestinians -- most of whom were civilians, including nearly 600 children -- killed by Israeli forces in a series of relentlessly brutal strikes coming from air, land and sea.
73 casualites have been accounted for on the Israeli side, 67 of which were soldier deaths.
The three incidents cited by Human Rights Watch were two separate shellings of UN schools in northern Gaza, on July 24 and 30, as well as a guided missile strike which targeted another UN school in the southern city of Rafah, on August 3.
See related -- UN: Israel Used UNRWA School For Military Operations
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the group said.
"Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
"Unlawful attacks carried out willfully -- that is, deliberately or recklessly -- are war crimes," it said.
According to the Israeli military, a criminal investigation into five incidents has already been launched, including the July 24 case, where Israeli shelling killed at least 15 people at a UN school in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza.
Several dozen other cases are also reportedly on the agenda for potential criminal investigation, but the July 30 or August 3 incidents have not been mentioned.
The official said, AFP further reports, that the army had already dismissed seven incidents referred for review, including the death of eight members of a single family in an Israeli air strike on their home, in addition to the killing of a media worker.
Search IMEMC: "journalists"
"Israel has a long record of failing to undertake credible investigations into alleged war crimes," HRW additionally stated.
A number of international rights groups, including the United Nations, have verbaly condemned Israel for numerous attacks. Even Washington slammed the July 24 UN school attack, but refrained from placing the blame squarely on Israel.
US Senate support for the merciless and indiuscriminate attacks on Gaza's civilian population was unanimous during the assault, leaving concerned citizens worldwide in a state of shock as attrocities mounted by the hour.
The identities of the slain have not entirely been accounted for, as of yet.
Palestinian officials have threatened Israel with action at the International Criminal Court over a number of allegations and generations-long violations against the rights of Palestinian people, to include the blatant breaching of several UN resolutions.
Even Hamas has signed a proposal for Palestinians to join the body, potentially opening itself up to investigation, yet no action has currently been taken, with the Israeli state continuing their typical routine of violating ceasefire agreements, expanding settlements and continuing to imprison Palestinians by the dozen on a near-daily basis, while the Palestinian Authority continues to coordinate its policing efforts with Israeli security.
Human Rights Watch says that Israel is likely to have committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, this just a day after the army announced that five criminal investigations were being directed towards incidents involving its forces.
The group stated, Thursday, that in three cases it has examined, Israel caused "numerous civilian casualties in violation of the laws of war", according to AFP.
The recent 50-day military assault on the region saw more than 2,100 Palestinians -- most of whom were civilians, including nearly 600 children -- killed by Israeli forces in a series of relentlessly brutal strikes coming from air, land and sea.
73 casualites have been accounted for on the Israeli side, 67 of which were soldier deaths.
The three incidents cited by Human Rights Watch were two separate shellings of UN schools in northern Gaza, on July 24 and 30, as well as a guided missile strike which targeted another UN school in the southern city of Rafah, on August 3.
See related -- UN: Israel Used UNRWA School For Military Operations
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the group said.
"Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
"Unlawful attacks carried out willfully -- that is, deliberately or recklessly -- are war crimes," it said.
According to the Israeli military, a criminal investigation into five incidents has already been launched, including the July 24 case, where Israeli shelling killed at least 15 people at a UN school in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza.
Several dozen other cases are also reportedly on the agenda for potential criminal investigation, but the July 30 or August 3 incidents have not been mentioned.
The official said, AFP further reports, that the army had already dismissed seven incidents referred for review, including the death of eight members of a single family in an Israeli air strike on their home, in addition to the killing of a media worker.
Search IMEMC: "journalists"
"Israel has a long record of failing to undertake credible investigations into alleged war crimes," HRW additionally stated.
A number of international rights groups, including the United Nations, have verbaly condemned Israel for numerous attacks. Even Washington slammed the July 24 UN school attack, but refrained from placing the blame squarely on Israel.
US Senate support for the merciless and indiuscriminate attacks on Gaza's civilian population was unanimous during the assault, leaving concerned citizens worldwide in a state of shock as attrocities mounted by the hour.
The identities of the slain have not entirely been accounted for, as of yet.
Palestinian officials have threatened Israel with action at the International Criminal Court over a number of allegations and generations-long violations against the rights of Palestinian people, to include the blatant breaching of several UN resolutions.
Even Hamas has signed a proposal for Palestinians to join the body, potentially opening itself up to investigation, yet no action has currently been taken, with the Israeli state continuing their typical routine of violating ceasefire agreements, expanding settlements and continuing to imprison Palestinians by the dozen on a near-daily basis, while the Palestinian Authority continues to coordinate its policing efforts with Israeli security.
Hamas is ready to fight back if the Israeli occupation breaches the ceasefire deal, MP Ismail al-Ashqar, chairman of the Security and Interior Committee in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), said on Wednesday. “If the Israeli occupation does not abide by the truce deal, the Palestinian resistance is ready to resume fighting and escalation. We are ready to fight for months with high spirits and cause Israel huge losses,” al-Ashqar said in a written statement Wednesday.
The Palestinian MP called on the unity government to take up its responsibilities and press ahead with the launch of the donors’ conference for the reconstruction of what has been destroyed by the Israeli occupation in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The PLC deputy denied recent claims on the formation of a shadow government in Gaza.
“If the consensus government does not fulfill its allotted missions and objectives, another unity government will take its place,” he said.
Addressing Abbas directly, al-Ashqar wrote: “If you wish to be our president you just have to alter your outlooks and unite the Palestinian people instead of severing the chord that links Gaza and the West Bank together.”
“There is no such a thing as legitimate and illegitimate employees. You have to be up to your assigned responsibility. Otherwise history will never forgive you,” he added.
Al-Ashqar spoke against the mounting intimidation carried out by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) against Hamas supporters in the West Bank.
“The PA is a smaller version of the rotten Arab regimes that have come to boost the Israeli occupation and settlement. The occupation’s security apparatuses are nurtured via security coordination” he charged, adding: “Hadn’t the occupation been there, such PA security apparatuses wouldn’t have existed at all.”
The Palestinian MP called on the unity government to take up its responsibilities and press ahead with the launch of the donors’ conference for the reconstruction of what has been destroyed by the Israeli occupation in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The PLC deputy denied recent claims on the formation of a shadow government in Gaza.
“If the consensus government does not fulfill its allotted missions and objectives, another unity government will take its place,” he said.
Addressing Abbas directly, al-Ashqar wrote: “If you wish to be our president you just have to alter your outlooks and unite the Palestinian people instead of severing the chord that links Gaza and the West Bank together.”
“There is no such a thing as legitimate and illegitimate employees. You have to be up to your assigned responsibility. Otherwise history will never forgive you,” he added.
Al-Ashqar spoke against the mounting intimidation carried out by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) against Hamas supporters in the West Bank.
“The PA is a smaller version of the rotten Arab regimes that have come to boost the Israeli occupation and settlement. The occupation’s security apparatuses are nurtured via security coordination” he charged, adding: “Hadn’t the occupation been there, such PA security apparatuses wouldn’t have existed at all.”
A number of armored military vehicles, and bulldozers, invaded Palestinian agricultural lands east of the al-Qarara town, near Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, bulldozed and uprooted the lands, and fired rounds of live ammunition.
Local sources said three armored vehicles, and four tanks, invaded the area, and advanced approximately 300 meters into the Palestinian lands before starting to bulldoze and uproot them.
The sources added that the soldiers fired rounds of live ammunition at random during the invasion.
The Israeli invasion is yet another violation of the ceasefire agreement that was reached under Egyptian mediation on August 27 following 50 days on ongoing bombardment and shelling of the coastal region.
The attacks also include ongoing assaults, and arrests, carried out against fishermen in Palestinian territorial waters.
Around 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, while more than 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Eleven Palestinians died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
Local sources said three armored vehicles, and four tanks, invaded the area, and advanced approximately 300 meters into the Palestinian lands before starting to bulldoze and uproot them.
The sources added that the soldiers fired rounds of live ammunition at random during the invasion.
The Israeli invasion is yet another violation of the ceasefire agreement that was reached under Egyptian mediation on August 27 following 50 days on ongoing bombardment and shelling of the coastal region.
The attacks also include ongoing assaults, and arrests, carried out against fishermen in Palestinian territorial waters.
Around 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, while more than 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Eleven Palestinians died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
Palestinian students graduating hold photos of their classmates killed in the recent Gaza massacre, who would be graduating with them if they had not been killed by Israel.
Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip have reported, Wednesday, that a man and a woman, died of serious injuries suffered during Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The sources said that Samira Hasan al-Louh, 53, died at the al-Maqassid Hospital in occupied Jerusalem following 50 days for treatment for severe burns and injuries resulting from an Israeli bombardment to her family home.
The woman was about to be transferred back to a Gaza hospital to continue her treatment, but succumbed to her injuries.
Her body is yet to be transferred to Gaza. Around 13 members of the al-Louh family have been killed, many injured in the Israeli bombardment.
In addition, medical sources in Gaza said an elderly Palestinian man also died of his wounds in a hospital in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
The man, Abdul-Fattah Abu Salima, 72, suffered a serious injury after the army bombarded his home in Tal al-Sultan in Rafah.
Around 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, while more than 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Eleven of them died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip have reported, Wednesday, that a man and a woman, died of serious injuries suffered during Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The sources said that Samira Hasan al-Louh, 53, died at the al-Maqassid Hospital in occupied Jerusalem following 50 days for treatment for severe burns and injuries resulting from an Israeli bombardment to her family home.
The woman was about to be transferred back to a Gaza hospital to continue her treatment, but succumbed to her injuries.
Her body is yet to be transferred to Gaza. Around 13 members of the al-Louh family have been killed, many injured in the Israeli bombardment.
In addition, medical sources in Gaza said an elderly Palestinian man also died of his wounds in a hospital in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
The man, Abdul-Fattah Abu Salima, 72, suffered a serious injury after the army bombarded his home in Tal al-Sultan in Rafah.
Around 2137 Palestinians, including 578 children, 264 women, and 103 elderly, have been killed, while more than 11100, including 3374 children, 2088 women and 410 elderly, have been injured as a result of Israel’s war on the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Eleven of them died of their injuries after the ceasefire agreement was reached.
10 sept 2014
Leila Zerrougui
Israeli forces, during the recent offensive on the the Gaza Strip, used one of UNRWA's schools in the region as a military base, according to a UN offical.
Leila Zerrougui, Special Representative of the Security-General for Children and Armed Conflict, declared on Monday that the Israeli military bombed 244 schools, 75 of which were run by UNRWA.
See: 69% of Gaza Schools Damaged by Israeli Assaults
While not disclosing the specific location of the school, it was revealed that one of these UNRWA schools was used an Israeli military base, according to the PNN.
See also: 08/23/14 Israel Retracts False Claim Regarding Alleged Hamas Rocket Base
Speaking of the aftermath of the assault on besieged Gaza, Ms. Zerrougui stated that, of the children wounded during the conflict, one third now suffer from full disability.
Nearly 600 Palestinian children suffered violent deaths as a result of injuries inflicted by Israeli strikes from the ground, air and sea.
Israeli forces, during the recent offensive on the the Gaza Strip, used one of UNRWA's schools in the region as a military base, according to a UN offical.
Leila Zerrougui, Special Representative of the Security-General for Children and Armed Conflict, declared on Monday that the Israeli military bombed 244 schools, 75 of which were run by UNRWA.
See: 69% of Gaza Schools Damaged by Israeli Assaults
While not disclosing the specific location of the school, it was revealed that one of these UNRWA schools was used an Israeli military base, according to the PNN.
See also: 08/23/14 Israel Retracts False Claim Regarding Alleged Hamas Rocket Base
Speaking of the aftermath of the assault on besieged Gaza, Ms. Zerrougui stated that, of the children wounded during the conflict, one third now suffer from full disability.
Nearly 600 Palestinian children suffered violent deaths as a result of injuries inflicted by Israeli strikes from the ground, air and sea.
Israeli navy forces opened fire at a boat engaged in fishing off the coast of southern Gaza, on Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Furthermore, Ma'an reports that forces escorted the fishermen back to five nautical miles from the coast after firing on them.
The previous day, four fishermen were detained by Israeli forces and later released, on Wednesday.
A military spokeswoman for Israel said: "earlier there was a vessel that deviated from the designated fishing zone and forces fired in the air and then at the vessel," adding that the boat then turned back.
The recent ceasefire agreement brokered by Egyptian officials stipulated that Israel would immediately expand the fishing zone off Gaza's coast, allowing fishermen to sail as far as six nautical miles off the shore, and would expand the area gradually up to 12 miles.
Earlier agreements had actually settled on a 20-mile limit but were subsequently ignored, as Hamas leadership became prevalent in the region, with the ongoing siege further bolstered by Egypt.
See: "Israel Limits Gaza Fishing Zone Again, Violates Ceasefire Agreement For 3rd Time" for details.
Furthermore, Ma'an reports that forces escorted the fishermen back to five nautical miles from the coast after firing on them.
The previous day, four fishermen were detained by Israeli forces and later released, on Wednesday.
A military spokeswoman for Israel said: "earlier there was a vessel that deviated from the designated fishing zone and forces fired in the air and then at the vessel," adding that the boat then turned back.
The recent ceasefire agreement brokered by Egyptian officials stipulated that Israel would immediately expand the fishing zone off Gaza's coast, allowing fishermen to sail as far as six nautical miles off the shore, and would expand the area gradually up to 12 miles.
Earlier agreements had actually settled on a 20-mile limit but were subsequently ignored, as Hamas leadership became prevalent in the region, with the ongoing siege further bolstered by Egypt.
See: "Israel Limits Gaza Fishing Zone Again, Violates Ceasefire Agreement For 3rd Time" for details.
Rahaf Abu Jame' 5
A 5-year-old Palestinian girl has died of injuries sustained during the recent Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.
The Safa News Agency said Rahaf Abu Jame', 5, from the village of Bani Suheila in Khan Younis, succumbed to her wounds in an Egyptian hospital while receiving treatment for shrapnel which hit her when their house was targeted by an air strike.
The child's father told Safa that she was born after 15 years of waiting.
The devastating 51-day Israeli assault saw approximately 2,158 Gazans – the vast majority of whom were civilians – dead and over 11,000 injured, with thousands of residential structures in ruins.
Some 70 Israelis were killed, including 67 soldiers in participation.
A 5-year-old Palestinian girl has died of injuries sustained during the recent Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.
The Safa News Agency said Rahaf Abu Jame', 5, from the village of Bani Suheila in Khan Younis, succumbed to her wounds in an Egyptian hospital while receiving treatment for shrapnel which hit her when their house was targeted by an air strike.
The child's father told Safa that she was born after 15 years of waiting.
The devastating 51-day Israeli assault saw approximately 2,158 Gazans – the vast majority of whom were civilians – dead and over 11,000 injured, with thousands of residential structures in ruins.
Some 70 Israelis were killed, including 67 soldiers in participation.
Pictured: a UN school severely damaged by Israeli attacks in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip
A Palestinian poem entitled "Running Orders" by Lena Khalaf Tuffaha describes the experience of a well-known Israeli military procedure as seen through the eyes of a Gaza resident:
"They call us now / Before they drop the bombs. / The phone rings / and someone who knows my first name / calls and says in perfect Arabic / 'This is David...' / ...You have 58 seconds from the end of this message. / Your house is next... / ...Run."
With the end of "Operation Protective Edge" on 26 August 2014, the international community is preparing to investigate numerous cases of suspected war crimes committed by the warring parties. In attempt to counter these allegations, a legal team established by the Israeli military will argue that policies like the one above, known as the "knock-on-the-roof," demonstrated Israel's humanitarian concern for civilian safety as it attacked alleged Hamas targets in Gaza.
The legal team would be right in saying that the knock-on-the-roof helped to prevent further casualties from occurring, at least to some extent. However, these arguments conceal the real effects of the policy on the ground, namely that countless civilians were displaced, traumatized, wounded and even killed as a result of these "knocks." Together with the missile strikes and ground incursions that killed over 2,100 Palestinians (about 70 percent of them civilians) and injured thousands more, Israel's "precautionary measures" during the war in fact exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Firstly, the Israeli military claims that roof-knocking was an effective method of warning to avoid harm to civilians. These knocks, however, do not reflect the soft tones the nickname implies. The knocks are bombs that exert enough force to damage or shake an entire building, causing possible physical harm and inducing tremendous fear to residents inside.
The panicked families are left rushing to warn neighbors of the incoming strike, while chaos ensues as people try to escape the firing zone. The densely populated Gazan neighborhoods and refugee camps add further difficulty for people to evacuate quickly during these life-threatening emergencies. More troublingly, there were several cases in which these supposed warning bombs directly hit and killed civilians, including three boys who were feeding pigeons on the roof of their home.
Secondly, the military claims that it exhausted all efforts to ensure that civilians were adequately warned ahead of a strike. However, the roof-knocking cases reveal that there was no consistent or reliable application for its use. The process ranged from initiating phone calls before the knocks, to no calls or knocks at all.
On several occasions, a knock was issued but the strike did not commence until hours later, posing a danger to residents who fled their homes or who believed they were issued a false alarm, and thus returned to the targeted sites. Other cases showed the opposite, in that many residents had insufficient time -- mere seconds or minutes -- to distance themselves from the explosion and debris caused by the strike, resulting in deaths and injuries. Thus instead of being a "considerate" alert, the knock-on-the-roof became a symbol of fear, unpredictability and chaos.
Thirdly, Israeli officials contend that the military's liability for civilian lives ended once they issued their warnings. But this is legally, practically and ethically wrong. In addition to the harm above, the knocks and subsequent missile strikes were directly responsible for the displacement and dispossession of Palestinian families, forcing them into homelessness and poverty.
This was further compounded by the fact that there was nowhere to run in Gaza. Between the closure of land crossings, overcrowded cities, overstretched humanitarian facilities, the targeting of hospitals and shelters, and air strikes in nearly every part of the small territory, Gaza more than ever resembled a turbulent prison where Palestinians were even denied the right to be refugees.
These devastating impacts of the knock-on-the-roof have been witnessed before. In the investigation into "Operation Cast Lead" of 2008/9, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict concluded that roof-knocking was an ineffective warning that "constitutes a form of attack" against inhabitants of targeted buildings, and that was more likely to "cause terror and confuse the affected civilians" than help them to safety.
In short, contrary to the Israeli legal team's expected claims, roof-knocking does not legalize what has clearly been deemed a crime under international law: the collective punishment of civilians. Even if military targets were embedded in civilian areas, there is rarely a military or moral reason to excuse the disproportionate harm caused to thousands of civilians through these measures.
The fact that Israel has launched offensives on Gaza three times in the last six years, all while maintaining an eight-year blockade, further proves that its military policies do little to bring the security that its officials use to justify them.
Their only result, despite the myths to cover them up, is to make Gaza's dire humanitarian conditions a permanent feature in the lives of its people. Until those policies end, more Palestinians can be threatened with the same message by phone, explosion or missile: "Your house is next...Run."
A Palestinian poem entitled "Running Orders" by Lena Khalaf Tuffaha describes the experience of a well-known Israeli military procedure as seen through the eyes of a Gaza resident:
"They call us now / Before they drop the bombs. / The phone rings / and someone who knows my first name / calls and says in perfect Arabic / 'This is David...' / ...You have 58 seconds from the end of this message. / Your house is next... / ...Run."
With the end of "Operation Protective Edge" on 26 August 2014, the international community is preparing to investigate numerous cases of suspected war crimes committed by the warring parties. In attempt to counter these allegations, a legal team established by the Israeli military will argue that policies like the one above, known as the "knock-on-the-roof," demonstrated Israel's humanitarian concern for civilian safety as it attacked alleged Hamas targets in Gaza.
The legal team would be right in saying that the knock-on-the-roof helped to prevent further casualties from occurring, at least to some extent. However, these arguments conceal the real effects of the policy on the ground, namely that countless civilians were displaced, traumatized, wounded and even killed as a result of these "knocks." Together with the missile strikes and ground incursions that killed over 2,100 Palestinians (about 70 percent of them civilians) and injured thousands more, Israel's "precautionary measures" during the war in fact exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Firstly, the Israeli military claims that roof-knocking was an effective method of warning to avoid harm to civilians. These knocks, however, do not reflect the soft tones the nickname implies. The knocks are bombs that exert enough force to damage or shake an entire building, causing possible physical harm and inducing tremendous fear to residents inside.
The panicked families are left rushing to warn neighbors of the incoming strike, while chaos ensues as people try to escape the firing zone. The densely populated Gazan neighborhoods and refugee camps add further difficulty for people to evacuate quickly during these life-threatening emergencies. More troublingly, there were several cases in which these supposed warning bombs directly hit and killed civilians, including three boys who were feeding pigeons on the roof of their home.
Secondly, the military claims that it exhausted all efforts to ensure that civilians were adequately warned ahead of a strike. However, the roof-knocking cases reveal that there was no consistent or reliable application for its use. The process ranged from initiating phone calls before the knocks, to no calls or knocks at all.
On several occasions, a knock was issued but the strike did not commence until hours later, posing a danger to residents who fled their homes or who believed they were issued a false alarm, and thus returned to the targeted sites. Other cases showed the opposite, in that many residents had insufficient time -- mere seconds or minutes -- to distance themselves from the explosion and debris caused by the strike, resulting in deaths and injuries. Thus instead of being a "considerate" alert, the knock-on-the-roof became a symbol of fear, unpredictability and chaos.
Thirdly, Israeli officials contend that the military's liability for civilian lives ended once they issued their warnings. But this is legally, practically and ethically wrong. In addition to the harm above, the knocks and subsequent missile strikes were directly responsible for the displacement and dispossession of Palestinian families, forcing them into homelessness and poverty.
This was further compounded by the fact that there was nowhere to run in Gaza. Between the closure of land crossings, overcrowded cities, overstretched humanitarian facilities, the targeting of hospitals and shelters, and air strikes in nearly every part of the small territory, Gaza more than ever resembled a turbulent prison where Palestinians were even denied the right to be refugees.
These devastating impacts of the knock-on-the-roof have been witnessed before. In the investigation into "Operation Cast Lead" of 2008/9, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict concluded that roof-knocking was an ineffective warning that "constitutes a form of attack" against inhabitants of targeted buildings, and that was more likely to "cause terror and confuse the affected civilians" than help them to safety.
In short, contrary to the Israeli legal team's expected claims, roof-knocking does not legalize what has clearly been deemed a crime under international law: the collective punishment of civilians. Even if military targets were embedded in civilian areas, there is rarely a military or moral reason to excuse the disproportionate harm caused to thousands of civilians through these measures.
The fact that Israel has launched offensives on Gaza three times in the last six years, all while maintaining an eight-year blockade, further proves that its military policies do little to bring the security that its officials use to justify them.
Their only result, despite the myths to cover them up, is to make Gaza's dire humanitarian conditions a permanent feature in the lives of its people. Until those policies end, more Palestinians can be threatened with the same message by phone, explosion or missile: "Your house is next...Run."
While inspecting the ruins resulting from the Israeli shelling on his drug factory, Marwan al-Astal was wondering about the international conventions that prohibit targeting everything related to the medical sector.
Disapprovingly, al-Astal looks at the medicine bottles and the damaged raw materials and the remains of Israeli artillery shells that hit his factory, and tells Anadolu Turkish news Agency: "Israel purposely ignores the international conventions, and targets everything in Gaza, even a drug factory and the hospitals”.
And according to al-Astal, the owner of the Middle East Company for Pharmaceutical and Cosmetics Industry, the Israeli tanks targeted, for many days during the 51-day war on Gaza, the drugs company, which meets 15% of Gaza needs where about 1.8 million Palestinians reside.
He continued: "two days before the war, we brought an 80-thousand-dollar shipment of supplies and raw materials, but couldn't get it inside the stores due to the outbreak of the war. The missiles hit the shipment and it was completely destroyed”.
He added: "I couldn't come to check on the place during the war; since no one dared to enter the industrial area here, in northern Beit Hanoun, because of the intensive shelling.
Al-Astal estimates the loss value of his factory to be a million dollars, noting that 50 employees will become unemployed as a result of destroying his factory.
He clarifies that the “Intensity of the Zionist shelling on the factory and the area around it caused a failure in the electronic panels responsible for programming the drugs manufacturing machines; the price of one panel of these is more than ten thousand dollars".
He added: "A huge amount of raw materials whose value is about 120 thousand dollars were damaged because we were unable to provide the appropriate temperature because of the power outages for long times; in addition; we haven't been able to reach the factory for 51 days."
“And because the company stopped working, the shortage in medicines, which the Strip already suffers from due to the Israeli blockade, will increase”, according to al-Astal.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health declared last Thursday that 27% of the essential medicines are not available any more in the Strip, and about 48% of the basic medical consumables ran out.
Yousuf Abu Al-Reish, the Palestinian Ministry of Health undersecretary, said in an earlier press conference held by the Ministry in Gaza that the hospitals in the Strip suffer a severe shortage in the essential drugs and medical consumables.
Disapprovingly, al-Astal looks at the medicine bottles and the damaged raw materials and the remains of Israeli artillery shells that hit his factory, and tells Anadolu Turkish news Agency: "Israel purposely ignores the international conventions, and targets everything in Gaza, even a drug factory and the hospitals”.
And according to al-Astal, the owner of the Middle East Company for Pharmaceutical and Cosmetics Industry, the Israeli tanks targeted, for many days during the 51-day war on Gaza, the drugs company, which meets 15% of Gaza needs where about 1.8 million Palestinians reside.
He continued: "two days before the war, we brought an 80-thousand-dollar shipment of supplies and raw materials, but couldn't get it inside the stores due to the outbreak of the war. The missiles hit the shipment and it was completely destroyed”.
He added: "I couldn't come to check on the place during the war; since no one dared to enter the industrial area here, in northern Beit Hanoun, because of the intensive shelling.
Al-Astal estimates the loss value of his factory to be a million dollars, noting that 50 employees will become unemployed as a result of destroying his factory.
He clarifies that the “Intensity of the Zionist shelling on the factory and the area around it caused a failure in the electronic panels responsible for programming the drugs manufacturing machines; the price of one panel of these is more than ten thousand dollars".
He added: "A huge amount of raw materials whose value is about 120 thousand dollars were damaged because we were unable to provide the appropriate temperature because of the power outages for long times; in addition; we haven't been able to reach the factory for 51 days."
“And because the company stopped working, the shortage in medicines, which the Strip already suffers from due to the Israeli blockade, will increase”, according to al-Astal.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health declared last Thursday that 27% of the essential medicines are not available any more in the Strip, and about 48% of the basic medical consumables ran out.
Yousuf Abu Al-Reish, the Palestinian Ministry of Health undersecretary, said in an earlier press conference held by the Ministry in Gaza that the hospitals in the Strip suffer a severe shortage in the essential drugs and medical consumables.
Page: 130 - 129 - 128 - 127 - 126 - 125 - 124 - 123 - 122 - 121 - 120 - 119 - 118 - 117 - 116 - 115 - 114
Truce violations List of names Pictures of martyrs
Days: Aug: 26 - 25 - 24 - 23 - 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1
July: 31 - 30 - 29 - 28 - 27 - 26 - 25 - 24 - 23 - 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8
Days: Aug: 26 - 25 - 24 - 23 - 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1
July: 31 - 30 - 29 - 28 - 27 - 26 - 25 - 24 - 23 - 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8
