Here comes the escalation... http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/08/israel.rockets/index.html (CNN) -- At least three rockets struck northern Israel from Lebanon on Thursday, wounding two people, Israeli police and emergency medical services said. Both people suffered minor injuries, medical authorities said. The report comes as Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, aimed at halting rocket fire from the Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory to the south, entered a 13th day. Israel fought a similar campaign against the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia Hezbollah in 2006, during which Hezbollah rained rockets on cities in Israeli's north for a month before a cease-fire was reached. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Thursday's strike, and no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
Except how many innocent people died next to that terrorist. You can say its hamas' fault or whoever's fault but at the end of the day innocent people are dying and Israel is doing a lot of the killing. Israel needs to stop. Violence just begets more violence.
I chuckle at the finger pointing. It really doesnt matter who did what first. It is obvious Israel thinks it has an advantage, when it doesn't. The IDF is not stupid. It knows it cant completely stop rocket fire from Gaza. Whatever their ulterior political calculus, it is insane, and could backfire horribly.
At least the suicide bomber doesn't get away with blatant murder. And known terrorist location? UN-run school where at least 350 refugees are taking shelter does not constitute a legitimate place to throw artillery shells at. Then to justify it, it says they saw Hamas militants shoot mortars from inside the school. Except a UN official (Ging) already denied any Hamas members stepping a foot on the school grounds. 40 people dead, mostly women and children. And there is still no apology. More civilians have died than Hamas militants. Is the war on Hamas, or is it on Palestine? The actions of Israel over the past 4 decades would have me thinking the latter.
As some here have already predicted, the U.S. was only giving Israel 'operational time' to punish Hamas and Gazans for a few days before calling for a cease fire. The U.S. is now raising the "STOP" sign for Israel and telling it to accept the Egyptian-French draft already proposed: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090108/wl_nm/us_palestinians_israel I have no doubt Israel will yield to our wishes in short time.
Reports now Israel may be firing cluster bombs into Gaza at night... http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1052319.html In the video they show clips of two cluster bomb explosions as they talk about the Israel bombardment at night. Add that with using white phosphorus in the one of the most densely populated areas...: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5447590.ece (Do they issue a warning for this too? Would kind of defeat its purpose)
This is glynch-esque logical absurdity. The question should not revolve around the response, but around the instigation. I'm aghast you actually think this question legitimate - and I am disgusted at the mindset and implication is represents. Sick.
eckostyles, I take it, is mad when Israel fires rockets towards suspected Hamas militants. However, he is not mad when Hamas fires random rockets into Israeli towns towards innocent Israelis. The rockets we hear much less about. Hmm...
True but one could look at that since a Jewish state was created the Lehi Group won without needing the help of the Nazis. That said the fact that even knowing that the Nazis hated Jews (although they probably didn't know about the final solution at the time) that a Jewish group was making an offer of an allegiance shows just how strange things can get with politics. For that matter since we allied and supported the Soviet Union for many years, even publically praised their fighting spirit and that leaders of both countries visited the other that the US was actually pro-Communists? As I said before I don't deny that many Arabs did ally themselves with the Nazis but I think the political considerations where far more important than ideology.
So you are justifying using the kid as a human shield because he was throwing stones in the first place? You do realize that a hard thrown stone to the head can be lethal especially when you are tied down and can't protect yourself. Since I didn't answer the question earlier I don't want Israel nuked and I think it is a hateful and shameful thing to say.
There was supposed to be a three-hour ceasefire today so that humanitarian aid could be delivered into the Gaza strip. Of course, Hamas broke it. Hamas also rejects any peace proposals.
Reading comprehension 101: I said "bad judgment" by whoever did this - how is this "justifying" it? Also - you do realize that a hard stone thrown to the head by that kid could be lethal as well? Unbelievable. They start throwing stones, then one is captured and all of a sudden he is the poor victim whose head needs to be protected.
I thought that way at the beginning of the conflict but there is a lot of evidence coming out that Israel might've been the first to break the cease fire.[/b] Apparently Israel launched an incursion into Gaza a few months ago and killed 6 Hamas fighters. It sounds like the Hamas fighters were digging a tunnel to get into Israel so this might've been self defense but at this point there is evidence that Israel broke the cease fire. As far as Israel's withdraw from Gaza that wasn't a peace move but an acknowledgement on the part of Israel that Gaza was of little strategic value and the occupation was costly. I can't speak for other posters but I have condemned them for launching rockets and for kidnapping Israelis. Israel has the right to respond to a threat and launching rockets is a threat but I don't believe a heavy handed response will solve anything but actually make things worse. And has other incursions along with an economic blockade done that? If anything its increased Hamas' support. Like the invasions of Lebanon? Like the driving tanks into the PA headquarters in Ramallah? Like flattening the Rafah refugee camp? Its not like Israel hasn't tried massive responses yet those haven't stopped terrorism. If anything the destruction of the PA infrastructure very likely helped Hamas' political victory by showing Palestinians that the path of Fatah moderation wasn't doing anything.
You stated after you said "Bad judgment", you added,"Still, the kid started it by throwing stones." that sounds like a justification for me. I don't agree with kids throwing stones and agree it could be lethal. That said you are criticizing the Palestinians for using human shields when apparently the Israelis aren't above doing the same. Are you saying that kid being used as a human shield isn't a victim?
not to answer for someone else, but wouldn't the difference here be that the kid was the terrorist in this case? if a comparison was made. it'd be like militant Hamas using other militant Hamas members as human shields....well, in that case, they're not a human shield. that said, the fact that it is a child and all the other facts of that particular incident make the response highly reprehensible, r****ded, and in no way justified. what's clear in general is that both sides use propaganda and media, including the U.N., to try and shape world view. Both sides commit heinous and stupid acts if the goal is for everyone to live peacefully. Both sides can make claims to the land being theirs historically. Both sides can make claims to the other side breaking agreements and cease-fires. Both sides have perfectly innocent people being harmed. both sides seem to have at least once used human shields. etc, etc, etc. it's pretty clear that there isn't a single "bad" thing done by one side that the other side hasn't done something very similar or comparable in current or recent history.
a row is brewing between vatican and catholic church and the israeli goverment http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL8409388 the vatican cardinal called gaza a "concentration camp" and refused to back out of it later. i have no other way to describe gaza and its crappy conditions with israeli blockade and systemic starvation and humiliation of its people, so i have to agree with cardinal
