Saturday 12 July 2014

Israel defiant in face of world opinion

UN questions legality of Israel’s Gaza offensive, Netanyahu dismisses intl pressure


RT,
12 July, 2014

The legality of Israel’s Operation Protective Edge, which entered its fifth day on Saturday, has been questioned by the UN's humanitarian chief. But Israel's prime minister has said that no international pressure will stop the offensive.

Under international law, Israel must make sure its attacks are proportional, avoid civilian deaths, and identify military versus civilian objects on the ground, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said on Friday.

"We have received deeply disturbing reports that many of the civilian casualties, including of children, occurred as a result of strikes on homes. Such reports raise serious doubt about whether the Israeli strikes have been in accordance with international humanitarian law and international human rights law,"Pillay said in a statement.

The Palestinian death toll rose to at least 106 people early Saturday, as Israel continued its airstrikes for the fourth consecutive day, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. At least 75 of those killed are civilians, including 23 children, Reuters quoted medical officials in Gaza as saying.

Meanwhile, there haven’t been any casualties in Israel, with only nine civilians injured, Pillay’s office said, citing media reports. Earlier, Israeli officials reported that two soldiers had been wounded.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay (AFP Photo / Fadel Senna)
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay (AFP Photo / Fadel Senna)

Israel says that Operation Protective Edge does not target Gaza civilians. This is not an operation in any capacity against the people of Gaza. This is an operation against Hamas, against an organization that purposefully and specifically uses the civilian population of Gaza as human shields,” Libi Vice, spokeswoman for the Israel Defense Forces (IFD) told RT on Thursday.


We made unbounded efforts to protect the civilian population in the Gaza Strip before any attack against Hamas. We take measures that no other military or no other country takes in the world, which include text messages to people in civil areas, phone calls to their homes.”

According to Pillay, airstrikes that target the homes of civilians violate international law unless the homes are used as military bases – a stipulation that Vice says Israel is fully abiding by.

"In case of doubt, buildings ordinarily used for civilian purposes, such as homes, are presumed not to be legitimate military targets. Even where a home is identified as being used for military purposes, any attack must be proportionate, offer a definite military advantage in the prevailing circumstances at the time, and precautions must be taken," Vice said.

The spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) described the destruction in Gaza: "More than 340 housing units in Gaza have been severely damaged or completely destroyed. As a result, more than 2,000 people have been displaced.”


A Palestinian woman is brought into an hospital on a stretcher after she was injured in an Israeli air strike on July 11, 2014 in Gaza City. (AFP Photo / Mohammed Abed)

A Palestinian woman is brought into an hospital on a stretcher after she was injured in an Israeli air strike on July 11, 2014 in Gaza City. (AFP Photo / Mohammed Abed)


Israel defiant in face of international concerns


Israel made clear on Friday that it would not be bowing to international pressure, instead continuing its airstrikes and ignoring US President Barack Obama’s offer to help negotiate a ceasefire.
"No international pressure will prevent us from acting with all power," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told reporters in Tel Aviv.

Israel's operation will continue until we are certain that quiet returns to Israeli citizens,” Netanyahu said. Israel has so far targeted more than 1,000 objects in Gaza and there are "more to go."

Netanyahu also did not rule out a ground attack on Gaza, stating: "We are weighing all possibilities and preparing for all possibilities.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks during a press conference at the defense ministry in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on July 11, 2014. (AFP Photo / Gali Tibbon)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks during a press conference at the defense ministry in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on July 11, 2014. (AFP Photo / Gali Tibbon)


Israel's military commander, Lieutenant-General Benny Gantz, added that the national army is ready to expand the operation. "We are in the midst of an assault and we are prepared to expand it as much as is required, to wherever is required, with whatever force will be required and for as long as will be required,"Gantz told reporters on Friday.


On Thursday, US President Barack Obama told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Washington is willing to negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the White House said.
"The United States remains prepared to facilitate a cessation of hostilities, including a return to the November 2012 ceasefire agreement," said the statement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin urged Netanyahu to end the bloodshed immediately in a telephone conversation on Thursday, expressing concern over civilian casualties. UN chief Ban Ki-moon also called for an immediate ceasefire at an emergency meeting of the Security Council.
French President Francois Hollande has also expressed concern over the worsening crisis in Israel and Gaza, and called for an end to the violence.

Huge build-up of IDF troops spotted at Israeli-Palestinian border






Israel steps up military offensive in Gaza LIVE UPDATES


Palestinians stand next to a destroyed house following what police said was an Israeli air strike in central Gaza Strip July 9, 2014. (Reuters / Ashraf Amrah)
Palestinians stand next to a destroyed house following what police said was an Israeli air strike in central Gaza Strip July 9, 2014. (Reuters / Ashraf Amrah)
Fierce rocket fire exchange is continuing between Israeli armed forces and Hamas, which has claimed the lives of more than 90 Palestinians. Israel is bracing itself for a “ground offensive,” calling up 40,000 army reservists.

Friday, July 11

22:50 GMT:
Two more Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike, raising the death toll to 106, Ma’an news agency reported, citing Palestinian Health Ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qidra. The two individuals were identified as 47-year-old Hussein al-Mamlok and 80-year-old Saber Sukkar. Three other people were injured in the attack, which targeted the al-Nizar neighborhood in la-Shujaiyya, located in eastern Gaza City.

Daily recap: the fourth day of Operation Protective Edge
Images of terror: The remnants of the home in Beer Sheva which was struck by a rocket from
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that Israel has attacked more than 1,000 targets during a four-day offensive against Gaza militants and that "there are still more to go." The expansion of the campaign and a ground operation are not ruled out, and he added: "We are preparing all options." He also said he saw no international pressure on Israel to halt its campaign.
10:04 GMT:
The armed wing of Hamas group has warned they are going to target Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport, 19 km from Tel Aviv's city center, according to a statement by the group. They added they will launch the rockets from the Gaza Strip.
"In the light of Israel's ... attacks on the residents of Gaza Strip ... The armed wing of Hamas has decided to respond to Israeli aggression and we warn you against carrying out flights to Ben Gurion airport, which will be one of our targets today because it also hosts a military air base," the statement said.
05:36 GMT:
Reports from Israel’s Ashdod say a rocket hit at a gas station, causing multiple injuries. At least one person is reportedly in a critical condition. A major rescue operation is underway.
View image on TwitterView image on Twitter
Up-close photos of gas station hit by rocket in Ashdod moments ago.

05:33 GMT:
At least two rockets have been fired Friday from Southern Lebanon at Israel, local media and security sources said. Israel responded to the attack with shelling.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the region is a stronghold of the Hezbollah movement, which has been engaged in hostilities with Israel on many occasions.






Al-Jamaa member behind rockets fired at Israel




the Daily Star (Lebanon),
12 July, 2014

BEIRUT/MARI, Lebanon: A member of Al-Jamaa Al-Islamiya fired rockets at Israel Friday, sources from the group told The Daily Star, adding that Hussein Izzat Atwe acted of his own volition.

Atwe is not a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria or the Nusra Front, nor is he a terrorist,” the source said.

Atwe is a member of Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya who acted of his own volition in sympathy with the people of Palestine.”

The source highlighted that while Atwe did not refer to Al-Jamaa’s top command, the Islamist group considered Friday morning’s firing of rockets on Israel “an honorable act of resistance.”

The source disclosed that Al-Jamaa was holding contacts with officials to secure the release of Atwe, was arrested by the Internal Security Forces in Al-Bire Hospital in the Bekaa Valley, where he was receiving treatment for severe burns he sustained after launching the rockets.

The source argued that policy statements of successive Lebanese governments mentioned the right of the Lebanese people to resist Israel, adding that Atwe’s act fell within that realm.

The attack Friday morning triggered Israeli retaliatory artillery shelling of the Lebanese village of Kfar Shuba and heightened tensions on the generally calm border between the two countries. Lebanese authorities arrested two men suspected of involvement in the dawn rocket attack on Israel.

Hours before Atwe’s arrest, the Internal Security Forces’ Information Branch apprehended a Lebanese man, identified as Samir Abu Qais, in the Hasbaya village of Hebbarieh after they found blood stains in his car that sparked a search of area hospitals for suspects.

Lebanese security sources told The Daily Star that Lebanese Army Intelligence had found traces of six rockets in the village of Mari in Hasbaya, some 2 kilometers from the Blue Line, the United Nations-demarcated border line between Lebanon and Israel.

They said the Army defused two 107mm Grad rockets that were primed to be fired toward Israel following a search for launch pads.

The sources confirmed that three rockets, with a range of 10 kilometers, had been fired toward Israel from the Mari area near the village of Majidieh between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. Only one projectile was reported to have hit Israel, according to the Israeli army

The sources said a sixth rocket failed to fire and exploded in place, wounding the person handling it. They said traces of blood and a ripped shoe were found at the site

After searching the area, the Army discovered two missile platforms with more rockets ready for launch and dismantled them, the statement said. It added that troops were searching for the perpetrators to arrest them

U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon spokesman Andrea Tenenti said commander Maj. Gen. Paolo Serra warned that the attack was aimed at undermining stability in the area

The UNIFIL command is “in close contact with the parties urging maximum restraint in order to prevent any escalation of the situation,” Tenenti said.
Serra said the incident was a “serious” violation of U.N. Security CouncilResolution 1701 and “is clearly directed at undermining stability in the area.”

Lebanese military sources said that the situation in the south is under control by Resolution 1701 and as a result of constant coordination between the Army and UNIFIL troops

The military sources described the firing of rockets from south Lebanon as “an attempt by some extremist organizations to assert their presence.

There is no decision by Hezbollah or Palestinian factions to ignite the front with Israel,” the military sources said

They added that Lebanese military and security forces were fully ready to face “fifth column” attempts to carry out suspicious actions that serve only the Israeli enemy.


I like the recent format discussing Ukraine. I'm not sure much is gained by having a face-off between Finkelstein and the zionist.  Leave the zionist out and we might have some real discussion.


CrossTalk: Target-Gaza

As Israel appears to be preparing for yet another assault on the Gaza Strip, what does it want to achieve? Is the goal to completely destroy Hamas? And should we expect Washington to stand by and watch the killing of civilians? CrossTalking with Dan Arbell, Norman Finkelstein and Mouin Rabbani.







Tear gas & Stun grenades: Palestinian protesters clash with IDF


More than a hundred Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli soldiers in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Friday night. The protesters, angry at Israel's military operation in Gaza, threw petrol bombs and stones at the soldiers. They set fire to tires in the road and threw fireworks at a military watchtower. Israeli soldiers responded with stun grenades and tear gas in an effort to disperse the demonstrators. Palestinian sources said, one Palestinian man was taken to hospital with a bullet wound to the leg after being fired upon by an Israeli soldier.



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