generalspeaking

Missing The Point Of The Blunt-Edged Sword

There it is, in full glowing, condemnatory technicolour, the results of the United Nations investigation into the Israeli loss-of-patience with attacks from Hamas in Gaza. Judge Richard Goldstone of South Africa, lent himself and his honourable credentials to the enterprise, in the hopes, his daughter claims, that he could spare Israel the full brunt of criticism that would slam the country under the enquiry leadership of another than he.

His investigation, boycotted by the Government of Israel who declined to participate, and who led their own investigation, led him to Sderot where the media centre there was given 40 precious minutes to demonstrate, through film, the panic of Israeli children desperately attempting to find shelter from ongoing rocket attacks. The busy, overworked Judge Goldstone was reputed to have fallen asleep.

His partners-in-judgement, a woman from Ireland, and a gentleman from Pakistan, viewed the footage, stone-faced. The conclusion of the committee was that neither Israel nor Hamas acquitted themselves in a gentlemanly fashion in their little disagreement. One supposes that the bombing of London and the bombing of Dresden were also roughly similar. That the gassing of Jews in their millions, and the incarceration of Axis nationals in the West were comparable.

The 574-page report recounts and denounces the many instances of deliberate Israeli human rights abuses. Responding to bombs lobbed from Hamas militants from amid the civilian population. Clearly, the IDF should have been constrained, should have understood it must not respond. Much as the State of Israel did not respond to the grievous provocations year after year over her borders, inflicting terror on her people.

Hamas uses a diabolical and extremely publicity-useful tactic which it patterned upon Hezbollah's tactics, using the civilian population as living shields. And should, as happens, civilians come to harm when the Zionist enemy responds to attacks, by counter-attacking, why then, this is held up as proof of the brutality and inhumanity of the Zionist entity. Civilian casualties and deaths, in fact, aid and assist the public relations campaign admirably.

This is the campaign of total discreditation of Israel, its politicians, its judiciary, its academics, its institutions and organizations, its infrastructure, its society, its people, and its religion. In short, there is nothing whatever in the State of Israel worth preserving, and the world should know that simple fact, and recognize it, and act upon it. And, truth to tell, they do, and are eager to do so. Amply demonstrated by the renascent tide of anti-Semitism.

In aiding and abetting terrorism by the calm objectivity of this report and its conclusion, the world will have its opportunity to view Israel hauled before the UN's International Criminal Court in the Hague. Of course Israel views its military comportment during the Gaza offensive as sitting neatly within the laws of warfare; a state has an obligation to protect itself. Just as fanatical Islamists feel their obligation toward destruction of Jews and infidels to be their paramount obligation.

Israel, understandably, contests the conclusions of the report; claiming that 700 of the acknowledged 1,166 Palestinian deaths during the weeks of the offensive were those of Hamas militants. The balance were unfortunate victims of the theatre of war. It was not Israel that chose the venue, after all, but Hamas which continually and triumphantly fired from that venue upon Israel and its citizens.

Judge Goldstone is adamant that fully 36 incidents they investigated were representative of deliberate, unforgivable policies of the Government of Israel, not unfortunate decisions taken by soldiers during combat operations. The report gravely condemned the IDF for its attacks on "buildings and persons of the Gaza authorities" in their belief that "there is no evidence that the Legislative council building and the Gaza main prison made an effective contribution to military action". Both, according to Judge Goldstone being "civilian objects".

Separating, in his opinion and that of his committee, in other words, Hamas into two distinct arms; the combative, militant arm and the civil administrative arm. And that's a bit of a stretch. The militant arm of Hamas, in convention with the civil arm, targeted Fatah militia and civilians for torture and death, even during the brief Israeli offensive. Just as they committed to death any Palestinians they suspected of trading with the enemy.

Of course the civic buildings, the university, a mosque, also did double-duty as arms depots, and as launching sites for rocket and mortar attacks. Now we're getting into the misery of confusing and irrelevant facts, leading to nasty conclusions, and that simply will not do.

Labels: Anti-Semitism, Israel, Security, Troublespots

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, September 16, 2009