Israel in Gaza
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This week, dozens of Palestinians have been killed in continuing Israeli raids in Gaza, Palestine. Pictured above are members of the Hajaj family who were killed in recent bombing of Palestine by the Israeli Defence Forces. According to Y-Net news, the family was in their home when it was struck by an Israeli shell. Those pictured above include the mother of the family and two of her children, including a six year old girl.
Ehud Olmert has asserted that there is no timetable for an end to what Euronews describes as Gaza being "under a state of seige." Olmert stated at a cabinet meeting in Jerusalem that "This is a war which cannot be bound by time." According to Deutsche Presse-Agentur, Olmert and Defence Minister Amir Peretz stated that "Israel's current offensive in the Gaza Strip has no time limit and and its objectives have not yet been achieved."
I shudder to think of what the objectives might be, realistically, that they are trying to achieve. The longer this continues, the more innocent civilians will lose their lives, and the cycle of violence will perpetuate itself. It seems that the Israeli leaders have gone so far off the deep end this time that their aim is to try and completely crush the will of the Palestinian people, and if that does not work, just wipe them out altogether. The death and destruction they are leaving in their wake are going to have a lasting impact on any chance of stability in the troubled region.
I am not alone in being outraged and heartbroken as to the mounting crisis in Palestine. On sunday 50,000 people took to the streets of Istanbul, Turkey, to protest Israel's invasion of palestine.
As I have observed on many occasions about many situations, Israels actions (supposedly to fight against "the terrorists") are only increasing their support base; one of the slogans most widely chanted at the demonstration in Turkey was "Farewell to Sharon, Devotion to Hamas."
"Gaza is now without electricity for 12 to 18 hours a day, food prices have increased by 10 percent in a week, and water supplies can only be maintained for another two weeks." Euronews reports. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan describes the situation as on "the brink" of a catastrophe.
“I call again for an immediate halt to the disproportionate use of force by Israel, which has already killed and wounded many civilians; for the release of Israeli Army Corporal Gilad Shalit; and for the cessation of rocket fire into Israel,” were the specific words used by Kofi Annan on the 7th. He reiterated his concerns on the 8th, in a statement reported on the UN News Center website.
“As I have repeatedly stated, I am extremely concerned about the dangerous situation in the occupied Palestinian Territory,” Mr. Annan said in a statement released in Berlin, Germany.
“I am appealing for urgent action to alleviate the desperate humanitarian situation of the civilian population.”
The Arab Maghrib Union added their voices to those expressing condemnation for the situation, saying "Israeli military aggression was an exercise of a state terrorism and a breach of international norms and signed agreements with the Palestinian people" as reported by the Kuwait News Agency.
The Israeli group Gosh Shalom "called upon the European Union and its member states, possibly in conjunction with other countries, to intervene immediately and effectively in the looming Israel-Palestinian crisis" on Sunday according to WAFA Palestinian News Agency. They also pleaded for EU peacekeeping troops to intervene in the desperate situation.
An air raid Sunday, that was an attempt at an assassination ("targeted killing") of a "militant" missed its intended target and wounded 5 civilians, including this young girl.
The situation in Palestine is already a humanitarian crisis that borders on genocide, and this latest incursion is only making the problem exponentially worse. It is counterproductive to the stated goal of Israel of putting an end to the militant attacks.
According to Al Bawaba news agency, "despite the Israeli attacks, rockets continued to land in Israel. In the latest attacks, a rocket landed in a street in the Israeli town of Sderot, wounding one person, the [Israeli] army said."
The continuing slaughter of civilians by the IDF and the destruction of Palestine is only going to increase support for those who would fight against Israel. The cycle of violence is spiraling out of control, with no end in sight. The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that for intervention to not occur now would be a travesty against any semblence of respect for human life. We need to call on our leaders to step in and put an end to this horrible situation.
Tags:
Genocide,
Israel,
War Crimes
4 comments:
It is SO SICKENING ME ... I can't possibly describe HOW MUCH!! It makes me sick to my stomach .. I can't grasp how on earth the world-community can possible sit still and not care!! I pray every day to God to help, to punish those perpetraters and be with those poor victims! It is a nightmare so terrible that I lack words to describe .. something which doesn't occur often!
Today Israel also invaded Lebanon. Hezbollah apparently kidnapped 2 israeli soldiers, and the invasion was in response to what Israel has termed "an act of war." Well, their continued "disproportunate use of force" (in the words of Kofi Annan) is only going to encourage more people to take up arms against them, so their actions are only encouraging the continuation of this cycle of violence, which at the moment seems to be spiralling out of control. This utter lack of respect for human life is, for me also, absolutely sickening.
I can't believe the EU is remaining silent on this. It breaks my heart.
And so it goes. This bloodshed and animosity between Muslim and Jew is nothing new. What is relatively new in this historic conflict is how efficient and how deadly is modern war technologies have become.
Why don't we see these pictures in the U.S. news? Is it possible the American News Media doesn't want us to worry.
Well speaking of News, reality has proved more ironic that "The Daily Show" this evening. I am starting to believe this world is going crazy.
"I thought you were going to ask about the pig."
This evening I was watching "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart on Comedy Central. Jon was covering the President's European press conference. In comic coverage, America's Commander In Chief managed to use the word pig in response to three different questions..
In his "thank you for inviting me to Germany" intro GWB mentioned how much he looks forward to his promised pig meat. "I've been told I might even get to cut the pig." The second went something like, "I'm looking forward to that pig."
I was sitting on my couch watching these clips and I began to wonder if this leader of the most powerful nation in the history of the world knew that Muslims and Jews do not eat pig. This is one of the few items they both agree on. I soon realized that Bush has topped himself. He managed to piss off fundamentalist Jews and Muslims in the same press conference.
That said, Bush's third response takes the cake. In answering a pointed question about his take on the Isreali, Palestinian, Lebanon sitation our Supreme Leader stated, "I thought you were going to ask about the pig." As Mel Brooks said, "Its good to be the king!"
Will America Lead?
Maybe, as in the words of a famous song by Deep Blue Something "well, that's something we've got (in common)," perhaps arabs and jews can rally together throughout the world, agreeing on the concept that George is a complete and utter moron.
:)
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