Operation Cast Lead Fri Jan 9th, 2009

For other liveblogging, see The Muqata

Despite Israel’s efforts to postpone the vote by 24 hours, the UN Security Council approved Resolution 1860 calling for an immediate end to the fighting between Israel and Hamas. The resolution “stresses the urgency of and calls for an immediate, durable and fully respected ceasefire, leading to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza,” calls for arrangements in Gaza to prevent arms smuggling, calls for the reopening of border crossings, and for “unimpeded provision” and distribution of aid in Gaza. The Resolution was approved 14-0, with the US abstaining because they first want to see the outcome of an Egyptian mediation effort.

The resolution comes after a day in which 20 rockets and mortars were fired into Israel from Gaza (including 4 Grads and 2 Qassams during the three-hour suspension of military operations for humanitarian purposes), the IAF attacked more than 40 sites (including weapons storehouses/Hamas terrorst homes, a tunnel used by Hamas, and rocket launching sites), and 2 IDF officers and one soldier were killed.

In other news, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi urged Arabs to join the palestinians in their war against Israel, Elder of Moron Jimmy Carter said Israel’s op is disproportionate to (those defensive) rocket attacks, and a siren sounded early morning in Be’er Sheva due to a mishap.

The 2008 Weblog Awards have commenced, and Israellycool is a finalist in the Best Middle East or Africa Blog category. If you feel this blog is deserving of that title, please click on the graphic and vote accordingly (you are allowed to vote once every 24 hours).

Thanks to your help, we are ahead of the blog of the very anti-Israel Juan Cole. So please make sure to vote if not just to stick it to him.

 

The 2008 Weblog Awards

Updates (Israel time; most recent at top)

Saturday Jan 10th – for latest updates, see here

20:45PM (Brian of London): Various sources are all reporting Obama wants to open communication channels to Hamas. Seriously, though, can we hope that by the time he is president the only spokespeople for Hamas still breathing are the ones cowering anywhere other than Gaza?

According to three sources “close to the transition team,” Obama was unlikely to approve direct talks with Hamas initially. However, reported the Guardian, Obama “is being urged by advisers to initiate low-level or clandestine approaches, and there is growing recognition in Washington that the policy of ostracizing Hamas is counterproductive.

18:30PM (Brian of London): Anyone want something funny for a change?

This joke explains all you need to know about Israeli-Palestinian politics.

What happens when a fly falls into a coffee cup?

The Italian – throws the cup, breaks it, and walks away in a fit of rage.

The German – carefully washes the cup, sterilizes it and makes a new
cup of coffee.

The Frenchman – takes out the fly, and drinks the coffee.

The Chinese – eats the fly and throws away the coffee.

The Russian – Drinks the coffee with the fly, since it was extra with no charge.

The Israeli – sells the coffee to the Frenchman, the fly to the
Chinese, drinks tea and uses the extra money to invent a device that
prevents flies from falling into coffee.

The Palestinian – blames the Israeli for the fly falling in his
coffee, protests the act of aggression to the UN, takes a loan from
the European Union to buy a new cup of coffee, uses the money to
purchase explosives and then blows up the coffee house where the
Italian, the Frenchman, the Chinese, the German and the Russian are
all trying to explain to the Israeli that he should give away his cup
of tea to the Palestinian.

17:45PM (Brian of London): The IDF Spokesperson blog published a map showing the updated range of missiles but it didn’t make clear the wider context of southern Israel. So I mashed the following one up. Places like Rehovot, Rishon Le Tzyion (crazy spelling) and Bat Yam are basically southern commuter suburbs of Tel Aviv. It’s also interesting that Gaza can shoot all the way to the West Bank now… what would happen if one of those Grad’s went astray?

Rocket range from Gaza

3:52PM: That’s it from me until Saturday evening, after the Jewish Sabbath ends.

But not to fear. In my absence, I have enlisted the help of Brian of London (who is actually in New York), and NeoZionoid (who is in Australia). They will provide updates on the situation in Israel. I have asked them not to blog on here when it is the Jewish Sabbath in New York and Australia, so be rest assured this blog is 100% Shomer Shabbas!

Please keep the brave soldiers and citizens of Israel in your prayers. And if you have appreciated my blogging and would like to contribute, please donate here:

Aussie Dave, signing out.

3:30PM: Palestinian photojournalist and Israellycool hater Fadi Arouri is up to his old tricks, this time sending his (mispelled) love to Brian of Snapped Shot.

3:25PM: A senior Hamashole has told CNN his terrorists are still strong, and vowed to continue fighting. Oh, and he also claimed they want to live in peace (!) but the occupation does not give them the chance.

In other news, Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

3:07PM: Watch this Al Jazeera reporter get p*ssed at all the people walking in front of him, leading to him pushing someone out of the way.

3:00PM: Elder of Ziyon posts that according to some palestinian newspapers, seven Syrian pilots were conspiring to fly over and bomb Israel a few days ago. Sounds like something Debka would report.

2:50PM: Israel earlier rejected the UN Security Council resolution. As Prime Minister Olmert said:

“The rocket attacks this morning on the residents of the south only prove that the UN’s resolution is not practical and will not be upheld by the Palestinian murder organizations… Israel has never allowed any outside source to determine its right to defend its citizens. The IDF will continue to act to defend the citizens of Israel and carry out the missions laid before it in the operation”.

1:37PM: Attempted terror attack in Rehovot: A 20-year-old palestinian has been arrested after trying to attack passersby on Rehovot’s main street with an axe. No one was injured in the incident.

1:20PM: Israel National News reports that Jews in Judea and Samaria have been put on high alert for the possibility of terrorist attempts to kidnap Jews, with a Beit El resident talking of one such attempt yesterday.

1:15PM: Channel 10 has reported that Lebanon arrested Hamasholes suspected of firing Katushas at northern Israel yesterday morning.

1:00PM: Over 30 rockets have been fired at Israel today.

12:35PM: The Israeli cabinet is now meeting to discuss whether or not to expand the ground operation in Gaza, and the UN Security Council resolution.

 

12:23PM: Ma’an reports the death of Arafat’s cameraman (see 10:32AM update)…with no mention of his role as Arafat’s cameraman.

Meanwhile, just imagine how horrible that role is. Having to stare at Arafat every day and try to make him look photogenic. It is up down there with this job in terms of desirability.

12:07PM: 20 rockets have been fired at Israel so far today.

11:35AM: My friend Richard Landes was interviewed by the BBC regarding the Pajamas Media decision to send Joe the Plumber to Israel as a correspondent. Here he is talking about this…and ripping the BBC a new one for good measure!

Good stuff.

Meanwhile, I still think the Pajamas Media move to bring this “average Joe” to Israel is a gimmick. They would have been better off utilizing those of us who are still “Average Joes” (or should that be “Average Josephs”?), but who live here and have a good grasp of the situation and knowledge of the conflict.

And no, I do not necessarily have myself in mind.

11:20AM: Yet another rocket, and thankfully no damage or injuries.

10:55AM: Hamas spokesman Abu Ubaidah has said that Hamas will include more Israeli communities in the range of fire. In other words, “We will aim for even more civilians than before.”

Israel, on the other hand, is bending over backwards not to kill civilians.

10:46AM: Slightly off topic: Another Jewish soldier died this week, but in Afghanistan, not Israel (hat tip: Aussie Dave’s mum).

sherFamily and friends of the latest Australian soldier to die in Afghanistan, Gregory Sher, have received his body in a ceremony.

Soldiers from Sydney’s 1st Commando Regiment, the part-time unit in which Private Sher served, formed an honour guard and bearer party to receive and carry his casket from an RAAF C-17 aircraft to his waiting family.

It was the first chance his family had to pay their respects to him since he was killed early on Sunday evening.

Pte Sher, a member of the Australian Special Operations Task Group, was killed when an insurgent’s rocket landed in a remote base in Oruzgan Province, southern Afghanistan, where he and other members were operating.

Defence personnel, including Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon, Opposition defence spokesman Bob Baldwin, Acting Chief of the Defence Force Lieutenant General David Hurley and the Commanding Officer of the 1st Commando Regiment also attended the ramp ceremony.

Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie and the Special Operations Commander Australia, Major General Tim McOwan, paid tribute to the reservist soldier on behalf of the Australia Army.

“We in the Army extend our deepest sympathies to Greg’s family during this very difficult and emotional time,” Lt Gen Gillespie said.

“Greg was a dedicated, passionate and well respected soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice in serving our nation.

“We strongly support his family, his friends, his unit and the wider Army who are mourning his loss.”

Major General McOwan said Pte Sher, 30, was a remarkable man who took pride in his work and who others looked up to.

“Greg epitomised the characteristics all soldiers strive for. He was brave, loyal and determined,” he said.

“Greg was a quiet achiever who never sought praise or recognition for his work.

“He will be fondly remembered and deeply missed.”

Pte Sher was the eighth Australian Defence Force soldier to die in Afghanistan since 2002 but the first to be killed as a result of indirect fire.

His funeral is scheduled for Sunday, to be conducted in accordance with Jewish custom. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is expected to attend.

Pte Sher leaves behind his parents, two brothers and a partner, who are receiving support from the defence department.

And here’s more on Private Sher.

10:40AM: The Daily Barr:

i am pro israel!

I want israel to survive!

B*llsh*t!!

Israel must make peace!!!! the world must have peace!!!! no more wars!!!! wars are killing us all! I pray to Hashem every moment of my life for peace in my soul and in the world!!! I am on the side of children everywhere and will not stop saying i am on the side of suffering children everywhere! do not bomb suffering children, israel must make peace or lose its soul!!! i am going to shut up now forever perhaps.

Please do!!

I cannot take the hatred that I feel from people, I cannot bear the weight of it, but yet I could not bear the weight of my own silence.

And I cannot bear your weight!!

I renounce all vows to anything but the most high creator. (me).

Say what? Did she just refer to herself as G-d?

10:32AM: Ynet reports that Ihab al-Wahidi, Arafat’s photographer and former PLO envoy to Morocco, was reportedly killed in one of our strikes last night.

10:28AM: Palestinian officials report that 2 Hamas terrorists and an infant have been killed in IAF strikes on Gaza.

10:10AM: So far today, 17 rockets have been fired into Israel. One person has been lightly wounded.

9:58AM: Polls are closing soon for the Best Separated at Births of 2008 poll. Vote now if you haven’t already!

8:57AM: Yet another likely staged hospital scene.

As LGF reader and doctor “Last Mohican” writes:

I’m no military expert, but I am a doctor, and this video is bullsh-t. The chest compressions that were being performed at the beginning of this video were absolutely, positively fake. The large man in the white coat was NOT performing CPR on that child. He was just sort of tapping on the child’s sternum a little bit with his fingers. You can’t make blood flow like that. Furthermore, there’s no point in doing chest compressions if you’re not also ventilating the patient somehow. In this video, I can’t tell for sure if the patient has an endotracheal tube in place, but you can see that there is nobody bag-ventilating him (a bag is actually hanging by the head of the bed), and there is no ventilator attached to the patient. In a hospital, during a code on a ventilated patient, somebody would probably be bagging the patient during the chest compressions. And they also would have moved the bed away from the wall, so that somebody could get back there to intubate the patient and/or bag him. In short, the “resuscitation scene” at the beginning is fake, and it’s a pretty lame fake at that.

So the question is, were they re-enacting the resuscitation scene by repeating their actions on a corpse, because the child had died earlier? It’s likely that the answer is no, that child is still alive, and is just an actor pretending to be a child who was killed. Why do I say that? Because the big guy in the white coat, if he’s really a doctor, nurse, nurse’s aid, EMT, or any sort of health care provider at all would be entirely aware that tickling the boy’s sternum doesn’t really look like actual chest compressions. If the boy was dead, the man would have done a more convincing job in compressing the chest. The taps on the chest that he’s doing are the sort of thing you see in bad TV dramas, when you don’t want to make the poor actor playing the victim uncomfortable by really pushing on his chest. I think the man in the white coat knows this child is actually alive, and is making the simulated chest compressions gentle so as not to hurt the child. My guess is that he assumed the videographer, like those on better TV shows, would have been smart enough not to film as far down as the man’s hands on the chest.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian doctor in the footage is a radical Marxist by the name of Mads. I kid you not.

8:50AM: 2 more rockets have exploded in open fields near Ashkelon. Surely they are going to run out of rockets soon, right?

8:33AM: More on yesterday’s fallen.

Major Roey Rosner

Holon

Rosner, 27, married his partner, Sharon, just 10 months ago. The couple received the keys to their new apartment a few days ago. “He was very excited,” Roey’s sister-in-law Chen Feingold Doron said yesterday.

—-

“You can say all the usual cliches about ‘salt of the earth’ but he really was amazing. He died a hero’s death, and I hope that he is the last death and all the soldiers return home,” she said. Rosner, who attended university during his army service, was slated to be discharged in July 2009. However, he planned to re-enlist in a track that allowed him to continue his studies. Rosner was buried yesterday in the Holon military cemetery. He is survived by his wife, parents and older brother.

Captain Omer Rabinovitz

Arad

The Rabinovitz family sequestered itself in its Arad home Thursday after receiving the news of 23-year-old Omer’s death in a clash with terrorists in Gaza.

His teary-eyed grandfather Zevulun Rabinovitz remembered Omer as “devoted to the state. Before enlisting, Omer worked in a youth movement for a year and took care of kibbutz kids. Omer was always driven and got into the elite Egoz unit. During his basic training, during the Gush Katif disengagement, I had a talk with him and told him ‘From the moment you swore allegiance to the IDF in front of the flag, you must obey every order, like it or not.’ He acted that way with his soldiers too.”

Sergeant Amit Robinson

Kibbutz Magal

Amit Robinson enlisted almost a year ago in Gilad Shalit’s Armored Corps Battalion 71 as a radio operator. The youngest child of Argentinian immigrants, Sylvia and Eliyahu Robinson, Amit also leaves behind two sisters.

Brother-in-law Assaf Fial said Amit went into Gaza last Saturday immediately upon completing his training. “His parents were glued to the television set,” he said. Three days ago, the barrel of his tank was damaged, and he and his crew came out of Gaza to repair it. He managed to call his sister, Noam, and also spoke to his parents. “That was their last conversation with him,” Fial recounted yesterday, adding “I don’t remember that he had any fear. This country exists because of people like him.

8:28AM: 2 more rockets have been fired into Israel, with no reports of injury or damage.

7:32AM: The IDF Spokesperson has published pictures taken by combat photographers in the Gaza Strip showing Hamas tunnels designed to kidnap Israeli soldiers.

kidnap-tunnels

kidnap-tunnels2

7:25AM: Protester of the Day: The man with Mickey Mouse glasses.

7:20AM: A short time ago, 4 Grad rockets hit an open area in Be’er Sheva, causing no casualties.

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