Refuting Claims Against Israel Regarding IDF Operations In Gaza

idf strikeIt is so typical of the anti Israel crowd to use such provocative language such as “Final Solution,” as if there is a genocide going on and to try to tie the Jewish people, once again, to the horrors of the Holocaust but as perpetrators this time.

When talking about the Gaza Strip, how is it that their supporters talk about overcrowding and genocide in the same sentence? The overcrowding is due to an ever expanding population which is the polar opposite of genocide. So to start, let’s lay that one to rest.

To refer to the Jewish population as guests also shows a reckless display of ignorance to historical facts. This is the ancestral home of the Jewish people. Let’s lay that to rest as well. Not even worth taking the time to address here. Utter nonsense.

Now, let’s get down to the present situation. It is a well known and documented fact that Israel strives for accuracy in targeting terrorist facilities, whether they are weapons manufacturing operations, rocket launching locations, or tunnels. This will be disputed by those who can’t bring themselves to see anything lawful about Israel’s military operations but it doesn’t make it any less true.

The other important factors in this messy equation are Hamas’ urging of people to act as human shields and purposely occupy buildings that are known targets of the IDF. How does this make any sense? And when the buildings are destroyed and people are killed and injured in the process, how is it that Hamas bears no responsibility when they themselves told people to congregate in those places?

I have lived in Gaza. I also know that Hamas buries its facilities within civilian areas, leaving those people vulnerable to the consequences. Before taking all the “war crimes” accusations and laying them at Israel’s feet, look at what Hamas does to its own people!

Conducting their operations from civilian areas is a war crime. I have heard it said often that they have no choice but to be in civilian areas because Gaza is too crowded, as if they should be somehow given a pass for breaking the law. But having lived in Gaza, I can absolutely state there are lots of empty places there that would be more appropriate to conduct such operations from than from neighborhoods full of families and apartment buildings. However, such locations would also produce no civilian casualties and therefore no shock and horror and finger pointing. It is in Hamas’ best interests to continue to run their operations from civilian areas and to continue to urge people to be human shields. Israel even drops leaflets and sends text messages to warn people to leave a specific area that has been found to be a source for terror activities.

What is most troubling is the reaction to these warnings. I have been told directly that such warnings will NOT be adhered to as they are seen as simply bullying and Israeli aggression. How it is aggression when it is actually a real warning to avoid injury and possible death? When people knowingly refuse to heed such warnings, who is to blame for that?

Hamas and their Islamic Jihad counterparts show a reckless and blatant disregard for human life by hiding behind civilians in conducting their operations as well as by firing their rockets into civilian areas in Israel.
Their rockets are not aimed at weapons facilities nor are they aimed at military bases. They are fired into cities and towns, intentionally targeting civilians in clear acts of terrorism. Where is the cry of “war crimes” in these cases?

In addition, the practice of looking at such terrorists as heroes is beyond disgusting. Terrorists are rewarded with status in their community as well as generous financial rewards in the form of ongoing, high salaries for those who murder Israelis.

When I was in Gaza, I witnessed the aftermath of Israeli accuracy. Large buildings would be completely collapsed while high rise apartments stood around, intact. This simply cannot be interpreted as widespread reckless killing of innocents.

Anyone who claims complete innocence on the part of Hamas and complete reckless endangerment on the part of Israel is only adding fuel to an already heated situation.

If the lies supporting the terrorist activities of Hamas would be silenced, Hamas might be forced to join the real world. As long as we have apologists who have no problem lying and grossly exaggerating the facts, we will continue to see an empowered Hamas who sees no need to adhere to international law.

The insinuation that this current military action sprang up overnight is also very misleading. When the 3 boys were kidnapped last month, there was a massive and urgent search for them. Sadly, they were later found murdered. During this time, instead of helping with the investigation, the PA was found to have advised local shopkeepers to destroy their security videos so Israeli investigators could not search them for evidence in the kidnappings, and so the manhunt was on. Instead of urging those responsible to turn themselves in, rockets were fired from Gaza and there was widespread mocking of the 3 boys and a celebration of their kidnapping.

There have been rockets fired since before the boys were kidnapped, and over these few weeks, they have been increasing. It is sad and tragic that the people of Gaza are used in this way. Hamas must either step up as a legitimate representative of the people, or bear responsibility for the suffering that they so callously instigate.

It is also interesting that while the anti Israel team screams “foul”, they fail to mention the ongoing care of Palestinians in Israeli hospitals. Even with the current rise in tensions, Palestinian children and adults continue to receive uninterrupted medical care.

If the propaganda about Israel was to be believed, there would still be no way to make sense of it. Apparently, Israel is so bent on destroying every living soul in Gaza that they insist on bringing cancer and kidney patients into their own hospitals to help save their lives.

When I was a patient in a hospital in Tel Aviv, I saw many Palestinian patients there. Each one received the same level of kindness and attention from the staff as the rest of us.

Israel has every right to defend itself against the terrorist madness that is Hamas. The sooner the people of Gaza are freed from Hamas and all related factions, the sooner they can actually breathe and plan for a peaceful future. Hamas is an oppressive omnipresence in Gaza. They have become very arrogant and empowered to continue their attacks on Israel. In order to really stop them, it will take a careful and patient strategy.

3 thoughts on “Refuting Claims Against Israel Regarding IDF Operations In Gaza”

  1. The attitude of the rest of the world increasingly seems to be expressible like this: “Why can’t those brutal Israelis let the poor Palestinians kidnap and murder Jews in peace?”

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