Israeli human rights groups ask: Can a moral society accept the present suffering in Gaza?
Marian Houk
January 16, 2009
"The level of harm to the civilian population is unprecedented", said an all-star line-up of Israeli human rights organizations at a group press conference in West Jerusalem at midday today.
They were speaking of the people in Gaza.
Since the start of the Israeli Defense Force's Operation Cast Lead on 27 December, the human rights groups said, 'military forces are making wanton use of lethal force which has to date caused the deaths of hundreds of uninvolved civilians and destroyed infrastructure and property on an enormous scale. In addition, Israel is also hitting civilian objects, having defined them as 'legitimate military targets' solely by virtue of their being 'symbols of government'."
And, caught in the middle, are "1.5 million civilians in extreme humanitarian distress".
But to say, as the human rights groups did, in the same breath, and in a polite and even-handed way, that the IDF is providing "limited help" is both a gross exaggeration and a huge understatement. See our earlier post calling attention to this problem here.
The human rights groups also said that "a heavy suspicion has arisen of grave violations of international humanitarian law by military forces. After the end of the hostilities, the time will come for the investigation of this matter, and accountability will be demanded of those responsible for the violations".
But right now, they said, there is a "clear and present danger" that must be faced.
Sari Bashi, the Executive Director of GISHA, said that it was important to note that "this crisis was pre-planned since the September 2007 Cabinet decision" that branded the Gaza Strip --one of the most densely-populated areas on earth -- an "enemy entity" or a "hostile territory". Gaza was systematically emptied of vital supplies, Bashi explained. But, while the policy is described as being directed against Hamas, it is really against civilians, she said.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense was tasked with implementing this Cabinet decision, and they did so by coldly and cruelly and carelessly conducting what can only be called an obscene laboratory experiment in seeing how much vital supplies could be cut before a "humanitarian crisis" would inevitably ensue. Supplies of fuel and gas were cut by 15% starting at the end of October 2007 -- and Israel's Supreme Court allowed even cuts to directly-supplied electricity (though these were quickly rescinded when the drastic effects were quickly observed). The military pledged it would avoid creating a "humanitarian crisis" -- but how did the military define that? By January 2008, Gaza's only power plant had completely run out of reserves, and was operating only on what it received day to day. The IDF shut down the transfer facility for days because of fighting in the area, and the power plant soon had no fuel left to operate, and it shut down on 21 January. It soon grew much more complicated -- with Fatah-allied groups skirmishing with the IDF whenever the fuel situation became critical, causing more frequent interruptions in supply. Then there was a payment dispute. Then there were accusations of Hamas requisitioning part of the fuel supplied. And this is only part of the overall picture.
The human rights groups said that "fighting is taking place throughout the Gaza Strip, whose border crossings are closed, so that residents have nowhere to flee ... The health system has collapsed. Hospitals are unable to provide adequate treatment to the injured, nor can patients be evacuated to medical centers outside of the Gaza Strip. This state of affairs is causing the death of injured persons, or chronically ill patients, who could have been saved ... Areas that were subject to intensive attacks are completely isolated ... The army is preventing local and international rescue teams from accessing those places and is also refraining from helping them itself, even though it is required to do so by law. Many of the residents do not have access to electricity or running water, and in many populated areas sewage water is running in the streets". They said that "This kind of fighting constitutes a blatant violation of the laws of warfare and raises the suspicion, which we ask be investigated, of the commission of war crimes. The responsibility of the State of Israel in this matter is clear and beyond doubt. The army's complete control of the battle zones and the access roads to them does not allow Israel to transfer that responsibility to other "...
Medical rescue teams could not come to the aid of the injured, either because there was no "coordination" with the IDF, or -- even if there was such coordination -- the rescue teams were subject to attack anyway, even in clearly marked vehicles. And so far, some 7 medical rescue workers had been killed, and 17 wounded, while 15 medical facilities had been attacked.
"You don't direct fire at targets where there are civilians", Jessica Montell of BīTselem told the press conference. She added later that "there is no way to compare or to have a competition of suffering. The situation is intolerable and must be stopped".
"Even if Hamas people are hiding at a hospital, as long as fire has not come from that hospital, by international law there is no justification for military action, and a hospital does not become a legitimate target".
Montell, the B'Tselem official, confirmed that her organization had received reports from eyewitnesses, which it transferred to the military, that a woman who walked out of her house yesterday in the village of Huza'ah, east of Khan Younis, waving a white flag, was shot. Injured, and lying the ground where she had fallen, the woman had continued to wave the white flag until she was shot in the head. An ambulance which tried to reach the woman was fired at. Later in the day, a group of 30 civilians waving white flags was also shot at, and at least three more people died. Montell said she could not confirm greater numbers, but said that "This is not the first time that we get such information about the IDF shooting people who leave their houses with white flags, or waving white sheets."
The human rights groups called on the Prime Minister and the Defense establishment to act immediately to:
"1. Stop the disproportionate harm to civilians, and stop targeting civilian objects that do not serve any military purpose, even if they meet the definition of 'symbols of government'.
2. Open a route for civilians to escape the battle zone, while guaranteeing their ability to return home at the end of the fighting.
3. Provide appropriate and immediate medical care to all of the injured and ill of the Gaza Strip, either by evacuating them to medical centers outside of the Gaza Strip or by reaching another solution inside the Gaza Strip.
4. Allow rescue and medical teams to reach battle-torn zones to evacuate the injured and bring supplies to those who remain there. Alternatively, the army must carry out those activities itself.
5. Secure the proper operation of the electricity, water and sewage systems so that they meet the needs of the population".
There are also disturbing reports about detainees, according to Dalia Kerstein of Hamoked. "The Army has a lot of new arguments [including about the detainees being "illegal combattants"], and a number of people are unaccounted for. She said there There are reports that there are huge puts dug, where people are held in terrible conditions, with no food and no water, before being transferred to Sde Tal Mon, a military base in the south of Israel itself [outside Gaza].
Michael Sfard, the attorney for Yesh Din, said that the press conference had been convened not only from fear of the present humanitarian catastrophe, which is acute and which will become worse. But, he said, afterwards, this will have to be investigated -- "and Israeli society will have to look into the mirror and ask, 'how did we do what we did'?"
Asked by a journalist why the Israeli public is so supportive of this military operation, Sfard replied that "This question bothers us as well". He said that he felt he was witnessing "a moral corruption destroying everything at a fantastic pace ... What we would like to evoke here is not only the legal situation, but also the moral aspects. Can a society which is moral live as if nothing is happening?"
They were speaking of the people in Gaza.
Since the start of the Israeli Defense Force's Operation Cast Lead on 27 December, the human rights groups said, 'military forces are making wanton use of lethal force which has to date caused the deaths of hundreds of uninvolved civilians and destroyed infrastructure and property on an enormous scale. In addition, Israel is also hitting civilian objects, having defined them as 'legitimate military targets' solely by virtue of their being 'symbols of government'."
And, caught in the middle, are "1.5 million civilians in extreme humanitarian distress".
But to say, as the human rights groups did, in the same breath, and in a polite and even-handed way, that the IDF is providing "limited help" is both a gross exaggeration and a huge understatement. See our earlier post calling attention to this problem here.
The human rights groups also said that "a heavy suspicion has arisen of grave violations of international humanitarian law by military forces. After the end of the hostilities, the time will come for the investigation of this matter, and accountability will be demanded of those responsible for the violations".
But right now, they said, there is a "clear and present danger" that must be faced.
Sari Bashi, the Executive Director of GISHA, said that it was important to note that "this crisis was pre-planned since the September 2007 Cabinet decision" that branded the Gaza Strip --one of the most densely-populated areas on earth -- an "enemy entity" or a "hostile territory". Gaza was systematically emptied of vital supplies, Bashi explained. But, while the policy is described as being directed against Hamas, it is really against civilians, she said.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense was tasked with implementing this Cabinet decision, and they did so by coldly and cruelly and carelessly conducting what can only be called an obscene laboratory experiment in seeing how much vital supplies could be cut before a "humanitarian crisis" would inevitably ensue. Supplies of fuel and gas were cut by 15% starting at the end of October 2007 -- and Israel's Supreme Court allowed even cuts to directly-supplied electricity (though these were quickly rescinded when the drastic effects were quickly observed). The military pledged it would avoid creating a "humanitarian crisis" -- but how did the military define that? By January 2008, Gaza's only power plant had completely run out of reserves, and was operating only on what it received day to day. The IDF shut down the transfer facility for days because of fighting in the area, and the power plant soon had no fuel left to operate, and it shut down on 21 January. It soon grew much more complicated -- with Fatah-allied groups skirmishing with the IDF whenever the fuel situation became critical, causing more frequent interruptions in supply. Then there was a payment dispute. Then there were accusations of Hamas requisitioning part of the fuel supplied. And this is only part of the overall picture.
The human rights groups said that "fighting is taking place throughout the Gaza Strip, whose border crossings are closed, so that residents have nowhere to flee ... The health system has collapsed. Hospitals are unable to provide adequate treatment to the injured, nor can patients be evacuated to medical centers outside of the Gaza Strip. This state of affairs is causing the death of injured persons, or chronically ill patients, who could have been saved ... Areas that were subject to intensive attacks are completely isolated ... The army is preventing local and international rescue teams from accessing those places and is also refraining from helping them itself, even though it is required to do so by law. Many of the residents do not have access to electricity or running water, and in many populated areas sewage water is running in the streets". They said that "This kind of fighting constitutes a blatant violation of the laws of warfare and raises the suspicion, which we ask be investigated, of the commission of war crimes. The responsibility of the State of Israel in this matter is clear and beyond doubt. The army's complete control of the battle zones and the access roads to them does not allow Israel to transfer that responsibility to other "...
Medical rescue teams could not come to the aid of the injured, either because there was no "coordination" with the IDF, or -- even if there was such coordination -- the rescue teams were subject to attack anyway, even in clearly marked vehicles. And so far, some 7 medical rescue workers had been killed, and 17 wounded, while 15 medical facilities had been attacked.
"You don't direct fire at targets where there are civilians", Jessica Montell of BīTselem told the press conference. She added later that "there is no way to compare or to have a competition of suffering. The situation is intolerable and must be stopped".
"Even if Hamas people are hiding at a hospital, as long as fire has not come from that hospital, by international law there is no justification for military action, and a hospital does not become a legitimate target".
Montell, the B'Tselem official, confirmed that her organization had received reports from eyewitnesses, which it transferred to the military, that a woman who walked out of her house yesterday in the village of Huza'ah, east of Khan Younis, waving a white flag, was shot. Injured, and lying the ground where she had fallen, the woman had continued to wave the white flag until she was shot in the head. An ambulance which tried to reach the woman was fired at. Later in the day, a group of 30 civilians waving white flags was also shot at, and at least three more people died. Montell said she could not confirm greater numbers, but said that "This is not the first time that we get such information about the IDF shooting people who leave their houses with white flags, or waving white sheets."
The human rights groups called on the Prime Minister and the Defense establishment to act immediately to:
"1. Stop the disproportionate harm to civilians, and stop targeting civilian objects that do not serve any military purpose, even if they meet the definition of 'symbols of government'.
2. Open a route for civilians to escape the battle zone, while guaranteeing their ability to return home at the end of the fighting.
3. Provide appropriate and immediate medical care to all of the injured and ill of the Gaza Strip, either by evacuating them to medical centers outside of the Gaza Strip or by reaching another solution inside the Gaza Strip.
4. Allow rescue and medical teams to reach battle-torn zones to evacuate the injured and bring supplies to those who remain there. Alternatively, the army must carry out those activities itself.
5. Secure the proper operation of the electricity, water and sewage systems so that they meet the needs of the population".
There are also disturbing reports about detainees, according to Dalia Kerstein of Hamoked. "The Army has a lot of new arguments [including about the detainees being "illegal combattants"], and a number of people are unaccounted for. She said there There are reports that there are huge puts dug, where people are held in terrible conditions, with no food and no water, before being transferred to Sde Tal Mon, a military base in the south of Israel itself [outside Gaza].
Michael Sfard, the attorney for Yesh Din, said that the press conference had been convened not only from fear of the present humanitarian catastrophe, which is acute and which will become worse. But, he said, afterwards, this will have to be investigated -- "and Israeli society will have to look into the mirror and ask, 'how did we do what we did'?"
Asked by a journalist why the Israeli public is so supportive of this military operation, Sfard replied that "This question bothers us as well". He said that he felt he was witnessing "a moral corruption destroying everything at a fantastic pace ... What we would like to evoke here is not only the legal situation, but also the moral aspects. Can a society which is moral live as if nothing is happening?"
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