There is a widespread – but very erroneous – impression that if an enemy
attacks, a proportional response means a nation can only return what was
received and no more. That is, the mistaken impression is that if Hamas shot one
rocket, we could only shoot one rocket back.
International law, however, defines proportionality very differently: it is
a question of legitimate military goals and intentionality. Put very
simply, we would not be restricted to only shooting one rocket back at Hamas,
but rather doing what is necessary (within certain defined limits) to ensure
that Hamas does not shoot any more rockets. That is a legitimate military
goal.
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, who was the
Chief Prosecutor at the
International Criminal Court in
2003, wrote this about proportionality:
“Under international humanitarian law and the
Rome Statute, the death of
civilians during an armed conflict, no matter how grave and regrettable, does
not in itself constitute a war crime. International humanitarian law and
the Rome Statute permit belligerents to carry out proportionate attacks against
military objectives, even when it is known that some civilian deaths or injuries
will occur. A crime occurs if there is an intentional attack
directed against civilians...or an attack is launched on a military
objective in the knowledge that the incidental civilian injuries would be
clearly excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage (principle
of proportionality).”
~~~~~~~~~~
The proportionality has to do with the relationship between the damage
inflicted and the legitimate military goal. What must be assessed, wrote
the Chief Prosecutor, is:
(a) the
anticipated civilian damage or injury;
(b) the anticipated military advantage;
(c) and whether (a) was "clearly excessive" in relation to (b).
(b) the anticipated military advantage;
(c) and whether (a) was "clearly excessive" in relation to (b).
Another way of phrasing it: former president of the International Court,
Rosalyn Higgins, explained that proportionality "cannot be
in relation to any specific prior injury - it has to be in relation to the
overall legitimate objective of ending the aggression."
~~~~~~~~~~
The sort of bombing we are doing is entirely legitimate and proportional to
our military goals of making it impossible for Hamas to launch rockets at our
people. If in the process some civilians in Gaza are hit, our military action
remains entirely legitimate. Do not believe
otherwise. In point of fact there are bound to be civilian deaths
because Hamas uses civilians as human shields and places its arsenal of weapons
in civilian areas.
Were Israel to decide to carpet bomb Gaza to make Hamas stop launching
rockets, that would be clearly disproportionate civilian destruction in relation
to the goal of stopping Hamas. But that, of course, is something we would
never, ever do. We are, in fact, extraordinarily careful to avoid civilian
deaths whenever it is possible to do so. We actually place phone calls to homes,
warning families to get out, before we bomb the houses.
What is not legitimate according to international law is the sort of
deliberate targeting of Israeli civilians that Hamas is doing day in and day
out. Here the intentionality is to hit civilians.
And yet, as we see day in and day out, the international community draws an
outrageous moral equivalency between Israel’s actions and those of Hamas.
When the State Department calls on both sides to “act responsibly,” you
know what a joke this is.
~~~~~~~~~~
But it’s actually much worse than this, as Israel is – incredibly – turned
into the aggressor. As Human Rights Watch reported:
“UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon refuses to name the
perpetrators of the attacks ‘from Gaza.’ No mention is made of ‘Hamas.’ And
while the rockets should ‘stop,’ what is really bothering the UNSG is alleged
Palestinian victims. ‘The Secretary-General is extremely concerned at the
dangerous escalation of violence, which has already resulted in multiple
Palestinian deaths and injuries as a result of Israeli operations against
Gaza.’
~~~~~~~~~~
I share here a video that effectively (and amusingly!) presents the
situation we confront (with thanks to Raima S.)
~~~~~~~~~~
Part of what the international community does is attempt to pin the blame
for Hamas’s violence on Israel, because Israel has not attended to the
“legitimate rights” of the “Palestinian people.” (As if deliberate
targeting of civilians by Hamas would be acceptable even if this were the case,
which it is not.)
We see this with Ban Ki-Moon, who said, "the
unsustainable situation in Gaza will also need to be addressed in its political,
security, humanitarian and development dimensions as part of a comprehensive
solution."
Philip Gordon, a special assistant to US
President Barack Obama and the White House coordinator for the Middle East,
at a conference sponsored by
(surprise!) Haaretz, made it clear that the Obama administration still expects a
negotiated settlement between Israel and the PA, based on the ‘67 armistice
line. Now he says this? Inconceivable that he ignores the current
violence from Hamas, and the fact that it is part of a unity government.
But there it is.
“Jerusalem,” he declared, “should not take for granted the opportunity to
negotiate” a treaty with Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas, who has proven to
be a reliable partner.
Daft. And maliced.
~~~~~~~~~~
So let’s take a look, just for a moment, at Fatah, which is Abbas’s
party.
Palestinian Media Watch tells us that Fatah put up on its Facebook page
today an announcement that:
“One god, one homeland, one enemy, one goal” unites Hamas, Fatah and
Islamic Jihad.
~~~~~~~~~~
While Khaled abu Toameh writes that:
“At least two Fatah armed groups announced that they had started firing
rockets at the ‘settlements’ of Ashkelon and Sderot, cities inside the pre-1967
borders of Israel, with another Fatah group claiming responsibility for firing
35 rockets into Israel since Sunday.”
The use of
the word “settlements” is a tip-off to the fact that Fatah considers Jewish
presence even within the ‘67 armistice line to be an illegitimate “occupation,”
i.e., they want it all.
~~~~~~~~~~
Abbas, our
“reliable partner,” says Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza.
Sigh...
~~~~~~~~~~
The Elder of
Ziyon put up a posting about “What Reporters Need to Know” during the current
Gaza operation. But I think the points are so good that everyone needs to
know them.
His major
points:
1)
It is a mistake to assume that all casualties are the result of Israeli
airstrikes.
Traditionally,
the number of Gaza rockets that fall short and never reach Israel, or that
explode as they are fired is over 35% and sometimes as high as 80%!”
Then there
are “work accidents” and civilians killed when guns are shot off during
funerals.
2)
It is a mistake to assume that casualties and damage are the direct
result of Israeli airstrikes.
Many
airstrikes hit weapons caches and explosives that cause a larger explosion than
the strike itself.
3)
It is a mistake to believe that casualties are civilian when they are
not.
Terrorists,
who are combatants, most frequently wear civilian clothing. And Hamas is eager
to inflate the “civilian numbers.”
Do see the
entire posting.
~~~~~~~~~~
Be aware as
well that pictures put up about the war in social media are sometimes deceptive:
http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-28198622
~~~~~~~~~~
The war goes
on.
They are
still launching rockets at us – including at the center of the country and even
farther north. Rockets have landed just south of Haifa, in Hadera, Zikhron
Ya’akov (where someone was mildly hurt), Casaerea and Hof Bonim.
In some of
the attacks that are farther away, Iranian long-rang missiles such as the Fajr5
and M302 are being used.
Needless to
say, the south – particularly Sderot and Sha’ar Hanegev - is being hit hard.
More than
225 rockets have been fired at Israel since the beginning of the operation.
~~~~~~~~~~
But we are
hitting hard inside of Gaza, as well.
According to
Minister of Defense Moshe Ya’alon, who spoke today to Army Radio:
”We'll
continue with strikes that will exact a very heavy price from Hamas. We are
destroying arms, terror infrastructures, command systems, Hamas institutions,
regime buildings, terrorists' houses, and killing terrorists of various ranks of
command.
"We will continue to hit Hamas and other terror groups in Gaza Strip from the
air, sea and ground to ensure the safety of Israel's citizens." Saying “from the ground” obviously implies a ground operation. There are multiple hints about the fact that this is about to occur, but we’re still not there. The reserve troops still have to take their places in Judea and Samaria, to replace the regular troops who must be moved to the border with Gaza.
~~~~~~~~~~
The IDF
spokesman said today that the next stage is being prepared and that this will be
a long operation.
And then
there is this astonishing statement from Intelligence Minister Yuval
Steinitz:
“Despite the
fact that it will be hard, complicated and costly, we will have to take
over Gaza temporarily, for a few weeks, to cut off the strengthening of this
terror army. If you ask my humble opinion, a significant operation like
this is approaching.” (Emphasis added)
And so this
sounds very serious indeed.
~~~~~~~~~~
But there
remains unease here in Israel that the operation will be terminated before it
should be, that the ground operation will never be actualized, and that talk
such as Steinitz’s is simply a form of verbal saber rattling – a threat.
After all, this was just his “humble opinion.”
For we have
Netanyahu’s words today, after the Security Cabinet met. He is still
saying, “the operation will expand and continue
until the fire toward our towns stops and quiet returns." But
the idea is that we are supposed to remove their capacity to
hit us again! Not just make them stop now.
And there is
the fact that, while we announce we have destroyed the homes of key Hamas
leaders, we deliver a warning first so that families are not hit, and many of
the leaders themselves are still walking this earth.
~~~~~~~~~~
Several
reports are encouraging with regard to the concerns I’ve expressed here.
Khaled abu
Toameh tells us that for all the bravado of leaders of Hamas, they are stunned
by the power of Israel’s attack and reeling.
~~~~~~~~~~
Apparently
Egypt is unlikely to mediate a ceasefire as it has in the past. This
situation “comes at a time of mounting tensions between
the new government in Cairo and Hamas. [Hamas backed the Muslim Brotherhood in
its battle with Egyptian president Sisi.]
“‘There is no mediation,
in the common sense of the word,’ said Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Badr Abdelatty.”
And then we
have this:
“A senior Hamas official
pledged that militants would not ‘surrender’ in the face of the latest air
strikes on Wednesday.
“There are no ceasefire talks, in the
conventional sense. There are ongoing contacts. The Israelis
are not interested in mediation, they are looking for surrender,’ said
Osama Hamdan, who is based in Beirut.” (Emphasis added.)
This, then,
may truly be an operation that is qualitatively different.
~~~~~~~~~~
“The Israel Air Force has destroyed more terrorist targets in
Gaza over the past 36 hours than it did throughout the whole the 2012 clash with
Hamas, a senior security said Wednesday.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Security is
on high alert because Hamas is hoping to initiate a major terror attack as a way
of shifting the balance.
Yesterday
five Hamas terrorists entered Israel via the Mediterranean at a beach near
Ashkelon and were killed by the IDF.
~~~~~~~~~~
©
Arlene Kushner.
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