Arab media blames Hamas, not Israel

Dec. 31, 2008

Or shall I say, some Arab media and leaders, such as Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, blame Hamas rather than Israel for the violence. Hat Tip to The Israel Project for the research.

Abbas and Mubarak, among others, said maintaining the truce could have helped the Palestinians avoid the Israeli raids and that Hamas is fully responsible for the situation.

A Palestinian girl in Gaza whose family members died in Gaza Dec. 28 in an Israeli air attack held Hamas responsible. "I say Hamas is the cause, in the first place, of all wars,” the girl told Palestinian TV. [4]

A Palestinian journalist in Gaza said members of the Palestinian media are ‘directing’ civilians to cry and telling them what to say in interviews: "A mother of one of the martyrs stood by the door of the intensive care unit while crying... relatives and those around her were telling her what she should say to the television cameras: 'Say your son [before he died] prayed and went out.' Another tells her: 'Curse the Arab leaders'... The journalists [in the hospitals] are going overboard in their insensitivity and taking advantage of the [difficult] moments, with the explanation that they are showing this to the world. One cameraman told a mourning mother: 'Hit your face, cry, do some action.'" [5]

Abbas also blamed Hamas for disrupting national unity talks that could have paved the way for general and presidential elections. While visiting Cairo to discuss Egyptian and Arab League efforts to put an end to the violence in Gaza, Abbas said: “We have warned of this grave danger.” [6]

Nimr Hammad, an advisor to Abbas, said: “The one responsible for the massacre is Hamas […].” He called upon Hamas's leaders to stop carrying out “operations, which reflect recklessness, such as the firing of missiles.” [7]

Hafez Al-Barghouthi, editor of the PLO daily al-Hayat al-Jadida criticized Hamas for not prolonging the 'tahdiah' - Arabic for 'calm': “Prolonging the tahdiah was a supreme national interest. Why hasn’t [Hamas] prevented the aggression and the massacre? How many times have we written and Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) has declared that these missiles [that Hamas is firing at Israel] as ineffective and contrary to the supreme national interest […].” [8]

Of course, these Palestinian leaders criticizing Hamas are political rivals and destroying Hamas is in their best interests. We might not expect the same response in future conflicts. Its okay for Fatah terrorists to launch rockets and suicide attacks but the double standard applies when a Hamas terrorist does so.

War on YouTube

Dec. 31, 2008

For anyone who would like to see video footage, the Israel defense Forces International Press Branch has opened a YouTube Channel. We will be uploading IDF footage as it comes out.

http://www.youtube.com/user/idfnadesk

Rockets reach farthest point yet

Dec. 31, 2008

Congratulations to Hamas for a new record: A missile on Tuesday landed farther into Israel than any previous launch. It hit a school where, miraculously, students had gotten out for the day already. School are now closed in the region. The army confirms:

On Tuesday, 30 December, the longer-range Grad rockets now being deployed from Gaza reached as far as Beersheba, the capital of the Negev with a population of 185,000, almost 40 kilometers (24 miles) from the Gaza Strip. Other Israeli cities and communities over 30 kilometers from Gaza have joined the long list of Hamas targets: Ashdod, Yavne, Kiryat Malakhi, Omer, and the Beduin town of Rahat. One of the first rockets to hit Beersheba struck a kindergarten that would have been filled with children had it hit earlier in the day. Another struck a Beersheba school on Wednesday morning.

Israel gets castigated because her aim is better, but Hamas gets away with targeting civilian sites since they don't actually kill anyone most of the time. From Israel's Foreign Ministry:

Israel agreed to the calm last June, which was immediately violated by Hamas when it refused to advance the release of Gilad Shalit, continued to arm itself, and continued firing. Hamas used the six months of calm to build up its strength, develop and produce weapons, and train terrorist operatives, preparing for the period after the calm.

The targets struck by the IAF show just how prepared the Hamas terror apparatus was and how deeply entrenched, using its civilian population as human shields. Its military headquarters and terrorist facilities are placed in civilian structures such as private homes, basements of houses inhabited by families with children, schools, colleges and universities, mosques and other public buildings.

Israel and Hamas cannot be placed in the same moral equation. Israel is operating against Hamas, a terror organization which uses civilians as human shields and deliberately targets civilians. Hamas does not care what happens to the residents of Gaza. Israel warned the Gaza residents that every site of terrorist activity is a target. The sole responsibility for the ongoing suffering of the Palestinian population lies with Hamas.

Israel's fight is against Hamas, a terror organization, not against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. Despite the ongoing rocket fire from Gaza, Israel is allowing the transfer of humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip.

Hamas used mosque for weapons storage

Dec. 31, 2008

The U.S. Army does not target mosques or places of worship in Iraq, according to military policy and political correctness Perhaps they should. Hamas used a mosque as a storage site for Grad missiles and Kassam rockets, as well as a staging ground for rocket and missile launches, the most recent being this morning, according to the Israeli army.

The Israeli Air Force bombed the mosque in Gaza City on Wednesday setting off secondary explosions from the munitions stockpiled in the building. The army said:

The IDF will continue to attack any target used for terrorist activity, and will not hesitate to strike those involved in terrorism against the citizens of the State of Israel even, if they cynically choose to operate from locations of religious or cultural significance.

Medical and humanitarian aid to Gaza

Dec. 31, 2008

Despite relentless bombing of Hamas targets in Gaza, Israel is taking in the wounded and allowing humanitarian aid across the border. According to Israel's government press office:

Today 12 Palestinians accessed Israel for medical treatment in Israeli hospitals. Two of those evacuated were children injured during the military activates, the remaining are chronically sick people, and their escorts, that accessed Israel for treatment that is not available within the Gaza Strip.

Further more, despite ongoing rocket fire, Israel continues with the extensive humanitarian effort in coordination with the international organizations, Palestinian Authority and various donors. Ninety three trucks, with approximately 2500 tons of humanitarian aid, medical supplies and medication were conveyed through "Kerem Shalom" cargo terminal. The World Food Program has informed Israel that they will not be resuming shipment of food commodities in to Gaza due to the fact that their warehouses are at full capacity and will last for approximately two weeks.

Since the beginning of operation "cast lead" some 6500 tons of aid have been transferred at the request of the international organizations, the Palestinian Authority and various governments. Preparations are underway to facilitate further shipments expected to arrive in the coming days.