Gaza and the Jewish State: A Record

I’ll build this one over time from most recent. It is obviously a small selection but will grow. My aim is to focus on the general picture - the situation in Gaza and its causes. The daily killings are not included nor the frequent articles reporting accusations of tunnel building nor even the reports of the acquisition of arms by Hamas. Most of those killed are Palestinian. This is clearly documented. Hamas would be foolish to not try and procure arms just as I suppose Israel would be foolish to not try and stop it. At any rate, the means to procuring arms seems incidental in the sense that since Hamas must arm against Israel, how it goes about doing this is part of the nature of resisting a brutal occupation. What will be included then are articles focusing on living/economic conditions, the strategies and tactics of oppression as well as Human Rights reports at a minimum.

B’Tselem Press Release - According to B’Tselem, two themes clearly emerge from examination of the spectrum of human rights concerns in 2007. The first is the use of security justifications for virtually every Israeli action in the Occupied Territories . There is no doubt that Israel faces serious security threats, and is entitled and even obligated to do its utmost to protect its population. However, far too often, Israel fails to appropriately balance its security needs with equally important values, including protecting the rights of Palestinians under its control. In addition, Israeli authorities often exploit security threats in order to advance prohibited political interests, such as perpetuating settlements and effectively annexing them to Israel . — The second theme arising from the report is the lack of accountability of Israeli security forces, in all matters relating to human rights. This can be seen clearly in the reluctance of the state to thoroughly investigate violations and to prosecute those responsible for them. The lack of accountability can also be seen in the denial of most Palestinians’ right to compensation when they are injured through no fault of their own by Israeli forces. - 12/31/07 - B’Tselem

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