An Eye For An Eyelash

[24KT]

An Eye For An Eyelash
Israel's attempt to justify its catastrophic assault on Gaza is based on a pack of lies
 
by Avi Shlaim
Sunday 11 January 2009, The Journal Issue 16


Avi Shlaim

The only way to make sense of Israel's senseless war in Gaza is by placing it under a critical lens. Israel portrays itself as an island of democracy in a sea of authoritarianism, yet it has never done anything to promote democracy on the Arab side and has done a great deal to undermine it.

Despite all the handicaps, the Palestinian people succeeded in building the only real democracy in the Arab world, with the possible exception of Lebanon and Morocco. In January 2006, fair elections brought to power a Hamas-led government. Israel, however, refused to recognise the democratically elected government, claiming that Hamas was an unreformed terrorist organisation.

The US and EU shamelessly joined Israel in ostracising and demonising the Hamas government and in trying to bring it down by withholding tax revenues and foreign aid. A surreal situation thus developed with a significant part of the international community imposing economic sanctions not against the occupier but against the occupied; not against the oppressor but against the oppressed.

Israel's propaganda machine persistently purveyed the notion that the Palestinians are terrorists, that they reject coexistence with the Jewish state, that their nationalism is little more than anti-Semitism, that Hamas is just a bunch of religious fanatics and that Islam is incompatible with democracy.

But the truth is that the Palestinians are normal people with normal aspirations. What they aspire to, above all, is a piece of land to call their own, on which to live in freedom and dignity. Yet for the last 41 years, Israel has persistently frustrated their national aspirations.

The war unleashed by Israel on Gaza on 27 December was the culmination of a series of clashes with the Hamas government. Its declared aim is defensive: to compel Hamas to stop the rocket attacks on Israeli towns. The undeclared aim is to drive Hamas out of power. The architects of this murderous war want the world to see the Palestinians in Gaza simply as a humanitarian problem and thus to derail their struggle for independence and statehood.

Mighty Israel claims to be the victim of Palestinian aggression, but the sheer asymmetry of power between the two sides leaves little doubt as to who is the real victim. The resort to brute military force is accompanied, as always, by the shrill rhetoric of victimhood, self-pity and self-righteousness.

To be sure, Hamas is not an entirely innocent party. Denied the fruit of its electoral victory, it has resorted to the weapon of the weak – terror. Hamas militants kept launching rocket attacks against Israeli settlements near the border with Gaza after Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from the strip in August 2005.

The damage caused by these primitive rockets is minimal but the psychological impact is immense, prompting the public to demand protection from its government. Under the circumstances, Israel had the right to act in self-defen ce but its response to the pinpricks of rocket attacks was totally disproportionate.

The figures speak for themselves. In the three years after the withdrawal from Gaza, 11 Israelis were killed by rocket fire. But in 2005-7 alone, the Israel Defence Force killed 1,290 Palestinians in Gaza, including 222 children.

Whatever the numbers, killing civilians is wrong. This applies to Israel as much as it does to Hamas, but its record is one of unbridled and unremitting brutality towards the inhabitants of Gaza.

The brutality of Israel's soldiers is fully matched by the mendacity of its spokesmen. Eight months before launching the current war on Gaza, Israel established a National Information Directorate. The core messages of this directorate to the media are as follows: Hamas broke the ceasefire agreements; Israel's objective is the defence of its population; and Israel's forces are taking the utmost care not to hurt civilians. In essence, this propaganda is a pack of lies.

The six-month ceasefire brokered by Egypt in July of last year was in fact carefully observed by Hamas. It was not Hamas but the IDF that broke the ceasefire. It did so by a raid into Gaza on 4 November that killed six Hamas men. Secondly, Israel's objective is not just to protect its citizens but bring about regime change in Gaza.

And far from taking care to spare civilians, Israel is guilty of indiscriminate bombing and of a three-year blockade of food, fuel, and medicines that has brought the inhabitants of Gaza to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. This is not a war but one-sided carnage. In waging this war, the Israeli soldiers have also committed war crimes such as the bombing of UN schools, ordering a hundred civilians to take shelter in a house in Zeitoun and then bombing and killing a third of them, and firing on ambulances and medical personnel.

The Biblical injunction of an eye for an eye is savage enough. But Israel's insane offensive against Gaza seems to follow the logic of an eye for an eyelash.

Avi Shlaim is a Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford.
He is the author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World (Norton, 2001)

[Nordic Superman]

Despite all the handicaps, the Palestinian people succeeded in building the only real democracy in the Arab world, with the possible exception of Lebanon and Morocco. In January 2006, fair elections brought to power a Hamas-led government. Israel, however, refused to recognise the democratically elected government, claiming that Hamas was an unreformed terrorist organisation.

You are aware Hamas is indeed listed as a terrorist organization by the US, EU, Japan and your very own Canadian government.

Remember that the Nazis were democratically elected but that didn't give them the right to commit genocide and attempt to take over the world.

Much in the same way, a democratically elected Hamas government isn't given the right to shoot on Israeli CIVILIAN targets simply due to the virtue of the fact they were democratically elected.

In fact, a small burden must rest on the shoulders of the populace of Palestine who chose Hamas to represent them. To contrast, I have much more sympathy for Zimbabweans who are held at gun point to support their fascist government over the cause of Palestinians who freely chose to impose death upon themselves with the empowerment of Hamas.

[Soul Crusher]

Tough crap for them.  Maybe next time they will think twice before sending rockets into civilian areas.

[headhuntersix]

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaa.............they tried live and let live..nows its bomb them to rubble.

[shootfighter1]

"a small burden must rest on the shoulders of the populace of Palestine who chose Hamas to represent them. "

I would ammend that to say a Large burden.

[MCWAY]

An Eye For An Eyelash
Israel's attempt to justify its catastrophic assault on Gaza is based on a pack of lies
 
by Avi Shlaim
Sunday 11 January 2009, The Journal Issue 16


Avi Shlaim

The only way to make sense of Israel's senseless war in Gaza is by placing it under a critical lens. Israel portrays itself as an island of democracy in a sea of authoritarianism, yet it has never done anything to promote democracy on the Arab side and has done a great deal to undermine it.

Despite all the handicaps, the Palestinian people succeeded in building the only real democracy in the Arab world, with the possible exception of Lebanon and Morocco. In January 2006, fair elections brought to power a Hamas-led government. Israel, however, refused to recognise the democratically elected government, claiming that Hamas was an unreformed terrorist organisation.

The US and EU shamelessly joined Israel in ostracising and demonising the Hamas government and in trying to bring it down by withholding tax revenues and foreign aid. A surreal situation thus developed with a significant part of the international community imposing economic sanctions not against the occupier but against the occupied; not against the oppressor but against the oppressed.

Israel's propaganda machine persistently purveyed the notion that the Palestinians are terrorists, that they reject coexistence with the Jewish state, that their nationalism is little more than anti-Semitism, that Hamas is just a bunch of religious fanatics and that Islam is incompatible with democracy.

But the truth is that the Palestinians are normal people with normal aspirations. What they aspire to, above all, is a piece of land to call their own, on which to live in freedom and dignity. Yet for the last 41 years, Israel has persistently frustrated their national aspirations.

The war unleashed by Israel on Gaza on 27 December was the culmination of a series of clashes with the Hamas government. Its declared aim is defensive: to compel Hamas to stop the rocket attacks on Israeli towns. The undeclared aim is to drive Hamas out of power. The architects of this murderous war want the world to see the Palestinians in Gaza simply as a humanitarian problem and thus to derail their struggle for independence and statehood.

Mighty Israel claims to be the victim of Palestinian aggression, but the sheer asymmetry of power between the two sides leaves little doubt as to who is the real victim. The resort to brute military force is accompanied, as always, by the shrill rhetoric of victimhood, self-pity and self-righteousness.

To be sure, Hamas is not an entirely innocent party. Denied the fruit of its electoral victory, it has resorted to the weapon of the weak – terror. Hamas militants kept launching rocket attacks against Israeli settlements near the border with Gaza after Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from the strip in August 2005.

The damage caused by these primitive rockets is minimal but the psychological impact is immense, prompting the public to demand protection from its government. Under the circumstances, Israel had the right to act in self-defen ce but its response to the pinpricks of rocket attacks was totally disproportionate.

The figures speak for themselves. In the three years after the withdrawal from Gaza, 11 Israelis were killed by rocket fire. But in 2005-7 alone, the Israel Defence Force killed 1,290 Palestinians in Gaza, including 222 children.

Whatever the numbers, killing civilians is wrong. This applies to Israel as much as it does to Hamas, but its record is one of unbridled and unremitting brutality towards the inhabitants of Gaza.

The brutality of Israel's soldiers is fully matched by the mendacity of its spokesmen. Eight months before launching the current war on Gaza, Israel established a National Information Directorate. The core messages of this directorate to the media are as follows: Hamas broke the ceasefire agreements; Israel's objective is the defence of its population; and Israel's forces are taking the utmost care not to hurt civilians. In essence, this propaganda is a pack of lies.

The six-month ceasefire brokered by Egypt in July of last year was in fact carefully observed by Hamas. It was not Hamas but the IDF that broke the ceasefire. It did so by a raid into Gaza on 4 November that killed six Hamas men. Secondly, Israel's objective is not just to protect its citizens but bring about regime change in Gaza.

And far from taking care to spare civilians, Israel is guilty of indiscriminate bombing and of a three-year blockade of food, fuel, and medicines that has brought the inhabitants of Gaza to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. This is not a war but one-sided carnage. In waging this war, the Israeli soldiers have also committed war crimes such as the bombing of UN schools, ordering a hundred civilians to take shelter in a house in Zeitoun and then bombing and killing a third of them, and firing on ambulances and medical personnel.

The Biblical injunction of an eye for an eye is savage enough. But Israel's insane offensive against Gaza seems to follow the logic of an eye for an eyelash.

Avi Shlaim is a Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford.
He is the author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World (Norton, 2001)

Isn’t this the blessed Jihad that the Palestinians and Hamas so eagerly wanted?

Is this not the Holy War for which they lustfully demanded, when setting Israel’s flag on fire and pronouncing death onto that country?

I say the answer is no……but it’s not because they don’t want to end the violence.

The only reason they’re wailing now is because Israel is smacking that booty all over Gaza. Hamas doesn’t care whether they kill Jewish military or civilians; but, it’s a whole different kettle of fish, when their civilians (who, unlike the Jewish ones, are NOT specifically targeted) start dying.

“You, who are without mercy, now plead for it? I thought you were made of stronger stuff!!” – Optimus Prime, “Transformers: The Movie”.

[Soul Crusher]

Self loathing Jews are an embarassment. 

Hamas played with fire and is getting severely burned.  Tough for them. 

[Nordic Superman]

Hamas believe in sunni islamism, religious nationalism and islamic socialism. Jag, do you think these political goals produce a peace loving society? You've once again displayed how much of an apologist you are, and how much of a coward you are by not responding to the counter arguments.

[Hereford]

This is all George Bush's fault.

That summa na bitch....

[Fury]

Hamas believe in sunni islamism, religious nationalism and islamic socialism. Jag, do you think these political goals produce a peace loving society? You've once again displayed how much of an apologist you are, and how much of a coward you are by not responding to the counter arguments.

Western civilization as we know it is under attack.

[240 is Back]

If Mexico or Cuba fired thousands of rockets into FL, and I had to live in a shelter or basement and live in complete terror of a random missile 24/7....

Would I be okay with telling them to GTFO, then carpetbombing that place back to 1815?

You betcha!

[OzmO]

So Israel should have just sat back and fired random rockets back equally?   

And Israel is responsible for promoting democracy in other nations?   Even ones who's poeple predominantly want them wiped off the face of the earth?  The same ones that danced in the streets on 9/11?

If those people want to do something democratic, how about they put an end to Hamas themselves?

[24KT]

If Mexico or Cuba fired thousands of rockets into FL, and I had to live in a shelter or basement and live in complete terror of a random missile 24/7....

Would I be okay with telling them to GTFO, then carpetbombing that place back to 1815?

You betcha!

God Forbid it should happen, ...but by your own reasoning, ...one would think that you'd be just A-OK if Iraq were to carpetbomb the USA, or nuke FL. Afterall, Bush sent thousands of missiles into Iraq which killed thousands of Iraqi's and destroyed their society, ...and FL was the collosal screw up that allowed bush to get into office in the first place.

It's the same scenario. Floridians sElected Bush (with a little help from his Daddy's friends on the Supreme Court) and Bush fired missiles into Iraq. So it would be OK with you if Iraq massacred the citizens of the US for Bush's actions? 

Doesn't sound so pleasant or justified when the scenario is mirror'd does it?   

[Nordic Superman]

God Forbid it should happen, ...but by your own reasoning, ...one would think that you'd be just A-OK if Iraq were to carpetbomb the USA, or nuke FL. Afterall, Bush sent thousands of missiles into Iraq which killed thousands of Iraqi's and destroyed their society, ...and FL was the collosal screw up that allowed bush to get into office in the first place.

It's the same scenario. Floridians sElected Bush (with a little help from his Daddy's friends on the Supreme Court) and Bush fired missiles into Iraq. So it would be OK with you if Iraq massacred the citizens of the US for Bush's actions? 

Doesn't sound so pleasant or justified when the scenario is mirror'd does it?   

Wait, so tell me what this has to do with Palestine/Israel? Do you know your history about the area and the fact that Palestine has never existed and that the state of Israel was rectified by the UN from British owned land?