Israel's Collective Punishment of Gaza

Since Israel began its war on Gaza 11 days ago, more than 560 Palestinians -- about a quarter of them civilians -- have been killed. Some two thousand Gazans, including hundreds of children, have been wounded. Israel's "Operation Cast Lead" marks an escalation of Israel's two-year blockade of the Gaza Strip which has deprived 1.5 million Palestinians of necessary food, medicine, fuel and other necessities.

Israel is allegedly using white phosphorous gas, an illegal chemical weapon that burns to the bone. Dr. Mads Gilbert, a member of a Norwegian triage medical team working in Gaza, has documented Israel's use of Dense Inert Metal Explosive (DIME), which cuts its victims to pieces and reportedly causes cancer in survivors. Gilbert, who has worked in several conflict zones, said the situation in Gaza is the worst he has ever seen. Two United Nations schools have been hit by airstrikes, killing at least 30 people. The New York Times reported on Monday that Gazan hospitals are full of civilians, not Hamas fighters.

The targeting of civilians violates the Fourth Geneva Convention. Since the rockets fired from Gaza into Israel cannot distinguish between civilians and military targets, they are illegal. But Israel's air and ground attack in Gaza violates Geneva in four ways. First, it constitutes collective punishment of the entire population in Gaza for the acts of a few militants. Second, it targets civilians, as evidenced by the large numbers of civilian casualties. Third, it is a disproportionate response to the rockets fired into Israel. Fourth, an occupying power has an obligation to ensure food and medical supplies to the occupied population; Israel's blockade has created a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Israel's airstrikes and ground assault on the people of Gaza have little to do with the Gazan rockets, which hadn't killed any Israelis for a year before Israel's current military operation. Israel's leaders are bombing and attacking Gaza in order to gain an advantage in the upcoming Israeli elections in February.

Foreign Minister Tsipi Livni is locked in a tight race with Benyamin Netanyahu, who has criticized Livni for her "soft" treatment of the Palestinians. The Israeli government seeks to do as much damage as possible to Gaza while Bush is still in office. The New York Times cited several Middle East experts who "believe that Israel timed its move against Hamas, which began on Dec. 26, 25 days before Mr. Bush leaves office, with the expectation of such backing in Washington." Obama, in spite of his unequivocal support for the policies of Israel during the campaign and his deafening silence about the recent casualties, is an unknown quantity.

Israel would be unable to carry out its aggressive policies in Gaza without the support of the United States, which gives Israel $3 billion in U.S. taxpayer money each year. The F-16 bombers and Apache attack helicopters Israel is using on Gaza were bought with U.S. money.

The war on Gaza also violates U.S. law. The Human Rights and Security Assistance Act mandates that the United States cease all military aid to Israel, which has engaged in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights. The Arms Export Control Act prohibits U.S. weapons from being used for any purpose other than inside the borders of a country for self-defense. Targeting schools, police stations and television broadcast centers is not self-defense.

Although Israel's supreme court ordered the government to allow international media into Gaza to report on the situation there, Israel has refused. But, according to the New York Times, Israel has given "full access to Israeli political and military commentators." Ethan Bronner, the Times bureau chief in Jerusalem, said, "Israel has never restricted media access like this before, and it should be ashamed... It's betraying the principles by which it claims to live."

In spite of the one-sided pro-Israel media coverage in the United States, Newsweek said, "Does it make sense for America to support [Israel's] policy of punishing Hamas by making life unbearable for 1.5 million Gazans by denying aid and economic development? The answer is no." An editorial in the Los Angeles Times called for "an end to a blockade that amounts to the collective punishment of Palestinians under Hamas rule." And the New York Times editorialized that "the longer the Israeli incursion... the more Hamas's popularity grows among its supporters."

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world are protesting Israel's aggression in Gaza. Ten thousand demonstrated in Israel and scores have taken to the streets in Europe, the Middle East and throughout the United States.

A recent Rasmussen Reports poll found that Americans generally "are closely divided over whether the Jewish state should be taking military action against militants in the Gaza strip." But Democratic voters overwhelmingly oppose the Israeli offensive by a 24-point margin (31-55%). Republicans, on the other hand, overwhelmingly support it (62-27%). Nevertheless, Democratic Party leaders have followed Bush in their uncritical support for Israel.

The United States has blocked a ceasefire resolution in the Security Council. In the absence of council action, the General Assembly is empowered to act under the Uniting for Peace Resolution 377. Assembly president Miguel D'Escoto, who has been critical of Israel's actions in Gaza, said that "the time has come to take firm action if the UN does not want to be rightly accused of complicity by omission." The Human Rights Council should send a high level fact finding mission to Gaza.

It's time to call a halt to the violence and bloodshed.

Marjorie Cohn is a professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law and the president of the National Lawyers Guild. She is the author of "Cowboy Republic: Six Ways the Bush Gang Has Defied the Law." Her articles are archived at www.marjoriecohn.com.

Comments

[TMRICKS]

Dear Marjorie,
I am fast becoming a fan of yours.

I've recently finished reading Alessandro Portelli's detailed and excellent discussion (THE ORDER HAS BEEN CARRIED OUT: HISTORY, MEMORY AND MEANING OF A NAZI MASSACRE IN ROME) of one of the German military's most outrageous "collective punishment acts" outside of Rome on March 24, 1944; I am referring to the murder of 335 Italian men and boys at an abandoned quarry "on the via Ardeatina that came to be known as the Fossi Ardeatine." The collective murder of the Italians followed the previous day's Italian partisans' attack on a column of 33 German SS officers on the via Rasella in the Vatican. The Italian partisans DID have the right to resist the German occupiers though like Hamas, they too were blamed for the massacre.

I see many parallels of the via Rasella attack, and Israel's murderous decision to "pay back" Hamas for (daring) to resist Israeli occupation and strangulation of Gazans. The Gazans and Hamas DO the right to resist oppression and occupation, yet the oppressed and victims are seen as the perpetrators and the occupiers as having the "right" to use any means to punish the victims for daring to resist and, as you point out, for being an opportune political moment to win an upcoming election.

Let's look for analogies and parallels in world history to explain and see the Gaza crisis created by Israel.
Tom

[Moncar]

Ms. Cohn, along with her supporters here, are enablers; they've enabled Hamas to engineer the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians and the maiming of thousands more. While it's impossible for Hamas to know whether any rocketr would cause death and destruction in Israel they could be certain that someday it would bring both to Gaza.
Did Ms. Cohn, over the past few years, demand Hamas stop the rockets? My guess is not only did she not but that a fair reading would reveal encouragement to maintain the "struggle." Now, the chickens have come home to roost and her haranguing of the Israelis, along with her co-enablers here, is null and void.
She, Hamas and it's supporters, have Palestinian blood on their hands. The Israelis are doing the shooting, and they're certainly far from innocent in all this, but it's the enablers who've been exploiting the Palestinians with left-wing idiocy for more than sixty years who bear the guilt.

[qazi63]

Why blame Islam?

Individuals, not religions, carry out inhuman acts.

Islam is a religion of peace, accepted and practiced by more than 1.25 billion people worldwide. It is the fastest-growing religion in the world, and if it was what some critics claim, why should the people from all walks of life from around the world keep embracing Islam? Where is the sword now?

In Islam, a person has the right to defend himself, his family, his country or his neighbor(s), which justifies the resistance being offered by the people of Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya, Iraq, Kashmir and Palestine, to attacks on their soils by the so-called liberators, who are actually the occupiers.

The Holy Qur"an clearly states that if a person saves one life, it"s as if he saved humanity, and if a person kills one human being, it"s as if he killed humanity.

What is happening in the enslaved Muslim countries is a natural reaction to occupation, bombings, killing and terrorizing of innocent civilians (children, old men and women), rapes, in addition to looting of resources, national antiques and artifacts, above all the destruction of their property by the occupiers.

Terror breeds terror.

We assure those who bash Islam that if there was no occupation in this world by foreign invaders, there would be no resistance " the so-called terror.

[HarrySeldon]

Under the guise of Islam you advocate genocidal racism as if Jews and other non Muslims are automaticly occupiers.

You dehumanize non Muslims by calling them occupiers and therfore your resistance is legitimate. Thank God we don't live under Muslim law in the United States where every one is welcome even Muslims.

Arab Muslims tried to destroy Israel in 1948 and are still trying to figure out how to accomplish this goal under the banner of Islam.

All men are created equal but not in Islamic nations that is why Islam is criticized.

[2wit]

Good point - either way - the first step in hurting another is to make them less than human in your own eyes.

[salh]

The Palestinians vote Hamas in, now they are reaping the consequences of that decision. Hamas started this barrage of missiles into Israel and Israel is responding in self defense. The best way to achieve peace is for the Palestinians to rise up and get rid of the Hamas leadership. When Hamas is out of power, maybe we can achieve peace. The attitude of the Muslim nations must change and respect Israel and let it live in peace.

[jnah]

so by your logic if iraqis bombed the us in retaliation for bushs policies thatd be just dandy. not quite try putting yourself in their shoes. and what of the people who didnt vote for hamas. tough luck?

[RonMar]

Mind reading of Israeli politicians amazes as only part of Majorie"s anti-Israel bias and Islamic jihadists support.
Israel did not begin war on Gaza. Hamas and other Islamic jihadists did after Israel removed Jews from Gaza in another land for peace deal in 2005. Jihadists have warred against the PA and others, murdered civilians in Gaza and fired some 7000 terror rockets at Israeli civilians. Jihadists use civilians as human shields. Israel provided essential services - water, food, electricity and fuel - to Gaza for most of"05-"08 until tiring of the rocket attacks.
"Allegedly using white phosphorous" is not a proven fact. Israel is not targeting civilians; jihadists do as she notes.
"Disproportionate response," "occupying power" are Palestinian propaganda, ridiculous in view of: 1) Islam"s-claimed 1.7-1.9 billion worldwide vs. some 13 million Jews and the number of Muslims in depth around tiny Israel with just over 7 million Jews, Palestinians and others, and 2) UN Resolution 181"s provision for modern Israel and Palestinian states in 1948. To avoid recognizing Israel, Palestinians did not establish a state. Muslims have aimed to take over or destroy Israel and murder all Jews since the 7th C.
Jihadists "created [the] humanitarian crisis in Gaza ¦Israel [could defend itself] without [U.S.] support; one-sided pro-Israel media coverage in the [U. S.]" is denied by the articles cited and Majorie"s opinion piece.
It is time to ¦ halt to Islamic jihadists" violence and bloodshed.

[Timma]

Articles like this are long overdue. Neither israel or Hamas can successfully argue their right to log lethal explosives at one another. The nation state of Israel has moved beyond the pale of decency and respect for human life and dignity. To not support Israel in this aggression is a show of humanitarianism and understanding of the situation. Thanks for the post.

[HarrySeldon]

From the Associated Press:
"The offensive is meant to halt years of Palestinian rocket attacks on southern Israel."

Despite leaving Gaza a few years ago Israel is still under attack from Gaza. Hamas chose the road of violent resistance.

Mr. Abbas on the West Bank has manged to create a non violent atmosphere and is trying to negotiate a long term peace agreement.

One element of the Palestinians wants peace, Hamas wants total victory. Making any type of deal with Israel in the eyes of Hamas is treason.

I am greatly saddened by the horrific suffering of the civilians in Gaza but it is Hamas and its supporters who are the obstacle to peaceful co-existance.

[Bonobo]

It's become pretty apparent over the last few decades that any solution that relies on Israeli and Palestinian leaderships acting reasonably at the same time, for any length of time, is doomed to failure. They simply can't negotiate with each other without losing political power. Any approach America takes must deal with only one side at a time, or, even better, be a technical fix.
For instance, a solution to rockets being smuggled through tunnels across the Egyptian border would be a deep, narrow, trench or canal. Difficult to tunnel through, easy to detect. If rocket materials are still coming in, it means Israel needs to take a much closer look at itself.

[danielet]

Ms. Cohen reflects the Jewish humanitarianism and Americanism I came to love. Israel is still in Bush-world: bogged down in politics with war-killing and dying as a political tool, seeking to regain image of fierseness lost in Lebanon. In the end Israel killed lots of Palestinians. In so doing it killed sympathy for an Israel in danger. Ex-Pentagon expert Pat Lang said it best: Israel is massacring helpless Gazans to regain its military reputation of fierceness lost in Lebanon. But HAMAS keeps the useless rockets flying. Fearing Obama, Livni got cold feet and wants a quick cease-fire-- Lebanon 2006 bis. As Israelis attack compact trapped populations more will accept death as an opportunity to avenge the dead. Israeli casualties will rise sharply. In the end it is all a waste; as Lang said, this a war with military objectives-- reestablishing fierceness reputation; but wars must have political ends. You can't regain fearse reputation shooting helpless fish in a barrel. It is again all a costly waste for Israel.

[joedabear]

What you are saying is well and good. Sadly, it is a repeat of the same things that have been said over the last four plus decades.
Yet over those decades, hundreds or thousands of non-Israelis have died or been permanently injured while the number of Israelis that have died or been injured are in the ones or twos.
During this last peace agreement, I saw the Israelis putting new settlers on Palestinian land and sending missiles or helicopter gun ships in to kill Palestinians and destroy their homes. They never actually withdrew the occupation.
Israelis justify this by saying that they have a right to defend themselves. Excuse me, what about the Palestinians right to defend themselves from the Israeli"s assaults and taking over their land.
The Israeli"s must acknowledge that the Palestinians have the same rights that they do and honor those rights. They must also concede that all Palestinians are not fanatic terrorists and try to make a peace that acknowledges those rights and values.
The other nations must assure the Palestinians sovereignty over their own land, sea, and air plus provide them the capability of enforcing it.
Maybe then the Arab and other Islamic states will trust and respect the "Western Nations." Otherwise, things will only get worse in the world and frankly the hypocritical World risks deserving those results.

[wml209]

I don't condone the Hamas rockets, but there's blame to spread on both sides:
What about all the Israeli bulldozing?
What of the continuing of illegal settlement building?
International law... who's breaking many, many more laws than the other?
The stronger, much, much wealthier of the two... that's who.

PLEASE, Watch the videos of IDF soldiers on youtube who speak out against Israel's actions! You will be very surprised with what they say about Israeli policy.

[JanP]

wml209:

What Israeli bulldozing since Israel left Gaza in 2005?

Please find me some youTube videos of Gazans condemning the firing of rockets at israeli civilians.

[wml209]

JanP,

I can't help but notice you're not denying the bulldozing of homes, or the continued building of illegal settlements...
Nor have you addressed Is rael's wealth, military power (on my U.S. dime no less.)
You also didn't address Is rael's massive continued abuse of International law (70+ U.N. resolutions) Amazingly Is rael holds so many embarrassing world records. All the while fighting, objectively for the most part, a defenseless... prison camp.

785 V 13 killed, I mean you must be so proud.

I'll get right on the videos for you...

[pam125]

It is beyond belief that the world can stand by and watch this massacre of generally defenceless people who have nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. The day will come when we will all be deeply ashamamed of this complicity - nor will we be able to claim that we did not know.
And please, let's stop the nonsensical rhetoric that Israel is just defending itself! More people die in car crashes in a month in Israel than have died from the rockets launched in the last 8 years - does this mean Israel should bomb car manufacturers? Children hiding in UN schools are being killed!!!! Has the world gone completely mad? How long will the USA be a collaborator in this hideous crime?

[HarrySeldon]

Pam.

Hamas is pledged to rid every inch of Palestine of the Jews. They have vowed to destroy Israel. The innocent of Gaza have Hamas to blame. They want to wage war and apparently don't care how much suffering they cause.

If they had a nuclear weapon they would use it. Read their charter sometime you will find it on line.

[benalbanach]

Hamas cannot rid "every inch of Palestine of Jews" . Hamas does not have nuclear weapons.
No Israeli has been killed by a Hamas rocket in the past year.
From your statements I can only conclude that you have not even read this article.
Israel is wrong. I know that the truth is sometimes difficult to handle but you'd best learn to give it a a try.

[pam125]

Harry
Talk is just that, talk. The words Hamas speaks or has spoken, like the words Israel speaks or has spoken, are less important than actions. Let's look at what is being done and judge that - and I'm afraid the blitzkrieg we are watching cannot be compared to the impotent rockets launched by Hamas

[jackwaddington]

The propaganda, spin and rhetoric that the US and Israel is putting forth is beginning to be seen for what it is. "Spin". Israel and the Israeli politicians are playing a very dangerous game with themselves, their nation and Judaism. The world is now turning against them and this will make it so uncomfortable for Israel and the Israelis to live, let alone in peace for very much longer, however, they attempt to maintain their military superiority. Incredibly there are quite a few Jews who are now beginning to see this (in varying depth) and this raises the specter of a cultural demise of Judaism. The regional bully, for all it's excuses, is beginning to be seen as just that: The regional bully..

[JMO50]

If you put 6 jews in a room you likely get eight points of view. No so on the arab side. Not that arabs all think alike, only that expressing views contrary to the most popular is the best way to get yourself killed.

As to international opinion it too is very much influenced by a real fear of the arab street. The last thing Europe wants is trouble their their muslim communities. And in the Middle East Moderate leaders who frankly dispise Hamas and consider it Dangerous know they can only go so far.

And don't think for a second that in the middle east there is any distinction between those who are anti Israel and those who just hate jews.

[Turtleposer]

That's actually not true. Privately, Arabs disagree with each other as much as Jews. I had a Palestinian student who constantly riled his Saudi classmate with how wonderful Israel was in comparison to Saudi Arabia - he lived in both places. He didn't harbor any ill-will towards Jews, but rather the Palestinians and Jews could unite. Sounds like a hippie pipe-dream, but that's how he felt. I doubt he'd say the same now.

Because of the extremists, who are often armed, the average unarmed Arab is threatened to tout the "anti-Jew" line in public for fear of retribution. Sure, there are Arabs who do hate Jews just because they're Jews, but many secretly admire Israel when it treats Arabs humanely. Many Arabs don't like Palestinians by the way, for no other reason than they're not Jordanian, Saudi, Egyptian, Iraqi, you name it. Being anti-Israel is something to unite around, when they're not going after each other. However, the blockade & invasion won't improve anything, if that's what the Israelis wanted.

[HarrySeldon]

No rockets no invasion. Perhaps Hamas will see the futility of trying to wage war on Israel.

Non-violence is the only path forward.

[pam125]

And you regard the Israeli attack as non-violent? Really?
Do you think the 560 or more Palestinians killed in the last 12 days might disagree?

[justice2009]

so isreal that has stolen palestinian lands and killed thousands of palestinians throughout the years is using non violence? go to youtube and see what the isreali settlers are doing in hebron and the west bank.

[jrenstr]

Without getting into a long controversial discussion about Jewish settlement and the formation of Israel, just imagine instead that this were happening in the United States. Imagine that you lived in Texas, and Mexican Nationalists were firing rockets into the 20 mile corridor in which you lived, the Mexican's firing the rockets were very poor and so did not have more effective weapons such as artillery, aircraft, etc...so they didn't kill many people. In spite of this they were able to fire 7,000 rockets at you. Imagine that everyday when you walked your children to school you had 9 seconds to get them to safety before the rockets landed, rinse and repeat this scenario for 8 long years. What would you advocate doing to keep your family safe?

[jrenstr]

Hamas is closely related to the Egyptian Brotherhood, a group ideologically inspired by Sayeed Qutb, who also inspired Bin Ladin and Al queda. Al queda and Hamas are basically first cousins, although their immediate objectives and methods of terror differ. Unfortunately Hamas is deeply rooted in Gazan society. They provide many of the social services that Gazan's rely on and so garner significant support from the palestinians. HAMAS IS PALESTINE. I think that the long term solution is one of education and social services, making the palestinian people stakeholders in a peaceful and prosperous future, in the long term, military solutions are self defeating. Israel should have made sure their was international involvement and some type of aid package for gaza before pulling out of Gaza in 2005, leaving Gaza without functioning institutions allowed hamas to entrench itself. This is all second guessing though Israel is responsible for it's own citizens, just like any other State. To protect it's citizens Israel needs to stop the rocket attacks. How else can this be accomplished but through military means at this point?

[LJMom]

I couldn't agree more with Marjorie's article. It's so typical...the U.S. blocks everything when it comes to Israel, and you would think that the Congress and Senate are a part of the Israeli Government rather than the U.S. When are people in this Country going to wake up and realize that what is happening is not in our best interest. You cannot stand back and watch such suffering being inflicted on others without it eventually coming back to haunt you.

[youngat80]

LJMom: You ask "When are the people of this Country going to wake up and realize that what is happening is not in our best interest?" Hopefully, the wake-up call came during the campaign, and we as a nation can start acting January 20.
The first step should be cutting off all payments of aid to the Is raelis.

[HarrySeldon]

If Mexico launched missles into the U. S all of you anti Israel folks would be calling for a massive retaliation so it did not happen again.

[HarrySeldon]

Let's have Hamas launch rockets into your neighberhood and see how you feel.
You would punish the agressors so they would think twice about doing it again.

[elghoul]

For the blind and only the blind. See and hear this documentaty told by some Israeli veterans.
The truth and only the truth of what is going on...
1- http://current.com/items/89660292/many_israeli_soldiers_speak_out_against_israels_inhumanity_against_palestinians.htm

2- http://www.breakingthesilenceexhibit.org/

The ones who do not know will never equal the ones who do know...