What difference does “Hamas uses human shields” make?
I hear this alot. Like here. The claim is always, “Hamas uses human shields.” And it is always used in a context that somehow apologizes for killing civilians. How does that make any sense? If Hamas puts 30 children in a school and launches rockets from that school, you don’t bomb the school!
Remember, Israel is supposed to rise above the evil Hamas, not sink to their level.
It’s a question of morality.
January 6th, 2009 17:23
This really is the crux of a great many issues, isn’t it? It doesn’t take much of a tweak to this hypothetical to reach the other determination.
Assume: Evil Guy is in a school with 30 children. Further assume he has the ability to launch rockets that threaten as many or more children. Further assume that he has booby trapped the building so any effort to enter the building will blow up Evil Guy and the Kids (think Chechnya). Is it moral to allow Evil Guy to indiscriminately launch rockets from that location, threatening the lives of countless innocents, because the only way to stop him is attack the building and put those 30 children at risk?
January 6th, 2009 17:27
True, but if we’re going to make the hypothetical at all realistic, don’t we need to qualify “threaten as many or more children”? How many instances are there of Qassam rockets, for instance, blowing up Israeli schools and killing 30+ kids?
January 6th, 2009 17:37
According to Heller, that is irrelevant:) (parenthetically speaking, this illustrates a degree to which he is wrong).
It’s not just Qassems, first of all, Hamas now has Katyushas, Grads, and, perhaps, Fajrs. In the last week they have hit at least two schools during regular school hours, which, but for Israel’s efforts to limit civilian casualties, would almost certainly have resulted in numerous deaths. If you would like, I am sure I can find out how many rockets in the past 3 years or 5 years or 1 year have struck schools, playgrounds, et. al. and delineate how many times that has resulted in shock, injuries, or death. I think you’d be surprised how many times schools in the Negev have been struck by missiles and that only miraculous good fortune, early warning, and bomb shelters have prevented serious injuries and death. Personally, I consider the infliction of PTSD or PTSS on an entire civilian population, inclusive of hundreds of children to constitute child abuse at the least and severe harm at the worst. There is substantial literature documenting the psychological impact of rocket fire on the children of Sderot and the southern Negev that equates the harm to regular abuse and PTSD or PTSS.
January 6th, 2009 17:39
I see his point from a moral and legal perspective, however. Your average Palestinian is not responsible for what their government has done, vis-a-vis human soldiers. Why should more innocent civilians die because of a government’s despicable tactics?
January 6th, 2009 17:48
It is my hope that less civilians will die in the future. If Hamas has martyred these children for a better and more peaceful future beside Israel through Israel’s victory herein, instead of perpetually against Israel, with all its attendant risks…
I hope and I am terribly sad and torn. No innocent civilian deserves this.
January 6th, 2009 19:11
This thread will work as well any and the quoted caption still lacks adequate information, but local residents have now confirmed, according to the AP, that the UN school was being used as a base for attacks on Israel:
“GAZA CITY, Gaza (AP) — Israeli mortar shells struck outside a U.N. school where hundreds of Palestinians had sought refuge on Tuesday, killing at least 30 people – many of them children whose parents wailed in grief at a hospital filled with dead and wounded.
The Israeli army said its soldiers came under fire from militants hiding in the school and responded. It accused Gaza’s Hamas rulers of “cynically” using civilians as human shields. Residents confirmed the account, saying militants were seen staging attacks from the area.”
January 6th, 2009 19:13
The IDF youtube channel does, now, have a statement from their spokesman explaining the Israeli position on the UN school attack, but I do not have a direct link at this time.
January 6th, 2009 19:18
This is a clip from the JP report:
At least 30 people were reportedly killed and 53 wounded in an explosion in a UN-run school in the town of Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip, according to Palestinians. The IDF issued a statement saying the school grounds were used by terrorists to fire mortar shells at the troops.
The infantrymen returned mortar shell fire into the school grounds, the army said. Defense officials told The Associated Press that booby-trapped bombs in the school triggered the secondary explosions which killed scores of Palestinians on the site.
The IDF released a video taken by a UAV last week showing terrorists firing mortar shells from right outside the school.
“Hamas has in the past fired at Israel and at troops from inside schools, cynically using civilians, as is proven by UAV footage,” the army said.
The Jerusalem Post could not confirm the number of casualties reported by Palestinian sources.
Channel 10 reported that the military had a video filmed by a drone proving that the school was used by terrorists to fire mortars at IDF troops.”
I have previously raised the question about how to attribute deaths caused by secondary explosions, but this, if accurate, is a step closer to my prior hypothetical, wherein the school is booby trapped. Should the IDF have assumed that Hamas would booby trap a building full of civilians? Honestly, I don’t have a good answer on this one.