Israeli atrocities in Gaza

[Faeelin]

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7960824.stm

Now, the source is suspect, given the rabid antisemitism of Sri Lanka, but this is getting ridiculous.

[Admiral Yi]

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7960824.stm

Now, the source is suspect, given the rabid antisemitism of Sri Lanka, but this is getting ridiculous.

That's a bombshell.  And the Israeli response is pathetic.

[Malthus]

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7960824.stm

Now, the source is suspect, given the rabid antisemitism of Sri Lanka, but this is getting ridiculous.

That's a bombshell.  And the Israeli response is pathetic.

Hardly a "bombshell". Similar allegations have been made for years.

Amnesty International[3] and Human Rights Watch[4] assert the Israel Defense Forces used Palestinian civilians as human shields during the 2002 Battle of Jenin. The Israeli human rights group B'Tselem reported that "for a long period of time following the outbreak of the second intifada, particularly during Operation Defensive Shield, in April 2002, the IDF systematically used Palestinian civilians as human shields, forcing them to carry out military actions which threatened their lives".[5][6] The practice was outlawed by the Supreme Court of Israel in 2005 but human rights groups insist the IDF continues to use it, although they acknowledge the number of instances has dropped sharply.[5][7]In February 2007, Associated Press Television News released footage of an incident involving Sameh Amira, a 24-year-old Palestinian. The video appears to show the West Bank resident serving as a human shield for a group of Israeli soldiers.[7][8] The video can be seen on the AP website. The Israeli Army launched a criminal investigation into the incident.[7] In April 2007, the Israeli army suspended a commander after the unit he was leading was accused of using Palestinians as human shields in a West Bank raid.[9]

... and so on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_shields

This is just the small change of allegations in the region. Both sides regularly accuse the other of doing it, the difference being that, at least in Israel, the practice is illegal and those actually caught doing it do in fact face discipline.

[Admiral Yi]

This is just the small change of allegations in the region. Both sides regularly accuse the other of doing it, the difference being that, at least in Israel, the practice is illegal and those actually caught doing it do in fact face discipline.

The way the BBC is reporting the story, the UN chick is not passing on a third party allegation, she is reporting it as fact.

[Malthus]

This is just the small change of allegations in the region. Both sides regularly accuse the other of doing it, the difference being that, at least in Israel, the practice is illegal and those actually caught doing it do in fact face discipline.

The way the BBC is reporting the story, the UN chick is not passing on a third party allegation, she is reporting it as fact.

Still not a "bombshell". It has obviously actually occurred in the past many times - people have been dismissed from the service for doing it, the Israeli Supreme Court ruled it illegal, etc. All tend to indicate Israelis have in fact done it before (but that it is not approved).

The "allegation" aspect is not that such things occur, as they obviously do now and then, but that those in charge basically wink at it.

The "tactic" aspect, which ought I think to be familiar by now to Americans, is to take something that some troops do under fire (but which is not in fact approved) and claim that this is what the generals and politicians actually want the troops to do - to which the usual response is a denial of intent.

[Admiral Yi]

Fair enough.  I was unaware similar things had happened in the past.

[grumbler]

[The way the BBC is reporting the story, the UN chick is not passing on a third party allegation, she is reporting it as fact.

I think she is reporting it as a "finding."  More than a report, less than a fact.

[Siege]

Weak.

[Fate]

Weak.

Yes, Israel has shown itself to be quite the paper tiger.