I submit that if there was indeed a massacre, by whatever definition, that
is was perpetrated by both sides - not the one-sided genocide many were
hoping to be able to tuck into their verbal arsenals.
Also, it is not surprising to see that many more Palestinians were killed
and injured when one takes into account the readiness with which they kill
themselves and eachother.
The sooner Sharon gets retired, the better. There are certainly more
peaceful members of the Israeli leadership willing to take a stand to stop
or at least slow the loss of life in the area. I'm not sure the same is true
of the Palestinians.
The only real solution, of course, is a secular state with a secular or at
least minimally zealous populace. That I don't see happening any time soon.
I just hope that there are people on both sides with the patience and
humility to allow events to progress in that direction.
Thanks for the article and links, they are appreciated.
-ben
----- Original Message -----
From: "Hermit" <hidden@lucifer.com>
To: <virus@lucifer.com>
Sent: Friday, August 02, 2002 8:23 PM
Subject: Re:virus: UN report on Jenin released - israel not guilty
>
> Ben, I agree, it is not precise. But the fact is that I think we can
probably agree that the fact that the Palestinians have had 1,680 deaths,
4,586 injured by live ammunition, and a total of 19,995 injured in the
period Sept 29 '00 - Jul 31 '02 (Source: Palestinian Red Crescent Society
(http://www.palestinercs.org/crisistables/table_of_figures.htm)) and the
Israelis have had in excess of 550 killed, tells us that there is reason for
considerable concern.
>
> While on this topic the appended leader article may interest you. Refer
also to http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/comment/0,10551,762756,00.html
> Regards
>
> Hermit
> [hr]
> Truth-seeking in Jenin
>
> Israel is still wanted for questioning
>
> Source: The Guardian
(http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,2763,767965,00.html)
> Authors: Leader
> Dated: 2002-08-02
>
> In the wake of the Israeli assault on Jenin camp in the West Bank last
April, Kofi Annan, the UN secretary-general, was in no doubt what needed to
be done. "It is very urgent that we go in, find out what happened, and put
all the rumours and accusations behind us," he said. But Mr Annan's hopes,
backed by the security council, of quickly dispatching a fact-finding
mission to Jenin and other besieged towns were thwarted. Israel, with tacit
US support, flatly refused to cooperate. The subsequent inquiry launched by
default via the UN general assembly published its findings yesterday. Israel
barred its authors from visiting Jenin or other parts of the Occupied
Territories. It also refused to provide any information. As a result the
report's objective, as stated by Mr Annan, is seriously compromised. The UN
is forced to concede that some of its conclusions are tentative.
> Given its obstructive attitude, Israel's almost enthusiastic welcome for
the report is disingenuous. Its officials claim that the inquiry has cleared
up "misconceptions" about what Israeli forces did in Jenin. In fact, it
seems largely to confirm what many suspected at the time: that Ariel
Sharon's army frequently acted recklessly and illegally in Jenin and other
towns by disregarding the safety of Palestinian civilians, demolishing their
homes about their heads, and blocking medical and humanitarian aid. This
behaviour was serial. In fact the civilian toll in Nablus was perhaps double
that in Jenin. The report reveals that 497 Palestinians were killed and
1,500 wounded in "Operation Defensive Shield" from March to May - far higher
than previous figures.
>
> Palestinian gunmen also acted recklessly and illegally, as the report
notes, thereby increasing the civilian toll. And indeed, both sides'
continuing, callous disregard for civilian life is the single most
distressing feature of this conflict. Its resulting horrors were again
evident in Jerusalem on Wednesday. But in Jenin and elsewhere last spring,
as in Gaza last week, Israel exceeded the limits of its legal right to
self-defence. It placed itself in prima facie breach of the fourth Geneva
convention and the international covenant on civil and political rights.
Specifically, after an ambush on April 9 in Jenin that killed 13 soldiers,
it resorted to random, vengeful acts of terror involving civilians. As we
said last April, the destruction wrought in Jenin looked and smelled like a
crime. On the basis of the UN's findings, it still does
>
>
> ----
> This message was posted by Hermit to the Virus 2002 board on Church of
Virus BBS.
>
<http://virus.lucifer.com/bbs/index.php?board=51;action=display;threadid=259
15>
>
>
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