Israel declares unilateral Gaza cease-fire

Sunday 18th January, 08:45 AM JST

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VOR at 11:15 PM JST - 18th January

Not a word about Hamas aggression and war crimes, but non-stop reporting about Israel trying to decimate Hamas

Its safer for the media to tell the story the way Hamas wants it told rather then reporting both sides of the conflict accurately. The media likes a good story. They need access to tell their story. If they started reporting the truth or just showed some balance about this war, how long before Hamas sees them as the enemy and we see video tapes of members of the press getting their heads cut off?

There is so much disinformation fed by the mainstream media its easy to see why so many people think Israel is the guilty party.
WilliB at 11:21 PM JST - 18th January

VOR:

" The media likes a good story. They need access to tell their story. If they started reporting the truth or just showed some balance about this war, how long before Hamas sees them as the enemy and we see video tapes of members of the press getting their heads cut off? "

Of course intimidation is part of the story. For the same reason, we won´t see any Mohammed cartoons, or even flattering books about Mo... the death threats are never far away.

Still, this is not the only reason. Alas, the Western education system has been shaped so much by political correctness that kids and students don´t even learn about what is out there. Instead, they are indoctrinated to think that the Israeli-Arab conflict is just about land, and the islamic jihaad has nothing to do with it.

And they are too lazy to even read the Hamas Charter, which is quite clear.
bushlover at 12:37 AM JST - 19th January

Hamas will never learn the lesson about not cr@pping in it's own back yard and the Palestinians will suffer from that lesson not learned. I'd like to see some balance in reporting too. It's like Israels citizens were never harassed by anything dropping it their towns.
LIBERTAS at 01:25 AM JST - 19th January

It seems most of this "debate," if it can be dignified with that word, is focused on finger-pointing. It should be pointed at solutions and verifiable results. Let's get "israel" to follow all its obligations under 70+ UNSC resolutions, and then we'll execute its war criminals under international law. Simple.
grafton at 02:48 AM JST - 19th January

I have posted this before but at the dead end of another thread, so I’m posting it again, but in this case in answer to those who seem to believe the world is only made up Europe, America, Israel & Palestinians. I do not belong to any of those groups & as such that may-well be the reason that I haven’t allowed any emotional, racial, religious or nationalistic clouds to blind me. If this were any country other than Israel would this subject have generated the tens of thousands of words it has so far done here on JT? Excuses for this are always made, but I only ever see excuses.

There are so many drawing imaginary lines here, Hamas ARE Palestinians. Now try saying that to yourselves a few times until it sinks in. Now let’s move on to the democratically elected Hamas. Hamas was sharing power after the elections with the Palestinian authority but neither were happy about it so Hamas killed, imprisoned & tortured as many PA people as were not able to escape to the West Bank.

Most of you have claimed that Israel stopping the world’s media from entering the Gasa means you have no choice but to accept what is reported from the Gasa & many have used this fact as a means whereby you can, without criticism, accept all the numbers of dead being given from within Gasa. How does the Israeli action give credibility to what is being said from within Gasa?

You can all go on & on & on dredging up dates, places & numbers, but really really what it comes down to is that Hamas WAS firing rockets into Israel & Israel said stop it or we will stamp on you, Hamas didn’t (haven’t) stopped it & they have been stamped on. No one disputes that Hamas has been fighting from within the civilian population thereby bringing down Israeli fire on to their own people, yet the condemnation of this after weeks of what obviously happens is still being aimed not at the fools that put their children at risk, but at the Israelis.

Two weeks ago French TV showed news coverage from the Gasa of the funeral of children killed by Israel in the fighting. They have since said sorry because they found out that the film was of a funeral of children killed two years ago when a Hamas truck carrying explosive blew up. How many of you have the expertise to hand to know you are wrong, when you are wrong? And just for the record I am not saying that you are wrong, I am saying that gullible of the world always believe what they want to believe. Even French TV channels.

I am like any normal person, like the rest of you, I dislike the very idea of children being killed in situations like this, but having read some many of the posts here & newspaper from around the world I have actually found my feelings against the Palestinians/Hamas hardening. I started pro-Israeli & have become very pro-Israeli. The blind anger that has been directed towards Israel though so often hidden behind such caring words disgusts me. Something seems to happen to your intellects when it comes to Israel, so many of you seem to switch them off.

The real reason so many kill each other is because they believe everything they are told without first looking within themselves to ask themselves why they believe.
likeitis at 09:13 AM JST - 19th January

And they are too lazy to even read the Hamas Charter, which is quite clear.

You mean that piece of paper? I did not take you for the kind of person to restrict or direct your actions by pieces of paper. Nor do I take Hamas for such people.

Instead, they are indoctrinated to think that the Israeli-Arab conflict is just about land, and the islamic jihaad has nothing to do with it.

So the conflict is also about land? Land and Islamic Jihad? Is that all? And I am seriously asking you.

Of course intimidation is part of the story. For the same reason, we won´t see any Mohammed cartoons, or even flattering books about Mo... the death threats are never far away.

No surprise that death threats are all you can understand. Did you ever stop and think that most people realize that such things are offensive to Muslims and stop? I am sure I could come up with quite the witty "Jesus on a Cross" cartoon, but the reason I do not is because it would offend people who worship Jesus, not because of the death threats I would SURELY receive.
likeitis at 09:33 AM JST - 19th January

Its safer for the media to tell the story the way Hamas wants it told rather then reporting both sides of the conflict accurately.

Gee, I don't remember you complaining about the accuracy of the media when they were reporting on all the thousands of rockets but not quite emphasizing how few were killed by them, or bothering to give reasons for the rockets beyond how the Hamas charter calls for the destruction of Israel.

If they started reporting the truth or just showed some balance about this war,

While I agree with that sentiment, you have got to be one of the last people I would say knows anything of balance.

how long before Hamas sees them as the enemy and we see video tapes of members of the press getting their heads cut off?

And then BAM, you come up with an unbalanced statement! While you are forced to dream up scenarios of Hamas beheadings, do you write off very real killings of UN aid workers by Israel as "just a mistake"?

They need access to tell their story.

So now do you know why Israel likes to keep people out of Gaza?

There is so much disinformation fed by the mainstream media its easy to see why so many people think Israel is the guilty party.

Good ole Mr. Balanced! Actually there is so much disinformation is easy to see why people are so confused and messed up about the entire issue, including thinking Israel is some sort of underdog in the press that needs your defending. Its the people that pick a side despite a sea of misinformation that I worry about.

As much as I too decry the press, I thank the heavens that your kind of balance is not present.
bushlover at 11:14 AM JST - 19th January

likeitis have you ever considered what your kind of balance look like? No? Oh I'm schlocked!! this quote from you, and I'll use square brackets to help separate your words, [Gee, I don't remember you complaining about the accuracy of the media when they were reporting on all the thousands of rockets but not quite emphasizing how few were killed by them] is rather odd. It seems to imply that rockets fired at someone is ok as long as they are not hitting anyone. If that's the case you go out about 100 meters and I'll fire a rifle in your direction. I won't aim at you but just fire in your direction. You should be ok with that by the sounds of it. After all I'm just doing it in fun mate and mean no harm at all with the 5.56mm in your direction. Those are pretty small rounds to fly by you. Don't worry without aiming your most likely not to get hit. I'm a terrible shot anyway even if I aim. No worries, she'll be right mate.
likeitis at 01:48 PM JST - 19th January

You should be ok with that by the sounds of it.

Nope, I am not ok with it. And I am not okay with the rockets. But if I stole your land, locked you and your whole family up in a tiny shack with guards inside and did not let you out, and killed some of your relatives in the process, I still would not approve of you taking pot shots at me, but I would be really stupid not to expect it, even 60 years later.

What I could do to neutralize the situation I am not completely sure. Taking the guards out of your little shack is a step in the right direction, as was letting you walk outside one spring a few years ago, but I don't expect its enough to keep the peace. Maybe I should smack you around some more and kill one or two of your womenfolk? That should keep you quiet for a bit.

I suppose I ought to remind the town how nice I was to give you that shack too! They seem to be getting pretty uppity lately. Any way, I need to get back to tending my green acres.

But I do not approve of rockets, or violence in general. I also do not approve of robbing people of the context wherein violence takes place when discussing such incidents. Both parties are wrong, but it seems one is more wrong than the other.

Tell you what, you stop your poorly aimed shots at me and I will give you a cookie. Deal?
VOR at 03:56 PM JST - 19th January

likeitis; i'll concede one thing to you. i can understand why you disagree so strongly with pretty much everything i say. not because you are right or anything like that but because you believe so strongly with what you think you know about this topic any opposing view point is viewed as a threat to your belief system. i'm sure there are palestinians out there that do not wish for the destruction of Israel and prefer peace and a better future for their children. unfortunately these people are controlled by a terrorist organization hellbent on the destruction of Israel. Money donated by the international community is squandered on weapons used to attack Israel or ends up in Swiss bank accounts. There is no hope for the Palestinians until the moderates amongst them are able to lead. Unfortunately, these are the same people being brutalized and killed by Hamas. My hope is that the rockets stop and Hamas or whoever leads the Palestinian people are able to sit at the table and move toward a reasonable solution. Continuing to attack Israel only causes more bloodshed on both sides of the border.
likeitis at 04:06 PM JST - 19th January

VOR, I think that is the best post I have seen from you yet. Good job. I should get around to addressing specific points later, but for now, I will just give you pat on the back.
ralphrepo at 07:03 PM JST - 20th January

It really doesn't matter about who did what to whom at what point; and all the finger pointing won't provide any solutions, just more anger. Insofar as man is a community animal, as long as two groups exist together, but where one group is socially, politically, and economically disadvantaged to the other group (for whatever reasons), you will always have conflict. The only way that peace can come to Palestine is one of the following three ways; [1] one side completely kills the other [2] they have peace enforced by a ruthless third party more powerful than both sides put together [3] they embrace each other and share all facets of their existence equally. What's amazing about these conflicts is, that at the time of their struggle, neither side can appreciate that (in general) their collective existence in history is fleeting, as most civilizations eventually disappear or are absorbed by others. A few hundred years from now, Israel and Palestine may both wind up in the dustbin of history.
taniwha at 07:33 PM JST - 20th January

The cease fire may be in place but the damage done has been immense, and the seeds for further and wider conflict most certainly have been sewn by this murderous assault on humanity.

Just as a wrap up of the type of military assault the city of Gaza was subject to go here. Hospital medical staff in Gaza report the kinds of injuries seen were horrific in not only nature but in scale. Reports have been gathered from interviews conducted by The Financial Times, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, The Washington Post, as well as from the Associated Press, and from Rueters. Fascist inspired slogans painted on the walls of bombed buildings by departing troops are reported also. News reports are that chemical weapons had been used on a school, with accusations by several civilians that contradict the official Israeli statements that troops responded to being under fire from the school zone. However, it is one particular weapon used reported in this article by hospital staff that is the most profoundly disturbing, and that is the one known as Dime.
zurcronium at 08:02 PM JST - 22nd January

So Saddam and the IDF have a lot in common it seems . . . .

After weeks of denying that they had used white phosphorus in heavily-populated areas of Gaza, the IDF has admitted that Israeli forces may have used the napalm-like chemical in violation of both international law and the Israeli military's own policy. The Guardian reports:

According to senior IDF officers, quoted today in the Ha'aretz newspaper, the Israeli military made use of two different types of phosphorus munitions.

The first, they insisted, was contained in 155mm artillery shells, and contained "almost no phosphorus" except for a trace to ignite the smoke screen.

The second munitions, at the centre of the inquiry by Col Alkalai, are standard phosphorus shells – both 88mm and 120mm – fired from mortars.

About 200 of these shells were fired during Israel's Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, and of these – say the IDF – 180 were fired on Hamas fighters and rocket launch crews in northern Gaza.

Alkalai is investigating the circumstances in which the remaining 20 shells were fired, amid compelling evidence on the ground that phosphorus munitions were involved in the attack on a UN warehouse and a UN school.

...

The use of phosphorus as an incendiary weapon as it now appears to have been used against Hamas fighters – as opposed to a smoke screen – is covered by the Convention of Certain Conventional Weapons to which Israel in not a signatory.

However, Israel also is obliged under the Geneva Conventions and customary international humanitarian law to give due care to protecting the civilian population when deciding on appropriate military targeting and response to hostile fire, particularly in heavily built up areas with a strict prohibition on the use of indiscriminate force.
JackBerstein at 12:15 AM JST - 26th January

It seems most of this "debate," if it can be dignified with that word, is focused on finger-pointing. It should be pointed at solutions and verifiable results. Let's get "israel" to follow all its obligations under 70+ UNSC resolutions, and then we'll execute its war criminals under international law. Simple.

I'll second that!