Hate Thy Neighbor; How Israel Teaches Its Citizens All The Wrong Lessons
Across Israel, anger at Arabs is building. In the wake of a horrific Palestinian terrorist attack on a Jerusalem synagogueand concurrent with violent protests by Palestiniansseveral assaults by Jews against Arabs have been reported. Arab workers are reporting a rise in job discrimination. In a poll published Thursday, 58 percent of Jews endorsed a decision by the mayor of Ashkelon, a major city, to bar Arab citizens of Israel from working near young schoolchildren.
Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says these discriminatory outbursts and policies are wrong. We must not generalize about an entire public due to a small and violent minority, he asserts. But Netanyahu teaches this kind of prejudice every day, by demolishing the homes of the families of suspected terrorists.
Israel has employed this policy, off and on, for decades. Its rooted in old military laws and based on the idea that it deters prospective terrorists. The government doesnt have to show that the family members who live in the housegrandparents, children, cousinsare guilty or even suspected of any crime. And the policy applies only to Arabs, not to Jews.
The first lesson this policy teaches Israelis is that its legitimate to inflict suffering on innocent people in order to discourage terrorism. You need a means of deterrence against the next suicide attacker, Netanyahu explained this week as he announced demolitions in response to the synagogue attack. When he knows that his house, the house in which his family lives, will be demolished, this will have an impact. Shaul Shay, a former member of the Israeli national security council, agrees: A terrorist may be willing to sacrifice his own life, but maybe he will think twice if he knows the homes of his relatives will be destroyed. If the family pays the price, its different.
In other words, the logic of the policy is that it punishes people who dont commit acts of terror. Terrorists want to die, so they arent deterred. Israel targets their loved ones, who would suffer more acutely, in the hope that this price will intimidate the would-be perpetrator. That is the logic of hostage taking, and of terrorism.
more...
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2014/11/israel_s_demolition_of_palestinian_homes_benjamin_netanyahu_s_government.html
Stryst
(714 posts)is born from a life of fear and hatred, then how do we keep the military contractors in business? /sarcasm
Bill USA
(6,436 posts)Bill USA
(6,436 posts)Fifteen days into Operation Protective Edge, the IDF has gone and done something quite remarkable. The army set up a field hospital near the border with Gaza to treat the injured and wounded caught in the crosshairs of the conflict in Gaza.
Israel has a long history of providing medical treatment to those in need, especially to Palestinians in need. The IDF however, took the humanitarian spirit up a notch by opening a field hospital at the Erez crossing, right next to where the first Israeli was murdered during the current operation.
The field hospital, which is strategically located between Israel and the Gaza Strip, will serve as an emergency clinic, providing medical services for injured Palestinians from Gaza. The hospital will also have a fully equipped delivery room for expectant mothers.
A statement on Sunday was published by the IDF which said: The hospital will include an emergency clinic, pediatric and gynecological services, a delivery room and even overnight hospitalization when needed. The staff will include doctors, nurses, x-ray technicians and lab technicians.
(more)
On Gaza border, an Israeli field hospital stands empty
EREZ CROSSING, Northern Gaza Strip The canvas banners dotting Israeli highways adjacent to the Gaza Strip tell the story of the public mood these days.
~~
~~
But at Erez Crossing, on Gazas northern perimeter, the atmosphere is far more conciliatory. Erez is Gazas only pedestrian gateway into Israel, and throughout Operation Protective Edge more than 400 Palestinians have crossed through it in local ambulances seeking medical treatment in Israeli and West Bank hospitals.
On July 21, the IDF opened a military field hospital in the enormous border terminal, meant to provide emergency treatment for civilians injured in Gaza and unable to seek medical care in the Strips failing medical installations. Two weeks later, the Government Press Office invited a busload of foreign journalists to view the hospital for the first time, striving to show the efforts of the Israeli army to protect Palestinian civilians lives.
With a permanent staff of 20 doctors, nurses and medics on location, the Erez field hospital boasts advanced resuscitation equipment, a delivery room, a pharmacy, and lab services. Specialists include a pediatrician, an ophthalmologist and a gynecologist. Yet despite the apparent eagerness of the Israeli professionals to treat Palestinians in need, on Friday the hospital was completely empty.
(more)
KoKo
(84,711 posts)Bombing and killing innocent children and others and I am supposed to use a hospital provided by those who did the Bombing..? Especially after they had bombed the hospitals in my OWN Location?
I wouldn't find that a safe alternative or recommend it to anyone. Who would trust those who bombed them to give treatment in these circumstances? I think very few would trust their lives to those who had caused their injuries. Depending on one's enemy to treat one's wounds would be very risky.