'I saw fit to remove her from the world'

[DuctapeFatwa]

There was a particularly festive atmosphere at the
Nirim outpost on August 12, 1949, the eve of
Shabbat. A week of dusty patrols and pursuits of
infiltrators in the sands of the western Negev
desert was at an end, and the commander of the
hilltop site, Second Lieutenant Moshe, gave the
order to make the preparations for a party. The
tables in the large tent that was used as a mess
hall were arranged in rows, sweets of various
kinds were laid out on them and even a bit of wine
was poured, though not enough to get drunk on. At
exactly 8 P.M. the soldiers took their places and
platoon commander Moshe recited the blessing over
the wine. He then gave a Zionist pep talk,
reiterating the importance of the unit's mission
and the troops' contribution to the infant state.
At the order of his deputy, Sergeant Michael,
Private Yehuda read from the Bible. When he
finished the soldiers burst into song, told jokes,
ate and drank. A merry time was had by all.

Shortly before the end of the
party, at about 9:30, the
platoon commander asked for
quiet. He got up and, with a
smile on his face, reminded
the soldiers about the
Bedouin girl they had caught
earlier that day during a
patrol in their sector. They
had brought her to the outpost and she was now locked up in one of the
huts. Platoon commander Moshe said he was
putting forward two options for a vote. The
first was that the Bedouin girl would become
the outpost's kitchen worker; the second was
for the soldiers to have their way with her.
The proposals got an enthusiastic reception. A
melee ensued. The soldiers raised their hands
and the second option was accepted by majority
vote. "We want to fuck," the soldiers chanted...

There are different
versions regarding the girl's age. According to
some accounts she was a young girl aged between
10 and 15; others say she was between 15 and
20. Platoon commander Moshe ordered the
soldiers to seize the Arabs and search them.
The soldiers found nothing. Officer Moshe then
ordered the soldiers to bring the girl into the
vehicle. Her shouts and screams were to no
avail....

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=355227

[Darranar]

1. This is very, very sad...

I wonder how many similar events have taken place throughout the years?

[Violet_Crumble]

13. I know...

My guess is there's way more that happen in conflicts and wars that the public never ever hear about. What I'd like to know is if this incident has only just come to light. It doesn't matter that it happened over 50 years ago. There are some atrocities where time doesn't at all dull the horror of what is done to people, and this is one of them. Reading that article had the same emotional impact on me as reading of the My Lai massacre....


Violet...

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. As long as this type of behavior

is condoned or ignored, we shall have misery and hatred. Don't they know that this sort of torture will taint the very ground? That this sort of act demeans them and brings karma into play?

[bluesoul]

3. Terrible

Oh my! You really have to give it to Haaretz, they really do report about the ugly truth even though it's the army of their country being the sinner. That alone deserves much respect. This is how professional and objective reporting should look like. Not the one-sided picture of whatever side...

[Aidoneus]

4. interesting piece

deserves more attention than its receiving.

Quite disturbing in spots, but they're not called the "most moral army in the world" for nothing.. :eyes:

[bluesoul]

5. Hmm

Interesting, no replies from the youknowwho team over here. While we're supposed to condemn every suicide bombing (which we do)....

[Forkboy]

6. That's because only certain deaths are a tragedy

and we know which ones those are.

[Aidoneus]

7. edited

forget it, referring to different things..

[Muddleoftheroad]

8. A horrible story

Shocking actually. Soldiers committing rape. I bet that's never happened before or since 1949.

And no, that doesn't minimize the horror, but are we now down to such a PR low here that we will analyze every single incident that either side has done to one another? With 55 years of active war and a whole bunch more of violence then we need a lot more space on DU.

[bluesoul]

10. Good

I am glad you condemn that Muddle. Up to know you're the only one from the pro-Israeli side :shrug:

[Muddleoftheroad]

11. It is early

It's 7:18 a.m. on my computer clock, give folks time.

[bluesoul]

12. Aah the time zone

And here it's 13:27 p.m. ;-)

[edzontar]

23. Things like this may indeed happen in war.....

But they are crimes and cannot be defended on any terms.

It is singularly brave of Haaretz topublish this hideous story.

On edit: I hope those pigs were prosecuted.

[GabysPoppy]

9. For the posters above me

who are waiting for a reply from "Team Israel" as it is alluded to.

This was a despicable act perpetuated on a human being by a few non-human beings. Their is no justification in the world to excuse this behavior. It is the saddest fact that things like this happen during war, not only this incident but the myriad of incidents reported during the Vietnam era and even more recently in the Far east.

Let's also remember that the incident happened over 50 years ago. I state this fact, not as justification but as a reminder to everyone who posts after me who will read the headline only and believe it to be an occurence from last week. If you don't think that will indeed happen see some of the comments above.

Posts 1, 4, 5, and 6 while not stating it is a recent event, allude to it as either "typical" of the IDF or the present conflict.

[TimeLord]

14. It is possible, however, that this event

is recurring. There have been many "recent" reports of similar activity by HRW and other agencies.

This particular story shows the very ugliness of humankind.

[bluesoul]

15. Exactly!

And that no one can claim the higher moral ground...

[Muddleoftheroad]

16. Of course they can

To say one anecdote or 10 or even 100 offset moral high ground is silly.

Every army in the history of humankind has probably raped at one time or another. When you put thousands or hundreds of thousands of men in a situation where their lives are constantly in danger and, typically, they are kept away from their loved ones and female companionship, it happens. It is horrible every single time, but would you say that a few instances of such action would have offset American actions during WWII?

[TimeLord]

19. Perhaps, not, however in WWII

both sides committed terrible atrocities. I don't think weighing moralities is even appropriate.

[GabysPoppy]

17. Thank you for proving my point so quickly

I would never deny that humankind can and do commit acts of ugliness in the entire world. That is an undispited fact.

But that doesn't make your first statement any less McCarthylike in its implication. "recent reports" has the same validity as the papers in Joseph McCarthy's breast pocket.

[TimeLord]

18. Well, I'm not sure what would make them less valid.

Unless you're implying that my statement is somehow incorrect? :shrug:

[The Magistrate]

21. It Would Be Nice To See Some Such Recent Reports, Sir

There have been no reports of murderous gang rape in the present day put before this forum in the whole of my time here, and there have been many industrious souls who would have made their business to present them, were they available. There have certainly been some reports of maltreatment of prisoners in the present day, that have drawn condemnation from advocates for both sides.

As others have pointed out, such incidents are part of the normal brutalization of war. The conflict between Israel and Arab Nationalists in the late forties was a particularly brutal one in its partisan phases, featuring atrocious conduct on both sides. Hate and dehumanization came to mark the minds of many. Indiscipline in Israeli forces was a widespread and debilitating phenomenon, owing much to their origin as extra-legal bodies.

[bemildred]

22. I must agree.

I wondered when it would pop up here.
I wondered why Haaretz chose to put it up in the first place.
Perhaps as a lesson that evil is not a monopoly of any culture.
But it seems unlikely to add much to the discussion here.

[bemildred]

31. Ah, I see it is new.

That explains why Haaretz put it up:

http://www.democraticunderground.org/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=116&topic_id=2232

[DuctapeFatwa]

25. Any such incidents would be under a cover ban for bush and sharon regimes

and any site that reported such things would automatically be considered a "hate site."

It is not possible to post links here to even a fraction of what US-funded sharon regime gunmen do in Palestine.

[The Magistrate]

26. Oh, Do Give It A Rest, Mr. Fatwa

Credible reports would appear, and you know it.

[DuctapeFatwa]

28. I regret that I do not know any such thing

I wish that I did.

What I do know is that while a segment of the US voting class, and their homologues in Israel, may heartily endorse a definition of "credible" that means "acknowledged, albeit reluctantly, by the bush (or sharon) regime," the same opinion does not enjoy as wide a popularity in the Majority World, nor even universal acceptance among Americans and Israelis.

This is by no means limited to events in Palestine.

Cover bans are enacted by both regimes, and journalists have been killed by both regimes.

[edzontar]

24. Thanks for the clarification.

So does anyone know what happend to these creeps?

Were they punished?

[Darranar]

27. ?

No, I alluded to it as all too common during wartime.

It was an expression of sadness, not of blame.

[Adalah]

20. Sickening

We all condemn this, no matter how many decades ago. It reminds us humanity is capable of all kinds of acts, regardless of the country they represent or the uniforms they wear. At the same time, it's not an indictment of anyone in the current situation.

[sushi]

29. I just read this

What a disgusting bunch of men. I'm thinking it must have been normal during the years of the Vietnam war, and all the other wars.

It doesn't only happen in wartime. I read that the people of Okinawa, Japan, want the US troops stationed there to leave, because recently a US soldier was accused of raping a local girl on the bonnet of a car, watched by his buddies. He said it was consensual. It was not the first time the locals complained about the behaviour of the soldiers. Wish I had a link.

I remember reading that during the Korean war, the government ran a brothel for the troops. That is better than going after the local girls.

[Muddleoftheroad]

30. Rape

Rape is indeed connected to sex, but whether sex is available or not, rape still occurs because it is also a crime of violence. It occurs in places where there are lots of men -- military men, civilian men, football players, basketball players, politicians, priests, atheists, etc. The more those same men are separated from the local population and from their own homes, the more I think it likely. It is a way to dominate and dehumanize another. That's probably why it's so popular in prison.

But you don't have to go overseas to find numerous instances of this crime and trust me, many are indeed NOT committed by members of any military.