BOTH Israel & Hezbollah Are In Violation of International Humanitarian Law

[Hissyspit]

Indiscriminate attacks on civilians and hiding weapons among civilians are a violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

Systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure is violation of International Humanitarian Law.

RESOURCES:

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

http://www.icrc.org/eng/ihl

http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=003720&tid=001

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/1990a.htm

http://www.hrusa.org/hrmaterials/activities/HumanitarianLaw.htm

[Behind the Aegis]

1. and? (now that it is in the correct forum)

[LiberalVoice]

2. Im sure you could care less.

I mean Israel does have the right to protect herself. :eyes:

[Behind the Aegis]

3. Have anything other than a personal attack as a response?

[LiberalVoice]

4. Is it a personal attack to reiterate your nonchalant attitude back at you?

If yes, then the answer is no, no I dont.

[Behind the Aegis]

7. the personal attack...

"I am sure you could care less."

On edit: had to correct the actual statement.

[LiberalVoice]

8. How would you characterise responding to human right violations...

with an "and?". Doesn't exactly scream emotion does it?

[Behind the Aegis]

9. It seems to me, that I was asking,...

..."what was the reason for your post?"

However, I can see how that could be seen as a nonchalant attitude to human rights violations. :eyes:

[LiberalVoice]

11. I would think the reason for the OPwas fairly obvious.

But that just puts us back where we were a few days ago.

[Behind the Aegis]

12. And which body will be held accountable by international law?

Only one!

[LiberalVoice]

13. I'm sure the dead children will be happy about it. nt

[izzie]

16. I seem to sit here. Both are pretty bad. and kids die

men and old men also. I think I would be mad a both if it was my child or father. This back and forth revenge gets no place. Do not give me the bit about blowing up banks is good because Hezbollah may use it either. Boston got up a lot of money for the IRA and I am sure it went through banks in Boston and London did not bomb us. Used to be a joke on the Alaska pipe line that the TNT guys were all from Ireland as they were learning their skill to take back with them to use in the IRA. If most of the 'powder monkeys' were Irish this country must have known that. This stuff has not worked before and I think they have to talk like it or not. Oh well, we do have a new war to watch on TV in the dull times.

[Skidmore]

14. Oh, I don't know about that.

It seems both have been held accountable many times over the years but have chosen to disregard any resolutions or feedback from the world.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

26. Only Hezbollah.

It has been repeatedly demonstrated that international law does not apply to Israel, because it has carte blanche US support.

While Ehud Olmert undoubtedly ought to be on trial in the Hague for ordering military action against civilians, it's not going to happen, or even be discussed.

[DoYouEverWonder]

27. Both parties target civilians.

However, if Israel is using bunker busters, phosperous and fuel air bombs that were made in the US on civilian targets, then they are in clear violation of US and International Law. Hezbollah's Katyusha rockets are a joke in comparission and at this point can be justified has self-defence. It is Israel invading Lebanon, not the other way around. US/Israel only defends their right to defend themselves. No one else in their world has that right.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

28. Absolutely not.

There is no possible way that Hezbollah firing rockets at civilian targets as it is doing can be termed self defence - for one thing, doing so doesn't make anyone any safer.

[Little Star]

18. The twenty mile buffer zone..I have a question

Why can't the buffer zone be on the Israeli side of the border? Not trying to be sarcastic, just really curious. Thanks

[Igel]

19. Right.

For two reasons.

First, it wouldn't prevent Hezbollah from trying to kill people in katyusha attacks, unless we also move all the Israelis for 20 miles from the border. The other alternative is to remove Hezbollah from 20 miles from the Israeli-Lebanese border, and leave the villagers. The goal isn't ethnic cleansing, it's to stop missiles from threatening Israelis.

Second, it would greatly complicate the Syrian-Israeli border, and would provide a great temptation--and an arms-free corridor--for Syria to get access to a wide swath of the Golan Heights currently occupied by Israel as well as to northern Israel proper. The Syria-Israeli ceasefire line is only about 40 miles wide, with what looks to be more than 10 miles of it (on the side away from Lebanon) being Lake Tiberias.

[Little Star]

20. Thanks. I think I need a map to understand this. n/t

[Ms. Clio]

22. sophistry n/t

[Little Star]

30. I know that I'm still confused.

I've researched and looked at maps and can not seam to understand the real reason they can't use their own land for a barrier. In my mind I keep running into the question of the Latani.

I am not any where near knowledgeable enough to present any argument. But I can't seem to reconcile many things in my mind. The more I read up on the history of this conflict the more I realize that what I've been fed through our media is bull crap.

[Ms. Clio]

32. I do not pretend to be an expert, either, but I read those who are

like Juan Cole. I would advise you to just keep reading (make his site a daily stop, and follow his links) and that will definitely help.

[Hissyspit]

5. FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES

Some people do not seem to be aware of this.

Please refrain, re the site rules, from turning legitimate, important posts into flame wars.

[Behind the Aegis]

6. Do not accuse me of creating a flamewar!

[Ms. Clio]

24. but how else do you get a thread you don't like locked? n/t

[Skidmore]

10. Yes they are.

[Violet_Crumble]

15. They are, and everyone should read the links you posted...

Thanks for posting them :)

[sinkingfeeling]

17. Hezbollah is not a state/nation. Israel is. According to our neo-Cons'

logic (war on terror), Hezbollah is exempt from the rules, since it is a classified 'terrorist' organization.

[Ms. Clio]

21. that's what Professor Cole says, too

"Some readers have asked why I characterize Hizbullah's rocket launches as war crimes. It is because the Geneva Convention requires that in war you have to aim at enemy combatants. You can't deliberately target civilians, and you can't endanger civilians unnecessarily. The Hizbullah rockets have poor targeting, and so just firing them endangers civilians. The rockets themselves have apparently killed almost no Israeli troops, and almost all their victims have been innocent civilians, like that poor man who was just driving along in or near Haifa. That is, the Hizbullah rockets have been fired indiscriminately (the only way they can be fired) and mainly hit civilian targets, which a prudent person could foresee. Bingo. War crime.

See the statement of the International Commission of Jurists.

See also The Fourth Geneva Convention:

There is actually an argument to be made that both Hizbullah and Israel have taken the civilian population of their enemy hostage. Since hostage-taking is forbidden, both are war criminals. I heard former National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski make a similar argument at a salon dinner in Washington, DC, last week, though the wording above is my own."

Read the entire entry here:



And when Israel deliberately targets ambulances and refugee convoys, those are war crimes, as well. Just like similar atrocities by the U.S. against Iraqis, particularly in Fallujah.

[Marie26]

23. That's right. nt

[Hissyspit]

25. kick

[The Stranger]

29. But U.S. tax dollars finance Israei violations of international law.

I think that is why many people are upset here.

(disclaimer)And this isn't trying to excuse the actions of either of them, so please refrain from reminding me of the atrocities of either of them.(/disclaimer)

[slaveplanet]

31. then Switzerland is guilty as well

hiding weapons among civilians

if this is internatial law, Hiding weapons with civilians is one of their main defense strategies.