BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip, Nov. 19, 2006
Human Shields Halt Israeli Airstrikes
Palestinian Protestors Force Israel To Call Off Attacks In Gaza After Surrounding Targeted Homes of Militants
-
-
Palestinians form a human shield around the house of Mohammedweil Baroud, leader of the Popular Resistance Committees in Beit Layiha, to prevent a planned Israeli airstrike, a new tactic that forced the army to call off the attack and re-evaluate its aerial campaign in the Gaza Strip, on Sunday, Nov. 19, 2006. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
-
Palestinians gather around the wreckage of a car after it was targeted by an Israeli missile strike in the Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza City, Nov. 19, 2006. The missile wounded nine people, including two Hamas militants inside the vehicle. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
-
Palestinians carry a boy, injured by an Israeli airstrike, into Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Nov. 19, 2006. An Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a car traveling in Gaza City, wounding nine people, including two Hamas militants inside the vehicle, hospital officials said. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
-
-
Interactive Mideast Conflict Events, key players and a history of the world's most unstable region.
In recent months, the Israeli air force had repeatedly struck homes of militants, after warning residents by phone to clear out. Israeli security officials said they didn't know how to respond to the human shield tactic.
However, Israel pressed ahead with other types of air strikes Sunday. In Gaza City, an aircraft fired a missile at a car, wounding nine people, including two Hamas militants. Four of the wounded were children, ages five, 13, 14 and 16, who suffered shrapnel injuries, hospital officials said.
The standoff over the homes of the militants began late Saturday when Mohammed Baroud, a local leader of a violent group, the Popular Resistance Committees, was informed by the army that his house would be hit. The three-story building is home to 17 people from Baroud's clan. Another militant, from Hamas, also received a warning.
Israel routinely issues such warnings before attacking buildings that it says are used to store weapons, saying it wants to avoid casualties.
Instead of leaving, the two decided to stay in their homes and called in reinforcements. They were quickly joined by crowds of supporters, including dozens of armed men, who gathered on balconies, rooftops and in the streets outside. Local mosques and Palestinian TV and radio stations also mobilized supporters.
Baroud, involved in rocket attacks on Israel, said he and his fellow militants had planned the response a few days earlier, after another house was destroyed in a missile strike.
People loyal to various Palestinian factions — Hamas, Fatah and the Popular Resistance Committees — which have often fought each other, answered calls for help.
Redwan Abu Daya, a 16-year-old Fatah supporter who lives near Baroud, said he was ignoring party lines because he felt a duty to protect his neighbor's homes from bombardment.
"I came here because everyone should be here," Abu Daya said, while the nearby mosque called on loudspeakers for people to gather at Baroud's home.
"Death to Israel. Death to America," the crowds chanted.
It was the first time Palestinians have formed human shields to prevent an airstrike.
By Sunday afternoon, about two dozen women were milling around on Baroud's roof, shielded from the sun by green tarp. On the floor below them, about a dozen men were resting on mattresses.
Baroud's mother, Umm Wael, said shifts had been organized in preparation for a long standoff. "Where should we go?" she said. "We will stay here or die in the house. Let them bring it down on our heads."
Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas stopped by to show his support. "We are so proud of this national stand. It's the first step toward protecting our homes, the homes of our children," he said.
The army said it called off the nighttime airstrikes because of the large crowds. It condemned what it said was a cynical exploitation "by the terrorists of uninvolved people as human shields."
Still, Israeli military officials acknowledged they didn't have a solution for the standoff. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk to the media.
Also Sunday, Hamas militants in Gaza fired two rockets at the Israeli town of Sderot, seriously wounding one person. Last week, a Sderot woman was killed in a rocket attack.
In Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert sharply criticized a U.N. resolution that calls on Israel to pull its troops from Gaza and requests a fact-finding mission into the death of 19 members of an extended family killed in an Israeli artillery attack earlier this month.
The resolution - which passed the General Assembly on Friday - received support from all members of the EU after last minute changes were made to soften the tone. Israel, Australia, and the United States voted against it.
Olmert said Israel will not halt its five-month offensive in Gaza, which he said is a response to rocket fire from Palestinian militants, even though civilians are frequently caught in the crossfire.
He lashed out at members of the international community "who on their moral high-horse and eye-rolling ways view it as correct to initiate a U.N. resolution condemning us."
Also today, in Gaza City, stray Israeli gunfire hit a U.N. school in the northern Gaza Strip, wounding two children, including a 7-year-old boy who was hit in the head as he sat at his desk, United Nations officials said Sunday.
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency appealed for protection of civilians in the Gaza Strip after Saturday's shooting. "At present, children are not safe even in United Nations classrooms. We urgently need a solution," said John Ging, the agency's Gaza field director.
The military said there was no Israeli army activity in the area but was looking onto the incident.
©MMVI, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
More From World
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
- 1
- 2
- next
See all 35 CommentsRe: "Feelfree0 - move back to Palestine and rejoin Hamas if you feel so bad for them. They have a job waiting for you - lobbing homemade rockets at women and children.
"Do it for Allah."
-----------------------
I am neither Palestinian nor religious, so I must decline your proposal.
Also, I am opposed to terrorism, whether it comes from a private group, or whether it originates from a State actor.
I am especially opposed to it when it is annually funded with bilions upon billions of U.S. tax dollars, such as is the case with the State of Israel.
Do it for Allah.
Selah
Those people who were brouht into Palestine from different EUROPEAN COUNTRIES to occupy the land of PALESTINIAN people by force,their actions are wrong.Most important reason is that unlike Sir Thomas Jafferson,they don't believe in human beings being created equally.They think they have been promised a land in the MIDDLE EAST because of the RACE they are born in and they consider rest of all the families and RACES as GOD-NEGLECTED.Those EUROPEAN INVADERS IN PALESTINE should either go back to their original countries in EUROPE or should be killed for ILLEGAL OCCUPATION,RACISM and INJUSTICE period.As long as those EUROPEAN INVADERS in PALESTINE don't go back to their original EUROPEAN COUNTRIES,HATRED and TERRORISM against USA will be continued.I don't want to see my fellow Americans dying for somebody's else conflict or becasue of being GOD-NEGLECTED according to somebody's RACIST and UNJUST RELIGIOUS BELIEFS.
"You must think shooting rockets and trying to kill any Israeli is ok but don't hit any palestinian except the shooters. Is that right?"
No. I think that the enemies of the Israeli leaders have a far better record of minimizing civilian casialties, as compared to the Israelis, as I described with my Lebanon example.
It seems that the Israelis should at least be expected to match the perfomance of those whom they have declared to be terrorists, don't you think?
Their "precision" weapons are claiming mostly civilian casualties? Why is that? Is this intentional, or are the Israeli fighters just inept?
Would you deny the fact that more people have been killed on the name of GOD then any other reason.I don't mind if people believe in GOD as long as they impose their belief on themselves,but when they deny our constitution which separates CHURCH from STATE and their denial results in the deaths of my fellow AMERICANS,it makes me extremely sad.Whenever two groups fight on the name of RELIGION or GOD,there is always a third person who take financial advantage of the situation.In this current conflict all the FINANCIAL ADVANTAGE goes to ARABS or anybody who is linked to OIL BUSINESS due to increase in OIL prices.Every UNJUSTIFIED ACTION can be JUSTIFIED on the name of GOD because GOD can't come infront of the people and tell them that this person is a LIAR,I never said such thing.
In India HINDUS and MUSLIMS fight because in HINDU RELIGION,COW is one of their GODS,whereas muslims eat cow.When muslims slaughter a COW fight breaks up and hundreds of people get killed on both sides.Does it make any sense at all to get killed on a COW.
You must think shooting rockets and trying to kill any Israeli is ok but don't hit any palestinian except the shooters. Is that right?
you meant to say that me an AMERICAN is like a bad son or daughter to GOD,that's why I have not been promised a single penny from GOD whereas those EUROPEANS who according to your religious belief have been promised a land in the MIDDLE EAST are like good sons or daughters and that's why have been promised a land in the MIDDLE EAST.Why those AMERICANS who believe in JESUS as a MESSIAH and SON OF GOD are like BAD KIDS according to your example and why those EUROPEAN INVADERS IN PALESTINE who don't believe JESUS as a MESSIAH or SON OF GOD and deny the VIRGINITY of his mother MARRY are like GOOD SONS OR DAUGHTERS.You know why?only because of the RACE or FAMILY they are born in.That I said it's discrimination if AMERICANS have not been promised a single penny from GOD eventhough they love USA adn pay tax to the GOVT,whereas those NON AMERICAN EUROPEAN INVADERS IN PALESTINE who don't live in USA,don't pay tax to our govt but still being CHOSEN by GOD because of the RACE or FAMILY THEY are born in.It is nothing but RACIAL DISCRIMINATION.You can't prove by any reason that all of us AMERICANS are like BAD SONS or DAUGHTERS.
I wonder why they are only now reviewing their policies on killing civilians?
What rewards do the Israeli "butchers of women and children need to be sent"?
In Lebanon, most of those recently killed by the Israelis were innocent civilians. More than a thousand out of the some 1300 Lebanese deaths.
In contrast, 2/3 of the deaths inflicted by Hezbullah fighters were Israeli military members. As such, Hezbullah demonstrated a far better record of minimizing civilian deaths during this recent conflict. Shouldn't the Israelis be expected to at least match the performance of those whom they have declared to be "terrorists"?
It is quite another for those who force innocent people to stand between them selves and harm's way, so that they can hide behind them.
The second is clearly a cowardly terrorist tactic, and the Israelis have a chronic history of employing this technique.
Even from the time that the Israeli Supreme Court placed a moratorium on this practice, in 2002, to the time that this despicable tactic was finally banned by the Israeli Supreme Court, in October of 2005, the Israelis used "human shields" on numerous occasions. There are more recent reports of continued offenses.
www.adalah.org/newsletter/eng/oct05/1.php
Blaming the use of "human shields" by the Israelis is in no way an acceptable excuse for their miserable civilian-killing record. The overwhelming majority of their victims have been civilians.
Not only that, but since the Israelis have routinely embraced the use of "human shields" to hide behind, as proven beyond any reasonable doubt before their own highest Court, they have surrendered any standing to criticize anyone else on this issue.
Do people realise that killing themselves for Allah (becoming martyrs) is the only way that these poor Muslims know that they are going to definitely make it to paradise, Allah said so...
The others never, never know if they will definitely make it, even Mohammad said that, and of course allah said that hell is full of Muslim women, so why on earth do their women follow Islam, they get hell on earth and are not respected by their sons and husbands while on earth and then they go to hell, but if they become martyrs ???... so why not kick up the traces here on earth eh..
What a load of ***. What arrogance!!!!!!!! God is God He is who He is, who are we to judge Him and call Him a racist.
I'm not Jewish and I don't always believe that they're right. But I say to you before you post a comment like that read the bible or the Koran or the Torah. You seem to be criticizing a God you don't even know and blaming the conditions of the world on Him.
You know the condition of the world is messed up but if you have read the bible or the Koran or the Torah you'll know that there's also hope.
Man in the words of TD Jakes I'd rather live my life like there is a God, die and found out that there wasn't than to live my life like there is no God die and found out that there is..........
Well this is how the Jews came about...
Selah
You are absolutely right.This is called HALLUCINATION.By the way,nobody has ever helped these RADICAL MULSIMS like Bush and his NEO-CONS.Secualr Saddam who was best with the IRAQI CATHOLICS called CALDIANS because in a MUSLIM COUNTRY,nobody would like to see a CATHOLIC being president.Bush has removed SADDAM from power and brought a RADICAL ISLAMIST named MALIKI who is taking money from the AMERICAN TAX PAYERS to build a RADICAL ISLAMIC COUNTRY on the name of REBUILDING IRAQ.Now if we leave Iraq,IRAQ is next to IRAN,SYRIA is next to IRAQ and LEBANON is next to SYRIA.All those countries ruled under those AYATOLLAHs who call us GREATEST SATAN.
- 1
- 2
- next
See all 35 Comments