Relatives carry the body of a boy killed in an Israeli air strike on Gaza on July 9, 2014. (Photo: UPI – Ashraf Amra)
Al Akhbar has updated the number of Palestinians in Gaza who’ve been murdered or maimed.
Updated July 10, 4:18 pm: The Gaza health ministry has confirmed the deaths of 82 Palestinians so far in the besieged strip since Israel began its relentless assault early Tuesday. Among those killed, at least 21 were aged 16 or younger. The youngest victim, 18-month-old Mohammed Malakiyeh, was killed along with his 27-year-old mother. The oldest victim, 80-year-old Naifeh Farjallah, was killed in an air strike on the town of Moghraqa, southwest of Gaza City.
The two deadliest strikes killed eight people each: One strike Tuesday on the Hamad family home in southern Gaza, and another on Thursday on the Hajj family home in Khan Younis. Five children were among the dead in the latter bombing.
As the list has grown tragically, criminally, long, I’ll post it at the bottoms of today’s post. Bear in mind that many of the families of the martyrs will have already lost loved ones in prior Zio massacres…
NEWS AND READING:
A FB solidarity activist posted this: “Imminent land invasion by Israel into Gaza expected !!, Abbas says any truce brokered by Egypt has failed, Israel has ordered Gazans near the border to move further inland. USA has sent an email out to all US citizens in the Gaza strip telling them that they must contact the US via email by 8am in order for evacuation.”
Death toll rises past 80 on third day of Israeli assault on Gaza:
No Israelis have been killed since the beginning of military operation “Protective Edge.”
Across the Gaza Strip, plumes of smoke and rubble marked the aftermath of Israeli attacks.
“The Jews say they are fighting Hamas and fighting gunmen while all the bodies we have seen on television are those of women and children,” Khaled Ali, 45, a Gaza taxi driver, told Reuters.
…Palestinians said Israel has targeted more than 120 homes in its offensive. Several Gaza government buildings were hit on Thursday. The Israeli military claimed on Wednesday it had bombed 750 sites in Gaza — 326 on Wednesday alone…
Nearly half of Gaza fatalities women, children:
Twenty-three children and 12 women are among 75 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the beginning of a large-scale Israeli operation in the Strip late Monday, according to the health ministry’s statement.
Israel using globally-banned arms in Gaza strikes:
Palestinian Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qodra said the bodies of most victims had been incinerated, while others had been completely torn apart.
He said the Tel Aviv regime was deploying weapons that destroy the bodies of their victims, noting that a preliminary survey of victims’ bodies revealed the horrific nature of the weapons being used during the regime’s ongoing onslaught on Gaza.
“Bomb Shelter Selfies” FB page shows a lot of smiling people. Compare with the bomb-shelter-less horrified (and dead) faces of Palestinians in Gaza.
Tel Aviv escalates violence while playing victim [VIDEO INTERVIEW]
“What the Israelis are doing is instigating violence, pretending that they’re the victims when in fact they’re the instigators,” Eli Joseph James said in an interview with Press TV on Wednesday.
“By pretending to be the victim they try to get sympathy from various government organizations around the world.”
Israeli forces engaged in punitive destruction of homes in the Gaza Strip:
Article 52(2) of Additional Protocol II to the Geneva Conventions defines a military objective as: ‘those objects which by their nature, location, purpose or use make an effective contribution to military action and whose total or partial destruction, capture or neutralization, in the circumstances ruling at the time, offers a definite military advantage.’
Unless a home is being used to ‘make an effective contribution to military action’ – i.e. unless it is being used to store weapons or as a base from which attacks are launched – it cannot be considered a military objective. A home cannot be classified as a military objective merely because it owned by a fighter. Instead, it must be recognised as a civilian object and protected from direct attack. Issuing a warning does not remove this protection from direct attack.
Significantly, Article 52(3) of Additional Protocol II to the Geneva Conventions clearly states: ‘In case of doubt whether an object which is normally dedicated to civilian purposes, such as a place of worship, a house or other dwelling or a school, is being used to make an effective contribution to military action, it shall be presumed not to be so used.’
From the facts of the cases documented by PCHR, in the majority of instances there does not appear to be any military necessity justifying the destruction of Hamas or Islamic Jihad members’ homes. To-date, no secondary explosions have been documented indicating that the houses were used for weapons storage. PCHR highlight that the Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, and that the targeting of homes inevitably results in significant collateral damage to individuals and property nearby.
PCHR is forced to conclude that the houses are being destroyed as a ‘punitive’ measure, targeting members of Hamas and their families. PCHR notes that Israel has recently resumed its policy of punitive house demolitions in the West Bank. This appears to be a continuation of the Dahiya doctrine, whereby civilian suffering is deliberately caused in order to act as a deterrent. This doctrine was developed during the 2006 Lebanon War, and continued during Operation Cast Lead.
The destruction of homes has resulted in a number of civilian deaths to-date. For example, in an attack on the Kaware family home in Khan Younis, 7 civilians were killed, and 28 injured, while an attack on the Hamad family home in Beit Hanoun resulted in the death of 6 civilians.
Gaza assault is to control Palestinian gas, avert Israeli energy crisis:
Mark Turner, founder of the Research Journalism Initiative, reported that the siege of Gaza and ensuing military pressure was designed to “eliminate” Hamas as “a viable political entity in Gaza” to generate a “political climate” conducive to a gas deal. This involved rehabilitating the defeated Fatah as the dominant political player in the West Bank, and “leveraging political tensions between the two parties, arming forces loyal to Abbas and the selective resumption of financial aid.”
For the Israeli government, Hamas continues to be the main obstacle to the finalisation of the gas deal. In the incumbent defence minister’s words: “Israel’s experience during the Oslo years indicates Palestinian gas profits would likely end up funding terrorism against Israel. The threat is not limited to Hamas… It is impossible to prevent at least some of the gas proceeds from reaching Palestinian terror groups.”
The only option, therefore, is yet another “military operation to uproot Hamas.”
What you can do:
Take action: Protests around the world respond to assault on Palestine:
Protests are being organized in cities around the world to respond to the ongoing assault on Palestine and the Palestinian people, including the murders of Palestinians (including 16-year-old Muhammad Abu Khdeir, murdered brutally by Israeli settlers), the bombing of Gaza and the killing of over 50 Palestinians by occupation forces, the mass arrests of over 900, and the raids, attacks, tear-gassing, invasions and closure that Palestinians are being subjected to. If a rally you know of is not listed, please email samidoun@samidoun.ca to have it posted!
SEE LINK TO FIND PROTEST IN/NEAR YOUR CITY
Sign this petition demanding ABC report truthfully about Palestine (but don’t poison your mind and actually start watching ABC…unless for the purpose of monitoring their lies). And please keep monitoring your local/national TV/Radio/Print media and calling them out on the lies they will absolutely be telling:
In a recent report, ABC News falsely described images of devastation from the Gaza Strip as being in Israel. Footage of smoke plumes from Israeli bombs were shown while Diane Sawyer talked about “rockets raining on Israel,” and an image of Palestinians in the rubble of a destroyed home was described as “an Israeli family salvaging what they can.” (More information: http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/rania-khalek/abc-news-tells-viewers-scenes-destruction-gaza-are-israel by Rania Khalek)
In the latest outbreak of violence, no Israeli homes have been destroyed, and while several Israelis have been injured, no Israeli civilians have been killed. As of this petition, approximately 75 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by Israeli forces, with several hundred wounded, and dozens of Palestinian homes have been destroyed. While violence against any civilians is deplorable, journalists have a responsibility to honestly represent the gross asymmetry of this situation.
With Israel having effectively made Gaza into an open-air prison, there’s nowhere for the people of densely-populated Gaza to run. Israel justifies this violence by pointing to homemade rockets fired on Israel by Hamas. In this context, ABC has falsely portrayed Palestinian suffering as Israeli, fitting the narrative Israel uses to justify its violence against a defenseless population.
If we successfully pressure ABC to apologize, it will send a message to major news media that they can no longer get away with lying about Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
Re-read this important information which sheds light on the incredible power imbalance: Imbalance of Power: Understanding Weapons and Casualties in Gaza and Israel:
As this infographic shows, there is no room for a discussion on the “equal sides of the conflict,” when the reality is a first-world country, with all the trappings of a modern highly sophisticated weapons arsenal, launching devastating and brutal attacks against the most densely populated area in the world, where half its population is youth and 40 percent of its population lives below the poverty line.
And where does this military might come from? Israel’s military arsenal is not due to the tax pressure on its citizens, but is largely funded by the United States. American citizens actually pay more money individually and overall to the Israeli military structure than Israeli citizens do.
The Martyred
Tuesday, July 8:
1. Mohammed Sha’aban, 24, was killed in a bombing of his car in Gaza City.
2. Ahmad Sha’aban, 30, died in the same bombing.
3. Khadir al-Bashiliki, 45, died in the same bombing.
4. Rashad Yaseen, 27, was killed in a bombing of the Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
5. Riad Mohammed Kawareh, 50, was killed in a bombing of his family’s home in Khan Younis.
6. Seraj Ayad Abed al-A’al, 8, was wounded in the same bombing and succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday evening.
7. Mohammed Ayman Ashour, 15, died in the same bombing.
8. Bakr Mohammed Joudah, 22, died in the same bombing.
9. Ammar Mohammed Joudah, 26, died in the same bombing.
10. Hussein Yousef Kawareh, 13, died in the same bombing.
11. Mohammed Ibrahim Kawareh, 50, died in the same bombing.
12. Bassim Salim Kawareh, 10, died in the same bombing.
13. Mousa Habib, 16, from Gaza City’s al-Shujaiyah neighborhood, was killed along with his 22-year old cousin while the pair were riding a motorcycle.
14. Mohammed Habib, 22, was killed with Mousa Habib.
15. Sakr Aysh al-Ajouri, 22, was killed in an attack on Jabaliyah, in northern Gaza.
16. Ahmad Na’el Mehdi, 16, from Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, was killed in a bombing that wounded two of his friends.
17. Hafiz Mohammed Hamad, 30, an Islamic Jihad commander, was killed in the bombing of his home in Beit Hanoun, along with five of his family members.
18. Ibrahim Mohammed Hamad, 26, died in the same bombing.
19. Mehdi Mohammed Hamad, 46, died in the same bombing.
20. Fawzia Khalil Hamad, 62, died in the same bombing.
21. Dunia Mehdi Hamad, 16, died in the same bombing.
22. Suha Hamad, 25, died in the same bombing.
23. Suleiman Salman Abu Soaween, 22
Wednesday, July 9:
24. Abdelhadi Jamaat al-Sufi, 24, was killed in a bombing near the Rafah crossing.
25. Naifeh Farjallah, 80, was killed in an airstrike on the town of Moghraqa, southwest of Gaza City.
26. Abdelnasser Abu Kweek, 60, was killed in the bombing of Gaza’s central governorate along with his son.
27. Khaled Abu Kweek, 31, Abdelnasser Abu Kweek’s son, was killed in the same bombing.
28. Amir Areef, 13, died in a bombing in Sha’af.
29. Mohammed Malkiyeh, one and a half years old, died in a bombing along with his mother and a young man.
30. Amniyeh Malkiyeh, 27, Mohammed Malkiyeh’s mother, died in the same bombing.
31. Hatem Abu Salem, 28, died in the same bombing.
32. Mohammed Khaled al-Nimri, 22
33. Sahar Hamdan, 40, died in the bombing of her home in Beit Hanoun.
34. Ibrahim Masri, 14, Sahar Hamdan’s son, was killed in the same bombing.
35. Sumoud al-Nawasra, a mother, was killed in a bombing along with her two children.
36. Mohammed Khalaf al-Nawasra, 4, arrived at the hospital “in shreds.”
37. Nidal Khalaf al-Nawasra, a child of unreported age, died along with Mohammed and Sumoud.
38. Salah Awwad al-Nawasra, was killed in the same bombing. His body was found under the rubble of the house.
39. Aisha Nijm
40. Amal Youssef Abdel Ghafour
41. Ranim Jawde Abdel Ghafour, a young girl
42. Rashid al-Kafarneh, 30, was killed when the motorcycle he was riding was bombed.
43. Ibrahim Daoud al-Balawi, 24
44. Abdelrahman Jamal al-Zamli, 22
45. Ibrahim Ahmad Abideen, 42
46. Mustafa Abu Mar, 20
47. Khalid Abu Mar, 23
48. Mazen Farj al-Jarbah, 30
49. Marwan Slim, 27
50. Hani Saleh Hamad, 57, was killed in a bombing in Beit Hanoun along with his son Ibrahim.
51. Ibrahim Hamad, 20, was killed in the same bombing.
52. Salima Hassan Musallim al-Arja, 60, was killed in a bombing in Rafah that wounded five others.
53. Maryam Atieh Muhammad al-Arja, 11, was killed in the same bombing.
54. Hamad Shahab, 27
55. Ibrahim Khalil Qanun, 24, was killed in a bombing of Khan Younis.
56. Muhammad Khalil Qanun, 26, was killed in the same attack.
57. Hamdi Badieh Sawali, 33, was killed in the same attack.
58. Ahmad Sawali, 28, was killed in the same attack.
59. Suleiman al-Astal, 55
60. Muhammad al-Aqqad, 24
61. Ra’ed Shalat, 37, was killed in a bombing that wounded 6 others.
Thursday, July 10:
62. Asma Mahmoud al-Hajj was killed in a bombing in Khan Younis that killed eight members of the same family and wounded 16 other people.
63. Basmah Abdelfattah al-Hajj, 57, was wounded in the bombing and succumbed to her injuries shortly afterwards.
64. Mahmoud Lutfi al-Hajj, 58, died in the same bombing.
65. Tarek Sa’ad al-Hajj died in the same bombing.
66. Sa’ad Mahmoud al-Hajj died in the same bombing.
67. Najla Mahmoud al-Hajj died in the same bombing.
68. Fatima al-Hajj died in the same bombing.
69. Omar al-Hajj died in the same bombing.
70. Ahmad Salim al-Astal was killed in the bombing of a beach house in Khan Younis that critically wounded more than 15 people.
71. Mousa Mohammed was killed in the same bombing. The two bodies were recovered four hours after the bombing.
72. Ra’ed al-Zawareh, 33, succumbed to his wounds and died. The location of his death was unreported.
73. Baha’ Abu al-Leil, 35, was killed in a bombing.
74. Salim Qandil, 27, was killed in the same bombing.
75. Omar al-Fyumi, 30, was killed in the same bombing.
76. Abdullah Ramadan Abu Ghazzal, 5, was killed in a bombing in Beit Lahiya.
77. Ismail Hassan Abu Jamah, 19, was killed in a bombing of Khan Younis that injured two children, one critically.
78. Yasmin Mohammed al-Mutawwaq, 4 was killed in a bombing.
79. Mahmoud Wulud was killed in a bombing of a civilian vehicle in northern Gaza. His remains were taken to Kamal Adwan Hospital in Jabaliya.
80. Hazem Balousha was killed in the same bombing. His remains are at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
81. Alaa Abdelnabi was killed in the same bombing. His remains are at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
82. Ahmad Zaher Hamdan, 22, died of injuries sustained in northern Gaza.
83. Mohammed Kamal al-Kahlout
It may seem trite to end with a cartoon, but the idea depicted is 100% true, and this collaboration of corporate media with the Zionist and imperialist narrative is influential in allowing the massacre of Palestinians (and Syrians, by the freedom-loving terrorists). We need to hold the media accountable and demand truth.Filed under: Israel war on Gaza, Israeli attacks on Gaza
