@Miriamm I assure you as someone who can personally confirm it, most of what we heard is more or less true. Yes there is bias, media spin, and as always not the whole truth... but more or less the jist of hamas murdering civilians is entierly valid.
@freemo @Miriamm I think we can safely say that the following is true: Both sides commit atrocities.
Hamas killed soldiers, but they also deliberately targeted and murdered civilians.
Israel say they target terrorists and say the dead civilians are unfortunate collateral damage. To a dead civilian I don't think that distinction matters much.
However, if the attack came as a surprise, can we really trust the Israeli armed forces when they say they know where the military targets are?
@realcaseyrollins @Miriamm @freemo @kjetil_kilhavn I don't think they have much choice but to go after the terrorists at this point. I think it is incumbent on them to do this with minimal collateral damage, though – I'm ignorant about the best way to do that?
What do you mean "who knows"... Israel has been quite public about the fact that it walls in palestinians with no resources or room to grow then shuts off their water and electricity for months on end... We know for a **fact** tons of palestinians were killed through these actions and its something they have done continually even during times of peace.
During the full 2 years I was there the electricity and warer were intentionally turned off to huge portions. They admit to this publicly, they threaten with this constantly, and do it constantly.
What do you mean “who knows”
I mean, at the very least, that I do not know. I have yet to see any evidence that anyone has died through starvation or dehydration in #Gaza due to the siege.
So you dont understand how highly dense urban ghettos without water or electricity for many months on end leads to tons of deaths... I mean you wont hear about it because its indirect, they dont have running water so they shit in the stream, the same stream that is now their only source of unclean water so they drink from it or wash with it.
You dont understand how it would be damn near impossible for people not to die from that? It just is indirect enough youll have a hard time quantifying it.
@freemo @Miriamm @ech @kjetil_kilhavn Yes I do, I’m not that dense. I already said what I meant. I presume that it’s only a matter of time before civilians die due to the siege if they haven’t already. It takes more than “there’s a siege!” for me to believe that there have already been casualties though.
The water and electricity has been off for much of gaza for more than 2 years (it was off the whole time i was there) due to Israel military intervention...
The only thing that changed is they decided to cut it off for MORE of the country than before... people have already been starving and dieing of disease en masse (why do you think so many international agencies are condemning them for apartheid?)
Whenyou understand the level of poverty and disease inflicted on them for many many years it might make sense why they are radicalizing. As I've said it is never moral, but when your people have been treated as they have for as long as they have it is completely expected. They are desperate, desperate people whoa re being exterminated will do crazy radical shit.
@ech @Miriamm @freemo @kjetil_kilhavn I think precise ground offensives without a siege would probably be the best way to do that. Who knows if any Palestinians have been starved to death due to the siege (which, if they have, would be against the #GenevaConventions as I understand it). With ground offensives, they can pinpoint #Hamas members more directly. Problem is they have extensive tunnel systems, so #IDF soldiers could easily get ambushed and captured. I think that’s why they did the siege, to weaken them as much as possible and decrease that advantage.