Gaza: both sides endangering civilians
8 January 2009, 11:04AM
Both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters are endangering the lives of Palestinian civilians - including by using them as human shields.
"Our sources in Gaza report that Israeli soldiers have entered and taken up positions in a number of Palestinian homes, forcing families to stay in a ground floor room while they use the rest of their house as a military base and sniper position," said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Programme Director. "This clearly increases the risk to the Palestinian families concerned and means they are effectively being used as human shields."
Both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian gunmen are continuing to fire at each other from areas close to civilian homes, endangering their inhabitants.
Israeli forces have bombed civilian homes and other buildings, arguing that they had been used as cover by gunmen firing at Israeli targets, although Palestinian fighters usually vacate the areas as soon as they have fired.
"The Israeli army is well-aware that Palestinian gunmen usually leave the area after having fired and that any reprisal attack against these homes will in most cases cause harm to civilians - not gunmen."
"Fighters on both sides must not carry out attacks from civilian areas but when they do take cover behind a civilian house or building to fire it does not make that building and its civilian inhabitants a legitimate military target. Any such attacks are unlawful," said Malcolm Smart.
"The use of these tactics at a time when armed confrontations are taking place in streets in the middle of densely-populated residential areas underlines the failure of both sides to respect the protected status of civilians in armed conflict," said Malcolm Smart. "It underlines too the urgent need for an independent investigation into alleged abuses, including possible war crimes, by both sides and for perpetrators to be held to account."
Background
Following yesterday's attack on an UNWRA school in the Jabaliya refugee camp, Israeli government spokespeople said their forces shelled the school after Palestinian gunmen fired at them from it, but this is disputed. The artillery strike, which killed some 40 Palestinians, including children, and wounded more than 50 others, appears clearly to have been a disproportionate attack.
In the past, Israeli soldiers have frequently taken over Palestinian homes, effectively imprisoning their occupants, to use as military observation and firing positions. In other cases, they have forced Palestinian civilians, at gunpoint, to go before them into buildings from which they feared attack.
The practice by Israeli soldiers of taking over Palestinian civilians' homes and holding their inhabitants as human shields while using the house as a shooting position has been very common in the past eight years both in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank. In a previous incursion in the Gaza Strip in March 2008, Israeli soldiers took over at least three houses in the north and in February 2008 soldiers took over another house in the village of Beit Ummar, near Hebron, in the West Bank.
Palestinian families caught up in the current fighting in the Gaza Strip report that in some cases Palestinian gunmen have agreed to vacate areas near civilian homes without firing at Israeli forces when local residents have objected to their presence. In other cases, they have refused the residents' requests and only left after firing. In still other cases, residents say they were too scared to ask the gunmen to leave.
The use of "human shields" in conflict is prohibited under Article 51(7) of the Geneva Conventions: "The presence or movements of the civilian population or individual civilians shall not be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations, in particular in attempts to shield military objectives from attacks or to shield, favour or impede military operations."
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Comments
Comments are submitted by members of the public and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of Amnesty International Australia. If you find a comment objectionable please contact us.
Samantha
12 January 2009, 09:41AM
Sandy, when you say that Amnesty or people on this website are “JUST blaming Israel for everything”, exactly what news are you reading?
1st sentence from story DIRECTLY ABOVE: “Both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters are endangering the lives of Palestinian civilians - including by using them as human shields.”
3rd paragraph: “Both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian gunmen are continuing to fire at each other from areas close to civilian homes, endangering their inhabitants.”
Perhaps you should take time out from your paranoid, defensive banner-waving and actually read the article you are apparently commenting on. You are a good example of why this issue is such a difficult one to find a solution to - you are deaf to the ideas of everyone other than people who completely agree with you.
Sandy
11 January 2009, 12:54PM
No…killing is never “OK” but how about some pressure on Hamas to stop firing rockets, and stop anti-Semitic incitement to genocide, instead of JUST blaming Israel for everything?
GrahamW
10 January 2009, 09:41AM
Here are a few other Human Rights organisations reporting on Gaza. All these groups provide strong support for the Amnesty International News reports we are receiving here. Go to their websites for further info on Human Rights issues in Gaza.
B’TSELEM - The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories
http://www.btselem.org/English/
Human Rights Watch is one of the world’s leading independent organizations dedicated to defending and protecting human rights.
http://www.hrw.org/
IFEX plays a key role in addressing threats to free expression by exposing violations and raising awareness of the dangers faced by individuals in many countries who report the news or criticise powerful figures
International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX)
http://www.ifex.org/
Also the UK Guardian has good articles regularly with links.
Sean Kenan
9 January 2009, 08:00PM
Majority of comments on Gaza support the actions of the Israeli military.
Do the commentators feel there is a need to present’ both sides of the Gaza story?‘If so, let us hear from both sides of all the issues that Amnesty takes up. Or maybe we should all make a special exception for the state of Israel? How do Amnesty members feel about that? Is it morally OK to kill civilians if the state claims they are human shields?
GrahamW
9 January 2009, 07:48PM
Sandy - sorry you have lost me - how did I “BASH” Israel???
Sandy
9 January 2009, 04:09PM
Wow! for a “human rights” organisation, this forum has a lot of acrimonious mudslinging.
GrahamW courteously thanks Amnesty for its reports, seeks its recommendation for “other sources of detailed information…” and then proceeds to BASH Israel for “human rights abuses”.
Nina R acuses Israel of “terrorist act of killing innocent civilians…”
Since when does “human rights” mean bashing a democratic, ethical state trying to defend itself from rocket attacks?
James
9 January 2009, 08:42AM
B Walters, please see Kate’s comment below where she refers to a recent Amnesty news story condemning Hamas rocket attacks on innocent Israeli civilians.
The title of this news article is “BOTH sides endangering civilians” - Amnesty is clearly not party to one side in this conflict. The organisation’s concerns are with the humanitarian impact on civilian populations.
To get a better grasp of Amnesty’s position on this and other human rights issues, please familiarise yourself with the news articles and campaign material freely available on this website.
B Walters
9 January 2009, 07:34AM
Fauxtography in the Lebanon war, the al Dura case, the Gaza beach hoax and many others proved that much “information” provided by Palestinian sources is spurious. The press has been disallowed from Gaza. Present sources are of uncertain veracity. Israel hit a BUILDING, that once was used as a school. All schools have been shut in Gaza for weeks, yet the press repeatedly uses the emotive term “school”. The building was occupied but was also used for mortar attacks by Hamas troops. Cynical abuse of their kinfolk by Hamas underlies the unintended casualties. Their obsession with destroying Israel and killing Jews rather than nation-building and using the charity they receive for health, education, welfare and commerce is the real tragedy of Palestine.
I’m sure Amnesty would be most content with Israel rolling over and welcoming thousands of rockets year after year. What do you care. Go have another cappucchino and watch the cricket. Life’s tough for Ozzies.
GrahamW
9 January 2009, 07:30AM
Thank you Amnesty for these news reports. They provide a clear focus on the human rights of civilians- families, men, women and children. It would be very useful if you could recommend other sources of detailed information and other knowledge bases. There is so much misinformation out there and so much silence concerning human rights abuses. Foreign journalists have been refused access to Gaza and prevented from monitoring the situation by the Israeli military. I am passing this information along to as many others as I can.
Nina Rizk
9 January 2009, 07:14AM
Israel has achieved its mission to cripple Gaza’s economy, these people have no future left, but to fight this vicious war imposed on them by whatever means possible, any human will attempt to defend their basic human rights. They are live in an open air prisoner since the 1967 occupation. their only crime is they democratically elected Hamas which opposes to be controlled by the tyrant state of Israel. These “murderous thugs” are a result of years of living under these conditions!! Blindness is a curse! Israel has barred not only humanitarian aid but also the media so they can continue with the slaughter without the disturbance of public outcry.
Nina Rizk
9 January 2009, 06:45AM
I find it extremely appalling that Steve is trying to justify the terrorist act of killing innocent civilians, who were merely taking shelter in UN school as acceptable. Israel has exhausted the excuse of ‘civilians used as human shields’ way too many times, just as they did in Lebanon 2006 they seem to favor UN compounds when choosing their targets.
Are you aware of the economic situation is Gaza, over 1.1million people rely on humanitarian aid, over 50% of the population are now unemployed, people are dying daily at hospitals due to lack of medical supplies. When is Israel ever going to abide by international law that forbids collective punishment?
Steve Lieblich
8 January 2009, 05:08PM
See http://www.jcpa.org/text/puzzle1.pdf for some clarity on this issue.
Kate
8 January 2009, 03:59PM
Steve - perhaps you could try scrolling down AIA’s news page just a few inches, to 29 December 2008, where you will read: “Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, for their part, share responsibility for the escalation. Their continuous rocket attacks on towns and villages in southern Israel are unlawful and can never be justified.” So much for your claim that Amnesty never condemns Hamas’ rocket attacks.
Navit Shchigel
8 January 2009, 01:39PM
Hamas are certainly resourceful. They use schools as civilian shelters, arms storage facilities and mortar firing bases simultaneouly! It is disgraceful that they use their own population this way. Where is Amnesty’s outright condemnation of this practice? Many of the dead were killed from the explosives which were stored in the building and ignited by the exchange of fire. Truly terrible.
Steve Lieblich
8 January 2009, 11:45AM
By the way, Amnesty “news” editor: please identify your “sources in Gaza”. I wonder how credible they are???
Steve Lieblich
8 January 2009, 11:42AM
Hamas fired over 6,300 rockets into southern Israel over the last 7 years with the intent of killing civilians. They killed dozens, injured hundreds and psychologically traumatised almost a million civilians within range of their weapons.
Are these not war crimes and immoral acts? It’s been going on…6,300 times, FOR SEVEN YEARS.
I haven’t found a SINGLE Amnesty “News” article condemning those crimes…and now, suddenly, Amnesty is at pains to “even-handedly” condemn violence and war without discriminating terrorist from victim, right from wrong.
This approach is just giving succour and support to the murderous thugs who, if they succeed in their genocidal dreams of destroying Israel, will come after the rest of the civilised world….
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