Slashdot Mirror

Survivors of massacre in Khuza’a say Israeli forces used Palestinians as human shields

Khuza’a is a village in the very eastern part of Khan Younis adjacent to the border fencein the southern Gaza strip. Its farmers have faced death almost on a daily basis in the past 7 years as Israeli gunfire has become the norm along the buffer zone between Gaza and Israel.

Following the Shuja’iyehmassacre, Israeli forces invaded Khuza’a withaerial strikes targeting any moving object. Survivors recall with horror thatseemingly heavy random tank fire led to the killing of dozens, injuring dozens others.

Over 150 of its residents were arrested by Israeli forces. Most of them were released, others are still in detention. Rescue calls were made live on the local radio stations, as many residents were besieged in their homes, unable to leave. Those who managed to leave came under fire as they were fleeing.

Ayman Abu Toaimah, 32, a resident of Khuza’arecalls,“As Israeli invading troops advanced to the village they besieged it and used residents as human shields. When the Israeli army arrested people and then released some of them, they were told they are free to go back to the village, but as they were fleeing they came under fire and some of them shot dead. These people were used as human shields.”

Abu Saleem, 56, a resident of Khuza’aechoedAbu Toaimah,“Israelis claim that Hamas is using us as human shields– how? This is a lie, we do not see fighters in the streets. It’s them, the Israelis who used us as human shields in Khuza’a and Shuja’iyeh. They turned our houses into military posts, terrified residents in the houses. They attacked innocent civilians with their bombs, and missiles, they attacked chicken farms, they burned our crops, they have no mercy.”

What happened in Khuza’a was a massacre. Civilians were killed in their homes and while they were fleeing. Even ambulances were not immune. Paramedics report that Israeli forces stopped ambulances that were trying to reach casualties and tried to arrest a number of wounded. Ambulances came under fire despite the coordination by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Scenes of dead bodies scattered in the streets reminiscent ofthe Sabra and Shatila massacre that took place in two Palestinian refugee camps in 1982 have begun to leak out of the village.

Abu Ali Qudail a resident of Khuza’a said: “When the ICRC told us that ambulances are waiting usat the entrance of the village from the western side, about 1,000 people rushed to leave their homes, some of which were used as a hideout for Israeli forces. As people were leaving they were surprised that the ambulances were not there, and as we were waiting tank shells rained down on our heads.”

Many people were killed, many others injured. Survivors say they could not help the wounded, many were still under the rubble, homes were destroyed and the smell of smoke and bombs was everywhere.

Abu Ali Qudail continued: “I was watching members of my family dying in front of me, some of them were torn to pieces. Rami, Ibrahim, Alia, Haj Abed died..we had to leave them behind, as soon as we reached one of the Khan Younis schools we entered it to seek shelter but it was very crowded with people who fled their homes. It’s hard to see people dying and you do not know what to do. One of my relatives’ homes were struck while they were inside.”

As the all-out Israeli assault on Gaza entered its 19th day, John Kerry announced from Cairo that he proposed a one week ceasefire, but Israel’s PM Netanyahu refused the offer and only agreed to a 12-hour lull.

Ma’an News reports on one family thatfled Khuza’a andwas then killed by an Israeli missile strike in Khan Younis as the ceasefire went into effect:

Minutes before a 12-hour

Survivors of massacre in Khuza’a say Israeli forces used Palestinians as human shields

Khuza’a is a village in the very eastern part of Khan Younis adjacent to the border fencein the southern Gaza strip. Its farmers have faced death almost on a daily basis in the past 7 years as Israeli gunfire has become the norm along the buffer zone between Gaza and Israel.

Following the Shuja’iyehmassacre, Israeli forces invaded Khuza’a withaerial strikes targeting any moving object. Survivors recall with horror thatseemingly heavy random tank fire led to the killing of dozens, injuring dozens others.

Over 150 of its residents were arrested by Israeli forces. Most of them were released, others are still in detention. Rescue calls were made live on the local radio stations, as many residents were besieged in their homes, unable to leave. Those who managed to leave came under fire as they were fleeing.

Ayman Abu Toaimah, 32, a resident of Khuza’arecalls,“As Israeli invading troops advanced to the village they besieged it and used residents as human shields. When the Israeli army arrested people and then released some of them, they were told they are free to go back to the village, but as they were fleeing they came under fire and some of them shot dead. These people were used as human shields.”

Abu Saleem, 56, a resident of Khuza’aechoedAbu Toaimah,“Israelis claim that Hamas is using us as human shields– how? This is a lie, we do not see fighters in the streets. It’s them, the Israelis who used us as human shields in Khuza’a and Shuja’iyeh. They turned our houses into military posts, terrified residents in the houses. They attacked innocent civilians with their bombs, and missiles, they attacked chicken farms, they burned our crops, they have no mercy.”

What happened in Khuza’a was a massacre. Civilians were killed in their homes and while they were fleeing. Even ambulances were not immune. Paramedics report that Israeli forces stopped ambulances that were trying to reach casualties and tried to arrest a number of wounded. Ambulances came under fire despite the coordination by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Scenes of dead bodies scattered in the streets reminiscent ofthe Sabra and Shatila massacre that took place in two Palestinian refugee camps in 1982 have begun to leak out of the village.

Abu Ali Qudail a resident of Khuza’a said: “When the ICRC told us that ambulances are waiting usat the entrance of the village from the western side, about 1,000 people rushed to leave their homes, some of which were used as a hideout for Israeli forces. As people were leaving they were surprised that the ambulances were not there, and as we were waiting tank shells rained down on our heads.”

Many people were killed, many others injured. Survivors say they could not help the wounded, many were still under the rubble, homes were destroyed and the smell of smoke and bombs was everywhere.

Abu Ali Qudail continued: “I was watching members of my family dying in front of me, some of them were torn to pieces. Rami, Ibrahim, Alia, Haj Abed died..we had to leave them behind, as soon as we reached one of the Khan Younis schools we entered it to seek shelter but it was very crowded with people who fled their homes. It’s hard to see people dying and you do not know what to do. One of my relatives’ homes were struck while they were inside.”

As the all-out Israeli assault on Gaza entered its 19th day, John Kerry announced from Cairo that he proposed a one week ceasefire, but Israel’s PM Netanyahu refused the offer and only agreed to a 12-hour lull.

Ma’an News reports on one family thatfled Khuza’a andwas then killed by an Israeli missile strike in Khan Younis as the ceasefire went into effect:

Minutes before a 12-hour

I said Jew hatred, not antisemitism. If you were trying to be nice by making it easier for me I thank you for your charity. As I would like to keep defending the more narrow term in this debate I'll keep using it. (The term "antisemitism" is today being used more widely)

In the post you replied to my main focus was on how the actions of a subset of Norwegian globalist leftists, from now on referred to as the "Norwegian leftists", not European culture, carries most of the blame for the "moderate" position moving towards Jew hatred. This could be true even if the motivation of the Norwegian leftists isn't Jew hatred. You are still on topic. I did call them Jew haters even if it wasn't my main point.

My position isn't that any criticism against Israel is Jew hatred. My position is that Jew hatred is an extremely probable cause of the Norwegian leftists' criticism against Israel.

How much energy do the Norwegian leftists use to object when Muslims violate the rights of other Muslims in Syria? (What if "their" side, if the leftist group they belong to have one in Syria, is the rights violator?) How about when Muslim Arabs violate the rights of Christian Arabs? I can't see it. An Israeli Jew shooting a Muslim Palestinian Arab in self defense during combat seem to upset the average Norwegian leftist more than a Muslim Arab decapitating a kidnapped Christian Arab in Syria.

Why? It can't be a love for Palestinian Arabs. Was that the case the Norwegian left would have cared about what was done to the Christian Palestinian Arab community in Bethlehem after the Israeli government let the "Freedom Fighters" occupy it. It can't be a love for Palestinian Arab Muslims. Was that the case they would not have (hero) worshiped Yasser "Martyrs" Arafat. They would also have used energy to protest what Hamas and Fatah is doing to each other and, more importantly, to their own civilians.

Norwegian leftists are furious about Israel having the gall to build the "wall". Most of it is a fence. The wall section are meant to block the view of "Freedom Fighter" snipers. Norwegian leftists names it after the wall part. When I see them protest it they always show pictures of the wall sections.

The Norwegian leftists can claim to not be motivated by hatred against Jews as much as they like. If they wish to be believed they must present a believable alternative explanation. If such an explanation exist they should state it more often. Generations of Norwegian children have been moved towards Jew hatred by watching how some of the Norwegian leftists they trust prioritize their efforts.

a solution will be forced upon israelis and palestinians.

How?

Life in Gaza is valued cheaply -- not by the Israelis, but by the Palestinians. A small, but telling, example: Man killed by celebratory gunfire in Gaza. Not to mention the fact that Hamas uses its own citizens as human shields and fires from among civilians; or the fact that Hamas attacks target civilians...

This is not a relevant fact. The relevant fact is that Palestinian terrorists are firing from densely populated areas so that the IDF will retaliate and kill as many civilians as possible, making the international community denounce Israel.
Israel has taken countless measures to prevent casualties among civilian population, dropping leaflets and sending text messages in order to warn citizens. What did Hamas do in that aspect?
Futhermore, the number of hospitals in the Gaza metropolitan can be counted on one hand, so people are not treated properly. It's not that the Palestinians don't have the cash to build new hospitals. (They are getting plenty from the US, EU and UN) They just rather spending it on ammo, explosives (and corruption) and not on medical care for their own people.

You're drawing false conclusions from incomplete data. The more Sikh a state is, the greater the odds that some will support the terrorist group Babar Khalsa, or the more Christian a state is, the more likely they'll support Christian supremacist groups like the BNP or White Pride. The reason American Muslims reject terrorism more than Muslims in a place like Pakistan could more likely be because American Muslims have nearly 100% literacy rate while Pakistan is around 50%.

Heck, the ADL believes that swastikas and anti-semitism shouldn't fall under free speech either. Rauf didn't call for an abandonment of the first amendment, he said that people shouldn't hide hate speech behind it and pretend its benign.

Sufism is not a sect, you can be Sunni and Sufi, it's a philosophy that's found all over the Muslim world. Arguably, Pakistan is a sufi country.

Like I said, Saudi doesn't represent islam, it represents a dictatorship. The king controls it; he appoints and fires religious scholars who agree with him, despite the fact that nearly zero scholars outside Saudi agree with his warped ideas. The other 95% of the 1.5 Billion Muslims who don't live under his rule are nothing like him, which is why you see Jordanian Muslims planting flowers at churches or Indonesian Muslim leaders protecting churches of minorities. The majority of Muslims support religious freedom, look at places like Senegal for an example of how most get along. Cooperation and tolerance isn't newsworthy despite being the norm, so it's ignored.