Israel must take decisive action against Hamas
On December 27, 2008, just before the dawn of the New Year, Israel launched a military campaign against the Gaza strip. From the beginning of the conflict, it was obvious that Israel was not going to take things slowly. The very first day of the operation, Israel bombed various Hamas bases, military camps, and offices. After approximately a thousand casualties, as well as thousands of injuries, a unilateral ceasefire was declared on January 17. As of this moment, the fighting is unfortunately on the brink of recommencing as Israel claims that Hamas has not stopped firing their rockets even after the agreement to the ceasefire. While Hamas denies these attacks, the actual situation is not clear. It is essential that in a time like this, we understand why this conflict erupted.
Israel launched its military campaign at 11:30 A.M, December 27. Approximately 50 fighter jets and attack helicopters entered Gazan airspace, killing 225-292 Palestinians and wounding more than 1,000. Israeli officials stated that their objective was to halt Hamas rocket fire as well as the illegal smuggling of weapons through underground tunnels from Egypt. While this may not seem that important, think again. All year long, Israel has been perpetually bombarded by an estimated 3000 Hamas-operated rockets. The causalities resulting from them in 2008 was 13. In terms of injuries and structural damage, the numbers are much higher. In fact, Hamas soldiers have launched over 8,000 rockets and missiles into Israel since the beginning of 2005. This completely ignores statistics on suicide bombers, mortars, and other means of attacks.
So why was Israel so upset? Time again Israel proposed treaties to Hamas which Hamas, while having officially accepted, continued to disregard earlier in 2008 as is evident by the consistent barrage of rocket attacks coming from the Gaza strip. For example on June 19, to be specific, Israel and Hamas came to a peace agreement after negotiations mediated by Egypt. The agreement called for Hamas to cease all attacks on Israel and for Israel to pull down its blockade (originally instated by Israel to prevent Hamas rocket fire, incidentally). Israel started to take down the blockade gradually, allowing for a 20% increase in goods imported into Gaza from Israel by the start of the peace agreement. However, soon after, rocket attacks resumed. Israel subsequently lowered its blockade, but not completely. Hamas, in return, vowed to keep up its rocket attacks as long as the Israeli blockade wasn’t fully taken down. The Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center reported that a total of 223 rockets as well as 139 mortar shells were fired from the Gaza strip during the peace agreement. Eventually, the agreement broke down, and things were back to how they usually were, with a substantial increase in rocket attacks and the blockade going back up.
However, that is not to say that efforts were not made. On December 13, 2008, weeks before the attacks, Israel declared that it was in favor of renewing the ceasefire on the same terms as the June agreement. However, a week later, Hamas declared that it would not agree to the ceasefire until Israel completely took down its blockade. Now, on January 23rd, the Hamas attacks have not stopped and the blockade is still down. A senior Hamas leader explained that they would be willing to stop the attacks if Israel took down its blockade, aimed at protecting them from rocket attacks. However, on the very same day, Hamas fired approximately 90 rocket and mortar rounds at Israel.
So, after trying to negotiate with Hamas, trying to propose a ceasefire, using nonviolent methods such as using a blockade as a response to consistent rocket attacks, Israel is forced with a decision. Hamas have not shown any efforts to change despite Israel’s proposals, and Israel’s citizens are threatened on a daily basis. Israel had to take decisive action, and if it didn’t, history has shown that things will not change. Israel planned on swiftly dealing such a blow to Hamas that they would be forced into a peace treaty.
Some say that the consequences of the war were too extreme to justify its happening. The fact is that Israel never intended to kill any Palestinian citizens, the mass casualties were due to Hamas hiding behind its citizens. The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that Palestinian civilians are being forced to stay in homes and buildings from which Hamas gunmen shoot at Israeli soldiers in order to make Israel look like its targeting the innocent. Israeli officials even assert that wounded Hamas soldiers and operatives are being treated in separate, Hamas-only, hospitals. Even most acknowledge that Hamas at least hides inside public buildings. And remember: just because you hide behind a civilian doesn’t mean you can let them get away. Hamas are the ones constantly terroririzing and solely targeting Israeli civilians, they need to be stopped, and have proven time and time again they are completely unwilling to listen to peaceful methods.
Israel launched its military campaign at 11:30 A.M, December 27. Approximately 50 fighter jets and attack helicopters entered Gazan airspace, killing 225-292 Palestinians and wounding more than 1,000. Israeli officials stated that their objective was to halt Hamas rocket fire as well as the illegal smuggling of weapons through underground tunnels from Egypt. While this may not seem that important, think again. All year long, Israel has been perpetually bombarded by an estimated 3000 Hamas-operated rockets. The causalities resulting from them in 2008 was 13. In terms of injuries and structural damage, the numbers are much higher. In fact, Hamas soldiers have launched over 8,000 rockets and missiles into Israel since the beginning of 2005. This completely ignores statistics on suicide bombers, mortars, and other means of attacks.
So why was Israel so upset? Time again Israel proposed treaties to Hamas which Hamas, while having officially accepted, continued to disregard earlier in 2008 as is evident by the consistent barrage of rocket attacks coming from the Gaza strip. For example on June 19, to be specific, Israel and Hamas came to a peace agreement after negotiations mediated by Egypt. The agreement called for Hamas to cease all attacks on Israel and for Israel to pull down its blockade (originally instated by Israel to prevent Hamas rocket fire, incidentally). Israel started to take down the blockade gradually, allowing for a 20% increase in goods imported into Gaza from Israel by the start of the peace agreement. However, soon after, rocket attacks resumed. Israel subsequently lowered its blockade, but not completely. Hamas, in return, vowed to keep up its rocket attacks as long as the Israeli blockade wasn’t fully taken down. The Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center reported that a total of 223 rockets as well as 139 mortar shells were fired from the Gaza strip during the peace agreement. Eventually, the agreement broke down, and things were back to how they usually were, with a substantial increase in rocket attacks and the blockade going back up.
However, that is not to say that efforts were not made. On December 13, 2008, weeks before the attacks, Israel declared that it was in favor of renewing the ceasefire on the same terms as the June agreement. However, a week later, Hamas declared that it would not agree to the ceasefire until Israel completely took down its blockade. Now, on January 23rd, the Hamas attacks have not stopped and the blockade is still down. A senior Hamas leader explained that they would be willing to stop the attacks if Israel took down its blockade, aimed at protecting them from rocket attacks. However, on the very same day, Hamas fired approximately 90 rocket and mortar rounds at Israel.
So, after trying to negotiate with Hamas, trying to propose a ceasefire, using nonviolent methods such as using a blockade as a response to consistent rocket attacks, Israel is forced with a decision. Hamas have not shown any efforts to change despite Israel’s proposals, and Israel’s citizens are threatened on a daily basis. Israel had to take decisive action, and if it didn’t, history has shown that things will not change. Israel planned on swiftly dealing such a blow to Hamas that they would be forced into a peace treaty.
Some say that the consequences of the war were too extreme to justify its happening. The fact is that Israel never intended to kill any Palestinian citizens, the mass casualties were due to Hamas hiding behind its citizens. The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that Palestinian civilians are being forced to stay in homes and buildings from which Hamas gunmen shoot at Israeli soldiers in order to make Israel look like its targeting the innocent. Israeli officials even assert that wounded Hamas soldiers and operatives are being treated in separate, Hamas-only, hospitals. Even most acknowledge that Hamas at least hides inside public buildings. And remember: just because you hide behind a civilian doesn’t mean you can let them get away. Hamas are the ones constantly terroririzing and solely targeting Israeli civilians, they need to be stopped, and have proven time and time again they are completely unwilling to listen to peaceful methods.
Tags: middle_east
Replies to This Article
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Permalink Reply by James Graham on -
Good article. In my opinion, Israel receives, or at least takes notice of, much more criticism than Hamas. Hamas know that its tactics of surrounding themselves with Palestinian civilians bring bad publicity for Israel every time Israel carries out a strike. Tough situation for the citizens of Israel and Palestine, the bulk of whom have no interest in violence.
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Permalink Reply by Camila Salvador on -
The writing in the piece is very good, although I feel as if this article is bias - yes, Hamas has committed atrocities toward Israel and the Israeli people - but since 1948 Israel has done the same to the occupied Palestinian people, sometimes worse.
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Permalink Reply by Abdulla Al-wohaibi on -
Nice job on the article. Yes Israel has the right to defend themselves but not to the extent where they are using weapons like phosphorus bombs in Palestinian neighborhoods. It also might have been a last attack on Gaza becuase the Bush Administration was leaving office and they didn't know if Barak Obama would allow them to go into Gaza and kill a large amount of Palestinians. Your right, Hamas needs to stop launching their rockets into Israel, but Israel needs to stop breaking international law.
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Permalink Reply by Nick Cholst on -
To all those who have commented so far:
I would just like to clarify as of now that when I wrote this article, it was meant to be bias with Georgie Milanovic offering an opposing point of view (his article is also online if you haven't read it yet). I now see that this was a mistake, because it propagated the notion that there was a right and a wrong side. This is false, for neither side has been justified, and the victims of this bloodbath remain the innocent civilians trapped in the hatred of their representatives.
Admittedly, when I wrote this the Gaza offensive was still in action and it was unclear as of yet what was true and what wasn't. In retrospect, Israel overreacted and overstepped the line between retaliation and war crimes. Their behavior since then has been deplorable as well. This is not to say that Hamas have reformed, but since this article focuses on the actions of Israel, I'll stay on the subject.
Thank you for reading.
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Permalink Reply by Wael Omar on -
The style of writing was excellent, this article was well written, however the arguments that were supporting the idea of Israel attacking Gaza were weak.
The author states the Hamas broke the Ceasefire after it was mediated by Egypt which called for “Hamas to cease all attacks on Israel and for Israel to pull down its blockade.” Yes the first Rockets were released by Hamas before the war starting, however Israel still had its blockade on Gaza and on the West Bank which breaks the agreement. And while Israel was stating that they broke the blockade on Gaza after the agreement, they were only allowing for a 20% increase in goods, not allowing people to leave the Strip or allowing anyone in. The author also states that Israel was using at the beginning “ nonviolent method such as using a blockade” in response to the rockets. How can a blockade be nonviolent when medicine was not able to be reached in hospitals for people who were dying? This is wrong because fire and bombings are not the only violent ways that could be approached in war. Plus Israel at the same time kept on building the settlements, and killing people in the West Bank.
The author also states that Israel never aimed to kill any Palestinian citizens, meaning civilians and that the “mass casualties were due to Hamas behind its citizens.” If this is true, the many questions should be raised, why Israel break the International law, used Phosphorus Bombs, killing 1,314 Palestinians, 412 of them children while only 40 of them were from Hamas. Also there were many places bombed that Hamas agents were not in. According to UN resources there were no people from Hamas hiding in the UN school that was hit on the January 6th by Israeli forces and that it was only a shelter for war victims. Basically if Israel’s aim was only to attack Hamas, Hamas would have been weaker by now (not forgetting that Israel has the 4th stronger military in the world). This war actually made Hamas even stronger because the funds and weapons kept on coming from Iran and other Islamic organizations. If one looks at reality, Hamas is a small organization that causes a very small threat to some Israeli citizens and not to Israel as a country, 13 Israeli citizens were killed during the war while 1,417 Palestinians were killed “leaving more than 400,000 Palestinians left without running water, while 4,000 homes were destroyed or badly damaged, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless.”
One last question should be raised and that is, if Israel was interested in getting rid of Hamas why didn’t/don’t they let the Palestinian authorities handle them since many Israelis call it an internal Palestinian problem that the Palestinians need to get rid of in order to prove that they want peace...
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Permalink Reply by ISBangkok on -
These historical incidents are always controversial; it is matter of how one interprets it. One can surely argue Israel's right to exist whereas another can insist Israel forcefully took the land of Arab's away. It is interesting to read this article.
P.S in my pure personal opinion, i think Israel also needs to change its policy and attitude toward Hamas in more 'smooth' manner in order to solve its conflict with Hamas.
Seho Rim, International School Bangkok
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