From the New York Times:
Israel says it has agreed to set up a ''humanitarian corridor'' to ship vital supplies to the people of the Gaza Strip.
The office of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says in a statement that the humanitarian corridor idea came from the U.N. Security Council, and he accepted it.
The Israeli leaders say there is no humanitarian crisis, but the UN workers in Gaza disagree. Well, it's a beginning. Let's hope and pray that this first step leads to further reductions in violent actions.
H/T to Ann.
UPDATE: A longer and more detailed article from the New York Times is here.
I'm not surprised to read that the Israeli leaders do not see what they are doing as a "humanitarian crisis."
ReplyDeleteThe people of Gaza, the ordinary citizens and noncombatants who are being blasted to bits in their homes, schools, and holy places, would surely disagree...
It sickens me. The photos that tend to arrive at my eye are shots of murdered children.
Children.
I can't absorb this ...
Oh mimi - Israel does not only 'not target civilians' and believe there is no humanitarian crisis - it doesn't believe there are any civilians in Gaza. Or so it seems. This is an excellent collection of news sources documenting the 'targets':
ReplyDeletehttp://heathlander.wordpress.com/2009/01/06/about-those-hamas-targets/
and this is a very interesting article on the American media:
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003926518
In this latest development, Israel have conceded 3 hours a day of ceasefire to allow medical services access - and then go on dropping cluster bombs and white phosphorous for another 21 hours. Gosh - I thought ceasefire meant 'cease fire', not 'pause to reload'
And America continues to back Israel. Aaghhhhhh!!!
I am pretty sure that my cousins are no longer speaking to me. Our only communication is via Facebook as they are in Israel.
ReplyDeleteI sent a note but no reply. Lots of angry postings from my one cousin. The other made a snarky response to one of my status updates.
The third remains totally and uncharacteristically silent.
They don't see humanitarian aid as human, they see it as supporting terrorism.
Sigh.
Only three hours a day? I had no details last night.
ReplyDeleteFran, how sad. I want the people who need help to get help, and I want the killing and maiming to stop.
ReplyDeleteThe whole business stinks of a behind-the-scenes deal between the Israeli government and the Bush administration neo-cons to allow this action in the dying days of the Bush regime, in the likely knowledge that the incoming Obama administration would not give it the green light. We can be certain, I imagine, that the fact that this also creates a hell of a headache for the incoming administration played no part in their calculations.
ReplyDeleteWe should be thankful for small mercies, I suppose, in that this "police action" is not aimed against Iran.
Obama won't be any different than Bush, regarding Israel. Mark my words.
ReplyDeleteTo add to my comment above: no, I don't have any inside information, not being part of AIPAC or anything. So don't even go there.
ReplyDeleteIsrael pisses me off. However, Hamas isn't doing any big favors for the Palestinian people through their actions, either. They know full well what they're provoking when they fire rockets into Israel. And the Israeli leadership is beyond idiotic for taking the bait. Every fucking time.
PJ, I believe that you're right that Obama's policies toward Israel won't be very different from Bush's. And Hillary Clinton will be Sec. of State.
ReplyDeleteI have no love for Hamas. They are terrorists and do not have the interests of the Palestinians as their priority. My sympathies lie with the Palestinian people, because they are caught in the middle, living in misery, without hope. Folks say, "Oh, but they support Hamas." I suppose many of them do, but Fatah didn't do much for them, either. Where do they look for help?
I sympathize with the Israelis who live under threat of rocket fire, too. It's a fecking mess, but I can't stand what's happening now.
Ah, forgive me for getting weird here. I'm the most pro-Palestinian semi-Jew around... but I can't help but get a little bit defensive sometimes.
ReplyDeleteEspecially when people say "the children! The children!" Because what war doesn't kill and maim children? It's certainly not like the Israelis invented that. We're doing the same thing in Iraq at this very moment! War is bad for civilians, and has been throughout history.
Again, it just seems to me that neither side (meaning Hamas and the Israeli leadership) wants this to end, ever. If Hamas cared two beans for the Palestinians, they wouldn't use them as human shields. And I don't see why Israel can't find a smarter way to defend itself, because this is unacceptable. :(
PJ, I agree.
ReplyDelete