Israel 'ready for escalation' of Gaza conflict

[Seamus_L]

Maybe it’s time to threaten Israel with airstrikes like Assad was last Sept, and he was fighting terrorists who make Hamas look like choir boys.

 

[Ed_Silvia]

And it was taken away from them when they turned their back on Him. Does it look like Israel is being kind to the strangers among them?

I won’t presume to judge God’s anointed. Time will tell, won’t it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

And it was taken away from them when they turned their back on Him. Does it look like Israel is being kind to the strangers among them?

Well, Arab citizens of Israel live better and have more freedom than any other Arabs other than those who are well-connected in the oil states. So, yes, I would say they treat the “strangers” reasonably well.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Maybe it’s time to threaten Israel with airstrikes like Assad was last Sept, and he was fighting terrorists who make Hamas look like choir boys.

Assad knew it was an empty bluff the whole time. With Obama in power, though, the Israelis couldn’t be quite as sure.

 

[josie_L]

I would have to say yes to this. The country’s political climate has become increasingly insulated, anti-democratic, and ethnocentric. It seems incapable of dealing with its Palestinian citizens and subjects in Gaza and the West Bank in any way other than with brute force. The ascendency of Likud and the Yisrael Beiteinu party of Avigdor Lieberman has brought about an Israel which more and more resembles the Jim Crow south.

Israel created an iron dome in order to ward off attacks by Hamas, which in my mind signifies that they do not wish to fight endlessly or obliterate their enemies, yet Hamas will not be deterred, it still continues to launch rockets via tunnels dug straight into Israel. Moreover, there is quite a large population of Palestinians living in Israel, that would belie your words of Israel being incapable of dealing with its Palestinians citizens, these Palestinians are in Israel of their own accord, and don’t seem so interested in living in Gaza or the West Bank.

I never said that. Why does everyhting have to be either-or? Of course, Hamas is responsible for its share of the violence. It’s just that the tendency here is to view the situation there as “Israel=good/Palestinians=terrorist”. I am only pointing out that the reality is much more complicated than that.

No, it’s not as complicated as you make it out to be, i.e., there is only one side that wishes to terminate the other, and no amount of peaceable negotiations or pacifist notions on the part of Israel is going to change that, i.e., it’s Hamas that needs to end its terrorist tactics and talk of death and destruction of Jews/Israel, until they can do this then all talk of peace is useless (Israel does not have the liberty to back down when it is confronted with such hate).

Israel is still the occupying power there. It controls the land border, sea, and air space over Gaza. It has a stranglehold over the economy. It is largely due to Israel’s inhumane economic blockade of Gaza that the Palestinians, in their despair and desperation, are turning to Hamas, the only force there capable of standing up to the IDF. Your comment (no Israeli troops/civilains there) makes it seem as if Gaza is a free place when in fact it is an open air prison pen.

A blockade that even Egypt has sanctioned on their end, because unfortunately Hamas is more concerned with bringing armory/arms into Palestine than it is in governing its people, i.e., if the Palestinians can get rid of Hamas than Israel will more than likely get rid of the economic sanctions.

I wouldn’t say such groups would not exist; I would say they would not get any traction among the populace. This is a tragedy. Israel seems incapable of forging peaceful relations with its Arab population.

Israel is surrounded by countries that do not recognize its right to exist and you’re blaming them for not forging peaceful relations, honestly, I think Israel is in a “damned if they do damned if they don’t” situation, i.e., if they attempt to be peaceful and remove economic sanctions, Hamas will use this to attack Israel (with weaponry far more sophisticated than what they’ve got now), and if Israel refuses to remove economic sanctions they will still be attacked by Hamas because the real issue here is that Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist (just like ISIS does not recognize the rights of Christians and other minorities).

That is THE issue!

But if that is the issue than how do you expect to resolve it, i.e., from an Arab point of view this should never have happened, but it did, so what do we now? Hamas has made it clear that it does not believe Israel has a right to exist.

 

[josie_L]

Israel is in a virtually “no-win” situation in the Middle East. No matter what it does or declines to do, its destruction will be pursued by Islamists of one kind or another. It has one Iranian client to the south and two to its north. If, indeed, Israel helped ISIS or related groups to fight Iran and its proxies, it might have thought it better that Iran be engaged in another fight than its incessant one against Israel.

Yes, that’s so true.

 

[graciew]

Israel created an iron dome in order to ward off attacks by Hamas, which in my mind signifies that they do not wish to fight endlessly or

No, it’s not as complicated as you make it out to be, i.e., there is only one side that wishes to terminate the other, and no amount of peaceable negotiations or pacifist notions on the part of Israel is going to change that, i.e., it’s Hamas that needs to end its terrorist tactics and talk of death and destruction of Jews/Israel, until they can do this then all talk of peace is useless (Israel does not have the liberty to back down when it is confronted with such hate).

A blockade that even Egypt has sanctioned on their end, because unfortunately Hamas is more concerned with bringing armory/arms into Palestine than it is in governing its people, i.e., if the Palestinians can get rid of Hamas than Israel will more than likely get rid of the economic sanctions.

Israel is surrounded by countries that do not recognize its right to exist and you’re blaming them for not forging peaceful relations, honestly, I think Israel is in a “damned if they do damned if they don’t” situation, i.e., if they attempt to be peaceful and remove economic sanctions, Hamas will use this to attack Israel (with weaponry far more sophisticated than what they’ve got now), and if Israel refuses to remove economic sanctions they will still be attacked by Hamas because the real issue here is that Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist (just like ISIS does not recognize the rights of Christians and other minorities).

But if that is the issue than how do you expect to resolve it, i.e., from an Arab point of view this should never have happened, but it did, so what do we now? Hamas has made it clear that it does not believe Israel has a right to exist.

 

[graciew]

 But if that is the issue than how do you expect to resolve it, i.e., from an Arab point of view this should never have happened, but it did, so what do we now?  Hamas has made it clear that it does not believe Israel has a right to exist.

Josie , here is when national narratives break in , as I see it. ( my own language is a barrier so please ask if I am.not being clear).

The state of Israel and the State of Palestina do no seem to recognize each other’s statehood( hope it is the appropriate word).
Hamas narrative declares determimation to extermine jews. Which is different.
Here is where I mentioned the deliberate intention of Hamas breaking his narrative into Palestina’s national narrative , which poses another danger.
I may be wrong. What do you think ?
Thanks

 

[Seraphim73]

Seraphim,what would you ask for from an Israelite perspective?
What is it you want?

I would ask them to cease building any new settlements and once Hamas officially recognizes Israels right to exist as a Jewish state I would ask them to renew the offer Rabin made. A contiguous Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as it’s capital.

 

[Gaeilgeoir]

You are aware that rockets were being stored in that School and that Israel announced in advance they would be attacking it?

Your avatar suggests support for life of unborn children.
Your posts suggest you couldnt care less for those outside the womb.
What type of Christian justifies child murder?

 

[Gaeilgeoir]

I mean to be delicate and sensitive to the human suffering on both sides but IMHO it was with the help the Almighty that the nation of Israel came into existence.

It came into existence via a campaign of bombings and assassinations, what its supporters today would call “Terrorism”, a relative term abused the world over.
Since then it has survived mainly through genocide and child murder.

 

[Gaeilgeoir]

Yes, at a time when they weren’t aware of who ISIS was

LOL
Was the US not aware of who Bin Laden was either when they armed and directed his outfit?

ISIS dont touch Israel / America helped set up ISIS
Al Quiada didnt touch Israel / America helped them set up also.
Supporters of Zionism are either incredibly naive or as corrupt as the US government.

 

[Seraphim73]

Why is everyone cheering on Israel?

Because they are right.

 

[Seraphim73]

Israel does want the strip of land. It wants Gaza’s offshore gas deposits. It doesn’t want the 1.7 million inhabitants.

That is the ultimate strategic goal. To continue to drive the Palestinians off their land, so the ultimate goal of “Greater Israel” can be achieved…

That’s a bunch of baloney. If Israel wanted the land it could take it tomorrow.

 

[Gaeilgeoir]

Because they are right.

In using explosive sniper rounds on childrens heads or deliberately shelling hospitals?
Please dont respond with rubbish about rockets being stored, international doctors have refuted this many times.

 

[Gaeilgeoir]

If Israel wanted the land it could take it tomorrow.

Not really, they are finding fighting an armed militia man to man somewhat harder than bombing school children and hospitals from miles away in the air.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Not really, they are finding fighting an armed militia man to man somewhat harder than bombing school children and hospitals from miles away in the air.

Oh, I think they knew they would be facing an armed militia. They did before, and that’s why they called up the reserves. What’s the number of Israeli soldiers killed so far? 29 was the number I heard. They had no illusions about what they were going to be up against.

Well, and Hamas fighters shot up some Egyptian soldiers in the Sinai a few months ago, so none of this could be a big surprise.

I haven’t seen a credible source on any assertion that Israel intentionally bombed school children. Possibly you’ll supply that.

 

[meltzerboy]

Your avatar suggests support for life of unborn children.
Your posts suggest you couldnt care less for those outside the womb.
What type of Christian justifies child murder?

Do you then justify Hamas’ indiscriminate firing of rockets into Israeli cities, in which children as well as adults would have been killed by the hundreds if Israel did not have a defensive missile system? Is the intent of Hamas not the murder of innocent Israeli civilians?

 

[Seraphim73]

Israel is preforming genocide and the world is shrugging its shoulders. I can’t stand it!

That is just simply not true. Israel is exercising it’s legitimate right to self defense and is taking extraordinary steps far beyond what any other nation on earth does to protect civilians, often putting their own soldiers at a level of risk most western democracies would be appalled at if their own soldiers were put at that kind of risk.

 

[Seraphim73]

In using explosive sniper rounds on childrens heads or deliberately shelling hospitals?
Please dont respond with rubbish about rockets being stored, international doctors have refuted this many times.

It is an absolute fact that Hamas uses schools and hospitals to protect it’s weapons. Anything else is just Arab anti-Semitic propaganda. It’s a grisly but effective numbers game by Hamas. They intentionally hide fighters and weapons among civilian populations. Israel legitimately responds to aggression and just simply by the nature of military operations no matter how careful you are collateral damage is inevitable. Hamas then posts pictures of dead children and people like you around the world are outraged that Israel is doing this to poor innocent civilians. The reason they are dead is because Hamas started an aggressive war against Israel and then intentionally put those children in the line of fire in order to use them as propaganda. And why do they keep doing this? It works everytime, that’s why. The reality is every single child killed in Gaza is dead because of Hamas. The blood is on their hands.

For the LORD is our judge, The LORD is our lawgiver, The LORD is our king; He will save us - Isaiah 33:22