RSS Feed MenuOn 25 June, Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit will mark four years in captivity by Hamas.
With the pitiful exception of one 3-minute video and three letters over a period of four years, Shalit has been denied any contact with the outside world. No Red Cross. No Geneva convention rights.
Last month, so called flotilla peace activists bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza rejected a request by Shalit’s father to bring his son a letter and small package. Apparently, this did not align with their mission.
It was Hamas’s seizure of Shalit that triggered the Gaza war. Four years later, the war has long ended, the sanctions that followed the war are being relaxed – and yet the atrocity that triggered it all continues. As you hear people talk of Gaza, remember Gilad Shalit.
jagerine // Jun 21, 2010 at 11:46 am
I second that.
Slide // Jun 21, 2010 at 11:55 am
“Four years later, the war has long ended, the sanctions that followed the war are being relaxed – and yet the atrocity that triggered it all continues. As you hear people talk of Gaza, remember Gilad Shalit.”
Of course there are no atrocities against Gaza. One Israeli in captivity = “an atrocity” but the following not so much:
Palestinian victims, according to Gaza medics:
– 1,205 killed, including:
– 410 children (under 16)
– 108 women
– 113 elderly men
– 14 medics
– 4 journalists
– 5,300 wounded
Israeli victims, according to medics:
– 13 killed in combat and rocket attacks, including:
– 10 soldiers (nine in combat, one in rocket attack)
– three civilians in rocket attacks
– dozens wounded
– 2,500 targets hit by Israeli air force and navy inside Gaza, including:
– four UN-run schools
– a compound of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees
– two media buildings
– 16 medical centres
– 16 ambulances
– 778 rockets and mortars fired by Gaza militants into Israel, with most of the projectiles that landed inside the Jewish state hitting houses, but also hitting several schools and a kindergarten.
Damage in Gaza: (figures from Palestinian statistics bureau)
– 475.9 million dollars of damage to infrastructure
– 500 million dollars in estimated clean-up costs
– 4,000 residential buildings destroyed
– 16,000 residential buildings damaged
– 1,500 commercial facilities damaged, including factories, shops, metal
workshops
– 51 government buildings destroyed, including ministries and police
– 18 schools and other education buildings
– 20 mosques destroyed
– 50 kilometres of roads destroyed.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_people_died_in_gaza
ottovbvs // Jun 21, 2010 at 11:55 am
…….poor guy and I do remember him…..but you could hardly say Israeli strategy over those four years has been very effective at getting him released could you…….it’s been so incompetent you have to wonder if they actually want to negotiate his release or prefer him as a martyr
TerryF98 // Jun 21, 2010 at 12:02 pm
At least he is alive. He also is a soldier, so knew and accepted the risks involved.
1200 Palestinians, all civilians died because of his capture.
Which is the atrocity again?
TerryF98 // Jun 21, 2010 at 12:04 pm
“Shalit has been denied any contact with the outside world. No Red Cross. No Geneva convention rights.”
Sounds like they learned a thing or two from Bush and Cheney!
Slide // Jun 21, 2010 at 12:09 pm
A simple question for Arsen Ostrovsky, How much more valuable is an Israeli’s life than a Palestinian’s? Do you have a formula?
Rob_654 // Jun 21, 2010 at 1:29 pm
I have to admit I don’t spend a lot of time thinking of all things related to Israel…
As an American – lets think about he POW’s left behind and unaccounted for for the last 35+ years in South East Asia then we’ll concentrate of POW’s from more recent history in other countries.
And I do have to ask – What is Israel willing to give up to get him back? Apparently not much – which is either a sad commentary on Israel or I don’t know maybe they don’t think he is worth giving anything up?
Personally, I think that Israel should be willing to give something up for him and that he is worth it – but I don’t know what his country is thinking….
As for “Rights” – I have to say we as America would be hard pressed to criticize anyone on this regard given the Bush \ Cheney doctrine on denying basic rights to those being held – and the Obama continuation of that policy (Oh yes, we know that “this is different” because its always different when its your side that has someone being held and being denied even the most basic of rights).
I wish that BOTH sides would come to their senses – realize that they will never “Win it All” and deal with reality – but then again – when Religion is at play and “You just know that God is on your side” – why make peace when its only a matter of time until an all powerful deity will smite your foes…
tommybones // Jun 21, 2010 at 4:26 pm
“It was Hamas’s seizure of Shalit that triggered the Gaza war. Four years later, the war has long ended, the sanctions that followed the war are being relaxed – and yet the atrocity that triggered it all continues.”
A little history lesson to combat this myopic propaganda.
tommybones // Jun 21, 2010 at 4:39 pm
The common perception, perpetuated by overwhelmingly pro-Israeli media coverage of the current crisis in Gaza, finds that Israel is defending itself against the attacks of Hamas, who broke the cease-fire, which was reached in June of 2008. But is this perception accurate?
June 18, 2008:
Israel has approved a ceasefire to end months of bitter clashes with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza, Israeli officials have confirmed. Under the terms of the truce, which is set to begin Thursday (June 19), Israel will ease its blockade on the Gaza Strip. At the same time, talks to release an Israeli soldier [Gilad Shalit] held by Hamas would intensify, an Israeli official said. Hamas, which controls Gaza, says it is confident that all militants will abide by the truce [by not firing rockets into southern Israel]. The agreement is supposed to last six months. (“Israel Agrees to Gaza Ceasefire,” BBC, June 18, 2008)
More on the Shalit kidnapping
“In the U.S. corporate media, the timeline leading to the assault on Lebanon always begins with this kidnapping. The rest of the world gets the rest of the story, which includes perhaps the most critical information, summarily ignored by the U.S. media. The day before, Israeli forces kidnapped two Gaza civilians, a doctor and his brother, and sent them to the Israeli prison system where they can join innumerable other Palestinians, many held without charges — hence kidnapped. Kidnapping of civilians, which Israel has done in both Lebanon and the Palestinian territories repeatedly and with virtual impunity, is a far worse crime than capture of soldiers. The Western response was quite revealing: a few casual comments, otherwise silence. The major media did not even bother reporting it. That fact alone demonstrates, with brutal clarity, that there is no moral justification for the sharp escalation of attacks in Gaza or the destruction of Lebanon, and that the Western show of outrage about kidnapping is cynical fraud.”
July 4th, 2008:
A ceasefire between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups came into force on 19 June and at the time of writing it looked uncertain. Israeli officials, however, insist that Gaza’s borders remain sealed so long as Hamas does not release the Israeli soldier they are holding. Some 8,500 Palestinians are detained in Israeli jails. Of these, 900 are from the Gaza Strip, all of whom have been denied visits by their families since June 2007. (“Gaza Blockage: Collective Punishment,” Amnesty International, July 4, 2008)
Considering the primary obligation of the truce was Israel easing the blockade, the fact that Israel did not ease the blockade at any point, inherently means that Israel did not comply with the terms at all.
Furthermore:
CNN aired a clip of the liberal Palestinian legislator Mustafa Barghouti saying: “The world press community or media community is overwhelmed with the Israeli narrative, which is incorrect. The Israeli spokespersons have been spreading lies all over. The reality and the truth is that the side that broke this truce and this ceasefire was Israel. Two months before it ended, Israel started attacking Rafah, started attacking Hamas and never lifted the blockade on Gaza.” Anchor Rick Sanchez endeavored to find out who was right.
“And you know what we did? I’ve checked with some of the folks here at our international desk, and I went to them and asked: ‘What was he talking about, and do we have any information on that?’” said Sanchez. And he reported that his sources confirmed that Barghouti was right.
What does this mean in regard to Israel’s stated justifications for the massive and ongoing onslaught of Gaza? Can they still claim “self-defense” when it was they who broke the truce in the first place? If the United States public supported Israel based on the idea that they had to defend themselves, then wouldn’t this clarification mean, in fairness, that Hamas was defending themselves when they fired their rockets in response to Israel’s failure to abide by the terms of the cease-fire? In either case, neither entity is justified in committing war crimes. But the overwhelming support of Israel’s crimes needs to be looked at in a new light, based on the facts and not merely pro-Israeli propaganda.
We should not defend war crimes in any case, but especially when those crimes are being committed by the entity that broke the cease-fire to begin with.
But returning to the Shalit situation for a moment, as it provides an important lesson as to the mindset of neo-cons like Mr. Ostrovsky. Hundreds of Palestinian civilians have been taken prisoner illegally (kidnapped), yet here we are, not only lamenting the case of one Israeli soldier whose name and plight are known throughout the world, in contrast to the plight of the nameless hundreds of Palestinians kidnapped, but also using this one prisoner as the justification for mass murder of over a thousand civilians in the criminal 2008/2009 bombing campaign, including several hundred children.
Will the facts matter to Mr. Ostrovsky? Have they ever? Can he even name a single Palestinian kidnapped by Israel? Out of hundreds? Why not?
easton // Jun 21, 2010 at 5:48 pm
terry, ouch.
Look, no one here is intentionally forgetting Galid Shalit, as no one here should forget the American hikers who are being held in Iran for unintentionally violating their borders (at least in America we deport them, we don’t try everyone for espionage for walking in a mountain, stupid ahole Iranians), but the question is what can and should be done. As to Shalit, I truly don’t know. And this article offers no advice. Remembering might be a nice sentiment, but without concrete proposals, it is nothing but sentimentality.
TerryF98 // Jun 21, 2010 at 7:08 pm
Sorry easton,
However, the USA has lost any moral authority to condemn torture, detention without trial, restricting access to prisoners by family or the red cross.
Whenever this comes up all that has to be said is that we did it, we lost the moral high ground.
Abu Ghraib and Gitmo will be forever a stain on this country.
tommybones // Jun 22, 2010 at 10:33 am
““Shalit has been denied any contact with the outside world. No Red Cross. No Geneva convention rights.”
Meanwhile, HUNDREDS of Palestinians have been denied any contact with the outside world. No Red Cross. No Geneva convention rights. Go figure. Looking forward to Mr. Ostrovsky’s next piece showing his sympathy for these prisoners. But that won’t happen? Why? They are brown and predominantly Muslim, so their lives are apparently worthless.
Sunny // Jun 22, 2010 at 2:51 pm
@TerryF98 // Jun 21, 2010 at 7:08 pm
“Sorry easton,
However, the USA has lost any moral authority to condemn torture, detention without trial, restricting access to prisoners by family or the red cross.”
No, it hasn’t.
Nor does pointing out places where Israel deviates from Western norms of behavior render it the moral equivalent of Hamas.
When the Gaza strip can house Hamas and the PA without both committing routine murder on each other, as the convervative and liberal branches in Israel do; when suspected sympathizers aren’t hung from lampposts, but can speak freely and even march, as they do in Israel; when Hamas and other Palestinian organizations are willing to say flat out that yes, Israel exists, and its people have as much right to do so as the Palestinians; when religious leaders in Gaza work openly to create pathways to understanding and friendship the same as groups of rabbis do in Israel; then maybe we can start doing the whole moral equivalent thing.
Until then, this is an exercise in sophism.
The numbers posted regarding the number of shells Israel dropped on Gaza versus the number killed (with women and children detailed) means Israel hit one person for every two shells dropped. They were either aiming very badly, or they were aiming very carefully *not* to hit non-combatants.
That Hamas lobbed however many shells and “only” hit X number of Israelis pretty much comes down to they have lousy munitions and lousy aim. Because they *were* aiming at civilian targets.
That Israel is chastized for not having a “proportional” response is stupid. You don’t win by letting the opposition set the casualty rate. You win by superior numbers and firepower — and given that there are 1.6 million people in Gaza, and that Gaza is basically 360 square kilometers, the size of a medium *city*, I’d say the number of victims (1205) itself demonstrates restraint.
Israel’s just a country. It’s not as noble as its best PR, but it sure isn’t as craven and awful as its detractors are wont to believe. And side by side, it’s light years better in terms of human rights, freedom, free press — basically, all the good things associated with democratic rule — than even _the_ most enlightened Arab state.
TerryF98 // Jun 22, 2010 at 3:43 pm
Sunny YES IT HAS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sunny // Jun 23, 2010 at 4:55 pm
@TerryF98 // Jun 22, 2010 at 3:43 pm
“Sunny YES IT HAS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>”
LOL!
I bow to your comprehensive and insightful rebuttal
S.L. Toddard // Jun 24, 2010 at 7:09 am
“Nothing is more essential, than that permanent, inveterate antipathies against particular Nations, and passionate attachments for others, should be excluded.”
- President George Washington
“Not seldom it has seemed as if some eminent Neoconservatives mistook Tel Aviv for the capital of the United States.”
- Russell Kirk
yoheved // Jun 29, 2010 at 2:01 am
i think it has been realized already that Hamas is not going to compromise – like their demands for hundreds of Palestinian terrorist prisoners in exchange for one IDF soldier. It is their way or no way. Israel cannot continue responding so passively to this blatant evil. Hamas needs to know there are consequences for this, like evicting all of the Arabs in Israel to Gaza. could Hamas use an additional 2 million-plus Arabs crammed into Gaza within the next few weeks? that might do it. Hamas needs to feel this. Israel can’t let the fear of harming the Arab people – or global criticism – stop them from standing up for themselves and getting Gilad back home.