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Complicit in mass murder December 11, 2023
I was shocked at the brutality of Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel. 1,200 civilians savagely murdered and 240 taken hostage. I was also surprised that Israel seems to have no qualms about killing Gaza civilians in its response to the attack. The extensive use of bombs makes civilian casualties inevitable. The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reported in early November that "the destructive power of the explosives dropped on Gaza exceeds that of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima." And the bombing continues. The death toll in Gaza has reached 17,700 - mostly women and children - and additional thousands will die of starvation, contaminated water, disease, exposure and lack of medical care.
I understand that Hamas fighters are hiding out in tunnels that run under Palestinian homes, hospitals and businesses and it may be impossible to distinguish a Hamas fighter from a civilian. That is no justification for killing civilians and destroying those homes, hospitals and businesses. One massacre of innocent civilians does not justify an exponentially larger one. If retaliation without harming civilian Palestinians is not possible, alternatives must be pursued - alternatives like negotiation.
Most surprising to me is my own country's response to the destruction of Gaza and the Palestinians. According to a December 9 story in the Washington Post, the U.S. has already supplied Israel with thousands of bombs and Biden is asking Congress for billions more in military aid. All the while, the administration pays lip service to international law in regard to the protection of civilians. The Post quotes an administration official as saying "We’re having some very rigorous and at times very tough conversations" with Israel. Tough conversations - wow. The Biden administration's concern for Gaza civilians was demonstrated Friday when the U.S. was the only member of the 15-member U.N. Security Council to vote against a humanitarian cease-fire.
How do you explain the influence Israel has on the U.S. government that would make us abandon any semblance of compassion when it comes to the Palestinian people? Is it that Israel is such a good customer of the U.S. arms industry? Is it the generous political contributions from Jewish organizations? Is it the fundamentalist Christians who don't want the birthplace of Christ to be contaminated by Islamists? Whatever it is, it makes me ashamed of my country. You'd think we'd have learned from the colossal tragedies of Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Send comments, questions, and tips to stevenrharry@gmail.com or call or text me at 517-730-2638. If you'd like to be notified by email when I post a new story, let me know.
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