Gaza Update: Day 5
Israel keeps hitting hard, strikes weapons-smuggling tunnels, office of Ismail Haniyeh – prime minister of Gaza’s terrorist Hamas government. The U.N. counts at least 62 casualties among Gaza civilians, a.k.a. Hamas human shields. The big news is that Israel considers truce.
More on the two-day truce to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza proposed by France. Update: Israel wisely regects calls for truce. The objective is to destroy Hamas, not to give it breathers when the French ask.
Prime Minister Olmert and Defense Minister Barak appear split on the truce proposal.
Gaza terrorists hit a school in southern Israel with a rocket.
Despite their vitriol and bravado, since Israeli military operations began Saturday, the Hamas government has buckled: 400 targets have been struck; most of the regime’s symbols have either been pulverized or are tottering. Hamas officials have gone into hiding, providing no succor to the masses, whose distress is directly attributable to Hamas’s bellicose policies.
Analysis: Air power alone won’t do it.
Updates from Israellycool. And his yesterday’s live-blogging post.
Related posts:
- Gaza Update: Day 6 U.N. Security Council mulls cease-fire resolution on Gaza condemning Israel - the U.S. says it’s not balanced enough. Could that be because it’s sponsored by Libya? Or...
- Gaza Update: Day 4 10 dead in Gaza strikes after 3 Israelis killed in South (with video): On Monday, three Israelis were killed in Ashkelon, Ashdod and Nahal Oz when...
- Israel Kills Most Senior Hamas Terrorist So Far in Gaza Campaign Nizar Rayan died when an Israeli missile hit his house in the Jabalya refugee camp, north of Gaza City. Some of his wives and children,...
- Israel Kills Scores of Hamas Terrorists In Gaza In Big Air Strike Israel has finally decided to do something to stop the constant barrage of rockets and mortar shells coming in from the Gaza strip. Read about...
- It’s All-out War with Hamas, Says Barak. Hopefully, He Means It Defense Minister Ehud Barak speaking to the Israeli parliament today: “We have stretched our hand in peace many times to the Palestinian people. We have...
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December 31st, 2008 at 6:16 am
Day #5 of this shameful historic holocaust caused by the same people that claim to have been once victims of such terrible event!!! Congratulations to Israel; you have earned the title for the “terrorist country.” If Killing children by the hundreds is not terrorism, then what is? If bombing churches and schools is not terrorism, then what is? Destroying homes and olive grooves is not terrorism? Americans need their heads examined! Unfortunately, we live in times when the good is being seen evil and evil is seen as good. Shame on America for supporting this terrorist country.
December 31st, 2008 at 8:18 am
What world do you live in Jack? The way I see it, Hamas fires rockets into Israel with the INTENT to kill innocent people. Israel tries hard to avoid killing innocents but Hamas hides among them for the cowards they are. If they would cease the rockets into Israel the violence would stop. Islamic extremism is the REAL EVIL.
December 31st, 2008 at 8:28 am
Ha ha ha Israel in no more a terrorist state than the moon is made of cheeze. What is amazing is that some people swallow hook line and sinker with the lies and Hamas propaganda. The Arabs of today must be one of the dumbest people on earth. A quick look at their world reveals countries in disarray, terrorists, murderous thugs, little redeeming values in a loosing philosophy of death fueled by a loosing religious philosophy. I long to see the real God Centered Truth that the Prophet brought to those peoples. Respect for life, people and peace. Getting along with others. His message has been tainted by those with other more sinister agendas.
Hamas is a Terrorist Gang of Thugs who do not care a little bit about the people living there. They follow death as a religion and befitting will receive death. I do hope Israel musters the chutzpah needed to follow through on this. What all terrorist apologists fail to understand is that those rockets must stop. The alternative is total destruction, misery and pain. The people of Gaza did elect the Hamas Thugs into power, now they are reaping the full effect. The really sad part is they they are only stooges for the Iranians. I see that place being gone in a sea of molten green glass and only cockroaches moving about in the future.
America is no more terrorist than the Pope is Jewish. You’ll find no other people more in tune with God and what is right than us. Just because we have a moron sitting in the White House does not mean we are all fools.
What palestinians need to get through their heads is that if you get in bed with terrorists, you must pay the price and they surely are.
December 31st, 2008 at 9:14 am
Maybe Pope Benedict has some Jewish ancestors, who’s afraid to ask for :-)
Seriously, commensurability is now complete out of balance. And rockets are still launched against Israel. And in future, they will still be launched. Also, Hamas will become more popular. Israel will be any more hated all over the world, and Neo-Nazism and Anti-Semitism will also get new food. Is Israel complete under the rule of their fanatics, like its enemies ?
December 31st, 2008 at 10:28 am
I cant decide if Hamas is brilliant or stupid for goading Israel to attack. On the one hand alot of their infastructure in the reigon is being destroyed and alot of members killed. On the other it is decimating public and international opinion of Israel and boosting the stature of Hamas in the Arab community because of all the civilians being killed. They are also going to get tons of new recruits.
I cannot fault Israel for attacking, they have been constantly attacked by Hamas. Yes the rockets that they used didnt do a whole lot of damage but they could have, and if Hamas had weapons that could do as much damage as Israel’s do you think they wouldnt use them? Should any country have to endure and endless stream of attacks on its people and soverity without a response? Should Israel have to tie a hand behind them because the enemy isnt as advanced or organized as them and be forced to fight on an even level to be fair?
On the civilians killed, yes it is tragic, I wish there was some way to guarentee that none were killed. Civilians are going to die, they have in every war. Cities were leveled in WW2 thousands if not millions of civilians died, is it right? of course it isnt. Today we live in an age far gone from the days of armies facing each other on the field of battle. The enemies we face in this era hide among the innocent because they prey on our decency and distaste for harming innocents. How do you fight an enemy like this without harming innocents? especialy one who does not have the same distaste for harming innocents that you do, and indeed targets them as a tactic?
December 31st, 2008 at 10:30 am
The only people who side with the Palestinians in this issue are obviously just trying (poorly) to hide their deep anti-semitism. With the Palestinians so much in the wrong, there is no other logical explaination. My prayers are on the side of Israel, may God be with them. My biggest fear is that, if Israel does choose to invade by ground, the Iranians may take advantage while they are looking towards Gaza and then attack Israel themselves.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:06 am
This just another massacre of innocent civilians in Gaza. This aggression will fail as it failed in 2006.
Killing women and children with F16 bombs is just a criminal act. In 4 years the rockets from Hamas did not kill more than 20 people and these criminals in israel kill more than 300 in 2 days co-erdly with F16s. This aggression will fail because people of Gaza, Palestine have the right to defend themselves and live in dignity in their land. Remember that there is no apartheid system that resisted the test of history. This aggression will fail and the shameful israeli criminals will just get more hatred and despise from the whole world. Stop the genocide, stop the massacre of innocent people in Gaza, Palestine.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:12 am
good luck israel i with you , no more terorism! go israel army and kill them , the world not anderstand that israel vary good and hurt country and thay must to attack the teror in gaza , the soldjer of the israel army try to strike only in the teroristim !!
I LOVE AND APPRECIATE THIS CONTRY THAT FIGHT AGAINST THE TEROR!
GO ISRAEL THE WORLD WITH YOU!
December 31st, 2008 at 11:38 am
The only truce that should be accepted is for the unconditional surrender of Hamas.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:55 pm
The so-called “innocent civilians of Gaza” voted a faction into power that has the destruction of the Jewish state written into its charter. Hamas doesn’t want to live in peace with Israel. It wants to foment a Holy war where the Arab world and anti-semitic states band together to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth. The only thing that has prevented that over the last 60 years has been Israel’s relationship with the United States. People forget that Israel was formed as a Jewish state largely in reaction to the events of WWII, where many countries, including the U.S., turned back ships carrying Jews who were trying to escape Nazi Europe. Many of those Jews ended up in the camps. The people who were displaced by the formation of Israel were rightfully angry, but no Arab country offered them sanctuary, essentially doing the same thing to them that many countries had done to the Jews. Eventually, many so-called “Palestinians” returned to Israel and became Israeli citizens. Since that time, Palestinian schools have been teaching their children that Jews are baby-killers who want to destroy Islam, and that Israel is the Palestinian homeland. Of course, the Jews were in Palestine thousands of years ago, but stoking the fires of hatred never involved telling the complete truth. Israel did the right thing by unilaterally leaving Gaza, but the people of Gaza made a massive mistake when they voted Hamas into power. The outcome was inevitable.
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December 31st, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Israel is Batman and the Hamas is the Joker. The Joker said to Batman in the movie. ” You have rules and I have no rules..You have morals and I have no morals”. I hope the IDF fights this to the end of the sub human nazi arab beasts
December 31st, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Killing children and civilians is terrorism! World is condemning the Israili occupation and murder!
The media is very biased!!
December 31st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
No, Samra. You’re biased. Israel’s objective is military and that country’s tactics have NEVER included the intentional killing of innocent people. Hamas, on the other hand, is dedicated to killing all Israelis, especially innocent civilians, with more than 6,000 rocket attacks in the last two years. You need to take a reality check. If Israel didn’t care about the lives of children and civilians in Gaza, that region would be in ruins.
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December 31st, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Beantown.. More delusional rhetoric from zionist supporters. Anyone who calls Israeli government actions into question is called anti-semetic… please. Jewish people are not the only semites.. Arabs are semetic people too. The issue is fairness.. Is Israel above reproach? Is Israel a perfect nation? Killing innocent civilians can not be justified by either side. Yet it seems that the Palestanians are always to blame for the death, oppression, and suffering they experience daily. Is there any mention in the media of the Israeli incursion into Gaza in November during which 6 Palestinians were killed?? Oh and by the way, this was during the “Ceasefire”. All human life is valuable! If the roles and conditions were reversed– Palestinian/Israeli– what would you say?? Hmmm? As Shakespeare says ” Is there no truth, no hope, no honesty in men?”
December 31st, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Clancy, people like JackOfHeart just need a reason to cry “Shame on America!” Don’t deprive them of this pleasure.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Israel is not a perfect state and it has made many terrible mistakes, the settlements being one of them. However, the people of Gaza voted Hamas into power knowing that organization was dedicated to the destruction of Israel. Over the last two years, Israel sat back and absorbed thousands of rocket attacks without any significant reprisals. The people of Gaza have to take some responsibility for what is happening to their region right now. And I don’t recall anybody trying to justify the killing of innocent civilians. Are you aware of what Golda Meir said about the wars? The “cease-fire” was NEVER honored by Hamas, which is why Israel declared an end to it. Why didn’t you speak up back then? Apparently, the “delusional rhetoric” comes from both sides, ctown.
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December 31st, 2008 at 1:50 pm
samara you are so patahtic woman !!
when the world will understand that israel with the good side?
~—————– ISRAEL I LOVE YOU ———————~
HAMAS STOP THE TERORISM!– ARAB STOP THE TERORISM! — ISLAM STOP THE TERORISM!!!
December 31st, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Qazi,
If you are reading this, please check your emal. I can’t publish the comment you are trying to post – it’s far too long. If you have a link to the text you want to publish, you can put it in your comment instead of pasting the entire text. Thanks!
December 31st, 2008 at 2:15 pm
And what is the government of Israel dedicated to? Who elected Ehud Olmert? Who elected Benjamin Netanyahu? Who elected Ariel Sharon– the Sabra and Chatila? I guess the election of Hamas happened in a vacuum?? JohnRJ08 come on man?? Quoting Golda Meir– the former Prime Minsiter– who died in 1978?? Another zionist?? Give me an honest broker.. Israel=my only love– see my quote from Shakespeare.
December 31st, 2008 at 2:20 pm
THE HAMAS WANT TO KILL PEOPLE IN ISRAEL THAY NOT CARE IF THE PEOPLE BE CHILDREN AND THAY ARE THE ONLY TERORISM IN THE AREA..
ISRAEL WANT TO PROTECT HER SELF AND HER PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY .
THE WORLD NEED TO SUPPORTED FOR ISRAEL BECUSE ISRAEL KILL THE TEROR IN THE MIDLLE EAST!
GAZA = TERORISM
December 31st, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Hamas hoped to further its anti-Israeli agenda by escalating its rocket attacks against that country. But ironically, it did just the opposite. It has been repudiated by the West Bank Palestinians, denounced by Egypt, contradicted by Saudi Arabia, and mostly ignored by the rest of the Middle East. Even the hateful Hezbollah remains on the sidelines. It appears that the Moslem world, like the rest of the world, has grown sick and tired of terrorism.
December 31st, 2008 at 3:06 pm
War and conflict will always exist. War with no end, forever. Opponents have chosen sides. As long as humans harbor the inherent ability to remember the past to be resentful by blatant and obvious biases, we will always kill each other. Happy new year.
December 31st, 2008 at 3:32 pm
ctown you are cazy!
i live in israel , my home is neer to the rocket are throw by the hamas.. you now that this “ksam” or “grad” are make to people kiiling.. i think you are didnt now this!
my children go every day to school and thay so scary from the alarms,yesterday “ksam” hurt in my garden and was a luck that i and my family not was in the home, hamas want to strike in children and to be proud in this, but enough ! israel stop to be indifferent and the army of israel go to war in gaza,in the hamas,
IN THE TEROR!
israel –> the country , the one and only country for jew !
israel no hate the arabic people, israel just want to protect on her civilian .
tal_tal4@walla.co.il
December 31st, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Knossos,
If you agree that Israel needs to do something to stop the rockets pooring down on it from Gaza, what do you propose it should do, within reality, to achieve it?
December 31st, 2008 at 3:48 pm
i am arabi and i think that now israel not wrong in this action in gaza, despite i in the islam side i think the hamas was do a big mistake when he throw on israel a rockets becuse israel cannot to be a apathetic to this situation,
hamas wrong and he must be a paid , maybe now israel destroy the hamas ( inshalla )
israel me to with you, be strong against the hamas.
December 31st, 2008 at 3:51 pm
#11 Ben G
In this Movie, Joker also says, when Batman asks him “Then why do you want to kill me ?”:
“I don’t want to kill you! What would I do without you ? Go back to ripping off mob dealers? No, no. No! You .. complete me.”
#6 BeanTown:
Once more somebody denunciates opinions of others as antisemitism. God ! Is this a prayer-mill ! When will you be some more imaginative ?
December 31st, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Israel is basically a “failing transplant” thats is being naturally rejected by the entire body. Israel is a very bad disease that has proven to be fatal to children. The treatment for Israel is one of three;
1) Surgical removal (recommend Dr. Nasrallah)
2) Chemical therapy (recommend Dr. Assad)
and if all fails;
3) Radiation therapy (By Dr. Ahmadinijad)
December 31st, 2008 at 4:03 pm
And what the heck Israel is doing in the middle of a 100 countries that cant stand them? Go back home to your far hoods you jew terrorists
December 31st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
The Joker/Batman analogy is an interesting one. The Joker/Batman relationship is one of action/reaction, just like the Hamas/Israel relationship. In a sense, after you’ve been on a mission long enough, it becomes an end in itself, just like the scenario played out in Tom Clancy’s “Patriot Games.” It’s no longer about the long term objective, but the success of each mission. Also, when Joker says “You complete me,” he is suggesting that Batman is the reason he exists and he is, therefore, partially responsible for Joker’s atrocities against innocent. This has been the mantra of most terrorist groups throughout history. I suppose a lot of people think that there would be peace overnight in the Mideast if Israel gave back the Golan Heights and West Bank, and allowed “Palestinians” the full ‘right of return.’ That’s terribly naive. The endgame for Hamas and many other Islamic groups, including Iran, is the total destruction of the Jewish state. They’re not subtle about that at all, and this overt agenda changes everything, in terms of how Israel can respond.
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December 31st, 2008 at 4:09 pm
in this story batman is the good side and batman want to halp to the Joker bet friend of the Joker instigator him against batman,
- when the world will understand that israel only want to protect on her civilian ?
i am student, my age is 16 years old and i write for protect on my country that she bombed from the world by demonstration pro arabic , you didn’t now what happan in israel really !
europe, amrica,asia -look better aboute the situation in israel.. dont put the blame on israel !
December 31st, 2008 at 4:19 pm
“The treatment for Israel is one of three;
1) Surgical removal (recommend Dr. Nasrallah)
2) Chemical therapy (recommend Dr. Assad)
and if all fails;
3) Radiation therapy (By Dr. Ahmadinijad)”
So which one would make you happiest, Jack?
December 31st, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Mazen, bone up on your world history. The Jews lived in Palestine thousands of years ago. Remember that whole “Promised Land” thing in your Bible?
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December 31st, 2008 at 4:19 pm
mazen you are so dumm… you are terorist !!!!! not israel
December 31st, 2008 at 4:21 pm
mazen you are 0 =ziro
December 31st, 2008 at 4:22 pm
mazen you are nazi
December 31st, 2008 at 4:30 pm
It seems that “Jack” could use some treatments himself– preferably electro-shock therapy. And Mazen, his alter-ego, is so consumed with hate he can’t even put together a sentence. I think it borders on funny that people like them begrudge the Jewish people such a small piece of the land their ancestors sprang from 5,000 years ago, especially when you consider that Israel is surrounded by much larger Muslim countries that possess the majority of the world’s oil wealth. This anger at the Jews for daring to defend themselves is just a complete joke. I don’t like innocent people being hurt any more than anyone else, but no one can deny that Israel was provoked.
JohnRJ08’s last blog post..Why we’re still watching Sarah Palin
December 31st, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Has Israel ever attacked without “provocation”? Would we, the U.S., tolerate Mexico or Canada bombing Texas or Michigan without retaliation? Does anyone think that Hamas cares about the “Palestinian” innocents? Why aren’t people upset about the Israeli children that were killed?
December 31st, 2008 at 4:59 pm
Mazen, where do you suggest that they go? Europe put them there after WW2 partially to aleviate their concience after the Holocaust and partically because they still wanted them out of Europe. Where is the home of the Jews you want them to go to? Yes the decision to place Israel there was a poor choice, but the damage is done. It would be no more right to tell them to leave than it was to take the land from the Palestinians in the first place.
Every nation has a right to defend itself against attack no matter how small. I doubt if Canada or Mexico called for the destruction of the US and continually lobbed missles at us, there US would just sit there and take it, or any Euopean country and their neighbors. No leader can maintain credibility if they continue to allow attacks upon their people.
December 31st, 2008 at 5:47 pm
If you are so sympathetic with Israel, then why don’t you give them a piece of land in America far…far from any muslims? Why don’t they establish their terrorist state in the USA or Europe? If the Israelis were not such terrible neighbors (killing children), we would have all lived in peace. Your delusional views on “peaceful state of Israel” is a delusion. If Israel wipes out all Arabs and Muslims in the world, they will expand their settlements until they reach other neighbors to start war with and call it “self-defense”. Time will come when this actually happens.
December 31st, 2008 at 6:00 pm
“self-defense” my @$$!
Since its inception in 1948 there have been more peace talks than there are jews in the world. 60 years of land theft and bending history. For any of you that claim to have any brain; How old is Hamas? Not even 20 years old, and only started home-making rockets recently when they found themselves being victims of endless impresonments, killings and land thefts by the settlers. You have to understand that the Palestinians have been deprived of ALL God-guaranteed rights of living at the hands of the Israelis and have nothing else to lose. Hamas firing rockets at Israel is not an excuse for this reckless killing of the innocent. Again, Israel has no respect for the lives of the non-jews, and thats what makes them a bad neighbor.
December 31st, 2008 at 6:04 pm
Jack, I don’t think it’s a question of being “sympathetic with Israel” as much as it is an acceptance that Hamas intentionally provoked the current conflict. I’m plenty critical of some Israeli policies, as are many Israeli citizens. Many Jews were already living in that area before the state of Israel was formed, and it was the homeland of their ancestors, which pre-dates any other culture or society. I would also agree that there are elements within Israel that are as hateful of Muslims as many Muslim are of Jews. Admittedly, this cycle of violence in that region is just that– a cycle. The problem is, whenever Israel gets a pro-peace government in place and relations begin to improve with the Palestinians, organizations like Hamas step in and sabotage any budding peace process. You can’t expect Israel to be Ghandi-like in its response to Hamas rockets. Some day, hopefully, the two sides will realize that ending the feud is in both of their interests and Hamas will be voted out of power by the Palestinian people. No question that Israel’s response to sixty years of sporadic attacks and several wars has been to militarize its culture and fight terrorism, sometimes too aggressively. But it has always been out-numbered and it has never attacked a neighboring country without cause or just because it wanted that country wiped off the face of the Earth. And it is Hamas that blends into Palestinian neighborhoods, using its own people as human shields, which leads to more civilian casualties.
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December 31st, 2008 at 9:02 pm
Dear “self-defense” my @ss! Ordinarily, when someone shoots +6,000 missiles at your neighborhoods and schools for six years, no one would complain if you reacted. But because this is Israel reacting, a different standard is applied. You have no way of knowing if Israel is involved in “reckless killing of the innocent. You’re just parroting the anti-Israel line without personal knowledge of anything. Hamas’ age isn’t relevant. Before it was Hamas, it was someone else. Hamas is just the terrorist organization-du-jour. And, for your information, Israel has more respect for human life than most people in the Mideast. You don’t see Jews strapping bombs to themselves and blowing up crowded falafel shops. That’s why so many Muslims and Christians have chosen to live in Israel. Your definition of a “bad neighbor” is topsy-turvy. Israel responds to thousands of rockets with surgically targeted air strikes and you call it a “bad neighbor”. The nano-second that Palestinians decided to live in peace with Israel, the hostilities would stop and you know it.
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