Gaza War Continues Despite Israel's Withdrawl

Gaza Resumes Rocket Fire - Isabel Kershner & Jodi Rudoren

A 72-hour truce in the Gaza fighting expired at 8 a.m. Friday as Palestinians fired a barrage of rockets into Israel, signaling Hamas' refusal to extend the lull and its desire to apply pressure for its demands to be met at talks in Cairo.

Indirect talks underway in Cairo appear to have yielded few results. Israel is demanding measures to prevent Hamas from rearming and, eventually, the demilitarization of Gaza. 
(New York Times)


Hamas Vows to Restart War - Sudarsan Raghavan

Hamas officials at a public rally vowed to never give up arms and to reignite war if Israel does not accept their demands to lift an economic blockade of Gaza, while supporters chanted, "Blow up, blow up Tel Aviv." With a turnout of a few thousand people, the demonstration was much smaller than the massive crowds Hamas has attracted in the past.     

"The war is not over yet," Mushir al-Masri, a top Hamas official, told those gathered. "Our fighters are still in the field, in their frontline positions. Our tunnels still exist, and they reach into Israeli territory. If Israel doesn't agree to our demands, we will come there." Masri declared that Hamas had defeated Israeli troops during the war.
(Washington Post)


The Gaza Numbers Game - Elliott Abrams
    
18% of the rockets fired by Hamas - about 600 rockets - were fired from schools, hospitals, mosques, and cemeteries.
     
14% of the rockets fired by Hamas actually fell inside Gaza. That's more than 450 rockets.
    
Before Israel is blamed for every bit of damage done inside Gaza by rocket fire, a calculation must be made of the damage inflicted by Hamas itself.    
(Council on Foreign Relations)


Netanyahu: Battle "Will Soon Come to a Theater Near You"
 
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday in an interview with Sean Hannity that the threat from Islamic militants is real, and will spread to other countries if the terrorists are not stopped. "This is a danger I've been pointing to, it's not a spin, it's not a whim, it is a clinical diagnosis of a pathological movement that is sweeping our area but will soon come to a theater near you and it has to be stopped now."    

Netanyahu said the militants are under Iran's "nuclear umbrella," adding, "If Iran itself can intimidate the U.S. with intercontinental ballistic missiles carrying nuclear warheads, then we bring history into a different threshold altogether." 
(Fox News)


Hamas' Absurd Claims of Victory - Steve Huntley      

If the picture in Gaza of collapsed buildings, demolished homes and rubble everywhere is victory, what would defeat look like?
     
Hamas claims the 3,000 rockets it launched vanquished Israel. But nearly all of those rockets missed their targets or were shot out of the sky by Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system.
     
If the deaths of hundreds of Hamas terrorists - 900 by an Israeli count - is success, what would defeat look like?
    
This Gaza war was a disaster for Hamas. The civilian deaths and injuries that did occur were the sole responsibility of Hamas' total disregard for the safety of the people it ruled.   
(Chicago Sun-Times)


Of Palestinians Killed in Gaza War: Half Were Terrorists
 
We have examined the first 300 names on the Palestinian Health Ministry's lists. Out of 289 names of those killed that we were able to identify, terrorist operatives constitute about 49% and non-involved civilians constitute about 51% of the names. 
(Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center)


Hamas' Phony Statistics on Civilian Deaths - Alan M. Dershowitz

It's a mystery why so many in the media accept as gospel Hamas-supplied figures on the number of civilians killed in the recent war. Hamas claims that close to 90% were civilians. Israel says that close to half were combatants. Even human rights group antagonistic to Israel acknowledge, according to a New York Times report, that Hamas probably counts among the "civilians killed by Israel" the following groups: Palestinians killed by Hamas as collaborators; Palestinians killed through domestic violence; Palestinians killed by errant Hamas rockets or mortars; and Palestinians who died naturally during the conflict.     

It is lazy and dangerous for the media to rely on Hamas-approved propaganda figures, which in the past have proved to be extremely unreliable.
(Gatestone Institute)
FOR MORE DETAIL SEE NYTIMES


Israel's Conduct in Gaza Is a Model for Other Nations - Peter Wehner

During his press conference, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was asked: "Do you feel your actions, Israel's actions, were proportionate?"  

The BBC reported on Feb. 14, 1945: "British and U.S. bombers have dropped hundreds of thousands of explosives on the German city of Dresden....Last night, 800 RAF Bomber Command planes let loose 650,000 incendiaries and 8,000 lb. of high explosives and hundreds of 4,000 lb. bombs in two waves of attack. They faced very little anti-aircraft fire." According to History.com, the Allied firebombing raids killed as many as 135,000 people.     

My point isn't to condemn Great Britain (or the U.S.). My point is that in war, terrible things happen and innocent people die. By historical standards Israel has conducted itself in its conflict with Hamas with remarkable care and decency. I'm not sure there are many parallels to it. The way Israel has handled itself in this conflict is a model for other nations to follow. 
(Commentary)


IDF Fulfilled All Ethical Requirements - Naama Lansky

The Israel Defense Forces carried out Operation Protective Edge in Gaza in compliance with ethical requirements, according to Israel Prize laureate Professor Asa Kasher, who helped formulate the IDF Code of Ethics. "Every battalion commander has an officer in charge of locating civilians, and everything is overseen by too many lawyers, who help direct the operation on the ground. The number of casualties is irrelevant - it does not speak of omissions or any wrongdoing on the part of the IDF."    

Israel is facing a torrent of aggressive criticism because "there are people whose perspective is very shallow. They are shown photographs of a destroyed house and a doll's severed leg, photographs that are sometimes even from Syria, and they cry out. They do not understand anything and they feel the need to express a shallow sort of good-heartedness that has them momentarily identifying with the underdog." 
(Israel Hayom)
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