The command was as clear as it was brutal: "Whenever we charged a house, we were instructed to kick in the door and then shoot blindly into the room", an Israeli soldiers tells about the orders he received during his time in Gaza. He and his comrades had instructions to shoot everybody they found during house-to-house searches. "I call that murder", the officer said.
In a different case he witnessed a superior officer commanding soldiers to shoot an old woman who was crossing the street. "I don't know whether she was suspicious or innocent. I do know that my superior sent people to a housetop to take her out. That was cold-blooded murder."
The testimony the anonymous soldier gave about his mission in Gaza is part of a report that surfaced today (03/19/09) and left Israel in a shock and awe condition. "This is first hand proof for something, most Israelis would like to forget: An Army making war on armed terrorists while a 1.5 million civilian population was trapped between the front lines. ", the left wing daily "Haaretz" wrote in a first response to the report.
The report consists in notes that have been taken during a discussion on February 13 taking place in the military academy in the Israeli town Tivon. Every soldier who had a say during this discussion are graduates of the academy, which published the notes in it's own newspaper.
For the first time, a large group of soldiers offer criticism regarding their orders and their superior's doubtful demeanor during a war which international press had no access to.
Reckless treatment of civilians
The written notes of the discussion are now likely to become part of the legal disputes concerning war crimes allegedly committed by Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip. Several international human rights groups and particular states are planning to hold Israel liable for the deaths of civilians and the illegal use of heavy weaponry in an extremely densely populated area. These notes can also serve Anti-Israel people as proof to the belief that the reckless treatment of civilians during the war was an essential part of the Israeli warfare.
The question of ethics was also raised during the hearing in Tivon. One soldier said that many of his comrades mischievously destroyed Palestinian family property "for the fun of it". This made him think: "We can reiterate as many times as we like that Israel's Army is ethically superior to the enemy but in the field that just isn't true." An Officer is quoted as saying that his comrade's demeanor and orders were "illogical". "Some of them wrote 'Death All Arabs' onto the walls and spat on family photographs. Simply because they could." That's what's most important here: To comprehend how far the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) have sunk when it comes to ethics."
A commander told the discussion forum about a sniper who shot a woman and her two childs, because they accidentally walked in the wrong direction during the evacuation. "I don't think he felt particularly bad about it, as from his point of view he was only acting under order." Generally, the impression that Palestinian life was worth considerably less than that of the Israeli troops, was predominant.
Another one admitted having taken part in actions against Palestinians: "We threw everything out of the window, to make room. Every thing flew out: the refrigerator, plates, furniture. The order was to get everything out of the house."
It is unisonous testimony that during house-by-house searches, soldiers shot randomly and without any warning. "Our superiors said that it was okay to do so, because everybody who had stayed was a terrorist.", an infantryman is cited. "I didn't understand that - where were they to go?" Other soldiers would tell him that they had to kill all of them "because every person in Gaza is a terrorist."
Soldiers imagined themselves in Holy War
Military rabbis and private counselors tried to influence the soldiers via handouts and brochures. All writings brought a message across, a soldier is cited in the report. "We are the people of Israel, we came here as by miracle, now we have to drive off the disbelievers who stand in the way of recapturing the Sacred Land", the handouts would say. Many soldiers thought they were fighting in a holy war, says the soldier.
The head of the academy, Danny Samir, wasn't prepared for these revelations. "That was a total shock for us." He expected a moderate discussion about the war, now an investigative commission has to assess the truth content of the statements.
Israel's Secretary of Defense told the Israeli Radio he maintains his position on the high ethical standard of the IDF and the IDF will thoroughly investigate on this matter. The Israeli organization "Rabbis for Human Rights" called the incidents "a moral tsunami" and appealed to the public to sorrow for the victims and to repent.
According to the Palestinian human rights organization PCHR a total of 1434 Palestinians were killed and 5303 injured during the 3 weeks of Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip in January. Among the dead are 930 civilians, PCHR announced a week ago. During the war 13 Israelis died, among them 3 civilians. Israel's aim of the offensive was to stop the rocket fire coming from Gaza. The attacks continue and the Israeli Forces still fly attacks on targets in the Gaza Strip.
Adapted from: http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,614286,00.html
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