A few days ago, a diplomat said, “The missiles that are now being launched against Israel, each and every missile, constitute a crime against humanity, whether (they) hit or miss, because (they) are directed against civilian targets.”
He added that Israel issues a warning to Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip before a particular site is bombed.
“As for the missiles launched from our side, we never warn anyone about where these missiles are about to fall, or about the operations we carry out,” he noted.
The diplomat who delivered these apt and refreshing observations on July 9 to Palestinian Authority TV was none other than Ibrahim Kraishi, the Palestinian representative to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Kraishi raised these points to alert Palestinians to the fact that they may be charged with war crimes if the Palestinian Authority joins the International Criminal Court.
Since the latest round of hostilities began a week ago, Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement, has fired more than 1,000 rockets into Israel in utterly indiscriminate fashion. These deadly projectiles, having been deliberately aimed mostly at residential neighborhoods, have killed and wounded Israelis and destroyed property on a scale that has yet to be revealed by the Israeli government.
In some cases, the Iron Dome anti-missile system has intercepted rockets homing in on residential and commercial buildings in cities like Tel Aviv, Rishon LeZion, Hadera and Beersheba.
Hamas has certainly learned the art of rocketry, and one images it will strive to improve its technical skills in the future.
According to reports, the Palestinian Authority asked Hamas to cease such attacks, but to no avail. Even after Israel accepted an Egyptian ceasefire proposal, Hamas continued to launch rockets into Israel. Since 2001, Hamas and like-minded rejectionist groups in Gaza have fired more than 8,000 rockets at Israel.
By way of defending itself, Israel has legitimately resorted to retaliatory raids to punish its enemies in Gaza. What self-respecting country in the world would tolerate such blatant aggression against its civilian population?
Apart from committing war crimes, Hamas uses the long-suffering people of Gaza as human shields, placing its rockets and munitions in densely populated neighborhoods and in places like mosques, schools and hospitals. This is a cynical and disgraceful policy that should be universally condemned. By contrast, Israel has acted with a measure of restraint, but civilian casualties are inevitable under such circumstances.
Both sides should realize that there is no military solution. Military force will neither resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict nor improve the lives of Israelis and Palestinians. Only a fair-minded and comprehensive political agreement can defuse tensions and ease grievances.
But is Hamas ready for peace within the framework of a two-state solution? The short answer is a resounding no. Hamas is committed to Israel’s destruction, and the rockets it is raining down on Israel’s heartland are ample proof of its vile intentions.