Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

[1andrew1]

Bad news if you're a hostage or Gazan.

Israeli forces will seize “large areas” of Gaza and turn them into buffer zones, Israel’s defence minister said on Wednesday, as the military expanded its renewed offensive in the Palestinian enclave.

The announcement marks the latest intensification of Israeli operations in Gaza since Israel broke a two-month ceasefire with Hamas last month and cut off supplies of food, fuel, humanitarian aid and medicine to the 2.2mn people living in the shattered territory.

Israel has already turned large tracts of land along Gaza’s border with the country into buffer zones, as well as creating a similar area in the Netzarim Corridor, which runs through the centre of the strip, separating its north and south.

In his statement on Wednesday, defence minister Israel Katz gave no details of where or how large the new land seizures would be. But he said the renewed fighting would be accompanied by a “large-scale” evacuation of Gaza’s population from combat areas.

He also repeated his previous calls for Palestinians in Gaza to turn against militant group Hamas and release Israeli hostages still being held there, saying this was the “only way to end the war”.

The announcement was met with dismay by relatives of the hostages, with the organisation representing them issuing a statement accusing Katz of “sacrificing the hostages for seizing territory”.

“Instead of freeing the hostages through a deal and ending the war, the Israeli government is sending more troops into Gaza, to fight in the same places where they have already fought time and time again,” said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

https://www.ft.com/content/ec189f74-...f-663b6f56f81b

[Pierre]

Originally Posted by 1andrew1

Bad news if you're a hostage or Gazan.

https://www.ft.com/content/ec189f74-...f-663b6f56f81b

typically biased reporting.

Israel broke the ceasefire because Hamas were reneging on the terms of the ceasefire

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by Pierre

Israel broke the ceasefire because Hamas were reneging on the terms of the ceasefire

Nice try but wrong.

Who cares? Neither side is to be trusted..

[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by Maggy

Who cares? Neither side is to be trusted..

Er - it was Hamas that invaded Israel, brutally murdered 1200 people and took hostages. Hams needs to be smashed and if they cared at all for the people who elected them all those years back, they’d have released all the hostages by now.

It’s on Hamas.

[ianch99]

Israel continues its killing spree:

Bodies of 15 rescue workers recovered from grave in Gaza, UN officials say

Fifteen emergency and aid workers from the Red Crescent, Palestinian Civil Defense and the United Nations have been recovered from a grave in the sand in the south of the Gaza Strip, U.N. officials said on Monday.

U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher said in a post on X that the bodies were buried near "wrecked & well-marked vehicles," adding: "They were killed by Israeli forces while trying to save lives. We demand answers & justice."

Israel's military did not comment directly on the deaths of the Red Crescent workers.

"The available information indicates that the first team was killed by Israeli forces on 23 March, and that other emergency and aid crews were struck one after another over several hours as they searched for their missing colleagues," the spokesperson added.

With Trump in the White House, Israel can act with impunity and can expect no consequences. Any criticism of what they do is met with severe censorship in the US with extreme-right Israel groups like Betar USA actively highlighting those who protest:

A pro-Israel group says it gave US list of protesters to deport, drawing alarm from students’ supporters

Now, as the Trump administration has begun arresting and trying to deport several noncitizen students and academics – some of whom were pro-Palestinian protesters – Betar says it’s been telling the administration whom to look for.

Betar says it shared with the government a list of noncitizen protesters and activists it believes should be deported. It says the effort is in response to President Donald Trump’s January executive order, which promised to “combat antisemitism” on college campuses. An accompanying administration fact sheet said the government could seek to deport noncitizen “Hamas sympathizers,” participants of “pro-jihadist protests” and people accused of antisemitic acts.

If you live in the US at the moment, be careful of what you say or post ...

---------- Post added at 14:23 ---------- Previous post was at 14:20 ----------

Originally Posted by Maggy

Who cares? Neither side is to be trusted..

I think the parents of the children killed as a result of the new attacks may care.

[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by ianch99

<SNIP>


I think the parents of the children killed as a result of the new attacks may care.

.... as would the relatives of murdered and hostaged Israelis.
Just to remind - all Hamas needs to do - and ever needed to do, is to release the Israeli hostages.

[jfman]

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

.... as would the relatives of murdered and hostaged Israelis.
Just to remind - all Hamas needs to do - and ever needed to do, is to release the Israeli hostages.

Hamas didn’t get medics summarily executed no amount of mind bending semantics can detract from that. If literally anyone else did it there would be no hesitation in calling it a war crime.

Nor are there actually any guarantees that releasing all the hostages would end a borderline genocide.

[ianch99]

More data on the IDF killings:

Palestinian paramedics shot by Israeli forces had hands tied, witnesses say

Some of the bodies of 15 Palestinian paramedics and rescue workers, killed by Israeli forces and buried in a mass grave nine days ago in Gaza, were found with their hands or legs tied and had gunshot wounds to the head and chest, according to two witnesses.

... but Oct 7th ...

[45rpm]

Originally Posted by 1andrew1

The announcement marks the latest intensification of Israeli operations in Gaza since Israel broke a two-month ceasefire with Hamas last month and cut off supplies of food, fuel, humanitarian aid and medicine to the 2.2mn people living in the shattered territory.

https://www.ft.com/content/ec189f74-...f-663b6f56f81b

I don't think Israel did break the ceasefire, it came to an end.

There was a ceasefire broken in a most intense, extreme and unprecedented way back in October 23. What do you think about that andrew ???????

[mrmistoffelees]

Originally Posted by 45rpm

I don't think Israel did break the ceasefire, it came to an end.

There was a ceasefire broken in a most intense, extreme and unprecedented way back in October 23. What do you think about that andrew ???????

Semantics , the ceasefire ended due to Israel’s renewed air strikes.

Using hamas’s heinous actions back in October 2023 to justify Israel’s response is juvenile logic. War in any shape or form has rules regardless of who the combatants are. The Israeli government believe that they can act without impunity and that any challenge or attempt to hold them accountable for their actions is met by unjustified cries of anti semitism.

I’ve got a lot of friends in Tel Aviv & Herzliya and in the time I spent in Israel everyone I met was lovely and just wanted to live in peace.

But, the Israeli government themselves ? I’d get them & Hamas put them somewhere and set lots of hungry animals on them

[Pierre]

Originally Posted by mrmistoffelees

Using hamas’s heinous actions back in October 2023 to justify Israel’s response is juvenile logic.

Yet, 100% accurate.

[mrmistoffelees]

Originally Posted by Pierre

Yet, 100% accurate.

And 100% wrong

[45rpm]

Originally Posted by mrmistoffelees

Semantics , the ceasefire ended due to Israel’s renewed air strikes.

Using hamas’s heinous actions back in October 2023 to justify Israel’s response is juvenile logic.

OK, so what would you have done in response?

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by 45rpm

OK, so what would you have done in response?

Not what Israel has done. When you have condemned terrorists for killing 100's of civilians, going on to kill tens of 1000's of civilians, murdering journalists and emergency workers is not a good look.

When you have large numbers of the Israeli population supporting what the IDF is doing and you have the USA actively supporting them plus suppressing any dissent then what controls remain in place? The IDF can literally commit any crime with impunity.

For example,

Majority of Israelis support Trump's Gaza plan, relocation of Palestinians in exclusive 'Post' poll

Trump's Gaza plan has large support from Netanyahu, coalition voters • 10% say plan is morally reprehensible, 35% want Jewish state 'from river to sea'

Almost two-thirds of Israelis (65%) support US President Donald Trump’s plan to take over Gaza and believe it is the best solution to end the war in the coastal enclave, a Jerusalem Post poll revealed on Tuesday.

"'from river to sea" - where have I heard that saying before?