Operation Defensive Shield : witnesses to Israeli war crimes / edited by Muna Hamzeh and Todd May.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Hamzeh, Muna, 1959-

May, Todd, 1955-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Israel. Tseva haganah le-Yiśraʼel--West Bank.

Israel.

Israel. Tseva haganah le-Yiśraʼel.

Al-Aqsa Intifada, 2000-2005--Personal narratives, Palestinian Arab.

Al-Aqsa Intifada, 2000-2005.

Al-Aqsa Intifada, 2000-2005--Personal narratives, Israeli.

Al-Aqsa Intifada, 2000-2005--Destruction and pillage--West Bank.

Genocide--West Bank.

Genocide.

Israel--Politics and government--1993-.

Politics and government.

West Bank.

Genre:

Personal narratives -- Israeli.

Personal narratives -- Palestinian Arab.

Personal narratives.

Physical Description:

xiii, 199 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

London ; Sterling, Va. : Pluto Press, 2003.

Summary:

On March 29, 2002 the Israeli army launched Operation Defensive Shield, the largest military offensive against Palestinian civilians since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. During the operation, the military used the most advanced weaponry at its disposal: Merkava tanks, Apache attack helicopters and F-15 fighter jets. When the operation ended on April 21, 2002 Israel had destroyed the Palestinian economic and social infrastructure, levelled large swaths of residential area, killed 220 people, injured hundreds more and arrested thousands.This book documents these events through a collection of electronic witness narratives written by Palestinians who were under attack and by Israeli and international peace activists who witnessed the results of these attacks. Deeply moving and courageous, these narratives offer a uniquely powerful and intimate account of the daily reality for Palestinians who endured Ariel Sharon's military strategy, and the death and destruction that strategy has caused throughout the Occupied Territories. Most importantly, the witnesses' voices bring to life the aggressive nature of this strategy -- they belie the noble motives ascribed to Sharon and those in his government and military who designed and carried it out. The editors argue that Operation Defensive Shield is a prelude to Israel's ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. They provide historical context, a chronology, and an analysis of the conflict that situates the horror of these days in their proper perspective. "Operation Defensive Shield: Witnesses to Israeli War Crimes" is an essential record for those who want to understand what happened in the West Bank in the spring of 2002, and what it portends for thefuture of the region.

Contents:

1 Origins of an Israeli Military Strategy 16

2 Witnesses to Operation Defensive Shield 25

From "The Apocryphon Arcane" / Jack Hirschman 25

The Israelis Took Over My House / Maha Sbitani Abu Sharif 28

International Activists to Act as Human Shields in Dheisheh Refugee Camp / Nancy Stohlman 31

Too Many Images to Process Now / Catherine Cook 35

The Auschwitz Logic / Ran HaCohen 38

When Malek Called / Salam Rahal 40

IDF Attack Humanitarian Aid Convoy / Yehudith Harel-Rabinowitz 43

"Pray for the Israelis Too" / Rev. Marthame Sanders, Elizabeth Mary Sophia Sanders 46

An Encounter We Will Never Forget / Dr. Majed Nassar 49

An Israeli View from Arafat's Compound / Neta Golan, Ian Urbina 53

In the Eye of the Storm / Jennifer Loewenstein 55

"There's a Terrorist Coming!" / A.K. Becker 58

Will Someone Please Stand Up? / Susan Brannon 62

"We Don't Kill Innocent People" / Jeff Guntzel 65

Convoy to Nablus: "This is OUR Land!" / A.K. Becker 70

"We Are Stronger Than You" / Beth Daoud 72

Jad was Found, but Dead / Islah Jad 76

As Though We Are Slowly Dying / Toine van Teeffelen 79

Massacre in Jenin, Deir Yassin Relived / Mark Frey 82

Detention at Ofra Military Camp / Ziad M. Al Tarafi 85

What Happened at the British Council Building in Ramallah? / Lesley Whiting 89

Cries of the Heart / Susan Brannon 91

In Times of War Crimes: The Banality of Evil / Ran HaCohen 94

Searching for the Truth in Jenin / Kathy Kelly 98

Jara Asks Whether the Soldiers Shoot at Birds / Toine van Teeffelen 101

3 Effects of Operation Defensive Shield 109

4 US, European and Arab Responsibility 122

Epilogue: A Prelude to Ethnic Cleansing 154

Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Article 8, War Crimes 176

Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide 179.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 185-191) and index.

ISBN:

0745320643

0745320635

OCLC:

51281024