Israel, however,
tainted its image in the eyes of the international community when it established
settlements in the territories it captured. That action officially brought to
light the illegality reflected in the policies the Israeli government endorses,
especially toward Palestine.
In response to the
settlements in Palestine, General
Assembly of the United Nations in 1998 declared them illegal and further
stated that it “deplored” Israel’s practices and policies toward the Palestinians and that it violated their
human rights.
Even the officials from the European
Union and the International
Court of Justice are both in agreement and opposed the settlements in the Occupied Territories for its adverse effects
to the Peace Process.
Jewish South
African former Supreme Court Judge Richard Goldstone’s report brings damaging allegations of actions
that took place during Operation Cast Lead that suggest that Israeli soldiers
and Hamas should be prosecuted for war crimes.
The Independent reported that the
Goldstone report showed that attack on Gaza reflected policies that were geared
toward collective punishment. The
Independent reported that the Goldstone investigation uncovered:
“. . . an overall policy
aimed at punishing the Gaza population for its resilience and for its apparent
support for Hamas, and possibly with the intent of forcing a change in such
support.”
Bloomberg
reported that Goldstone’s panel investigation discovered “disproportionate
force” in Gaza. Fred Abrahams, a senior Human Rights Watch researcher, said the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) even used white
phosphorus over a densely populated area with no regard to making the
distinction between civilians and combatants.
Dispute over how
many combatants died versus noncombatants has been ongoing with Israeli
officials asserting that their actions targeted combatants. To the Israeli
officials’ much discontent, B'Tselem Center for Human
Rights in the Occupied Territories investigation confirmed what the Palestinian human rights
organizations said that majority of the Palestinians killed in Gaza
were not militants, but in fact, civilians.
According to B’Tselem, of the 1,387 Palestinians that were
killed, 773 were noncombatants and only 330 were combatants. Of the civilians
killed, 320 were minors under the age of 18 and another 109 were women.
Israeli
officials have balked at the entire investigation. They denied such allegations of war crimes
and said that IDF acted in accordance with international law.
Israeli officials
stated that Operation Cast Lead, the official name for the December 27th
attack, was in response to Qassam rockets from Palestinian groups, which,
according to B'Tselem, killed 11 Israeli civilians.
The reason cited for the Qassam rockets that were launched from
Palestinian groups was because of the blockade imposed by the Israeli
government.
Israeli officials protest that the report lacks the valuable insight
necessary to understand what Israel has to deal with when it comes to
protecting their country. The officials see the report as undermining their
response to attacks against their civilian population.
The foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said the UN mission had “dealt
a huge blow to governments seeking to defend their citizens from terror,” and
that its conclusions were “so disconnected with realities on the ground that
one cannot but wonder on which planet was the Gaza Strip they visited.”
“We are upset and angry,” Gabriela Shalev, Israel’s ambassador to the UN said. “We take all
precautions to respect international law.”
Despite the
assurance from Israeli officials that the soldiers acted in accordance with
international law, the UN Human Rights Council backed the Goldstone
report that accuses both Israeli soldiers and Palestinian combatants of war
crimes. This means an investigation needs to be conducted by both parties, or
they face prosecution.
Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an adamant speech early October promised to never
allow Israeli leaders or soldiers to stand trial on
war crimes charges over their actions during Operation Cast Lead.
The ongoing conflict and the Israeli blockade have left Gaza
de-developed according to a UN
report. The delays in humanitarian aid have disrupted the livelihoods of
the people of Gaza—a reality Abu Ahmed knows all too well.
The blockade caused
him, like 100,000 other Palestinians in Gaza, to lose his job. Before, Ahmed worked as a driver, but when he
lost his job he became overwhelmed with depression and started having headaches.
He began taking Tramadol, just one pill a day. But gradually his addiction grew
and he began taking more. Before long, he was taking as many as four, and when
he could afford it, eight pills a day.
“I tried to get away from it but I couldn’t,”
Ahmed explained. “I had a headache, pain in every part of my body. I had to go
the bathroom every 10 minutes. I was sweating. Then you take one pill and you
feel better of course. When I took it, I felt very relaxed.”
“Before the war the situation was so hard.
There was no work, plus I had to take care of 11 people, including my wife. All
people could do was sit around in the street and drink tea or coffee.”
As time passed, Ahmed turned to Gaza Community Mental Health Program (GCMHP) and with counseling
from the group's trained therapists, Ahmed has stopped taking Tramadol. He has
even gained his weight back to 187 pounds; up from 128 pounds where he was
previously at the height of his addiction.
Still, with
high professional standards the psychologist at GCMHP set for themselves they are only able to help a
few people in Gaza beat their drug addictions.
Hasan Shaban Zeyada, a
senior psychologist for GCMHP believes the
contributing factor to the drug addiction is their vulnerability.