The Gaza Strip is splattered with blood after Israel unleashed a reign of terror, launching 34 airstrikes on July 8 over the flashpoint Palestinian territory, which left at least 13 people dead. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has shouted the battle cry and vowed that ‘Hamas will pay’ for the abduction and deaths of three Israeli teenagers. The Jewish state’s version is that the bombardment is in retaliation for 18 rockets fired into Israel from Hamas-ruled Gaza. By all indications, Israel appears in a mood to go all out and drag the conflict. One of its ministers said a ground offensive remains a possibility.
The relentless pounding of the besieged Gaza Strip since July 7 comes less than two weeks after Israel concluded its largest military assault on the occupied West Bank in more than a decade. The ongoing bombing campaign is the most severe violence inflicted by Israel on Gaza since its eight-day assault in November 2012, during which more than 150 Palestinians were killed, 33 of them children. If the soaring tensions in the region are anything to go by, Israel could deploy its full military might to hammer the innocent Palestinians, throwing all caution to the wind. Already, 25 lives have been claimed by its military since July 7, including at least eight children, as warplanes pounded targets across Gaza, whose Palestinian inhabitants live under a siege and are unable to flee and have nowhere to seek shelter.
On its part, Hamas has vowed revenge. Its spokesman said all Israelis would be potential targets for retaliation. “The Khan Yunis massacre… of children is a horrendous war crime, and all Israelis have now become legitimate targets for the resistance,” the spokesman wrote on his Facebook page. The war hysteria on both sides to the conflict bodes ill for the region, weighed down by the Syrian war theatre and a sudden spurt in the violence in Iraq. It’s time the world powers stepped in and knocked sense into the heads of the Israeli leadership rather than playing the role of a silent spectator. Diplomatic pressure must be brought to bear upon Israel to restrain its hand of aggression.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 10th, 2014.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
COMMENTS (11)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
Let's not worry about the Palestinians. They got their benefactors. The Saudis, the Qataris the Gulf emirates. And the United Nations. Next door Egyptians, Jordanians, Then there are Libyans etc. etc. Nothing will be done. And this country need to worry about it;s own annihilation by the extremists. Who are waiting in Afghanistan.
The cataclysm unfolding in gaza is emanated of a global muslim slumber especially from the arab world. That actually believes in the thought of making taller and bigger buildings could give them power to beat Israel. Pakistan has already played its part by condemning the actions in the most errecting manner possible ( this is the most Pakistan can do). But the Utter silence from the arab community especially from thier so called Head Moniker Saudi Arabia is beyond belief.
No one can assume that the west would come out in support of Palestinian Killings , So being an astute observer one could only say that this massacre would continue unless it is being withheld with resourcefulness and economic might ( That Head Honcho Saudi Arabia Possess).
But if Silence is to prevail, then we are in for a real rout here because Israel would kill every single Palestinian on the face of the earth , unless she is deterred or rather TIRED of them.
"It’s time the world powers stepped in and knocked sense into the heads of the Israeli leadership rather than playing the role of a silent spectator. Diplomatic pressure must be brought to bear upon Israel to restrain its hand of aggression."
Isn't the best way to achieve this for Israel to dis-arm Hamas and the Palestinian Authority?
link
@Ajamal: what about war crimes of 1971?
@Syed Jalal Kashmiri: And you support massacre of non-muslims
@pks: Israel is the occupation force and Hamas has the full right to resisit this occupation. Israel is committing war crimes and crimes against humanity under the international laws, but off course it has the full blessings of the US.
@Syed Jalal Kashmiri: why your medias ignoring hundreds of rockets launched by hamas at Israel? Israeli Irom done is protecting them from such attacks. means both are attacking each other, but better protective systems of Israelis is really helping them. hams launching rockets while hiding in civilian areas using these children as shields to show world to get sympathy supports. real terrorists are hahas for making their own children as human sheilds
@unbelievable, numbersnumbers: Why are you Indians taking the strange position of supporting Israeli attacks on Palestinian children, against an impoverished nation? It is because if Israel is held accountable, India's actions in Kashmir won't be tolerated either.
Shame on you enemies of Muslims and supporters of the occupation and massacre of Muslims.
Interesting that the Palestinians have no place to seek shelter, since Hamas would much rather build up an arsenal of rockets to strike deep into Israel, rather than build any bomb shelters for the Gaza Palestinians who would surely suffer when those same rockets are launched and the Israelis strike back! Also note that Hamas states that there are no "civilians" in Israel, so they consider any Israeli to be a legitimate target! However, Hamas also wants the world to believe that there are ONLY "innocent civilians" in Gaza (wonder who is launching all those rockets then?)!!
It's easy to blame Israeli - especially if your in Pakistan - but things are rarely as simple as portrayed. You just launched a major air/land offensive against in N Waziristan over an attack on an airport - no doubt you would have launched an offensive had the TTP started to launch hundreds of rockets from N Waziristan. The number of civilian casualties associated with the Waziristan operation will likely dwarf anything happening in Gaza - yet the Editor wouldn't think of calling on World Powers to "knock some heads" in Pakistan's attempt to defend itself from terrorist. . The World Powers should call for restraint from both sides -- so should the Editor.