Current Events > Israel/Palestina War XIV - The Big Attack on Rafah?

(+) Yeah! (+)

divot1338 posted...

This isnt going to happen until after the election.

No US president can condemn Israel without completely losing the religious vote. Trump definitely will support the war.

_____Cait posted...

No US president can condemn Israel without completely losing the religious vote. Trump definitely will support the war.

Which is why it wouldnt happen before the election. He doesnt need anyone to vote for him after that.

Smart money would be after midterms in 2026 though.

I am not a morning person but I was thrilled to wake up this morning.

Back to Rafah. Please explain to me United States greenlights Rafah operation.

CobraGT posted...

I am not a morning person but I was thrilled to wake up this morning.

Back to Rafah. Please explain to me United States greenlights Rafah operation.

Easy. The US didnt greenlight anything.

If I hear the talking heads correctly from the attacks on Iran. Israel made hits close to nuclear sites to demonstrate to Iran they know where these sites are.

More finger wagging at West Bank settlers
Treasury department imposes sanctions on two groups for fundraising for Israeli extremists in West Bank
From CNNs Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood and Alex Marquardt
The US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on two organizations on Friday for fundraising on behalf of two violent Israeli extremists in the West Bank.
The two groups -- Mount Hebron Fund and Shlom Asiraich established crowdfunding campaigns to raise thousands of dollars for Yinon Levi and David Chai Chasdai respectively. Both of those men were sanctioned by the US in February under a new executive order targeting those perpetrating violence in the West Bank.

At the same time, the State Department on Friday sanctioned Ben-Zion Gopstein, the founder and leader of Lehava, an organization whose members have engaged in violence, including assaults on Palestinian civilians, the Treasury Department said in a statement Friday.

The executive order, issued by President Joe Biden in early February, came amid increased violence in the occupied West Bank in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack. That violence has only continued in subsequent months.
The order angered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who complained to the administration, calling it inappropriate and highly problematic, according to Axios.

Israel insists troops involved in settler violence will face discipline, after NGO accuses IDF of failing to protect Palestinians
From CNNs Benjamin Brown in London
Israeli soldiers who fail to protect Palestinians from settler violence or take part in such attacks face disciplinary action, the Israeli military told CNN on Friday, in response to a critical report from an international NGO.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) comments came after Human Rights Watch accused the IDF of failing to protect Palestinians in the occupied West Bank from violent attacks by settlers since October 7 and on some occasions taking part in those attacks.
HRW said in its report that such attacks have displaced Palestinians from 20 communities and entirely uprooted at least seven communities.
The IDF said that its mission was to maintain the security of all residents of the area, and to act to prevent terrorism and activities that endanger the citizens of the State of Israel.
If Israeli citizens break the law, the Israeli police are responsible for arresting and charging them, the IDF said. The IDF conceded that its troops had witnessed some Israelis attacking Palestinians.

https://theintercept.com/2024/04/15/nyt-israel-gaza-genocide-palestine-coverage/

THE NEW YORK TIMES instructed journalists covering Israels war on the Gaza Strip to restrict the use of the terms genocide and ethnic cleansing and to avoid using the phrase occupied territory when describing Palestinian land, according to a copy of an internal memo obtained by The Intercept.
The memo also instructs reporters not to use the word Palestine except in very rare cases and to steer clear of the term refugee camps to describe areas of Gaza historically settled by displaced Palestinians expelled from other parts of Palestine during previous IsraeliArab wars. The areas are recognized by the United Nations as refugee camps and house hundreds of thousands of registered refugees.

EU follows adding sanctions.

EU sanctions "extremist settlers" in occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem
From CNNs Catherine Nicholls and Benjamin Brown in London
The European Union has imposed sanctions on extremist settlers in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, the European Council announced on Friday, listing four people and two entities.
According to the statement, the entities Lehava, a radical right-wing Jewish supremacist group, and Hilltop Youth, a radical youth group consisting of members known for violent acts against Palestinians and their villages in the West Bank, were added to the EU sanctions regime alongside two leading figures of Hilltop Youth, Meir Ettinger and Elisha Yered.
Neria Ben Pazi, who the EU's governing body said has been accused of repeatedly attacking Palestinians, and Yinon Levi, who the council said has taken part in multiple violent acts against neighbouring villages, were also added to the listing.
The EUs top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said in a post on X that the EU has decided to sanction extremist settlers in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem for serious human rights abuses against Palestinians. We strongly condemn extremist settler violence: perpetrators must be held to account.
Belgiums Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib said that she welcomes the sanctions, adding that the recent escalation of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop; these settlers must be held accountable.

Doesn't mean much as Israel last month already declared more land for the state.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-approves-new-parcel-west-bank-land-settlement-2024-03-22/

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Friday declared 800 hectares in the occupied West Bank as state land, in a move that will facilitate the use of the ground for settlement building.
The announcement, on the day U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, underlined the government's determination to press ahead with settlement building in the West Bank, despite growing international opposition.
"While there are those in Israel and in the world who seek to undermine our right to Judea and Samaria and the country in general, we promote settlement through hard work and in a strategic manner all over the country," Smotrich said, using Biblical names for the area of the West Bank that are commonly employed in Israel.
The denomination of the 1,976 acres of land in the Jordan Valley as state land follows a similar designation of 300 hectares (740 acres) in the Maale Adumim area of the West Bank, which the Palestinians want as the core of a future independent state.
The United States said last month Israel's expansion of settlements in West Bank was inconsistent with international law, signalling a return to long-standing U.S. policy that had been reversed by the previous administration of Donald Trump.
The change brought the United States back into line with most of the world, which considers the settlements built on territory Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war to be illegal. Israel itself disputes this view, citing the Jewish people's historical and Biblical ties to the land.
The Palestinians say the expansion of settlements across the West Bank is part of a deliberate Israeli policy to undermine its ambition of creating an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the latest move was "a continuation of the extermination and displacement of our people from their homeland".
"The international failure to protect our people is complicity and cover for Israel's ongoing evasion of punishment," it added.

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1780716585260564932

ZechtAurion posted...

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1780716585260564932

Clear war crime. Hopefully someday the people responsible face justice

ZechtAurion posted...

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1780716585260564932

I'm sure (if this is true) the US will "look into this" and then we'll magically never hear anything about this ever again

SHRlKE posted...

The tunnels in question.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/9/95defa76.jpg

Well, these are tunnels indeed, can't dispute that! /s

that stuff about using the sound of crying babies in the middle of the night to lure people out of the refugee camps and then shoot them in the head is as sick as it gets.

Netanyahu begging UK and Germany to protect him by blocking the issuance of international arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20240420-israel-media-netanyahu-fears-arrest-warrants-requests-assistance-from-uk-germany/

The channel confirmed that Netanyahu asked the British and German foreign ministers during their visit to Israel to intervene to prevent the issuance of arrest warrants by the ICC.
It explained that Tel Aviv has obtained information and messages indicating the possibility of such orders being issued on a large scale and that they may be issued at the end of next month.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahus-office-hosts-emergency-talks-on-feared-icc-warrants-for-pm-ministers/

Here's hoping something comes of those warrants.

Remember the Hague Invasion Act.
It allows USA to use all means necessary and appropriate to bring about the release of any person described in subsection (b) who is being detained or imprisoned by, on behalf of, or at the request of the International Criminal Court.
Subsection (b) includes "Covered allied persons" (military personnel, elected or appointed officials, and other persons employed by or working on behalf of the government of a NATO member country, a major non-NATO ally including Australia, Egypt, Israel, Japan, Argentina, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand).

conduit posted...

that stuff about using the sound of crying babies in the middle of the night to lure people out of the refugee camps and then shoot them in the head is as sick as it gets

It definitely feels like there's no limit to how horrific the atrocities are.

You hear about something horrific and you're like - "Welp, that was absolutely fucked. But hopefully it doesn't get any worse than that".

But they just keep one upping it with how unspeakably awful these acts are. Some of it just feels beyond comprehension.

Foppe posted...

Remember the Hague Invasion Act.
It allows USA to use all means necessary and appropriate to bring about the release of any person described in subsection (b) who is being detained or imprisoned by, on behalf of, or at the request of the International Criminal Court.
Subsection (b) includes "Covered allied persons" (military personnel, elected or appointed officials, and other persons employed by or working on behalf of the government of a NATO member country, a major non-NATO ally including Australia, Egypt, Israel, Japan, Argentina, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand).

We dont recognize the Hagues warrants. Landmines.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/d/dad5f239.jpg

ZechtAurion posted...

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1780716585260564932

Jesus Christ thats horrible!

ZechtAurion posted...

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1780716585260564932

This should be a general post, since it just so horrible .

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-68870273

Earlier, the Axios news site said the US would target Israel's Netzah Yehuda battalion over alleged human rights violations in the occupied West Bank. The BBC understands any move would come under a US ban on aid to foreign units credibly implicated in violations.

"Any attempt to criticise an entire unit casts a heavy shadow on the actions of the IDF," a statement from Mr Gollant read, adding "this is not the right path for partners and friends".

"Criticizing an entire unit of the IDF is unfair," says the government whose minsters have said there are no innocent people in Gaza.

DrizztLink posted...

You know what would actually be useful?

Listing your examples rather than self-righteous vague posting.

Here is one: Idi amin. The book "a State of Blood. ", written by his former minister, is an incredible read of the horrors he did to his own people.
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/2/2dc10f9a.jpg
He ruled from 1971-1979, so the majority of his rule fell within the past 50 years. Many other books were written on him, but that one is the best one imo.

(To clarify, I am not the one you responded to, but I always found Idi amin and his insanity to be horrifying, and what he did isn't nearly as well known as it should be imo).

Zoks posted...

https://apnews.com/article/un-vote-palestinian-membership-us-veto-8d8ad60d8576b5ab9e70d2f8bf7e2881

US alone vetoes the Palestinian membership in the UN. But guys Biden totally cares about supporting a two-state solution! /s

Yeah, a really bad act that gives a really bad picture tbh. You can't say you support two states and then be the only nation to refuse recognizing one of them.

I looked up the Hague Invasion Act. It is a US law from 2002.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2002/08/03/us-hague-invasion-act-becomes-law

GameFAQs_lover posted...

Here is one: Idi amin. The book "a State of Blood. ", written by his former minister, is an incredible read of the horrors he did to his own people.
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/2/2dc10f9a.jpg
He ruled from 1971-1979, so the majority of his rule fell within the past 50 years. Many other books were written on him, but that one is the best one imo.

(To clarify, I am not the one you responded to, but I always found Idi amin and his insanity to be horrifying, and what he did isn't nearly as well known as it should be imo).

Oh he is quite well known in the West, with the film Last King of Scotland, among others.

What's lesser known is Mobotu Sese Seku of Zaire, who's more known in the West for hosting the Rumble in the Jungle than his actual abuses, and he ruled the country until 1997. I'm sure the fact that he overthrew his left nationalist predecessor and was friendly to US interests has nothing to do with it.

https://apnews.com/article/gaza-israel-palestinians-baby-orphan-video-19d46c47465a8bc8bb4c56f5247beccc

They managed to save the baby through a C-section but the rest of her immediate family died.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/israel-gaza-rafah-airstrike-1.7180591

18 children among 22 killed by Israeli strikes in Rafah, Palestinian health officials say

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-indicts-sister-hamas-leader-haniyeh-terrorism-incitement-2024-04-21

Sabah al-Salem Haniyeh, 57 yo sister of Ismail Haniyeh, lives in the southern Israeli town of Tel Sheva. She has been indicted for having sent messages saying stuff like kill them all.

Apparently, her messages incited acts of terrorism.

FFTHEWINNER posted...

Yeah, a really bad act that gives a really bad picture tbh. You can't say you support two states and then be the only nation to refuse recognizing one of them.

The US would rather sell weapons to Israel.

Sir_Will posted...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/israel-gaza-rafah-airstrike-1.7180591

18 children among 22 killed by Israeli strikes in Rafah, Palestinian health officials say

wait theyve finally gone into rafah? I thought that would be front page news.

The Israeli military intelligence chief resigns over failure to prevent Oct. 7 attack.

SHRlKE posted...

wait theyve finally gone into rafah? I thought that would be front page news.

They have done airstrikes for a while, still no ground invasion.

Israel has yet to provide evidence of Unrwa staff terrorist links, Colonna report says

Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of its claims that employees of the UN relief agency Unrwa are members of terrorist organisations, an independent review led by the former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna has said.

The Colonna report, which was commissioned by the UN in the wake of Israeli allegations, found that Unrwa had regularly supplied Israel with lists of its employees for vetting, and that the Israeli government has not informed Unrwa of any concerns relating to any Unrwa staff based on these staff lists since 2011.

[...]

The Colonna review, an assessment of Unrwa neutrality which was drafted with the help of three Nordic research institutes and is due to be published later on Monday, makes clear that Israel has yet to substantiate any of its broader claims about the involvement of Unrwa staff in Hamas or Islamic Jihad.

It notes that in March Israel made public claims that a significant number of Unrwa employees are members of terrorist organisations. However, Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of this, the report says.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/22/israel-unrwa-staff-terrorist-links-yet-to-provide-evidence-colonna-report

Thank you.

Hornezz posted...

[...]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/22/israel-unrwa-staff-terrorist-links-yet-to-provide-evidence-colonna-report

But the US government cut their funding, from the US .I am guessing none of the evil bastards speak on these issues with say anything on behalf of the US.

So I'm scanning the headlines on the latest UN report depending on publication. CNN has a tiny article only highlighting the parts the independent review thought the UNRWA needs work on. It's not even serious criticisms (most of it is social media posts), they are just shoving the report under the table.

Zoks posted...

So I'm scanning the headlines on the latest UN report depending on publication. CNN has a tiny article only highlighting the parts the independent review thought the UNRWA needs work on. It's not even serious criticisms (most of it is social media posts), they are just shoving the report under the table.

CNN is too busy trying to out jurors then to spend time talking about a literal genocide. I have completely given up on them after the management change. They are simply Fox News Light now. I switched to them this morning to watch a bit of the Trump trial and the first thing i heard was a Trump sycophant on the panel saying using Cohen is going to be a win for Trump.

Joe Biden responded to the antisemitism displayed by protesters at Colombia.

"I condemn the antisemitic protests, thats why I set up a program to deal with that. I also condemn those who dont understand whats going on with the Palestinians and their, how theyre being " - Joe Biden

Donald Trump did too...sorta.

"The Palestinian Protests at Columbia University have CLOSED THE COLLEGE DOWN. But the area surrounding the Courthouse, in Downtown Manhattan, is closed up like a drum, with New York Citys Finest (Police) all over the place. Why not send some to Columbia to protect Jewish Students, and others. The University would then not have to Shut Down. Republicans want the right to protest in front of the Courthouse, like everyone else!" - Donald Trump

Too much misinformation from Columbia University. Is this impatience with people denying genocide or is it anti semitism? (I believe there is a difference.)

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israeli-troops-storm-back-into-eastern-khan-younis-bodies-recovered-hospital-2024-04-22/

Damn, this testimony is heartbreaking...

"In the ruins of what had been Nasser hospital, the biggest in southern Gaza, Reuters saw emergency workers in white hazmat suits digging corpses out of the ground with hand tools and a digger truck. The emergency services said 73 more bodies had been found at the site in the past day, raising the number found over the week to 283.
Israel says it was forced to battle inside hospitals because Hamas fighters operated there, which medical staff and Hamas deny.
Gaza authorities say the bodies recovered so far are from just one of at least three mass graves they have found at the site.
"We expect to find another 200 bodies at the same mass grave in the coming two days before we will begin working at the two other cemeteries," Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run government media office, told Reuters.
He accused Israel of carrying out "executions" at the hospital and covering up the crimes by burying bodies with a bulldozer. Israel strongly denies having carried out executions.
Relatives have been coming to take away loved ones for reburial. Family members brought the body of Osama al-Shoubagy, one of those recovered inside the hospital grounds, to a graveyard on Monday to rebury him next to his sister, to whom he had once donated a kidney when she was sick.
"My young daughter asked me to visit the grave of her father. I would tell her that as soon as we bury him, we will visit him. Thank God. The scene is tough, but we might find some relief after burying him," said his wife Soumaya.
In one hand she held a few yellow flowers, in the other, the hand of their small daughter Hind, who wore a pale yellow Disney "Frozen" tracksuit to say goodbye to her father.
"He loved me, (and used to) buy things for me, and he used to take me out," the small girl said by the side of the new grave."

The people who tend to be the most effective and articulate at denouncing Zionism are Orthodox Jews, their voices need to be boosted.

edit: also I that's the fourth and biggest mass grave discovered in Gaza so far I think was being reported.

In one hand she held a few yellow flowers, in the other, the hand of their small daughter Hind, who wore a pale yellow Disney "Frozen" tracksuit to say goodbye to her father.
"He loved me, (and used to) buy things for me, and he used to take me out," the small girl said by the side of the new grave."

Jesus Christ...this makes my heart hurt so much.

AJ has a what's going on article for Columbia University.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/4/22/columbia-university-on-edge-over-gaza-whats-going-on

The coalition which organized the Pro Palestine protest says that there are people supporting/accompanying the protests who are not members and have their own take.

Some of the crowd were saying go back to Poland or go back to Europe. Some of the crowd were blaming other students for Gaza. A protest should be educational.

I think it is obvious that a protest should - but 75% of CE disagrees - try to change people's minds instead of attacking them as enemies.

There is always anti-semitism so of those disrupters I would say 50% trolling and 50% anti-Semitic and I really, truly believe that the people organizing the protest are legit.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/smotrich-said-pushing-to-start-legalization-process-for-68-illegal-west-bank-outposts/

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also serves as a minister in the Defense Ministry, is pushing to begin the process of legalizing 68 illegal outposts in the West Bank in what would be one of the most dramatic expansions for the settlement movement in decades, Channel 12 News reported on Saturday night.

According to the report, Smotrich, who in his Defense Ministry role has broad authority over civilian issues in the West Bank, has sent instructions to several ministries telling them to begin preparations for providing a variety of public services to such outposts after they are legalized.

darkace77450 posted...

https://www.timesofisrael.com/smotrich-said-pushing-to-start-legalization-process-for-68-illegal-west-bank-outposts/

I just don't understand at all how you can read the last few articles posted in this thread and think the leadership of Israel and the IDF are anything but pure fucking evil.

Sandalorn posted...

I just don't understand at all how you can read the last few articles posted in this thread and think the leadership of Israel and the IDF are anything but pure fucking evil.

Literally the 80s movie villain of some real estate developer who wants to take the rec center by sabotaging this weekend's Battle of the Bands.

But with genocide.

Some information on the conditions in Israeli prisons since the war:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-68780112.amp

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67600015

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67581915

All the shit Israel is doing in the West Bank should be enough for people to realize this genocidal campaign/war was never about Hamas, but unfortunately people can't see past the shit they are fed by western media.

My parents still think it is only about Hamas.

Cheater87 posted...

My parents still think it is only about Hamas.

Anyone claiming that should be assumed to be operating in bad faith at this point.

Trumble posted...

Anyone claiming that should be assumed to be operating in bad faith at this point.

Unfortunately it's also people that just don't do any investigation on their own and just listen to what the major news channels tell them.

You have to remember that not everyone pays as much attention to politics as you and I do, and especially so when its involving a crisis thousands of miles away.

So they'll just assume that our media is reporting this news in good faith, when in reality it does not.

I haven't spoken to my family about what Israel is doing, but I can safely say that they would have a pretty normie centrist answer because they don't have the time to actually learn what's going on.

It's unfortunate, but sadly that can be another explanation as well.