Dead is Dead: The Mass Killing in Jabaliya in Gaza

I'm highlighting this story from The Washington Post because I fear it will quickly become a front-line propaganda piece to gloss over the civilian deaths in the Gaza conflict.

The Post headlines Geoff Witte's piece "U.N. Says School in Gaza Where 43 Died Wasn't Hit by Israeli Fire". Wow --- does that mean the 43 died at the hands of others, say, Hamas or a mystery force? Was the attack a fantasy? Let's read:

The United Nations said this week that Israeli mortar fire that killed at least 43 people in Gaza's Jabaliya refugee camp on Jan. 6 had landed just outside a U.N.-run school housing refugees from the fighting but did not hit the school itself.

OK, so the Israeli shells didn't kill anyone inside the shelter. They just killed people trying to get to the shelter because 1) they had told by Israel in some cases to evacuate their homes 2) their homes were getting hit by Israeli fire 3) they were panicked.

No one claimed, at least on this website, that the Israeli military deliberately targeted the school. Instead, we said that the deaths occurred because Israel was firing artillery in a built-up civilian area and that Israel might have been using a new type of mortar which was not as precise as advertised.

Indeed, this latest twist actually exposes the desperate Israeli attempt to cover-up the killing. Remember, Israeli spokesmen claimed that they were firing at Hamas fighters who were inside the school. Now, they are saying, no, no, we didn't ever fire at the shelter. The story changes depending on which straw "information" officers think they can grasp.

So Israel didn't hit the school, deliberately or accidentally, in this case. It did hit other schools, hospitals, large family houses, and tower blocks in its attacks. It did kill hundreds of civilians in this operation. It did so, in some cases, with weapons which are banned under international law. And, in almost every case, it has tried to escape responsibility for its actions.

Dead is dead. It doesn't matter one jot if that death occurred inside a building crammed with civilians or in a street crammed with civilians trying to get into that building, fleeing from attack, or just running about madly.

Comments

[Mae]

The following is the relevant section in the original UN situation report from 6 January. It clearly states "outside" but a direct hit on another UN school is also reported.

"Early reports suggest that at 15.45 on 6 January 09, three artillery shells landed outside the UNRWA Jabalia Prep C Girls School, resulting in at least 30 fatalities and 55 injuries, of which 15 are reported to be critical. The school is currently being used as a shelter for those fleeing hostilities.

At 2330 on 5 January, three Gazans were killed in an UNRWA school in Gaza City. They were among over four hundred people who had earlier in the evening fled their homes in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza and had been given refuge in the UNRWA school. The school was clearly marked as a UN installation. UNRWA has protested the killings to the Israeli authorities and is calling for an immediate and impartial investigation."

A France 24 camera team accompanying an ambulance driver on that day, were with him some of the first responders at the scene. It is beyond belief that the Israeli army with its sophisticated surveillance technology could tell there were militants firing from "near the school" and not see the mass of people standing outside of the school at the time. The video also includes an interview with the family of the alleged militant:

http://www.france24.com/en/20090116-gaza-israel-assault-medics-violence-hospital-war-palestinian

(The attack on the school is about half way through the video)

[Ofer]

"No one claimed, at least on this website, that the Israeli military deliberately targeted the school."

Good that you add this little "at least on this website". Why, of course that was the claim, that was the general anti-Israel line, that Israel is targeting civilians, otherwise it turns the operation into a legitimate military action (and we can't let that happen!).

There is of course a fourth possibility - that there was a fire exchange, to a position next to the school and innocent people, or militants, were killed.

You should hold your breath for final, objective, non-militant dead counts (say from HRW). So far all you got was reports by the Palestinians, who naturally have an agenda to push, that most of the dead were civilians. For some strong reasons to doubt these claims, have a look here: http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_context=2&x_outlet=118&x_article=1603

Not saying innocent people weren't killed, but there was and is a propaganda war going on, and this UN issue is just one piece of it. Remember what happened with "the massacre" in Jenin in 2002: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jenin#Massacre_allegations

[Scott Lucas]

Ofer,

I appreciate that there is never clarity in a war zone, however, for me personally:

1. On the Jabaliya incident, there may have been firing at Israeli forces. However, the point is that the shells/mortars used in reply were so imprecise that they landed far from any fighters and killed civilians. Had they hit the shelter directly, the death toll could have been even higher.

2. On the overall count, the best information I have seen from Gaza has come from Gaza hospitals, from Al Jazeera correspondents, and from Palestinian human rights groups (who are not connected with Hamas and have been good sources of information in the past --- see Juan Cole's website for information). All estimate 75-80% dead as civilians. Even the IDF count of "several hundred Hamas fighters dead" would mean a civilian toll of 50%.

I am not claiming that Israel generally targeted civilians, although there is evidence of individual cases of cold-blooded killing of innocents. I do believe that Israel was willing to have a great deal of "collateral damage", and to use weapons that are illegal under international law, to try and punish Hamas.

S.

[Ofer]

Scott,

I agree with your first point, although the casualty numbers are still extremely high for mortar shells, try any random story here: http://www.google.com/search?q=mortar+shell+killed

About the information issue, that was my point. None of these sources can be considered objective, as they all clearly support one of the fighting sides (namely the Palestinians). You don't have to be affiliated with Hamas to try and assist in the propaganda war, which is clearly the Palestinians' best tool - I honestly can't blame them for using it.

IDF official investigation counts are quite different than what you paint - have a look here: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3661940,00.html

In the Jenin example (a parallel that is very much worth revisiting), HRW was a semi-neutral source - it naturally does side heavily with the weak side, but it's also committed to hard evidence and facts, which the Palestinian reporting isn't. So I would still take HRW's numbers (once published) with a grain of salt, but they would at least be nearer to the truth.

Ofer

[Scott Lucas]

Ofer,

I appreciate all your points. In reply:

Jabaliya wasn't just a mortar shell; it was a series of mortar and tank shells.

I've seen all sides on the propaganda battle over numbers. My basic point is that even IDF's number of "just 300" civilians killed is appalling. But, if one wants to go to levels of innocents dying, I think the combination of United Nations/Al Jazeera/Palestinian monitoring groups throughout Gaza/hospital personnel, and the fact that many of those people are not activists in the propaganda war, is more reliable by several degrees than a frankly laughable IDF attempt at "spin" (how would Israeli forces, in the midst of combat, have compiled casualty figures? how would they be able to determine civilian v. fighter if the latter were not in uniform?).

[One basic fact: Given that, as of 18 January, well over 300 children and about 100 women had died in the conflict, "only 300" civilians dead is a serious underestimate, even if every dead male above 16 was a Hamas fighter.]

For me, Jenin is a red herring here. The exaggerated death counts were put out before anyone had been able to ascertain the scale of damage/casualties. The figures we're debating here have been compiled from hospitals/morgues/relief agencies "after the fact", in other words, based on discoveries of bodies, treatment of casualties, etc.

S.