Collective punishment or human shields? Israel's military has no "moral superiority," time for media to cover Gaza fairly (Click here to read more)
The civilian death toll in Gaza is immoral and unacceptable -- and it's time to talk honestly about all of it
Omar Baddar.
How commonly is the alleged moral superiority of the Israeli military invoked? So commonly that if you type "the most moral army in the world" into Google, you'll immediately get a bunch of articles discussing the Israeli "Defense" Forces. Just last week, Slate's William Saletan argued that while Hamas fires rockets at civilians, Israel takes "pains" in its "exemplary" efforts to avoid harming Palestinian civilians. The New York Times' Steven Erlanger didn't "argue" that Israel takes major precautions to avoid harming civilians, he seemed to be taking it as a given when he wrote Gazans were anxious about airstrikes "no matter how carefully Israel tries to target them."
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Despite the fact that the Palestinians are an occupied, besieged and oppressed population that lacks the capability to defend itself against systemic and daily Israeli violence, Hamas's insistence that Israeli civilians are legitimate targets is morally indefensible, and should be condemned by all people of conscience. But according to what evidence is Israel's conduct better? And how can it possibly be better when Israel has advanced surveillance capability and laser-guided weaponry, but has still managed to kill more than 150 Palestinian civilians (including 40+ children) in Gaza, compared to just one Israeli death in this latest round of violence? Instead of taking Israel at its word, let's look at the take of credible observers.
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Human Rights Watch, on Israel's Conduct
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After conducting an investigation, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a report on Wednesday accusing Israel of carrying out "unlawful" strikes in Gaza, ones that "either did not attack a legitimate military target or attacked despite the likelihood of civilian casualties being disproportionate to the military gain." It noted that "Such attacks committed deliberately or recklessly constitute war crimes." HRW Middle East Director Sarah Leah Whitson also added that Israel's actions raise "serious questions as to whether these attacks are intended to target civilians or wantonly destroy civilian property."
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