The Dahiya doctrine is neither in accord with international law, nor with universally recognized just war principles that derive from the law and the Gospel, and Christians and Americans should not support it. We should hold Israel accountable to the same standards of moral conduct that every civilized nation follows and is enshrined in international law, no less than we would if America or some European country were responsible for this unjustified aggression, with deliberate and disproportionate attacks on civilians. While I dont agree with everything in this article, it raises some important points, and especially as the civilian death toll mounts (as of this moment, according to various news sources, there are a reported 342 dead, about 75% of them civilians, 70 of them children, and about 50,000 displaced from their homes) it becomes hard to deny that the Israeli approach is based on dubious and immoral principles. The Dahiya doctrine (which refers to the Dahiya neighborhood in Beirut that Israel purposely decimated in its 2006 assault on Lebanon) is Israel’s preferred method of warfare. Under this doctrine, the Israeli army deploys overwhelmingly disproportionate force against civilian infrastructure to restore Israel’s deterrence and turn the local population against its enemy, i.e. Hizballah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. In the lead-up to Operation Cast Lead, senior Israeli army General Gadi Eisenkot disclosed Israel’s plans to expand the Dahiya doctrine, telling an Israeli newspaper: ”We will wield disproportionate power against every village from which shots are fired on Israel, and cause immense damage and destruction. From our perspective, these are military bases.” He added, “This isn’t a suggestion. This is a plan that has already been authorized.” Two months later, Israel pulverized the Gaza Strip, killing some 1,400 people, including almost 400 children, some of whom were deliberately murdered while raising white flags. Deliberate Based on statements such as Eisenkot’s combined with Israel’s murderous rampage in Gaza, the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, better known as the Goldstone report, determined that “The Israeli military conception of what was necessary in a future war with Hamas seems to have been developed from at least the time of the 2006 conflict in southern Lebanon. It finds its origin in a military doctrine that views disproportionate destruction and creating maximum disruption in the lives of many people as a legitimate means to achieve military and political goals.” The report adds (emphasis mine), “Statements by political and military leaders prior to and during the military operations in Gaza leave little doubt that disproportionate destruction and violence against civilians were part of a deliberate policy.” electronicintifada.net/blogs/rania-khalek/israel-deliberately-targeting-civilians-gaza
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 09:56:44 +0000
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