Israel at War: A Primer

Your article indicates two online news sources for Israel, one of which is in the middle and one on the far left, why not include the Israel National News site as well, shows the news from a pro Israel side.

Posted by: Dick at Dec 29, 2008 6:09:12 PM

One crucial item you omitted regarding Hamas and Gaza: each Qassam costs enough to feed a whole family for a whole month. Grads and Katyiushas can be multiplied 5-10 fold. That means that if there are so many starving people the mortar shells and the rockets can be replaced by using the money for hospital care and food. However, that is not the first worry of the Hamas.
Also, more emphasis should be put on the fact that there is a common border of the Strip with Egypt which we do not control. Yet the Egyptians do not do a thing to alleviate the situation of the Palestinians. The Egyptians know that Hamas is dangerous for them too.

Posted by: David Gershon at Dec 29, 2008 6:09:13 PM

I've just read the Primer: I would removed the word "settlement" from the map outlining the distances of rocket attacked in Israel. The press use this word exclusively to describe Israeli villages and towns in the "occupied" areas. Here, they are in Israel herself and therefore are not "settlements". Thanks.

Posted by: Michael Jacobs at Dec 29, 2008 6:09:13 PM

If the US had 80 rockets fired into it from any country, the response would be swift and devastating, withing 45 minutes. That country's capabilities to fire another rocket would be extinguished, with several hundred lives. Their leaders would be bombed into hiding in caves or in small tunnels.
How Yisrael has endured this long, without retaliation, makes one wonder.

Posted by: Nick Negoescu at Dec 29, 2008 6:29:52 PM

Israelis don't like to hear this, but they and the Palestinians are locked in a mutual madness that has become, over the last hundred years or so, a negative mirror image of each other. The accusations, threats, warnings, revenge, justifications, attacks and excuses go on and on while the bodies pile up (and so many, many children are killed) and no one dares to break away from being hypnotized by each other's hatred. My guess is that as the world's need to resolve the true threat to global civilization becomes "personal," fighting each other while the earth deteriorates will become
self-evidently foolish, and the Middle East will collectively mature. But will it be too late? In the meantime, please try to stop killing so many of your
beautiful children . . . .

Posted by: Wally at Dec 29, 2008 6:29:52 PM

The Israeli Knesset Cabinet must spend some time to work out proper responses to the media. For example it seems that to an extent the media reporters may somewhat concede that Israel has to the right to respond. However, they have their question of - Israel using a disproportional response. This question was not answred by Mr Ehud Barak clearly. This is an invalid quesation and needs a proper response to explain why it is invalid.

Posted by: Eli Reidler at Dec 29, 2008 6:29:52 PM

A good and needed job. Missing quote from Barack Obama when he visited Sderot last July. The map is out of date - a rocket landed near Ashdod.

Posted by: Ami Isseroff at Dec 29, 2008 6:40:01 PM

I wholeheartedly support the work of HonestReporting. But I must ask (respectfully) - why is this not a function of the Israeli government, when it so obviously should be? There is a Government Press Office. There is a Foreign Ministry. There are ministers, including a Prime Minister. Why do we keep needing schnorer institutions to speak on behalf of the government, as if you have access to ALL the relevant information?
You can sign me,
Bitterly,
Mosheh

Posted by: Mosheh Wolfish at Dec 29, 2008 9:51:56 PM

I am vacationing in Europe and can only see CNN and BBC and I feel angry about the biased reporting. One of the issues that must be addressed is the the lies that are spread and voiced about the situation, reported in these networks and are not being challenged. Images of civilian "being hurt" such as a perfectly healthy boy with a "bloody" bandanna on his head being played over and over. A woman reporter from Gaza saying that Israel was targeting kids going to school at 11:30 am...the notion of the Arab countries "not being able" to say their true views of the Hamas because it is not comfortable for them. These are some examples of how we are all guilty of playing this game as if saying the truth about the situation is prohibited so the Arab people will not get hurt...It is the conspiracy of allowing lies to continue and dominant the scene who prevent resolution of the problems. It is the mentality of lies and denial that contributes to the unfortunate situation in the Middle East and the common Arab people as well as the Jewish people pay the price of this game. We must find a way to confront the reporters, the commentators and the images to simply say the truth, even when a civilian is hurt. One must be stupid not to realize that Israel has the capability to win the conflict with weapons if morals and humanity were not the base of our military conduct.I wish to see the Arab people living in Europe donating money for their beloved Palestinian brothers to educate them, send them food and allow them to flourish rather than going out to the streets to display hate of Zionism.

Posted by: Anat Levy at Dec 29, 2008 9:51:56 PM

The Palestinians had two choices to elect. They chose pro war Hamas, knowing that Hamas wants to wage a war of extermination against Israel. What did the Palestinians expect by electing Hamas?

Posted by: Leslie Kramer at Dec 29, 2008 9:51:57 PM

Israel must protect its citizens at all costs. The unprovoked bombing
of civilians is an evil that must be
eliminated. Keep wiping out the terrorist strong holds, and the cesspools of wickedness.

Posted by: Bob at Dec 29, 2008 9:51:57 PM

In midia sorces where is Arutz 7?

Posted by: Ari Weisberg at Dec 29, 2008 9:52:18 PM

Israel needs to level Gaza. Palestinians supported HAMAS and threw their support behind them. Thus, there is nothing but terrorists committing acts of terror against Jews. Every Palestinian understood this when they elected HAMAS into power. Israel needs to utterly destroy the area!

Posted by: DGP at Dec 30, 2008 11:02:11 AM

There is not a single fact - historical, ethical, religious, economic, military, political - that mitigates in favor of the Arabs over the Jews in the Middle East. The facts are so lost, ignored, chopped, sliced and diced that rational thought and progress cannot be made.  Until the truth gets repeated as often as the myths, then there is no hope for a settlement.  And the distance between the facts and the settlement is the extent of anti-semitism.

Posted by: Michael Moorin at Dec 30, 2008 11:02:27 AM

I believe the Istaeli response has been too harsh and too violent. Altho we know Israel trie to spare civilians in war many are killed and wounded. Even if the world knows of the rockets being fired by Hamas, it will judge the attack too violent, and thus reinforce the hatred towards Israel that so many people have. Also, it is not only a matter of media fairness, it is difficult for any media, even the fair, to not show the ruins being laid to waste in Gaza.

Posted by: rob lustberg at Dec 30, 2008 11:03:37 AM

Israel should express no regret for those killed in its acts of self defense, whether new born babies or aged individuals, under the jurisdiction of the monsters openly dedicated to the total destruction of Israel. Israel should have no concern with the views of others but use all the force available to totally destroy the capability and the will of these monsters to continue their attacks on Israel. Israel is in the right. Israel's weaknes that prevents the all out destruction of the enemy is its embrace of the ethics of altruism, which holds the ultimate good the life lived for others and selfish pursuit of ones own well being and happiness immoral. Sefishness is the code of life on earth. Altruism is the code of death. Until and unless the Israelis learn the error of their thinking they are doomed to suffering and eventual destruction. The choice is to live and be happy on earth or to die in protracted suffering.

Posted by: Ralph C Whaley MD at Dec 30, 2008 11:03:58 AM

I have a simple question for these media people who like to speak against Israel.
Which would their reaction if we start doing just a simple thing like calling their homes during the day and at night when they are sleeping?
The answer: I'm sure they would shout at us and say bad words to makes us stop...
Israel is trying for a long time to prevent this type of reaction, but, unfortunately, is the only language that the terrorists understand. And even if they use civilians as human shields, Israel try to the maximum, to avoid these people.
When the world finally realize that we cannot negotiate with terrorists, then we will have peace and, the money the world gives to palestinians, will be spent on food and medications for the population, and not in weapons for the terrorists.
There is a great phrase from Golda Meir that should be the central point in every comment the media do about the Middle East:
There will be peace when the arabs love their children more than they hate us!

Posted by: Marcelo Acherboim at Dec 30, 2008 11:04:21 AM

You omitted Arutz-7 from the list of media sources. Was this an error on your part or a deliberate omission.
Please explain why a valuable resource, Arutz-7 was not mentioned.

Sincerely,

Posted by: Shmuel Spiegel at Dec 30, 2008 11:04:54 AM

Altho it is easy for us in the know to understand Israel's response, in the world's opinion (and also in mine) it is seen as much too violent. The media simply has to report the deaths and injuries and the bombs in Gaza, and show the pictures, fairness is not an issue . Finally, terrible public relations and the world will hate Israel even more.

Posted by: rob lustberg at Dec 30, 2008 11:05:31 AM

The Israeli attack is too harsh and too violent. We know the attackers are trying to spare civilians but in war this can never be attained, and too many civilians are being killed and wounded. Such attacks bring the whole world against Israell, because even if it knows of the rockets, it judges the attack too violent. Not good for public relations, in fact, very very bad!! And will also fill the attacked with renewed hatred...

Posted by: ROB LUSTBERG at Dec 30, 2008 11:05:51 AM

Where were Israel's critics when the bombs were coming into Israel? Not one, not even the United Nations, spoke out about the horror Israel was sustaining. Now that Israel is defending itself, they are being made to be the demon. Hamas is the demon; they just don't want peace until they destroy Israel and that's what the facts show.

Posted by: Bob Horen at Dec 30, 2008 11:07:11 AM

shalom, i just want to state a few things here i dont blame israel for trying so hard to protect thier citizens from threats and from hamas i think its time to help people realize whats going on there but further than this some of the palestinians need to be treated for wounds should be looked into immediately and someone should seek volunteers to come to israel to help in task's that need attention to help the israeli's i think hamas needs to back down and stop these attacks on innocent people and stop thinking about planning destruction on israel it dont do any good and why not add more news from israel news sites to come to us we should have israel news on our tv stations here in america so we can see whats happening there and be able to respond faster. i respond to them more faster then you can imagine so i say yes israel needs to defend their people and need to fight against terrorism, i support them

Posted by: bobby harris at Dec 30, 2008 11:08:21 AM

It has always been interesting to me that Israel has bomb shelters for their people and Hamas does not. I think it shows how much value Hamas has of their people.

Posted by: Karen Hector at Dec 30, 2008 11:08:55 AM

Once again, the Press tries to make this a level playing field. All the so call experts who advocate talking to Hamas are repeating old and trite "answers " that presuppose negotiating is a viable way out of this.Hamas broke the truce constantly, before they formally stated lasr week they would renew hostilities

Posted by: hb at Dec 30, 2008 11:09:33 AM

I'd refer to Indian Islamic scholar M W Khan calling for "deconditioning" the Muslim mind to eliminate supremacist views and hatred 'MEMRI no 2147 11-12-2008)
No muslim leader could tell the muslims political power is like an examination paper. A test paper can never be the monopoly of one. No muslim leader could pacify the political shock which they received after the breaking up of the muslim empires in the face of western colonialism. No one told them that their test paper of political power was over and now they should concentrate their effort on some other constructive activities like education, reform, dawah work etc. In Palestine e.g. it was God's decision to give the political power to somebody else. Hence, muslims should have accepted it, but they started fighting and now, 60 years of fighting has given them nothing...
Before World War II the thinking of the Japanese was like that of the muslims ..that is, their king...should rule the world. Muslims have made themselves the self-appointed caliphs of God on earth."
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Many thanks for your eluminating article. Very helpful in these troubled times. I feel just like Anat Levy (9th comment from top). Israel needs more Hasbarah. And we, over here, need less political correctness and politicians with background and whom dare speak their minds.
The conflict is about a crisis between man-made laws inspired by Judeo-Christian heritage and 7th century "devinely" and "unalterably" transmitted "teachings". The battles Israel fights today are nothing but one of many. The problem will not vanish unless, like Mr Khan purports, a complete change of mind with muslim fundamentalists occurs. For that to come about we need the help of billions of muslims who ostensibly mean well. And for them to succeed they'd need "our" help.
I do not see this happen during my and my children's life times. So be consequent and brave, Israel.
For now I'm relieved you've managed to not get pinched by terrorists from the south and north. I'm sure also Iranian military are closely monitoring how powerfull your explosive charges are. There's only one way to show them. Hopefully they'll now get down to earth just a bit. Good luck !

Posted by: wim wouters belgium at Dec 30, 2008 12:44:16 PM