Love war, fear and hate.

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1. Jenny 1

   31 March 2018 at 11:43 am

   The Siege which is strangling the Palestinians in Gaza is nearing its genocidal end point. Going on present trends, United Nations experts on the ground have predicted this genocidal endpoint will be reached by 2020.

   The inhumane, (and illegal under international law), medieval type siege of Gaza, imposed on the people of Gaza by the Israelis and their Egyptian Ally, has made life unliveable for 1.5 million people and which is causing the near total collapse of all infrastructure. The siege is soon projected to lead full total total collapse, leading to massive a death toll from disease and starvation of the captive population who cannot even escape their fate by leaving. All fences and walls are permanently closed, except for very limited aid and medical evacuations.

   It is this approaching genocide and the people’s desperation which has led them to protest against the inhumane blockade that imprisons them.

   Believe me, today Israeli crimes against civilians have been exposed globally.
   I assure you that the peaceful demonstration did not hurt any Israeli as much as it exposed the real face of the occupation .
   Thanks to everyone who keeps following the News and updates, thanks to everyone of you who care today .
   An Israeli occupation had no any excuses to shoot at peaceful innocent civilians who have not carried any weapons, just as they demand their right with their voice .
   The world must begin to see clearly what is happening here , the world must take an action and open its eyes to stand beside the oppressed people of Palestine.

   Good Night From Gaza with love ❤️.

   Walid Mahmoud

   Save the Children calls on Israel to lift the siege

   The UN found in 2012 that if nothing were done to ease the blockade on Gaza, life there would become “unlivable” by 2020.

   But following the release of a UN report in July that found that living conditions had worsened since the blockade began, the international body’s humanitarian coordinator for the occupied territories said that point “of unlivability [had] been passed quite a long time ago”.

   ‘Worse every day’
   Save the Children’s Caroline Anning told Al Jazeera that the “situation in Gaza is a growing humanitarian crisis”.

   She added that the situation “is getting worse every day”.

   Save the Children called on Israel to “lift the Gaza blockade and for Palestinian and Israeli authorities to provide basic services”, adding that the lack of such services was contributing to growing mental health issues in the enclave.

   https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/09/save-children-warns-unlivable-conditions-gaza-170905014336701.html
2. Adrian Thornton 2

   31 March 2018 at 12:35 pm

   Thanks for this post Bill, as usual Israel seem to be able to act with international impunity in it’s all to familiar act’s of ultra violence against basically defenseless civilians…no talk of kicking out Israeli diplomats over this outrage…..in fact no official condemnation at all.
   • Draco T Bastard 2.1

     31 March 2018 at 1:21 pm

     +111
   • gsays 2.2

     31 March 2018 at 5:09 pm

     Well said Adrian.
     For all the anti Russian talk going on here, the silence is deafening in regards to the brutal Israeli actions.
     I, for one, would like our leadership to show some courage and send home a diplomat or two in response to the goings on in Gaza.

     Assuming we are allowed, as a nation, to have a view that differs from uncle Sam.
3. Johnr 3

   31 March 2018 at 2:28 pm

   It astonishes me that a nation founded out of the holocaust then proceeds to commit genocide on other peoples
   I am also astonished that the western world condones it
   • Barfly 3.1

     31 March 2018 at 3:37 pm

     The holocaust has effectively given Israel a free pass in the western world for its atrocities over many decades.

     Western politicians who voice complaint over the treatment of Palestinians are then quickly smeared with “anti-Semitism” allegations – the attacks on Corbyn are but the most recent example.

     Zionism is very ugly but also very effectively managed by its promoters.
4. Jenny 4

   31 March 2018 at 7:08 pm

   The Guardian, Fri 30 Mar 2018 12.14 BST

   “Palestinians say over a dozen killed in Gaza border protest”
   Israeli military dismisses demonstration as Hamas ploy to ‘carry out terror attacks’

   Ahead of the protest, Israel has made clear it was considering force to prevent what is feared might be a “deliberate charge on its borders”……

   At one of the protest camps near Gaza City, a few dozen tents had been erected and residents were walking around, some carrying the Palestinian flag.

   Fatima Nasser, 65, said she had come with her seven children, all of whom were unemployed. “To die with dignity is better than living a life full of humiliation. We will return to our land, we will return to our homeland,” she said. “Israel kills us anyway, whether it’s by shooting or blockade.”

   Eighteen-year-old Mahmoud Younis said he had come to show the world that Gazans “deserve to live”. “No one looks at us, no one thinks about us, we will continue to camp here and come daily until someone looks at us and there is a solution to this difficult and miserable reality.”

   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/30/palestinians-march-to-gaza-border-for-start-of-six-week-protest-israel

   The Palestinian Chronicle, Saturday, March 30, 2018

   “Land Day Protest: 16 Palestinians Killed, Hundreds Wounded in Gaza (PHOTOS & VIDEO)”

   At least 16 Palestinians have been killed, and hundreds more have been reported injured in protests along the Gaza border on Friday….

   The Israeli military is referring to the protests as “violent riots” to justify the crackdown, but Palestinian leaders say the demonstration was peaceful….

   Mohamed Abu America was 19 years old. Yesterday he sculpted “I am returning” into the sands of Gaza Beach. Today, unarmed and standing on his own land, he was shot and killed by an Israeli terrorist…..

   http://www.palestinechronicle.com/land-day-protest-16-palestinians-killed-hundreds-wounded-gaza/
5. Venezia 5

   31 March 2018 at 11:27 pm

   Sickening Israeli atrocities.
6. Jenny 6

   1 April 2018 at 4:25 am

   “To be gassed, or not be gassed: that is the question”
   Scoop.NZ March 30, 2018

   This is a question that Palestinian protesters in Gaza may have to face.

   By Julie Web-Pullman

   The ‘March of Return’ sit-in is an entirely non-violent peaceful event being held at several locations along the Gaza border, at a distance of 700 meters from the border fence. Thousands of women and children are participating, along with their menfolk.

   Organisers have assured that there will be no weapons or guns used during this civilian protest; even stones will not be allowed to be thrown at Israeli soldiers.

   Official statements reported in the Israeli and international media leave little doubt that the presence of law-abiding Palestinian women and children exercising their right to assemble in their own country will be met with a wildly disproportionate – and illegal – response from Israeli authorities.

   Snipers, army battalions, and the afore-mentioned drones and tear gas have all been readied, and a practice attack using the drones was conducted by the Israeli Border Police on 09 March, 2018 at Shujeiyeh – an attack which was both indiscriminate in its effect, and conducted well inside the Gaza border in a blatant breach of Palestinian sovereignty.

   http://gaza.scoop.ps/2018/03/to-be-gassed-or-not-to-be-gassed-that-is-the-question/

   “Israeli activists plan protest in solidarity with Gaza return march”
   +972 Magazine, March 30, 2018

   Will Israel’s apartheid army use tear gas dropping drones and live rounds against Israeli protesters?

   Is a question that Israelis may have to face.

   By Yael Marom

   Despite the army’s attempts to stoke fear among Israelis and Palestinians alike, a group of Israeli women will join the Palestinian protesters in Gaza on the other side of the border fence during the “Great Return March.” The Coalition of Women for Peace is calling for demonstrators to rally on Saturday in the area near the Gaza border “to show support and solidarity with the residents of Gaza, to oppose violence against the protesters, to call for an end to the siege.” Buses will leave from Tel Aviv. The organizers are inviting activists to join them as way to challenge Israeli media’s incitement against the Palestinian demonstrators in Gaza.

   Tania Rubinstein, coordinator of the Coalition of Women for Peace, said “the gap between what we’re hearing from within Gaza about the events and the incitement that we’re hearing in the Israeli media is massive and leaves no doubt about the violent intentions of the Israeli authorities. We hope that our fears of a violent military response will be proven wrong, but regardless we will show up on Saturday to support the demonstrators, who have the right to demand their rights and their freedom.”

   Aya Zinati, a feminist activist from the Coalition of Women for Peace said, “the right to return is the right of Palestinians everywhere, and we will continue to demand it. And it is very moving when it [the demand] is coming from Gaza, where people are suffering badly from the siege. For 11 years Israel has occupied them with internal problems like the electricity shortage and the Rafah crossing with the goal of dividing the Palestinians to keep them isolated. When there’s such a protest in Gaza, it testifies to the fact that the Israeli siege’s attempt to divide the Palestinians has not succeeded. And not only that: the Palestinians in Gaza still yearn for freedom. The right of return is part of that freedom for all of us Palestinians.”

   https://972mag.com/israeli-activists-plan-protest-in-solidarity-with-gaza-return-march/134199/
7. Jenny 7

   1 April 2018 at 4:57 am

   “UN Chief Calls for Independent Investigation Into Palestinian Deaths at Gaza Border”
   UN security council convenes without Israel’s ambassador ■ Palestinian premier joins call to investigate Israel’s actions ■ Israeli Arab NGO blasts Israel for ‘unlwaful’ use of snipers
   Haaretz, Mar 31, 2018

   If this matter of holding an independent investigation into these killings is raised in the Security Council, which looks likely, will the US super power use their power of veto to prevent an investigation into these killings to shield their ally from international condemnation?

   Jack Khoury

   United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an independent and transparent investigation into the deaths and injuries along Gaza’s border with Israel, his spokesman said in a statement Friday.

   15 Palestinians were killed earlier on Friday in clashes along the Gaza-Israel border as 30,000 Gazans participated in the “March of Return,” a series of mass protests slated to continue for weeks.

   Organizers of the march said they plan to return to the border fence Saturday in memory of the killed.

   The UN Security Council convened Friday night to discuss the events on the Gaza border, despite the United States’ and Israel’s request to postpone deliberations for Saturday, due to Passover holiday eve. No Israeli envoy was present during discussions.

   https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/un-chief-calls-for-independent-investigation-into-gaza-deaths-1.5962519?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
8. Jenny 8

   1 April 2018 at 8:52 am

   The building tragedy

   An official Israeli spokesman announces the IDF will murder “everyone” who approaches the walls the Israelis use to imprison 1.5 million Palestinians.

   For despairing Palestinians there is little choice. Die by being shot, or die by hunger and disease, as Israel, and Israel’s ally Egypt, tighten the siege to its final genocidal conclusion.

   Palestinian protesters interviewed by Al Jazeera, say that by approaching the border is an attempt to get the world to notice their plight.

   The question on everyone’s mind is:

   Will the unarmed and desperate Palestinians try to rush the border? Will the Israelis carry out their threat and massacre “everyone”?

   Or will the UN Security Council finally agree to act to relieve the siege.
   Which is illegal under international law. And open up a guarded pathway to the outside world.

   It was supposed to be a peaceful day, but as unarmed protesters marched towards the border fence Israeli soldiers opened fire. Sharp shooters were deployed, but Palestinians frustrated by the endless siege they live under, were undeterred.
   Israeli commanders say they issued warnings against approaching the border fence.

   “We will never shoot one bullet against anyone who stays away from the security wall. We have warned during the last few days that everyone who tries to violate Israeli sovereignty or tries to infiltrate Israeli territory will put himself and his life in danger”

   Avichay Adraee
   Israeli Army Spokesman

   But even by this simple statement of threat, the Israeli Army Spokesman proves himself a liar. On Friday even before the protest had begun Israel fired a tank shell into farmland near the border, killing a Palestinian farmer gathering his crops.

   Not an uncommon occurrence, for either farmers, or fishermen trying to eke out a living within sight of Israeli gunmen, racist crimes for which no Israeli soldier is ever punished or investigated.
   • Ed 8.1

     1 April 2018 at 9:04 am

     Skripal and his daughter allegedly get poisoned in Salisbury .
     No evidence is presented.
     Russian diplomats are expelled from the US , the UK, and many European countries.

     Israel kills peaceful Palestinian protesters.
     Nothing happens.

     Indeed, in good old clean green New Zealand, it barely makes the news.

     We are owned.
     • One Anonymous Bloke 8.1.1

       1 April 2018 at 9:22 am

       no evidence is presented

       Meanwhile, on Earth:

       On 4 March 2018 Sergei Skripal and Yulia Skripal were admitted to hospital in Salisbury. Tests carried out by Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down concluded that they had been exposed to a nerve agent.

       Mr. Justice Williams, Royal Courts of Justice
       Strand, London, WC2A 2LL
       22/03/2018.

       15 Palestinians shot dead by Israeli army on Gaza border.

       Stuff, yesterday.
       • mauī 8.1.1.1

         1 April 2018 at 4:00 pm

         The evidence looks damning by the look of that… A nerve agent was used that looks like a novichok agent or something related to novichok or something, something…
         • One Anonymous Bloke 8.1.1.1.1

           1 April 2018 at 4:05 pm

           Did I say it was damning? No, that was you, putting words in my mouth. I suggest you stop telling lies that way before you end up looking like your guru.
       • francesca 8.1.1.2

         2 April 2018 at 9:48 am

         That is not evidence of Russian culpability
         Still waiting for the oh so respectable “International Community ” to summons the Israeli ambassadors to explain themselves alongside immediate expulsions from embassies the world over .
         Where are the comparisons to Hitler , and the verbose denunciations from the equally bloated Boris
         After all, visual , recorded evidence of Israeli culpability is there for all to see..
         And I would suggest we have much more history of Israeli spies .
         I’m sure Jacinda could rustle around and find a few…
     • Jenny 8.1.2

       1 April 2018 at 9:29 am

       Indeed Ed. And even less is said, when Palestinian refugees are massacred in Yarmouk and Latakia.

       Those who try to use the tragedy of Yarmouk to excuse or downplay Israel’s 48-year occupation of Palestine should be ashamed of themselves.

       But what of the rest of us?

       Can we afford to stay in our deep slumber, occasionally awakening to lavishly condemn only Israel?

       Let’s be honest: how different, how vocal and passionate, would our reaction be if the people besieging Yarmouk were wearing the uniforms of the IDF?

       Our selective outrage is morally unsustainable. Many of us who have raised our voices in support of the Palestinian cause have inexcusably turned a blind eye to the fact that tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed by fellow Arabs in recent decades: by the Jordanian military in the Black September conflicts of the early 1970s; by Lebanese militias in the civil war of the mid-1980s; by Kuwaiti vigilantes after the first Gulf war, in the early 1990s. Egypt, the so-called “heart of the Arab world”, has colluded with Israel in the latter’s eight-year blockade of Gaza.

       https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/12/refugees-yarmouk-israel-palestinians-arab-isis

       https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/15/syria-palestinians-latakia-assault
       • Ed 8.1.2.1

         1 April 2018 at 9:38 am

         Thank you Jenny.
         Israel thanks to US protection has flouted the United Nations since 1948.
     • francesca 8.1.3

       1 April 2018 at 12:06 pm

       An exiled Russian friend of Sergey Skripal talks to the BBC, another opinion to throw in the mix

       http://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-43343805/russian-exile-skripal-targeted-by-criminal-gangs
       • One Anonymous Bloke 8.1.3.1

         2 April 2018 at 9:34 am

         An acquaintance of ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal has told the BBC that he believes he may have been targeted by criminal gangs… to make Vladimir Putin look bad.

         “He believes”, “he may”. So in other words, the interviewed him because he’s from Russia and reckons something 🙄
         • francesca 8.1.3.1.1

           2 April 2018 at 9:54 am

           He may be “from Russia” but he’s currently an exile living in Britain
           Maybe the BBC thought it was time to follow their charter and provide “balance” for once.
9. Jenny 9

   1 April 2018 at 9:49 am

   “Palestinians hold day of mourning after 773 ‘shot with live ammunition’ “
   At least 15 killed when Israeli soldiers open fire during mass demonstrations in Gaza
   The Guardian, Sat 31 Mar 2018 12.24 BST

   By Hazem Balousha in Gaza, and Oliver Holmes in Jerusalem

   On Friday, in less than 30 minutes, reporters saw 10 people with bullet wounds carried away on stretchers at one of the demonstrations.

   The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, declared Saturday a national day of mourning. More demonstrations are planned.

   Israel said it has positioned snipers and responded to “rioting” Palestinians with “dispersal means” and “firing towards main instigators”. It said the movement was a Hamas-orchestrated ploy and it was identifying “terror attacks under the camouflage of riots”.

   The military pointed to what it said was an “attempted shooting attack by a terror cell” in the northern part of the Gaza strip on Friday. It added that it had responded with gunfire and by targeting three nearby Hamas sites with tanks and fighter jets. The military sent a video to journalists showing men appearing to tamper with the separation fence and said that Hamas had earlier sent a seven-year-old girl across the border, whom Israeli soldiers returned to her parents.

   The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said: “The international community must not be deceived” by what he called “a well-organised and violent terror gathering”.

   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/31/palestinians-hold-day-of-mourning-after-773-shot-with-live-ammunition
   • Ed 9.1

     1 April 2018 at 9:52 am

     773.
     Appalling.
     And barely a word from our base media.
   • Bill 9.2

     1 April 2018 at 10:03 am

     Jenny.

     Do you appreciate how cutting and pasting seven lengthy quoted pieces on a post like this one, and with little or no personal opinion attached, smothers the space provided for people to comment with their own thoughts/feeling/reactions to the post?

     Nicely, I’m asking that you pause and reflect before doing it again on any other posts I submit.

     Nicely, I’m asking that you use the comments section to air your own thoughts, and not simply as space to echo and/or amplify the thoughts of others you just happen to agree with.
10. Jenny 10

    1 April 2018 at 10:39 am

    Kia ora Bill. Thanks for pointing this out.

    Point taken.

    What I meant to personally add, (but omitted to), was that this is the only report that I have seen so far, that mentions that Israel, as well as shooting protesters, has also launched what can only be described as a punitive attack against the elected government of Gaza, (under the thin veil of an excuse, of an alleged, “attempted shooting attack” . ie not even an actual shooting attack which could be disproven)

    The military pointed to what it said was an “attempted shooting attack by a terror cell” in the northern part of the Gaza strip on Friday. It added that it had responded with gunfire and by targeting three nearby Hamas sites with tanks and fighter jets.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/31/palestinians-hold-day-of-mourning-after-773-shot-with-live-ammunition

    To give this singular quote some context, I felt I had to include the whole of the paragraph.

    However apart from that, I thought that this is a good report in its own right, from people on the ground in Gaza and Jerusalem. Which I thought worth bringing people’s attention to. This report has a lot more other background information, I would recommend that it be read in full.

    I hope you can forgive this minor infraction.

    In the meantime I have been trying to find further confirmation of these raids on the government of Gaza quoted on by The Guardian as being admitted to, by the (Israeli) “military”. In particular the amount of the destruction and if there were any casualties.

    Cheers J.
    • Jenny 10.1

      1 April 2018 at 1:14 pm

      Finally after much searching I seem to have found another mention of the Israeli use of punitive air strikes against the Hamas government of Gaza.

      This mention is buried deep in a UN report.

      That very fact of this near silence over this dangerous escalation by Israel, re-emphasises Ed‘s comment, above, on the slavish nature of the Western media.

      Ed 9.1
      1 April 2018 at 9:52 am
      773.
      Appalling.
      And barely a word from our base media.

      If instead of Israeli jets landing bombs on Hamas, who are the elected representatives of the Palestinians on the Gaza strip, Hamas rockets had targeted Israeli elected officials in Israel, you can be sure that our media would be all over it.

      The MSM total blackout of this dangerous escalation speaks volumes.

      If Hamas responded to this provocation in kind, and launched its homemade rockets into Israeli held territory, can we expect our disgusting media toadies here, to continue their conspiracy of silence and report only that Hamas has launched a rocket attack on Israel, not mentioning a word of the previous causative attack on Hamas?

      That Hamas has not responded in kind to the Israeli “air strikes” on them, speaks of their forebearance in the face of this dangerous Israeli escalation, and of Hamas desire to maintain the current decided tactic of backing the mass peaceful protest against the siege.

      CARL ORRENIUS SKAU (Sweden) said he was appalled by the loss of life, including Palestinian children. The events must be immediately and properly investigated by the authorities. The use of force must always be proportional and lethal force must always be used as a last resort. Israel must uphold international human rights law and the right to peaceful protest. He expressed concern over the airstrikes carried out in Gaza, saying the situation was extremely worrisome.* “Our focus must now be on avoiding further escalation on the ground,” he said. “All parties, particularly the Israeli security forces, must exercise maximum restraint.” The terrible humanitarian situation in Gaza was “on the verge of collapse”, he said, stressing that a sustainable solution must be urgently sought, including an end to the Israeli closure policy. Gaza was integral to Palestine and could not be separated from the much broader context.

      https://www.un.org/press/en/2018/sc13273.doc.htm

      *My emphasis J.

      PS. At Bill’s suggestion, I have posted all my other comments and links on this issue on Open Mike.

      https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-01-04-2018/#comment-1468636
      • Adrian Thornton 10.1.1

        1 April 2018 at 7:35 pm

        Nice bit of digging there Jenny. thanks.

        Very sad to see so few comments on this outrage, infact there was more outrage expressed about the Australian cricket cheats….lot’s more.
        In the past 24 hours…Palestinians-17 Killed, 1,416 wounded: 758 from live fire, 148 from rubber-tipped bullets, 422 from inhaling tear gas and 88 from other causes…..Israelis Dead or wounded-0

        As you say if this where in reverse, and that horrific death and injury toll was visited upon Israeli civilians…
        • Ed 10.1.1.1

          2 April 2018 at 9:39 am

          Terrible.
          And the world washes its hands, turns a blind eye and allows the apartheid Zionist state to act at will.

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