War Crimes

It's been about 3 weeks now since the cease fire between Hezbollah and Israel. And Israeli officials are increasingly concerned that government officials and army officers traveling abroad could face war crimes charges.

More than 850 Lebanese were killed during the conflict, most of them civilians. And Amnesty International has accused Israel of war crimes, including indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on civilian targets.

While Hasan Nasrallah, just weeks ago was clearly winning the propoganda war. Even he has to admit now that the Isreali's won the physical one. He said on August 27^th,

“We did not think, even 1 percent, that the capture would lead to a war at this time and of this magnitude. You ask me, if I had known on July 11 . . . that the operation would lead to such a war, would I do it? I say no, absolutely not. “

If even he can admit that kind of defeat, then you know the damage is immense.

While I certainly understand the Isreali fear response. The damage they inflicted was largely against civilians. And included the total devastation of homes, bridges, roads, water treatment plants, supermarkets and fuel tanks.

They hid behind an air attack. Instead of a targeted ground campaign, that could have pitted soldier against soldier, they chose to bomb, from the air, targets that ended the lives of a huge multitude of innocents and children.

I am not against war when it is absolutely necessary. Sometimes the only way to stop violence, is to kill the perpetrater of that violence.

In the words of one of America's most Brutal men, Nathan Bedford Forrest, “War means fighting, and fighting means killing."

But, it is never acceptable to take out your aggressions on innocent civilians, simply because they live amongst those who are a threat to you. Of course, I realize, life is far too complicated in practice to play out along purely ethical lines. But, that isn't the point. It's in the struggle to do right, even in the hardest of times that defines us.

According to VOA News:

U.N. Human Rights spokesman, Jose Dias, says international humanitarian law lays down specific protections for civilians.

"In carrying out military operations, they must distinguish, at all times, between civilians and combatants and that civilians must never be the object of a direct intentional attack," he said. "That the anticipated loss to civilian life and damage to civilian property must always be proportionate to the pursuit of a concrete and direct military objective…Indiscriminate attacks are prohibited and civilians must not be used to shield military objectives from attack."

Links:

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=19681&Cr=Leban&Cr1

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/09/05/131123