At least 23 killed in IDF missile strike on Rafah protest

[Classical_Liberal]

At least 23 killed in IDF missile strike on Rafah protest

By Amira Hass, Haaretz Correspondent, Haaretz Service and Agencies



At least 23 Palestinians, most of them said to be school students, were killed Wednesday afternoon when Israel Defense Forces helicopter gunships and tanks fired missiles and shells into a crowd of protestors in Rafah refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip.



At least sixty people, including many women and children, were wounded in the incident, witnesses said. The incident brings the day's death toll in the area to at least 28.

An estimated 3,000 people marching to the nearby Tel Sultan neighborhood of the camp, to protest the IDF invasion in that area.

The witnesses said four missiles were fired from the air into the crowd.

"We cannot handle the situation, no hospital in the world can handle the situation," Dr. Moawiya Hassanain, the chief hospital spokesman, said. "I got instruction from President Arafat to mobilize all our teams to Rafah immediately and declare a state of emergency all over Gaza Strip hospitals.".....

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/429428.html

[kiahzero]

1. Why the fuck were they shooting into a protest?

Is there any rational basis for this, or have the Israelis fully latched on to the conservative line of "We can do whatever the fuck we want, morally, so long as it's not quite as bad as the other guys."

[tinnypriv]

7. "It's better for Palestinian mothers to weep"

Quote: Major General Aharon Ze'evi Farkash (director of IDF Military Intelligence).

[Gimel]

2. No confirmation

"The Israeli army is investigating this incident. This is a combat zone filled with explosive devices laid in advance by the Palestinians. It is premature to know exactly what happened in Rafah," Captain Sharon Feingold told Reuters.

That would be a large number of deaths. I hope that it turns out to be an exaggeration.

[lefty_mcduff]

5. Of course it is.

Just like the Palestinians who were "dismantling their own houses" yesterday(!).

Some might argue that the IDF and Sharon are murderous goons, propped up by US aid and military equipment, who are exacting pre-planned policies while the world's attention is diverted by Bush's fuck-up in Iraq.

Nah. Couldn't be.

[dudeness]

21. bullshit...

blatant murder..

[lefty_mcduff]

3. Okay, how can even the most-rabid

Pro-Likud supporter justify this? Anyone? Anyone...

Cricket. Cricket.

[ze_dscherman]

4. Protests in the Knesset

Opposition MKs demanded that the Israel Defense Forces immediately suspend its operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip following the deadly missile strike on protesters that killed and injured dozens of Palestinians.

SNIP

MK Mohammed Barakeh (Hadash) termed the Rafah missile strike a "massacre" and called for international intervention.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon should face an international tribunal, MK Azmi Bishara (Balad) said, adding that they should be forced to explain their actions.

MK Ahmed Tibi (Hadash) said that the defense minister, chief of staff and the pilot who fired the missiles should all be put on trial. Tibi got so upset at the news of the events in Rafah, he had to be examined by the Knesset resident doctor.


Much more: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/429580.html

[tinnypriv]

6. Sounds like Mofaz is trying to "leave corpses lying around" again...

:eyes:

[bemildred]

8. Yep.

Can't let ourselves look "weak".
Better to look vicious or stupid.

[The Magistrate]

20. This Is An Outrage, Sir

None of the reports indicate any way in which the crowd posed any conceiveable threat to either Israeli civilians or military personnel. The mere presence of armed men in the crowd therefore can hardly be accounted justification for the employment of heavy anti-personnel weaponry, even as "warning shots."

Vicious and stupid hardly begins to plumb the enormity of the thing....

[bemildred]

24. Well said, Sir.

:hi:

[dArKeR]

9. Gaza Protesters Killed In Strike - CBS

 Palestinians say Israeli tanks and helicopters fired into a crowd of thousands of marchers in Gaza, who were protesting an army operation in a nearby refugee camp. Women and children were said to be among the dead.

Military sources say a helicopter fired one missile as a deterrent, but it was not supposed to hit the crowd, reports CBS News Correspondent Robert Berger. Palestinians say a tank shell was also fired.

About two dozen Palestinians were killed, most of them younger than 18, and dozens were in critical condition, Palestinian hospital officials said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/03/27/world/main609057.shtml

Shouldn't ALL titles around the world be, 'American made tanks and helicopters fired into a crowd of protesters.'

[aneerkoinos]

10. Minor point

Merkava tanks are made in Israel.

[iconoclastic cat]

11. Wednesday, Bloody Wednesday

Shame.

[madrchsod]

12. isn`t it nice to know where

your hard earned money is going..yes, part of your tax dollar goes to fund the idf war machine..somehow i just feel warm and all fuzzy knowing my money is helping to kill rock throwers...

[denverbill]

13. How's this differ from a suicide bombing?

Government sanctioned slaughter of innocent people versus a lone extremist blowing himself up.

Who will pay for this 'mistake'?

[Tellurian]

14. Disgraceful...

[Just Me]

18. I just saw video coverage. I broke into tears.

There is NO justification for what happened.

The act was a war crime.

[Gimel]

15. New headline

Now says there were 10 deaths

10 Palestinians killed in IDF missile strike on Rafah protest

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/429428.html

Same URL.

[lefty_mcduff]

16. Still. When you got the RW bozos in the WH saying the following...

<snip>

"We are very concerned about reports from Gaza and the number of Palestinians who are said to have been injured and killed," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

"We have asked the Government of Israel for the facts about what happened today. We will continue to follow this closely and we urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint," McClellan said.

<snip>

...you know the IDF has gone a teensy-weensy bit over the top on this one.
Even for them.

Or is this more of the big-bad-ol world picking on itsy-bitsy widdle Israel?

[Djinn]

35. well that's alright then

the IDF only shot into a crowd during a protest and killed 10 people -why would anyone get upset at that.

I can only imagine your outrage were someone to correct a story about the death toll of a suicide bombing with "there were ONLY 10 dead"

Every poster here that is for want of a better word "pro-Palestinian" condemns the murders of Israeli civilians - any chance you could do the same - or are we going to hear that somehow - after firing into a CROWD that the IDF miraculously managed to pick off ONLY Hamas militants?

[Scurrilous]

17. From last week:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=62334

Helicopter Gunships Firing at Will

"It appears that helicopter gunships over southern Gaza have been given the green light to fire at any armed persons spotted below, not requiring them to request permission to open fire in each case as is the general directive."

[Gimel]

19. Death toll down to eight

But then it's a bit too early to tell. Might change one way or the other.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/429428.html

[newyorican]

22. Keep reading that piece of shit INN...

and the count will be down to zero soon. Nice map of Israel, BTW...something seems missing though...

[Gimel]

25. The post

is from haaretz.

[newyorican]

27. right post

wrong thread, intended for the dreck you're peddling in this thread:

Israeli Helicopter Strike Did Not Kill Civilians

[Gimel]

28. That's right

From latest recounting of the incident, the helicopter strike was not the cause of the deaths. It may have been a missile from a tank which went of course. Not that it will matter much to you. You've already gone over the top with your condemnations. I don't expect any retractions.

[Name removed]

30. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[thebigidea]

32. I notice you didn't bother with even an under the top condemnation

[Gimel]

33. Apology

Innocent deaths are condemned by me. However, lets wait for the facts before attributing blame.

[Name removed]

34. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Gimel]

38. You don't know

I don't have to emote my reactions here.

[Djinn]

36. utterly revolting

I hope you remember this post when someone comes back with "only 8 dead" when they're Israeli dead.

And then there's this "It may have been a missile from a tank which went of course"

Off course - riiiiggghhtt so the IDF were meaning to fire a missile into a totally DIFFERENT crowded area, considering how often the IDF miss and hit targets in the opposite direction to that which was intended I really don't understand all the compliments they get as soldiers - sounds like they couldn't organise a root in a brothel to me (sarcasm off)

[kymar57]

23. ABC coverage

extensive footage of injured men and children some obviously dead or near dead.Where is the outrage? I say this as someone who has always supported Israel in the "Big Picture" in the Mideast. But WTF!!

[Gimel]

26. There has been more outrage

Maybe it didn't hit over the head, but the UN has pass a resolution condemning this, there have been demonstrations in Israel against this and still no concrete evidence of what caused the blast and the injuries.

Why aren't suicide bomb attacks condemned by the UN?

[Forkboy]

37. They are

in the other thread you've been shown examples,and I will gladly provide more if you promise to not repeat this line of crap about the UN.

Somehow I expect the tune will change though when you read them...

[Darranar]

29. Updated version...

including the Israeli military "explanation".

Eight Palestinians killed by IDF
Eight Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded Wednesday afternoon when IDF tanks fired shells at a crowd of protestors in Rafah refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip.

Palestinian witnesses said most of those killed were school children. The witnesses also said that four missiles were fired from the air.
...
Military sources said that troops had spotted the approaching demonstrators, among them armed men, and asked a helicopter to fire a warning missile at an open field. But when the crowd continued to march, a tank fired three shells at the nearby abandoned building to ward the protesters off.

Senior IDF officers said that if there was indeed a mistake in the firing of the shell, it would be a grave fault that would affect the continuation of the ongoing military operation in the Gaza Strip.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/429428.html
-----------------------------
How can firing at an abandoned building kill eight people and wound sixty?

[bemildred]

31. Hey, they are still investigating.

It may still turn out the school children killed themselves.
We wouldn't want to prejudge the issue now, would we?
That would be unfair to the heroic soldiers defending Israel.