Gaza, Gaza, Gaza

The IDF closed the investigation into alleged misconduct by IDF forces in Gaza.  I am not sure on what basis the IDF made this decision; there are accounts by soldiers that are on their face extremely problematic.  These accounts have been corroborated by independent accounts from Palestinians.  (The very skeptical will say, 'of course, the Palestinians are lying...do you think they would defend the actions of the IDF.'  I don't think that is entirely out of the question.  However, there are ways of independently verifying these accounts--the details of the Palestinian accounts precisely match the accounts of soldiers to the extent that the information cannot be dismissed out of hand.)

Operation Cast Lead has been extremely problematic for the Israelis.  As I said previously, I'm not sure it was in Israel's best interest--which is my ultimate concern.  Perhaps the goals are clear to the commanders and politicians that conceived and authorized it; but as rockets are still falling (more than 30 in March) and Gilad Shalit is still being held prisoner and now Israel is letting through humanitarian aid--it is difficult to understand the goal since the situation now seems fairly similar to the situation before Operation Cast Lead. 

Yes, I'm willing to concede that there may be goals of which I am not aware; I'm not privy to the decision making at any level.  And yes, maybe we need to wait longer to find out more.  Yet, I think it is fair to ask 2 questions:  Has Operation Cast Lead improved the security of Israel? 2)Is the position/status of Israel today better, worse or the same as it was before Operation Cast Lead?  If Israel is not more secure today and if the position/status of Israel isn't better today...then I think the merit of Cast Lead is called into question.

To me, this underscores one expectation we should have of our leaders:  decisions should be based on cold, hard, facts and an assessment of the reality and realpolitik we confront rather than emotions or to appease political constituencies (yea, good luck with that!).  I feel the same about the United States as I do about Israel in this regard.  

The Continuing Battle of Gaza

The fallout from the Gaza War continues in Israel, although it is not widely reported here.  You can read transcripts of accounts from IDF soldiers here.

This transcript is harrowing.  On the one hand, I cannot argue with the premise that protecting the lives of IDF soldiers is paramount. This is a military theatre in which the distinction between civilian and combatant is blurred by virtue of Hamas' appalling actions.  A young boy could, in fact, be a combatant.  But, he could also just be a young boy in the wrong place.  Thus, on the other hand, I'm not sure how any sophisticated person cannot but feel great ambivalence about these accounts.  

Gideon Levy's column in Haaretz is a particularly harsh critique of the IDF.  This editorial in Haaretz is also worth reading.  This editorial asserts that the declared achievements of Operation Cast Lead are dissipating...if there were in fact any in the first place.

However, the most disturbing bit of news recently, which has received almost no coverage in the United States, is the cottage industry of t-shirts for IDF soldiers and others.  What's wrong?  Well, for example, one t-shirt depicts a soldier next to a woman with bruises with the caption, 'Bet you got raped!'  Citing more examples is meaningless; check out the article and see for yourself.

There is no justification for this.  Whether you believe the Gaza action or any other Israeli action was justified or not, no army in the world should be printing these kinds of shirts.  Clearly, the creation of these t-shirts is more than an innocuous 'boys will be boys' kind of fraternity prank.  There is something more sinister--a complete dehumanization of Palestinians.  

We should know from long, sordid, experience of human inhumanity that once your opponent becomes dehumanized, it is a long climb back to civilization.

Gaza Redux

My bulletin article for the February newsletter spurred a great deal of debate about the Gaza offensive known as Operation Cast Lead.  I argued that war can easily damage our individual and collective psyches.

Now, Israel is in the midst of a growing debate about the conduct of soldiers during Operation Cast Lead.  While a number of news reports have raised this issue over the past weeks, there are now first-hand accounts from IDF soldiers attesting to a rather unfortunate lapse in what the IDF itself is calling 'ethical judgement.'  

War is tragically necessary and profoundly difficult.  Few who serve come out emotionally unscathed.  Personally, I do not 'blame' these young men who are in situations I cannot not imagine.  The point of this, about which I'll write much more, is that civilian leaders--be they Israeli, American, or anyone else--should not undertake lightly the decision to launch a war.