How Should Israel Have Responded?

[M.C.Chillz]

Israel, along with the rest of the world, should be putting pressure on Iran and Syria. These two countries are operating out of Lebanon through Hezbollah. They are funding Hezbollah. Put military pressure on those funding Hezbollah and cause them to suffer civilian casualities in their own countries and they will put a stop to Hezbollah's actions. This seems logical since Israel's main goal is to disarm Hezbollah, as opposed to killing every living Arab, which seems to be their true but hidden agenda.

 

[Khaled]

I haven't heard of any use of chemical weapons, source?

BEIRUT: Israeli actions in the past week appear to be in violation of international law regarding the conduct of war, which is regulated by the Geneva Conventions, a set of international agreements first formulated in 1949 that govern - among other things - the treatment of civilians. These cover all international conflict, whether declared or undeclared, meaning the current Israeli offensive against Lebanon is subject to international law.

Under the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and their 1977 Protocols, civilians are defined as all those who are not active participants in combat. Under Article 51 of Protocol I "the civilian population as such, as well as individual civilians, shall not be the object of attack. Acts or threats of violence the primary purpose of which is to spread terror among the civilian population are prohibited." This would seem to indicate that the July 15 attack on a minibus full of civilians attempting to flee the village of Marwahin in the South, resulting in 18 deaths, constituted a breach of international law.

While Article 28 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states: "The presence of a protected person may not be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations," Article 48 of Protocol I states that "the presence within the civilian population of individuals who do not come within the definition of civilians does not deprive the population of its civilian character." This means the presence of military targets, including arms caches, in civilian areas of Beirut and in villages in the South of Lebanon, does not render those areas acceptable military targets. This also indicates Hizbullah's attacks on civilian targets are illegal under international law. Warring parties are also prohibited under the First Protocol from using civilians to shield their military installations, as Israel has accused Hizbullah of doing.


Also prohibited under international law are attacks on "civilian objects." These include water-processing plants, such as the Yurin plant, and the grain silo in Beirut Port, both attacked Saturday by Israel. This also applies to the civilian power plants around the country which have come under deliberate attack. Attacks on civilian targets such as food and water storage facilities and power plants may also be considered to be reprisals, banned under Article 52 of Protocol I.

The type of weapon that may be used in war is also governed by international law. Article 35 of Protocol I states: "It is prohibited to employ weapons, projectiles and material and methods of warfare of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering." Witnesses have reported that on July 15, the Israeli Air Force dropped cluster bombs on the southern suburbs of Beirut. These bombs, which explode multiple times, distributing large amounts of shrapnel, are internationally banned, although this ban is not recognized by all countries.

Furthermore, according to a statement released by the Presidential Palace, on Saturday, in its attack on villages in the Arqoub area in the South, Israel made use of phosphorus weapons, also internationally banned.

In violation of Article 62 of Protocol I, Israel has attacked two Civil Defense buildings, which are considered protected civilian objects under international law. - The Daily Star

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=74043

 

[Morris]

^ Well, Israel needs to release the POW's it has to reach a full peace treaty, no? How can Israel keep POW's? Isn't the war over?

Oh, right, they are terrorists. Fucking pathetic.

Hezbollah and Lebanon have insisted that Israel release Samir Kuntar.

Who is Samir Kuntar and why is he in jail?

On April 22, 1979, Samir Kuntar led a unit of four infiltrators who entered Israeli waters from Lebanon and beached their rubber dinghy in the coastal town of Nahariya. The four killed a policeman who ran across them and were able to break into the apartment of the Haran family before police reinforcements had arrived. The unit took 28-year-old Danny Haran hostage along with his four-year-old daughter Einat. Kuntar killed both the father and the four-year-old girl during the ensuing shootout.

After holding to the hostages, a shootout with Israeli policemen and soldiers erupted. Samir Kuntar shot and killed the father at close range in front of his daughter, and killed the four-year-old girl by hitting her with the butt of his rifle against a rock, crushing her skull.

There's your "prisoner of war." Apparently, to Hezbollah, Lebanon and people like you, Kuntar is a prisoner of a war that started 3 years after his attacks. Miraculous!