Perhaps the 700 civilians found hiding in a mosque in Bint Jbeil recently should consider themselves lucky that Israel did not suspect that there were people inside.
An ICRC report said one of its delegates who had visited Blida, near the Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil, had found about 700 people, including 300 children, sheltering in a mosque.
Justice Minister Haim Ramon now promises to flatten the villages of South Lebanon and eliminate as many people as possible -- indiscriminately. He says Israel can go ahead and do this because “the World” has given them a green light.
"We received yesterday at the Rome conference permission from the world... to continue the operation," Justice Minister Haim Ramon said
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Speaking on Israeli army radio, Mr Ramon - a close confidant of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert - said "everyone understands that a victory for Hezbollah is a victory for world terror".
He said that in order to prevent casualties among Israeli soldiers battling Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, villages should be flattened by the Israeli air force before ground troops moved in.
He added that Israel had given the civilians of southern Lebanon ample time to quit the area and therefore anyone still remaining there could be considered a Hezbollah supporter.
"All those now in south Lebanon are terrorists who are related in some way to Hezbollah," Mr Ramon said.
I feel that maybe a thorough analysis would be in place, but words fail me on this one. If this is not an intention to commit war crimes, I don’t know what is. Any civilians in South Lebanon who have been unable to flee -- because of destroyed infrastructure, lack of means, illness, or otherwise -- may face a grimm future.
I will also risk a possible negative backlash by linking to photos of the stark reality that civilians in South Lebanon have been experiencing for the last 15 days. Photos can easily cause emotional responses rather than rational ones, but this is nevertheless a side of reality that may sometimes be necessary to include in order to put the issue in context.
Warning: The images are extremely graphic. Do not click on the link if you do not wish to see the calamity that many people in Lebanon have been experiencing for the last 15 days.
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