Hamas seethes over crossing closure
Hamas is seething over the closure of Israel's crossing points into Gaza in response to rocket fire by the terror organization on Friday.
The crossings are closed indefinitely (except for humanitarian emergencies).
Senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouq early Sunday condemned an
Israeli decision to close crossings into Gaza, calling it "collective
punishment."
"The justifications given by the (Israeli) occupation to shut down crossings are unacceptable," Abu Marzouq said in a statement.
He also criticized the Palestinian Authority for what he called a failure to arrange the entry of goods into Gaza.
"Where
does the PA come in regarding this Israeli closure? And where does it
come in regarding its responsibilities, especially after PA employees
have resumed work at Gaza crossings?"
He said Israel's decision to close the crossings violated international laws and conventions.
Instead
of closing the crossings, he said Israel should establish more
crossings in order to allow for greater freedom of movement for people
and goods in and out of Gaza.
Israeli authorities on Saturday
announced that the Erez and Kerem Shalom crossings would be closed until
further notice, following reports that a projectile fired from Gaza
landed in Israel overnight Friday without causing damage or injuries.
They said exceptions would be made for humanitarian emergencies.
Funny how one doesn't hear the 'Palestinian Authority' protesting too much, isn't it?
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, Gaza blockade, Gaza plenty, Hamas, Hamas rockets, Kerem Shalom crossing point
Video: Erez crossing point operating under mortar fire during Operation Protective Edge
At the height of the conflict, Ynet video reporter Assaf Kamar went down
to the Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza, to watch as sick and
wounded Palestinians were transferred for treatment - while Hamas fired
mortars at them.
Let's go to the videotape (Hat Tip:
IMRA).
More
here.
Labels: civilian casualties, Erez crossing, Gaza, Hamas, humanitarian aid, IDF, mortar shells, Operation Protective Edge
'We wanted to see Hamas defeated and begging for its life; instead we see Israel running to the negotiating table'
Israel has agreed to a one-month cease fire with Hamas, and the
local authorities in the Gaza envelope are furious.
Tamir Idan, who heads the Sdot Negev Regional Council, said that “if
the reports in the mdeia are right, and the agreement for a ceasefire is
for one month only, in which Hamas's demands for constructing ports
will be discussed, then this is a surrender to terror.”
He also refused to accept Israel's lack of response to a last minute
attack by Hamas that killed two men in Kibbutz Nirim Tuesday.
"Israel's tacit acceptance that it is alright [for Hamas] to fire
without limits, and without a response, before the ceasefire goes into
force, is a very grave matter. We demand that the Israeli government and
the IDF stand behind their commitment to respond in a meaningful way to
any fire.”
Itamar Shimoni, Mayor of Ashkelon, said that any conmpromise with
Hamas is a surrender to terror. “The residents of Israel and the south
wanted to see a decision in this campaign, but this will apparently not
happen,” he stated.
"We wanted to see Hamas defeated and begging for its life; instead we
see Israel running to the negotiating table at every opportunity,” he
added. “We did not lose 64 fighters and five civilians, including a
four-year-old boy, for this 'achievement'. We did not sit in the
shelters and protected spaces for almost two months for this
'achievement'. We did not take a harsh economic blow, in which
businesses collapsed, for this 'achievement'. We expected a lot more
than this.”
"Hamas raised demands through violence, and it seems they can expect
to get what they wanted. The conclusion is that the path of terror pays
off, and therefore the next round of fighting is just a matter of time.
As far as I am concerned, a ceasefire agreement in this reality means
starting to prepare the systems in Ashkelon for the next round, and it
will be more grave and lethal than anything we have known up to now.”
The head of the Eshkol Council, Haim Yelin, said that he will not ask
the residents of his region to return to their homes. “In Jerusalem
there appears to be a ceasefire. I don't know what they are talking
about,” he told Channel 10 news. “In Jerusalem they feel safe, and in
some neighborhoods of Gaza they feel safe, but not us. We went into a
war of attrition in which we paid with the lives of families and deep
pain of the wounded. The government was unprepared for this war.”
The national politicians are also irate over this 'cease fire.'
Half the cabinet was opposed.
Just as half of the cabinet ministers were opposed to the cease-fire, many in the coalition expressed similar opinions.
Construction and Housing Minister Uri Ariel (Bayit Yehudi) said “any agreement that doesn’t include eliminating the rocket threat on residents of Israel and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip is less than half of what is necessary.
“In this reality, the defense establishment will have no choice but to prepare for the next round, which will be soon,” Ariel added.
According to MK Danny Danon (Likud), in the Middle East, restraint is seen as weakness.
“Despite the heavy price Hamas paid, we did not defeat Hamas,” he said. “Fifty days of fighting, 64 soldiers killed, five civilians killed, 82,000 reservists called up, and in the end we’re back to the agreement from Operation Pillar of Defense.”
Danon said a defeat was necessary to broadcast to the whole Middle East, including Hezbollah, Islamic State and Iran, that “they should not mess with the people of Israel.”
“I am concerned we did not succeed enough. Now is the time for national introspection. The policy of restraint and hesitation hurt Israel’s deterrence,” he added.
MK Eli Yishai (Shas) said that a cease-fire without Gaza being demilitarized means Israel may as well pencil in the next round of fighting in its calendar.
“This will be time for Hamas to resupply itself with weaponry to use against Israel,” he said. “Not demilitarizing Gaza will bring Israel to another round of fighting that will be even worse.”
On the Left, lawmakers called for the government to take initiative and launch diplomatic negotiations.
What's worse, afraid he would lose, Netanyahu pulled an Ariel Sharon and
circumvented a cabinet vote.
Government ministers Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman, Yitzhak
Aharonovich and Gilad Erdan, who were against the deal, complained that
they had merely been informed of the details of the agreement and were
not given the opportunity to vote on it.
Economy Minister Bennett
demanded that a vote be held on Wednesday but was informed that Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had received a legal opinion that a vote was
not required.
A senior official in Jerusalem said on Tuesday
night that Israel had informed Egypt that it accepted the proposal for a
cease-fire without time limitation. The response was given only after
all the ministers in the cabinet had been updated, the source said.
According
to the official, the agreement does not meet Hamas' demands for a sea
port, an airport, the release of prisoners and a solution to the issue
of funding salaries for Gaza officials.
Each of the sides will
raise its demands during the negotiations following the cease-fire;
Israel will demand the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.
Humanitarian
aid, including equipment and materials to repair the damage in the
Strip, will be allowed to enter Gaza through the crossings controlled by
Israel. Entrance of the materials will be controlled. It is also
possibly that the Gaza fishing zone will be extended.
Justice
Minister Tzipi Livni responded earlier to reports of the imminent
cease-fire in Gaza and says that the end of the operation should not
include "any significant political achievements for Hamas, which is a
terrorist organization which doesn't accept our existence here."
I'll have more on this later, but let's put it this way: It takes three months to hold elections in Israel. I predict we will have them and we will have a new Prime Minister within six months. Write it down.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, cease fire, Erez crossing, Gaza, Gaza envelope, Hamas, humanitarian aid, IDF, Kerem Shalom crossing point, Operation Protective Edge
Drivers injured at Erez crossing were ferrying wounded 'Palestinians' into Israel for medical treatment
They really do try to kill their own, don't they? The three 'Israeli Arab' drivers who were wounded in the
Hamas mortar attack on the Erez crossing point earlier today were
ferrying wounded 'Palestinians' from Gaza to Israeli hospitals for medical treatment.
In the early afternoon a
mortar wounded three Israeli Arabs who work as taxi drivers tasked with
taking a group of Gazans from the crossing into Israel for medical
care. Roughly an hour later, the IAF hit the site from where the mortar
was launched.
The attack took place
at the Erez Crossing in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council while a goup
of ill Palestinians was making the crossing. Soldiers evacuated the
wounded as mortars continued to fall.
One of the Palestinian attemtping to make the crossing spoke to Ynet
and said "the war does what it wants with us. I hope both sides put an
end to it. There is too much fear in Gaza and in Israel. All we wanted
was to get medical care."
...
Abed Ra'asab, from
East Jerusalm, arrived at the crossing to transfer a young relative of
his suffering cancer to a hospital in Jeruslam and witnessed the scene.
When he arrived at the Palestinian side of the crossing the attack
began. "It was so close, but thank God I was close to a shelter, those
wounded were farther away. The (IDF) paramedics quickly took care of the
wounded.
The mortar hit one of the few active crossings connecting Israel to
Gaza, specifically the one intended for human passage. A car belonging
to one of the Israeli-Arabs sustained damage. A young Palestinian girl
who was at the crossing suffered anxiety and she was seen shaking from
fear.
Still waiting to hear any international condemnation of Hamas (which has taken responsibility) for firing on wounded 'Palestinians.' I don't expect to hear any.
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, Hamas, IDF, Israeli Arab, Israeli medical care, mortar shells, Operation Protective Edge
Breaking: Erez crossing point under attack, multiple casualties UPDATED x9
This will become a liveblog once I have more details.
UPDATE 1:31 PM
Israel Radio reports four injured, two in serious condition.
UPDATE 1:32 PM
Israel Radio: Shooting continues. Two serious, one moderately wounded and one treated at scene. Still evacuating wounded. (Then said three wounded, two seriously and one treated at scene).
UPDATE 1:35 PM
UPDATE 1:40 PM
In fact, it was
three wounded.
1:29 P.M. Three people were wounded by mortar shells in
southern Israel, and not five as was previously reported. of them, two
suffered serious wounds and one is moderately injured. Firefighters and
emergency services are attempting to evacuate the wounded while still
under fire. (Gili Cohen)
UPDATE 1:49 PM
For those who don't get the significance of an attack on Erez....
UPDATE 2:00 PM
Israel Radio now reporting four wounded again. Listing three as moderately-to-seriously wounded. Fourth treated on site.
Eleven rockets and mortars shot at Erez in the last 24 hours!
Children's ward of Barzilay Hospital in Ashkelon has been turned into a bomb shelter.
UPDATE 2:12 PM
The crossing is now officially closed.
UPDATE 2:47 PM
Once again they hit their own.
UPDATE 2:57 PM
Got 'em.
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, Hamas, IDF, mortar shells, Operation Protective Edge
Israel agrees to open Gaza border crossings... with a big BUT
The 'Palestinian' Maan news agency is reporting that Israel has agreed to
reopen the Gaza crossing points to unrestricted trade.
Israel has agreed to lift travel and import restrictions on Gaza, Egyptian sources told Palestinian news agency Ma'an Thursday - including the naval blockade and border crossing restrictions.
But Maan left out one small point.
However, according to the source material - in Al Quds Al-Arabi - Israel's
main condition for Hamas is the total demilitarization of Gaza -
something Hamas is unlikely to accept. Moreover, among Hamas's
unprecedented demands are a seaport and airport, conditions both Egypt
and Israel are unlikely to accept.
'Unlikely' is an understatement.
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza blockade, Hamas, IDF, Kerem Shalom crossing point, Operation Protective Edge
Hamas' new human shields
Rotter.net is reporting that the Erez crossing between Gaza and Israel was opened briefly around 1:00 this afternoon, but that Hamas
prevented any foreign correspondents from leaving. Also
here.
You don't think Hamas would try to use
them as human shields now, do you?
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, Hamas, human shields, Operation Protective Edge
Chabad rabbi killed by Hamas mortar while delivering food to the IDF
From
here:
Approximately 1 hour ago, an Israeli man was killed after being hit by a mortar at the Erez Crossing.
The man was reportedly a Chabad Rabbi from Beit Aryeh delivering food to the soldiers of the IDF.
May God Comfort the mourners among all mourners for Zion and Jerusalem, and may they know of no more sorrow.
And May God Avenge his blood.
UPDATE 10:05 PM
More details
here. He may have been a Chabad volunteer and not a Chabad rabbi.
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, IDF, murder, Palestinian terrorism, rabbis
Negotiations with Hamas replacing 'talks' with Israel
In the aftermath of the apparent collapse of 'peace talks' with Israel, '
moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen has opened negotiations over
reconciliation with Hamas.
Senior Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad said Monday he is optimistic that
political tensions between Fatah and Hamas will come to an end following
upcoming reconciliation talks in Gaza.
Al-Ahmad, who is
currently in Egypt, told Ma'an that a PLO delegation of five members
will travel to Gaza from the West Bank within 48 hours to meet top Hamas
leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Mousa Abu Marzouq.
"We are going to
Gaza not to propose new suggestions, but rather to carry out a clear
mission which is to end the state of disagreement and address three
decisive issues," al-Ahmad said.
"We are going to address the
formation of a national consensus government, elections and
restructuring the PLO in order to maintain Palestinian unity so we can
dedicate our efforts to confronting Israeli occupation."
The meeting will likely set a deadline for forming a unity government which will begin implementing the Cairo agreement.
Egyptian
security forces will allow Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouq to cross
into Gaza via the Rafah crossing on Monday, officials said.
Meanwhile, Israel has denied permission for a PLO official to enter the Gaza Strip via the Erez crossing point.
Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouti has been denied a permit to the
Gaza Strip via the Erez crossing, a PLO official said Monday.
PLO
Executive Committee member Jamil Shehada told Ma'an that Israel
rejected Barghouti's application for a permit to enter Gaza, where he
intends to travel as a member of a delegation to discuss national
reconciliation.
Shehada said the delegation would travel to Gaza via Egypt if necessary.
They don't really expect us to facilitate this, do they?
Labels: Abu Mazen, Erez crossing, Gaza, Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, Ismail Haniyeh, Mousa Abu Marzouk
Soccer Dad's Middle East Media Sampler
Here's Soccer Dad's daily Middle East media sampler.
1) Assad's thugs attack Ford
A video has emerged, showing a pro-regime demonstrator, wrapping a poster of Bashar Assad around the American ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford. (h/t Tweet from LakerGMC)A video has emerged of U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford being assaulted by a pro-regime demonstrator on the streets of Damascus last week.
The assault took place before Ford's unapproved trip to the city of Jassem on Aug 23. Ford was present at a gathering of demonstrators who support the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad outside the Cham Palace Hotel in Damascus when one demonstrator ran up to Ford and tried to wrap him in a poster that featured Assad's face.
Ford's security intervened quickly and rushed Ford to his car. The incident was then replayed in a highly produced segment on a Syrian television station owned by Mohamed Hamsho, a businessman is the brother-in-law of the president's brother, Maher al-Assad. Hamsho was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department earlier this month for siding with the Assad regime during its brutal crackdown on protesters.
2) Terrorists in Gaza attack Palestinians
From the IDF Spokesperson, late last week:During the attack several mortar shells hit the Erez Crossing, just as three Palestinian women and two infants were crossing back into the Gaza Strip after receiving medical treatment in Israel, causing damage to the crossing's infrastructure and an electrical shutdown. The power outage disabled gates at the crossing. Two of the women passed through safely but a third woman, along with her infant daughter, got caught between two disabled gates while rockets were falling.
The commander of the Erez crossing and another security officer rescued the woman and her daughter. All of the Palestinian women were brought to a protected shelter at the crossing where they were given a meal for the end of the daily Ramadan fast.
Elder of Ziyon asks:How often do you hear anyone - including these same NGOs - condemning attacks on the crossings?
3) Changes
Last week there were two similar article in the New York Times and the Washington Post; both dealt with how the changes in the Arab world (and more generally in the Middle East) were affecting Israel. Ethan Bronner of the New York Times wrote With Mideast in Turmoil, Israel Debates Strategy: As angry rallies by Egyptians outside the Israeli Embassy in Cairo this week have shown, Israel’s relationship with Egypt is fraying. A deadly exchange of rockets fired at southern Israel and Israeli airstrikes on Hamas-controlled Gaza this week showed the risk of escalation there. Damaged ties with Turkey are not improving. Cooperation with the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank seems headed for trouble.
“We are witnessing a paradigm shift in front of our eyes,” said a top Israeli official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Egypt was a major stabilizer in the region, and that may be over. Coordination with the Palestinian security officials could be lost. We are concerned about Turkey.”
A similarly themed article written by Joel Greenberg, Israel mulls ties with a changed Egypt was published in the Washington Post.There is a growing realization in Israel that maintaining ties with post-revolutionary Egypt no longer depends solely on cultivating the relationship with its leaders. Adopting stances that are more acceptable to ordinary Egyptians and the various political forces emerging in that country after Mubarak’s ouster has become important as well.
“There’s a new factor now, the masses, who are setting the pace and dictating moves,” said Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, a veteran politician and former defense minister long known for his relationships with Mubarak and senior Egyptian officials.
The New York Times article, seems a bit better and more detailed. But both articles lack certain information.
Neither article gives a sense that Israel sacrificed the Sinai and with it, strategic depth and a wealth of natural resources, in order to achieve peace with Egypt. Israel didn't simply rely on the goodwill of a corrupt and unpopular dictator. The growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood isn't addressed in either article; the Greenberg article simply attributes it to "ordinary Egyptians and various political forces" without naming those forces. Similarly, Bronner doesn't mention that Turkey, under Erdogan has been moving away from Israel from well before the Mavi Marmara and that Turkey has been becoming more of a radical Islamic state. Neither article is especially bad, but neither fully describes the forces in play.
Labels: Arab spring, Egyptian Revolution, Erez crossing, Middle East Media Sampler, Palestinian terrorists, Robert Ford, Soccer Dad, Syrian uprising, Turkey
Islamic Jihad attacked 'Palestinians' returning from medical treatment in Israel
Incredibly, I haven't seen it mentioned online anywhere yet, but Israel Radio reports that the
Islamic Jihad attack on the Erez crossing point into Gaza on Thursday evening was timed to target 'Palestinians' returning from medical treatment in Israel and their escorts. Miraculously, no one was hurt, although a high-ranking IDF officer had to rescue a couple of people from the rocket fire.
Labels: Erez crossing, Gaza, Islamic Jihad, rockets
