I have tried not to be too political on Facebook. My family has asked me to refrain from political posts and in general, I try to avoid political arguments. As I’ve said before, I’m not a politician or even an aspiring politician. My political views are moderate, I’m pretty much in the middle of the political spectrum. I usually just prefer to keep my views to myself or to express them within my close circle of friends. However, there is one thing that has been bothering me and I don’t want to keep quiet anymore. War is not a football game. Keeping score is unproductive and the “score card” does not reflect reality. As an Israeli, I am saddened by deaths on both sides of the conflict. I truly wish that things had not come to this. However, the small number of civilian casualties on the Israeli side vs. the large number of casualties in Gaza does not reflect Israel’s disregard for human life. Just the opposite, in fact. And the fact that more Israelis haven’t died does not delegitimize the military operation. Let’s start with the basic premise that people have the right to live in peace, without the fear of rockets being fired at their homes, schools, playgrounds, etc. Intentionally targeting civilians is a violation of international law, yet that is what has been going on in Israel for years. Not for two weeks or even two months – years. For residents of the town of Sderot, well inside the internationally recognized borders of the state of Israel, the word “siren” is not associated with police cars or ambulances and the words “color red” instill panic and fear. Imagine being woken up at night by a siren and having 15 seconds to run for shelter. This is how children have been living in Sderot for the last THIRTEEN years. In recent years, the rocket attacks have expanded and not only in wartime. We have regular drills at school when we have to go down to the bomb shelter, but on at least three occasions, I have spent time in a school bomb shelter or safe area when it wasn’t a drill. I long ago stopped counting the number of times I’ve had to run to the safe area in my own house. Has my house been hit by a rocket? No, though one rocket did land between two houses in my town – fortunately, no one was outside or they would have died. Has my school been hit by one? Yes – one exploded inside of a classroom, which was empty at the time only because the mayor of Beer Sheva decided that it was too dangerous to send kids to school that day. This was in December 2008 and I believe I posted pictures from Ynet. So if these rockets are so dangerous and there are so many of them, why have there been so few casualties on the Israeli side and so many in Gaza? It’s simple. Israel has spent much time and money on protecting its civilians. Israel has developed the Iron Dome system, which shoots down many of the rockets. Israel has built countless shelters and safe rooms. Israel has educated its citizens on what to do when there is a siren – every single Israeli can tell you where the nearest safe area is, how long he has to get there and how long he must stay there. There are constant safety announcements on TV and on the radio, instructions are published in the newspaper and posted online. And because we value life, we listen to instructions and therefore, we stay alive. If we’re not being killed by the rockets that are being launched at us, does that mean that it’s not so terrible that Hamas is launching them? I surely hope not! So why are there so many Gazan casualties? I don’t know – ask Hamas what they have done to ensure the safety of the people of Gaza. And here’s some more food for thought. IDF ground forces are inside the Gaza strip. In the meantime, Hamas continues to target civilians on the other side of the border. Hundreds of rockets have been launched at Israeli towns and cities since the beginning of the conflict and Hamas militants have come up out of tunnels into Israeli communities. I truly feel for any innocent person who dies, but I don’t feel bad that the civilians of Israel are staying alive simply because they have learned how to protect themselves. Again, targeting civilians is a violation of international law, yet it seems to me that most of the world is too busy “keeping score” to remember that.
Posted on: Mon, 21 Jul 2014 15:04:23 +0000
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