CrossFireArabia
Noor Naim writes:
Killed by the Israeli army.
They had names.
They had families. They had hopes.
They had dreams. They loved life like anyone else in this unfair world. Stop the bloodshed of children in #Gaza now
CrossFireArabia
Around 500 Israeli officers have left the army since mid-2024 because of the onslaught on Gaza after 7 October, 2023.
According to Israel Hayom the army is in a critical position as 500 officers holding the rank of major have left the army.
The newspaper which is describing the move as an “exodus” added this “caught the military leadership off guard and threatens force readiness.”
Meanwhile this piece of news is trending on the social media and speaks volumes about the deteriorating state of the Israeli army after 14 months of war on Gaza and the rest of the region.
One blogger contrasts the difference, underlying that Israeli soldiers are facing psychological and economic hardship while Hamas has been able to recruit 4000 new fighters in the past few months.
CrossFireArabia
An ex-Israeli general said the army has not yet defeated the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and are probably not likely to.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation quoted Yitzhak Brik as saying the army is in a state of exhaustion and soldiers are refusing to serve in the military.
The retired-general added that a new, unqualified defense minister has been appointed, in reference to the dismissal of Yoav Galant and his replacement by Israel Katz.
— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) October 20, 2024
BREAKING
Israeli army is losing moral and soldiers are in rebellion – Israeli Hamakom
The Israeli media quoted several Israeli soldiers who explained why they refused to continue fighting
'We're sitting ducks on a shooting range. We don't understand what we're doing… pic.twitter.com/yWAzsW9VWC
He added the actual defense minister is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Regarding the northern front, Brik whilst acknowledging the fact that Israel “hit the Lebanese Hezbollah hard, but we are still far from eliminating it.”
Regarding the ground incursion into southern Lebanon, he said that “our forces have entered three kilometers deep, but they are not qualified to advance further.”
The retired-Israeli general added, “we are exposed to hundreds of rockets from Lebanon every day, and this war is destroying us.”
With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in the Gaza Strip since 7 October, 2023, leaving more than 147,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing.
Coinciding with its aggression on Gaza, Israel continues its daily raids on Lebanon and its ground incursion into its south, while Hezbollah responds by firing missiles, drones and artillery shells targeting military sites, intelligence headquarters, military gatherings and settlements.
CrossFireArabia
Fifteen more Israeli soldiers have refused to serve in the army until a prisoner exchange deal is reached with Palestinians, according to Israeli media on Wednesday.
Walla news portal said the new soldiers joined a total of 138 soldiers, who signed a letter declaring their refusal to serve without a deal, according to Anadolu.
The letter was sent to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, army chief Herzi Halevi and other Israeli government officials.
“The war in Gaza sentences our brothers and sisters and the hostages to death,” the letter reads.
Israel estimates that some 101 captives are still held by the Hamas group in Gaza, some of whom are believed to have been already killed by Israeli ongoing and indiscriminate airstrikes across the tiny enclave.
Mediation efforts led by the US, Egypt and Qatar to reach a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner swap agreement between Israel and Hamas have failed over Netanyahu’s refusal to end the war.
The Israeli army has continued a devastating offensive on the Gaza Strip since a Hamas attack last year, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
More than 42,700 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 100,300 others injured, according to local health authorities.
The Israeli onslaught on Gaza has displaced almost the territory’s entire population amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza, according to the Turkish news agency.
CrossFireArabia
A latest investigation by the Israeli Haaretz daily has revealed that the Israeli military systematically uses Palestinian civilians, including children and elderlies, as human shields, as first line of defense to protect themselves and “checkers” of booby-trapped buildings, tunnels and ambushes.
It stated this is a practice that violates international law and has long been condemned by human rights organizations. The probe confirms that the practice is being carried out with the knowledge of senior military officers, up to the Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi who has knowledge of this practice according to the Quds News Network.
This tactic that includes scanning tunnels and houses, has been used repeatedly in many military operations where soldiers wanted to shield themselves from Palestinian resistance fighters. This practice, known as “human shielding,” has become widely practiced as the Israeli army embroiled themselves over the past months in different cities and towns of Gaza.
It involves forcing ordinary civilians to accompany Israeli officers and soldiers as a first line of defense to shield them from harms way. If there are risks and dangers it is these civilians that would act as “shock absorbers” and be the first to be harmed.
The probe findings confirm numerous other reports including Palestinian eyewitnesses and human rights organizations about such practices.They have long documented the use of such tactics by the Israeli army.
These reports show many incidents where Palestinians, including children and elderly men, who were forced to stand near military vehicles, enter suspicious buildings and/or tunnels ahead of these soldiers during raids across the Gaza Strip in places like Gaza City, Khan Younis, Jabalia and elsewhere.
This systematic use of individuals as “human shields” not only exposes them to great dangers but also constitutes a clear violation of international humanitarian law, which explicitly prohibits the use of civilians in such a manner.
— Aditya Juans Mandagie (@AdityaMandagie) August 13, 2024
A Haaretz investigation revealed Israeli forces systematically used Palestinian prisoners as human shields in Gaza, and senior military approval prioritized the lives of Israeli soldiers over Palestinians, including children. pic.twitter.com/YrCOnw8NeN
Despite the widespread condemnation, the Haaretz investigation shows that the vile and pernicious practice remains an integral part of the Israeli military’s operational procedures and soldiers have no qualms of picking ordinary people off the streets and using them to protect themselves.
Palestinian officials and advocacy groups had documented dozens of cases where Israel’s military used Palestinians as human shields and repeatedly called for immediate international intervention and accountability for the Israeli military’s actions but to no avail.
