This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/3796

Support For Hamas' Use Of Child Hostages Indicative of Islam's Moral Bankruptcy?

January 5, 2009

Support For Hamas' Use Of Child Hostages Indicative Of Islam's Moral Bankruptcy?


Coverage Implicates Western Media

By WILLIAM MAYER and BEILA RABINOWITZ

January 5, 2009 - San Francisco, CA - PipeLineNews.org - As seems to be increasingly the case, journalism's most important statements are made by the issues it avoids.

Thus we are confronted by a near blackout of news relating to Hamas' use of children as human shields and the concurrent employment of their battered little bodies as props in its war of words against the "Zionists."

Under almost any other set of circumstances, even a single instance of such reprehensible behavior would predictably bring about the collapse of the offending regime.

Not so here, because it bears upon that most sacred of protected classes - Muslims.

Call it what you will, this is a selective failure to report driven by self-censorship, and while the press beats its breast, towing the Hamas line of "disproportionate" response by Israel, the perpetrator is given shelter within a kind of politically correct, forced myopia.

It's not that there is any dearth of information on Hamas' policy of placing children in situations which guarantee their death and dismemberment; it's just that the truth is "unpleasant," raising grave issues not only about the Palestinians but in a more universal sense, with the Muslim Ummah, whose silence is beyond deafening.

In what passed for more peaceful times, virtually any of the self-designated "mainstream" Muslim organizations [i.e., those leading the stealth jihad against the West] could be counted on serving up media-friendly sounding, but ultimately hollow rejections of terrorism. Some even went to the extreme length a few years ago of issuing a bizarre fatwa against terrorism, politically jury-rigged so as to serve as an indictment of Israel.

When brought into the real world, as in the case of Israel's incursion into Gaza, there is no longer any place to hide and things turn ugly, with the media going silent on Hamas.

It's as if the organization never existed. But unfortunately it does, and the degree to which Hamas is supported by rank and file Muslims should be troubling to a wide range of observers including those whose belief in moral relativism is unshakeable.

At this point there can be absolutely no doubt that Hamas is deliberately using the most defenseless Palestinians, their children as human shields and if the MSM was not so obstinate, it could easily find suitable evidence to prove its existence on the website of Israel's Ministry of Defense:

"In its fight to defend itself against Hamas attacks against its civilians, Israel is faced with moral challenges unprecedented in their complexity. Hamas, as a basic element of its strategy, exploits the Palestinian population as shields for its terrorist operations and infrastructure. This cynical strategy include the following tactics:

  • The deliberate launching of rocket from populated areas
  • The deliberate use of civilian homes to shield Hamas arms and explosives manufacturing facilities
  • The deliberate use of civilians as human shields against anticipated airstrikes [source, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Hamas+war+against+Israel/Hamas+exploitation+of+civilians+as+human+shields+-+Photographic+evidence.htm]

    • Hamas' use of this tactic is so craven that it is routinely broadcast on Al-Aqsa [Palestinian] television, and thus theoretically available for all in the West to see were it not for the decision that the public has no right to be informed. For example, in a February 29, 2008 address made by Hamas MP Fathi Hammad, which was widely made available on Al-Aqsa TV:

    "The enemies of Allah do not know that the Palestinian people has developed its methods of death and death-seeking. For the Palestinian people, death has become an industry, at which women excel, and so do all the people living on this land. The elderly excel at this, and so do the mujahideen and the children. This is why they have formed human shields of the women, the children, the elderly, and the mujahideen, in order to challenge the Zionist bombing machine. It is as if they were saying to the Zionist enemy: "We desire death like you desire life."[source, ibid]

    Not exactly...

    The leaders of Hamas do not desire death at all, or they would right now be fighting pitched battles with the IDF rather than hiding behind their women's skirts and their kid's blankets.

    No, what they desire is the calculably favorable press they will receive when "some mad Zionist bomber," obliterates a family of Palestinian children intentionally used as cannon fodder and placed on the roof of a terrorist hideout or as in the case of Hamas' spiritual leader, imam Nizar Rayan [killed along with his four wives and children, all of whom were most likely not given the option of leaving] for propaganda purposes, a clear instance of a public relations' induced multiple murder.

    Given the fore-knowledge of how this type of sensationalism will be treated by the press, it share's culpability, a role well honed in Iraq.

    There are multiple and irrefutable examples proving this is Hamas' policy:

    March 1, 2008 - Al-Aqsa TV called upon children to form a human shield at the home of Abu al-Hatal of the a-Shouqaf quarter of Sajaiyeh in order to protect the building from an anticipated IDF airstrike. [go here to see video - http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Pages/MediaPlayer.aspx?MediaUrl=http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=1915991!!!!ak=null&LANGUAGE_NAME=En]

    February 29, 2008 - Al-Aqsa TV called upon the Palestinians in the northern Gaza Strip to go to the house of Othman al-Ruziana in order to protect it against an anticipated IDF strike. [go here for video -

    February 28, 2008 - Al-Aqsa TV called upon the residents of Khan Yunis to gather at the house of Ma'amoun Abu 'Amer due to an anticipated airstrike. (February 28). An hour later dozens of Palestinians from Khan Yunis were reported to have gathered on the roof of Abu 'Amer's house to serve as human shields to prevent the house from being hit.

    Though the Western press speaks with near unanimity on the issue, there are instances where the lone journalistic organization dares to tell the truth:

    "Residents at certain addresses in the Gaza Strip have been receiving unusual phone calls since the Israeli air assault began on Saturday -- a request that they and their families leave their homes as soon as possible for their own safety. More unusual than the recorded message is the Arabic-speaking caller, who identifies himself as being from the Israeli defence forces.

    Dipping into their bag of tricks for the updated Gaza telephone numbers, Israel's intelligence services are warning Palestinian civilians in Gaza living close to Hamas facilities that they may be hurt unless they distance themselves from those targets. In some cases, the warning comes not by telephone but from leaflets dropped from aircraft on selected districts.

    Such warnings clearly eliminate the element of surprise, but for Israel it is of cardinal importance to minimise civilian casualties..." [source, Abraham Rabinovich , Israel warning civilians to flee, http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24853989-15084,00.html, December 30, 2008, The Australian]

    Nor is the reliance upon child "martyrs," a particularly new concept among those running the Palestinian jihad, as was noted in a 2000 World Net Daily piece:

    "Speaking to the Egyptian weekly, Al-Ahram Al-Arabi, Sheik 'Ikrima Sabri, the Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine, addressed several issues regarding the Israeli-Arab conflict -- including his admiration for the child "martyrs

    Stressing that "Every Palestinian is, in fact, in a state of Jihad," Sabri praised the Palestinian "martyrs," and particularly the children that are proudly thrust by their parents and other combatants into the frontlines of conflicts with Israelis.

    "I feel the martyr is lucky because the angels usher him to his wedding in heaven," he said.

    "There is no doubt that a child [martyr] suggests that the new generation will carry on the mission with determination," said the Mufti, appointed by Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat. "The younger the martyr, the greater and the more I respect him. ... One wrote his name on a note before he died. He wrote: 'the martyr so and so.' In every martyr's pocket we find a note with his name on it. He sentences himself to martyrdom even before he becomes a martyr." [source, Jerusalem cleric praises child 'sacrifices,' http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=18773]

    Raising the already high stakes even further, Hamas' leadership is now using the fact that some of its child hostage/human shields have suffered the fate that their murderers intended, unbelievably using that fact as justification for explicitly targeting Jewish children worldwide:

    "As fighting intensified on the northern outskirts of Gaza City today, a top Hamas leader broke cover to warn Israel that the Islamists would kill Jewish children anywhere in the world in revenge for their own young who have died in the devastating assault.

    'They have legitimised the murder of their own children by killing the children of Palestine,' said Mahmoud Zahar, in a televised broadcast recorded at a secret location. 'They have legitimised the killing of their people all over the world by killing our people.'" [source, Hamas: Israel has legitimised the killing of its children, http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5454204.ece]

    A survey of America's fraudulent mainstream Muslim organizations, from CAIR through MPAC to ISNA, finds them entirely mute on the matter of Hamas, mirroring the absence of coverage on the topic by the American media.

    Hamas' practice of forcing children [and the Palestinian population's support of it] to serve as human shields is so morally repugnant that it defies understanding and is completely outside the bounds of Western normative standards. This type of medieval barbarity is really without modern historical precedent.

    That this practice is apparently countenanced by the vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza points not only to their rejection of the barest standards of human deportment but serves to indict the religion from which this all flows - Islam.

    Where are the Muslim imams and where is their outrage? Why do they stand mute in the face of their co-religionists using their children as pawns in this unholy war?

    Given ample opportunity, they are nowhere to be found, because we must assume by their absence that they are signaling agreement with the practice. The subtext here is that the demands of the jihad and the parallel duty to establish the Caliphate, trumps all other exigencies.

    While in some sheltered quarters, the events that are unfolding in Gaza are spun as having bloodied Israel's image, among the civilized masses in the West, the barbarous treatment meted out to these children will only serve to drive home the point - present since the events of 9/11 - that there is something dreadful and fundamentally wrong at the core of a religion which not only allows but apparently endorses such evil.

    -----------------------------

    MIM: An example of how Hamas murders human shields by proxy to gain PR points is highlighted in the incident where the terrorists used a school to attack the IDF.

    NOTE: The highlighting below is contained in the original articles.

    Behind the Headlines: The tragedy at the school in Jebaliya
    6 Jan 2009
    Israel Ministry of Affairs
    http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/About+the+Ministry/Behind+the+Headlines/Ttragedy_school_Jebaliya_6-Jan-2009.htm

    An initial inquiry by forces on operating in the area of the incident indicates that a number of mortar shells were fired at IDF forces from within the Jebaliya school. In response to the incoming enemy fire, the forces returned mortar fire to the source.

    Preliminary Background Briefing

    Today, a reported 30 Palestinians were killed in a heartrending tragedy at a school in Jebaliya. Initial investigations indicate that Hamas terrorists fired mortar bombs from the area of the school towards Israeli forces, who returned fire towards the source of the shooting. The Israeli return fire landed outside the school, yet a series of explosions followed, indicating the probable presence of munitions and explosives in the building. Intelligence indicates that among those killed were Immad Abu Iskar and Hassan Abu Iskar, two known Hamas mortar crewmen. Innocent civilians should not have died. However, it is vitally important to understand how this horrific incident occurred and who truly bears the responsibility for it. Hamas began the current conflict when, three weeks ago it unilaterally violated the state of calm, and launched unprovoked rocket and mortar barrages on Israeli cities. This act of aggression was a clear violation of international law, and highlights a basic fact - not a single Israeli nor a single Palestinian would have been hurt had Hamas not launched its brutal attacks. Israel had to respond. No government would stand idly by while its citizens are subjected to rockets and mortar attacks. Self-defense is an inherent right, and responsibility of every state. It is enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and remains a cornerstone of international law. While the investigation of the incident continues, one crucial detail is already apparent: this tragedy occurred because Hamas consistently uses its own population as human shields. While betting that Israel will hesitate to strike back at areas with civilians present, Hamas covers its bet with the knowledge that should civilians be harmed, Hamas still wins since Israel will be censured by the world's media. The best way to avoid the use of Palestinians as human shields is for the international community to begin to place the blame where it truly belongs - on the Hamas terrorists who exploit the suffering of their own people for political gain. Only the consorted international censure of Hamas will cause that terrorist organization to stop this perverted practice. While Hamas exploits its own civilians as human shields as it deliberately targets the civilians of Israel, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) does its best to avoid harming civilians on either side. Many Israeli anti-terrorists operations have been aborted at the last minute, due to the untimely presence of civilians in the target area. Unfortunately, tragedies happen in wartime, particularly when one side violates international law by firing while hiding behind civilians. During its operations in Gaza, the IDF is making every effort to comply with the two basic legal tests of international humanitarian law: (1) are the targets legitimate military objectives and (2) is an action likely to cause disproportionate damage to the civilian population and their property. Israel faces a particular challenge with regards to determining the legitimacy of intended targets. The presence of civilians in an area of conflict does not stop a military objective from being a legitimate target. This is both the letter of international law and a reflection of state practice. The deliberate positioning of Hamas military targets among Palestinian civilians presents a problem with which Israel must consistently contend. The Iranian-backed Hamas, as a matter of strategy, refuses to uphold one of most fundamental requirements of international humanitarian law - that of distinguishing between combatants/military instillations and civilians/civilian properties. It follows therefore that while Israel does all it can to avoid harming non-combatants, under international law, any collateral injury to them is the responsibility of the Hamas, which deliberately chooses to operate from civilian structures and fire behind human shields. Initial inquiry into school incident in Jebaliya
    Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
    6 Jan 2009 (Communicated by the IDF Spokesperson)
    http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Government/Communiques/2009/Initial_inquiry_school_incident_6-Jan-2009.htm An initial inquiry by forces on operating in the area of the incident indicates that a number of mortar shells were fired at IDF forces from within the Jabalya school. In response to the incoming enemy fire, the forces returned mortar fire to the source. This is not the first time that Hamas has fired mortars and rockets from schools, in such a way deliberately using civilians as human shields in their acts of terror against Israel. This was already proven several months ago by footage from an unmanned plane showing rockets and mortars being fired from the yard of an UNRWA school. Again, we emphasize that this announcement is based on an initial inquiry.


    This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/3796