Israel hits red cross ambulances with missiles!

From: www.guardian.co.uk...

The ambulance headlamps were on, the blue light overhead was flashing, and another light illuminated the Red Cross flag when the first Israeli missile hit, shearing off the right leg of the man on the stretcher inside...

Six ambulance workers were wounded and three generations of the Fawaz family, being transported to hospital from Tibnin with what were originally minor injuries, were left fighting for their lives. Two ambulances were entirely destroyed, their roofs pierced by missiles...

He was adamant that the ambulances, with their Red Cross insignia on the roof, were clearly visible from the air. "I don't think there can be a mistake in two bombings of two ambulances," he said...

This is an outrage! There are some things that just should NOT be done in war, and this is one of them. If this isn't against the Geneva Conventions, it darned well should be. This murderous attack is going to seriously damage Israel's waning reputation on the world stage. Their recent attacks on Lebanon have been almost universally condemned, and with good reason. The indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets was bad enough, but to attack a pair of Red Cross ambulances is the low to end all lows. If Israel wants to come out of this conflict with any shred of self-respect intact, they need to immediately cease their barbarous attacks on the innocent civilian populations of the Lebanese people.

While a certain amount of force, in my opinion, is justified by Israel in this situation (after all, they did have some of their people captured, and rockets shot at them), in this case they have gone completely berserk. Whoever ordered that strike on the ambulances should be prosecuted for war crimes. This sets a terrible precedent, and I fear, with good reason, I think, that we have not seen the worst of the atrocities that will soon be coming in this region of the world, on both sides of the bloody conflict.


Some more stories related to the current events of the Israel-Lebanese conflict

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www.irishexaminer.com...

edition.cnn.com...

abcnews.go.com...

www.nytimes.com...

www.nytimes.com...

www.nytimes.com...

mod edit: fixed bb code

[edit on 7/25/2006 by Gools]

I have just read a small paragraph on this in the news...just appalling. I am honestly speechless at Israel's offensive. Nothing appears sacred to them. Nothing.

Pathetic.

When is the International community going to do something constructive about Israel??

The US & UK are still ok with 'the whole right to defend' facade??

So Israel are now defending themselves against women, children and ambulances.



[edit on 25-7-2006 by NJE777]

Not that I would ever put it past Hezbollah or Hamas from using ambulances as part of their arsenal but the attacking of ambulances is beyond reprehensible. I simply cannot imagine what the Israeli's were thinking.

I suppose that it is possible, albeit unlikely, that the Israelis somehow made a mistake. However, since they hit two separate ambulances that, as I understood it, were at different locations, makes this extremely unlikely. It's pretty much a given that it was a deliberate attack.

Like jtma, I could see Hezbollah or Hamas trying a ploy like loading an ambulance with soldiers or a suicide bomber or something, but unless there is incontrovertible proof that the ambulance is being used for something other than the transport of the wounded, you have to assume that it contains wounded people, or at the very least, noncombatant medical personnel on their way somewhere. I could be mistaken, but isn't attacking the Red Cross against the Geneva Conventions? Even if not, it is still a reprehensible act.

I don't know if it's just me, but this recent Israeli offensive seems to be a radical departure from Israel's stance in the past several years. Many times previously, with the Palestinians, whenever the Israelis were attacked, the Israelis would send in one strike to whoever attacked them, and then stop. Ariel Sharon even pulled out of the Gaza strip, which unfortunately, instead of being accepted as a peace offering, was taken as a sign that Israel was weak, and hailed as a Palestinian victory. Some civilians surely perished in those Israeli retaliatory attacks, but nothing compared to what is happening now in Lebanon. Israel, in its zeal to exterminate the terrorists, have sunk to the same level as their enemies.

edit: sorry for goofing the quotes above, I accidentally put [ex/] at the end of the last news snippet, instead of the correct bb code.
[edit on 25-7-2006 by DragonsDemesne]

[edit on 25-7-2006 by DragonsDemesne]

Musliums in that area are WELL known for using anbulences to transport terrorists and their weapons.

www.wnd.com...

"The footage shows two ambulances with flashing lights pull onto a street. Shots and shouts ring out during the nighttime raid. A gang of militants piles into one of the supposedly neutral ambulances, clearly marked "U.N." with the agency's blue flag flying from the roof, which then speeds away from the scene."

basicly says it all, doesn't?

And another reference to hezbolla using ambulences for trasport of men and weapons

link

"Hezbollah, like the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, has always used civilians as shields, setting up its arsenals in schools and hospitals, using ambulances to ferry its bombs and ammunition, establishing its headquarters in mosques."

Here are "7" more examples of muslim terrorists using abulences to transport terrorists and their bombs/weapons

*

In October 2001, Nidal Nazal, a Hamas operative in Kalkilya, was arrested by the IDF. He was an ambulance driver for the Palestinian Red Crescent, and information indicates that he exploited the unrestricted travel to serve as a messenger between the Hamas headquarters in several West Bank towns (Israeli Foreign Ministry).
*

In January 2002, Wafa Idris blew herself up on the crowded Jaffa Street in Jerusalem, becoming one of the first female suicide bombers. She was an ambulance driver for the Palestinian Red Crescent, as was Mohammed Hababa, the Tanzim operative who sent her on her mission. She left the West Bank by way of an ambulance (Washington Post, January 31, 2002).
*

On March 27, 2002, a Tanzim member who worked as a Red Crescent ambulance driver was captured with explosives in his ambulance. A child disguised as a patient was riding in the ambulance along with the child's family. The explosives were found under the stretcher the "sick" child was laying on (Israeli Foreign Ministry).
*

On May 17, 2002, an explosive belt was found in a Red Crescent ambulance at a checkpoint near Ramallah. The bomb, the same type generally used in suicide bombings, was hidden under a gurney on which a sick child was lying. The driver, Islam Jibril, was already wanted by the IDF, and admitted that this was not the first time that an ambulance had been used to transport explosives or terrorists.

The bomb was removed from the ambulance and detonated in the presence of a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross. In a statement issued the same day, the ICRC said that it “understands the security concerns of the Israeli authorities, and has always acknowledged their right to check ambulances, provided it does not unduly delay medical evacuations.” The sick passengers in the ambulance were escorted by soldiers to a nearby hospital ("Bomb found in Red Crescent Ambulance," Ha’aretz, June 12, 2002).
*

On June 30, 2002, Israeli troops found 10 suspected Palestinian terrorists hiding in two ambulances in Ramallah. They were caught when soldiers stopped the vehicles for routine checks (Jewish Telegraphic Agency, June 30, 2002).
*
In December 2003, Rashed Tarek al-Nimr, who worked as a chemist in hospitals in Nablus and Bethlehem, supplied chemicals from the hospitals to Hamas for use in making bombs and admitted he used ambulances to transport the chemicals. He also said the Hamas commanders would hide in hospitals to avoid arrest (Margot Dudkevitch, "Palestinian Transported Bomb Materials in Ambulances," Jerusalem Post, (December 11, 2003).

www.spme.net...

Sorry this post was soo long. But there is a real need to educate people on just what and how the terrorists hezbiolla work.

It is a sad statement, but Israel must chasr down all these murdering terrorists where ever they may hide!!!!!!!!!

mod edit: link fixed

[edit on 7/25/2006 by Gools]

it is probably a warning not to use red cross vans to bring in missiles etc... this is always a possibility.

they probably did this as a warning for hez not to pretend to use vans that look like red cross.

Why would they specifically target these ambulances, if they knew it would be plastered all over the media and the arab media too (probably top story)

Millitants have used them in the past, but obviously the people in these particularly ambulances were legitimate patients that needed help.

Man I just love the logic being thrown around here to justify what the Israeli military is doing. What's next? "Terrorists eat burgers, bomb McDonalds."

Originally posted by andy1033
it is probably a warning not to use red cross vans to bring in missiles etc... this is always a possibility.

they probably did this as a warning for hez not to pretend to use vans that look like red cross.

Erm, so killing innocent civilians and red cross workers as an example to these people is ok in your book?

I thought only terrorists and hostage takers killed innocent civilians as an example of what they would do if their will or demands aren't met.

I goto say, this period of war is doing something good for the ATS community imho.
Its bringing out the clear intentions and position of some people on here that are shocking to say the least.

mrmonsoon:

Interesting.

Eight examples from a six year span re Hamas's use of ambulances.

Any proof of Hizb'Allah using them?

LOL re that link you provided to the article that Piers Akarman wrote. I especially liked this comment of his:

"...if any of the missiles they have given Hezbollah strike the oil refineries surrounding the Israeli port of Haifa. Such a hit would not only create an ecological disaster but would kill tens of thousands of civilians."

Yeah, right. Do Hizb'Allah now have nuclear weapons? LOL...he's an utter wankerr and a shame to Australia!

I also liked how he's accusing Hizb'Allah of "re-igniting the middle east"

I also suppose Israel better start bombing the hospitals too as there's likely Hisb'Allah wounded in there...I mean if they're bombing Ambulances for "assisting" terrorists (supposedly) then logically, they should be bombing hospitals right?

Cheers

JS

[edit on 25-7-2006 by jumpspace]

I saw this on the news just last night, it made me sick to see. From the footage they showed on the news I'm surprised anyone survived those attacks. It was clearly not an accident as there were high caliber bullet impact holes all over the hood of the car in addition to the giant holes left by the missles.

Isreal's actions have always been reprehensable but now they're criminal. When will people stop justifying the violent and horrible things Isreal does? There is no justification for purposely targeting Red Cross relief ambulances and slaughtering the innocent wounded inside.

Every night we're seeing footage of thousands of people pouring out of Lebanon in search of peace and saftey, meanwhile people still justify Isreal's actions. I saw a clip of an Isreali screaming and yelling in the streets that we have to "Kill each and every one of them!" These are the words of a morally corrupt man and it seems to me that he's only reflecting his own nation's corruption.

I'd find it almost funny, if it weren't so saddening, that a nation built after the second world war for the victims of a heinous genocide would begin committing what amounts to ethnic cleansing only a few generations later. Isreal responds with full force to what amounts as a slap in the face at the cost of thousands of innocent lives. Each year Isreal kills more people and destroys more property than the supposed "terrorists" and everytime they do so it falls back on the U.S in the eyes of the native arab populaiton.

When will we say "Enough!"? Perhaps when Isreal has succeeded in destroying all the countries surrounding it, reducing them to ruble and memory.

Originally posted by thematrix

Originally posted by andy1033
it is probably a warning not to use red cross vans to bring in missiles etc... this is always a possibility.

they probably did this as a warning for hez not to pretend to use vans that look like red cross.

Erm, so killing innocent civilians and red cross workers as an example to these people is ok in your book?

I thought only terrorists and hostage takers killed innocent civilians as an example of what they would do if their will or demands aren't met.

I goto say, this period of war is doing something good for the ATS community imho.
Its bringing out the clear intentions and position of some people on here that are shocking to say the least.

where did i say it was ok, i only gave my opinion why they done it. does not mean i think it was right.

Apparently Red Cross means a Target for IAF:

Israeli Warplanes target Red Cross and UN in southern Lebanon
Malaysia Sun, Wednesday 19th July, 2006

UN troops in Lebanon have come under heavy fire in the past 24 hours, while plans are afoot for their families to be evacuated.

In another incident Israeli aircraft attacked a convoy of 26 Red Cross ambulances which the UAE was sending by road into Lebanon.

Israeli warplanes fired close to UNIFIL, or the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, positions on at least fifteen occasions, scoring a direct hit on one position near the village of Marwahin. UN officials said there was material damage, but no casualties.

Originally posted by thematrix
I goto say, this period of war is doing something good for the ATS community imho.
Its bringing out the clear intentions and position of some people on here that are shocking to say the least.

Yes, I agree. I always knew that there were those on ATS who staunchly defended terrorists such as Hezbollah and al Qaeda, I just never realized that there were so many of them. To these people, anything that Hezbollah does is defensible, and anything that Israel does is reprehensible.:shk:

I always knew that there were those on ATS who staunchly defended terrorists such as Hezbollah and al Qaeda

Please feel free to point out any post in this thread defending Hezbollah or Al Quaeda.

I know this may come as a shock, but criticizing Israel is not the same thing as defending either.

In fact, even more shocking, it's possible to oppose both Hezbollah and the Israelis

Originally posted by xmotex
Please feel free to point out any post in this thread defending Hezbollah or Al Quaeda.

I know this may come as a shock, but criticizing Israel is not the same thing as defending either.

In fact, even more shocking, it's possible to oppose both Hezbollah and the Israelis

Its ok to them when a Arab life is taken though. As long as its a Christian or a muslim they don't care. If its a Jewish life they freak out. Im getting so tired of this pro-semetism garbage. They really have it in their mind that a arab life is worth less. I could care less if these people consider me a terrorist supporter just because Im outraged at the murder of innocent civilians by these IDF/IAF barbarians. They are angry that their game is up and they have exposed themselves to the world what true sadists they are when it comes to innocent and weak people.
They will reap exactly what they sow.

Clearly, it is illegal to bomb red cross type ambulances, however, it would take more that two incidents of ambulances being hit in order to say that there is a deliberate attack.


Also, hezbollah, clearly, is the organization with Geneva Convetions Issues here. What Red Cross observers have visited the POWs, to begin with?

Originally posted by xmotex
Please feel free to point out any post in this thread defending Hezbollah or Al Quaeda.

I know this may come as a shock, but criticizing Israel is not the same thing as defending either.

I'll believe that when I see the same criticism of Hezbollah that I do of Israel. People may not actively defend Hezbollah, but they certainly do not criticize them.

I'll believe that when I see the same criticism of Hezbollah that I do of Israel. People may not actively defend Hezbollah, but they certainly do not criticize them.

Bull.

Obviously you have reading comprehension problems then.

From post 3 in the thread:

Not that I would ever put it past Hezbollah or Hamas from using ambulances as part of their arsenal

From post 4:

Like jtma, I could see Hezbollah or Hamas trying a ploy like loading an ambulance with soldiers or a suicide bomber or something

I would say these comments seem fairly critical of Hezbollah. Need I go on?

[edit on 7/26/06 by xmotex]

Originally posted by xmotex
I would say these comments seem fairly critical of Hezbollah. Need I go on?
[edit on 7/26/06 by xmotex]

It's very qualified criticism. You very handily stopped both quotes at the point where the next word was "BUT"...

It's more than presenting both sides of an issue. It's an attitude that one side may have done wrong, but they had a reason to.