This past Saturday, Israel military leaders stated that anyone who “hides a terrorist or weapons in his house is considered a terrorist.” The statements are in reference to any terrorists hiding in Gaza. These remarks were of course directed at those people who live in Gaza. The same statement from Israel said that they will not target civilians in Gaza. Rather if there are civilian casualties, it is the fault of those terrorists who have tried to use civilians as shields. It is common practice for insurgents to hide among civilians so as not to be attacked by enemy fire. However the statement from Israel made it clear that they will attack those peoples and any civilian deaths will be on the conscience of those hiding.
To date, more than 460 Palestinians have been killed from Israel’s air and naval attacks. Militants have responded to these attacks by firing rockets into Israel. The damage from these rockets has consisted of 4 civilian casualties. Ground troops were dispensed this Saturday in an effort to stop the rocket fire from Gaza. Experts say that the number of casualties will sharply increase before this conflict begins to be resolved. It is possible that many Israeli troops will fall from a ground operation. However experts predict that the number of Palestinian casualties will be far greater.
Is this ground operation a good approach for Israel? Could there be a better way? Is there any way that peace could be constructed between these two nations? Lastly, can the US serve to mediate this conflict?
