Israel To Destroy Attacker's Home (Al Beep Doesn't Tell The Whole Truth Alert)

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak has ordered the army to prepare to demolish the home of the Palestinian who killed three Israelis in Jerusalem.

The order follows advice by Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz that the proposed demolition could create legal difficulties, but would not be illegal.

B'tselem says it has written to Mr Mazuz demanding that he prevent the attacker's home from being demolished.

The group argues that the demolition would, as collective punishment, be illegal under international humanitarian law.

Hussam Dwayat went on the rampage at the wheel of a front-loader vehicle, or bulldozer, killing three people and wounding dozens before security personnel shot him dead.

On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said that Israel should destroy the homes of "every terrorist from Jerusalem".

The demolition of houses is a clear case of collective punishment, which violates the principle that a person is not to be punished for the acts of another B'tselem

Mr Mazuz said in his legal opinion: "In light of repeated rulings over the years by the Supreme Court, it cannot be said that there is a legal objection… to the demolition of houses in Jerusalem, but the move would create considerable legal difficulties."

Mr Mazuz warned that apart from legal challenges in Israeli courts, a resumption of the practice of house demolitions could draw international condemnation.

He called for a detailed consideration of the circumstances surrounding each case by the internal security service, Shin Bet, the army and the justice ministry.

In February 2005, Israel abandoned the demolitions of homes of Palestinians involved in attacks against its citizens after human rights groups challenged the practice in Israel's Supreme Court.

Reports say about 20 people live in the home of the attacker Hussam Dwayat in the Sur Bahir area of East Jerusalem. They all insist that they had no prior knowledge of his intentions.

The Israeli authorities have said that Dwayat acted alone and was not connected to any Palestinian militant group.

In a statement about the anticipated demolition, rights group B'tselm said: "The declared objective of this policy is to harm innocent persons - relatives of suspected perpetrators, who are not accused of any criminal wrongdoing themselves.

"The demolition of houses is a clear case of collective punishment, which violates the principle that a person is not to be punished for the acts of another. Collective punishment is therefore illegal regardless of its effectiveness."

The group pointed to the findings of a committee appointed by a former chief of staff, Moshe Yaalon, as finding house demolitions did more harm than good to Israel's security.

Al-Beeb as usual gets a couple of things wrong in its story. First, the British themselves made house demolitions part of the law of Israel when they introduced it in their Emergency Defense Regulations in 1945. So its entirely legal as even Israel's leftist Attorney General Manny Mazuz admits. Second, the principle of house demolitions is not an act of collective punishment as falsely claimed by the anti-Israel group B'Tselem but rather an act of deterrence and justice. Its intended to warn others of the consequences of breaking the law by committing terrorist acts and making sure the family is held responsible for destroying the lives of other people. Third, its intended to remove those responsible for giving shelter to a murderer from participation in the life of the community. When innocent people lose their lives, the guilty shouldn't be allowed to carry on with their own life as though nothing had happened. And in every situation, other state benefits should be withdrawn from them, too. I just wish that had B'Tselem really been concerned about human rights, it would have been concerned for the fate of three Jewish families - the Goren, Unterman and and Relevys extinguished by the terrorist's conduct as much is as it is for the fate of Hussein Dwayat's. Their loss is incomparably greater in that they lost the lives of loved ones, while Dwayat's stand only to lose their home. There is no way to restore them to their families but the Israeli government can at the very least assure that those who carry out terrorist atrocities against Jews do so with the knowledge that their own families will be held responsible for the consequences of the crime. In a normal country, normal judicial procedures will work because every citizen has moral conditioning to behave in accordance with the law. This is not yet present in Arabs in Israel who have a very low state of civilizational character. So extreme measures are justified both from a legal and moral standpoint to safeguard the innocent.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

That's what a lot of people say. I'm all for following rules but the law should always be on the side of justice - not to impede it. Its not possible or be just to try people in court with no direct connection to the crime at hand but that does not mean something cannot be done. As long as the Arabs fill their children with hatred of Jews and give them the means to commit mass murder, then house demolition is a way of establishing limits upon the intolerable. People in a free country should not have to lose their lives and those who obey the law should not have to fear losing their home. But those who break the laws of God and Man alike should stand to lose a great deal.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

Barak has ordered the army to prepare to demolish...

What's to "prepare"? You either order the army to "prepare" or you order the army to Act. To act means to fill the same dozer used for the crime with a bit o' diesel, pick one of many volunteers to drive it, and do it. No need to even clean the windows, just as well leave it smeared.

Reminds me of a scene from Spaceballs, where they the commander is always ordering his guys to "prepare" to do this and that, while the big guy countermands that with, Forget Prepare... just DO IT.

"... but we can't STOP, we have to SLOW DOWN first..."

The group argues that the demolition would, as collective punishment, be illegal under international humanitarian law.

Mental deficients exist everywhere; yes, even as judges.

Destroying all of muslim East Jerusalem, or even the immediate neighborhood would be "collective punishment".
Demolishing the perp's home simply punishes his enablers, admitted or not.

It's not rocket science, to me.

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