Stay safe; stay armed.
Posted on 08/11/2002 8:05:26 PM PDT by 1bigdictator
Aug. 12, 2002 Ben-Eliezer: Demolitions deter terrorists By JANINE ZACHARIA
The demolition of the homes of suicide bombers is starting to reduce the number of people willing to carry out such acts, the cabinet said on Sunday.
"We're seeing initial signs that this action has a certain deterrent effect," read a cabinet statement based on a briefing by Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer.
"We already have several testimonies about parents trying to stop their children from entering the circle of attacks," the statement added, citing an instance in which a father informed on his son who was planning an attack.
Seventeen homes have been destroyed since the recent decision to begin demolitions. Human rights groups have protested the demolitions. Some opponents have called them a war crime. During the cabinet meeting, Ben-Eliezer said "25 key terrorists" have been arrested or killed in the past week. Because of a renewed outbreak of terrorist attacks 14 Israelis were killed last week Ben-Eliezer said the IDF had halted all movement in the West Bank, tightened the seal around Jerusalem, and stepped up pressure on Hamas.
"Alongside the military activity, Israel is investing great effort in the humanitarian sphere and is looking for ways to allow basic life to go on for the population without harming security needs," he added.
Ben-Eliezer also said that Israel needed to "make the most of every chance we have to bring calm to the area and achieve an agreement" and called for dialogue with the Palestinians. Minister-without-Portfolio Yitzhak Levy sharply criticized Ben-Eliezer's efforts coordinated with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to bring about a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, as a prelude to West Bank cities. He asked whether "Gaza first" means the government is reengaging with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat by asking his security services once again to take control of the security situation on the ground.
Sharon called the PA cabinet's decision last week to approve the Gaza-first plan a "tactical move" designed to help the PA delegation that was then en route to Washington. The plan is once again in dispute, and Israeli and PA representatives are expected to discuss it again this week.
Levy recommended that the cabinet declare that the Oslo Accords have failed and that Israel is no longer bound by them. Also the Clinton peace plan, outlined at the end of Bill Clinton's presidency, should be declared irrelevant, he said.
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres replied: "As a result of the Oslo Accords, there was an period of unprecedented economic growth."
The cabinet also decided that former SLA soldiers who receive assistance from the Immigration Absorption Ministry and completed their period of eligibility on July 31 will be eligible for certain benefits, including help in housing, employment, and other basics, until March 31, 2003.
Regarding the possibility of an Iraqi retaliatory strike should the US invade Baghdad, Sharon said: "The defense establishment has never been more ready to deal with the various scenarios. But such scenarios are not imminent, so I suggest that the [defense] minister make every effort to calm the public and continue dealing routinely with preparations for any and all threats." Next article
As opposed to say, walking into a pizza parlor and killing a few dozen women and children.
Of course, I did suggest they call Ehud Barak and BC to negotiate their "peace," because George Bush and Ariel Sharon aren't going to put up with their crapola.
Stay safe; stay armed.
These same opponents that whine about international law and war crimes suddenly get real quiet when you ask them where in the Geneva convention and international laws is it written that blowing up a few dozen people in a pizza restaurant is acceptable protest against a government's policies.
If this is the case, destruction of their families' homes is only a start. It might be still more effective if the Israelis inflict a "social death penalty" on the _extended_ families (aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc.) of suicide bombers, by exiling them from Gaza/the West Bank to Lebanon. That would take the families away from all their relatives and social support groups.
The is NO moral equivalency between the vicious acts of terrorism perpetrated by Islamic fanatics and the attempts by Israel and other western powers to stop them. There is NO equivalency between the fanaticism and hatred of the Koran and its adherents and the desolation of their societies and the achievements of the western world, none whatsoever.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.