IOF forcing Palestinians to enter suspected booby-trapped homes

Palestine News Agency - WAFA ^ | 4-16-02

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Tel Aviv, April, 16, 2002, Wafa - Israel Occupation Forces, IOF, soldiers are forcing Palestinians to enter and search houses that are suspected to be booby-trapped, according to recent testimony by soldiers participating in such actions, The Israeli newspaper Ha’arez, reports.

In other cases, says the paper, the Palestinians are forced to pick up suspicious objects so that soldiers can proceed along the roads these objects were blocking, soldiers said.

One reserve officer who participated in the takeover of the Jenin refugee camp said Sunday that he and his comrades had ordered Palestinian residents to precede them into suspicious houses.

"We suspected that the houses were booby-trappped, because the terrorists set bombs in many apartments to hurt us," he said. "We preferred to have the Palestinians that lived in these houses enter them.

The IOF weekly “Bamahane” offered similar testimony from conversations with soldiers who participated in the takeover of Qalqilyah two weeks ago. A Sergeant described an incident, "We had already conquered this building in the past, so we feared that a bomb would be waiting for us when we entered a second time," he said. "In accordance with standard practice, we took one of the Palestinian neighbors to search the place. He opened all the doors and cupboards and found nothing”.

[cricket]

This is war. . .

. . .or are the Israelis just really mean?

[sleavelessinseattle]

That's not "cricket". (sorry)

[Congressman Billybob]

The only use of posting drivel like this is showing how the Palestinians "think." 1) The IDF would not use Palestinian civilians for any minitary purpose. There's too much of a chance that the Palestinian "helper," voluntary or not, would be a bomber.

2) Palestinians did not have to be "forced" into booby-trapped homes. They LIVED there. And they were the ones who PLANTED the booby traps.

Water runs uphill. Gravity makes things go up. And Palestinians aren't terrorists who have earned the right to die. Did I mis anything?

Congressman Billybob

Click here to fight Campaign Finance "Reform/".

Click here for next column: "Why Are We Here?" - the Prequel.

[Freedom'sWorthIt]

Good.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Israeli soldier recounts Jenin refugee camp battle

    By Megan Goldin 
    JERUSALEM, April 16 (Reuters) - Palestinians are calling it 
a massacre. Israeli soldiers like Lieutenant Yoni Wolff, who led 
a platoon through the battle of Jenin refugee camp, describe it 
as a terrifying fight to the death. 
    The most ferocious clash of Israel's offensive in the West 
Bank reduced much of the Jenin camp to rubble. Residents allege 
hundreds of Palestinians were killed, many of them civilians 
buried under the shattered masonry. 
    Israeli soldiers say the number of dead is much lower and 
describe a bitter house-to-house struggle against Palestinian 
gunmen and suicide bombers who mined streets and boobytrapped 
houses. 
    Wolff, 26, a reservist who in quieter times is teacher of 
Hebrew, led a platoon in the Jenin fighting. He insisted Israeli 
troops did their utmost to avoid harming civilians. 
    "Every alley we walked down was booby-trapped, wires were 
connected along the streets. Almost every house we walked into 
was booby-trapped...The doors, the stairways, closets, cabinets, 
draws, weapons that were left behind," Wolff told Reuters. CONTINUE...

[mgc1122]

I have no problem at all ... and let's not forget "who" is booby trapping here.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

The only use of posting drivel like this is showing how the Palestinians "think."

...Or to post what the official Palestinian press is reporting to their people.

[TomGuy]

soldiers are forcing Palestinians to enter and search houses that are suspected to be booby-trapped

Awwwwwwwww...how terrible!
The soldiers should draft the IRC and peace-nic advocates to do this--put them to doing something useful.

[NerdDad]

Considering the source, I doubt seriously that the author could tell us his name without lying. However, if it were true, I would have absolutely no problem with the IDF using the animals who planted the traps to trip them. It really, really works for me.

[eclectic]

STOP POSTING PRO-TERRORIST PROPAGANDA!

[gridlock]

Headline: IOF forcing Palestinians

What in the World is an IOF?

When an article can't get through the headline without lying, I tend to discount the entire article as just another load of Arab horsesh!t propaganda. But maybe that's just me.

[ravingnutter]

But if you'd read the article, you'd know what an IOF is, it is spelled out in the first sentence. I kind of feel guilty now, but I actually laughed out loud when I read this article. And for the guy above who said not to post this, I personally think it should be broadcast everywhere...maybe the Palis won't be so stupid as to booby trap their homes if they have to risk their own butts.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

STOP POSTING PRO-TERRORIST PROPAGANDA!

WAFA is the NY Times of the PNA. Don't you want to read their propaganda news items?

[Oldeconomybuyer]

'Xactly.

[eclectic]

I do not have enough barf bags for this. Please keep FR clean!

[gridlock]

Hey, read it for it's entertainment value. I used to read Spiderman comic books for fun, but I never thought that Spiderman was real. There are millions of people who believe every word of this tripe. For that reason, I think it is harmful to broadcast Pali propaganda.

The use of the term IOF is offensive because it presupposes that the purpose of the IDF is to occupy, rather than defend, Israel. To use the term is to state that the legitimate government of Israel is not legitimate at all, and that the Israelis are an occupying force that should be eliminated. Marched into the sea, or ovens, whichever is convenient.

[uncbob]

What the ought to do is get some of these brave reporters who are demanding access to the area to go with them

Ask for a show of hands for volunteers

[gridlock]

Ask for a show of hands for volunteers

Then ask for a show of stumps for the repeat volunteers.