Replies

I purposefully inserted the quotation marks around the word "people" to make a point. You first referred to them as people. That is incorrect. They are a hostile armed force that refuses to abide by the law of Landwarfare. As such, they are properly referred to as illegal combatants. They have no rights. They can be summarily dealt with. They have no right to due process or even a trial. They can be shot on sight. They can be executed after capture without trial.

You see, the basic error you make is assuming that civilian law applies. Due process, legal appeals, Miranda warnings (or the Israeli equivalent), etc., are simply not applicable to illegal combatants since illegal combatants have forfeited all rights. That does not mean that an armed force pursuing illegal combatants has carte blanche. Whether their actions are "moral" or "criminal" can only be judged in the context of military law, not civilian.

"But understandable, the church of the nativity is the only building in Bethlehem that the Israeli’s couldn’t blow up without arising international condemnation."

Seizing a church purely for the purpose of embarrassing the Israeli government is an example of the kinds of actions that made these "people" illegal combatants. Such actions are strictly prohibited by the Law of Landwarfare.

"facilitate terrorist activities" means exactly what it means, to knowingly further the achievement of terrorist activities. Encouraging a child to become a suicide bomber is one activity. Accepting a bounty for the death of a child who was a suicide bomber is another. Not reporting the suicide bomb factory in the home next door is another. I think you know full well what the words mean.

Jenin. Oh, yes, there was a lot of propaganda about the "bloody atrocities" committed by the Israelis in Jenin. All of which were subsequently disproven by independent news sources in the weeks following the events there. If you followed the story of Jenin at all, then you are fully aware of the follow-up stories that completly discredited the Palestinian version of events there. You might try searching freerepublic as there were many threads on that subject.

"I have never supported terrorism in any form."

Really? When you advance the arguments that you have in this thread, you support terrorist activities. When you try to establish a moral equivalence between terrorists and the Israeli armed forces, you support terrorist activities. When you repeat discredited tales of Israeli misconduct, you support terrorist activities. Maybe this support was based upon a lack of knowledge. If that be true, then you should investigate further. Once again there are some excellent threads in this forum.