Israel - Hamas UN

[Davethedog]

This is serious question, so if your going to answer please don't be flippant.

I may be na�ve but was there any international protest to Palestine or Hamas over the rocket attacks on Israel, before the attacks started. I have no side to this but I don't understand why the UN is up in arms now, but let Hamas fire indiscriminately, not that the UN ever do anything anyway, look at Zimbabwe.

[jno]

generally speaking nations only protest to nations, so they wouldn't be contacting Hamas any more than a country would contact the IRA - to do so might be seen as acknowledging their legitimacy. I'm not sure whether anyone protested to the Palestinian Authority (except Israel, of course) but their power is very limited so I don't think anyone expects them to be able to do much about it. (Bear in mind that Hamas is a rival power base to the Palestinian Authority, so the PA would certainly do all it could to eliminate them.)

Israel on the other hand is a UN member so other member states will be able to express their anger to them. That's what the UN is for.

[Davethedog]

Thanks

[DrFilth]

israel don't usually listen to the un anyway

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_Na tions_resolutions_concerning_Israel


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[Whickerman]

scary and odd as it is, Hamas, the extremist and bloody jihad supporting group, are actually the legitimate elected government of both the West Bank and Gaza, having won the last set of elections by a clear majority. They were forcefully ejected from power in the West Bank by the Fatah party and declared illegal. They still control Gaza.

[Whickerman]

more on Hamas here - just skip the top paragraph, oddly in German

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamas

[rov1200]

It is because Hamas was not included in the peace talks involving the quartet that violence was the only option for them to follow. President Abbas who represents the Palestinians only has the backing of Fatah and therefore his hands were tied. Lessons have not been learnt from Ireland where for years, especially under Thathcher, the IRA voice was not heard.

[Raleigh]

In a report on BBC radio 4 this morning a representative of (I believe) the UN was complaining that Hamas was DELIBERATELY stopping Palestinian wounded from being taken to hospitals.
They seem to have as little regard for the civilian people of Gaza as they do for the civilian people of Israel.

[Whickerman]

that report's here Raleigh

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7801881 .stm

[Lonnie]

Here's something that wasn't reported, and this was before Israeli military action.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/AL eqM5ioi_0jtO9RjMwPNRoXNCndRPRq3gD95AII1G0

[jno]

two girls killed in Palestinian attack; 360 killed in Israeli response. Lonnie, that just doesn't seem morally right to me. I have no doubt that other Israelis have died this year, and other Palestinians too, though I don't have the exact numbers. But this still seems hugely disproportionate to me, as if London had decided to bomb Belfast in an attempt to wipe out the IRA.

[Raleigh]

jno - you obviously did not read Lonnie's link. The girls killed were Palestinians killed by a Hamas rocket.
Another example of these fanatics not caring who they hurt as a by product in their desire to kill people in Israel. They launch missiles from schools, homes and public places because this offers cover. They seek total control of Palestine - whatever the cost. As long as it not to them.

[jno]

you're right, Raleigh, I misread it. Yes, I'm aware that Hamas have limited concern even for Palestinian lives - a bit like al Qaeda not being bothered if any Muslims were on the planes they hijacked. Their argument, I expect, is that innocent people will sometimes die for the greater good of their nation; which sadly is true. As I recall, in the first Gulf war, more British soldiers were killed by Americans than by Iraqis. Presumably the Americans felt the same way about those friendly fire deaths as Hamas do: unfortunate, but an accident, and less important than the bigger picture of the war.

[kestrelg]

I think Hamas as a group are pyscopathic , no matterwhat deprivations the palestinian people suffer, Hamas are able to buy or manufacture rockets to fire at Israel.
If they put that effort into improving the lot of the people and stopped their attacks I feel sure that israel would help them (Palestinians, not Hamas).
Most Arab nations don't want to know them.