UN aid chief warns that Gaza is on verge of humanitarian crisis

[Tom Joad]

Gaza is three days away from a deadly humanitarian crisis unless Israel promptly restores fuel and electricity to the densely populated area after its offensive to free an abducted soldier, the United Nations aid chief warned on Thursday.

"They are heading for the abyss unless they get electricity and fuel restored," said Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland, who also urged the Palestinians to free the soldier and clamp down on militants firing rockets into Israel.

Without clean water in the hot summer weather, "we would in days see a major humanitarian crisis," he said. Military action targeting innocent civilians violates international humanitarian law, he added.

"I am confident that neither of the two want to see a massive increase in mortality in the Gaza," where children make up about half of the area's 1.4 million people, Egeland told a small group of reporters.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/732995.html
________________________________________

I do not share Jan Egeland's confidence. I believe Israeli leaders have every intention of causing many causalities.

I hope every peace group, every individual, does all they can to avert such a tragedy, however. This is a crisis not just for Gaza, but a crisis for humanity.

[AlamoDemoc]

1. Sir, we are talking about 1.2 million Gaza residents without power

1.2 million Gaza residents without water purification threatment...1.2 million Gaza residents without basic necessity.


This is an act by the IOF and its government of Israel with cruelty, and they are liable under international law.

[burythehatchet]

3. liable under international law

Shirly you jest. International law only applies when WE say it applies.

[burythehatchet]

2. The silence on DU is deafening

Its remarkable how debate on this issue is marginalized.

[AlamoDemoc]

4. This type of issue is marginalized because for those of us that...

speak the truth are labeled as anti-Semitism


reference reading on the subject: "Beyond Chutzpah- On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism and the Abuse of History" by Dr. Norman Finkelstein

[Tom Joad]

5. shhesh, Bury, its not like Rush had some pills in his luggage.

Now things like that get DU all riled up.

I am sure many DU'ers are concerned.

More seriously, off the net, and into the streets. Let's make sure our local peace groups speak loud and clear on this atrocity.

It's up to each of us to make a difference.

[AlamoDemoc]

6. I sit beside my Tv and await any news relevant to anything

that Israel might of done wrong...ANYTHING? slight shows of anything? anything that says 9000 to 12 thousand Palestinians are in prisoners in Isreal...out that of 5000 of the 9000 are locked up under "administration process" without a charge. One out three out those Five thousand or nine thousand (depends which human right group you read) are either woman or under 18 years old. So who's holding of whom?

[Tom Joad]

8. 300 hundred of the prisoners are children.

[Behind the Aegis]

15. It is almost as deafening as...

1 killed, 1 hurt in clashes in Lebanese Palestinian refugee camp

ZERO comments. Where were all the "pro-Palestinians?"

Threats on Palestians Concern U.N. Agency

Anti-Palestinian action in Iraq and it only garners comments about the OP's misspelling. No real comments are made. Where are all the "pro-Palestinians?"

In Moscow, Hamas firm on refusal to recognize Israel

No comments. This article paints the new Palestinian government in a "bad light."

Gunmen take over parliament building, EU office in Gaza

Where is the condemnation of this violence of Palestinian against Palestinian?

Towns in north hit by Hezbollah rocket fire

What?!?! No condemnation of an attack against Israel?! No threads about, "is this illegal" or "is this an act of war" in GD?!

IsraAID documents tsunami aftermath

No comments. Could it be that Israel was the "good guy?"

Dispute keeps Security Council from condemning Netanya attack

What? No screams of how this is "unfair?" Dead Israelis and the UNSC can't condemn it because of an Arab country's interferance?!

Suicide bomber just hit an Israeli mall

The screams of condemnation are deafening. :sarcasm:

Five people killed in Hadera suicide bombing

The screams of condemnation are deafening. :sarcasm:

Abbas pledges end to Gaza attacks

**Chirp,chirp** And, he never followed through!

The new British anti-Semitism

All quiet on the "Western Front."

Is THIS the deafening of which you speak?!

[burythehatchet]

16. Its a good thing you didn't didn't document Israeli atrocities against

Palestinian people.

Because it would take up too much bandwidth, I imagine.

Lets just short circuit this sub-thread instead of wasting energy. You call me an anti-semite. I mumble a few explitives and then we go away.

[Behind the Aegis]

18. Reading comprehension

You talked of the deafening silence at DU, I showed you where it is TRULY deafening! Why would I call you an anti-Semite? Are you? Or is this the newly-introduced tactic of "anytime a pro-Israeli questions me, I will accuse them of 'calling me/implying I am' an anti-Semite?" If the latter, that tactic doesn't work on me! If the former, well, eventually that will come out and then we won't have to bother discussing anything here.

[burythehatchet]

20. Your post proves my point

and yes, perhaps I am an anti-semite. Sometimes my Jewish son doesn't rinse the sink after brushing his teeth and my blood just boils.

[uppityperson]

22. I got called an anti-Semite once, had to explain "I just don't like you"

had nothing to do with him being Jewish.

[Behind the Aegis]

24. But see...

I didn't EVEN call that person an anti-Semite. S/he implied I was doing so or should just do it because s/he is not interested in discussion. The same way people bitch about Jews throwing out the "anti-Semite" bomb, I am bitching about the "you will call me an anti-Semite, so I can't/won't respond" bomb.

[uppityperson]

25. Yeah, seems like people are looking for things to take offense at

yes, this can be very emotional, seems like some people are looking for things to take offense at rather than conversing. Making assumptions, jumping points, leaping off the deep end, etc, lots of exercise. please realize that I am NOT aiming this at you or anyone in particular, just noticing and commenting in general. And I do not see you calling this poster an anti-semite here.

[Behind the Aegis]

23. ...

:eyes:

Ah...the 'other' tactic...sad

On edit: What "point" was proved? :shrug:

[Briar]

27. It's amazing

that where it comes to Israel, most Americans are freepers.

[DELUSIONAL]

7. To have human compassion for Palestinians is perceived as

being against Israel -- as an either or choice.

While this is in fact a potential humanitarian crisis.

Will the world become so used to brutality that people will just ignore this latest retaliation of a more powerful nation against a weaker people and go about their own lives.

Seems like the US is again closing their eyes to abuse of the weaker group of people.

Again this response of the Israelis is either an out of proportion rage response to a kidnapping of one soldier by other soldiers -- or was Israel merely were waiting to re-enter Gaza to "solve the problem"?

[AlamoDemoc]

9. of course

Israel uses their colonial occupation to extract favor from rest of the world

[Scorpio.2000]

12. What??

:shrug:

[Tom Joad]

10. This should be in the general discussion area.

I think this is even more important than Rush & viagra myself.

But that's just me.

[burythehatchet]

17. Well it did start there

But as we know, the most important factor in the Western world's relationship with the Middle East is off limits for discussion by the general public.

[Behind the Aegis]

19. Wrong-O

Not the ME, just this particular conflict. Our exchange above is the reason!

[uppityperson]

26. wrong, general public can discuss it. Just has to be in IP forum

because it gets a bit flamey at times.

[burythehatchet]

28. Well that's kind of the problem

I believe this is such a central issue to our middle east dilemma, but I refuse to enter the IP forum. I don't feel that a reasonable debate is possible there. Things may have changed but I find it so distasteful that I hesitate to even check in. The problem is it takes just a few people to derail the forum, shut down productive debate and help perpetuate a crisis that has festered for decades, and will continue to do so until US and Israeli policies change. Staying the course doesn't seemed to have worked too well.

This thread started in GD and that's why I'm posting here.

[uppityperson]

29. Yup, I know. It would be nice to be able to keep it in GD/GDP/LBN

there was a heavily moderated one in LBD the last couple days, finally got moved here. It takes only a person or 2 to ruin it. And I agree that israel/Palestine is a central issue and it would be nice to be able to discuss it.

[Scurrilous]

11. Gaza hospitals without power

<snip>

"Nearly 700,000 Palestinians have been living without electric power since Israel aerial bombed Gaza's only power station earlier in the week.

In addition to plunging the area into darkness, the Wednesday night bombardment also knocked out power to hospitals and clinics."

<snip>

"But the loss of electric power means many Palestinians will be unable to access medical care dependent on an energy source.

Khalid Radi, the spokesman of the ministry of health, told Aljazeera.net: "Al-Shifaa hospital, the main and largest hospital in the Gaza Strip and many clinics in the Strip are now without power which will result in a shortage of generated oxygen.

"In addition, the loss of power will also adversely affect kidney patients whose dialysis and other equipment run on electricity only."

Palestinian doctors will be unable to perform critical surgery and other operations."

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/3888A9B9-B3E3-4541-85F2-82DF91E36F99.htm

[Tom Joad]

13. Hundreds will die as a result.

[Poll_Blind]

21. If not thousands in this terrible summer heat. And, as always,...

...the children and the elderly will suffer the most.

PB

[Igel]

30. Yesterday they said they had fuel to power their

generators for two weeks.

Is it that they are limiting services and spinning the extent of the "denial of services" attack, or that the 'off' switch was so handy for PR purposes that they couldn't not use it during the photo op?

[Englander]

14. UN envoy asks Israel to let key supplies into Gaza

By Adam Entous

JERUSALEM, June 29 (Reuters) - The United Nations asked Israel on Thursday to let critical supplies into the Gaza Strip to head off a humanitarian crisis, warning that fuel to power the sanitation system would run out within a few days.

Israeli forces have launched an offensive in the Gaza Strip to find a soldier who was abducted on Sunday by Palestinian militants. Israeli air strikes have knocked out power and water supplies in Gaza, home to 1.4 million people.

"We have an emergency situation," Alvaro de Soto, the U.N. special envoy for the Middle East peace process, told Reuters.

In addition to knocking out key power installations, de Soto said Israel has cut the pipeline that provides fuel to run the sanitation system.

"Without fuel, the sanitation pumps don't function," de Soto said. "You have women, children and ailing people. That's pretty grave. And it needs to be addressed."

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L29125550.htm