naraburns nihil supernum
7mo ago
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Israel-Gaza Megathread #1
This is a megathread for any posts on the conflict between (so far, and so far as I know) Hamas and the Israeli government, as well as related geopolitics. Culture War thread rules apply.
No electricity, water, or fuel for Gaza until hostages freed - Israel
Israel's Energy Minister Israel Katz says the siege of Gaza will not end until Israeli hostages are released.
In a social media post, Israel Katz said no "electrical switch will be turned on, no water hydrant will be opened and no fuel truck will enter" until the "abductees" are free.
I think this is a smart move. Even if the hostages being released remains very unlikely, it puts more of the moral burden for the siege on the Gazans, who do (broadly) support Hamas.
A mass scale war crime to block food and water to 2.3 million people. Using war crimes to punish a population is an excellent way to get the world to hate you and the victims to never forget.
Why is it a war crime to demand the hostages before opening the border? Hamas isn’t a random terrorist group, they are the government of the Gaza Strip. They are in possession of the hostages.
Pretty much, yeah, though the level of "terror" inflicted by reducing consumer access to high tech goods is obviously so thoroughly different from food and water and basic medical needs that it's a difference in kind.
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Notes -
No electricity, water, or fuel for Gaza until hostages freed - Israel
[From the BBC news live tracker]
I think this is a smart move. Even if the hostages being released remains very unlikely, it puts more of the moral burden for the siege on the Gazans, who do (broadly) support Hamas.
A mass scale war crime to block food and water to 2.3 million people. Using war crimes to punish a population is an excellent way to get the world to hate you and the victims to never forget.
Why is it a war crime to demand the hostages before opening the border? Hamas isn’t a random terrorist group, they are the government of the Gaza Strip. They are in possession of the hostages.
Because it is instrumentalizing the suffering of the population to pressure the government. Terrorism at its most basic definition.
Are all economic sanctions terrorism then?
Yep.
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Pretty much, yeah, though the level of "terror" inflicted by reducing consumer access to high tech goods is obviously so thoroughly different from food and water and basic medical needs that it's a difference in kind.
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