Idf Snipers Confess To "deliberately Targeting Civilians In Gaza"

[georgephillip]

Last July 20, 90 Palestinians and 13 Israeli soldiers were killed in Shejaiya; one of the former, Salem Khaleel Shamaly wearing a bright green T-shirt was being shadowed and filmed by activists with the International Solidarity Movement.

Shamaly was knocked to the ground by an IDF bullet that shattered one hip. When he tried to rise, two more bullets ended his 23 year existence.

When the video went viral, Israeli hasbara went into overdrive in an attempt to "prove" the deliberate murder never took place. Now former combat soldier turned anti-war activist, Eran Efrati, has set the record straight by posting interviews he obtained with IDF soldiers who were there:

"On July 20, at least 90 Palestinians and 13 Israeli soldiers were killed in the Gaza City neighborhood of Shejaiya. Days later, former Israeli soldier Eran Efrati was arrested by Israel after he posted details about the massacre based on interviews he conducted with Israeli soldiers who were there..."

"Efrati interviewed three of the Israeli soldiers who witnessed the killing of Salem Khaleel Shamaly. His sources within the Israeli Defense Forces reportedly informed him soldiers were deliberately targeting civilians as 'punishment' and 'retribution' for the deaths of fellow soldiers in their units.

"Efrati is a former Israeli combat soldier turned anti-occupation activist and investigative researcher.

The Untold Story of the Shejaiya Massacre in Gaza A Former Israel Soldier Speaks Out Democracy Now

 

[deltex1]

Did they shoot his goat?

 

[georgephillip]

Did they shoot his goat?

Of course not, the goat was reading Decision Points.

"AMY GOODMAN: Can you talk about why you went to the border to interview Israeli soldiers?

ERAN EFRATI: Well, I’m doing this job for almost five years now, since Operation Cast Lead. 'I’m collecting testimonies from soldiers. I started in Breaking the Silence, the organization, and moved on independently to take testimonies, collect testimonies from soldiers in the IDF, because I was there as a soldier, and I know that what we get in the mainstream media and what we get in the news is most of the time very far from what’s really going on in the area.'

"'In this summer, I was sitting in Jerusalem in my home, and the atmosphere in Israel, the fascist atmosphere in the streets in Jerusalem, and the overall approval of this terrible massacre that happened in Gaza was so overwhelming that I decided to go on down to the border with Gaza and try to speak directly with the soldiers, because I knew that I will get something else from them.

The Untold Story of the Shejaiya Massacre in Gaza A Former Israel Soldier Speaks Out Democracy Now

 

[WinterBorn]

Both sides killed civilians. Why is Israel expected to show restraint when their enemy blows up car bombs in shopping areas and launches missiles into urban areas?

 

[georgephillip]

Both sides killed civilians. Why is Israel expected to show restraint when their enemy blows up car bombs in shopping areas and launches missiles into urban areas?

Basically, because Israel is the Occupying Power of Gaza, and can not declare war on a territory it occupies without following a different set of international laws.

Here's the best explanation I've found:

"The precarious and unstable conditions in the Gaza Strip from which Palestinians suffer are Israel’s responsibility.

"Israel argues that it can invoke the right to self-defense under international law as defined in Article 51 of the UN Charter. The International Court of Justice, however, rejected this faulty legal interpretation in its 2004 Advisory Opinion. The ICJ explained that an armed attack that would trigger Article 51 must be attributable to a sovereign state, but the armed attacks by Palestinians emerge from within Israel’s jurisdictional control.

"Israel does have the right to defend itself against rocket attacks, but it must do so in accordance with occupation law and not other laws of war. Occupation law ensures greater protection for the civilian population. The other laws of war balance military advantage and civilian suffering.

"The statement that 'no country would tolerate rocket fire from a neighboring country' is therefore both a diversion and baseless.

"Israel denies Palestinians the right to govern and protect themselves, while simultaneously invoking the right to self-defense. This is a conundrum and a violation of international law, one that Israel deliberately created to evade accountability."

Five Israeli Talking Points on Gaza Debunked The Nation

 

[SmarterThanTheAverageBear]

I'd be shocked if there were any "civilians" in Gaza.

I'd also be shocked if these soldiers really admitted to targeting civilians.

 

[georgephillip]

I'd be shocked if there were any "civilians" in Gaza.

I'd also be shocked if these soldiers really admitted to targeting civilians.

You're shocked, really?
Why is that?

"Well, our next guest interviewed three of the Israeli soldiers who witnessed the killing of Salem Shamaly. His confidential sources within the IDF, the Israeli Defense Forces, reportedly informed him that the real reason for the recent IDF Shejaiya massacre was that IDF soldiers were deliberately targeting civilians as punishment and retribution for the deaths of fellow soldiers in their units. This former soldier is named Eran Efrati. He’s a former Israeli combat soldier turned anti-occupation activist and investigative researcher. Later this month, Efrati will testify at the Russell Tribunal on Palestine in Brussels."

Do you find it hard to believe young men in combat would overreact to watching their "brothers" sacrificed for Greater Israel?

The Untold Story of the Shejaiya Massacre in Gaza A Former Israel Soldier Speaks Out Democracy Now

 

[SmarterThanTheAverageBear]

I'd be shocked if there were any "civilians" in Gaza.

I'd also be shocked if these soldiers really admitted to targeting civilians.

You're shocked, really?
Why is that?

"Well, our next guest interviewed three of the Israeli soldiers who witnessed the killing of Salem Shamaly. His confidential sources within the IDF, the Israeli Defense Forces, reportedly informed him that the real reason for the recent IDF Shejaiya massacre was that IDF soldiers were deliberately targeting civilians as punishment and retribution for the deaths of fellow soldiers in their units. This former soldier is named Eran Efrati. He’s a former Israeli combat soldier turned anti-occupation activist and investigative researcher. Later this month, Efrati will testify at the Russell Tribunal on Palestine in Brussels."

Do you find it hard to believe young men in combat would overreact to watching their "brothers" sacrificed for Greater Israel?

The Untold Story of the Shejaiya Massacre in Gaza A Former Israel Soldier Speaks Out Democracy Now

No, I have a hard time believing they would be dumb enough to admit to it.

 

[georgephillip]

I'd be shocked if there were any "civilians" in Gaza.

I'd also be shocked if these soldiers really admitted to targeting civilians.

You're shocked, really?
Why is that?

"Well, our next guest interviewed three of the Israeli soldiers who witnessed the killing of Salem Shamaly. His confidential sources within the IDF, the Israeli Defense Forces, reportedly informed him that the real reason for the recent IDF Shejaiya massacre was that IDF soldiers were deliberately targeting civilians as punishment and retribution for the deaths of fellow soldiers in their units. This former soldier is named Eran Efrati. He’s a former Israeli combat soldier turned anti-occupation activist and investigative researcher. Later this month, Efrati will testify at the Russell Tribunal on Palestine in Brussels."

Do you find it hard to believe young men in combat would overreact to watching their "brothers" sacrificed for Greater Israel?

The Untold Story of the Shejaiya Massacre in Gaza A Former Israel Soldier Speaks Out Democracy Now

No, I have a hard time believing they would be dumb enough to admit to it.

That's a good point I hadn't considered. Apparently the subject of this interview, Eran Efrati, has grappled with that problem himself:

"ERAN EFRATI: Right. For the last five years, I’m doing this research and I’m taking testimonies, but I never publish stuff under my name. I am trying to keep myself clear and safe so I can continue talking with soldiers and my name wouldn’t be out there.

"This summer, after collecting these testimonies, I had a deal with a very big newspaper in the U.S., that I will not mention because I want to keep working with. But I had a big agreement with them. And they called me two days before publication and told me that they are waiting for announcements from the Israeli spokesman, from the military spokesman.

"And the Israeli military spokesman asked them to wait with the publication, because they want to write a different story, a different narrative of what happened.

"And that made me furious, and I did something I’d never done before: I decided to just publish the story of the Shejaiya massacre and the Shejaiya sniper killing on my Facebook feed—something that I never done, but got a huge response from people. Thousands of people shared that and wrote about it. And it just, you know, blew up in social media."

Part 2 Former Israeli Soldier Eran Efrati Speaks Out About Documenting IDF Abuse in Gaza West Bank Democracy Now

 

[R.C. Christian]

I've seen that video and it looked staged, but at the end of the day Israeli dogs are butchers so the Arabs don't really have to concoct atrocities assuming they can film them without being blown away.

 

[georgephillip]

I've seen that video and it looked staged, but at the end of the day Israeli dogs are butchers so the Arabs don't really have to concoct atrocities assuming they can film them without being blown away.

The first casualty of war...Apparently, the IDF wasn't expecting to take heavy losses in Gaza, that had always been the case before Protective Edge. They lost thirteen the day before Shamaly was shot. Snipers were told to draw imaginary red lines around their positions and kill anyone who crossed one. I'm expecting the next lawn mowing in Gaza around November of 2016.