Opinion | Editorials
Israel must be made to pay for Gaza war
Fresh reports continue to detail the massive losses suffered by Palestinians.
- Gulf News
- Published: 22:39 September 12, 2009
The ramifications of Israel's war on Gaza have to be highlighted and addressed by the international community. Israel's leaders should be questioned and held accountable for the atrocities perpetrated during the war.
Of late, additional reports on the war have been released, all of which highlighted the tragic human civilian cost endured by the Palestinians. The most recent was released by the Israeli human-rights group B'Tselem, which estimates that 1,387 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive on Gaza, of which 320 were minors. Children were targeted, because 252 of those who died were under the age of 16, while 68 were aged between 11 and 18.
In addition, the Israeli human-rights group concluded that almost all of those killed did not take any part in the fighting. "The extremely heavy civilian casualties and the massive damage to civilian property require serious introspection on the part of the Israeli society," said a statement released by B'Tselem. It further called for an independent and credible investigation into the war.
Undoubtedly, the war in Gaza and Israel's culpability should not be swept under the carpet - it is the responsibility of the international community to place it high on the agenda as a matter that requires immediate attention.
In addition to the lives lost, basic infrastructure was destroyed on a massive scale. The United Nations has estimated that the losses incurred by the Palestinian economy as a result of the attack is in the region of $4 billion (Dh14.7 billion), which is almost three times the size of the economy of Gaza.
The human losses in the war were immeasurable because Israel followed a blind policy of hitting targets despite the presence of civilians. It is high time that Israel is made to pay for its aggression.
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