Every child in Gaza, seven years or younger, has, in their little lifetime, seen three of the most murderous atrocities committed by Israel. Israel calls this periodic assault of Gaza “mowing the grass” -- a chilling phrase which typifies the systematic dehumanisation of the Palestinian people, necessary for the acquiescence and approval of the Israeli population for the genocidal campaigns of their government.
August 2015 marks one year of the completion of Operation Protective Edge (OPE), the most recent of these assaults, which was launched on July 8, 2014 and continued for 51 days. 2,251 Palestinians were killed, of whom 1,462 were civilians, 299 were women, and 551 children. More than 11,200 Palestinians were injured, of whom 3,540 were women and 3,436 were children. 10% of the injured suffered permanent disability. 1,000 children have been permanently disabled. On the other hand, 73 Israelis were killed, all but six were civilians; 1600 were injured, of whom 270 were children.
Professor Ilan Pappe, an eminent Israeli historian, coined the term “incremental genocide” to describe Israel’s repeated assault on Gaza. Many thought, after the destruction of Gaza from Operation Cast Lead in 2008, and the wide-spread international condemnation it drew, that Israel would not quite wreak devastation on that scale. OPE, sadly, proved them wrong. More than 142 families lost more than three or more members in a single Israeli attack, and up to 1,500 children were orphaned.
The gruesome stories of innocent civilians killed are too many to recount. While some were killed attempting to bury their dead, some were children playing in a park near the beach, some killed were as old as 75 and 85 years, some died while they were eating breakfast, and then there were others who died in refugee camps where they thought they could escape death.
Two tragic incidents stand out in some ways: One was the killing of four children playing football on the beach, witnessed first-hand by Guardian reporter Peter Beaumont. The children were killed trying to escape, when a second shell hit them, raising concerns that Israel was deliberately targeting children. In Peter Beaumont’s words: “The second shell hit the beach, those firing apparently adjusting their fire to target the fleeing survivors. In the space of 40 seconds, four boys who had been playing hide and seek among fishermen's shacks on the wall were dead. They were aged between seven and 11; two were named Mohammad, one Zakaria, and the youngest Ahed. All were members of the extended Bakr family.”
The other publicised incident was when nine people were killed and 15 wounded while they were watching the World Cup semi-final match at the Fun Time Beach café, “where dozens broke their Ramadan fast on Wednesday night before settling down to watch Argentina play the Netherlands.” The complete disregard for civilian lives appalled the international community.
Many human rights groups documented and expressed grave concern over the increasing number of cases where civilians were directly targeted by Israeli forces. The UN report noted: “Human rights organisations have expressed serious concerns regarding incidents where civilians or civilian objects have been directly hit by Israeli airstrikes, in circumstances where there was allegedly no rocket fire or armed group activity in the close vicinity … raise concerns about the targeting of civilians.”
Human Rights Watch, in a report called “Gaza: Israeli soldiers shoot and kill fleeing civilians” stated: “Israeli forces in the southern Gaza town of Khuza’a fired on and killed civilians in apparent violation of the laws of war in several incidents between July 23 and 25, 2014. Deliberate attacks on civilians who are not participating in the fighting are war crimes.”
Another report by Human Rights Watch, entitled “Israel/Palestine: Unlawful Israeli airstrikes kill civilians,” remarked: “Such attacks committed deliberately or recklessly constitute war crimes under the laws of war applicable to all parties.”
At the height of the devastation, over 500,000 Palestinians were internally displaced. 108,000 Palestinians were rendered homeless, 18,000 housing units were destroyed or severely damaged, and a year later, not one of them have been rebult. The Gaza Power Plant (GPP), hit by an Israeli airstrike on July 29, 2014, has been inoperable for a long time, resulting in power-cuts of 18 hours a day on an average for an extended period of time, impacting hospitals, bakeries, refrigerators, etc; which, according to yet another Human Rights Watch Report, titled “Gaza: Widespread Impact of Power Plant Attack,” is “an unlawful disproportionate attack under the laws of war, causing far greater civilian harm than military gain.”
According to an Amnesty International report, “Gaza: Attacks on UN school and power plant are likely war crimes,” the attack on GPP constitutes a “collective punishment of Gaza’s population,” which caused disruption to the water and waste-water situation, and strained the already fragile condition of health services due to the closure of hospitals and primary health centres. Israel had targeted the same electricity plan during assaults in 2006 and 2008-09.
The destruction of GPP led to the shutdown of water treatment plants, and Israeli tank fire put Gaza’s largest sewage treatment plant out of commission. Raw, untreated sewage coming from underground sewage pipes, destroyed by bombardment, created concerns for disease as, on occasions, it created trails of raw, untreated sewage draining in to the Mediterranean Sea. This resulted in a reduced catch for fishermen, and increased concerns for spreading of disease, not only from the sewage water directly, but also from consuming the fish from contaminated water.
An Oxfam report estimated that 15,000 tons of solid waste had leaked into the streets of Gaza. The United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs report entitled “Gaza Emergency Situation Report” observes: “The GPP remains inoperable following an Israeli airstrike on July 29 and despite extensive repairs, electricity outages of 18 hours a day continue in most areas across Gaza. Extensive damage to the water and waste-water system means that 20% to 30% of households, or 450,000 people, remain unable to access municipal water due to damage and/or low pressure.”
The illegal blockade of Gaza by Israel makes re-construction efforts all the more difficult. Palestinian Housing Minister Mufid al-Hasayneh laid the first brick, as part of re-construction, on July 22 this year, more than a year after the bombings started. It is time that the international community does not let Israel get away with impunity after committing crimes like this. We should pressurise to build public opinion to force Israel to pay for re-construction efforts in Gaza, which would at least mean that the next time they embark on what they call “mowing the grass,” they will incorporate this cost.
