This is a locator map of Israel and the Palestinian Territories. (AP Photo)
Updated 6:16 AM EDT, October 20, 2024DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes on multiple homes in the northern Gaza Strip overnight and into Sunday left at least 87 people dead or missing, the territory’s Health Ministry said.
It said another 40 people were wounded in the strikes on the town of Beit Lahiya, which was among the first targets of Israel’s ground invasion nearly a year ago.
The strikes came as the United States is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel’s plans to attack Iran, according to three U.S. officials. A fourth U.S. official said the documents appear to be legitimate.
The documents, attributed to the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency and marked top secret, indicate that Israel was moving military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Oct. 1.
The U.S. officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
The U.S. is urging Israel to press for a cease-fire in Gaza following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar last week. But neither Israel nor Hamas has shown any renewed interest in such a deal, after months of negotiations sputtered to a halt in August.
While the US tried to blame Hamas for the failed talks it was widely reported that Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu kept sabotaging the negotiations with last minute insists and poison demands that he knew Hamas couldn’t agree to no matter what. In fact some news reporting is so bias and slanted you would think it was written by Israel’s government ministers. Hugs
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I will say I do recall reading that it was not Hamas, it was Netanyahu; something about a word or two in the hostage release business, or some thing. I’m working from recollection. So, I think at the times this happened, reporting was more accurate, but maybe by the time it hit the airwaves, it’d been “sanitized?” That’s part of why I don’t watch the news; I read it. I will also say that every time Hamas was not the one who stopped the ceasefire agreements, reportage always reminded us it was Hamas who got this all started on 10/7 of last year. So I can see where many people believe it’s all on Hamas; it’s all too tough to think about, so they grab a point and hang on it.
And of course, this has been happening all along for generations.
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Hi Ali. That is what I was saying. The US state department Sec Blinken constantly kept blaming Hamas and saying Hamas needed to come to the table, make concessions, and accept the Israeli plan. But the Israeli plan was not a real cease fire only a two week pause where all hostages would be released and then the war would start again. That was one Israeli request. Another was all Hamas surrender to Israel or commit suicide. They were unreasonable demands. Things like two thirds of Gaza would revert to Israel and the rest of Gaza had to be under Israeli control forever. No two-state solution, no independence which is what Hamas is fighting for. Hugs.
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Which is what Hamas is terrorizing people for. They are not an honorable war-fighting entity; they are terrorists. They bring more trouble onto Gaza and Gazans that Israel does, Hamas just uses Israel to do the dirty work. I’m not saying Israel is honorable in this scene, either, just saying, Hamas is terrorizing people because they get paid to, and they get kicks from it. This would be better if Netanyahu and his warhawk crew and Hamas went after each other in an unpopulated area, and leave the citizenry alone.
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Hi Ali. You and I disagree on this. I am sorry I keep hearing by Israeli supporter who say this could end if Hamas would just surrender. This same person says Israeli has been super careful not to target civilians and has not harmed many. Ben Shapiro. However It could also end if Israel would only stop oppressing the Palestinians. It is illegal under international law and US law to target civilians, but the Israeli government says that all Palestinians are Hamas so there are no civilian casualties. Not even children.
The Palestinians in Gaza and to a large extent the West Bank are in an open air prison, but it is a prison with only death as an escape. Is it wrong for oppressed people who are to the point where they have no control over their lives, every aspect is controlled by a foreign government that wants your land, where people of that government can just come and destroy your stuff, your crops, harm your families, or simply take all you have away from you backed by the foreign governments military. That foreign government routinely takes and tortures your children keeping them for years under no charges and refusing to tell you where they are. Would we have faulted the black southern slaves who fought back? Would we have faulted the colonist who fought a guerilla war against a King of a foreign country because they couldn’t win fighting the traditional way? They started the US. Would you fault the black South Africans who took up arms and bombings to try to win freedom in Apartheid South Africa? I could list many examples.
The fact is a third of the causalities that Israel suffered on the Hamas attacks were military and some of the civilians were killed not by Hamas but by the IDF themselves in their panicked response. The Israelis got their pound of flesh and a hell of a lot more. They don’t see the Palestinians as people and have not for a long time, they see them the same way southern whites seen blacks in the days of chattel slavery. The religious government of Israel has long hammered that the Palestinians are not people, they learned from Hitler how to demonize the enemy. They demand the land their god gave them in the bible which includes in their mind not only Gaza and the West Banks, but also some of Egypt and the surrounding states belong to Israel. That is what this is about. Gaining the greater Israel promised by their god, and wiping all the others from the land. Then they will really turn into a Jewish theocracy on the mold of Iran or other Muslim theocracies turning on secular Jewish people in the country. Hugs.
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I have a hard time believing that you and I disagree that Hamas are terrorists, which is all I said. I did not say anything about the rest. I’ve been pretty clear that I do not support Israel in this business of taking away Palestine from Palestinians ever in any way.
Hamas does not represent Palestinians. I’ve watched this stuff since 1967. We got far fewer hours but much better news then, and far less opinion masquerading as news. I know that the Palestinians, not Hamas but little boys, threw rocks at Israeli soldiers, and the soldiers shot back; that that happened on a regular basis and progressed to the soldiers going in to destroy Palestinian homes and crops, and that was well before things got to the pass where we are. I really don’t think we disagree about the facts of these things. It’s the painting of people with broad brushes that I have a hard time with. Words mean things, as we all know, if from nothing else but 1/6/21. We here are better than that, I believe.
Hamas are terrorists, plain and simple. Netanyahu is also commanding terrorist action. I don’t think we disagree on these facts.
But I could be wrong! Hugs back.
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Hi Ali. I agree that our government views Hamas as a terrorist organization and that they employ terrorist type actions. However one person’s terrorist is another person’s freedom fighter. Would it surprise you to know the founding fathers of Israel and all their leaders for generations were on terrorist watch lists? Yes they were known terrorist in some countries, but freedom fighters to the Jewish nation. And yes Hamas does represent the Palestinians. When Israel denies food and water, Hamas gets it from Egypt for the people. In Gaza Hamas was the governing body. The Palestinian Authority has almost no authority or power anymore in Gaza. The fact is hate breeds hate. The idea that Israel can wipe out Hamas by killing the very people of Gaza only creates more Hamas members. Every child who sees their family killed is now going to join Hamas, every father who watched his child die is now going to join Hamas. After Israel invaded and started their slaughter of civilians and children support for Hamas grew by leaps and bounds. If the only one you have fighting for you is Saddam Hussein then you become a supporter of him no matter how much of a monster he is. Hugs
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Starting at the top, OK, no. It doesn’t surprise me to read that, if only because I’ve read you writing it before.😄 But I know about the terrorist list, and also about war crimes and who all stands accused of same.
I am not supporting Israel, other than, I guess, nobody’s got a right to just bomb in there. No matter who’s hurt or if no one is hurt, that should not happen. Not only should it not happen in Israel, but Palestinians should be able to keep their property, use their lands and waters to nurture their crops, and be as able to raise their kids as anybody else.
Hamas is not these people, nor is Netanyahu, nor Netanyahu’s posse. They are people who are different from the general citizenry in the area, along with the Russian and Iranian funders of BS in that area on both sides. And they’re all bad at being people, IMO.
The only time I know what Ben Shapiro’s said is if I read about it somewhere where he’s being made fun of.
I’m not arguing with you, or your information, I’m just explaining where I am on this. As I said, I’ve paid attention to this since 1967. I also pay attention to Sudan and Yemen and Ukraine. And I also don’t believe we disagree on humanity. Freedom fighters don’t kill people, unless they’re in danger of being killed. This business of marching into places, or shooting into places, or anything else into places that aren’t doing that first is wrong, and freedom fighters don’t do that. They follow laws and mores.
I’m having one devil of a time being clear today, and whenever that happens, I end up using yet more words to say the same thing, but I can’t get it across. Sort of like having that word on the tip of your tongue, and not being able to say it. So, I hope you’re taking this as the simple discussion I intend, and nothing hurtful. I’ve re-read and don’t see anything hurtful, but if I did, please do not hesitate to let me know, OK?
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Hi Ali. Relax. I understand what you are trying to say. We do agree on some of it and disagree with each other on other parts, and I did not do it well. So I also am lacking at being clear which I apologize for.
So in an attempt to be clear about Hamas, they are the legal representative government of Gaza. In lashing out at Israel and doing the same things to Israeli citizens that the Israeli government is doing to their citizens is not only appropriate but necessary to stop the indiscriminate targeting of innocent people by both sides. In my opinion.
Hamas became the government in Gaza because in 2006 after Israel pulled out of Gaza an election was held and Hamas won by a large margin and has only grown stronger with the people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Palestinian_legislative_election
I agree with you that it is horrible that civilians get targeted, and innocents get killed or harmed. But here is where we differ.
If one side is doing it with impunity, such as the Israelis or the Russians in Ukraine then it is proper that the attacked side whose civilians, children, and civilian infrastructure get to visit that same harm on the aggressors. Otherwise it won’t ever stop but only get worse as it has in Gaza and the West bank. If only one side is always the side hurt why would the non hurting side give a shit about the hurt people?
It is like the bratty school yard kid who gets to be horrible to all the other kids because his older brother won’t let any of the other kids kick his ass once. The brat gets worse and worse and does to others what ever he wants, and others always pay the price. Time for the brat to get his own medicine to show him how bad what he is doing really is and how it feels. This is my opinion.
As much as I hate to say it but when the hell spawn were young teens raping, beating, and pissing on me or passing me to their friends … if it had happened once or twice to them would they have kept doing it for my entire childhood? Maybe they would have realized how horrible for me it was if they had felt it just once. Again my opinion. Hugs
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