The current situation in the Gaza strip has exposed lies of past IDF Gaza operations. What is happening in Gaza is nothing new, it is just being done more openly and on a larger scale.
After Operation Cast Lead in 2008-2009, the IDF received a heavy blow from the UN Goldstone report. Subsequent UN reports (like for Operation Protective Edge, 2014) would not be as harsh for a variety of political reasons. This article will examine the Goldstone report and subsequent UN reports. An analysis of behavior from Operation Cast Lead, Protective Edge and the current genocide will be compared.
It all forms a pattern of behavior that, when viewed objectively, leaves little doubt of the depraved nature of the IDF. This pattern dispels the notion that there is any ambiguity as to the intentions of the IDF, genocide.
1. The Goldstone Report-
The Goldstone report was a harsh criticism of the IDF after operation Cast Lead in 2008-2009. Richard Goldstone headed the report, former judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and former Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. He was also a dedicated Zionist. The report is widely considered largely untrue and biased by proponents of Israel, but events in 2014 and 2023-2024 vindicate it.
"...the Mission also notes factors that significantly undermined the effectiveness of the warnings issued. These include the lack of specificity and thus credibility of many pre-recorded phone messages and leaflets. The credibility of instructions to move to city centres for safety was also diminished by the fact that the city centres themselves had been the subject of intense attacks..."
"...the fact that a warning was issued does not relieve commanders and their subordinates of taking all other feasible measures to distinguish between civilians and combatants...."
"On 15 January 2009, the field office compound of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza City came under shelling with high explosive and white phosphorous munitions...The Israeli armed forces continued their attack over several hours despite having been fully alerted to the risks they created."
"The Mission also finds that, on the same day, the Israeli armed forces directly and intentionally attacked al-Quds hospital in Gaza City and the adjacent ambulance depot with white phosphorous shells."
"The Mission also examined the intense artillery attacks, again including white phosphorous munitions, on al-Wafa hospital in eastern Gaza City...the Mission found a violation of the prohibition of attacks on civilian hospitals in both cases."
"The Mission examined the mortar shelling of al-Fakhura junction in Jabaliyah next to a UNRWA school, which, at the time, was sheltering more than 1,300 people (chap. X). The Israeli armed forces launched at least four mortar shells. One landed in the courtyard of a family home, killing 11 people assembled there. Three other shells landed on al-Fakhura Street, killing at least a further 24 people and injuring as many as 40."
"...alleging that the attack was launched in response to a mortar attack from an armed Palestinian group. While the Mission does not exclude that this may have been the case, it considers the credibility of Israel’s position damaged by the series of inconsistencies, contradictions and factual inaccuracies in the statements..."
"The following group of seven incidents concern the shooting of civilians while they were trying to leave their homes to walk to a safer place, waving white flags and, in some of the cases, following an injunction from the Israeli forces to do so."
"...they must have been aware of their civilian status."
"...the consequences of the Israeli attacks against civilians were aggravated by their subsequent refusal to allow the evacuation of the wounded or to permit access to ambulances."
"These incidents indicate that the instructions given to the Israeli armed forces moving into Gaza provided for a low threshold for the use of lethal fire against the civilian population. The Mission found strong corroboration of this trend in the testimonies of Israeli soldiers collected in two publications it reviewed."
"...a mosque was targeted with a missile during early evening prayers, resulting in the death of 15 people..."
"...el-Bader flour mill was the only flour mill in the Gaza Strip still operating. The flour mill was hit by a series of air strikes on 9 January 2009...the precise targeting of crucial machinery, suggests that the intention was to disable the factory’s productive capacity."
"The chicken farms of Mr. Sameh Sawafeary in the Zeytoun neighbourhood south of Gaza City reportedly supplied over 10 per cent of the Gaza egg market. Armoured bulldozers of the Israeli armed forces systematically flattened the chicken coops, killing all 31,000 chickens..."
"...a strike against a wall of one of the raw sewage lagoons of the Gaza wastewater treatment plant, which caused the outflow of more than 200,000 cubic metres of raw sewage onto neighbouring farmland. The circumstances of the strike suggest that it was deliberate and premeditated."
"The Namar wells complex in Jabaliyah consisted of two water wells, pumping machines, a generator, fuel storage, a reservoir chlorination unit, buildings and related equipment. All were destroyed by multiple air strikes on the first day of the Israeli aerial attack. The Mission considers it unlikely that a target the size of the Namar wells could have been hit by multiple strikes in error."
"...the Israeli armed forces engaged in another wave of systematic destruction of civilian buildings during the last three days of their presence in Gaza, aware of their imminent withdrawal."
"The Mission investigated four incidents in which the Israeli armed forces coerced Palestinian civilian men at gunpoint to take part in house searches during the military operations (chap. XIV). The men were blindfolded and handcuffed as they were forced to enter houses ahead of the Israeli soldiers. Published testimonies of Israeli soldiers who took part in the military operations confirm the continuation of this practice...The Mission concludes that this practice amounts to the use of Palestinian civilians as human shields..."
"Israeli armed forces rounded up large numbers of civilians and detained them in houses and open spaces in Gaza and, in the case of many Palestinian men, also took them to detention facilities in Israel."
"Civilians, including women and children, were detained in degrading conditions, deprived of food, water and access to sanitary facilities, and exposed to the elements in January without any shelter. The men were handcuffed, blindfolded and repeatedly made to strip, sometimes naked, at different stages of their detention."
"Israeli troops had dug out sandpits in which Palestinian men, women and children were detained. Israeli tanks and artillery positions were located inside the sandpits and around them and fired from next to the detainees."
"The tactics used by the Israeli armed forces in the Gaza offensive are consistent with previous practices, most recently during the Lebanon war in 2006. A concept known as the Dahiya doctrine emerged then, involving the application of disproportionate force and the causing of great damage and destruction to civilian property and infrastructure, and suffering to civilian populations."
"...as at 1 June 2009, there were approximately 8,100 Palestinian “political prisoners” in detention in Israel, including 60 women and 390 children...due process rights for Palestinians are severely limited."
"The ICRC Family Visits Programme in the Gaza Strip was suspended in 2007, barring all means of communication between Gazan prisoners and the outside world."
"During the Israeli military operations in Gaza, the number of children detained by Israel was higher than in the same period in 2008. Many children were reportedly arrested on the street and/or during demonstrations in the West Bank. The number of child detainees continued to be high in the months following the end of the operations, accompanied by reports of abuses by Israeli security forces."
"The element of discrimination and differential treatment between Palestinian and Jewish citizens of Israel by the judicial authorities, as indicated in the reports received, is a substantial cause for concern."
"The Government of Israel imposed a ban on media access to Gaza following 5 November 2008. Furthermore, access was denied to human rights organizations and the ban continues for some international and Israeli organizations."
"The Mission concludes that there are serious doubts about the willingness of Israel to carry out genuine investigations in an impartial, independent, prompt and effective way as required by international law."
Operation Protective Edge-
Launched in the summer of 2014, Protective Edge killed far more Palestinians than Cast Lead. However, political circumstances were such that the UN report was less harsh on Israel than the Goldstone report had been.
Over 100 2,000 pound bombs were dropped on the Shuja'iha neighborhood of Gaza alone. This is one of the most densely populated areas of Gaza. The same neighborhood was set on fire by the IDF in 2023, as filmed by a drone of the IDF with commentary from IDF soldiers.
Israel struck UN shelters during this operation. It claimed it was a mistake. Copious footage has been posted by IDF soldiers in 2023-2024 deliberately shooting at and even completely destroying UN facilities with anti-tank mines for fun.
Israel prevented Amnesty International from accessing Gaza during Protective edge. Amnesty compared Israel to authoritarian regimes that often do the same to hide war crimes.
Al-Wafa hospital was targeted by 8 tank shells, two missiles and thousands of bullets.
Al-Shifa hospital was alleged to be a Hamas base. Foreign surgeons working freely in the hospital refuted this claim. IDF claimes Hamas used Shifa to interrogate captives. No evidence of this was seen by the UN, journalists or NGOs. Shifa hospital was again targeted by two sieges by the IDF in 2023-2024. Reportedly, doctors and patients were fired on. After the IDF withdrew from the hospital the second time. many bodies of civilians were found in the courtyard. Many had been run over by tanks, many others had zip ties visible on their arms, indicating executions took place.
45 ambulances were targeted during protective edge.
22 schools were destroyed during protective edge. Many schools have been razed during 2023-2024.
UN schools that were targeted were not being used by Hamas, as reported by the UN.
73 mosques were destroyed in protective edge. The Goldstone report investigated an intentional attack on a mosque, which to some at the time seemed outlandish. Today it is an undeniable fact, as numerous videos posted by IDF soldiers show the destruction and desecration of religious sites, often times for amusement.
IDF targeted Gaza's only power plant several times during Protective Edge.
"Breaking the Silence" and IDF veteran organization, confirmed that artillery was fired with reckless abandon inside Gaza.
After IDF soldier Hadar Goldin was captured by Hamas in Rafah, the entire area was leveled with artillery and air strikes. Even after forensic evidence indicated he was killed, the bombardment continued apparently as retribution. Vehicles and pedestrians were intentionally targeted in the area.
IDF soldiers statements indicated that destruction was seen as an "accomplishment."
In some cases the IDF warned people to stay in their homes, which were then bombed according to Amnesty International.
Four children were targeted on a beach in Gaza and killed during protective edge. This caused quite an outcry, and of course Israel claimed it mistook them for Hamas. We know now from copious photographic evidence that targeting civilians and even children is commonplace among IDF soldiers and seemingly tolerated or even encouraged by the high command.
A guided 500 pound bomb also targeted children on a roof during Protective Edge. A similar case happened in 2024 on video obtained by Al-Jazeera.
The UN report made the case that Israel targeted areas at times when the most civilians would be present. The UN report itself stated that targeting civilians may be part of a broader policy.
IDF testimonies recalled targeted random civilian homes after a soldier had been killed. A similar case occurred on an IDF soldier's video in 2024, 20 homes were detonated to avenge the death of 20 soldiers.
"Civilians holding white flags attempted to leave Khuza'a...IDF...opened fire on them...11 people were seriously injured." There are several cases on film of people being shot carrying white flags or otherwise surrendering during the Gaza Genocide of 2023-2024.
One person ( a 70 year old woman) was left behind by her family in a scramble to escape. The family returned days later to find her shot in the head. A similar case happened in 2024 where a 94 year old woman was burned in her home by IDF soldiers.
The UN report accused Israel of collective punishment during Protective Edge.
The UN report for Protective Edge documented a case where a tank targeted civilians. The infamous "flour massacre" during the 2023-2024 genocide was a similar case.
"The IDF followed a pre-calculated pattern of wide spread razing of neighborhoods in certain areas." During the 2023-2024 genocide, razing was probably the most common war crime. Copious videos were posted by soldiers destroying mosques, schools, UN buildings, universities and whole blocks entirely.
The Beit Hanoun UNRWA school attack of 2014 has a lot of parallels to the World Central Kitchen aid worker strike of 2024. UNRWA had been in regular contact with the IDF and gave them the coordinates of the school on 12 occasions. It was struck anyway. The same case occurred for the Jabalia school. UNRWA notified the IDF of the school's location 28 times, and the IDF confirmed they received the information. UNRWA had also been in steady contact by email and telephone. That didn't stop the school from being shelled by four 155mm shells. The IDF's disdain for UNRWA is now clear. Copious footage of firing on UNRWA buildings has come to light in the 2023-2024 genocide, apparently for fun.
The IDF was well aware of the location of UNRWA in 2014, and they likewise were well aware of WCK aid workers when they were bombed three times, murdering 7. the IDF claimed it was a mistake, but an obvious pattern emerges.
The UN report for protective edge documents the death of 23 health care workers. That pales in comparison to the events of 2023-2024.
Ambulance movements were coordinated with the IDF during Protective Edge, however in several cases they were struck anyway. This again goes back to striking clearly marked vehicles (like the WCK aid truck in 2024) which could not have been mistaken for anything else.
The UN report stated that Israel could not be trusted to conduct and internal review of its crimes.
The report pondered in the massive destruction of Gaza during protective edge had been approved by the highest levels of government. Based on statements made during the 2023-2024 events this now seems very likely.
Israeli officials predicted in 2016 that the next war with Gaza would be the last. "The next conflict has to be the last conflict." They had already decided on genocide before the events of October 7th, 2023. It is evident that a genocide is taking place. Furthermore, the Goldstone report has been vindicated by recent events proving its, at the time, hard to swallow allegations.
The 2023-2024 events are almost certainly genocidal in nature. Razing of mosques, cemeteries, churches, UN facilities, schools and colleges cannot be written of as anything else. Combine this with obvious targeting of civilians and a massive campaign of forced displacement within the Gaza strip. Genocidal statements have been made at all levels. References to "Amalek" run rampant among the IDF in regards to Gaza.
Executions, torture, destruction and humiliation are the tactics of the IDF. It is their official/unofficial policy. The above reports and current events prove this (to the author at least) beyond a shadow of a doubt.
A genocide is unfolding and Western governments are complicit with their continued supply of weapons after numerous war crimes committed. The "most moral army in the world" must be stopped and those responsible for war crimes tried in the Hague.
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