Jump to content

2014 Gaza War

Coordinates: 30°40′N 34°50′E / 30.667°N 34.833°E / 30.667; 34.833
Page extended-protected
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Renamed user Sloane (talk | contribs) at 19:27, 30 July 2014 (→Violations of international humanitarian law). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

2014 Israel–Gaza conflict
Part of the Gaza–Israel conflict

(left) Iron Dome shooting down a rocket from Gaza
(right) A bombed Palestinian home
Date8 July 2014 (2014-07-08) – present
(10 years, 5 months and 4 days)
Location
State of Palestine Palestine (Gaza Strip)
Israel Israel
30°40′N 34°50′E / 30.667°N 34.833°E / 30.667; 34.833
Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Israel Israel Defense Forces

State of Palestine Palestinian insurgent groups

Commanders and leaders
Benjamin Netanyahu
Prime Minister
Moshe Ya'alon
Defense Minister
Benny Gantz
Chief of General Staff
Amir Eshel
Air Force Commander
Ram Rothberg
Naval Commander
Sami Turgeman
Southern Commander
Mickey Edelstein
Gaza Division
Yoram Cohen
Chief of Shin Bet		 Khaled Mashal
Leader of Hamas
Ismail Haniyeh
Deputy chief of Hamas
Mohammed Deif
Head of Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
Ramadan Shalah
Leader of PIJ
Units involved
Israel Defense Forces
Shin Bet		 Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades
Al-Quds Brigades
Al-Nasser Salah al-Deen Brigades
Strength

176,500 active personnel[2]

445,000 reservists[2]		 10,000 (Al Qassam Brigades)[3]
Casualties and losses

Israel:
56 soldiers,[4] 2 civilians* and 1 Thai worker killed;[5] 140 soldiers and 23 civilians wounded[6]

Hamas:
110 soldiers killed[7] and 1 captured[8]

Gaza Health Ministry: 1,325 killed[9] and 7,200 wounded[10]

PCHR: 1,167 killed (976 civilians)[11]

UN OCHA: 1,118 killed (827 civilians, 180 militants, 110 unknown)[5]

ITIC: 1,031 killed (327 civilians, 328 militants, 376 unknown)[12]

IDF: 335 militants killed[13][14][15] and 98 captured[16]
  • One additional Israeli civilian died due to natural causes brought on by the conflict.[17]

An escalation of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict began in 2014 following a series of events. Those events included the collapse of American-sponsored peace talks, attempts by rival Palestinian factions to form a coalition government, the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers, the subsequent kidnapping and murder of a Palestinian teenager, and increased rocket attacks on Israel by Hamas militants in response to an extensive crackdown by Israeli troops on Hamas in the West Bank.[18] On 8 July 2014, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip.[19]

Following the kidnapping and murders of three Israeli teenagers in mid-June 2014, the IDF initiated Operation Brother's Keeper in search of them.[20] During the operation, in the following 11 days Israel's military killed five to ten Palestinians,[21][22][23] and arrested between 350 and 600 Palestinians,[21][24][25][26] including nearly all of Hamas' West Bank leaders.[27][28][29]

On the night of 6 July, an Israeli strike killed seven Hamas militants.[30] In response, Hamas' militants increased rocket attacks on Israel.[31] By 7 July, Hamas militants had fired 100 rockets from Gaza at Israeli territory and the Israeli Air Force had bombed several sites in Gaza.[32][33][34] Early on 8 July IAF bombed 50 targets in the Gaza Strip.[35] Israel's military thwarted a militant infiltration from the sea.[36] That same day, Hamas declared that "all Israelis" had become "legitimate targets"[37][38] and insisted that Israel end all attacks on Gaza, release those re-arrested during the crackdown in the West Bank, lift the blockade on Gaza and return to the cease-fire conditions of 2012 as conditions for a ceasefire.[39]

On 13 July the Israeli military reported that more than 1,300 Israeli attacks had taken place, while more than 800 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel.[40] The next day, 14 July, Egypt announced a cease-fire initiative. The Israeli government declared acceptance for the proposal, and temporarily stopped hostilities in the morning of 15 July. However, all Palestinian factions announced they had not been consulted on the reported Egyptian initiative and were informed of the supposed proposal via the media, including Palestinian President Abbas.[41] Hamas rejected it in "its current form", as did other Palestinian factions.[41][42] On 16 July, Hamas and Islamic Jihad offered Israel a 10-year truce, with ten conditions, mostly centered on ending the blockade.[43]

The conflict is the deadliest military operation to have taken place in Gaza since the Gaza War of 2008–09.[44] According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 1,325 Palestinians were killed[9] and 7,200 were injured.[10] Among the dead were 251 children, 93 women, and 50 elderly.[45] The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that, as of 29 July, 827 of those killed were civilians, of whom 374 were women or children.[5] OCHA's spokesman said "There is literally no safe place for civilians" in Gaza.[46] 56 IDF soldiers have been killed,[4] as well as two Israeli civilians and a Thai worker.[5] The Israel Defense Forces has accused Hamas of using civilians as "human shields";[13] an allegation based on a number of rockets that were found in a vacant UN school,[47] but which has been denied by Hamas.[48] 44% of the territory of the Gaza Strip has been declared a a no-go zone by the Israeli military.[49]

According to OCHA, as of 29 July 2014 in the Gaza Strip, over 240,000 Palestinians have been displaced of which 200,400 are taking shelter in 85 UNRWA schools (over eleven percent of the Gazan population). UNRWA has exhausted its capacity to absorb displaced persons, and overcrowding in shelters risks the outbreak of epidemics. 1.2 million people have no access or very limited access to water or sanitation, 133 schools and 23 health facilities have been damaged, 4,025 housing units have been destroyed or severely damaged rendering them uninhabitable; 4,565 housing units have been damaged but are still inhabitable. 80% of Gazans receive only 2 hours of electricity per day. The destruction of Gaza’s only power plant is expected to have a further deteriorating impact on the availability of food and access to basic services.[50][51]

Background

Main article: Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Street in Ramallah, Palestine after IDF raid during Operation Brother's Keeper, June 2014
Factory bursts in flames after rocket attack in Sderot, Israel, 28 June 2014

Following Israeli threats regarding Fatah-Hamas reconciliation efforts during April 2014,[52][53] the pattern of relative calm since late 2012 changed abruptly. On 15 May two unarmed Palestinian teenagers were killed, one by live ammunition,[54] by the IDF during the Nakba day commemorations, and video evidence revealed that they had posed no threat at the time; The IDF, however, denied any relation to such event and even claimed the video might be a forgery.[55]

On 22 May, the UN released a report detailing a sharp increase in Palestinian casualties during the last year and a half,[56] and the same pattern continued through June.[57] Soon after, the abduction and murder of three Israeli teenagers took place on 12 June.[58]

Prime Minister Netanyahu immediately blamed Hamas, of which the two kidnappers were known members.[59][60] No evidence of Hamas involvement was forthcoming.[61] Hamas leaders denied any involvement.[26] The group's political chief, Khaled Meshal, claimed to have no new information but did congratulate the abductors.[62] Further, the alleged murderers belong to the Qawasameh clan which is notorious for acting against Hamas's policies and any attempts to reach an entente with Israel.[63] Israel launched Operation Brother's Keeper, a large-scale crackdown of what it called Hamas's terrorist infrastructure and personnel in the West Bank, ostensibly aimed at securing the release of the kidnapped teenagers. 10 Palestinians died in numerous raids, and several hundred senior figures and Hamas representatives were arrested,[64][65][66] among them many of those recently freed under the terms of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange.

On 30 June, search teams found the bodies of the three missing teenagers near Hebron.[67][68] Israeli authorities appear to have known almost from the outset that the three had been shot almost immediately after the kidnapping,[58][69][70][71] and according to BBC reporter Jon Donnison, Micky Rosenfeld told him anonymously that Israel police are working on the assumption that the abductors were a lone cell operating independently of the Hamas leadership, although this claim has not been verified.[72] Al-Monitor has reported that the kidnappers were once Hamas-related branch that had gone rogue.[63]

Violations of the truce reached in 2012

Both sides have argued that the other side violated the ceasefire agreement from November 2012. In the first three months after the IDF Operation Pillar of Defense, according to Ben White, two mortar shells struck Israeli territory, while four Gazans were shot dead and 91 wounded by Israeli forces. The Israelis, White wrote, fired inside Gazan territory on 63 occasions, made 13 incursions into the Strip, and attacked the Gazan fishing fleet 30 times.[73]

According to the Middle East Monitor, in the year following the truce, Israel violated the cease-fire nearly 120 times.[74]

Operation timeline

Main article: Timeline of the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict
House in Beersheba, Israel, after a direct hit by a rocket during the fourth day of the operation, 11 July 2014
  • From 8 to 16 July, the IDF bombarded targets in the Gaza Strip with artillery and airstrikes. Meanwhile, Hamas continued to fire rockets and mortar shells into Israel, many of which were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome air defense system. By 16 July, the death toll within Gaza had surpassed 200 people.[75]
  • On 17 July, a five-hour humanitarian ceasefire, proposed by the UN, took place. After the ceasefire, IDF began a ground offensive on the Gaza Strip. Initially, the focus of the ground operation was on destroying tunnels near the edge of the enclave. The tunnels were used by militants to transport people and materials.
  • On 20 July, the Israeli military entered Shuja'iyya, a neighborhood of Gaza City. This was followed by heavy fighting in the neighborhood.
  • On 24 July, over 10,000 Palestinians in the West Bank protested against the operation, resulting in at least 2 Palestinian deaths.[76]
  • On 25 July, an Israeli airstrike killed Salah Abu Hassanein, the leader of Islamic Jihad's military wing.[77]
  • On 26 July, another humanitarian ceasefire took place for twelve hours,[78] followed by a unilateral extension by Israel for another twenty-four hours.[79] The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip topped 1,000.[80]

Impact

Impact on residents

As of 20 July 2014 hospitals in Gaza were ill-equipped and facing severe shortage of various categories of medicine, medical supplies, and fuel.[81] Egypt temporarily reopened the Rafah crossing with Gaza to allow medical supplies to enter, and injured Palestinians to receive treatment in Egypt.[82] Also, due to the operation prices of food, including fish and produce, rose dramatically.[83] A 21 July news report stated that over 83,000 Palestinians had taken shelter in U.N. facilities.[84]

A young Palestinian man who was wounded in an Israeli air strike, 8 July 2014

At the onset of the operation, the Israeli government canceled all programs within 40 km (24 miles) of Gaza, and requested all people stay at home or near shelter. All summer camps were closed and universities canceled their final exams.[85] Additionally, all gatherings of 300 or more people were banned.[86] Due to the trajectory of rocket fire from Gaza, many flights in and out of Ben-Gurion Airport were delayed or rerouted.[87] Hamas said: "This is a great victory for us."[88]

According to the United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), as of 29 July 2014 in the Gaza Strip, over 240,000 Palestinians have been displaced, of which 200,400 are taking shelter in 85 UNRWA schools (over eleven percent of the Gazan population). UNRWA has exhausted its capacity to absorb displaced persons, and overcrowding in shelters risks the outbreak of epidemics. 1.2 million people have no access or very limited access to water or sanitation, 133 schools and 23 health facilities have been damaged, 4,025 housing units have been destroyed or severely damaged rendering them uninhabitable, 4,565 housing units have been damaged but are still inhabitable and 80% of people receive only 2 hours of electricity per day. OCHA estimated that at least 125,000 children from families who have "experienced death, injury or loss of home over the past thirteen days" require psychosocial support. With many families in safe havens facing "[i]ntense overcrowding", access to basic services such as access to water has become a struggle, with some individuals having "as little as three liters per capita per day". The destruction of Gaza’s only power plant is expected to have a further deteriorating impact on the availability of food and access to basic services.[50][89][51] [50]

Casualties and losses

Palestinian

Further information: List of Israeli strikes and Palestinian casualties in Operation Protective Edge
File:Massacre in Shuja'iyya 20.07.2014.mp4 snapshot 04.32.jpg
Shuja'iyya Incident (2014), 20 July 2014

Number of Palestinians killed in Gaza, per various sources:

Source Total Killed Civilians Killed Combatants Killed Unidentified Killed Last Updated
Gaza Health Ministry 1,325 - - - 30 July[9]
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights 1,167 976 191 - 29 July[11]
United Nations 1,118 827 180 110 29 July[5]
Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Center 1,031 327 328 376 29 July[12]
Israel Defense Forces - - 330 - 25 July[13][14]

According to Gaza's Health Ministry, thus far 1,325 Palestinians have been killed.[9] According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 74% of those killed were civilians.[5] 7,200 have been wounded as of 29 July 2014 according to Gazan medical officials.[10] According to data provided by the Palestinian Health Ministry, 79.7 percent of the Palestinians killed in Gaza are male, with the majority between sixteen and thirty-five.[90]

Over 240,000 people have been displaced who have taken refugee in UNRWA schools. 133 schools and 23 medical facilities were damaged.[5] In addition, over 3,000 homes have been partially destroyed by the air strikes.[91] The IDF has estimated that about 30%-40% of the rockets stockpiled by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups has been wiped out.[92]

According to the Israeli Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Center, as of 29 July 2014, 328 "terrorist operatives", 327 civilians, and 376 unidentified Palestinians have been killed in Gaza.[12] While the Israel-Gaza fighting has gone on, solidarity protests in the West Bank have sporadically occurred as well with violence throughout them, a total of 11 Palestinians dying over the 22–26 July period.[93]

On July 30, some Israeli and Palestinian[citation needed] media outlets reported that thirty civilians from various areas of Gaza had been accused of collaboration with Israel and summarily executed. As well, approximately twenty civilians from Shejaia were alleged to have been killed during a political protest against Hamas blaming them for the massive destruction inflicted on their neighborhood.[94]

Israeli

Further information: List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, 2014

Since the start of the conflict, 56 IDF soldiers have been killed,[4] as well as two Israeli civilians and a Thai worker.[5] One person also died due to natural causes brought on by the conflict.[17]

Rocket attacks from Gaza have caused damage to Israeli civilian infrastructure, including factories, gas stations, and homes.[95] According to Magen David Adom there have been injuries to 123 people: 1 seriously, 21 moderately to lightly and 101 from shock.[96]

The first Israeli civilian death occurred at the Erez border crossing with Gaza when a Chabad rabbi, delivering food and drinks on the frontline,[97] was hit by mortar fire.[98] The second Israeli civilian killed was a 32-year-old Bedouin Ouda Lafi al-Waj, who was hit by a rocket in the Negev Desert.[99] A Thai migrant worker was also killed by mortar fire while working at a greenhouse in the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council.[100] In addition, an elderly woman in Wadi Nisnas collapsed and died of heart failure during an air-raid siren.[17]

Hamas repeatedly claimed much higher numbers of IDF's casualties, currently standing at 110[101][102]

The IDF stated that as of 21 July more than 2,000 rockets have been fired at Israel since the start of the operation.[84]

Financial impact

Israel's Minister of Finance estimated that the operation would cost NIS 8.5 billion (approximately 2.5 billion USD), which is similar to Operation Cast Lead in 2009 and higher than Operation Pillar of Defense in 2012. The forecast included military and non-military costs, including military expenditure and property damage. The calculation indicates that if the operation lasts 20 days, the loss in GDP will be 0.4%.[103]

A number of tunnels leading into both Israel and Egypt have been destroyed throughout the operation. There are claims that the tunnels between Gaza and Egypt were bringing in an estimated $700 million into Gaza's economy through goods or services. Several Palestinians have argued that these tunnels have been critical to supporting the residents either through the employment they provide or through they goods that they have shipped that are otherwise not available in Gaza.[104] Tunnels between Gaza and Israel serve a purely military purpose.[105]

Reactions of the Commercial Aviation Community

Further information: 2014 Ben Gurion Airport flight bans

The United States State Department on the 21st of July advised U.S. citizens to "consider the deferral of non-essential travel to Israel" in consideration of the firing of rockets into different parts of Israel including cities.[106][107] On the 22th of July, after a rocket landed about a mile from Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told U.S. airlines that they are prohibited from flying to or from the airport for up to 24 hours.[108] The FAA cited "the potentially hazardous situation created by the armed conflict in Israel and Gaza."[109] The European Aviation Safety Agency stated that it "strongly recommends" that airlines do not fly into or out of the Tel Aviv airport. On the 23rd of July the FAA extended its prohibition another 24 hours.[110]

Shortly after the FAA announcement, Israeli Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz stated that Ben Gurion Airport was safe for take-offs and landings, and that there was no security concern for passenger planes.[111] Israel previously stated that the Iron Dome has successfully intercepted "about 90% of rockets headed toward populated or strategic areas".[111] Israel's Civil Aviation Authority wrote a document which said that Israel is taking efforts to avoid commercial airline cancellations of flights going into Ben Gurion Airport. It submitted the document to Transportation Minister Katz, indicating that the airport was safe for landings and departures.[112]

In response to the cancellations, Israel offered to open Ovda airport (near Eilat) to international flights, due to its distance from Gaza.[113][114] There was crowding and chaos at the airport after it opened; 5,000 people were expected to pass through the airport on 24 July.

El Al followed these announcements by stating under no circumstances are they canceling any flights.[111] From 23–24 July, both the FAA[115] and the EASA[116] lifted the ban on the flights to Israel.

Reactions

Main article: Reactions to the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict
Pro-Israel demonstration in Helsinki, Finland.

The conflict has received reactions from both states and organizations, some supporting Israel's actions, some condemning it, and others condemning both Israel and Hamas and urged to stop violence. Meanwhile, majority of Israelis support the Operation Protective Edge.[117][118]

Protests in Israel and the West Bank

Demonstration against Operation Protective Edge by Arab Israeli and Political left Israeli youth in Tel Aviv, Israel.

On July 21, the main commercial street in Nazareth was shuttered, as residents and businesses joined a general strike and staged protests against the two-week-old Israeli offensive in Gaza. There have been other scattered protests elsewhere in Israel. Nearly 700 people were arrested after those protests, rights groups say, including 224 from East Jerusalem. Most were subsequently released, but some face charges.[119]

A poll by Gisha, an Israeli group that monitors Palestinian freedom of movement, showed more than a quarter of the 1.8 million people living in Gaza have relatives in the West Bank.[120]

On Thursday 24 July, more than 15,000 Palestinians marched from Ramallah towards Jerusalem and clashed with the Israeli army until the early hours of Friday, in the largest such demonstration in close to a decade. Israeli security closed Qalandia checkpoint earlier on Thursday to prevent protestors from crossing. Some Palestinians marched towards the checkpoint and hurled stones, shot live ammunition and threw Molotov cocktails at the IDF. The IDF used riot dispersal means that included tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition. At least one protester from Qalandiya refugee camp was killed and 265 people were injured, with five of them in critical condition.[121][122][123]

After clashes on Thursday, July 24, Palestinian factions in the West Bank declared Friday a "Day of Rage" [122][124] On Friday, clashes began during a demonstration which was held after the midday prayer at a local mosque. Hashem Abu Maria, 45, was shot in the chest. Abu Maria works at the Defense for Children International organization. Two more Palestinians were killed by IDF troops in subsequent clashes.[121] In a separate incident near another protest against the conflict in Gaza, a settler shot dead Khaled Azmi Odeh, 18, and wounded three others near Nablus. In the subsequent escalation the Border police fatally shot another Palestinian, Tayeb Shehadeh.[121]

Violations of international humanitarian law

Further information: International law and the Arab–Israeli conflict

A number of legal issues concerning the conflict have arisen during course of the fighting. Various human rights groups have argued that both Palestinian rocket attacks and Israeli targeted destruction of homes of Hamas and other militia members violate international humanitarian law and might constitute war crimes, violations of international humanitarian law.[125][126][127] Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, criticized Israel's military operation stating that there was "a strong possibility that international law has been violated, in a manner that could amount to war crimes". She specifically criticized Israel's actions in Gaza as disproportionate.[128] She also condemned indiscriminate rocket attacks by Palestinian armed groups. On July 23, the United Nations Human Rights Council voted to establish an inquiry into human rights violations.[129]

Civilian deaths

Many of those killed have been civilians, prompting concern from many humanitarian organisations. Amnesty International has stated that: "Israeli forces have carried out attacks that have killed hundreds of civilians, including through the use of precision weaponry such as drone-fired missiles, and attacks using munitions such as artillery, which cannot be precisely targeted, on very densely populated residential areas, such as Shuja’iyyeh. They have also directly attacked civilian objects"[130] Nine people were killed while watching the World Cup in a cafe,[131] and 8 members of a family died that Israel has said were inadvertently killed.[132]

The Israeli government has argued that many civilian casualties were the result of Hamas using the Gazan population as 'human shields' at alleged rocket launch targets.[133] As evidence of Israel's allegations that Hamas is using human shields, the IDF has pointed to the storage of weapons in schools, videos and photographs showing civilians on rooftops of buildings, and a video of Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri saying, "The fact that people are willing to sacrifice themselves against Israeli warplanes in order to protect their homes, I believe this strategy is proving itself".[134][135][136][137][138][139]

These allegation have been denied by Hamas officials and other figures, with Hamas leadership stating that civilians are safe essentially nowhere in Gaza.[84][84][48]

The BBC's Middle East editor, Jeremy Bowen, has written, "I saw no evidence during my week in Gaza of Israel's accusation that Hamas uses Palestinians as human shields."[140] Other journalists in Gaza have reported differently.[141] The assertions are also disputed by the Middle East and North Africa Director at Human Rights Watch, who said that "in most of the sites we investigated so far (in this conflict) we found no valid military targets".[134]

Amnesty International has reported in a statement that it "does not have evidence at this point that Palestinian civilians have been intentionally used by Hamas or Palestinian armed groups during the current hostilities to “shield” specific locations or military personnel or equipment from Israeli attacks". It has documented that Palestinian armed groups have stored munitions in and fired indiscriminate rockets from residential areas, in violation of international humanitarian law. However, it has additionally said that "public statements referring to entire areas are not the same as directing specific civilians to remain in their homes as “human shields” for fighters, munitions, or military equipment" and that "international humanitarian law is clear that even if officials or fighters from Hamas or Palestinian armed groups associated with other factions did in fact direct civilians to remain in a specific location in order to shield military objectives from attacks, all of Israel’s obligations to protect these civilians would still apply."[130]

Warnings by Israel

Israel's supporters point to the IDF's use of warnings to civilians prior to targeting militants in highly populated areas as complying with international law.[127][142][143][144] Human rights organizations including Amnesty International,[145][146] have confirmed that in many cases, Palestinians received warnings prior to evacuation, including flyers, phone calls and roof knocking. In many cases, Palestinians have evacuated and in others, they have stayed in their homes. Israel has condemned Hamas for the group's encouragement of Palestinians to remain in their homes despite warnings in advance of airstrikes, with Hamas arguing that people would be equally or more unsafe in the rest of Gaza.[84]

Amnesty International has said that "although the Israeli authorities claim to be warning civilians in Gaza, a consistent pattern has emerged that their actions do not constitute an “effective warning” under international humanitarian law."[147] Human rights watched concurred.[148] Many Gazans, when asked, have told journalists that they remain in their houses simply because they have nowhere else to go.[149] OCHA's spokesman has said, "There is literally no safe place for civilians" in Gaza.[46] Roof knocking has been condemned as unlawful by Amnesty International[146] and Human Rights Watch[127] as well as the United Nations Fact Finding Mission in the 2008 war.

Rocket attacks on Israeli civilians

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have pointed to Hamas's rocket attacks on Israeli cities as violations of international law and war crimes.[126] Navi Pillay.[123] Palestinian ambassador to the UN Human Rights Council, Ibrahim Khraishi, conceded that Hamas had acted unlawfully by directing missiles at civilians.[150]

Hamas political figure Khaled Mashaal has defended the firing of rockets into Israel, claiming that "our victims are civilians and theirs are soldiers".[151]

Destruction of homes

Israel has targeted many homes in this conflict. Israel points to the reason being that they are homes of suspected Hamas militants or are storing weapons. This has led to many instances of multiple members of the same family killed in attacks. This has been condemned by B'Tselem[125] and Human Rights Watch[134][126] and Amnesty International[145] as unlawful, amounting to collective punishment and war crimes.

United Nations

See also: Israel, Palestine, and the United Nations

The UN agency UNRWA has a number of institutions and schools in the Gaza region, and as of 24 July, 23 had been closed, 77 damaged in the fighting and three Palestinian UNRWA employees killed, two at home and a third while walking home from his work place. Hamas took advantage of the closures to employ some of these vacant UNRWA buildings as weapon storage sites.[152] UNRWA officials, on discovering that two [153][154] such vacated schools had been employed for storing rockets, condemned Hamas's actions.[155] [156]. On July 30, rockets were discovered in a UN school for a third time.[157]

Israel's foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman alleged that UNRWA had turned over the rockets to Hamas.[158] Israel Democracy Institute Vice President, Mordechai Kremnitzer, accused the UNRWA of war crimes for handing over the rockets, while Hebrew University Professor Robbie Sabel stated that the UNRWA "had no legal obligation to hand the rockets over to Israel" and had little other choice in the matter.[159] UNRWA states the armouries had been transferred to local police authorities under the Ramallah national unity government's authority, in accordance with "longstanding UN practice in UN humanitarian operations worldwide".[152][160][161] UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon ordered an investigation.[162]

Bombing of UNRWA school/shelter

Approximately 170 UNRWA run schools are being used as temporary shelters for some 117,000 Palestinians.[163] Some of these schools sustained damage or were destroyed during the conflict. In at least one instance the source of the bombing is disputed.[164][165]

July 24 Beit Hanoun shelter bombing

On July 24, a UN-run school in Beit Hanoun used to shelter civilians was bombed; 13[166]–16[167] civilians were reported dead and 150 injured. Multiple news outlets reported Israel as responsible for the attack,[168][169][170] while the Israeli military stated that it had not yet determined who was responsible for shelling the shelter, stating that it is possible that Hamas rockets were the cause of the bombing.[164][171][165] However, a senior Israel military officer admitted the school's shelling may have been caused by Israeli forces.[172] The Israeli military said the area surrounding the school in Beit Hanoun had turned into a battlefield, and it had asked that the facility be evacuated even before the school was hit. The military said that a four-hour window was given for evacuations. UNRWA disputed that, saying that Israeli military never responded to the agency's urgent requests for a cease-fire.[173][174]

==Military use of UNRWA facilities by Hamas

On July 30, an IDF patrol discovered the entrance to a Hamas tunnel concealed inside a UNRWA medical clinic in Khan Yunis. The clinic was rigged with explosives, it blew up killing three Israeli soldiers.[175]

Stockpiles of rockets were found located in 3 separate UNRWA schools. UNRWA Spokesperson Chris Gunness called the munitions stashes, “Yet another flagrant violation of the neutrality of our premises.[176]

Name of Israel's operation

The IDF’s official English translation of the name of the military campaign is "Operation Protective Edge", but a literal translation of the operation's name (Template:Lang-he-n, Mivtza Tzuk Eitan) is "Operation Firm Cliff", and the IDF's official Arabic translation is "Operation Resolute Cliff".[177] More loosely translated, the name is "Operation Solid Rock" or "Operation Mighty Cliff".[178][179] According to the Turkish Anadolu Agency, an Israeli military spokesman for Arab Media, Avichay Adraee, explained that the change of the operation's name in English was done to "give a more ‘defensive’ connotation".[180]

See also

References

  1. ^ Ben Solomon, Ariel. "Videos show Lebanese jihadi group active in Gaza". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  2. ^ a b Israel Military Strength
  3. ^ Rockets, naval commandos boost Hamas arsenal
  4. ^ a b c "3 soldiers killed in Gaza explosion; 15 Palestinians die in market attack". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h "Gaza Emergency Situation Report" (PDF). United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Occupied Palestinian Territory. 29 July 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. ^ "Operation Protective Edge by the numbers". Haaretz. 28 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ^ "110 Israeli troops killed in Gaza war: Hamas". Anadolu Agency. 29 July 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  8. ^ "Palestinians reportedly capture Israeli soldier in Gaza". Press TV. 20 July 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  9. ^ a b c d "Israeli bombing of Shujaiyya markets kills 17 despite ceasefire". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  10. ^ a b c "Gaza toll passes 1,300 on day 23 of Israeli assault". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  11. ^ a b Most Violent Daye Since the Beginning of the Israeli Offensive on Gaza, On the 22nd Day of the Israeli Offensive: Extremely Violent Attacks on Palestinian Civilians; Complete Families Annihilated; Mosques, Media Offices and Gaza Power Plant Destroyed; Inc
  12. ^ a b c "Operation Protective Edge – Update No. 15" (PDF). Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  13. ^ a b c Josef Federman and Maggie Michael (14 July 2014). "Egypt proposes cease-fire between Israel, Hamas". Associated Press.
  14. ^ a b Israeli army figures suggest large numbers of Gaza dead civilians
  15. ^ Givati forces eliminate five terrorists that exited tunnel in Gaza Strip
  16. ^ Ahren, Raphael. "150 Palestinians surrender to IDF in Gaza". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  17. ^ a b c Israeli, 61, badly injured by rocket hit in Ashdod BY JTA AND TIMES OF ISRAEL STAFF 11 July 2014
  18. ^ "Israel and Hamas Trade Attacks as Tension Rises". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  19. ^ "IDF's Operation "Protective Edge" Begins Against Gaza". Jewish Press. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  20. ^ "IDF Seizes Hundreds of Weapons in Nablus, as Operation 'Brother's Keeper' Enters 5th Day". Algemeiner Journal. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  21. ^ a b Maan News, http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=714820
  22. ^ "Hunt for missing Israeli boys stirs up familiar recriminations". The Guardian. 26 June 2014.
  23. ^ "Murder of Palestinian teen, Abu Khudeir, condemned". Daily News Egypt. 3 July 2014.
  24. ^ Ahren, Raphael (23 June 2014). "Is Israel's operation to find kidnapped teens a war crime?". The Times of Israel.
  25. ^ Zitun, Yoav (17 June 2014). "Operation Bring Back Our Brothers: IDF arrests 200, shift focus to Nablus". Ynetnews.
  26. ^ a b "Israel rounds up senior Hamas men in West Bank sweep". The Times of Israel. 15 June 2014. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  27. ^ "Watch: West Bank Hamas leadership in Israeli custody". The Jerusalem Post. 16 June 2014.
  28. ^ "Israel committed serious violations in West Bank operations: HRW". Al-Ahram. 3 July 2014.
  29. ^ "1 wounded as Israel arrests 10 Palestinians in West Bank". Business Standard. 26 June 2014.
  30. ^ Mouin Rabbani, 'Israel mows the lawn', London Review of Books Vol. 36 No 15, 31 July 2014, p. 8.
  31. ^ "Conditions for a ceasefire: Why Hamas fires those rockets". The Economist. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  32. ^ "Israel launches military offensive in Gaza". Al-Jazeera. 7 July 2014.
  33. ^ Sheizaf, Noam (7 July 2014). "Israeli-Palestinian clashes upsetting Israeli faith in status quo". Al-Jazeera.
  34. ^ "Rockets bombard south, Hamas claims responsibility". Haaretz (live updates). 7 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  35. ^ Ho, Spencer; Yaakov, Yifa (8 July 2014), "Israel hits Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leaders after rockets land north of Tel Aviv", The Times of Israel (blog)
  36. ^ Horovitz, David (23 December 2013). "Israel hits Hamas, Islamic Jihad leaders after rockets land north of Tel Aviv". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  37. ^ "Hamas says all Israelis will be targeted". The Gulf Today, 9 July 2014; retrieved 17 July 2014.
  38. ^ Abu Toameh, Khaled."Hamas: All Israelis now targets for missile attacks", The Jerusalem Post, 8 July 2014; retrieved 17 July 2014.
  39. ^ "Hamas armed wing sets conditions for ceasefire". Maannews.net. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  40. ^ "Thousands Flee Gaza Homes Under Israel Threat", Voice of America, 13 July 2014; accessed 22 July 2014.
  41. ^ a b http://pflp.ps/english/2014/07/15/pflp-proposal-for-calm-seeks-new-chains-on-the-resistance/
  42. ^ "Israel and Hamas to observe brief Gaza truce". Aljazeera.com. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  43. ^ "Report: Hamas, Islamic Jihad offer 10-year truce". Ma'an News Agency. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  44. ^ "20 Palestinians killed overnight as UN holds emergency talks". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  45. ^ "Five Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza; Palestinian death toll hits 1,088". Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  46. ^ a b 'No safe place for civilians' in Gaza, U.N. says, Reuters.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  47. ^ Is Hamas using human shields in Gaza? - CNN.com
  48. ^ a b Al Jazeera English report; accessed 22 July 2014.
  49. ^ New York Times 30 July 2014 [1]
  50. ^ a b c "Occupied Palestinian Territory: Gaza emergency: Humanitarian Snapshot (as of 22 July 2014)" (PDF). UN OCHA. 22 July 2014.
  51. ^ a b "Occupied Palestinian Territory: Gaza Emergency Situation Report (as of 29 July 2014, 1500 hrs)" (PDF). United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs . 30 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  52. ^ "In wake of Hamas-Fatah unity, Israel calls off talks with P.A.", jpost.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  53. ^ "Abbas: Palestinian unity government to be announced Monday, despite Israeli threats", jpost.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  54. ^ "The willful killing of civilians by Israeli security forces as part of the occupation is a war crime", hrw.org; accessed 28 July 2014.
  55. ^ "Rights groups: Palestinian teens killed with live ammo, deaths ‘unlawful’", aljazeera.com, 20 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  56. ^ CNN Transcripts
  57. ^ "Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory" (05-11 June 2014), pchrgaza; accessed 28 July 2014.
  58. ^ a b Seumas Milne, "Gaza: this shameful injustice will only end if the cost of it rises", The Guardian, 16 July 2014. "The latest violence is supposed to have been triggered by the kidnapping and killing of three Israeli teenagers in the occupied West Bank in June, for which Hamas denied responsibility. But its origin clearly lies in the collapse of US-sponsored negotiations for a final settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the spring."
  59. ^ "Israel IDs 2 main suspects in teens disappearance". CBS News. 26 June 2014.
  60. ^ "Operation Brother's keeper", The Jerusalem Post {{citation}}: |contribution= ignored (help)
  61. ^ Robert Tait "Hamas kidnapping: Islamist group to blame for youths' 'kidnapping', Benjamin Netanyahu says", The Telegraph, 15 June 2014.
  62. ^ "Hamas chief lauds abductors of Israeli teens, says has no new information". Haaretz. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  63. ^ a b Shlomi Eldar "Accused kidnappers are actually rogue Hamas branch", Al-Monitor, 29 June 2014.
  64. ^ "Middle East & Africa: Murder of three kidnapped Israeli youths has set dangerous new spate". The Economist.
  65. ^ Zitun, Yoav (21 June 2014). "Rescue units rushed to Hebron, searching wells and caves". Ynetnews.com.
  66. ^ Judis, John B. (9 July 2014). "John Kerry's First Peace Effort in Israel and Palestine Failed, But Now He Needs to Try Again". The New Republic. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  67. ^ "Bodies of three kidnapped Israeli teens found in West Bank". The Jerusalem Post. 30 June 2014.
  68. ^ "Security forces find missing teens' bodies in West Bank". Ynetnews. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  69. ^ Noam Sheizaf,"How the public was manipulated into believing the teens were alive", 972mag.com, 2 July 2014.
  70. ^ "Bodies of three kidnapped teens found". The Times of Israel. 30 June 2014.
  71. ^ "How Politics and Lies Triggered an Unintended War in Gaza". The Jewish Daily Forward. 10 July 2014.
  72. ^ Katie Zavadski, "It Turns Out Hamas Didn't Kidnap and Kill the 3 Israeli Teens After All", New York Magazine, 26 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014. "Israeli police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld also said if kidnapping had been ordered by Hamas leadership, they'd have known about it in advance."
  73. ^ Ben White, "What a 'period of calm' looks like in the Occupied Territories", Al-Jazeera, 22 February 2013.
  74. ^ Telche Abu Sulttan, "Israel, not Hamas, is the serial truce breaker", Middle East Monitor, 13 July 2014. "[J]ust 17 of the nearly 120 Israeli ceasefire violations over one year following the 2012 ceasefire were reported on by the New York Times".
  75. ^ "Israel warns 100,000 Gazans to flee as truce efforts resume". Digitaljournal.com. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  76. ^ "At least 16 killed in attack on Gaza school, sparking massive protests in West Bank", The Washington Post, 24 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  77. ^ "Israeli Strike Kills a Leader of Islamic Jihad". New York Times. 25 July 2014.
  78. ^ "Gaza crisis: Humanitarian cease-fire between Israel, Hamas takes effect". Fox News. 26 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  79. ^ "Israel extends unilateral cease-fire as Gaza death toll tops 1,000". Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  80. ^ "Palestinians Survey Devastation as Gaza Death Toll Tops 1,000". NBC News. 26 July 2014.
  81. ^ "Gaza Hospitals Ill-equipped for Israeli Onslaught". U.S. News and World Report. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  82. ^ "Toll mounts as Israel steps up Gaza air raids". Al Jazeera English. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  83. ^ Beaumont, Peter. "Ramadan in Gaza: life under missile-fire". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  84. ^ a b c d e "Deaths mount in Gaza and Israel as U.S. pushes cease-fire". CNN.com. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  85. ^ "Israel launches 'Protective Edge' counteroffensive on Gaza, Jewish suspects reenact teen's murder". Timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  86. ^ "Israel Steps Up Offensive Against Hamas in Gaza". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  87. ^ Lori Lowenthal Marcus (13 July 2014). "Rocket Sirens in Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion Airport". The Jewish Press. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  88. ^ "حماس": تعليق شركات الطيران الدولية رحلاتها إلى إسرائيل "انتصار كبير" Al-Hayat
  89. ^ "Occupied Palestinian Territory: Gaza Emergency Situation Report" (PDF). OCHA. 26 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  90. ^ Davidovich, Joshua, Haviv Rettig Gur, and Marissa Newman (27 July 2014). "Majority of Gaza dead are fighting-age men". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 27 July 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  91. ^ "Gaza toll passes 105 as Israel raids continue". Aljazeera.com. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  92. ^ "Operation Protective Edge – Update No. 13" (PDF). Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  93. ^ "Entire Gaza family killed prior to ceasefire, as death toll tops 940", Ma'an News Agency, 26 July 2014.
  94. ^ Solomon, Ariel Ben (29 July 2014). "Report: Hamas executes alleged spies, shoots protesters in Gaza". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  95. ^ "Rocket caused massive damage to the gas station, and a fire has broken out", Haaretz, 12 July 2014.
  96. ^ "Operation Protective Edge, day 3". Haaretz. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  97. ^ Tait, Robert. "Israel to escalate Gaza military offensive after first citizen killed". Telegraph. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  98. ^ Lappin, Yaakov (15 July 2014). "First Israeli death of Gaza operation as mortar shell kills man at Erez Crossing". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  99. ^ "Bedouin ‘defenseless’ as man killed, 4 injured by Gaza rocket", The Times of Israel; accessed 22 July 2014.
  100. ^ Thai migrant worker killed in Israel by rocket from Gaza
  101. ^ "10 Israeli soldiers killed east of Shujaiyya", Press TV; accessed 30 July 2014.
  102. ^ "110 Israeli troops killed in Gaza war: Hamas", Anadolu Agency; accessed 30 July 2014.
  103. ^ "Operation Protective Edge to cost NIS 8.5b". Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  104. ^ Piven, Ben (23 July 2014). "Gaza's underground: A vast tunnel network that empowers Hamas". Al-Jazeera. Retrieved 27 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  105. ^ Goldberg, J. J. (26 July 2014). "Gaza Tunnels: How They Work, What Israel Knew". The Forward. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  106. ^ "The U.S. Department of State warns U.S. citizens of the risks of traveling to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza due to ongoing hostilities. The Department of State recommends that U.S. citizens consider the deferral of non-essential travel to Israel and the West Bank and reaffirms the longstanding strong warning to U.S. citizens against any travel to the Gaza Strip. This Travel Warning replaces the Travel Warning issued on February 3, 2014." U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, July 21, 2014, "Israel, The West Bank and Gaza Travel Warning" http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/alertswarnings/israel-travel-warning.html
  107. ^ Rick Gladstone, "The New York Times," July 21, 2014, "U.S. Advises Americans to Put Off Travel to Israel" http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/22/world/middleeast/us-advises-americans-to-put-off-travel-to-israel.html?_r=0
  108. ^ CNN - FAA bans U.S.-Israel flights, citing rocket attack (July 22, 2014)
  109. ^ Greenberg, Joel and Kevin Hall (23 July 2014). "FAA bars U.S. flights to Israel after rocket lands near country's main airport". McClatchy D.C. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  110. ^ "FAA extends ban on US flights to Tel Aviv", The Boston Globe, 23 July 2014.
  111. ^ a b c Niv Elis, Lahav Harkov (22 July 2014). "El Al says there is 'no chance' it will cancel flights to, from Israel". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  112. ^ Israel-Gaza conflict by Zohar Blumenkrantz, Haaretz, 22 July 2014.
  113. ^ Anne Gearan, Sudarsan Raghavan, William Booth (24 July 2014). "Kerry meets with Netanyahu amid Israeli anger over ban on U.S. flights". The Washington Post.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  114. ^ Avi Cohen (23 July 2014). "Israel opens alternate airport after wave of flight cancellations". Israel Hayom.
  115. ^ "Press Release – FAA Statement–FAA Lifts Flight Restrictions for Ben Gurion International Airport". Federal Aviation Administration. 23 July 2014.
  116. ^ "SIB 2014-22R1 : Flight Operations to Tel Aviv Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel". European Aviation Safety Agency. 24 July 2014.
  117. ^ "Over 90% of Jewish Israelis say Gaza op justified". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  118. ^ "Poll: 86.5% of Israelis oppose cease-fire". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  119. ^ Carlstrom, Gregg (21 July 2014). "Businesses strike in Israel over Gaza". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  120. ^ Nelson, Soraya Sarhaddi (23 Jul 2014). "As Gaza Fighting Rages, West Bank Palestinians Can Only Watch". National Public Radio. Retrieved 27 Jul 201. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  121. ^ a b c Tuma, Nida (25 July 2014). "IDF troops, settlers shoot Palestinians in West Bank, killing 9 in deadly weekend". Jerusalem Post. Reuters. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  122. ^ a b Sherwood, Harriet (25 July 2014). "Teenager killed on his birthday as violence ignites in West Bank". Guardian.
  123. ^ a b "Palestinians killed in West Bank Gaza solidarity march". BBC. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  124. ^ "The West Bank Erupts In Palestinian-Declared 'Day Of Rage'". Business Insider. AFP.
  125. ^ a b "52 Palestinians killed in bombings of homes in Gaza Strip, which are unlawful", B'tselem, 13 July 2014; accessed 22 July 2014.
  126. ^ a b c "Palestine/Israel: Indiscriminate Palestinian Rocket Attacks". Jerusalem: Human Rights Watch. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  127. ^ a b c Taylor, Adam (9 July 2014). "'Roof knocking': The Israeli military's tactic of phoning Palestinians it is about to bomb". The Washington Post. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  128. ^ "UN's Navi Pillay warns of Israel Gaza 'war crimes'". BBC. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  129. ^ "U.N. Rights Panel Votes for Inquiry in Gaza Conflict". The New York Times. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  130. ^ a b "Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories: Israel/Gaza conflict, July 2014 - Questions & Answers". Amnesty International. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  131. ^ "World Cup fans killed as Israel hits Gaza". The Daily Star. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  132. ^ "Israeli Army Says Killing Of 8 Palestinian Family Members Was Not Intentional". Huffington Post. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  133. ^ Hamas again uses Gazan civilians as human shields to prevent the Israeli Air Force from attacking operatives' houses The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center. Retrieved 13 July 2014
  134. ^ a b c Dorell, Oren (24 July 2014). "Analysis: Human rights or human shields in Gaza war?". USA Today. Retrieved 26 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  135. ^ "Is Hamas using human shields in Gaza?", CNN.com, 23 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  136. ^ "Is Hamas using human shields in Gaza?", 24 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  137. ^ "Video shows Gaza residents acting as human shields", newsweek.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  138. ^ "FactCheck: Does Hamas use civilians as human shields?", channel4.com/factcheck; accessed 28 July 2014.
  139. ^ "Hamas may be alienating other Arabs, but it's making new friends in the West", washingtonpost.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  140. ^ "Jeremy Bowen's Gaza notebook: I saw no evidence of Hamas using Palestinians as human shields", newstatesman.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  141. ^ Harkov, Lahav (24 July 2014). "Gaza reporters' tweets: Hamas using human shields". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  142. ^ Ayalon, Ami. "Israel's Response Is Proportionate to Hamas’s Threat", The New York Times, 22 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  143. ^ Dershowitz, Alan. "The current conflict between Israel and Hamas shatters myths", The Jerusalem Post, 10 July 2014.
  144. ^ Baker, Alan. "The Latest Hamas-Israel Confrontation — Some Pertinent Legal Points", Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. July–August, 2014.
  145. ^ a b "http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/israelgaza-conflict-questions-and-answers-2014-07-25". Amnesty International. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  146. ^ a b Withnall, Adam (13 July 2014). "Israel-Gaza conflict: Israeli 'knock on roof' missile warning revealed in remarkable video". The Independent. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  147. ^ http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE15/017/2014/en/5b79b682-8d41-4751-9cbc-a0465f6433c3/mde150172014en.html
  148. ^ For warnings to be effective, civilians need adequate time to leave and go to a place of safety before an attack. In several cases Human Rights Watch investigated, Israel gave warnings, but carried out the attack within five minutes or less.
  149. ^ "Hamas using human shields? Gazans deny claims". Northern Star. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  150. ^ Tazpit, Aryeh Savir. ""Palestinian diplomat admits Hamas war crimes", Ynet News, 13 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  151. ^ "In defiant speech, Mashaal denies ceasefire close", The Times of Israel; accessed 28 July 2014.
  152. ^ a b Colum Lynch, "The U.N. Takes Fire in Gaza", Foreign Policy, 24 July 2014.
  153. ^ ""UN admits its schools in Gaza were used to store Hamas rockets", The World Tribune, 23 July 2014.
  154. ^ Chandler, Adam. "Hamas Rockets Found in Second United Nations School", The Wire, 22 July 2014.
  155. ^ France-Presse, Agence. "UNRWA investigating discovery of 20 rockets found in empty Gaza school." The Guardian. Friday, July 18, 2014.
  156. ^ "UNRWA condemns placement of rockets, for a second time, in one of its schools". UNWRA. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  157. ^ http://www.timesofisrael.com/rockets-found-in-unrwa-school-for-third-time/
  158. ^ Keinon, Herb; Cashman, Greer Fay (23 July 2014). "Liberman to Ban: Israel outraged over UNRWA turning over rockets to Hamas". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  159. ^ "Did UNRWA Commit a War Crime by Handing Rockets Over To Hamas", Jerusalem Post, 22 July 2014.
  160. ^ "UNRWA denies giving rockets found on its premises to Hamas". Jerusalem Post. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  161. ^ "UN agency handed rockets back to Hamas, Israel says", timesofisrael.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
  162. ^ Ban Orders Review Following Allegations That UNRWA Gave Rockets Back To Hamas,'. Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 24 July 2014.
  163. ^ Ruth Pollard, "Israel bans radio ad listing dead children's names", Sydney Morning Herald, 25 July 2014.
  164. ^ a b "UN School In Gaza Hit By Shells, At Least 15 Dead" (UPDATED), Reuters.com, 24 July 2014; accessed 25 July 2014.
  165. ^ a b ""Source of deadly attack on Gaza UNRWA school remains unclear", Haaretz, 25 July 2014.
  166. ^ "Gaza UN school shelter hit, 'killing 13'", BBC.co.uk, 25 July 2014.
  167. ^ "Israeli tanks shell UN-run school, killing 16", China.org.cn, 25 July 2014; accessed 28 July 2014.
  168. ^ Jazeera, Al (24 July 2014). "UN shelter in Gaza 'struck by Israeli shells'". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  169. ^ "Pressure for Gaza Truce Mounts after Israel Shells U.N. Refuge", Naharnet Newsdesk, 25 July 2014.
  170. ^ "UN agency calls for probe into shelling of Gaza school", ITV.com, 25 July 2014.
  171. ^ "Hamas May Have Fired Rockets That Hit UNRWA School", The Jewish Press, 24 July 2014.
  172. ^ Israel's 'errant fire could have caused school shelling", ITV.com, 25 July 2014.
  173. ^ "Fresh West Bank clashes as Israel girds for 'day of rage'". CNN.com. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  174. ^ IDF shelling kills several at UN school in Gaza, DW.DE, 24 July 2014.
  175. ^ [2]3 IDF soldiers killed in booby-trapped UNRWA clinic, Mitch Ginsberg, July 30, 2014, Times of Israel]
  176. ^ [3] "Rockets found in UNRWA school, for third time, Ilan ben Zion, July 30, 2014, Times of Israel.
  177. ^ Ghert-Zand, Renee (9 July 2014). "Name 'Protective Edge' doesn't cut it". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
  178. ^ Silverstein, Richard (7 July 2014). "Operation Solid Rock, Gaza Invasion, Begins". richardsilverstein.com. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
  179. ^ Kordova, Shoshana (19 July 2014). "Why is the English name of Operation Protective Edge so different from the Hebrew version?". Haaretz Newspaper.
  180. ^ Arnaout, Abdel-Raouf (9 July 2014). "From 'Shield' to 'Edge': How Israel names its military ops". Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Operation Protective Edge.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2014_Gaza_War&oldid=619179909"