At a time when the US agreed to send Israel 25 new F35 fighter jets with $3bn in military aid, Israel conducts most severe attack in 20 years in the West Bank
Peace House values include justice, self-determination, and assurances of human rights for all people, regardless of culture, religion or citizenship. Even within complex and controversial issues like this one, it’s critical we take a close look at how US tax dollars are being spent and to what end.
“War is not the answer. We still have a choice today: nonviolent coexistence or violent co-annihilation. We must move past indecision to action.”
-Dr. Martin Luther King
By now you’ve likely heard about the extreme Israeli attack on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank that killed 12, injured more than 100, and sent about 3,000 people fleeing from their homes with only minutes to vacate. Israel stated that the operation targeted militants living within the camp at Jenin and had minimal impacts on civilians. Coverage of the assault on Jenin shows a contrasting story of as much as 80 percent of the homes were damaged in the 70 year old camp that houses between 10 and 15 thousand Palestinian refugees.
Photos published by the New York Times of the aftermath of the attack include evidence of damage to critical infrastructure, including telecommunications, electricity and water systems. The photos show overturned and smashed cars, torn up streets, massive holes in walls, women crying, and explosions from least ten drone airstrikes and small munitions from residents.
According to the Associated Press, “Over 150 Palestinians have been killed this year in the West Bank, and Palestinian attacks targeting Israelis have killed at least 27 people.”
This most recent raid on the Jenin camp and mosque comes after a series of incidents, including two makeshift rockets fired from the West Bank following deadly IDF raids and a string of other incidents that predated the two day air and ground attack at Jenin. Predating the incursion also, videos show Israeli settlers engaging in rage-filled riots that included the burning of homes, fields, and businesses.
All of this comes at a time when the US has shown continued allegiance to the Netanyahu Administration with a new promise to deliver 25 additional Lockheed Martin F35 fighter jets financed through a $3bn aid package. This is on top of the 50 F35’s and other weaponry Israel received through US military aid in 2022.
Coinciding the major attack on Tuesday, thousands of Israeli citizens took to the streets, blocked highways, and were sprayed with water cannons while protesting the overhaul of judicial rules set to move forward in the coming weeks. The move to replace the court system rules and limit its power in Israel is one of many radical shifts that have impacted democratic institutions since the new government came into power.
In addition to the dramatic increase in raids and attacks in the West Bank, the implementation of extreme policing policies in east Jerusalem, cultural intrusions during Ramadan, and many other events are described by many as the bolstering of an apartheid system in Israel.
To dig into this issue, we scraped dozens of articles from all kinds of sources to find reasonable coverage of the issue of escalated violence within Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, and what might happen next. A virtual spectrum of ideas can be captured online, and a partial list of articles are included at the end of this article. We also acknowledge the heightened risk for journalists covering the conflict and grieve the death of Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American and acclaimed correspondent for Aljazeera, who died after apparently being shot by an IDF soldier during a raid at Jenin refugee camp in May.
Read More
- https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/world-politics/2023/7/6/23784923/israel-palestine-jenin-raid-news
- https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/why-is-israel-attacking-jenin-west-bank-operation-explained-2023-07-04/
- https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/02/middleeast/israel-jenin-camp-idf-raid-west-bank-intl-hnk/index.html
- https://www.trtworld.com/middle-east/nearly-80-percent-of-homes-damaged-in-israeli-raid-on-jenin-official-13909100
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/7/3/two-palestinians-killed-as-israel-attacks-west-bank-city-of-jenin
- https://www.972mag.com/israel-apartheid-jenin-gaza/
- https://www.aljazeera.com/program/inside-story/2023/7/6/is-israels-attack-on-jenin-a-war-crime
- https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/article-748855
- https://www.timesofisrael.com/protesters-block-key-highway-as-anti-overhaul-demonstrations-show-no-sign-of-easing
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_settler_violence
- https://www.euronews.com/2023/06/21/hundreds-of-israeli-settlers-torch-palestinian-homes-and-cars-after-deadly-shooting-at-set
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/7/6/how-israel-used-palestinian-homes-bases-jenin
- Shrinking the Conflict: Debunking Israel’s New Strategy – Al-Shabaka
- How to Shrink the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict – The Atlantic
