Update: Below the contents of the original post, I'm adding an excerpt from a story by Free Press journalist Eli Lake on the food security of Gazans.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has indicted leading officials of both Israel and Hamas for committing war crimes. The Hamas indictments stem from its October 7th murder/rape/kidnapping assault across Israel. The indictment of Israeli officials (including Benjamin Netanyahu) are for Israel's conduct in the war that followed the initial Hamas assault. While both sides are propagandizing the plight of Gazans, there can be little doubt that the suffering and carnage being inflicted on Gazan civilians is catastrophic.
Neither side seems to be breaking into a cold sweat over the indictments; the Biden administration, for its part, denied that Israel should be a target for the ICC as it views Israel's actions as fighting a defensive war.
It has been obvious since the October assault that Hamas knows very well that it can't stand up to Israel on the battlefield, but it can win propaganda victories, and this indictment surely is a major one. And in my view, it's a self-inflicted wound on Israel's part. Even apart from public-relations debacles such as Israel's blowing up a World Central Kitchen convoy last month, Israel has been getting pilloried for months by the humanitarian-aid community for restricting how much aid it is permitting to flow to Gazan civilians.
My naive suggestion is: rather than relying on the United Nations and other third parties to distribute aid (a distribution channel whose success in getting aid to where it is needed seems to be mixed at best), the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) should take responsibility for distributing aid directly in the territories which are under its de facto control. Let Israel show itself to be the party that cares for and feeds Gazan civilians, as opposed to Hamas, which has a track record of intimidating its own people and using them for human shields. And if word spreads that the IDF is providing food and protection, Gazans will have an even stronger incentive to flee Rafah, which apparently is under assault.
UPDATE May 22, 2024 7:29 am CDT: What follows is taken from an e-newsletter I received this morning. The author, Eli Lake, is a journalist for The Free Press (Bari Weiss's project). Before joining The Free Press, Lake wrote for Bloomberg, the Daily Beast and Newsweek. Here is the excerpt:
[T]here is scant evidence of the “deliberate starvation” that forms the heart of the ICC’s case... [and ICC prosecutor Karim] Khan ignores abundant evidence that Hamas is hoarding food and medical supplies.
Now, a new study published by the Hebrew University’s Institute of Biochemistry, Food Science, and Nutrition brings clarity to the contested question of food security in the Gaza strip. The working paper analyzed the adequacy of the food supply Israel has facilitated into Gaza since January. And the results are devastating to Khan’s case.
The study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, was conducted in conjunction with four other Israeli universities and the country’s ministry of health and found that “the quantity and quality of food delivered to Gaza have steadily improved and diversified since January 2024” and that “the food supply contains sufficient energy and protein for the population’s needs.”...
[Professor Aron] Troen[, one of the study's authors] said that there were serious problems with a previous UN study on food security in Gaza, published in March, that claimed a famine was “imminent” in the northern part of the territory. For example, it did not examine the steps that Israel had taken to open humanitarian corridors and land routes into the territory.
...Israel has been allowing food to enter Gaza, but as I reported Tuesday, the Israelis have documented how that food is commandeered by Hamas and hoarded for its families.
Troen said the group’s findings “raise significant questions about the failure of the international aid agencies to deliver the food and hold Hamas accountable for their disruption to distribution.”
The study apparently attempts to contradict the widely-reported claim that Israel has so severely restricted the amount of aid which is permitted to flow through land routes into Gaza that the Gazan population is at risk of malnutrition or even famine. That reporting would seem to be at least part of the basis for the US's decision to open a sea route for the provision of aid. On the other hand, the study also seems to confirm one of the main points of the original post: aid that does flow into Gaza is at grave risk of not reaching those in need of it.
The IDF claims it has been doing what you suggest since October: https://www.idf.il/en/mini-sites/hamas-israel-war-24/all-articles/israel-s-humanitarian-aid-efforts-for-gazan-civilians
ReplyDeleteReports coming out of Gaza cannot always verify what's going on or whether IDF's claims are legit.
If the IDF is supplying and facilitating humanitarian aid at significant levels, Netanyahu is certainly not highlighting those efforts in his communications on the world stage. Nor have the US State Department's operatives made much reference to IDF assistance aside from allowing NGO convoys to come through checkpoints and allowing the US Navy to build a pier to bring in supplies by sea.
"If the IDF is supplying and facilitating humanitarian aid at significant levels, Netanyahu is certainly not highlighting those efforts in his communications on the world stage."
DeleteRight. Nor do I see the claim being made by conservative news and commentary outlets which generally tend to be sympathetic to Israel and unsympathetic to the Biden Administration.
I think part of the situation is that Gaza isn't a humanitarian-aid vacuum; aid agencies have been on the ground for years/decades before this hot war broke out. It's natural that everyone would wish to work with agencies that already have logistics, relationships etc. figured out (or did before the bombs started to drop).
In my view, Israel could do much, much more than it has to provide aid - and surely the Biden Administration would gladly support such an effort.
"Israel could do much, much more ..." By Israel, I assume you mean the Netanyahu administration. Bibi needs a better reason to do the right thing than the gratitude of Joe Biden. He's already defied Biden, who threatened to withhold arms delivery if he went into Rafah. And Biden caved.
DeleteMy guess is that Netanyahu's banking on Biden being a lame duck and having his buddy Trump back in power in six months. Polls are all pointing that way.
I think the best thing Americans can do to squeeze Netanyahu is to keep Trump out of office and elect leaders willing to take a harder human rights line.
Not sure where we get off on trying to police everyone else's rottweiler when our own has yet to be muzzled and neutered. No offense to Rottweilers ...
Yeah, Netanyahu wants Trump back. He was pretty disrespectful of Obama when he was in office, And he only wants what Biden can do for him, it's a one way street.
DeleteGood point about Rottweilers
I suspect Bibi, if he could vote in the American election, would check None Of The Above. Biden's continuing to play footsie with Iran has to be driving Bibi crazy. And I don't think there is a world leader anywhere who suffers from the delusion that Trump would be a reliable partner. Bibi and Trump actually fell out during the last days of the Trump administration.
DeleteI had not heard that that love affair was on the skids. I'll have to check it out.
DeleteBut my guess is that all those apocalyptic evangelical Repubs who go along with MAGA would pressure Trump to continue forking over weapons to Israel so Jesus can come back. So buddies or not, Netanyahu would see Trump and his friends as preferable to Biden
Jim, your suggestion makes as much sense as anything else I've seen. At least maybe aid would get to the people sooner.
ReplyDeleteCoincidentally, this morning I listened to an episode of the Ezra Klein show, of the NYTimes, in which he interviewed Ari Shavit, an Israeli writer. Not all Israelis agree with the way the war is being conducted.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/07/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-ari-shavit.html
Great idea, Jim!
ReplyDeleteLet's get the International Committee of the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, Oxfam International, Unicef, World Vision, and Catholic Relief Services out of Gaza and let the Palestinians depend for their very existence (those who still exist) on the IDF. As a regular donor to two of those organizations, and a sometimes donor to a third, perhaps I could then save some of my money. Or would you have us send our donations to the IDF? Surely an organization that can destroy 60 percent of the infrastructure of Gaza can can do a wonderful job of providing food, shelter, and medical services to the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians they have displaced and the half million they have made permanently homeless.
David - I don't know whether or not it's a great idea. But all those aid orgs you mention presumably were in Gaza prior to October; yet the UN and other sources tell us that, now that bullets and bombs are flying, the inflow of aid is not reaching those in need of it. I admire your support of those orgs, but it seems that, at least since Israel's invasion of Gaza, they are not succeeding in their mission. No discredit to them; they're trying to operate in the midst of a war zone. But the fact remains, the current logistics don't seem to be working.
DeleteJim, what is your evidence that the NGOs are not up to the job and the IDF would be? It is my understanding that the distribution by NGOs is not the problem. I have seen zero evidence of that. The problem is the widespread devastation and the interference of the IDF. See, for example, What Are the Latest Obstacles to Bringing Humanitarian Aid into Gaza, Where Hunger Is Worsening?
DeleteI am amazed that anyone who is aware of the mass dislocations and almost incomprehensible devastation rained down on Gaza by Israel would suggest that the way to fix it is to hand humanitarian aid over to the IDF.
Let me be clear that Israel has every right to defend itself from Hamas, and may they find some way to thoroughly vanquish it. But the civilian casualties, especially the numbers of women and children killed in Gaza, are horrifying. And if Israel continues to be seen as brutal and indiscriminate in their military destruction, they will be responsible for the continuing surge in anti-Semitism.
"Jim, what is your evidence that the NGOs are not up to the job and the IDF would be?"
DeleteI don't know whether the IDF would be up to the job, but I think it's worth a try. But news reports have been plentiful that aid being delivered by NGOs is not reaching its intended targets - I'd be really surprised if you haven't seen any of these stories. As recently as within the last week, we saw widespread news stories that the US suspended its shipments from its new sea route after a day, because its shipments miscarried after they were dropped off to the aid organizations ("miscarried" in the sense that Palestinians took them from the trucks before the trucks reached their intended destinations). There were stories this morning that the US is now planning to reroute the aid in an effort to prevent a rerun of that scenario.
I don't think it's far-fetched that the IDF could deliver the aid. Militaries can be quite good at large-scale logistics, and the IDF is considered one of the more competent of the world's militaries. There are precedents for militaries delivering aid to civilians during wartime. And it's possible (although not certain) that the IDF is going to be in Gaza for quite some time. Delivering life-saving food could be one step toward building up some trust and goodwill. That is an outcome which we should all fervently wish.
Why do you think Netanyahu would want the IDF to distribute humanitarian aid or even be open to it? Last I read, the IDF was busy razing buildings and agriculture on a straight east-west line thru Gaza to the Red Sea, where it seems to be installing a road and checkpoints. Looks to me like Netanyahu wants to impose strict military occupation and make the place as miserable as possible.
DeleteRight - I don't know that Netanyahu has any interest in what I am suggesting. To the extent I understand Israeli politics, I believe his (peacetime) coalition includes those elements which would seem to be *least* interested in helping Gazans; and I don't suppose there are any Israelis of any political stripe who are interested in providing any aid that is confiscated by Hamas and keeps their fighters on their feet. But I also think there are influential voices in Israel, perhaps even in the unity war cabinet, who are less callous toward the plight of Gazan civilians.
DeleteBut even if my idea doesn't appeal to Bibi, there is nothing I am aware of that would prevent him from trying it. As I mentioned: I think there is much more Israel can do.
Sure, Israel could do more (and could have done more) to prevent human suffering in Palestinian territories and for Palestinians living in Israel proper. But they haven't for decades. And thinking that they could/should do so in the middle of a hot war with Hamas and with the hawkiest hawk in power strikes me as a very weird proposition. I'd be interested to know what you think you could say to Netanyahu to appeal to him.
DeleteIf someone could be given five minutes to talk to him about this, I'd look for someone more likely to sway him than I. If it were up to me, I'd try to appeal to our common humanity.
DeleteYeah, sorry. I'm just puzzled how a rational person could imagine the Netanyahu admin directing the IDF to coordinate humanitarian aid to people they're bombing and displacing with reckless abandon.The US has been trying for 50 years to broker peace between Israel and everybody else, and it never works for long. We need a new policy toward Israel so that when it wages salt-the-earth military actions, we aren't standing there handing them the guns and ammo to do it. Netanyahu says Israel will go it alone if necessary. Let him. Guessing he'll get ousted a lot faster.
DeleteI think Israel keeps choosing Netanyahu because Israelis have concluded that the other side has zero interest in peaceful coexistence. That being the case, pick the guy on your side who projects the most strength. To be sure, October 7th punctured the bubble of that perception, and once the current war winds down, Israelis will have an opportunity to take the country in a non-Netanyahu direction.
DeleteBtw, I suspect this is all going according to plan for the Gazan leadership and their bankrollers in Tehran. Netanyahu could be counted on to react to October 7 in a way that radicalizes the next generation of Gazans and drives a wedge between Israel and its allies.
"Netanyahu could be counted on to react to October 7 in a way that radicalizes the next generation of Gazans and drives a wedge between Israel and its allies."
DeleteYes, that has occurred to me, too. There will be a lot of bloody shirts to wave when this is over, and Arab states hostile to Israel won't have to do much to egg this on from the sidelines (looking at you, Saudis ...)
...and the tens of thousands of dead and maimed Gazans? I don't think anybody in the Middle East, at least anybody in charge on either/any side, gives a rat's *ss about Gazans.
DeleteA U.N. official describes dire conditions for people fleeing Rafah
ReplyDeleteAs Israel’s invasion of Rafah stretches into its third week, hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the southern Gaza city have encountered miserable conditions in their new encampments and shelters.
Shortages of food, clean water and bathrooms have made the experience of relocating particularly dreadful, Gazans say, and price gouging has made the trip unaffordable for those who need transportation, including older and disabled people.
“We’re dealing with horrific circumstances,” said Khalil el-Halabi, a retired U.N. official in his 70s who left Rafah last week for Al-Mawasi, a beachside area that Israel has designated as a “humanitarian zone.”
“We don’t have what we need,” Mr. Halabi said. “We can barely even find water.”
More than 800,000 people have left Rafah in the past two weeks, a United Nations official said on Monday. Israel’s military said the same day that more than 950,000 civilians in the city had relocated since it gave expanded evacuation orders. A military spokesman said about 300,000 to 400,000 civilians remain there.
The latest wave of displacement in Gaza began on May 6 when Israel sent out evacuation notices and launched military operations in eastern Rafah, which is along the border with Egypt. More than half of the enclave’s civilians had been seeking refuge in the city — most of them after fleeing fighting elsewhere in Gaza multiple times. . . .
Since Israel’s incursions into Rafah, the once overcrowded shelters and tent villages in the city have largely emptied out, Edem Wosornu, an official with the United Nations’ office for humanitarian affairs, told the Security Council on Monday. People have moved to areas near Khan Younis and Deir al Balah and set up makeshift camps that lack sanitation, water, drainage or shelter, she said.
“We have described it as a catastrophe, a nightmare, as hell on earth,” Ms. Wosornu said. “It is all of these, and worse.”
Since the beginning of the war in October, three-quarters of Gaza’s population has been displaced, with many people moving four or five times, she said.
Israel has cast the orders as a humanitarian step to protect civilians ahead of further military action, which they say is necessary to root out Hamas fighters in southern Gaza. But aid groups said the additional displacement is worsening an already catastrophic humanitarian situation. . . . .
I am the Palestinian getting slaughtered by the Israelis. I am the Israeli slaughtering the Palestinians. Send no more armaments to Israel to feed this dance of death. The attack of October 7 was not an existential threat to the Israelis just like the World Trade Center attack was not an existential threat to the US. The response is totally out of proportion as was ours to 9/11. No hijacked planes since 9/11. Was that due to the trillions wasted on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or the mere billions spent on passenger screening. The attack of 9/11 was a blunder by US intelligence and the government. The attack of October 7 was a blunder by the Netanyahu government. They had been warned. Chances of either a Biden administration or a Trump administration stopping support is nil. Biden is an avowed Zionist. Always has been. Trump wants Jared building condos in whatever the Gaza territory will be called.
ReplyDelete