Israel warns: free soldier or PM dies

Israel warns: free soldier or PM dies

Middle East correspondent Martin Chulov
July 01, 2006

ISRAEL last night threatened to assassinate Palestinian Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh if Hamas militants did not release a captured Israeli soldier unharmed.

The unprecedented warning was delivered to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a letter as Israel debated a deal offered by Hamas to free Corporal Gilad Shalit.

...

Hamas's Gaza-based political leaders, including Mr Haniyeh, had already gone into hiding.

But last night's direct threat to kill Mr Haniyeh, a democratically elected head of state, sharply raised the stakes.

The Australian

Uncle Saddam.

I do not like what Israel is doing here.

"What? You talk to me like that in front of my son? F@<% you and your family!"

Holy Kidnapping and Execution Batman! :nuke:

The World watches this tragedy in sheer horror. :scared:

can you provide another source?

Right now Egypt is trying to negotiate a solution, and Turkey has also been contacted by Israel for the same purpose

n/t

your response was a waste of time

For me the purpose of DU is to educate and inform

Obviously, you have no intention of doing either one

I would agree with you on that.

Should have thought of that

For some reason I mixed it up with the Australian

Again thanks for your link

The Australian stinks to high heaven!

I was really thinking of the Scottsman. I don't know anything about the Australian paper, but I do appreciate the heads up

I really hope this does not accelerate any further, for everyones sake

It feels like many outsiders are only too happy to have this escalate

..but it's not looking promising right now. I'm still of the opinion that Israel must stop outright rejecting the suggestion of a prisoner exchange coz I'm sort of suspecting that in all this escalation, the captured soldier is being forgetten as anything but a symbol or a pawn :(

Yr correct in saying it's a stinky source, what with it being a Murdoch rag and all. Its stinky reputation comes from editorials, opinion pieces and news articles on Australian politics, where Murdoch has been guilty of exercising control over editors and displaying an incredible amount of bias towards the Liberal Party (the Liberals are our conservative party). When it comes to foreign issues, The Australian displayed a sickening level of support for the invasion of Iraq. Don't want to miss anything Daniel Pipes has to say? Then don't miss an edition of The Australian. These tendencies tend to colour my opinion of The Australian as a credible source on anything, and I do go looking for more credible sources if I see them say anything that catches my interest...

In this case, if this was something that had come totally out of the blue and was only appearing in The Australian, I'd be suss as hell. But given the current crisis and gross over-reaction by the Israeli govt, a threat to kill the Palestinian PM wouldn't shock me at all. I lost count of how many times Sharon openly threatened to kill Arafat in the past, so threats to kill leaders aren't anything new. In this climate of over-the-top threats (like this and the chemical tipped warhead one), I'd say that there's threats being made that hopefully aren't accompanied with any intent to carry them out...

I didn't realize murdoch owned the paper, wow

While he was so quick to renounce his Australian citizenship, he's quick to meddle in our politics, and The Australian is his main flagship for doing that....

I was told 'little things' don't lead to war...but here I sit and watch them do just that.

If that doesn't qualify as an act of war, what does ?
We're on the brink of the third intifada here. Only this time, one side will be destroyed. And in this war only one side posesses the Atomic bomb.
And if you think they're not crazy enough to do it. Think again.

can it be any more of war than it already is?

might be one as well.

...but rather an act of self-defense. One does not "kidnap" soldiers engaged in hostilities.

Killing POWs arbitrarily is a war crime, however. Both sides should remember this.

You and the PA need to make up their minds. Are they at war or not? If not, then they can get some leeway, if it is war...well, then, if you expect Israel to play by the rules, do the same!

The argument of self-defense would apply only if the soldier was involved in an attack at the time he was taken. Taking him in the course of a Palestinian attack is either an act of war or a kidnapping; no other options.

The Israeli POW was captured while supporting the Israeli siege of Gaza-- he was engaged in hostilities against the Palestinians. His capture was not unexpected under the circumstances, IMO-- the fact that it was unusual simply reflects the asymmetry of this conflict. Israel rounds up Palestinians pretty much at will-- or simply kills them with far superior weaponry-- but when an Israeli is captured it's international news and occasions a spasm of retribution and collective reprisals.

It doesn't matter whether the people who took him are justified or not. If they are combatants, it's an act of war; otherwise, it's a kidnapping. There's no middle ground (well, it could be both an act of war and a kidnapping, but there's no third option).

BTW, since he was taken from an outpost on Israeli soil, should I take it you believe Israel does not have the right to control its own border?

The original post in this subthread implied that the Palestinian action was an unprovoked act of war-- my response was meant to object that it was a proper response to Israel's hostile actions toward Gaza. I agree with you that it was an act of war within the context of on-going hostilities-- not a "kidnapping" or other criminal act, but part of the international conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

but not irrelevent. If it is an act of war (and I remind you that their attack was apparently in preparation for two months, so it wasn't a response to recent events in any case) then Israel has the right to respond as if it was a war.

acts of war.... Israel can get away with anything. I am really tempted to start boycotting israeli made products again. Politicians may refuse to impose sanctions but that doesn't mean I can't.

eom

but then I would never have believed Israel would kidnap those elected officials.

Maybe they have gone totally around the bend this time instead of halfway.

was the provocation to escalate violence designed to topple (kill) a democratically elected government that was undesireable. We're planting the seeds of democracy, unless the fruit doesn't taste so good.

...civilians on the beach knowing full well they'd get a response of some kind, and they're using that response as the pretext for this madness. And the U.S. not only condones it, we sponsor it. Closing in on 40 years now. Anybody tired of sponsoring it yet? I am.

http://www.endtheoccupation.org/article.php?id=1090

government were assasinated? Silly question, I know.

Israel needs to be told to go it alone. Take care of yourself, do without our money, do without our weapons.

There was an article on here the other day about how European countries have started to feel less inclined to defend Israel and its policies. Now if only this country would wake up and do the same.

after they attacked the USS Liberty in the the 1960's. Instead we cozy up to the very people who attacked a vessel of the United States Navy in international waters, which I think is an act of war?

israel has been going it alone with the exception of 2 billion which must go for the purchase of weapons systems. israel would never accept the addition of US troops!

look around europe, it is now islamistan and no government wants to rile up a bunch of it's more violent inhabitants. they're reaping what has been sown. how it will end is anyone's guess, but it doesn't look good.

tell me more

I KNOW that good and decent people live in Israel -- I know a few and they are as ashamed of their "leaders" as we are of bush and his gang.

Ironic how going to war makes both sides look the same.

believe at your own risk.

:shrug:

This is the stupidest idea I've heard from a nation-state since the US invaded Iraq.

this is getting WAY out of hand and that says alot when you are talking about I & P



ISRAEL last night threatened to assassinate Palestinian Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh if Hamas militants did not release a captured Israeli soldier unharmed.


:wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow:

June 30

...

At prayers on Friday -- Haniyeh's first public appearance since the kidnapping -- he said he was working to resolve the crisis. But his protestations might not find sympathy in Israel.

In the past, the Jewish state has used helicopter strikes to kill military and political leaders of Hamas, which has carried out nearly 60 suicide bombings during a Palestinian uprising. That may be the case again.

Defence Minister Amir Peretz has made it clear in recent weeks that anyone linked to attacks on Israel, including the prime minister, is at risk.

Hamas military leaders may be higher up the list, and allies may balk if an elected prime minister were to be assassinated, but Israel has pointedly not ruled the possibility out.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L30571599.htm

This gets kicked to the basement. Dare. Not. Tell. The. Truth.

(Thanks MB for posting it.)

That is way over the line! :wow:

Warning to Haniyeh

On Thursday morning, National Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer hinted that Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh is not exempt from arrest or harm.

"No one is immune... This is not a government. It is a murderous organization," Ben-Eliezer said.

.......................

Israel Radio quoted Shin Bet security chief Yuval Diskin as having told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the day of the kidnapping: "If the soldier is not returned in 24 hours, Israel will not allow the Palestinian government to survive."

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/733326.html

and Reuters and the Times also verified it

and I better duck...

"fundies" are jumping up and down with joy at the near approach of Armageddon, eh?:nuke:

not only of Israeli-Palestinian relations, but also of any hope at all in the Middle East. I could see this very easily escalating into armed conflict between Israel and Muslim states in the area, including Iran. Hold onto your hats, atheists-believers, of whatever kind, PRAY.

Not only have they cut off hundreds of thousands from water and electricity, and are running thousands more away from their villages with their sieges , but now they're threatening to start offing the entire government?

This is about more than just that simple raid on the IDF outpost. This is about controlling the destiny of Palestine (again).

it's a game.....many international leaders play it. it would be nice if the palestinians released the prisoner as a show of good faith.

i'm guessing that the arab/islamic world isn't going to be none too happy about this- especially if israel acts on it's threat.

look at it this way- at least we get to live in interesting times.

and the Gaza "pullout" to be the sham that they are.

That's occasionally denied, that Gaza = OPT, I'd have thought this latest invasion of Gaza by the
Occupying Power would put an end to such denials, but then I'd have also thought the deliberate
destruction of the civilian infrastructure in Gaza is clearly a war crime, & I've seen that fact denied,
so one never can tell, really.

The day Palestinians can kidnap a dozen Israeli Knesset members and destroy Israeli infrastructure at will will be the day I can finally symathize with current Israeli policies.

that you occupy? Isn't that rather counterintuitive?

And BTW - if Israel is indeed the occupying power in Gaza, then note it has the right and obligation to exercise police powers - including the arrest of Hamas members.

"...and 10 villagers, then shoot them in the public square."

PB

GAZA (Reuters) - An Israeli helicopter gunship fired a missile at the Gaza City office of Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh early on Sunday, setting it alight, witnesses said.

They said Haniyeh, a top official of the ruling Islamist militant party Hamas, was not believed to be in the office at the time. There were no casualties, witnesses said.

An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed the air strike.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-07-01T230304Z_01_L01732631_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST-AIRSTRIKE.xml

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is so sad. What is it going to take? When is the Bush going to take action to stop this attack on a democraticly elected gov?

:nuke: