Day: November 17, 2023

A Hospital Too Far?

By now all the armchair generals and analysts have read or heard about the Israeli raid on the Gazan hospital….I know they have for the report validates their hatred of a people.

But in case you have not bothered to form an opinion (like that is ever going to happen) here is the original report.

Israel says its forces have entered Gaza’s Shifa hospital, the site of a lengthy standoff. The Israeli army had surrounded the facility as part of its ground offensive against Hamas, claiming the militant group conceals military operations in the hospital complex. But with hundreds of patients and medical personnel inside, it had refrained from entering. It said on Wednesday its forces were conducting a “precise” operation against Hamas in a specific area of the complex while taking steps to avoid harm to civilians. In a statement, the Israeli military said it had warned “the relevant authorities in Gaza once again that all military activities within the hospital must cease within 12 hours. Unfortunately, it did not.”

Israel accuses Hamas of using hospitals as cover for its fighters, alleging that Hamas has set up its main command center in and beneath Shifa hospital, the largest in the besieged territory, the AP reports. Both Hamas and Shifa hospital staff deny the Israeli allegations. The US said Tuesday that it has unspecified intelligence that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad use some hospitals in the Gaza Strip—including Shifa hospital—and tunnels underneath them to hide and to support their military operations and to hold hostages. The White House’s national security council spokesperson, John Kirby, said the US does not support “striking a hospital from the air.”

Kirby added that the US also does not want to see “a firefight in a hospital where innocent people, helpless people, sick people are simply trying to get the medical care that they deserve.” Conditions at Shifa hospital deteriorated so badly in the days before Israeli forces entered that a World Health Organization spokesman described it as “nearly a cemetery.” Thousands of people have been sheltering at the hospital, where authorities say patients, including premature babies, have been dying because of a lack of fuel for generators. The BBC reports that Hamas issued a statement blaming President Biden for the storming of the hospital, saying that the US had given Israel a “green light” by saying intelligence suggested it was used by the group.

I watched the report and I have a problem….one, we are in a room that could be anywhere….two, there are too many reports from too many people saying almost the same words…..I know I am a cynic but I would have wanted a lot more information before I am convinced.

The ‘evidence’ is not compelling for me…..I found some other info as I tried to get more information and here is the reports….

Israeli troops who raided Gaza’s biggest hospital on Wednesday continued to pore over the grounds on Thursday looking for evidence that Hamas used the area as a secret military base. So far, the Israel Defense Forces have displayed photos of a relatively modest cache of guns, bulletproof vests, and other equipment found in the hospital’s MRI wing, but no proof yet that the hospital complex played a substantial role in Hamas’ strategy, reports the New York Times. Israeli officials insist it will take time to do a thorough search and point out that Hamas knew for days the hospital would be raided and thus had time to hide evidence. Coverage:

  • ‘Underwhelming:’ The evidence presented by the military “so far is underwhelming,” Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence for the consulting firm Le Beck, tells the Wall Street Journal. But he, too, said the search would take a while. “This is a very delicate operation, given how quickly it could turn into a bloodbath.”
  • What they found: The BBC was allowed into the hospital and describes being shown “three small stashes of Kalashnikovs (about 15 in all), ammunition and bulletproof vests.” A lieutenant colonel says they also found military pamphlets, maps, and “a lot of computers and other equipment.” The BBC was not allowed to see the content of the laptops, but Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus says they contain recent images and video of hostages. “At the end of the day, this is just the tip of the iceberg,” he says. “Hamas aren’t here because they saw we were coming. This is probably what they were forced to leave behind. Our assessment is that there’s much more.”
  • Pressure: Israel justified its controversial raid on the hospital by asserting that the hospital complex was built atop a maze of tunnels that allowed Hamas members to come and go easily, and to use the hospital as a “command center,” per the Messenger. Failing to find evidence of that will ratchet up international pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu, notes the Journal. The Times agrees: “Israel’s ability to prove its claim could be key to whether its foreign allies continue to support its military response to Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel.”
  • No US greenlight: The US had agreed earlier this week with Israel’s assessment that Hamas used the hospital complex as a “command-and-control” site, which would be a war crime, notes the Washington Post. But, said national security spokesman John Kirby, “we did not give an okay to their military operations around the hospital—in similar fashion to the fact that we don’t give an okay to their other tactical operations.” UN’s humanitarian relief coordinator tweeted that he was “appalled” by the raid. “The protection of newborns, patients, medical staff and all civilians must override all other concerns,” wrote Martin Griffiths. “Hospitals are not battlegrounds.”
  • Patients: The hospital once had thousands of people, but most have evacuated. Still, the AP estimates that “hundreds of people” remain there, a mix of medical workers and the most vulnerable patients, including infants. With no electricity and scarce medical supplies, the situation is dire by all accounts. The hospital has resorted to using foil to keep premature babies warm.

My problem is that the collection presented could have been from a previous stash…nothing compelling for me.

Let me say right here for all those that have made up their minds….I do not support HAMAS and I do not support Israel (there is more they have done that flies in the face of civility)…no I am not anti-Jew personally I do not care what someone believes ….there is a responsibility to act like civilized beings and neither side is accomplishing that.

Just like all wars the truth is the first causality.

This will be an on-going story for at least the foreseeable future and I am sure that more reports will be forthcoming.

Just my thoughts.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

China/US Deal?

Recently on the West Coast Biden and Xi held a round of meetings…..and I am sure some would like to know if anything was accomplished….

US President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping emerged Wednesday from their first face-to-face meeting in a year vowing to stabilize their fraught relationship and showcasing modest agreements to combat illegal fentanyl and re-establish military communications. But there were still deep differences on economic competition and global security threats, the AP reports. The most assuring takeaway from the meeting for Biden was that if either man had a concern, “we should pick up the phone and call one another and we’ll take the call. That’s important progress,” he said in a news conference following the talks. The two leaders spent four hours together at a bucolic Northern California estate—in meetings, a working lunch and a garden stroll—intent on showing the world that while they are global economic competitors they’re not locked in a winner-take-all faceoff.

The US president told Xi: “I think it’s paramount that you and I understand each other clearly, leader-to-leader, with no misconceptions or miscommunications. We have to ensure competition does not veer into conflict.” Some highlights of what came out of the meeting, which on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference:

  • They reached expected agreements to curb illicit fentanyl production and to reopen military ties, Biden said. Many of the chemicals used to make synthetic fentanyl come from China to cartels that traffic the powerful narcotic into the US, which is facing an overdose crisis.
  • Top military leaders will resume talks, Biden said, an increasingly important move particularly as unsafe or unprofessional incidents between the two nations’ ships and aircraft have spiked.
  • The two leaders had a significant back and forth over Taiwan, with Biden chiding China over its massive military build-up around Taiwan and Xi telling Biden he had no plans to invade the island, according to a US official who spoke on condition of anonymity to detail the private talks. Biden, the official said, declared the US was committed to continuing to help Taiwan defend itself and maintain deterrence against a potential Chinese attack, and also called on China to avoid meddling in the island’s elections next year. The official described the Taiwan portion of the talks as “clear-headed” and “not heated.”
  • Biden also called on Xi to use his influence with Iran to make clear that Tehran, and its proxies, should not take steps that would lead to an expansion of the Israel-Hamas war.
  • According to a statement released by China Central Television, the state broadcaster, Xi was most focused on Taiwan and the US sanctions and restrictions against Chinese products and businesses. Xi said he and Biden also agreed to establish dialogues on artificial intelligence and stressed the urgency for the two countries to cope with the climate crisis, the state broadcaster reported.

Like most of these PR stunts not much was really accomplished….some talk and some agreement, a photo op of leaders shaking hands, the illusion of everything is good, but the major issues will remain unresolved….for now.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”