Israel fires on Palestinian Refugees Twice in Two Days
Israeli troops shot Palestinians in Gaza twice this weekend, with 115 people dead. The shootings at the Israeli aid site on Saturday and the UN aid site on Sunday expose the flaws of both systems.
The UN prefers to operate on the Hamas side, while Israel operates on its side. Critics of the UN system claim that Hamas looted the aid and took advantage of it, while Israel is criticized for forcing people to cross the fighting zone to receive assistance. No reports of Hamas looting aid have been found, but people do often have to go through dangerous routes to receive aid. Neither point justifies the loss of life, which is over 100 people this weekend. Rizeq Betaar, a Palestinian man who survived the shootings, tried to bring a young man to the hospital. “We’re trying to get him to help. But there is nothing…no ambulances, no food, no life, no way to live anymore. We’re barely hanging on,” Betaar said. Hamas’s government systems, including ambulances, are no longer functioning, contributing to the chaos and dismay Palestinians face.
The lack of services is an important issue. “There’s a blame game and everyone is looking at the technical details and about how the aid is distributed. But the bigger issue is the lawlessness and the breakdown of governance. After 22 months of war, it’s anarchy in Gaza,” explained Shira Efron, an expert in aid systems at Gaza at Israel Policy Forum, a New York-based research group. Additionally, Netanyahu has continued to refuse to make a postwar Gaza plan. Ms. Efron continued, saying “…without addressing the core issue of what should happen next in Gaza, there won’t be a solution.” This lesson was already painfully learned by the U.S. during the Iraq War.
Going back to the shootings, both were near the front lines, with Israeli troops giving warning shots before opening fire. On both occasions, Palestinians rushed to aid sites before they opened. Despite promises that “armed forces will not be present nor ,” situations like this continue to happen.