Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Israel/Palestine
In reply to the discussion: Lancet medical journal under attack for 'extremist hate propaganda' over its coverage of the Israeli [View all]shira
(30,109 posts)62. A Serious Medical Journal Just Went Totally Clinical
Pretty much all anyone needs to know about the Open Letter to Gaza, from the factually inaccurate content to the racist backgrounds of the authors
http://www.thetower.org/article/a-serious-medical-journal-just-went-totally-clinical/
Short excerpt of lies by omission and commission
It was a document that never asked why.
First, the authors bought into the Hamas narrative of resistance, that people in Gaza are resisting this aggression because they want a better and normal life. While it is true that Gazans reside in impoverished conditions, with many of them cramped together in refugee camps, the connection between the betterment of conditions in Gaza and the firing of rockets and mortars on Israeli population centers during Protective Edge is quite spurious. Indeed, before the operation began, 450 rockets had been fired at Israel in 2014 alone.
The letters authors also cited the blockade of Gazaa frequent refrain from Hamas apologistsasserting that building materials have been blockaded so that schools, homes, and institutions cannot be properly rebuilt. This is not the case. Restrictions on the import of construction items and materials such as concrete, cement, and steel exist in order to prevent their misappropriation for the building of a terrorist infrastructure, including bunkers, fortifications, and tunnels. This fear of misuse was not unjustified, given that during Operative Protective Edge, a shocking number of tunnels were uncovered by the Israel Defense Forces, some of which were used during the war to launch attacks on Israel itself.
The letter also cited accusations of the use of poison gas by Israel, and the question of whether Israel unequivocally committed a war crime is raised. In doing so, the authors presented absolutely no evidence of such a crime, and apparently want to try Israel for an offence before any has been discovered. Indeed, the accusation was based solely on a statement made by Ashraf al-Qudra, the spokesperson for Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza, who said that Palestinians had inhaled white poisonous gas emanating from shells fired by the Israeli artillery on the northern and southern Gaza Strip. Needless to say, Hamas credibility in regard to such accusations is essentially nil.
War crime was not the only example of inflammatory language in the letter. Much of the rhetoric borders on outright incitement. Israels part in the war was repeatedly deemed an aggression and its actions in Gaza referred to as a massacre. Israels behavior has insulted our humanity, intelligence, and dignity, the authors wrote. They went on to engage in the ugly charge of guilt by association, saying that Israeli academics who did not sign an appeal to their government to stop the military operation are complicit in the massacre and destruction of Gaza.
Not once, however, did the authors discuss the causes of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, such as rocket fire and terror tunnels; or what might explain the scale of the damage in Gaza, namely, Hamas deliberate placement of rocket launchers in densely populated civilian areas. Moreover, given that the authors are medical professionals, it is surprising that they showed no concern for the use of hospitals as military facilities. These included Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, which, according to a report in The Washington Post, became the de facto headquarters for Hamas leaders, who can be seen in the hallways and offices. This use of hospitals for military purposes, incidentally, is a genuine war crime, with which the authors of the letter seem oddly unconcerned.
Their open letter, therefore, was telling as much for what it didnt included as what it did: Completely and, one is forced to suspect, deliberately absent was both Palestinian agency and Israeli legitimacy.
First, the authors bought into the Hamas narrative of resistance, that people in Gaza are resisting this aggression because they want a better and normal life. While it is true that Gazans reside in impoverished conditions, with many of them cramped together in refugee camps, the connection between the betterment of conditions in Gaza and the firing of rockets and mortars on Israeli population centers during Protective Edge is quite spurious. Indeed, before the operation began, 450 rockets had been fired at Israel in 2014 alone.
The letters authors also cited the blockade of Gazaa frequent refrain from Hamas apologistsasserting that building materials have been blockaded so that schools, homes, and institutions cannot be properly rebuilt. This is not the case. Restrictions on the import of construction items and materials such as concrete, cement, and steel exist in order to prevent their misappropriation for the building of a terrorist infrastructure, including bunkers, fortifications, and tunnels. This fear of misuse was not unjustified, given that during Operative Protective Edge, a shocking number of tunnels were uncovered by the Israel Defense Forces, some of which were used during the war to launch attacks on Israel itself.
The letter also cited accusations of the use of poison gas by Israel, and the question of whether Israel unequivocally committed a war crime is raised. In doing so, the authors presented absolutely no evidence of such a crime, and apparently want to try Israel for an offence before any has been discovered. Indeed, the accusation was based solely on a statement made by Ashraf al-Qudra, the spokesperson for Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza, who said that Palestinians had inhaled white poisonous gas emanating from shells fired by the Israeli artillery on the northern and southern Gaza Strip. Needless to say, Hamas credibility in regard to such accusations is essentially nil.
War crime was not the only example of inflammatory language in the letter. Much of the rhetoric borders on outright incitement. Israels part in the war was repeatedly deemed an aggression and its actions in Gaza referred to as a massacre. Israels behavior has insulted our humanity, intelligence, and dignity, the authors wrote. They went on to engage in the ugly charge of guilt by association, saying that Israeli academics who did not sign an appeal to their government to stop the military operation are complicit in the massacre and destruction of Gaza.
Not once, however, did the authors discuss the causes of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, such as rocket fire and terror tunnels; or what might explain the scale of the damage in Gaza, namely, Hamas deliberate placement of rocket launchers in densely populated civilian areas. Moreover, given that the authors are medical professionals, it is surprising that they showed no concern for the use of hospitals as military facilities. These included Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, which, according to a report in The Washington Post, became the de facto headquarters for Hamas leaders, who can be seen in the hallways and offices. This use of hospitals for military purposes, incidentally, is a genuine war crime, with which the authors of the letter seem oddly unconcerned.
Their open letter, therefore, was telling as much for what it didnt included as what it did: Completely and, one is forced to suspect, deliberately absent was both Palestinian agency and Israeli legitimacy.
Edit history
Please sign in to view edit histories.
121 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
RecommendedHighlight replies with 5 or more recommendations
Lancet medical journal under attack for 'extremist hate propaganda' over its coverage of the Israeli [View all]
shira
Apr 2015
OP
If you call out the Israeli's for their treatment of Palistinians it's "extremist hate propaganda"?
Scuba
Apr 2015
#1
Your link goes to another of your own posts. I chased a couple links but none led to ...
Scuba
Apr 2015
#12
So again, no links to anything Lancet published that was a lie, just a lot of complaints.
Scuba
Apr 2015
#19
So you still haven't linked to any lies but instead posted "justifications" for war crimes.
Scuba
Apr 2015
#68
You've still shown no lie about what Israel is doing/has done to the Palistinians. Your "big lie"
Scuba
Apr 2015
#80
There is a reason for that. The same reason that at Cern scientists from all over the world meet
still_one
Apr 2015
#48
When global politics are causing a health disaster, I expect a medical journal to say something, yes
Scootaloo
Apr 2015
#49
It's reality based. Your side still believes in fantasy like a legal RoR for millions...
shira
Apr 2015
#17
except no body was going to prison here were they unconfirmed means just that
azurnoir
Apr 2015
#121
what you call lies have been debunked the rest is for the most part unsourced claims from ToI's blog
azurnoir
Apr 2015
#100
You seem to think the phrase "reality-based" is a trump card for your fantastical nonsense
Scootaloo
Apr 2015
#88
Asks someone who thinks Mohammed al-Dura is alive after being killed by his father
Scootaloo
Apr 2015
#94
Pathetic that you couldn't acknowledge the very blatant conflict-of-interest lie.
shira
Apr 2015
#98
It is the rebuttal letter you posted that says "We declare no competing interests."
azurnoir
Apr 2015
#101
You're still doing it. You refer to a very long thread rather than admit you're wrong...
shira
Apr 2015
#108
Again, show me exactly where I wrote that al-Dura is alive, & yet his father killed him.
shira
Apr 2015
#110
so you admit that the Lancet published a paper that contradicted the Open Letter to Gaza
azurnoir
Apr 2015
#67