ガザ参戦のイスラエル兵が証言、｢まず撃て｣「民間人を盾に」と軍が指示

ガザ参戦のイスラエル兵が証言、｢まず撃て｣「民間人を盾に」と軍が指示【7月16日 AFP】

http://www.afpbb.com/article/war-unrest/2621767/4362187

イスラエル軍によるパレスチナ自治区ガザ地区（Gaza Strip）攻撃に参加したイスラエル軍兵士らが、軍上層部から「疑わしければまず撃ち、結果はその後で心配すればよい」といった指示や、パレスチナ民間人を「人間の盾」として使用するよう指導されたと証言した。イスラエル退役兵らで作るグループ「沈黙を破る（Breaking the Silence）｣が15日、報告書を発表した。

報告書によると、証言は匿名の兵士30人ほどから集められたもの。その結果、ガザ地区における大規模な破壊は、｢イスラエル国防軍（Israel Defence Forces、IDF）の方針の直接的な結果｣であることが明らかになったとしている。

1人の兵士は、｢建物に接近するときには、いつも近所の人間を先に送り込んだ｣と述べ、イスラエル兵たちがパレスチナ民間人を｢人間の盾｣として使用するのが常態化していたことを証言した。

別の兵士は、上官から｢民間人の肩に銃身を置き、その体を盾にして家の中に入っていった実例｣を聞かされたという。

戦闘前にこうした指示が与えられたことで、兵士たちはむやみに発砲しがちになり、民間人の死者を出したり、壊滅的な打撃を与える結果を招いたと兵士らは証言している。(c)AFP/Yana Dlugy

A NEW BOOKLET BY "BREAKING THE SILENCE": 7/15/2009

http://www.shovrimshtika.org/news_item_e.asp?id=30

AROUND 30 ISRAELI SOLDIERS TESTIFY ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCES IN OPERATION CAST LEAD – A NEW BOOKLET BY "BREAKING THE SILENCE":
"You feel like an infantile little kid with a magnifying glass looking at ants, burning them."

Fifty-four testimonies of Israeli combat soldiers who participated in Operation Cast Lead reveal gaps between the reports given by the army following January’s events; the needless destruction of houses; firing phosphorous in populated areas and an atmosphere that encouraged shooting anywhere.

Half a year after Operation Cast Lead, the organization "Breaking the Silence" is announcing the release of a new booklet today (Wed. 7/15) that includes numerous testimonies by soldiers who participated in the operation. The testimonies expose significant gaps between the official stances of the Israeli military and events on the ground.

Among the 54 testimonies are stories revealing the use of "accepted practices," the destruction of hundreds of houses and mosques for no military purpose, the firing of phosphorous gas in the direction of populated areas, the killing of innocent victims with small arms, the destruction of private property, and most of all, a permissive atmosphere in the command structure that enabled soldiers to act without moral restrictions. The booklet compiles the testimonies of about 30 reserve and regular combat soldiers from various units that participated in the fighting. The testimonies demonstrate that the soldiers were not given directives stating the goal of the operation and, as one soldier testifies, "there was not much said about the issue of innocent civilians."

Many soldiers said that they fought without seeing "the enemy before their eyes." "You feel like an infantile little kid with a magnifying glass looking at ants, burning them," one of the soldiers testified that "a 20-year-old kid should not have to do these kinds of things to other people."

"The testimonies prove that the immoral way the war was carried out was due to the systems in place and not the individual soldier," said Mikhael Mankin from "Breaking the Silence." What was proven yesterday is that through the IDF the exception becomes the norm, and this requires a deep and reflective discussion. This is an urgent call to Israel's society and leadership to take a sober look at the foolishness of our policies."