Israeli soldiers tell of indiscriminate killings by army

[Violet_Crumble]

Whistleblowers' testimony shows desire for revenge on Palestinians

Conal Urquhart in Tel Aviv
Tuesday September 6, 2005
The Guardian

From a distance of 70 metres and through the sight of his machine gun, Assaf could tell that the Palestinian man was aged between 20 and 30, unarmed and trying to get away from an Israeli tank. But the details didn't matter much, because Assaf's orders were to "fire at anything that moved".
Assaf, a soldier in the Israeli army, pressed the trigger, firing scores of bullets as the body fell to the ground. "He ran and I started shooting for a few seconds. He fell. I was a machine. I fire. I leave and that's that. We never spoke about it afterwards."

It was the summer of 2002, and Assaf and his armoured unit had been ordered to enter the Gaza town of Dir al Balah following the firing of mortars into nearby Jewish settlements. His orders were, he told the Guardian, "'Every person you see on the street, kill him'. And we would just do it."

It was not the first time that Assaf had killed an innocent person in Gaza while following orders, but after his discharge he began to think about the things he did.

"The reason why I am telling you this is that I want the army to think about what they are asking us to do, shooting unarmed people. I don't think it's legal."

Assaf is not alone. In recent months dozens of soldiers, including the son of an an Israeli general, all recently discharged, have come forward to share their stories of how they were ordered in briefings to shoot to kill unarmed people without fear of reprimand.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,2763,1563273,00.html

[tocqueville]

1. Good it comes out, put things into perspective...

at least he tells that it's not a question of a "few bad apples"

[LibertyorDeath]

2. " I don't think it's legal."

No shit

Zombies Give Gun me shoot where go next kill kill kill

[pelsar]

3. same article....

During the first intifada, there were printed rules of engagement. In the second there are none and what rules exist are kept secret. This leaves a wide scope for interpretation for officers and soldiers," she said.


except that that is also news to me.......never saw a "written rule of engagment" since they were also changing during intifada I....and never heard of "secret" rule of engagement.... guess they were so secret they didnt tell me before we went out.

and those testimonies sound very very far fetched...go out and shoot an unarmed person...and then he says "I dont think its legal!.....maybe the guardian got its armies mixed up......legal and illegal orders are part of the training.

[Violet_Crumble]

4. Yep, they must all be a bunch of liars...

:shrug:

[pelsar]

5. not all...

sure some soldiers killed without cause....give 18yrs olds automatic weapons, a violent environement and lots of peer pressure and they will...

and so do cops in less intense environments....

but the article has some pretty weak statements...commonly known as lies which weakens its credability. If someone is looking for the truth with what happens within IDF in the last 5 years..it wont be in that article:

"Every person you see on the street, kill him'. And we would just do it."

that would make for a lot of killing in a single day..probably about 50 if not a 100. A squad of soldiers carry a lot of weaponry.....

my favorite:

In the second there are none and what rules exist are kept secret.

so does this mean that during the briefings the offices said there are ROE but we cant tell you!!!!

guess the "star of the article"' assaf isnt to smart as he has a problem with killing but then says:

Assaf says he would carry out the same orders again when he returns to reserve duty.


the bottom half of the article has a little more credability but isnt as exciting.

[TomClash]

6. Good Soldiers

refusing to be the bayonets of Lebensraum.