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November 19, 2008 at 05:02:49
Extrajudicial Assassinations As Official Israeli Policy by Stephen Lendman Page 1 of 5 page(s) |
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Extra-judicial killings are indefensible, morally abhorrent, and illegal under international laws and norms. Article 23b of the 1907 Hague Regulations prohibits "assassination, proscription, or outlawry of an enemy, or putting a price upon an enemy's head, as well as offering a reward for any enemy 'dead or alive.' "
Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person." UDHR also recognizes the "inherent dignity (and the) equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family."
So do "just war" principles that rule out gratuitous violence, assassinations, especially if premeditated, war against civilians, and so on, despite the difficulties of distinguishing between combatants, those who've laid down their arms, and the innocent in times of war - let alone dealing with "terrorism" or what one analyst calls the "twilight zone between war and peace." Others say it's justifiable resistance or "blowback" in response to state-sponsored violence and other crimes of war and against humanity.
In 1980, the Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders condemned "the practice of killing and executing political opponents or suspected offenders carried out by armed forces, law enforcement or other governmental agencies or by paramilitary or political groups" acting with the support of official forces or agencies.
The General Assembly also acted in response to arbitrary executions and politically motivated killings. On December 15, 1980, it adopted resolution 35/172 in which it urged member states to abide by the provisions of Articles 6, 14 and 15 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political rights that cover the right to life and various safeguards guaranteeing fair and impartial judicial proceedings.
The first principle of the 1989 UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions states:
"Governments shall prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offenses. Exceptional circumstances, including a state of war or threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked as a justification of such executions. (They) shall not be carried out under any circumstances including, but not limited to, situations of internal armed conflict, excessive or illegal use of force by a public official or other person acting in an official capacity or by a person acting at the instigation, or with the consent or acquiescence of such person, and situations in which deaths occur in custody. This prohibition shall prevail over decrees issued by governmental authority."
These articles and provisions apply to occupied civilian populations, and the Fourth Geneva Convention and its Article 3 affords ones (like the Palestinians) under foreign occupation special protection. It covers all actions related to "Violence to life and person, Murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture." In addition, "The passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court, affording all the judicial guarantees....recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples."
Its Article 32 states: "the High Contracting Parties specifically agree that each of them is prohibited from taking any measure of such a character as to cause the physical suffering or extermination of protected persons in their hands. This prohibition applies not only to murder, torture, corporal punishment, mutilation and medical or scientific experiments not necessitated by the medical treatment of a protected person, but also to any other measures of brutality whether applied by civilian or military agents."
Its Article 85 refers to "Grave Breaches" and defines them as "Acts committed willfully and causing death or serious injury to body or health....making the civilian population or individual civilians the object of attack (or)launching an indiscriminate attack affecting the civilian population or civilian objects...."
The 2002 International Criminal Court's Rome Statute also defines these grave violations as war crimes that include (in its Article 8):
-- "Grave" Geneva Convention breaches;
-- "Willing killing...."
-- "Intentionally launching an attack" knowing it will "cause incidental loss of life...."
-- "Killing or wounding" combatants who've laid down their arms;
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The Israeli/American holocaust.
Israel never stops reminding us of the holocaust, but they have launched one of their own all over th world. Republicans and Isaelis did the 911 stunt to steal a country. by John Hanks (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 1760 comments [39 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 12:23:44 PM
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"Extrajudicial Assassinations As Official Policy" by Lendman
When I was a (Muslim) child in India in the late nineteen forties and early fifties, that is during the first bloody years of Israeli ethnic cleansing, the 'creation' of Israel was often discussed at the family dining table. During these same years, Muslims, like us were also being targeted by Hindus under their brand of ethnic cleansing which forced a million of 'us' to quit India, just to remain alive. While I was still in India, my Nanny, an old sage, used to tell bed time tales which, in her turn she must have heard from her parents and elders. One such story was about a prophesied last & ultimate battle between Jews & Muslims at the end of times. As per her tale, during the end of times Jews from around the World will 'return' to Palestine and they will make a lot of mischief, rule by injustice and kill a lot of Muslims. At that tender age and in a land where Jews were an unknown quantity, I used to think that her Jews were like the fairies and ghosts which appeared in her other tales. Anyway, on occasions when I was still awake, I used to ask her, "Then What"? Every time she would answer by informing me that three wars would be fought between the Jews and Arabs (twice) and with Muslims (third and final time). She would say, " The Arabs will be defeated in the first two wars. Then, in the third and final war the Muslims will defeat them (no mention of Arabs). There would be much bloodshed and the Jews will be exterminated, even those hiding behind rocks/ boulders". I would ask her, "How will the Muslims find such hidden Jews?". She would answer by saying, "The rocks and boulders will speak to the Muslims and tell them where such Jews were!" This I always found to be a tall one. Another thing in the tale which always bothered me was the part about the 'massacre'. For me then, the only people who massacred others were the Hindus and the Germans, who featured regularly at our family's dinner time discussions. The Hindus were known to me as butchers because 42 of our next of kin had been freshly massacred (1946) by Hindu mobs, a story my parents apparently wanted us to remember for as long as we remained alive but I did not know who the Germans had massacred and when. Later at school I learned the victims were Jews. In my mid twenties I landed up in the Middle East and have lived there ever since. One year after my arrival the Arabs were defeated ignominiously by the Israelis (1967), i.e, by the Jews. Was this one of the two my Nanny use to tell me about? As I could not confirm this I began catching up with the history of the Jews, their history in Palestine, the ancient Philistines, the Canaanites, the Babylonian and the ancient Egyptians who had both enslaved Jews, right up to the 'circumstances' leading to the Israel of today. I read about the more recent War of 1948, which the Arabs had again lost. Was this the first of my nanny's three wars? I can not say. If the Arabs had lost the two prophecied wars, then, where were the Muslims of the third? It's only after the Islamic Republic of Iran started backing the Palestinians as an officially proclaimed state policy that I could see that long last a non-Arab Muslim nation had declared Jewish Israel as their National Enemy # 1. Were the Persians then, the Muslims of the third and final war in my Nanny's tale. Then after 2003 I started learning about the RAPTURE scenarios being preached by the Evangelists in America, whose final scene again describes the same 'end' for the Jews as in the third and last battle tale scenario. Do two separate and disconnected tales really mean that we are NOW at the end of times. Does it also mean that something terrible is going to take place in Palestine/ Israel and to the Jews therein? The more I read about the atrocities of Israelis in Palestine, the more I shudder in anticipation. May be I am wrong. I hope and pray I am wrong. I would love to see the Israelis behave better and not do all the things which create the urge for REVENGE! I know they won't because the Israelis think they can 'get away with murder' like they have been doing for the last six to seven decades, non-stop! Sometimes I wonder if the genes which lead to the suicide syndrome are prevalent in the Sons of Isaac, the descendants of all 12 of them! by syed mahdi (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 92 comments [4 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 2:53:46 PM
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Extrajudicial
Since everyone mistakes Zionism with Judaism anyway let me repeat the Biblical admonition that those who live by the sword shall also die by the sword. by Archie (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 1750 comments [111 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 3:38:11 PM
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Archie - Everyone mistakes Zionism with Judaism
I agree with your statement that "everyone mistakes Zionism with Judaism". I think that I will start using "Herzlist" or "Herzlism" instead of Zionism to refer to the Zionist Movement started by Theodor Herzl. by Anton Grambihler (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 314 comments [7 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 7:17:25 PM
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committing terrorism
Per the definition, the Israelis are committing "terrorism" upon the Gaza strip and a surrounding areas as well. Genocide is a better description of what they are doing to Gaza. What you sew, you shall reap; so as to Israel, blowback will come. However, my greater concern is all the dual citizenship officials we have and Obama has appointed. These Israel/American ppl will surely fight FOR Israel when it comes down to the final straw. They certainly won't be loyal to Americans. Yet, our stupid Democrats and Republicans just cow tow to these theives in the night. Paulson, a dual, is raping our Treasury. Leiberman is enforcing fascist laws and strippping our freedoms and Liberties and Obama "forgives him". Oh, how effin nice. As far as this orchestrated 9-11, there will be an orchestrated "Rapture". You can bet on it. Mark my word. by shirley reese (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 592 comments [98 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 7:19:57 PM
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Policy extends beyond this
These extrajudicial assassinations have been policy for a long time. It is also true that collateral deaths of civilians, sometimes greatly exceeding the number of named target(s), are also Israeli policy. And, looking at the cycle of violence in Palestine, it is easy to include that, while some of these are carried out to appease the radical right in Israel, some are carried out to break periods of releative peace. Israel's political position demands it "suffer" terrorist attacks (I note Israel is far safer than the US), and it may well be willing to kill ten times the number of Palestinians to get the response it wants. I note the US is doing exactly the same in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Somalia on a regular basis, and occasionally elsewhere such as Syria. by Richard Pietrasz (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 49 comments [4 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Thursday, Nov 20, 2008 at 1:07:02 AM
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Extrajudicial Assassinations As Official Israeli Policy
Extrajudicial Assassinations As Official Israeli Policy. The above is NOT just Israel policy, but I do recall Bush passing legislation allowing U.S. Forces the exact same outcome, Yet not ONE country throughout the World has ever spoken out against it. Are they all so terrified that during the night they may be assassinated ? Where is the World Court, the Hague and the U.N. when these laws are passed and enforced ? The U.N. moves condemnation against Israel and the responce is, waving the middle finger carrying on business as usual. There is a tiny glimmer of light within this darkness, and that is over the years, the World has woken up to the Zionism and the murderous campaigns emanating from Israel together with it's vassel the U.S. and no longer have any sympathy for them as in the past, in fact this very fact has caused a strong push by the Zionists to attempt to re-establish the former status quoe without much success, therefore clearly the World has had it up to the ears with Zionism and Israel. I strongly suspect, should another Holocaust(if there ever was one) occur within Israel, there won't be too many tears shed by the outside World. As has been so eloquently stated here already, "you choose to live by the sword, so you shall die by the sword". Of course the same goes for America. by Eddy Schmid (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 234 comments [17 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Thursday, Nov 20, 2008 at 2:31:19 AM
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