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My sheer frustration with the UN grows unabated. The UN humanitarian chief, Jan Egeland, brings us news of 359 separate cluster bomb strikes in South Lebanon, 90% of which occurred in the final three days of the war and AFTER the announcement that a peace resolution was agreed and was about to be passed by the UN Security Council. So, why the frustration? Well, to put it mildly, very mildly in fact, the UN have, yet again, shirked their ultimate responsibility to the world at large. Yes, they tell us of this hideous war crime. Yes, they announce to the world that Israel has committed an act of pure hatred as a last resort to "enjoy" the final few days of the war and leave behind more death and destruction as a result of the 100,000 unexploded bomblets. Yes, they have admitted that at least some of these munitions were made in the US. But then they go and spoil it all with what has to one of the most obvious examples of total complicity with the US and Israel that they ever uttered...
Excuse me? "A serious talk"? Is that a joke? I hope not because it is not very funny. The use of cluster munitions in a civilian or built-up area is illegal and a breach of the Geneva Conventions. This means that it constitutes a war crime. Let us not forget that many of the Geneva Conventions and protocols were either written or updated in 1949 to support the prosecution of those that had, amongst other things, persecuted the Jews. One would think that this would give them an extra special reason to not use them but it seems that quite the opposite is the case. With all of that in mind, who do you think should be having a "serious talk" with Israel? The makers of the missiles or, let me think, how about THE UNITED NATIONS? What if Hezbollah decided to fire a missile at a civilian area of Northern Israel every time a Lebanese civilian is killed by one of these bombs? Who could blame them and yet I can hear the sanctions resolutions and the breakdown of peace coming a mile away! Israel are literally getting away with murder. The world is dangerous enough without the intentional addition of death and misery for the people of Lebanon who, israel may or may not have noticed, were not actually involved in the war. Somebody once asked me why I think that the Jews are so unpopular the world over and have been thrown out of just about every country that they have ever tried to settle in at one time or another throughout history. I had to think for a while and, to a degree, I am still thinking about it now. But my current response is simple... They are treated as they treat others. It is just a shame that the world's government bodies such as the UN, US, UK and EU support them so unflinchingly even when they are INTENTIONALLY inflicting large scale deaths and maiming injuries upon innocent people. They clearly learned nothing from World War II about the treatment of people at the hands of an aggressor and they have clearly learned nothing from the lessons that history has tried so hard to teach them. I do not advocate the "wiping off the map" of Israel, nor do I care too much for the idea that it has the right to be expanded at will. I do however wish to live in a better, safer world and, having lived in Israel for almost a year in the late 90's, I can tell you that the people of Israel do not generally approve of these actions either, although they become complicit through their acts of silence when such actions are being carried out in their name. They are no different to American or British people in this way. Yes, there is a movement of people in Israel trying to get the truth out, trying to make life better for everybody just like there are in other parts of the world but they are too few and the media spends too little time reporting on their efforts. The point here is not necessarily that Israel are the bad guys but that the UN is a hopelessly biased, controlled and thus insidious organisation that has the ability to let people feel that something is being done because the UN are there and they are making statements like this one when in reality they are doing nothing other than spout hot air. They are part of the problem and not part of the solution and they should be disbanded immediately before they are presented as our knights in shining armour who should govern the world at some point in the fast approaching future. |
Wednesday 30th August 2006 | AFP |
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UN humanitarian chief Jan Egeland said that thousands of civilians were at risk in south Lebanon from unexploded cluster bombs dropped by Israeli forces in the last three days of the war against Hezbollah guerrillas. He said the UN Mine Action Coordination Center had assessed "nearly 85 percent of bombed areas in south Lebanon" and identified "359 separate cluster bomb strike locations that are contaminated with as many 100,000 unexploded bomblets." "What's shocking and I would say completely immoral is that 90 percent of the cluster bomb strikes occurred in the last 72 hours of the conflict when we knew there would be a resolution, when we knew there would be an end," he said. "Every day, people are maimed, wounded and are killed by these ordnances," the UN relief coordinator said. He said the bombs may have been manufactured "in a number of places," including the United States. "Those places who made those bombs should have a serious talk with Israel on the use of such bombs that are making our lives so miserable trying to help the Lebanese people. "I hope the US will talk to the Israelis on that, because it is an outrage that we have 100,000 bombs among where children, women, shopkeepers and farmers are now going to tread," Egeland said, adding that he had not been able to get an explanation from the Israelis so far. Egeland said he would launch an appeal for more money for mine clearance when he attends Thursday's conference in Stockholm on Lebanon's reconstruction. Representatives of more than a dozen organisations are also expected to attend the one-day meeting, the first donors' conference to be held since the Lebanon ceasefire two weeks ago. In Geneva, Chris Clark, head of the UN Mine Action Service in southern Lebanon, said there had been a total of 59 confirmed casualties, including 13 deaths, caused by the explosives since the end of hostilities on August 14. The United Nations has asked Israel to provide a list of sites targeted during its month-long offensive in Lebanon, something which is crucial for the clean up. Israel and other countries which have used the weapons, notably the United States in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kosovo, often face criticism because the weapons can kill indiscriminately. Unexploded bomblets, which are often scattered over a large area, can pose a deadly threat to civilians, especially children, for months and even years after a conflict. The Israeli military is believed to have fired around 2,000-3,000 rounds of heavier ammunition a day -- not only cluster bombs but also artillery shells and more conventional bombs -- in the early stages of its campaign to dislodge the Shiite Muslim Hezbollah fighters. |
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