Hamas Cowards Use Patients as Human Shields

All wars have elements of tragedy, and sadly, all wars involve civilian casualties. Yet not all civilian casualties are the result of war crimes. Some may be and others are not, depending on all of the facts and circumstances and the intentions or recklessness of the warring parties.

It’s difficult to think of a more clear-cut case of war crimes than the actions of Hamas, described in this article.

The article itself is unusual because it involves first-hand reporting from the front lines by Paul Nuki of The Telegraph. Israel has cut off electricity and internet communications in the Northern Gaza combat zone, but they made an exception in Nuki’s case and allowed him to accompany Israel Defense Force (IDF) troops on a mission. In this case, the mission was to secure the area of the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza.

Normally, a hospital would be off limit to combat troops. Hospitals, ambulances, and temporary medical facilities are all clearly marked with a Red Cross or Red Crescent and are not meant to be put in the line of fire. The difficulty reported was that Hamas fighters had occupied the hospital and were using the area to conduct a last-ditch defense.

The IDF were moving in to annihilate the Hamas cowards. Using human shields, including hospitals and their patients, is a war crime. The Israelis were doing everything possible to avoid civilian casualties, but some may have been unavoidable as they advanced to wipe out the practically sub-human Hamas militants.

Something similar but on a larger scale is unfolding at the nearby Al Shifa Hospital where Hamas has built an underground headquarters under that hospital. Again, this is a war crime and makes it almost impossible for the IDF to wipe out Hamas leaders without jeopardizing the hospital itself.

The next time you hear someone accuse the Israelis of war crimes, just remind them that it is Hamas, not Israel, who are using hospitals and their patients as human shields.

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