Why should Israel care about the negative publicity

Politics International Politics
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[quote=“Prototype”]He is not just a guy, he is one of the soldiers captured during the attack. If you want to kill somebody, you just leave him bleed to death not treat. You can say the soldier and the activist are the same if you look at this picture…

[/quote]
I think we need a whole lot more information on who each person is and what they are doing before you jump to those conclusions. Maybe the others attacked and were trying to kill the soldier when the doctor intervened. Maybe they thought they had killed him until a doctor checked him afterward. Those pictures give you minimal information.

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Seems to me that if the Israelis had intended to “attack” the “peace activists”, the IDF would not have lowered men onto the deck from helicopters.[/quote]

Or not given them paintball guns instead of proper firearms that use very lethal ammunition.

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No surprise here.

[quote=“AP/Huffington Post”]The list of banned goods replaces an old list of allowed items that permitted only basic humanitarian supplies for the 1.5 million Gazans. Under the new system, the government said practically all non-military items can enter Gaza freely.

“From now on, there is a green light of approval for all goods to enter Gaza except for military items and materials that can strengthen Hamas’ military machine,” Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said.

Israel decided on Thursday to ease the blockade under intense international pressure after its raid on a blockade-busting international flotilla bound for Gaza killed nine pro-Palestinian activists.

In a critical shift, Israel said it would allow construction materials into Gaza for projects approved by the Palestinian Authority, such as housing and schools, as long as the projects are under international supervision. Up to now, Israel has banned most construction materials, including cement.[/quote]

As for weapons, I’ve seen reports that weapons are being smuggled through the tunnels INTO Egypt FROM Gaza. That’s right, the market for weapons is better in Egypt. So, what was that blockade accomplishing? Apparently even the Likud government recognizes: not a whole lot.

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[quote=“Jaboney”]
As for weapons, I’ve seen reports that weapons are being smuggled through the tunnels INTO Egypt FROM Gaza. That’s right, the market for weapons is better in Egypt. So, what was that blockade accomplishing? Apparently even the Likud government recognizes: not a whole lot.[/quote]

What good are the weapons in Egypt? They already have miles of open border and coastline in which to smuggle stuff into. What sense would it make to smuggle guns into Gaza and then through tunnels into Egypt rather than in through Libya or Sudan? Sudan isn’t exactly the toughest place to smuggle stuff into or out of…

The one thing the blockade was accomplishing was keeping Hamas rolling in cash as they taxed every good that came in through their tunnels.

[quote]But a blockade that prohibits importing everything but humanitarian items has made the smuggling tunnels between Gaza and Egypt a vital lifeline. While Israel considers the tunnels illegal, no one here does. Hamas levies a value-added tax of 14.5 percent on every item that comes through, local shop owners say.

[…]

Taxes may be hurting business – and angering shopkeepers – but they’re keeping cash flowing to Hamas. Mohammed, the owner of a Gaza City grocery, says there’s no choice in the matter. “If I don’t pay, they will shut me down.”

Even if the borders were open to a free flow of trade, allowing Hamas to tax even more items coming from Israel, Hamad says Hamas would be less able to control commerce and generate revenue. “They would have less control over the flow of goods than they have right now at the tunnels,” he argues. [/quote]

News of the blockade being lifted has caused the tunnel economy to crash.

[quote]
RAFAH, Palestinian Territories: As the news spread that Israel would ease its four-year blockade on the Gaza Strip, merchants in the territory’s main smugglers’ market raced to unload their merchandise.

The prices of televisions, refrigerators and washing machines that had been hauled hundreds of meters through tunnels beneath the Egyptian border plummeted in the Rafah border town’s sprawling Al-Najma market.

“Crate of cola, 20 shekels ($5) only!” Abu Hassan, 54, shouted at passersby as he glanced nervously at several boxes of fizzy drinks stacked up outside his shop. He used to sell a crate for as much as 30 shekels.

[…]

Abu Ahmad, another merchant at Al-Najma market, was forced to lower the price of kitchen supplies by 50 percent last week when Israel allowed in eight trucks of cooking equipment. Now everything has been marked down.

“A month ago I would have sold this 40-inch television for 8,000 shekels (around $2,000), and today it is only 4,700,” he says. He remains optimistic, however, because he doesn’t trust the Israelis. [/quote]