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KontradoxaBaggrund, analyse og kronikker
Palæstina vs. Israel
17. juli 2014 - 11:46

Israel bruger palæstinensere som 'menneskeskjolde'

Anklagerne imod Hamas om brug af civile til at afværge israelske bomber er udbredte, men uden større belæg. Tilgengæld er der meget dokumentation for, at Israel har brugt civile palæstinensere til 'menneskeskjolde'.

Det kræver ingen videre uddybning, at brugen af civile som ’menneskeskjolde’ er en overtrædelse af krigens regler og en moralsk forbrydelse. At gemme sig bag ”ikke-kombattanter” for at afværge fjendens ild er en krigsforbrydelse. Full stop.

De israelske myndigheder har fremsat beskyldninger imod Hamas om, at bevægelsen bruger civile som menneskeskjolde på Gaza-striben. Israel har fremsat denne anklage tidligere under Operation Støbt Bly og Operation Pillar of Defense.

Som bevis har det israelske militær fremlagt:

1. En lidt grynet sort-hvid video fra luften (dateret 14. juli 2014), som angiveligt viser to tilfælde, hvor det israelske luftvåben nulstiller bombeordrer, fordi civile er til stede.

2. En ny og en gammel udtalelse fra henholdsvis en Hamas-talsmand (Sami Abu Zuhri) og et Hamas-medlem (Fathi Hammad) fra bevægelsens politiske afdeling.    

3. En Hamas-repræsentant, som via radioen angiveligt opfordrer civile at blive hjemme, trods israelske varslinger om bombning.

4. En meddelelse fra ”Hamas indenrigsministerium”, som angiveligt opfordrer palæstinenserne til at blive hjemme, igen trods israelske varslinger om bombning.

Det israelske militær har også til formålet produceret en stribe ’infografer’ eller ‘mémes’ tiltænkt de sociale medier. Her vises bl.a., hvad man anser for at være legitime mål.

Om de fremlagte videoer, udtalelser og meddelelser er tilstrækkelige beviser på, at Hamas gemmer sig bag ”menneskeskjolde” i Gaza, skal jeg ikke kunne vurdere. Umiddelbart synes jeg ikke, at det er endegyldige belæg. Selvom det forekommer mig usandsynligt, at brugen af ”menneskeskjolde” er en udbredt praksis, forekommer det mig ganske plausibelt, at Hamas opfordrer folk til ikke at forlade deres hjem.

Hvorom alting er, så er min mening ikke det vigtige hér. Disse krigsforbrydelsesanklager skal opklares af uafhængige instanser, og før en uafhængig undersøgelse be- eller afkræfter gyldigheden af de israelske belæg for brugen af civile som ”menneskeskjolde” i Gaza, må de israelske myndigheders anklage betragtes som et partsindlæg.

I sin undersøgelse af Operation Støbt Bly addresserede FN’s officielle Fact Finding Mission, Goldstone-rapporten (.pdf), Hamas-medlem Fathi Hammads udtalelser:
”The Mission is also aware of the public statement by Mr. Fathi Hammad, a Hamas member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, on 29 February 2009, which is adduced as evidence of Hamas’ use of human shields. […] Although the Mission finds this statement morally repugnant, it does not consider it to constitute evidence that Hamas forced Palestinian civilians to shield military objectives against attack. The Government of Israel has not identified any such cases.” (Min fremhævning)
I tilfældet Fathi Hammad, kan udtalelsen altså ikke bruges som gyldigt bevis for brugen af civile som ”menneskeskjolde”.

HVAD SIGER UNDERSØGELSERNE?
Der er endnu ikke foretaget undersøgelser af anklagen om ”menneskeskjolde” under israelske bombardementer i den seneste konflikt mellem Israel-Gaza.

Ifølge FNs Nødhjælpskoordinator er 193 døde, 38 børn, mindst 105 civile på den palæstinensiske side, og 1 civil er død på den israelske side. (Gazas sundhedsministerium sætter tallet på over 200. Dødstallet stiger flere gange dagligt på den palæstinensiske side.)

Den palæstinensiske menneskerettighedsorganisation al-Mezan har udstedt en pressemeddelelse, hvor de fordømmer bombningen af Majid Subhi al-Batshs private bolig, som på en gang dræbte 17 familiemedlemmer, heraf 6 børn og 3 kvinder. Pr. 9 juni var “hovedårsagen til civile tab i Gaza” skyldet ”målrettet beskydning af private boliger” ifølge FNs Nødhjælpskoordinator (link: .pdf).

Den israelske menneskerettighedsorganisation B’Tselem understreger ulovligheden af bombningen af civil infrastruktur i Gaza. Organisationen skriver:
”According to B’Tselem’s initial findings, from the start of Operation Protective Shield there were ten incidents in which Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were killed when the Israeli military bombed homes. 52 people were killed in these incidents, of them 19 minors and 12 women.”
Ovenstående afrapportering fra menneskerettighedsorganisationer, som arbejder i området, nævner intet om brugen af ”menneskeskjolde”. Sådanne anklager vil efter alt at dømme blive undersøgt efter stridighederne har lagt sig.

Efter Operation Støbt Bly udkom et dusin undersøgende rapporter fra respekterede, mainstream menneskerettighedsorganisationer, civilsamfundsorganisationer og internationale Fact Finding-missioner. I det følgende fremhæver jeg udpluk af de dele af undersøgelserne, som omtaler brugen af ”menneskeskjolde” under Støbt Bly.

Jeg mener, at en vurdering af de tidligere anklagers (u)gyldighed, sætter de nuværende anklager i perspektiv. Dette er vigtigt, fordi det maner til omhu blandt eksperter, kommentatorer, lederskribenter, journalister og lægmænd, hvad angår den ukritiske viderebringelse af anklagen:

Amnesty International (Rapport, link: .pdf):
“Amnesty International, for its part, did not find evidence that Hamas or other Palestinian groups violated the laws of war to the extent repeatedly alleged by Israel. In particular, it found no evidence that Hamas or other fighters directed the movement of civilians to shield military objectives from attacks. By contrast, Amnesty International did find that Israeli forces on several occasions during Operation “Cast Lead” forced Palestinian civilians to serve as “human shields”. In any event, international humanitarian law makes clear that use of “human shields” by one party does not release the attacking party from its legal obligations with respect to civilians.” (Min fremhævning)
“Contrary to repeated allegations by Israeli officials of the use of “human shields,” Amnesty International found no evidence that Hamas or other Palestinian fighters directed the movement of civilians to shield military objectives from attacks. It found no evidence that Hamas or other armed groups forced residents to stay in or around buildings used by fighters, nor that fighters prevented residents from leaving buildings or areas which had been commandeered by militants.” (Min fremhævning)
“Amnesty International delegates interviewed many Palestinians who complained about Hamas’s conduct, and especially about Hamas’s repression and attacks against their opponents, including killings, torture and arbitrary detentions, but did not receive any accounts of Hamas fighters having used them as “human shields.” In the cases investigated by Amnesty International of civilians killed in Israeli attacks, the deaths could not be explained as resulting from the presence of fighters shielding among civilians, as the Israeli army generally contends. In all of the cases investigated by Amnesty International of families killed when their homes were bombed from the air by Israeli forces, for example, none of the houses struck was being used by armed groups for military activities. Similarly, in the cases of precision missiles or tank shells which killed civilians in their homes, no fighters were present in the houses that were struck and Amnesty International delegates found no indication that there had been any armed confrontations or other military activity in the immediate vicinity at the time of the attack.” (Min fremhævning)
“The attacks that caused the greatest number of fatalities and injuries were carried out with long-range high-precision munitions fired from combat aircraft, helicopters and drones, or from tanks stationed up to several kilometres away – often against pre-selected targets, a process that would normally require approval from up the chain of command. The victims of these attacks were not caught in the crossfire of battles between Palestinian militants and Israeli forces, nor were they shielding militants or other legitimate targets. Many were killed when their homes were bombed while they slept. Others were going about their daily activities in their homes, sitting in their yard, hanging the laundry on the roof when they were targeted in air strikes or tank shelling. Children were studying or playing in their bedrooms or on the roof, or outside their homes, when they were struck by missiles or tank shells. Others were in the street, walking or cycling. Paramedics and ambulances were repeatedly attacked while rescuing the wounded or recovering the dead.” (Min fremhævning)
Human Rights Watch (Rapport, link)
"To date, the Israeli government and IDF have denied wrongdoing for civilian deaths during the Gaza fighting, saying the military did everything possible to minimize civilian casualties. One element of this argument is that Hamas placed non-combatants in danger by hiding and engaging Israeli forces from amidst civilians, making it impossible for Israeli forces to attack without causing “collateral damage.” As noted, in the 19 IDF attacks Human Rights Watch documented, selected to highlight policies that led to unlawful deaths, WE FOUND NO EVIDENCE that Hamas or other Palestinian fighters were present at the time of the attack.” (min fremhævning) 


Human Rights Watch (Rapport, link):

“Deliberately using civilians to deter attacks on military targets amounts to “human shielding,” which is a war crime. In the preceding cases, Human Rights Watch either could not determine or the evidence did not indicate that militants launched rockets from areas close to civilians with the intention of deterring Israeli forces from counter- attacking.”

Goldstone-rapporten (Rapport, link: .pdf):

Paragraf 35: “The Mission examined whether and to what extent the Palestinian armed groups violated their obligation to exercise care and take all feasible precautions to protect the civilian population in Gaza from the inherent dangers of the military operations (chap. VIII). The Mission was faced with a certain reluctance by the persons it interviewed in Gaza to discuss the activities of the armed groups. On the basis of the information gathered, the Mission found that Palestinian armed groups were present in urban areas during the military operations and launched rockets from urban areas. It may be that the Palestinian combatants did not at all times adequately distinguish themselves from the civilian population. The Mission found no evidence, however, to suggest that Palestinian armed groups either directed civilians to areas where attacks were being launched or that they forced civilians to remain within the vicinity of the attacks.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 452: “In view of the information communicated to it and the material it was able to review, the Mission believes that there are indications that Palestinian armed groups launched rockets from urban areas. In those instances in which Palestinian armed groups did indeed fire rockets or mortars from urban areas the question remains whether this was done with the specific intent of shielding the combatants from counter-attack. The Mission has not been able to obtain any direct evidence on this question; nor do reports from other observers provide a clear answer.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 475: “As discussed in more detail in other parts of the report, the Mission asked numerous witnesses in Gaza why they had stayed in their homes in spite of the shelling, bombing and Israeli ground invasion. They stated that they had decided to stay put either because they had experienced previous incursions and, based on past experience, did not think they would be at risk as long as they remained indoors or because they had no safe place to go. In additional, some witnesses stated that they had chosen to stay because they wished to watch over their homes and property. The Mission did not find any evidence of civilians being forced to remain in their houses by Palestinian armed groups.” (Min fremhævning)

 I helt afsnit i Goldstone-rapporten præsenteres missionens “Factual Findings”. Her skriver rapporten:

Paragraf 483: ”The Mission finds that the presence of Palestinian armed fighters in urban residential areas during the military operations is established. On the basis of the information it gathered, the Mission is unable to form an opinion on the exact nature or the intensity of their combat activities in urban residential areas that would have placed the civilian population and civilian objects at risk of attack. While reports reviewed by the Mission credibly indicate that members of Palestinian armed groups were not always dressed in a way that distinguished them from civilians, the Mission found no evidence that Palestinian combatants mingled with the civilian population with the intention of shielding themselves from attack.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 484: “From the information it gathered, the Mission does not discount the use of booby traps by the Palestinian armed groups. The Mission has no basis to conclude that civilian lives were put at risk, since none of the reports records the presence of civilians in or near the houses that were allegedly booby-trapped.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 485: “On the basis of its own investigations and statements by United Nations officials, the Mission excludes that Palestinian armed groups engaged in combat activities from United Nations facilities that were used as shelters during the military operations. The Mission cannot discount the possibility that Palestinian armed groups were active in the vicinity of such facilities.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 486: “The Mission is unable to make any determination on the general allegation that Palestinian armed groups used mosques for military purposes. It notes that, in the one incident it investigated of an Israeli attack on a mosque, it found no indication that the mosque was so used.” (Min fremhævning)

Hvad angår brugen af moskeer som våbenlagre, udtalte Desmond Travers, som var Goldstone-rapportens militærekspert, i et interview i Harper’s Magazine:

We found no evidence that Hamas used civilians as hostages. I had expected to find such evidence but did not. We also found no evidence that mosques were used to store munitions. Those charges reflect Western perceptions in some quarters that Islam is a violent religion. Gaza is densely populated and has a labyrinth of makeshift shanties and a system of tunnels and bunkers. If I were a Hamas operative the last place I’d store munitions would be in a mosque. It’s not secure, is very visible, and would probably be pre-targeted by Israeli surveillance. There are a many better places to store munitions. We investigated two destroyed mosques—one where worshippers were killed—and we found no evidence that either was used as anything but a place of worship." (Min fremhævning).

En anden Fact Finding Mission ledt af den internationalt anerkendte sydafrikanske jurist John Dugard konkluderede på moské-spørgsmålet:

Paragraf 353: “A large number of mosques were targeted specifically (the minarets) and destroyed. This damage has been reported by a number of sources. Given the limited reporting of Palestinian fighters in the city areas, the Committee is of the view that the targeting of the mosques, in particular the minarets, had little or no military purpose. It seemed highly likely that mosques, and more particularly the minarets, had been deliberately targeted on the grounds that they symbolized Islam.

I denne forbindelse kan nævnes rapporten Breaking The Silence, indeholdende vidnesbyrd fra israelske soldater, som deltog i Operation Støbt Bly:

"Testimony 30 - House Demolitions and Bombardment — There was a mosque, and we won’t go into all those traditional reports about why was there still a mosque, those are for internal discussion. But on the whole, most of the mosques were demolished. that too, earlier – in Tze’elim (army base) – that brigade commander I mentioned explicitly told us we should not hesitate to target mosques. Nothing is immune, nothing and no area. He explicitly mentioned mosques. This specific mosque was one of several in our designated area, which wasn’t too wide. It contained several mosques, most of which were hit. At some point, during the regular searches, we heard and saw – not I, personally, but the deputy commander who kept his head out and said, “did you see that? They blasted a mosque.” Then I was told it was probably targeted by a helicopter. not sure who fired. They blasted the whole minaret, that top part of the mosque, where the muezzin stands. […] We saw no fire. I repeat, from my own personal point of view I saw no reason whatsoever. Could be that an alert was on about some anti-tank fire source at the top of that minaret. I don’t know. I know that as far as I see, there was no fire originating there, and at some point the minaret was taken down. (Min fremhævning)

Tilbage til Goldstone-rapporten (Rapport, link: .pdf):

Paragraf 487: “On the basis of the investigations it has conducted, the Mission did not find any evidence to support the allegations that hospital facilities were used by the Gaza authorities or by Palestinian armed groups to shield military activities and that ambulances were used to transport combatants or for other military purposes.” (Min fremhævning) 
Paragraf 488: “On the basis of the information it gathered, the Mission found no indication that the civilian population was forced by Hamas or Palestinian armed groups to remain in areas under attack from the Israeli armed forces.” (Min fremhævning)
Paragraf 494: “From the information available to it, the Mission found no evidence to suggest that Palestinian armed groups either directed civilians to areas where attacks were being launched or forced civilians to remain within the vicinity of the attacks.” (Min fremhævning)


ISRAEL HAR BRUGT PALÆSTINENSERE SOM “MENNESKESKJOLDE” I ÅREVIS:
Det kan og bør ikke ikke udelukkes, at Hamas benytter sig af “menneskeskjolde”. Dette er en klokkeklar krigsforbrydelse, hvis det er tilfældet. Derfor er det vigtigt, at der nedsættes uafhængige kommissioner, der kan undersøge de israelske anklager.

Hvis du har læst ovenstående uddrag forsigtigt efter, så har du måske allerede opdaget, at Amnesty International "did find that Israeli forces on several occasions during Operation “Cast Lead” forced Palestinian civilians to serve as “human shields”."

Faktisk er der rigtig meget dokumentation for, at Israel har brugt civile palæstinensere som “menneskeskjolde”. Lad os prøve at gennemgå noget af denne dokumentation i det følgende:

Amnesty International (Rapport, link: .pdf):

In several cases Israeli soldiers also used civilians, including children, as “human shields”, endangering their lives by forcing them to remain in or near houses which they took over and used as military positions. Some were forced to carry out dangerous tasks such as inspecting properties or objects suspected of being booby-trapped. Soldiers also took position and launched attacks from and around inhabited houses, exposing local residents to the danger of attacks or of being caught in the crossfire.” (Min fremhævning)

Flere af de undersøgelser, som blev iværksat i kølvandet på Operation Støbt Bly, bekræftede — uafhængigt af hinanden — Amnestys konklusioner.

National Lawyers Guild (Rapport, link: .pdf):

”The Delegation interviewed several individuals who testified that Israeli soldiers did in fact use Palestinian civilians as human shields and coerced cooperation from them. The most striking testimony was provided by Majdi Abed Rabbo. […]In this case, the Israeli officer coerced Majdi, a civilian non-combatant, into acting on Israel’s behalf to achieve a military objective. Requiring Majdi to engage in potentially life-threatening acts helpful to the Israeli military constitutes a war crime and should subject those responsible to prosecution.” (Min fremhævning)

DCI-Palestine (Rapport, link: .pdf):

“The Israeli military continues to use Palestinians, including children, as human shields during ground military operations despite the October 2005 ruling of the Israeli High Court of Justice that banned this practice. At least seven children were used as human shields by Israeli troops during Operation Cast Lead. Most of them were subjected to abuse and ill-treatment while detained and were psychologically affected by the experience. After repeated calls from NGOs the Israeli authorities began to investigate the incidents in June 2009 to start investigating the incidents. However, even well-documented incidents rarely lead to indictments and prosecutions.” (Min fremhævning) 
“Examples of the use of children as human shields by the Israeli military include: compelling them to search bags or houses for people, weapons or explosives; forcing them to carry messages or orders to Palestinian individuals suspected of being involved in hostilities; detaining them inside houses where soldiers have taken military positions, so that Palestinian fighters will refrain from firing at the soldiers; and making them stand near, or walk in front of, soldiers during confrontations to literally shield them from gunfire and/or stone-throwing - sometimes soldiers fire over the shoulders of the children detained in this way.”

Resten af rapporten beskriver fra s. 52-59 i brutale detaljer, hvordan brugen af ”menneskeskjolde” finder sted.

Human Rights Watch (Rapport, link: .pdf):

“Seven neighborhood residents who spoke to Human Rights Watch said that major fighting in the area had stopped by the morning of January 7, although sporadic exchanges of fire may have continued after that. In three cases documented by Human Rights Watch, starting on January 5, the IDF detained Palestinian men from the neighborhood and forced them to perform dangerous tasks of a military nature, such as searching Palestinian homes. In two of these cases, Israeli soldiers stood behind a Palestinian man who was forced to search a home. Deliberately using civilians to deter attacks on a military target is considered “human shielding.” The use of civilians as human shields or to engage in work for military purposes violates international humanitarian law.” (Min fremhævning)

Goldstone-rapporten (Rapport, link: .pdf):

Paragraf 55: “The Mission investigated four incidents in which the Israeli armed forces coerced Palestinian civilian men at gunpoint to take part in house searches during the military operations (chap. XIV). The men were blindfolded and handcuffed as they were forced to enter houses ahead of the Israeli soldiers. In one of the incidents, Israeli soldiers repeatedly forced a man to enter a house in which Palestinian combatants were hiding. Published testimonies of Israeli soldiers who took part in the military operations confirm the continuation of this practice, despite clear orders from Israel’s High Court to the armed forces to put an end to it and repeated public assurances from the armed forces that the practice had been discontinued. The Mission concludes that this practice amounts to the use of Palestinian civilians as human shields and is therefore prohibited by international humanitarian law. It puts the right to life of the civilians at risk in an arbitrary and unlawful manner and constitutes cruel and inhuman treatment. The use of human shields also is a war crime. The Palestinian men used as human shields were questioned under threat of death or injury to extract information about Hamas, Palestinian combatants and tunnels. This constitutes a further violation of international humanitarian law.” (Min fremhævning)

Kapitel XIV dækker over paragraf 1031-1106, i hvilken Goldstone-rapporten gennemgår fire tilfælde, hvor israelske styrker gør brug af palæstinensere af som “menneskeskjolde”.

Breaking The Silence (vidnesbyrd fra israelske soldater, link: .pdf):

Testimony 1 - Human Shields - It was the first week of the war, fighting was intense, there were explosive charges to expose, tunnels in open spaces and armed men inside houses. Combat was slow and basically a very small area was occupied. Every unit, every force had a small designated area of responsibility several dozen houses only, which they had to take over, and that took a whole week. that is combat and it took a whole week. They really moved slowly. Close in on each house. The method used has a new name now — no longer ‘neighbor procedure.’ Now people are called ‘Johnnie.’ they’re palestinian civilians, and they’re called Johnnies and there were civilians there who stayed in spite of the flyers the army distributed before it went in. Most people did leave, but some civilians stayed to watch over the houses. Perhaps they had nowhere else to go. Later we saw people there who could not walk, some simply stayed to keep watch. To every house we close in on, we send the neighbor in, ‘the Johnnie,’ and if there are armed men inside, we start, like working the ‘pressure cooker’ in the West Bank. […]” (Min fremhævning)
Testimony 51 - Human Shield - After we got out of there, we had a talk with our unit commander. All kinds of things came up and professional issues were also addressed. Some people said that the crew was not sufficiently prepared, and they also brought up moral issues that troubled them such as using civilians. He denied this, but I don’t believe him when he says he’s not aware of this happening on the ground. This procedure of using civilians exists, he knows about this. ‘Neighbor procedure’ is an official army procedure; it’s just not called that any longer. The brigade commander was on the ground the whole time. He even came to visit us one day. An official army procedure means army instructions.” (Min fremhævning)

Den ovennævnte “Neighbor [sic] procedure”, beskrevet af to forskellige israelske soldater, er en gammel israelsk politik, som både israelske, palæstinensiske og internationale menneskerettighedsorganisationer siden 2002 har rapporteret en hel del om.

I 2002 skrev Human Rights Watch:

“Eyewitnesses and victims described to Human Rights Watch how friends, neighbors, and relatives of “wanted” Palestinians were taken at gunpoint to knock on doors, open strange packages, and search houses in which the IDF suspected armed Palestinians were present. Some families found their houses taken over and used as military positions by the IDF during an operation while they themselves were ordered to remain inside. In one case documented by Human Rights Watch, a civilian was held as a hostage in order to pressure his brother to surrender. This report finds that the IDF is systematically coercing Palestinian civilians to assist military operations. This practice violates a fundamental principle of IHL: that of civilian immunity.” (Min fremhævning)

Se også B’Tselems rapport om Israels brug af ”menneskeskjolde” fra 2002, samt organisationens pressemeddelelse fra 2004, ”IDF Continues Using Civilians as Human Shields to Make Arrests”. Læs også deres baggrundspapir om menneskeskjoldspolitikken her.

Efter en længere trinvis proces ulovliggjorde den israelske højesteret brugen af ”civile som menneskeskjolde” endeligt i 2005. Selvom denne praksis blev ulovliggjort, er der flere dokumenterede tilfælde af, at den stadig tages i anvendelse af det israelske militær. Senest i 2013. Se også herher, her, her, her, her, her, her, her, her, og her.

Poya Pakzad er politisk kommunikationsrådgiver i Mellemfolkelig Samvirke.

Dette indlæg har tidligere været bragt * Poya Pakzad's private egenskab på hans hjemmeside.

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