Palestinian Children Died Working On The “Terror Tunnels”. Does Anyone In The West Care?
[guest post by Dana]
As Israel defends itself on two fronts – rocket attacks by Hamas and a propaganda war – one wonders if the world even cares that Hamas led 160 Palestinian children to their deaths as their small bodies were used to help build the terror tunnels:
The Institute for Palestine Studies published a detailed report on Gaza’s Tunnel Phenomenon in the summer of 2012. It reported that tunnel construction in Gaza has resulted in a large number of child deaths.
“At least 160 children have been killed in the tunnels, according to Hamas officials”
The author, Nicolas Pelham, explains that Hamas uses child laborers to build their terror tunnels because, “much as in Victorian coal mines, they are prized for their nimble bodies”.
Human rights groups operating in Gaza raised concerns about child labor in the tunnels as far back as 2008. Hamas responded by saying it was “considering curbs.” Following Operation Cast Lead in 2009 Hamas softened its position and the Interior Ministry established the Tunnel Affairs Commission (TAC) which, “In response to public concern at a rising toll of tunnel casualties, particularly of child workers…issued guidelines intended to ensure safe working conditions.” No mention is made in the report of the conditions that would result for both Palestinian and Israeli children from building tunnels that would be used to launch terror attacks.
Any concerns expressed were ignored. Per Pelham:
“[N]othing was done to impede the use of children in the tunnels.”
They are horrible animals that have somehow managed to make themselves appear as almost-sympathetic in the public square. Horrible animals that use, abuse and discard children for their own sick gain, and continue to do so. And yet, thousands upon thousands will march to protest … Israel’s actions.
With that, Mosab Hassan Yousef, who is the son of Hamas founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, was interviewed on CNN. He has rejected Hamas and is now a Christian. In the interview, Yousef bluntly reminds us of what Hamas is really about – and it’s definitely not about the children:
“Hamas does not care about the lives of Palestinians, or the lives of Israelis, or Americans; they don’t care about their own lives,” Yousef said. “They consider dying for their ideology a way of worship.
“Hamas is not seeking coexistence and compromise; Hamas is seeking conquest,” he added.
“The destruction of the state of Israel is not Hamas’ final destination. Hamas’ final destination is building an Islamic caliphate – an Islamic state on the rubble of every other civilization.”
Yousef, who was meant to be the heir to his father’s leadership role in Hamas, said Palestinian children as young as five years old are taught to be willing to take their own lives to achieve Hamas’s goals, as he was taught at a young age. “When I look at the children of Gaza, and I know what they are fed, I know that they have no choice,” he said.
Yousef said that Hamas targets civilians “as a tool of war” and that they were prepared for this from the age of 5 years old.
–Dana
Hello.
Dana (4dbf62) — 7/28/2014 @ 6:45 pmPalestinains don’t value life the same way nice people do
happyfeet (8ce051) — 7/28/2014 @ 6:56 pmAnd yet the West seems to have romanticized them.
Dana (4dbf62) — 7/28/2014 @ 7:09 pmthe West has issues
happyfeet (8ce051) — 7/28/2014 @ 7:10 pmThe author, Nicolas Pelham, explains that Hamas uses child laborers to build their terror tunnels because, “much as in Victorian coal mines, they are prized for their nimble bodies.”
A commenter on Powerline points out that it is unfair to compare them to “Victorian coal mines” since using children in the mines was outlawed early in Victoria’s reign. Better to ascribe it to “Georgian coal mines.”
JVW (feb406) — 7/28/2014 @ 7:16 pmNo.
gary gulrud (46ca75) — 7/28/2014 @ 8:07 pmNothing worse than people who foolishly and idiotically mis-apply the concept of underdog to a person, group or situation. Or who flip around reality so that a person, group or situation that deserves sympathy is instead perceived suspiciously or derisively, while the person, group or situation that deserves contempt is given big hugs and compassion.
People of the left have a knack for doing this time and time again, and there are some people of the right who aren’t much better—although they perhaps at least are more likely to say that logic and not compassion is what’s fueling their opinion.
I see a variety of people across the political spectrum who are guilty of ass-backwards thinking vis-a-vie the issue of Israel versus the Palestinians.
Mark (2604a9) — 7/28/2014 @ 8:20 pmIn our New, Improved, Progressive, Post-Modern, anti-Christian West, children are only important if Lib-Progs can use them to further their goal of taking over … everything.
As far as I can tell, here in the USA, our Dems and Progressives and MSM (but I re-repeat myself) have about as much real sympathy for their fellow humans as the Paleostainians do. Of one mind with their Dear Leader, the Beltway Borg (our Ruling Elites) consider the “huddled masses” or “underserved minorities” or “unaccompanied minors” to be living, breathing tools whose misfortunes can be used to split apart the foundations of the country. Once that great edifice is toppled, THEY will be in position to seize power. Hurrah! (Have they ever stopped to consider that “Gee we get to run EVERYTHING!!!” is NOT going to be especially enjoyable during the Years of Devastation??)
A_Nonny_Mouse (a71f0a) — 7/28/2014 @ 8:35 pmMark #7 – progressives revel in their compassion which is devoid of empathy … so they can have compassion for all sorts of groups – as long as someone else’s resources and efforts are used to express that compassion …
So the Israelis should just accept the rockets being fired at Israeli civilians … even though, if the progressive’s home was the target of a rocket, they would be the first to demand that someone DO something to stop it !
For a group so proud of its ‘feelings’, there is no feeling of sympathy for the targets of Hamas rockets …
Alastor (2e7f9f) — 7/28/2014 @ 8:42 pm“Does anyone in the West care?”
No. We’ve got enough problems of our own right now.
creeper (66694a) — 7/29/2014 @ 2:11 amI really don’t see any evidence anywhere that mankind is going to figure anything out.
Guess Progressives cannot be made empiricists no matter how hard we try.
Nietzsche really ‘effed up.
gary gulrud (46ca75) — 7/29/2014 @ 5:51 amNietzsche didn’t create “progressives”, he just tried to save some of them.
Perhaps the reason he went insane is that he realized just how hopeless a goal that was.
Sam (e8f1ad) — 7/29/2014 @ 8:38 amThe only caveat here is that this wasn’t really the “Terror tunnels” (into Israel)
The main part of the tunnel building activity was tunnels into Egypt for smuggling consumer goods and weapons like rockets.
Hamas may have admitted children were used and died, because it just simply was too notorious a fact to the international aid people in Gaza, and they were probably low-balling the number who died.
Hamas did not take responsibility for all the tunnels, saying a lot was done by independent entrepreneurs. Hamas just collected a tax on all (consumer) items brought through.
Sammy Finkelman (4151a0) — 7/29/2014 @ 11:30 amYou want gaza? The children of gaza say well just come rihjt in and take it israel!
grimreeper (56c936) — 7/29/2014 @ 12:41 pmPerry is deranged
JD (c0a33e) — 7/29/2014 @ 1:01 pm15. And a fractional wit. A very insignificant fraction.
gary gulrud (46ca75) — 7/29/2014 @ 1:10 pmArutz Sheva reported Sunday that the Egyptian Army said they had destroyed 13 more tunnels connecting the Sinai Peninsula to Gaza, making a total of 1,639 tunnels it has destroyed (according to Agence France Presse) This is perhaps 80% of them.
I don’t think there were more than 50 or so going to Israel, plus an underground network near the border.
Arutz Sheva also calls these tunnels to Egypt “terror tunnels” in the headlines, but although terrorists could be smuggled through them (in fact an Egyptioan outpost was attacked the other day) they weer basically used for smuggling goods and weapons.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 7/29/2014 @ 1:38 pmLast week, a US court found North Korea and Iran liable for damages caused to Israel by a series of rocket attacks on Israel from Lebanon in 2006.
https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2010cv0483-54
Syria was also involved.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 7/29/2014 @ 1:42 pmA Lebanese Hezbollah leader disguised as a businessmman was aboard Air Algerie flight AH5017 that crashed in northern Mali Thursday. (19 Lebanese in all, some dual nationals, were aboard)
There were also 33 French military personnel and three senior intelligence officials.
The plane went down in territory near that controlled by Al-Qaeda offshoot Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA), locally known as Tawhid and Jihad in West Africa, but they are not beleived to be involved. It is not beelived to have been shot down.
The pilots of Air Algerie flight AH5017 requested to return to Burkina Faso after hitting bad weather.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 7/29/2014 @ 1:52 pmhttp://besacenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Hecht-Eado-Underground-Warfare-DW-edit-most-recent.pdf (short article)
This also goes a little bit into the history of tunnels in warfare.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 7/29/2014 @ 2:01 pmChoices:
http://legalinsurrection.com/2014/07/one-people-built-tunnels-the-other-a-nation/
One uses children to protect martyrs and missiles, the other uses missiles to protect people.
No contest, goat abuser.
gary gulrud (46ca75) — 7/29/2014 @ 8:05 pmThis makes me want to just put my face in my hands and weep.
Quiltstack (080932) — 8/10/2014 @ 8:30 pm