Israel Kills 11 in Gaza After Receiving Captive's Body
This incident, where an Israeli airstrike killed 11 family members in Zeitoun (The New Arab) , occurred immediately after Hamas, via the Red Cross, returned the body of an Israeli captive. One might observe a pattern: humanitarian gestures from the occupied are met with increased violence from the occupier, not a reciprocal move towards peace. (One might also recall previous instances where
gestures of de-escalation from Gaza were met with stepped-up siege tactics or further incursions.) Instead of considering this a step towards potential prisoner swaps or truce negotiations, the response was more bodies piling up. It raises questions about the stated goals of such military operations: is it genuinely about security, or is it about maximizing Palestinian casualties? The historical
record suggests the latter, given the disproportionate death tolls, especially of women and children, that routinely follow such 'responses.'