The Free

Myth of The Moral Army- Testimonies Israel’s Military Killed Many of Its Own Citizens With Tanks, Missiles – Max Blumenthal

from thefreeonline on 31 Oct 2023 by @MaxBlumenthal –@Grayzone and Sott.net

October 7 testimonies reveal Israel’s military ‘shelling’ Israeli citizens with tanks, missiles

Israel’s military received orders to shell Israeli homes and even their own bases as they were overwhelmed by Hamas militants on October 7. How many Israeli citizens said to have been “burned alive” were actually killed by friendly fire?

Several new testimonies by Israeli witnesses to the October 7 Hamas surprise attack on southern Israel adds to growing evidence that the Israeli military killed its own citizens as they fought to neutralize Palestinian gunmen.

Tuval Escapa, a member of the security team for Kibbutz Be’eri, set up a hotline to coordinate between kibbutz residents and the Israeli army.

He told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that as desperation began to set in, “the commanders in the field made difficult decisions – including shelling houses and their occupants in order to eliminate the terrorists along with the hostages.”

Failures Leading Up to the Hamas Attack That Changed Israel Forever – Israel News –

A separate report published in Haaretz noted that the Israeli military was “compelled to request an aerial strike” against its own facility inside the Erez Crossing to Gaza “in order to repulse the terrorists” who had seized control. That base was filled with Israeli Civil Administration officers and soldiers at the time.

These reports indicate that orders came down from the military’s high command to attack homes and and other areas inside Israel, even at the cost of many Israeli lives.

A home in Kibbutz Be’eri, demolished by the IDF on October 7th to ‘get Hamas militants’

An Israeli woman named Yasmin Porat confirmed in an interview with Israel Radio that the military “undoubtedly” killed numerous Israeli noncombatants during gun battles with Hamas militants on October 7. “They eliminated everyone, including the hostages,” she stated, referring to Israeli special forces.

As David Sheen and Ali Abunimah reported in Electronic Intifada, Porat described “very, very heavy crossfire” and Israeli tank shelling, which led to many casualties among Israelis.

While being held by the Hamas gunmen, Porat recalled, “They did not abuse us. We were treated very humanely… No one treated us violently.”

She added, “The objective was to kidnap us to Gaza, not to murder us.”

Against Genocide Podcast: A Palestinian Solidarity Panel – It’s Going Down

Long-running anarchist radio show and podcast The Final Straw presents a forum on the unfolding events in Palestine.

from thefreeonline on Oct 31 ’23 Radio/Podcast by Final Straw at It’s Going Down

Listen and Download HERE

This week on The Final Straw, we’re excited to share a panel discussion recorded at Firestorm Books entitled Against Genocide: A Palestinian Solidarity Panel, recorded on Sunday, October 22^nd 2023.

From the event description:

“With the “iron-clad” support of the United States and other Western powers, Israel has made explicit its plan for the systematic destruction of Gaza and the Palestinian people. At this event, participants—including Palestinian and Jewish activists—will discuss the history of the occupation and the present campaign of dehumanization that’s paving the way to genocide. We’ll also explore the radical solidarities that are necessary to stop the assault on Gaza and secure a just peace.

This event is a fundraiser for The Hebron International Resource Network (HIRN), an organization based in the West Bank that is working to house Gazan workers deported to the West Bank by Israeli forces. Please consider bringing a cash donation! Firestorm will additionally be donating the net proceeds from all sales in-store and online.

Art by Heba Zagout, Palestinian artist killed with her two young children in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza on Friday, October 13.”

Transcription here.

Zines suggested by Cindy Milstein

Inexorable Links by Zara from Interviews With Radical Palestinian Women

Tkhines For A Free Palestine

photo: Radical Graffiti

Life on the border in photos: A report from the refugee camp in Dunkirk

Dunkirk: A photo essay in which refugees seek peace.

/ from thefreeonline on Oct 31st ’23 by Rob Silent. at FreedomNews

Five o’clock in the morning. A March morning filled with fog through which the sun shyly breaks through.

When you let the air out of your mouth, it mixes with the cold to form steam, and after 15 minutes of walking, you start to feel the chill in your feet.

On the outskirts of the village of Dunkirk sits a wilderness area that legally belongs to the refinery. Under the name of the refugee camp, it has for many years provided solace and a space where refugees, tired from their journey, can breathe and prepare for the journey ahead.

It encompasses a large, flat area that we might call a threshing floor and a stretch of forest surrounded by a river called the ‘jungle’. The land dispute is hard to explain, revealing an absurdity and a sea of paradoxes.

The general idea is that refugees residing in France have an illegal status. The law, however, is more likely to allow them to meet legality on the land than outside it.

The area, however, belongs to a refinery, so the police evict them on average twice a month.

Crossings to Europe are challenging. The costs that refugees have to bear are often beyond their means.

Refugee camp: a stop on an uneasy road

Dunkirk mainly receives refugees from Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, Iraq, Iran and Kurdistan (and other areas where Kurds live). These places are subject to war, political persecution, and war crimes. The economy is devastated by long-running conflicts, and security is under constant threat.

The savings of their entire family usually finance the crossing of one refugee. Remember that we are talking about countries where the average monthly income, according to administrative data, fluctuates around two hundred dollars.