The War Crimes of the Palestinians--experts in the art of deliberate child-sacrifice.

The phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" is one of those hackneyed aphorisms whose potency has been diluted through rampant overuse. Yet on occasion, even this most overworked of truisms can directly hit the mark.

Since the current bout of fighting between Israelis and Palestinians erupted over three years ago, many thousands of words have been written to recount the twists and turns of that war. Yet, it was an Associated Press photograph taken during a recent firefight in Gaza that distilled the essence of a central, but oft overlooked, dynamic of this conflict.

The salient figure in this photo is identified by the snapshot's caption as a "masked Hamas militant." This man can be clearly identified as an armed combatant by his camouflage uniform and combat webbing, as well as by the AK-47 assault rifle that he has strapped across his back.

The Hamas fighter is seen in the photograph setting up a rocket launcher. But, the picture also shows a group of Palestinian boys, some of whom are clearly in their early teens, milling around this artillery piece as the Hamas gunman prepares it for firing.

In case one might wonder what these youngsters are doing at the business end of such a deadly weapon, the caption of the photograph clarifies matters: "A masked Hamas militant sets up a makeshift mortar launcher against Israeli forces, unseen, as Palestinian youths try to cover him from the sight of the forces during an incursion in a Gaza city's neighbourhood, Wednesday Feb. 11, 2004."

With its singularly stark image, this picture communicates one of the uglier realities of a war in which Palestinians regularly use their own children as combatants. Yet, debate about this callous tactic of deliberate child-sacrifice is often suppressed by Palestinian spokespeople who address vehement accusations of bigotry against anyone who dares broach the issue.

Palestinian leader Hanan Ashrawi provided a typical example of such rhetorical jiu jitsu when this question was raised during her recent visit to Australia. "That is a racist accusation," declared Ashrawi. "To say that we do not love our children - what a horrible thing to accuse us of!" Horrible, indeed.

But, a more forthright portrayal of the situation was forthcoming from Huda Al-Hussein, a correspondent for the London-based Arabic daily Al Sharq Al Awsat. In November 2000, Al Hussein wrote a scathing piece about the hardhearted manipulation of Palestinian youth by leaders who "consciously issue orders with the purpose of ending their childhood, even if it means their last breath."

In fact, there is ample evidence to conclude that the official resources of the Palestinian Authority are directly used to encourage children to court death on the battlefield. The Palestinian Ministry of Education, for example, issues school books for grades five and six that extol the virtues of "Shahada," the Arabic term for martyrdom. In June 2002, Palestinian Authority TV aired an promotional interview 11-year-old Yussra, who declared, "every Palestinian child aged, say 12, says 'Oh Lord I would like to become a Shahid.'"

Aware that they are unable to defeat Israel militarily, the Palestinians have formulated a plan that is designed to vanquish the Jewish State diplomatically. And, Palestinian leaders realize that a public relations offensive is the key to any such political victory.

The gambit of using children as pawns in front line combat is predicated on a calculus in which cynicism is surpassed only by media savvy. The Palestinians have developed a communications strategy that is predicated on the simple premise that the size of a headline will be inversely proportional to the age of the casualty involved. So, because a dead 13 year old child will attract much more journalistic attention than a dead 33 year old gunman, it is deemed legitimate to sacrifice youngsters on the altar of Israel's demonisation.

This macabre Palestinian publicity scheme is both singularly immoral, and doubly illegal. Article 51 of the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Convention prohibits combatants from using civilians to: " shield military objectives from attacks or to shield, favour or impede military operations."

Moreover, the International Criminal Court considers "conscripting or enlisting children under the age of 15 years, or using them to participate actively in hostilities in both international and non-international armed conflicts" to be a war crime.

Thus, even if the attacks that deliberately slaughter Israeli civilians are excluded from the equation, Palestinian terrorist organizations, and the Palestinian Authority that tolerates them, are war criminals twice over.

It is long past time to unbind the corset of political correctness that suffocates so much of our public discourse, and to state some self-evident truths. The dominant culture of Palestinian society promotes honour killing as the highest expression of family values, and suicide bombing as the highest expression of national values.

The exploitation of pubescent youths as front line cannon fodder exemplifies a Palestinian cult of death that not only debases the value of human life, but also serves as a primary impediment to peace in the Middle East.

Ted Lapkin is Senior Policy Analyst for the Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council

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Excellent postings. Especially the photo collection. My thanks to all.

These are the passages Redgolum is thinking of:

Leviticus 18:21
" 'Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed [ 18:21 Or [ to be passed through ] [ the fire ] ] to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD .
(Whole Chapter: Leviticus 18 In context: Leviticus 18:20-22)

Leviticus 20:2
"Say to the Israelites: 'Any Israelite or any alien living in Israel who gives [ 20:2 Or [ sacrifices ] ; also in verses 3 and ] any of his children to Molech must be put to death. The people of the community are to stone him.
(Whole Chapter: Leviticus 20 In context: Leviticus 20:1-3)

2 Kings 17:31
the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire as sacrifices to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.
(Whole Chapter: 2 Kings 17 In context: 2 Kings 17:30-32)

Ezekiel 16:21
You slaughtered my children and sacrificed them [ 16:21 Or [ and made them pass through ] [ the fire ] ] to the idols.
(Whole Chapter: Ezekiel 16 In context: Ezekiel 16:20-22)

Ezekiel 23:37
for they have committed adultery and blood is on their hands. They committed adultery with their idols; they even sacrificed their children, whom they bore to me, [ 23:37 Or [ even made the children they bore to me pass through ] [ the fire ] ] as food for them.
(Whole Chapter: Ezekiel 23 In context: Ezekiel 23:36-38)

Ezekiel 23:39
On the very day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my sanctuary and desecrated it. That is what they did in my house.
(Whole Chapter: Ezekiel 23 In context: Ezekiel 23:38-40)

It is an old tradition in the area as one can see.
Note that God specifically put Abraham to this test with Isaac and then intervened directly to ensure that from the begginnings of Israel this practice be out of bounds.

Abraham Tested Genesis 22

1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.
2 Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you."
6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?"
"Yes, my son?" Abraham replied.
"The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"
8 Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.
9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!"
"Here I am," he replied.
12 "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram [1] caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, "On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided."
15 The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD , that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring [2] all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."
19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

BTW: It is interesting to note that this enemity has long been around. The Palestinians (Philistines in biblical terms) have been trying to get rid of the Jews since then.

Genesis 26:18
Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.
(Whole Chapter: Genesis 26 In context: Genesis 26:17-19)

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