Hamas strike on Israel - mod warning in OP updated 19/10/23

I don't know for a fact that Israel hasn't met the threshold for genocide. There are a number of tests that need to be passed - most crucially, that of intent - to prove genocide, and the evidence just isn't publicly available to conclude that the threshold has been passed.

This is the reality of the difference between state actors and non-state actors. Take the terrorist operation in Northern Ireland. It was known almost immediately that PIRA committed war crimes, but the right to self-defence and the democratic legitimacy of the state made it much more difficult to prove that the British Army and the RUC committed war crimes. Similar considerations apply in Gaza. The nature of a terrorist organisation such as Hamas is such that there is no doubt around war crimes committed by them.

Of course, that would change were you to argue that Hamas were the true democratic representatives of the Palestinian people. That would give them some defence against the war crimes allegations. Unfortunately, from your perspective, it would also strengthen Israel's argument that it was acting in self-defence.

They should be enjoying the results of their vote. They should be proud of helping get rid of "Genocide Joe". This is what they wanted and they are getting the full "Development Donnie" experience.

Your post is meaningless after Netanyahu himself came put smiling from ear to ear after a Trump announced he wanted to expell all the Palestinians permanently from Gaza on the basis that Gaza is now uninhabitable.

Netanyahu now could come out in a t-shirt with the words 'I heart genocide' printed on it and it would be less of an admission of hos genocidal intent than his recent press conferences with Trump

Making little political point scoring jokes about the POTUS getting up in public to promote Stalin/Hitler-style mass population transfers to "solve" the Israel/Palestine question is a bit nasty though, isn't it? It's not funny, and you'd have to worry a lot of people are going to suffer and die because of it.

and at the same time completely ignore that Israel have broken the ceasefire almost on a daily basis

Maybe its giving Donnie too much credit, but I wonder is all this a ruse by him to try and get the likes of Saudia Arabia to take a more active role in Gaza. Put the most ludicrous scenario imagineable out there in order to force the Saudis and other Arab states to get involved in running Gaza. I wonder what is being said in private between the Saudis and the Americans .

It isn't meaningless. It's factual. Smiling isn't a crime. Most people thought that Bibi looked surprised and nervous when Trump rolled out his plan for Gaza. I agree with them.

Apologies for delay responding. Firstly I have zero time for Hamas terrorists by the way, they are disgusting creatures. No apology necessary, you already knew this. I had zero time for the IRA terrorists in Northern Ireland too.

So this is the next rock you wish to flounder on - malnutrition. Despite all the aid agencies and healthcare workers warning about malnutrition and starvation you claim from a few pics that the people of Gaza are well fed. The depths…honestly. Ok I'll play.

Lets start with this link from UNICEF

"Cold, sick and traumatized" - the ongoing nightmare for children in Gaza

“Children in Gaza are cold, sick and traumatized. Hunger and malnutrition, and the dire living conditions more broadly, continue to put the lives of children at risk. Right now, over 96% of women and children in Gaza cannot meet their basic nutritional needs. Most are surviving on rationed flour, lentils, pasta, and canned food—a diet that slowly compromises their health.

“In November, an average of 65 truckloads of assistance entered Gaza, compared to 500 truckloads daily, before the war – and when Gaza still had internal food production capacity. The most northern part of Gaza has been under a near total siege for 75 days now. Humanitarian assistance has been largely unable to reach the children in need for more than 10 weeks.

Cluedo - And by the way, there is no quick fix for childhood malnutrition. It causes lifelong damage so no need to be so flippant.

A generation at risk: Food crises in Gaza and elsewhere put millions of children in danger of lifelong harm | Reuters

LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - A surge in the flow of aid into the Gaza Strip since the truce between Israel and Hamas took effect on Jan. 19 is likely to ease the acute food emergency afflicting people in the war-ravaged territory, especially its children. But even after relief reaches them, the hunger they have endured could cast a shadow over their health for years to come.More than 60,000 children in Gaza will need treatment for acute malnutrition in 2025, according to United Nations estimates from Jan. 22. Some have already died – estimates of how many vary widely. Survivors who are able to return to adequate levels of nutrition nonetheless face an insidious threat: the multiple long-term health problems linked to childhood malnutrition.

So first question, do you deny any of above? Let's set a baseline. Over to you - feel free to provide links to back up your…assertions.

So, you're o.k. with Hamas risking the ceasefire directly.

Pretty sad you can't find it within yourself to condemn Hamas for this escalation.

With Convicted POTUS in office, Israel will readily make things much worse when given enough excuse. Hamas probably just provided it.

That post was longer than planned. I had time on my hands yesterday morning, so I decided to do some data mining, which resulted in a lengthy post. The site nearly crashed when I tried to submit the comment. Lesson learned—I’ll keep these posts as short as possible!

Just to be clear, I referenced famine in my last post because it was mentioned in the ICC prosecutor's public summary. I included it as a counterpoint to your assertion that Israel has denied entry to all but a fraction of what is required under established international criteria. I feel there is a false narrative suggesting that the people of Gaza are being deliberately starved to death by the Israeli state, which is simply not true. There is, and never was, a famine in Gaza, and Israel has gone above and beyond in providing aid. I’ve just read that the "famine" report cited by the prosecutor to justify his position has been deemed "implausible" by the Famine Review Committee and based on incomplete information.

Today, I'd like to take a step back from the details of the case and get your thoughts on its validity. I’ll set aside what I see as the slew of falsehoods underpinning the warrant application. The ICC has taken the unprecedented step of acting outside its jurisdiction and in breach of its own rules to pursue Israel’s leaders. The court's jurisdiction derives from its member states and from other states that accept its authority over their nationals and territory. However, Israel has never joined the ICC or accepted its jurisdiction, while the Palestinian Authority is not a state and therefore could never have delegated any jurisdiction to the ICC. What are your thoughts on this?

I'm in little doubt that the Israeli people will deal with Bibi in good time. I was present in Tel Aviv for anti-Bibi protests years ago, and the scale of them was incredible. I have no time for him, as I've said before on this forum. I'd love to see him behind bars in Israel for corruption. I thought the golden pager was crass, but it appealed to someone like Trump.

No doubt there'll be lads doing cartwheels with the expectation of even mor women and children being blown to bits but for most right thinking people the future of the Gazans with Trump and his righthand man Bibi, the war criminal, in charge is not good at all.

It is pretty obvious what the plan for Gaza has been all along -

https://www.rte.ie/news/middle-east/2025/0210/1495776-middle-east-us/

Perhaps you should do a tad more research on the ICC. Whilst Israel is not a signatory, Palestine is. War Crimes were (and are being) committed on Palestinian territory. Therefore the ICC is well within in its jurisdiction.

You might also research "Palestinian State" - yes, it is a State. You may have missed the recent events where Ireland recognised it as such. Along with 145 others out of 193 UN members. And Palestine has an ambassador here in Ireland. You might have missed that too.

None of that has been missed at all, it is simply waved away by Israeli apologists as an irrelevance to their final solution