Goldstone face-off in Geneva http://blogs.jta.org/ENTRY_PERMALINK_HERE/goldstone-faceoff-in-geneva/ At this week’s debate in the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva on the Goldstone commission report , a disfigured Israeli victim of a rocket attack on Sderot unnerves the report’s author, Richard Goldstone, UN Watch reports: en-us uheilman@jta.org Copyright 2009 2009-10-01T;19:47:00-05:00 Comment by Michael Levin MichaelLevin11@mac.com “It’s so sad that a respected member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly” Rabbi Brian Walt - October 15, 2009 - “He sold us out,” says Ze’ev Krengel, Chair of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.  “It’s so sad that a respected, elder member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly.” I grew up as a committed Jew in South Africa under Apartheid.  One of the most disturbing realities of Jewish life was the shameful silence of synagogues and Jewish communal organizations, including the Jewish Board of Deputies, about the cruel racism of Apartheid.  Individual Jews played a very important role as activists against Apartheid, but the more Jews were connected with Jewish life the less likely they were as individuals to be active opponents of Apartheid.  Jewish communal institutions and leaders, including most of the rabbis, were shamefully silent about Apartheid. As a rabbi, and as a Jew who grew up in South Africa, I have always been so proud of those Jews who broke the silence of our community with courageous and principled opposition to Apartheid and those, who since the transformation of South Africa, have become human rights advocates in South Africa or around the world. Judge Richard Goldstone is one those Jews.  As a judge he issued a judgement against the eviction of an Asian woman under the notorious Group Areas Act, a core Apartheid law that determined where people could live according to their race.  His judgement ended the evictions enacted under that law.  In the last years of Apartheid, as the chair of a commission into the use of violence by the secret agents of the Apartheid government against its opponents, he uncovered murder squads set up by the government and revealed the details of their despicable acts of violence.  In the early years of the new democratic South Africa, he served as a judge on the Constitutional Court. In the international arena he became the chief prosecutor in the International Criminal Tribunals on Yugoslavia and Rwanda.  Judge Goldstone is also a committed Jew and Zionist, a member of the Board of Trustees of Hebrew University, a president emeritus of World ORT, to name just two of his Jewish communal commitments. The vilification of Judge Goldstone is just shocking.  Israeli and American Jews have accused him of being an “anti-Semitic” and much worse.  “He sold us out,” says Ze’ev Krengel, Chair of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.  “It’s so sad that a respected, elder member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly.” Among South African Jews there is fury and a barrage of public criticism. The attacks on Goldstone are unfounded.  Jews in South Africa were so proud of Judge Goldstone when he was a member of the Constitutional Court or prosecuting the crimes in Rwanda and Yugoslavia.  How does one justify celebrating Goldstone’s dedication to the rule of law in South Africa, Yugoslavia, Rwanda and anywhere else in the world, but not in relation to Israel.  A commitment to human rights means a commitment to the human rights of all human beings and it must include those living in Israel, those living under Israeli military occupation in the West Bank, and those living in under an Israeli blockade in the Gaza Strip.  We can’t expect Israel or the members of our “tribe” to get a “pass” on human rights violations. For Jews, it is profoundly upsetting to even imagine that the Israeli forces may have committed such egregious violations of human rights in Gaza as detailed in the Goldstone Report.  Reading the report is painful.  It breaks our heart to think that Israel may be guilty of war crimes or of crimes against humanity. The way to counter these claims is by a credible investigation but the government of Israel has steadfastly refused to initiate such an investigation.  It has refused to do so not only in relation to the Goldstone report, but also in response to reports by many highly respected Israeli and international human rights organizations that have issued numerous disturbing reports about Israeli actions in Gaza.  All these detailed reports support the findings of the Goldstone Report.  Until the government of Israel agrees to launch a credible, transparent investigation that contradicts the findings of the Goldstone Report, we have no choice but to confront the painful reality of the evidence presented by the Goldstone report and the reports of Israeli, American and international human rights organizations.  Most Jews haven’t read any of these reports.  If we care about Jewish ethics, Israel and the Jewish people it is time we do so. Attacks on Judge Goldstone constitute an attempt at deflection, to turn our attention from the disturbing substance of the report, by attacking the messenger.  The statements by Israeli leaders, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and most recently, Michael Oren, the Israeli ambassador to the Unites States, claiming that the report denies Israel the right to defend itself, is also an attempt to deflect attention from the report. Personally, Judge Goldstone is a Zionist and has repeatedly affirmed Israel’s right to defend itself and that the report does not address the issue of the right to wage war by either side.  The report focused solely on how Israel and Hamas acted during the war and particularly on the question of whether appropriate efforts were made by both sides to minimize harm to civilians.  This was the sole focus of the report, not whether either side was justified in their attack. Other efforts at deflection include a consistent focus on the original mandate of the mission and the bias of the United Nations Human Rights Commission.  Judge Goldstone has made it clear that he only agreed to take on leadership of the mission once the mandate was changed to investigate the actions of both Hamas and Israel.  This change was accepted by the President of the Human Rights Commission and by the commission.  It is true that the Human Rights Commission has focused an unfair amount of attention to human rights violations by Israel.  The substance of the Goldstone report stands regardless of the nature or history of the Human Rights Commission. In the face of a barrage of criticism, Goldstone has upheld the highest ethical traditions of our people and our history.  He took on the mission because “I believe in the rule of law and the laws of war and the principle that in armed conflict civilians should to the greatest extent possible be protected from harm.” The report that he has prepared is very painful and disturbing to us as Jews who care deeply about Judaism and Israel. Unfortunately attacking the messenger will not free us from confronting the painful truth of what happened in Gaza.  Israel’s actions in Gaza violated international law and Jewish ethics.  This was true before the war when Israel imposed a blockade on Gaza and it is true today as the blockade continues. I hope that Israel follows the recommendation of the Goldstone Report and launches a credible investigation of the charges.  If it doesn’t, I must support the report’s recommendation that the charges against Hamas and Israel be transferred to the Security Council and ultimately to the International Criminal Court.  I am sure that making this particular recommendation was not easy for Judge Goldstone.  For all who care deeply about Israel, this is very painful.  If we believe in human rights, we cannot expect the State of Israel to be exempt from international law. The experience of living as a Jew under Apartheid has inspired many South African Jews to become dedicated defenders of the human rights of all.  In our tradition ethics has always been at the core of our faith and our understanding of what it means to be Jewish. A true moral hero is one who follows the principles he believes in, especially when it is uncomfortable or painful. Judge Goldstone has done just that.  As a Jew who grew up in South Africa, I am proud and grateful.  http://rabbibrian.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/its-so-sad-that-a-respected-member-of-the-tribe-would-bash-israel-so-unfairly/ “It’s so sad that a respected member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly”
Rabbi Brian Walt - October 15, 2009 -

“He sold us out,” says Ze’ev Krengel, Chair of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.  “It’s so sad that a respected, elder member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly.”

I grew up as a committed Jew in South Africa under Apartheid.  One of the most disturbing realities of Jewish life was the shameful silence of synagogues and Jewish communal organizations, including the Jewish Board of Deputies, about the cruel racism of Apartheid.  Individual Jews played a very important role as activists against Apartheid, but the more Jews were connected with Jewish life the less likely they were as individuals to be active opponents of Apartheid.  Jewish communal institutions and leaders, including most of the rabbis, were shamefully silent about Apartheid.

As a rabbi, and as a Jew who grew up in South Africa, I have always been so proud of those Jews who broke the silence of our community with courageous and principled opposition to Apartheid and those, who since the transformation of South Africa, have become human rights advocates in South Africa or around the world.

Judge Richard Goldstone is one those Jews.  As a judge he issued a judgement against the eviction of an Asian woman under the notorious Group Areas Act, a core Apartheid law that determined where people could live according to their race.  His judgement ended the evictions enacted under that law.  In the last years of Apartheid, as the chair of a commission into the use of violence by the secret agents of the Apartheid government against its opponents, he uncovered murder squads set up by the government and revealed the details of their despicable acts of violence.  In the early years of the new democratic South Africa, he served as a judge on the Constitutional Court.

In the international arena he became the chief prosecutor in the International Criminal Tribunals on Yugoslavia and Rwanda.  Judge Goldstone is also a committed Jew and Zionist, a member of the Board of Trustees of Hebrew University, a president emeritus of World ORT, to name just two of his Jewish communal commitments.

The vilification of Judge Goldstone is just shocking.  Israeli and American Jews have accused him of being an “anti-Semitic” and much worse.  “He sold us out,” says Ze’ev Krengel, Chair of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.  “It’s so sad that a respected, elder member of the tribe would bash Israel so unfairly.” Among South African Jews there is fury and a barrage of public criticism.

The attacks on Goldstone are unfounded.  Jews in South Africa were so proud of Judge Goldstone when he was a member of the Constitutional Court or prosecuting the crimes in Rwanda and Yugoslavia.  How does one justify celebrating Goldstone’s dedication to the rule of law in South Africa, Yugoslavia, Rwanda and anywhere else in the world, but not in relation to Israel.  A commitment to human rights means a commitment to the human rights of all human beings and it must include those living in Israel, those living under Israeli military occupation in the West Bank, and those living in under an Israeli blockade in the Gaza Strip.  We can’t expect Israel or the members of our “tribe” to get a “pass” on human rights violations.

For Jews, it is profoundly upsetting to even imagine that the Israeli forces may have committed such egregious violations of human rights in Gaza as detailed in the Goldstone Report.  Reading the report is painful.  It breaks our heart to think that Israel may be guilty of war crimes or of crimes against humanity.

The way to counter these claims is by a credible investigation but the government of Israel has steadfastly refused to initiate such an investigation.  It has refused to do so not only in relation to the Goldstone report, but also in response to reports by many highly respected Israeli and international human rights organizations that have issued numerous disturbing reports about Israeli actions in Gaza.  All these detailed reports support the findings of the Goldstone Report.  Until the government of Israel agrees to launch a credible, transparent investigation that contradicts the findings of the Goldstone Report, we have no choice but to confront the painful reality of the evidence presented by the Goldstone report and the reports of Israeli, American and international human rights organizations.  Most Jews haven’t read any of these reports.  If we care about Jewish ethics, Israel and the Jewish people it is time we do so.

Attacks on Judge Goldstone constitute an attempt at deflection, to turn our attention from the disturbing substance of the report, by attacking the messenger.  The statements by Israeli leaders, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and most recently, Michael Oren, the Israeli ambassador to the Unites States, claiming that the report denies Israel the right to defend itself, is also an attempt to deflect attention from the report. Personally, Judge Goldstone is a Zionist and has repeatedly affirmed Israel’s right to defend itself and that the report does not address the issue of the right to wage war by either side.  The report focused solely on how Israel and Hamas acted during the war and particularly on the question of whether appropriate efforts were made by both sides to minimize harm to civilians.  This was the sole focus of the report, not whether either side was justified in their attack.

Other efforts at deflection include a consistent focus on the original mandate of the mission and the bias of the United Nations Human Rights Commission.  Judge Goldstone has made it clear that he only agreed to take on leadership of the mission once the mandate was changed to investigate the actions of both Hamas and Israel.  This change was accepted by the President of the Human Rights Commission and by the commission.  It is true that the Human Rights Commission has focused an unfair amount of attention to human rights violations by Israel.  The substance of the Goldstone report stands regardless of the nature or history of the Human Rights Commission.

In the face of a barrage of criticism, Goldstone has upheld the highest ethical traditions of our people and our history.  He took on the mission because “I believe in the rule of law and the laws of war and the principle that in armed conflict civilians should to the greatest extent possible be protected from harm.”

The report that he has prepared is very painful and disturbing to us as Jews who care deeply about Judaism and Israel. Unfortunately attacking the messenger will not free us from confronting the painful truth of what happened in Gaza.  Israel’s actions in Gaza violated international law and Jewish ethics.  This was true before the war when Israel imposed a blockade on Gaza and it is true today as the blockade continues.

I hope that Israel follows the recommendation of the Goldstone Report and launches a credible investigation of the charges.  If it doesn’t, I must support the report’s recommendation that the charges against Hamas and Israel be transferred to the Security Council and ultimately to the International Criminal Court.  I am sure that making this particular recommendation was not easy for Judge Goldstone.  For all who care deeply about Israel, this is very painful.  If we believe in human rights, we cannot expect the State of Israel to be exempt from international law.

The experience of living as a Jew under Apartheid has inspired many South African Jews to become dedicated defenders of the human rights of all.  In our tradition ethics has always been at the core of our faith and our understanding of what it means to be Jewish.

A true moral hero is one who follows the principles he believes in, especially when it is uncomfortable or painful. Judge Goldstone has done just that.  As a Jew who grew up in South Africa, I am proud and grateful.  http://rabbibrian.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/its-so-sad-that-a-respected-member-of-the-tribe-would-bash-israel-so-unfairly/

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by Michael Levin MichaelLevin11@mac.com Throwing Judge Goldstone (and the Gazans) Under the Bus – Who Won and Who Lost Jerry Haber The Magnes Zionist Friday, October 2, 2009 It took about a week to finish off Richard Goldstone and his Gaza Report. You have to give a lot of credit to the Netanyahu government. They get better at killing the messenger each time they do it. This time a few days of Israeli phone calls to the European capitals, intensive public relations, and a lot of help from the US government, did the trick. Hillary bought the Israeli line that acting upon the Goldstone Report would damage a (non-existent) peace process. As if the war crimes in Gaza had anything to do with any sort of peace process. But an honorable mention and a big yashar koah goes to the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah, which buckled under “intense pressure” from the US, and agreed to delay deliberations on the report until March. So who are the winners and losers in l’affaire Goldstone? Well, the winners in no special order are the rightwing Israeli government and its rightwing supporters, the American administration, and Hamas. The first two are obvious; for Bibi and Hillary (and her boss), the Goldstone Report was a “distraction” from the main issue, which is how to pretend there is a peace process and to juggle at the same time. And why Hamas? Because at the same time that the PA was capitulating to the Israelis and the Americans, much to the crowing of the Israelis, Hamas managed to exchange a videotape of Gilad Shalit for Palestinian prisoners. Moral of the story: kidnap Israeli soldiers, and you get a prisoner release. (It didn’t take Khaled Mashal a long time to figure that out.) Collaborate with the Israelis, and you get bubkes, although I would like to think that at least some people of Ramallah will be well-rewarded for their efforts. And how is this going to play in the Palestinian street? Do I need to spell that out for you? Just read the wise analysis by Amjad Atallah here. The big losers, again in no special order, are Fatah and the Palestinian Authority, which have been quick to spin their decision as only a delaying tactic. Believe that, and I have a security fence you may be interested in. Of course, their patrons, the Israelis Dons, spun the Palestinian surrender their own way. According to Haaretz The Palestinian decision not to push the report was “proof that Israel was right not to cooperate with the investigation and that it was a political tool that can be blocked through diplomatic activity,” a source said. Good to see that the PA has joined the Coalition Forces. Other big losers are the human rights organizations, the folks who care about little things like the death, dismemberment, and trauma of innocent civilians, and the destruction of their lives and property. What Israel, the US, and the PA proved today was that power trumps justice, that war criminals are held to account when and only when they are not friends of the big boys. But the biggest losers, aside from the Gazans, are good people everywhere. We are taught that crime doesn’t pay, that the bad guys will be punished, that pride goeth before a fall. It’s doesn’t get easier to learn that the bullies often get their way. Of course, Torah teaches that the ledger is open, and that there is a hand that records the deeds and misdeeds. The ray of hope in all this is that nobody opposed to the Goldstone report, or for that matter, any of the human rights reports, disputed the facts therein. (I exclude the hardcore right-wingers and the Israeli government, which always dispute the facts.) The claims have been that the original mandate was biased, that the report lacked context, that its conclusions were over the top, that the UN hates Israel, yada, yada, yada. Discrediting the messenger is a good short-term tactic, but a lousy long-term one. So while I don’t share the optimism of the last optimist in Israel, Gideon Levy, who thinks that the Goldstone report will affect future Israeli behavior, I am hopeful that a lot of people out there know a rat when they smell one. And let’s not forget a VERY BIG winner of throwing Judge Goldstone under the bus – the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions people. For we now know that the way to get results out of the Israeli government is through public action – and that action cannot be left to government actions, especially when the governments are serial human-rights violators such as the US, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority. _____ http://themagneszionist.blogspot.com/2009/10/throwing-judge-goldstone-and-gazans.html Throwing Judge Goldstone (and the Gazans) Under the Bus – Who Won and Who Lost
Jerry Haber
The Magnes Zionist
Friday, October 2, 2009

It took about a week to finish off Richard Goldstone and his Gaza Report. You have to give a lot of credit to the Netanyahu government. They get better at killing the messenger each time they do it. This time a few days of Israeli phone calls to the European capitals, intensive public relations, and a lot of help from the US government, did the trick. Hillary bought the Israeli line that acting upon the Goldstone Report would damage a (non-existent) peace process. As if the war crimes in Gaza had anything to do with any sort of peace process.

But an honorable mention and a big yashar koah goes to the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah, which buckled under “intense pressure” from the US, and agreed to delay deliberations on the report until March.

So who are the winners and losers in l’affaire Goldstone?

Well, the winners in no special order are the rightwing Israeli government and its rightwing supporters, the American administration, and Hamas. The first two are obvious; for Bibi and Hillary (and her boss), the Goldstone Report was a “distraction” from the main issue, which is how to pretend there is a peace process and to juggle at the same time.

And why Hamas? Because at the same time that the PA was capitulating to the Israelis and the Americans, much to the crowing of the Israelis, Hamas managed to exchange a videotape of Gilad Shalit for Palestinian prisoners. Moral of the story: kidnap Israeli soldiers, and you get a prisoner release. (It didn’t take Khaled Mashal a long time to figure that out.) Collaborate with the Israelis, and you get bubkes, although I would like to think that at least some people of Ramallah will be well-rewarded for their efforts.

And how is this going to play in the Palestinian street? Do I need to spell that out for you? Just read the wise analysis by Amjad Atallah here.

The big losers, again in no special order, are Fatah and the Palestinian Authority, which have been quick to spin their decision as only a delaying tactic. Believe that, and I have a security fence you may be interested in.

Of course, their patrons, the Israelis Dons, spun the Palestinian surrender their own way. According to Haaretz

The Palestinian decision not to push the report was “proof that Israel was right not to cooperate with the investigation and that it was a political tool that can be blocked through diplomatic activity,” a source said.

Good to see that the PA has joined the Coalition Forces.

Other big losers are the human rights organizations, the folks who care about little things like the death, dismemberment, and trauma of innocent civilians, and the destruction of their lives and property. What Israel, the US, and the PA proved today was that power trumps justice, that war criminals are held to account when and only when they are not friends of the big boys.

But the biggest losers, aside from the Gazans, are good people everywhere. We are taught that crime doesn’t pay, that the bad guys will be punished, that pride goeth before a fall. It’s doesn’t get easier to learn that the bullies often get their way.

Of course, Torah teaches that the ledger is open, and that there is a hand that records the deeds and misdeeds. The ray of hope in all this is that nobody opposed to the Goldstone report, or for that matter, any of the human rights reports, disputed the facts therein. (I exclude the hardcore right-wingers and the Israeli government, which always dispute the facts.) The claims have been that the original mandate was biased, that the report lacked context, that its conclusions were over the top, that the UN hates Israel, yada, yada, yada. Discrediting the messenger is a good short-term tactic, but a lousy long-term one. So while I don’t share the optimism of the last optimist in Israel, Gideon Levy, who thinks that the Goldstone report will affect future Israeli behavior, I am hopeful that a lot of people out there know a rat when they smell one.

And let’s not forget a VERY BIG winner of throwing Judge Goldstone under the bus – the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions people. For we now know that the way to get results out of the Israeli government is through public action – and that action cannot be left to government actions, especially when the governments are serial human-rights violators such as the US, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority.
_____
http://themagneszionist.blogspot.com/2009/10/throwing-judge-goldstone-and-gazans.html

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by blackie sschwartz@inbox.com Beware, we’ve got another cowardly Jew hunter among us using the moronic pseudonym “Sterling Rand”. I wonder how much these anti-Semitic pukes (to include the lying DRE) get paid by their Pali masters to post this crap?! Beware, we’ve got another cowardly Jew hunter among us using the moronic pseudonym “Sterling Rand”. I wonder how much these anti-Semitic pukes (to include the lying DRE) get paid by their Pali masters to post this crap?!

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by David R. Evans dave7819@yahoo.com The rocket attack victims this article speaks of can be multiplied by factors of hundreds if the same article were speaking of Palestinian victims.  Palestinians in Gaza have no shelters that are safe from Israeli attacks.  They don’t even have adequate drinking water and medicines while under brutal occupation and oppression of Israel.  So please don’t cry about the injured in Sderot who live on theland of a Palestinian village, Najd after Palestinians were forced from their homes there, or Ashkelon, another of 500 Palestinian towns that were overrun by Jewish immigrants. The rocket attack victims this article speaks of can be multiplied by factors of hundreds if the same article were speaking of Palestinian victims.  Palestinians in Gaza have no shelters that are safe from Israeli attacks.  They don’t even have adequate drinking water and medicines while under brutal occupation and oppression of Israel.  So please don’t cry about the injured in Sderot who live on theland of a Palestinian village, Najd after Palestinians were forced from their homes there, or Ashkelon, another of 500 Palestinian towns that were overrun by Jewish immigrants.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by Victor Bassini victorbassini@gmail.com Maybe if the UN didn´t ignore the suffering of the Jews in Israel, Israel would pay more attention to UN resolutions. Maybe if the UN didn´t ignore the suffering of the Jews in Israel, Israel would pay more attention to UN resolutions.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by Sterling Rand bicyclenutmail-jta@yahoo.com Jackie Cappiello said “ However, the UN has had a lomg history of ignoring what happens to Jews in Israel.” Israel has a long history of ignoring UN resolutions. If Israel did not ignore UN resolutions perhaps the UN would not be ignoring the Jews in Israel. Jackie Cappiello said “ However, the UN has had a lomg history of ignoring what happens to Jews in Israel.”
Israel has a long history of ignoring UN resolutions. If Israel did not ignore UN resolutions perhaps the UN would not be ignoring the Jews in Israel.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by jason H yadayada@gmail.com Jackie, The following findings in the report might have played a role in terms of lack of information on the Israeli side. When the government stonewalled the investigation, you can’t blame the investigation is one-sided. 1628. The Mission was unable to conduct on-site investigations owing to the decision of the Government of Israel not to cooperate with the Mission. 1629. The Mission addressed questions to the Government of Israel regarding individuals who have been affected by rocket and other fire from the Gaza Strip. The request of information included data about any psychological, social and economic harm caused by the rocket and mortar shells that have been launched into Israel. The Mission did not receive any reply to its questions. Jackie,
The following findings in the report might have played a role in terms of lack of information on the Israeli side. When the government stonewalled the investigation, you can’t blame the investigation is one-sided.
1628. The Mission was unable to conduct on-site investigations owing to the decision of the Government of Israel not to cooperate with the Mission.
1629. The Mission addressed questions to the Government of Israel regarding individuals who have been affected by rocket and other fire from the Gaza Strip. The request of information included data about any psychological, social and economic harm caused by the rocket and mortar shells that have been launched into Israel. The Mission did not receive any reply to its questions.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by Jackie Cappiello jcappiello@knology.net I believe I read that Goldstone took a nap during testimony by Sderot victims.  If this is true, his report is not the only item that is flawed.  A judge should hear all sides of a story, before commenting.  However, the UN has had a lomg history of ignoring what happens to Jews in Israel. I believe I read that Goldstone took a nap during testimony by Sderot victims.  If this is true, his report is not the only item that is flawed.  A judge should hear all sides of a story, before commenting.  However, the UN has had a lomg history of ignoring what happens to Jews in Israel.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by jason H yadayada@gmail.com Correction of my last sentence:  “...yet NOT using her story as she was led to believe is beyond me.” Correction of my last sentence:  “...yet NOT using her story as she was led to believe is beyond me.”

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00 Comment by jason H yadayada@gmail.com This is the context where her name appears in the report: 1673. It should be noted that the Tseva Adom system is not 100 percent effective; according to Noam Bedein, , the system failed to detect a rocket that struck Sderot on 21 May 2007, killing one and wounding two others,.1015 Moreover, the system may also give false alerts, a fact which led authorities in Ashkelon to switch off the system in May 2008. Consequently, no warning was given when a rocket struck a shopping centre on 14 May 2008, seriously injuring three people (including Dr. Emilia Siderer, who appeared before the Mission at the public hearings held in Geneva on 6 July 2009). I sympathize with her position that the report does not reflect her suffering and her anguish of being trivialized. Quite frankly, I am at lost what information Goldstone was looking for when his panel interviewed her.  While here personal story is tragic, there were many Israelis and Palestinians who were killed or severely injured in the conflicts. It would be impossible for him to cover each individual grievances.  So why Goldstone (not sure if himself or his staff) thought that her testimony was important yet using her story as she was led to believe is beyond me. This is the context where her name appears in the report:
1673. It should be noted that the Tseva Adom system is not 100 percent effective; according to Noam Bedein, , the system failed to detect a rocket that struck Sderot on 21 May 2007, killing one and wounding two others,.1015 Moreover, the system may also give false alerts, a fact which led authorities in Ashkelon to switch off the system in May 2008. Consequently, no warning was given when a rocket struck a shopping centre on 14 May 2008, seriously injuring three people (including Dr. Emilia Siderer, who appeared before the Mission at the public hearings held in Geneva on 6 July 2009).

I sympathize with her position that the report does not reflect her suffering and her anguish of being trivialized.

Quite frankly, I am at lost what information Goldstone was looking for when his panel interviewed her.  While here personal story is tragic, there were many Israelis and Palestinians who were killed or severely injured in the conflicts. It would be impossible for him to cover each individual grievances.  So why Goldstone (not sure if himself or his staff) thought that her testimony was important yet using her story as she was led to believe is beyond me.

]]> 2012-05-24T;14:04:00-05:00