Gaza now -- 11 months after the invasion

By November 28th, the UN's International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, something -- anything -- could be different in Gaza. Some small aspect of life in Gaza could change for the better. But, in mid-November, it seems more than strange that, when they are presented with the "facts on the ground" in Gaza, there are still official optimists who talk about achieving peace for Palestinians. They base their hope on assurances from the Israeli Government that Israel is acting in self-defense and is deploying "the most moral army in the world." And yet, these benighted optimists at least distinguish themselves from most western news commentators by taking an interest in the problem. Today, 11 months after Israeli F-16 strike fighters launched a series of air strikes against targets in Gaza -- one of the most densly populated places in the world -- and about 10 months after Israel declared the accomplishment of their military objectives, Gaza is still a prison camp controlled by the IDF and Egyptian forces. Nothing and no one can enter or leave Gaza without the permission of Israel unless it is lowered into a tunnel and pulled under the border. Of course, this was also true before the invasion, but now the blockade has made it impossible to repair the damage done to Gaza. According to the CIA, about 1,300 Gazan non-combatants were killed during the invasion. Many thousands more were wounded and are dying because, as the International Red Cross reports, simple medical supplies, such as X-ray film, are prevented from crossing the border. Less than 10 per cent of the water available in Gaza is fit for human consumption. More than 4,000 residences were destroyed in the invasion (and many before it) leaving tens of thousands of Gazans homeless. Building materials that would put a roof over their heads remain waiting in trucks.According to Israel, these measures are "sanctions" against Hamas. According to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention these are war crimes because Israel has failed to protect the civilian population.In mid-September, 2009, just after the publication of the UN's Goldstone Report, a commentator wrote, "No Israeli official publicly presents a plausible end-game for Gaza and the West Bank. You can't just go on economically strangling 4 million people for decades. Unlike other world conflict situations, Israel is not striving to incorporate the Palestinians as citizens [...]. In contrast, Israel is keeping the Palestinians stateless, and stateless people have no property or human rights. It is governments that guarantee rights. For those lacking citizenship in a real country, the only glimmer of justice that ever appears is in the form of blue ribbon commissions. Hence Justice Goldstone's report." This was written by Juan Cole, an academic historian on middle eastern affairs. Read his commentary. Cole is only one of hundreds of scholars and serious commentators who have been driven to the conclusion that Israel is not merely defending itself but is instead acting illegally under the protection and support of western governments to eliminate Palestinian society.