because when that law is broken, it turns civilians into targets
Have you absolutely no shame? Or are you naïvely trying to sound authoritative? Unlawful combatants existing in an area, does not mean that civilians are greenlight for deliberate targeting.
Nor does it excuse the atrocious and callous 1:10,1:20,1:100 ‘acceptable collateral damage’ Hamas:Civilian ratio the IDF has self assigned and modified up and down based on international outcry.
for every junior Hamas operative that Lavender marked, it was permissible to kill up to 15 or 20 civilians… in the event that the target was a senior Hamas official with the rank of battalion or brigade commander, the army on several occasions authorized the killing of more than 100 civilians in the assassination of a single commander
I'm talking about what actually happens, not what is "right" or "allowable". In a warzone, if your enemy looks like civilians, then civilians start looking like the enemy. That's the reason why not wearing uniforms became a war crime in the first place. It drives up civilian casualties.
Yes, because in a war, you totally have plenty of time to stop and do a thorough investigation into which one of the five guys within sight just shot at you. Everyone will just pause everything while you figure out who you are supposed to shoot back at.
It was a metaphor to continue a conversation about why having your combatants looking like and mixed in with the civilian population is bad. We're talking in the abstract, not literal. Keep up.
Statistics for civilian to combatant death are like 9-1 and 7-1, there's having no choice and then there's committing warcrimes out of convenience. Bibi says its juuust 2-1, so according to him the majority of Hamas combatants are women and children right?
You know, we'd have better and more accurate statistics about casualties on the ground if the IDF weren't actively trying to keep a journalist/aid worker kill high score too. You don't have to support Hamas or the Palestinians but please don't try to justify the IDF's actions.
I'm not justifying anything. I'm saying "Hamas is commiting war crimes and that is bad." That is all I'm saying. There's been no justifiable actions on either side for decades now.
Or maybe, here’s a thought: You stop reacting capriciously, and asses the situation to make an informed decision for shoot/no-shoot. Retreat to safety and investigate. Israel likes to flout their ‘world class’ ISR and HUMINT capabilities and superior and accurate weapons, but then keeps making “tragic mistakes” that kill civilians, reporters, and aid workers. Hamas et al are definitely not respecting the laws of war, but that’s not license to turn neighborhoods into free-fire zones.
Of course that requires the forces involved respecting civilian life and showing restraint.