These are figures to keep in mind when looking at the Israeli attack with the the world’s fourth most powerful military force into Gaza. Since it began around 600, if not many more, Palestinian civilian women and children have been killed; there have been no Israeli women and children killed
Gaza is a tiny area, “just 25 miles long and just a few miles wide, into which are crammed 1.8 million people, who have been held captive in a brutal siege for seven years, that has deprived the inhabitants of food, power, access to clean water, a functioning sewage system, medical supplies and other essential resources.”
The wrath of Israel has caused destruction to a population that borders on the unimaginable considering they are confined in a small area and are being attacked from the sea, air and ground.
For comparison sake, think of the shape of Nantucket, 14 miles long 3 – 5 miles wide. Nantucket contains 47.8 square miles while Gaza is 139 square miles. Nantucket has a peak population of about 60,000 during the crowded summer.
Nantucket tucked away in the ocean 30 miles from the mainland is an appropriate comparison because there is no way to get off of it once the attack on it would begin. That is the story of Gaza. The people are trapped.
To see Nantucket as a Gaza put 1 million people on it. Surround it with ships firing from the sea, use an air force in addition, and fire heavy artillery from the mainland. Then launch tanks and other armored vehicles onto its beaches from landing crafts to drive through the island.
This attack by Israel began on July 8, 2014. Over three weeks 1.8 million people confined to a small area have lived under a relentless attack. Where can they go for safety? What is happening to the minds of the children suffering under this ongoing slaughter? Stop for a moment and think of your children, or grandchildren being on Nantucket with this carnage occurring.
Israel says it is justified in what it is doing in destroying the mental well being of hundreds of thousands of children. Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu said of those who murdered three Israeli teenagers that they were “human animals.” What are we to call those people who have killed and mentally injured so many women and children.
”Israel’s American ambassador says “the truth is that the Israeli Defense Forces should be given the Nobel Peace Prize… a Nobel Peace Prize for fighting with unimaginable restraint.”
There are macabre aspects to this ongoing onslaught. How about people gathering on hills overlooking Gaza sitting on lawn chairs and cheering each strike upon the civilian population. One declared that it was: “just good fun.” How about the Israeli crowds chanting: “Tomorrow there’s no school in Gaza, they don’t have any children left.” Or, the video of Israeli soldiers dancing as they get artillery shells prepared to launch.