Demonization
The NGO Front in the Gaza War: Compilation of NGO statements
A compilation of over 500 statements by 52 NGOs on "Operation Cast Lead" (December 27, 2008 - January 29, 2009).
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The NGO Front in the Gaza War: Lawfare Against Israel
One aspect of NGO statements on the Gaza war is demands for international investigations and "lawfare". Although the vast majority of previous lawfare cases have been dismissed, the damage to public perception of Israel and Israels diplomatic relations is considerable. Reportedly, PCHR is preparing cases in six countries, targeting 87 Israelis for harassment and "dozens of arrest warrants have already been issued." Other NGOs calling for lawfare in the wake of the Gaza war include the AIC, Adalah, Amnesty, Ittijah, and HRA.
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The NGO Front in the Gaza War: Debate over Palestinian Casualties
There is a growing debate over Palestinian casualty claims. While the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) and the Palestinian Ministry of Health have announced that the majority of fatalities were civilians, the IDF has estimated that more than two-thirds of [the deaths] were Hamas members. PCHRs anti-Israel campaigning during war includes accusations of Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity, human holocaust, collective punishment, indiscriminate killing and continued systematic destruction of all the Palestinian institutions and civilian facilities in the Gaza Strip.
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The NGO Front in the Gaza War: Amnesty International
Since December 27, 2008, Amnesty International and its worldwide branches have released numerous statements on Gaza. These are primarily critical of Israel and use the rhetoric of international humanitarian law in a consistently biased manner. Amnesty accuses Israel of "unlawful," "disproportionate," and "indiscriminate" attacks against Palestinian civilians. Amnesty largely ignores the well-documented commandeering of civilian infrastructure and widespread use of human shields by Hamas. These accusations are similar to Amnestys false claims against Israel made during the Second Lebanon War.
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The NGO Front in the Gaza War: Exploitation of International Law
The exploitation of international legal rhetoric is a major weapon in the political war to delegitmize Israeli anti-terror operations. During the Gaza conflict, NGOs have selectively charged Israel with "violations of law," "crimes against humanity," "war crimes," "disproportionate force" and "indiscriminate attacks." Many NGOs are already calling for international "investigations" and "lawfare" based on these accusations, in order to harass Israeli officials and promote a negative media image of Israel. At the same time, the violation of Gilad Shalits human rights and Hamas use of human shields are ignored.
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Examining Human Rights Watch in 2008: Double Standards and Post-Colonial Ideology
Quantitative and Qualitative analysis of HRW in 2008 reflect the portrayal of Israel as the second worst abuser of human rights in the Middle East. HRW's use of international legal and human rights terminology singles out Israel for condemnation, while other serious human rights abusers receive little coverage. Evidence suggests that specific HRW personnel (Joe Stork, Sarah Leah Whitson and Marc Garlasco) are responsible for responsible for much of the bias, and when other individuals are centrally involved, the reports are less tendentious
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The NGO front in the Gaza war: Oxfam
35 NGOs claiming to promote human rights and humanitarian agendas have issued more than 132 statements on the fighting so far. These reports are a central part of the soft power war being waged against Israel, in parallel to the hard power rocket and terror attacks. NGO Monitors series entitled, The NGO Front, will focus daily on different organizations, beginning with an analysis of Oxfams role.
