Commenting on Israel’s report on Operation Protective Edge last summer, Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said Sunday that it was actually the third report thus far that has confirmed how the IDF had prevented civilian deaths. “I can say without any question that we in the IDF are careful about any and every small detail. We do not compromise on any principle of morality, or of law.”
Israel did everything it could to avoid getting into a war, and the matter was gravely considered before the IDF went into Gaza. “We very carefully weighed our steps, despite the never-ending rocket fire aimed at our civilians, which were dispatched from civilian areas, hospitals, mosques, and schools,” places that Israel avoided firing back at at nearly all costs, he said.
According to the report that Israel submitted to the UN over the weekend, the IDF went far beyond the call of duty in protecting Palestinian Arab civilians during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza. “Israel sought to avoid the conflict and exercised great restraint over a period of months before the war when its citizens were targeted by sporadic rocket attacks from Gaza,” the report said. “Hamas launched attacks against Israel from the heart of its own civilian communities in Gaza and positioned its munitions and military forces there also, including in schools, hospitals and mosque.”
As opposed to the terror groups who think nothing of committing war crimes against the people they purport to protect, said Yaalon, Israel “displayed only values of that were life-saving. We set a very high moral standard, even for Western armies. When there was reason for an investigation or criminal charges, we lost no time in conducting them, and in punishing offenders when necessary.”
Yaalon called on Israelis and supporters of the country to do everything they could to spread the message. “Just as IDF soldiers protect Israelis, Israelis should protect soldiers in this international fight for the legitimacy of Israel. “Do not compromise with those who hypocritically distort reality, in an era in which we see innocent civilians subjected to mass murder on a daily basis by states that automatically tell lies about Israel and the IDF. We will fight this with all our strength,” Yaalon said.
