Are Palestinian civilians being targeted by Israel?

• Israel was attacked by one of the most barbaric, immoral, inhuman organizations that the world has ever known - one that vows to wipe the entire country off the face of the earth. Hamas is a group that purposely targets civilians with documented plans to commit horrific atrocities.  These plans were implemented and included beheadings, burning people alive, killing dozens of babies, raping women, taking Holocaust survivors and others as captives. This evil organization was elected by the people of Gaza.
• Nonetheless, Israel is a humane, law-abiding country, and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reflect those values. Despite the terrible crimes committed, and the unprecedented threats against the Jewish state, Israel is NOT targeting civilians, and is even warning Palestinians before it strikes Hamas’ terror and military targets; losing the element of surprise as the price it must pay for keeping Gazan non-combatants out of harm's way.
• Israel has repeatedly warned Gaza’s civilian population to evacuate certain areas to avoid being caught in the violence.  Cynically, disturbingly, and once again demonstrating their complete disregard for human life and civilian populations, Hamas has ordered residents not to leave and to stay in place, despite the warnings that Israel has given, potentially condemning some of their own people to die. And now, evidence has emerged of Hamas blocking the safe corridors created by Israel, forcing their own civilian population to remain in the fighting zone and become human shields and propaganda pawns.

Why is Israel cutting off electricity and other supplies to Gaza?

• Hamas, elected by the people of Gaza, is the authority in charge of the Strip, and responsible for the well-being of its citizens. In the past, the regime has diverted large quantities of provisions and aid for military and terror purposes, while its wealthy leadership has squandered urgent resources for themselves. 
• For example, we have seen again and again that emergency supplies of much-needed diesel fuel (used to power generators for hospitals, among other purposes) has been redirected to Hamas’ rocket program and other military uses. It should also be noted that in regular times, Israel only supplies 10% of Gaza’s water and 50% of its electricity (a further 25% comes from solar power, and the rest from Egypt and other sources).

Why did Israel order Gazans to evacuate the Northern Gaza Strip?

• This war was not inevitable. Hamas — an internationally armed, financed, and trained terrorist organization whose stated purpose is the destruction of Israel — started this war. Israel is taking the necessary steps to keep all its residents safe, no matter their identity.
• Hamas, whose stated purpose is the destruction of Israel and murder of Jews, targeted men, women, children, babies and the elderly in the worst massacre in the history of Israel.
• Hamas gave no warning to Israel or Israelis before launching its surprise attack.
• Hamas has militarized cities and neighborhoods and Gaza, using schools, hospitals and mosques as storehouses for ammunition aimed at destroying Israel. 
• Hamas places the citizens of Gaza directly in harm’s way, committing war crimes against both Israelis and Palestinians, sometimes killing Palestinians from misfires or rockets that fall short. 
• Israel, a sovereign nation, has a moral right and obligation to defend itself and protect its citizens from this terrorist entity. 
• Israel does not target civilians. The IDF warns Gazans in advance of attacks so that citizens can flee.
• Despite the IDF’s calls, Hamas has ordered Palestinians to remain in their homes.
• Any loss of civilian life is a tragedy whose responsibility lies with Hamas.
• The only way to prevent this destruction is for Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza to put down their weapons and accept Israel’s right to exist.
• Israel has stated that its siege of Gaza will continue until Hamas releases the over 199 hostages it is holding captive. Hamas alone is making the decision to retain the hostages, thus prolonging the siege. 

Who was responsible for the blast outside a Gaza hospital?

• At around 8PM on Tuesday, reports emerged of an attack outside the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza with Hamas claiming as many as 500 people killed in the attack.
• Within minutes of the attack, media outlets, including large mainstream outlets like CNN, The New York Times and many others released reports suggesting it was the result of an Israeli airstrike, and international condemnation directed at Israel intensified.
• After taking the time to investigate, at 11:00 PM the IDF released a statement establishing that Islamic Jihad was responsible for the attack due to a “failed rocket launch.”
• The IDF provided video evidence of the scene of the attack indicating that crater impacts which result from Israeli Air Force strikes are not visible anywhere within the hospital campus. The IDF also released recordings intercepted from Hamas operatives as they realize the true source of the attack, as well as photo evidence.
• Upon landing in Tel Aviv, President Biden addressed the terrible incident and said that “the other team” is responsible for the attack and not Israel.
• Failed rocket launches from Gaza have been the cause of many Palestinian casualties in past rounds of the conflict, with the IDF stating that in the current war as many as 450 rockets have already fallen within Gaza. Terrorism from Gaza does not only harm Israelis, but also Palestinian lives.

SOURCE: JEWISH FEDERATIONS OF NORTH AMERICA