Israel’s Bogus Claims

2 Jun, 2010 | Australian Values, Democracy, Economic Values, Racism, Terrorism, Values, War

 

[About Article 67(a)]

 

Israeli spokespeople are cheerfully quoting the “San Remo Agreement” or the “San Remo Accord” as if it gives their recent action legitimacy; that Article 67(a) confers on them the special right to board civilian craft of other countries in international waters if they are threatening to run a blockade.

But it does not and you’ll see why.

The actual title of the San Remo “Agreement” is San Remo Manual on International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea, 12 June 1994.

The first doubt you might have is whether there was “an armed conflict at sea” before the Israelis dropped from the helicopters onto the civilian ferry and other craft.

It is true that the Manual initially seems to offer some legitimacy:

 

Article 67 (a) says:

67. Merchant vessels flying the flag of neutral States may not be attacked unless they:

(a) are believed on reasonable grounds to be carrying contraband or breaching a blockade, and after prior warning they intentionally and clearly refuse to stop, or intentionally and clearly resist visit, search or capture;

This is the one paragraph that they quote because it suits their purposes. But wait, there’s more. It goes on to say:

(b) engage in belligerent acts on behalf of the enemy;

(c) act as auxiliaries to the enemy s armed forces;

(d) are incorporated into or assist the enemy s intelligence system;

(e) sail under convoy of enemy warships or military aircraft; or

(f) otherwise make an effective contribution to the enemy’s military action, e.g., by carrying military materials, and it is not feasible for the attacking forces to first place passengers and crew in a place of safety. Unless circumstances do not permit, they are to be given a warning, so that they can re-route, off-load, or take other precautions.

 

68. Any attack on these vessels is subject to the basic rules in paragraphs 38-46.

 

69. The mere fact that a neutral merchant vessel is armed provides no grounds for attacking it.

Paragraphs 38-46 say:

Part III : Basic rules and target discrimination

Section I : Basic rules

38. In any armed conflict the right of the parties to the conflict to choose methods or means of warfare is not unlimited.

39. Parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between civilians or other protected persons and combatants and between civilian or exempt objects and military objectives.

40. In so far as objects are concerned, military objectives are limited to those objects which by their nature, location, purpose or use make an effective contribution to military action and whose total or partial destruction, capture or neutralization, in the circumstances ruling at the time, offers a definite military advantage.

41. Attacks shall be limited strictly to military objectives. Merchant vessels and civil aircraft are civilian objects unless they are military objectives in accordance with the principles and rules set forth in this document.

42. In addition to any specific prohibitions binding upon the parties to a conflict, it is forbidden to employ methods or means of warfare which:

(a) are of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering; or

(b) are indiscriminate, in that:

(i) they are not, or cannot be, directed against a specific military objective; or

(ii) their effects cannot be limited as required by international law as reflected in this document.

43. It is prohibited to order that there shall be no survivors, to threaten an adversary therewith or to conduct hostilities on this basis.

44. Methods and means of warfare should be employed with due regard for the natural environment taking into account the relevant rules of international law. Damage to or destruction of the natural environment not justified by military necessity and carried out wantonly is prohibited.

45. Surface ships, submarines and aircraft are bound by the same principles and rules.

Section II : Precautions in attack

46. With respect to attacks, the following precautions shall be taken:

(a) those who plan, decide upon or execute an attack must take all feasible measures to gather information which will assist in determining whether or not objects which are not military objectives are present in an area of attack;

(b) in the light of the information available to them, those who plan, decide upon or execute an attack shall do everything feasible to ensure that attacks are limited to military objectives;

(c) they shall furthermore take all feasible precautions in the choice of methods and means in order to avoid or minimize collateral casualties or damage; and

(d) an attack shall not be launched if it may be expected to cause collateral casualties or damage which would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated from the attack as a whole; an attack shall be cancelled or suspended as soon as it becomes apparent that the collateral casualties or damage would be excessive.

All of this is in a context of warfare and one is not at all sure that Israel is in a state of declared war with the Palestinians. Or with an international bunch of peace activists.

The rules about Blockades are:

Section II : Methods of warfare

Blockade

93. A blockade shall be declared and notified to all belligerents and neutral States.

94. The declaration shall specify the commencement, duration, location, and extent of the blockade and the period within which vessels of neutral States may leave the blockaded coastline.

95. A blockade must be effective. The question whether a blockade is effective is a question of fact.

96. The force maintaining the blockade may be stationed at a distance determined by military requirements.

97. A blockade may be enforced and maintained by a combination of legitimate methods and means of warfare provided this combination does not result in acts inconsistent with the rules set out in this document.

98. Merchant vessels believed on reasonable grounds to be breaching a blockade may be captured. Merchant vessels which, after prior warning, clearly resist capture may be attacked.

99. A blockade must not bar access to the ports and coasts of neutral States.

100. A blockade must be applied impartially to the vessels of all States.

101. The cessation, temporary lifting, re-establishment, extension or other alteration of a blockade must be declared and notified as in paragraphs 93 and 94.

102. The declaration or establishment of a blockade is prohibited if:

(a) it has the sole purpose of starving the civilian population or denying it other objects essential for its survival; or

(b) the damage to the civilian population is, or may be expected to be, excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated from the blockade.

103. If the civilian population of the blockaded territory is inadequately provided with food and other objects essential for its survival, the blockading party must provide for free passage of such foodstuffs and other essential supplies, subject to:

(a) the right to prescribe the technical arrangements, including search, under which such passage is permitted; and

(b) the condition that the distribution of such supplies shall be made under the local supervision of a Protecting Power or a humanitarian organization which offers guarantees of impartiality, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross.

104. The blockading belligerent shall allow the passage of medical supplies for the civilian population or for the wounded and sick members of armed forces, subject to the right to prescribe technical arrangements, including search, under which such passage is permitted.

So Articles 102 and 103 expressly forbid the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

All of this makes the mendacity of the Israelis starkly clear. Particularly the oozing, excremental (and happily ex-Australian) Regev.

And they are relying on you and me not having read the whole San Remo Manual which they flash so briefly and so nonchalantly.

Shame on you, Israel! Big Shame!

And big international lawsuits ahead.

 

Thank you for reading this far!  You might think producing a post like this takes a bit of work. 
It does! If you’ve appreciated it you might consider encouraging me. ( We all like validation! )   

Buy Me A Coffee

All posts

Categories

You might also like:

Black Breath of the Nazgûl

AKA Phillip Ruddock  AKA 'Dock Vader How dare ordinary 'people' have "views!"    sked on Southern Cross radio whether the case was a mess, he replied: "No, what I think has happened is that people who have views about the nature of the law are...

Migently Mountain Manifesto: 1

  S ir Roger is returned from the Mountain with the Migently Mountain Manifesto.Here are Tablets One to Five:    1.  Do what is right.     2.   You are safe. Now, at this instant, you are safe.You are safe, right here, right now. This might allow you to...

For the Record

Eating Air   ir Roger wrote to several Labor pollies recently complaining about Labor’s (really Rudd’s) lack of stance on the Haneef matter. The first response, to his credit, was from on behalf of Kevin Rudd. Dear [….you...

Three Stooges

Howard's 3 Stooges   redictably enough, the rightwing’s stooges are being wheeled out to divert the taint of almost inevitable defeat away from John Howard. Downer “Larry” Downer is a self-deluding fop and a dandy. He’s a joke. But as long as...

Expertology

  How the Experts Won the Iraq War in Weeks Rather Than Years   he newest Bill Moyers Journal episode includes an interview with Victor Navasky and Christopher Cerf, whose new book MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! OR HOW WE WON THE WAR IN IRAQ looks...

‘My Culture the Bastard Child’

his angry, loving, passionate, poetic piece from John White was a comment on the previous post but we love it so much we do not want it lost in the wastes of commentdom. It deserves to be shared with you. So here it is:  Australian Values,...

It’s Time, Mick

after Mr FishIt's Time t’s time for Mick Keelty to resign. Or be sacked. Either way, he has to go: A senior counter-terrorism officer with the Australian Federal Police has testified that police were directed to charge “as many...

Lolcats With a Vengeance

Sir Roger is despondent   fter all the hard work of so many people Australian politics is looking like Howard Lite, iSuck 2.0 déjà vu all over again. Boat people – “Aaaaarrrggghh! Foreigners! Tough on Queue-jumpers [but not on the causes of...

Tony Blair: All the Perfumes of Arabia

 Doctor: What is it he does now? Look, how he rubs his hands. Gentlewoman: It is an accustom’d action with him, to seem thus washing his hands. Foul Whisp'rings Are Abroad   S ir Roger has been listening and reading about Celebrity War Criminal Tony Blair’s 720 page...

Happy Birthday

Today was a dual anniversary – the 221st anniversary of the birth of (European) Australia and the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robbie Burns. The two are related. Burns was a fierce advocate of Enlightenment principles and the fight for the rights of citizens...

‘I’m Sir Roger and I’m Fucked’

  This is not for you   eally. We just want to acknowledge ourselves privately but publicly (it makes sense to us, anyway). It’s not meant to be onanistically self-congratulatory, except in the sense that we have achieved some things and...

The Undertaker’s Tally

  Son of Leo Strauss   n his extraordinary article, The Undertaker’s Tally, Roger Morris1 chillingly, and deeply disturbingly, lifts the veil on the life, times and evil mind of the real Donald Rumsfeld. Morris begins with Rumsfeld’s...

Sex Romp or Sex Scandal?

Matthew Johns   o this time it’s the turn of Matthew Johns, poster boy for Rugby League – the second official poster boy for Rugby League to be shamed within weeks – and regular on the cross-dressing Footy Show. When I was eleven years old my...

New Australian Anthems

Vote for your favourite   Sensitive New-Age Cowpersons?   Or Advance Jimmy Barnes?

Not Fade Away

Howard tries to remember something before it (or he) fades away....   rime Minister John Howard will call the Federal Election this week¹, probably Wednesday, according to pundits, Canberra insiders and the entrails of the Apec monster which...

Special Intel Ops

Night of the Big Dicks pecial Intel Ops, Sir Roger is required to inform his readers, may actually AT THIS VERY MOMENT be taking place, or may be in preparation, or may at the very least be in prospect. (Clutches pearls) It has come to Sir Roger’s...

Oh Pastor Ted, What a Jock You Are!

There’s a Lotta Love in This Place   S House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s little girl, Alexandra Pelosi, has made a doco, Friends of God, starring Crystal Methodist, Pastor Ted Haggard, about evangelical christians. And quite an eye-opener it is....

A Moron in a Hurry – Part 4

Mollified? Stupefied? Unutterably Bored?   en and Whitlam of Australia, not to forget the moron in a hurry, it’s time to bid farewell to old plinth-bound, red-taped Goth the Whittler, his soul, his vision and his legacy chained and frozen in...

The Ascent of Man & Descent of the DLP

Draining the Swamp   This is by way of ridding ourselves of the bible-bashers,    he deluded believers in absolute truths and faiths built on fairy stories and long-disproven assertions about the universe and how it works, who have lately...

Australian Refujesus Exhibition

Minister von Rock Opens Australian Refujesus Exhibition 15 October, 2006 The Australian Minister for Pacific Island Guano Getaways and Internment (PIGGI), Mistress von Rock, has opened a very tasteful photographic exhibition of pathetically grateful boat people to...

Delaying the Economic Apocalypse

  Who ultimately pays?   ir Roger is not an economist. He is (therefore) not a marxist. Nevertheless he has long been confused and at the same time fascinated by the doctrine of endless economic growth and has wondered from where and how,...

The SIEV X-Factor

“A Certain Maritime Incident”   ichard Fidler interviewed  Tony Kevin on ABC's Conversation Hour  last week. Tony Kevin is an activist who was one of the driving forces behind the campaign to uncover, and especially to tell, the truth about...

For the Record

Eating Air   ir Roger wrote to several Labor pollies recently complaining about Labor’s (really Rudd’s) lack of stance on the Haneef matter. The first response, to his credit, was from on behalf of Kevin Rudd. Dear [….you...

The Liars and the Other Liars

This morning, at the breakfast board ...   ir Roger seemed agitated. Sucking the grease of a plump peasant pheasant thigh from his fingers, he suddenly ejaculated, “Did he bury the bloody thing before he cremated it‽ Or did he cremate it...

Sacrifice?

Can we just say to all the politicians who pompously intone the word “sacrifice” over the freshly dead bodies of Australian soldiers:   BULLSHIT! WEASEL! UNSPEAK!   Rudd His sacrifice will not be forgotten.” Turnbull:...

Sex Romp or Sex Scandal?

Matthew Johns   o this time it’s the turn of Matthew Johns, poster boy for Rugby League – the second official poster boy for Rugby League to be shamed within weeks – and regular on the cross-dressing Footy Show. When I was eleven years old my...

Bhutto

t wasn’t such a surprise, we suppose, but Benazir Bhutto’s reported assassination, while it saddens us as another display of humanity’s inability to grow up, confirms our contempt for religion in general and that one in particular. Let those who...

Mount Migently Manifesto

 Australian Values   ustralian values have lately been enthusiastically asserted by some Australians and Sir Roger has been much impressed – in much the same way a washed-up prize fighter feels the repeated impressions of his opponents’ fists...

Only Thus?

  Let’s get one or two things clear: We are not against Jewish people in general. We are opposed to the actions of some individuals in particular. We are not opposed to their religion in particular. We are opposed to all religious belief (except, of course, the...

Signed With Their Honour

For ANZAC Day     Two poems about the madness of war: Mental Cases by Wilfred Owen Naming of Parts by Henry Reed  and a poem for the truly great – in our case the diggers: I Think Continually by Stephen Spender. _______________________________    ...

0 Comments