Israeli soldiers on the northern border have been seen using a medieval catapult-like weapon to shoot flaming projectiles into Lebanon, igniting plantations to prevent Hezbollah fighters from infiltrating into the south.
Footage widely shared on social media shows the soldiers loading a trebuchet and flinging fireballs into Lebanese territory. “This is a local initiative and not a tool that is widely used,” the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement, denying that this is a widely adopted tactic by the forces.
igniting plantations to prevent Hezbollah fighters from infiltrating into the south.
Yeah, that’s not the real reason. Might be a secondary reason, but just like in Gaza, destruction of food sources and civilian property is NOT incidental. It’s very much a deliberate tactic, which is a war crime.
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No. Just because the US military does it with impunity doesn’t mean it’s standard and not a war crime.
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Strange… I could swear it was the exact same strategy used by colonialist forces since colonialism began
Yeah, international humanitarian laws weren’t codified because nobody was doing things that they should never do…
Are you saying it was all war crimes?
All the instances of targeting civilians and food sources as a weapon of war? You bet your ass I am.
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No, it was added to the Geneva convention in 1977
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Depends on whether you define a crime as a “legal” bad action or a “moral” bad action. While the latter may be problematic, because anyone can have different values, it is still widely considered a bad thing to kill people who did not do anything.
Well, the question was on the practice’s legality, not its morality.
So yes.
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Slightly more HD version here on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgJmAK-MxhQ
For what it’s worth, this is the only article I can find that says it was for burning “plantations.”
From NBC News
The official said that while the weapon was not sanctioned by military leadership, the troops were fulfilling a legitimate military task of burning away thick shrubbery along the border where Hezbollah fighters sometimes hide.
Or, if you prefer an outlet with a different perspective…
From Middle East Eye
Israeli media suggested that launching projectiles into Lebanon was aimed at exposing Hezbollah fighters using the dense foliage as cover in the area. It could also be in preparation for a ground invasion.
What israel is allowed to do it create a buffer zone within their own territories. Move back their Nazi colony.
What israel is not allowed to do is create a buffer zone in Lebanon by burning farmland and acres to the ground. Which they subsequently use as excuse to expand their Lebensraum on.
I might be wrong, but didn’t Einstein say something about WW3 being fought with a club? Maybe this is the beginning of that developement back to the roots.
“I do not know with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” - Albert Einstein.
Snopes says this sentiment was actually expressed by Einstein, though perhaps not in this exact phrasing.
relevant xkcd
“catapult like” they fucking wish
