Goro Rivera's Place

At Left: Karen AbuZayd, Commisioner General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency speaks to the Security Council during a closed door session. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, was established by United Nations General Assembly resolution 302 (IV) of 8 December 1949 to carry out direct relief and works programmes for Palestine refugees. The Agency began operations on 1 May 1950. In the absence of a solution to the Palestine refugee problem, the General Assembly has repeatedly renewed UNRWA's mandate, most recently extending it until 30 June 2011. Since its establishment, the Agency has delivered its services in times of relative calm in the Middle East, and in times of hostilities. It has fed, housed and clothed tens of thousands of fleeing refugees and at the same time educated and gi...

I came across an interesting article in a January issue of The Economist . Western Theory states the following: on the grounds on going to war, ( jus ad bellum ) , the cause must be important enough to justify force: in other words the good that follows must outweigh the death, injuries, and destruction of said war. In the conduct of war, ( jus in bello ), any action must weigh the military gains against the harm to civilians. How can we measure this? In the Israeli-Palestinian context does this conflict begin in 1948 with the displacement of the Arab people of the Palestinian region and the subsequent occupation by Israel? I don't think Israel or the west will ever look at this issue in this way. If the crude rocket firing is the starting point then surely Israel has the right to defend its borders. But does the firing of rockets into Israel by Hamas warrant the barrage that followed? If so was it in line with jus in bello ? Will there ever be a sit down with the leaders o...