When #Israel recently assassinated 13 people in Iran's diplomatic building, this was described as an act of "deterrence".

#Iran's retaliation has also been described as an attempt to "restore deterrence".

But what does "deterrence" REALLY do?

A thread 🧵

1/10

#Palestine

A few years ago, I made several arguments about Israel's "deterrence" tactics:

First, acts of deterrence often DON'T prevent national security threats.

Instead, they create GREATER threats.

2/10

Israel is investigating its killing of 7 aid workers in #Gaza (who were from the UK, Australia, Poland, and Palestine, and included a U.S.-Canadian citizen).

But what do Israel's past investigations of similar killings tell us?

1/11

#Palestine Take, for example, James Miller – an award-winning British filmmaker.

He was killed by Israeli gunfire while filming a documentary in #Gaza.

Forensic experts from the London police found that the bullets were the same ones used by the Israeli military.

2/11

How has the Israeli government handled the hostage negotiations?

A thread 🧵

1/15

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank On October 7th, Hamas first offered to release all the hostages for all imprisoned #Palestinians.

The next day, Israel's Finance Minister said Israel must "hit Hamas brutally and NOT take the matter of the captives into significant consideration".



2/15 apnews.com/article/palest…

Israel says that #Palestinians brainwash their children.

But what does Israel teach its own children?

A thread 🧵

1/20

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank As we'll see, Israeli children are taught 3 things:

1. They can get away with harming #Palestinians, especially if they later serve in the military.

2. Service in the military (which oppresses Palestinians) is a sacred duty.

3. Palestinians are dangerous and primitive.

2/20

What do most Israelis think about #Palestinians?

A thread 🧵

1/15

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank A fifth of Israel's citizens are #Palestinians.

In a 2016 poll, half of Jewish Israelis said these Palestinian citizens should be expelled from Israel:



2/15 pewresearch.org/short-reads/20…

Does Israel use civilians as human shields?

A thread 🧵

1/20

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank "Israeli security forces have repeatedly used #Palestinians … as human shields," says Israeli NGO @btselem.

"As part of this policy, soldiers have ordered … civilians … to stand in front of [them] while the [soldiers] … shoot from behind":



2/20 btselem.org/human_shields

Israel has been oppressing #Palestinians for decades.

But how have the U.S. 🇺🇸 & U.K. 🇬🇧 contributed to this oppression?

A thread 🧵
(with sources at the end)

1/15

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank First of all, Israel has been deeply inspired by U.S. & British colonialism and wars.

"We've learned a lot from you Americans, how you moved West," Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told a U.S. official in 2013 (referring to the ethnic cleansing of Native Americans).

2/15

Can the Israeli military be believed?

A thread

1/20

#Palestine #Gaza #WestBank #Palestinians Let's start with Israel's use of white phosphorus, which can cause horrific burns and injuries.

New videos, verified by @amnesty & @hrw, appear to show Israel using this weapon in civilian areas in #Gaza & #Lebanon:





2/20 amnesty.org/en/latest/news…
hrw.org/news/2023/10/1…

Hamas says it would release all Israeli hostages in exchange for the #Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

But what do we know about these imprisoned Palestinians?

A thread 🧵

1/25

#Palestine First of all, more than a thousand (non-citizen) #Palestinians are currently imprisoned in Israel without charge or trial, in so-called "administrative detention."

Neither they nor their attorneys know the allegations against them.



2/25 btselem.org/administrative…

18 years ago, 13-year-old Palestinian Iman al-Hams was shot several times and killed by Israeli fire. Her parents sued the Israeli military for damages.

This week, the Israeli supreme court dismissed their claim.

🧵 1/15

#Palestine In theory, the Israeli rules of engagement forbid firing at children under the age of 14.

Iman al-Hams was 13 years old at the time of her killing.

But the Israeli supreme court judgment conveniently describes her as “approximately 14 years old.”

2/15