Battle of Shuja'iyya: Difference between revisions

|partof      = the [[2014 Israel–Gaza conflict]]

|date        = 19–23 July 2014<br>({{Age in months, weeks and days|month1=07|day1=20|year1=2014|month2=07|day2=23|year2=2014|}})

|result      = Israeli military victory<br>Significant damage to the neighborhood

|image      = Protective edge in Shuja'iyya.webm

|casualties1 = 13 killed<ref name=nytimes/><br>56 wounded

|casualties2 = 70–120 killed<ref>[https://www.un.org/press/en/2014/gapal1311.doc.htm Bureau of Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People Strongly Condemns Ongoing Israeli Military Operation in Gaza]</ref><ref name=beaumont/><br><small>Combatants and civilians</small>

The assault on Shuja'iyya, involving a combination of F-16, tank and mortar fire, began at 11 pm on 19 July. Initially the attack led by the Golani Brigade encountered little resistance, until late on Saturday Hamas units emerged from tunnels to engage and put up stiff resistance, surprising the Israelis with their tenacity and effectiveness in taking on armoured units.<ref name="Perry" /> According to Israeli military and intelligence sources, Israel then made use of heavy aerial bombardment and artillery fire, in what was described as a "risky and unusual step to save Israeli soldiers' lives" and "a battle against the hub of Hamas' terror infrastructure, primarily the so-called 'terror tunnels'". Palestinians attempting to flee the area described the scene as a "massacre", as did [[Mahmoud Abbas]], [[Richard Falk]], Norwegian physician Dr. [[Mads Gilbert]] and journalist Sharif Abdel Kouddous in ''[[The Nation]]''.  

On Wednesday 16 July, Israeli forces dropped leaflets and delivered warnings by phone and text that residents in the Zeitoun and Shujai'iya areas of Gaza City should evacuate ahead of planned strikes.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/16/israeli-air-strikes-target-hamas-ceasefire-fails|title=Israeli air strikes target Hamas leaders as ceasefire fails|newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref> Hamas had told the civilians to stay put, which were prompted by fears of psychological warfare and perhaps a desire to avoid panic.<ref name=independentHumanShield>{{cite news|last1=Sengupta|first1=Kim|title=Israel-Gaza conflict: The myth of Hamas's human shields|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israelgaza-conflict-the-myth-of-hamass-human-shield-9619810.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140722095621/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israelgaza-conflict-the-myth-of-hamass-human-shield-9619810.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 July 2014|work=The Independent UK|date=21 July 2014}}</ref><ref name=millerShujaiyya/> On Thursday Israel began what it thought of as a limited operation, involving the [[Nahal Brigade|Nahal]], [[Paratroopers Brigade|Paratrooper]] and [[Givati Brigade]]s, in the Shuja'iyya area's sparsely populated eastern periphery,<ref name="Harel"/> intent on uncovering Hamas's tunnel system. In the face of stiff resistance over the following two days, the probing advance developed into a full-scale battle in Shuja'iyya and the surrounding areas, as the IDF suffered upwards of 56 casualties.<ref name ="Pfeffer"/>

Shuja'iyya is a densely populated area of the city with 92,000 residents according to [[Amnesty International]]. The [[UNRWA]] shelter facilities were overflowing and many of the residents had nowhere to go.<ref name="AmnInt">[https://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/israelgaza-attacks-medical-facilities-and-civilians-add-war-crime-allegatio 'Israel/Gaza: Attacks on medical facilities and civilians add to war crime allegations,'] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140729210342/http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/israelgaza-attacks-medical-facilities-and-civilians-add-war-crime-allegatio |date=29 July 2014 }} [[Amnesty International]] 21 July 2014.</ref> According to Israeli sources the area had been designed by Hamas, houses had tunnels to hide weapons and combatants and that 10% of rocket attacks had been done from within Shuja'iyya.<ref>{{cite web|title=שכונת שג'אעיה: קו ההגנה של אדריכלי הטרור|url=http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART2/599/027.html|work=nrg|author=אסף גבור|date=21 Jul 2014|language=hebrew}}</ref> The assault on Shuja'iyya, involving a combination of F-16, tank and mortar fire, began at 11 pm on 19 July.<ref name="Blumenthal"/><ref name="Commission2015"/>{{rp|71}} According to the IDF, 15 Hamas fighters were killed in the preemptive bombardment.<ref name=Kikardetails>http://www.kikar.co.il/%D7%A7%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%9F-%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%A1%D7%A0%D7%95-%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%91%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%9D-%D7%A2%D7%9D-%D7%98%D7%A0%D7%A7%D7%99%D7%9D.html</ref> After midnight, on Sunday, 20 July, Israeli forces entered the neighbourhood, stating that over 140 rockets had been fired at Israel from the neighborhood since 8 July.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/IsraeliPM/photos/pb.124149704266450.-2207520000.1405906668./898759160138830/?type=3&theater|title=The Prime Minister of Israel's Photos - The Prime Minister of Israel - Facebook|work=facebook.com}}</ref><ref name="maannews.net">{{cite news|url=http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=714592|title=Israeli 'massacre' in Gaza City|work=Ma'an News Agency|date=20 July 2014|access-date=20 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140723075718/http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=714592|archive-date=23 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Flyers had been dropped over the neighbourhood, urging residents to flee.<ref name="Perry"/>

On 20 July, beginning in the early morning hours,<ref name="Commission2015"/> the IDF suffered 13 fatalities, beginning with an attack on an IDF [[M113 armored personnel carrier]] in Shuja'iyya. The APC had stalled while driving through one of the neighborhood's narrow streets. A soldier and officer then exited the vehicle to fix the problem. Shortly after 1 AM, Hamas fighters fired an [[RPG-29]] anti-tank rocket at the APC, causing it to explode and burst into flames. All 7 soldiers inside the vehicle, who were from the [[Golani Brigade]], were killed while the soldier and officer who had exited it survived the attack. Following the attack, an Israeli drone recorded infrared images of five people near the armored vehicle. Golani Brigade commanders then ordered other soldiers in the field to converge on the APC and recover the remains of soldiers inside the vehicle. However, the soldiers were wary of approaching the APC, fearing that weaponry inside could set off a secondary explosion. Soldiers reported hearing shouting in Arabic in the vicinity of the APC. The IDF concluded that Hamas fighters had already reached the vehicle and taken the remains of Sergeant [[Death and ransoming of Oron Shaul|Oron Shaul]], one of the seven soldiers in the armored vehicle, by this time.<ref name=Timesdetails>{{Cite web|url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-releases-details-on-shejaiya-battle-in-which-7-soldiers-died/|title = IDF releases details on Shejaiya battle in which 7 soldiers died July 20|website = [[The Times of Israel]]}}</ref> Shaul's body was not found,<ref>Harriet Sherwood, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/22/israel-gaza-israeli-soldier-missing-hamas-shujaiiya "Israel hits hundreds of targets in Gaza as soldier is confirmed missing"], ''[[The Guardian]]'', 20 July 2014.</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-idUSKBN0FP00U20140722|title=Israel says soldier missing, presumed dead; Kerry presses for truce|work=Reuters|access-date=30 June 2017|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924202857/http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/22/us-palestinians-israel-idUSKBN0FP00U20140722|url-status=live}}</ref> and the IDF later officially changed his status from [[missing in action]] to [[killed in action]], although his body had not yet been recovered.<ref>[http://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/family-of-fallen-soldier-oron-shaul-urges-army-to-secure-body-for-burial-369878 "Family of fallen soldier Oron Shaul urges army to secure body for burial"], ''Jerusalem Post'', 3 August 2014.</ref> Hamas said it captured an IDF soldier it identified as Aron Shaul.<ref>[http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=714871 "Hamas says it has captured Israeli soldier in Gaza"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141119075955/http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=714871 |date=19 November 2014 }}, ''[[Ma'an News Agency]]'', 20 July 2014.</ref> Around twenty minutes after the attack on the APC, another Israeli soldier was killed in a firefight. By dawn, with the APC still ablaze, IDF commanders ordered engineers to tow the stricken vehicle back into Israel. During the operation, Hamas fighters targeted the rescue vehicles and engaged in battles with IDF troops as the convoy pulled back. As the APC was being towed, human remains fell out of the vehicle and the engineers, under constant threat of fire, inadvertently drove over and buried some of the remains.<ref name=Timesdetails/> Hamas fighters targeted the rescue force with prepared ambushes and emerged from tunnels to attack soldiers. Two Israeli soldiers were killed in an exchange of fire at around 6 AM, after which the IDF brought in [[IDF Caterpillar D9|D9 armored bulldozers]] to destroy Hamas positions. In one instance, some Hamas operatives were killed when an IDF D9 bulldozer destroyed the tunnel they were in. Three more Israeli soldiers were killed when an anti-tank missile hit a building where the IDF was establishing a command post, setting it on fire.  

Later, when Hamas scouts spotted a large part of the Israeli force, particularly heavy fire was laid down by Hamas fighters. Israeli commanders then gave the order to "take the gloves off" and "fire at anything that moves."<ref name="Perry"/> The Israeli infantry were ordered to go into protected [[Namer]] [[armored personnel carrier]]s, and given half an hour to do so, after which Hamas positions were targeted by a fierce artillery barrage and airstrikes. Artillery fire landed within 100 meters of IDF positions, closer than the 250 meters normally considered safe.<ref name=h607496>{{cite news|last1=Cohen |first1=Gili |title=IDF: Bloodiest battle in Gaza could have been much worse |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.607496 |accessdate=28 July 2014 |work=Haaretz |date=28 July 2014 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140728005201/http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.607496 |archivedate=28 July 2014 |url-status=bot: unknown |df=dmy }}</ref><ref name=jp369102>{{cite news|last1=Lappin|first1=Yaakov|title=Inside the IDF's war in Shejaia to save southern Israel|url=http://www.jpost.com/Operation-Protective-Edge/Inside-the-IDFs-war-in-Shejaia-to-save-southern-Israel-369102|accessdate=28 July 2014|work=The Jerusalem Post|date=28 July 2014}}</ref> Around 600 shells were fired in a half-hour period.<ref name=Kikardetails/> An IDF officer told ''Haaretz'' that troops "were taking fire from all sides and they couldn't neutralize the threat with all the firepower we gave them", leading the IDF to use its artillery in close proximity to IDF troops, a decision ''Haaretz'' described as "extremely risky" and "unusual".<ref name=h607496/> As Israeli artillery intensively shelled the neighborhood, [[Israeli Air Force]] planes bombed from above.<ref name="Commission2015" /><ref name=h607496/> Following the barrage, all Hamas firing stopped. According to the IDF, 37 Hamas fighters were killed, including several field commanders, eight squad commanders, and a company commander.<ref name=Kikardetails/>  

Witnesses interviewed by [[Max Blumenthal]] testified observing people jumping from fourth-floor stories as flames engulfed their houses and of men stripping off clothes to cover near-naked women fleeing the scene.<ref name="Blumenthal"/> Several residential blocks were extensively shelled destroying dozens of houses.<ref name="ReutYnet"/> Palestinians attempting to flee the area described the scene as a "massacre", as did the Palestinian president [[Mahmoud Abbas]],<ref name="ReutYnet"/><ref name=ibt20140720>{{cite news|title=Gaza Crisis: 40 Palestinians Killed as Israel Shejaiya 'Massacre' Leaves Bodies in the Street|url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/gaza-crisis-40-palestinians-killed-israel-shejaiya-massacre-leaves-bodies-street-1457420|work=International Business Times|date=20 July 2014}}</ref> [[Richard Falk]],<ref>[[Richard Falk]], [http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2014/07/massacre-gaza-20147228354824989.html "Massacre in Gaza"], ''[[Al Jazeera]]'', 23 July 2014;<br>"When it leads to many civilian deaths on one side and few civilian casualties on the other side, then such state terror is best characterised as a massacre, epitomised by the high civilian death toll on 20 July in the Gaza City neighbourhood of Shujayea where a crowded residential district was repeatedly shelled by heavy IDF artillery."</ref> Norwegian doctor [[Mads Gilbert]]<ref>[http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/106690.aspx "'A real massacre': Norwegian doctor at Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital during bombardment"], Zeinab El-Gundy, Ahram.org.eg, 20 July 2014.</ref> and journalist Sharif Abdel Kouddous in ''[[The Nation]]''.<ref name=nation20140720>{{cite magazine|title=Massacre in Shejaiya|url=http://www.thenation.com/article/180728/massacre-shejaiya|magazine=The Nation|date=20 July 2014}}</ref> Hundreds of civilians were injured during the unpredictable combination of artillery shelling and airstrikes overnight and only began to leave the area at dawn, many to seek refuge at the [[Al-Shifa Hospital]].<ref name="Blumenthal" >[[Max Blumenthal]], [http://mondoweiss.net/2014/08/gruesome-massacres-neighborhood.html "Gruesome tales surface of Israeli massacres against families in Gaza's Shujaiya neighborhood"], ''[[Mondoweiss]]'', 18 August 2014.</ref><ref name="Commission2015"/>{{rp|72}}<ref name="Survivors" >[http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx%3FID%3D714842 'Survivors of Shujaiyya assault recount horrors at Shifa hospital"], ''[[Ma'an News Agency]]'', 20 July 2014; "One survivor said that the shells started falling on people's homes on Saturday evening, but because people had nowhere else to go they stayed put. As dawn fell, however, the shelling intensified and people fled to the streets ... [H]er husband Hamad Mansour said that the shelling was not as intense at sundown, 'but with dawn, the random shelling began. Hundreds of shells hit homes, which led people to leave their houses running'."</ref> Two paramedics were killed during attempts to enter the area and assist the wounded, and [[Médecins Sans Frontières]] complained that its post-operative clinic in Gaza City was running at 10 to 30 percent of capacity due to the intensity of the bombing, which hindered patients from reaching the center.<ref name="MSF">[http://www.msf.org.uk/article/gaza-strip-israel-must-stop-bombing-trapped-civilians "Gaza Strip: Israel must stop bombing trapped civilians"], [[Médecins Sans Frontières]]'', 21 July 2014.</ref>

Unexploded Israeli ordnance left over from the bombing exploded in late September killing a further two young men, Ayman Ziad Abu Jibba (23) and Abdullah Jibril Abu Aser (23) and wounding three in Shuja'iyya.<ref>[http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=728543 "2 killed, 3 injured by unexploded Israeli ordnance in Shujaiyya"], [[Ma'an News Agency]], 19 September 2014.</ref>

When U.S. Secretary of State [[John Kerry]] was overheard sarcastically remarking on [[Fox News]] on July 20 that the operations in Shuja'iyya were "a hell of a pinpoint operation,” according to [[Mark Perry (author)|Mark Perry]], his comments reflected U.S. military assessments of a battle in which Israel's use of 11 artillery battalions was equivalent to what the U.S. deployed for 2 [[Division (military)|divisions]], or even a full [[corps]]. The only explanation for adopting the massive firepower unleashed by a mix of [[Soltam M-71]] and [[M109 howitzer|Paladin M109]] guns was, according to one U.S. military expert, "to kill a lot of people in as short a period of time as possible,” adding that, “It’s not mowing the lawn. It’s removing the topsoil.” 'Mowing the lawn' is an Israeli idiom referring to periodic operations conducted by the IDF in the Gaza Strip. [[Robert Gard|Lieutenant General Robert G. Gard, Jr.]] noted that technically, even if 10% of the shells fired on Shuja'iyya hit close to their targets, at a minimum in the range of 700 lethal shells would have landed amidst the civilian population overnight 20–21 July. 155-mm howitzer shells have a kill radius of 164 feet.<ref name="Perry"/>

{{Flagu|Iran}}: "The Iranian government and nation, as in the past, will stand by the proud Palestinian people and their brave resistance and will not be silent in the face of the brutal crimes by the Zionists," Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman [[Marzieh Afkham]] said on Sunday. She added that Muslim and freedom-seeking nations in the world would undoubtedly give an "unforgettable lesson" to the Israeli government on Friday's [[International Quds Day]] in support of the Palestinian resistance against Israel.{{cn|date=July 2021}}