An Israeli air strike collapsed a 48-unit apartment building in Gaza City today. Here's video.
According to the AP and Ha'aretz, Israel claims a Hamas command center was located in this building but it could not or did not explain why the entire building was struck in a way that caused its collapse.
There were 48 apartments in the building.
The IDF also says it fired a warning shot moments before it destroyed the building.
At last count, according to Palestinian sources at least 22 people – allegedly including 11 children – were injured in the strike.
If there really were many civilians in the building and if there was any other reasonable way to take out that command center (or if the command center posed no immediate threat to Israeli civilians), this air strike could easily be ruled a war crime under international law.
Israel's claim that the civilians it says Hamas uses as human shields by putting its command centers and rocket launching facilities among them are legitimate collateral damage is simply untrue under international law in many cases.
Why am I pointing this out?
Because I want you to understand that while much anti-Israel sentiment comes from rank anti-Semitism, some of it does not. It is this type of attack that angers the US and other western countries, and it is this type of attack that Israel may eventually be prosecuted for.
Update 10:24 pm CDT – The Jerusalem Post is reporting that the IDF is claiming the building housed a "massive" Hamas command center and was empty of civilians when it was struck.
However it also reports that Reuters spoke with local civilians who told Reuters that 44 families lived in the building.