Hey everyone, I’m Mnar Muhawesh. Welcome to #MintCasts, our MintPress video podcast series.
Today I’ll be interviewing American journalist Joe Catron, who has been stationed in Gaza since 2011. If you haven’t been following his work, now is the time. Since Israel has launched its military offensive dubbed “Operation Protective Edge” about a month ago, Catron has unapologetically been speaking out about the realities on the ground in Gaza.
This past weekend, a second U.N.-run shelter was struck by Israel, killing about 10 people, including medics and children. The death toll in Gaza has hit about 2,000 civilians, with over 8,000 wounded and over 10,000 civilian homes destroyed. The international community has expressed outrage over the mounting civilian casualties, with many referring to the assault on Gaza as a massacre. In addition to this, it was recently discovered that Israel is using banned DIME weapons that emit micro-shrapnel and Flechette shells, which release thousands of lethal metal darts in the air. The death toll in Gaza is so high that dead bodies have been piling up on the floors of morgues and many have even been stored in freezers.
According to Israeli officials, 64 IDF soldiers have been killed, plus 3 civilians.
Today, it’s “mission accomplished” for Israel as it pulls its troops out of Gaza. The big caveat, though, is that Israel has annexed a 4-mile buffer zone around the Gaza border, which is being criticized as another land grab, similar to Israel’s tactic in 1967 where the Jewish state annexed areas to grab land in the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
You can find this podcast through our MintPress iTunes channel and on our website. But the conversation is far from over, as we’d like to hear more from our readers and listeners about the violence in Gaza. You can also post on our Facebook page in our comments section to our pinned post featuring this podcast. Make sure to “Like” this video on YouTube and subscribe to our channel for more #MintCast interviews.