Personally,  I think that geographers have the same responsibilities as
other citizens. A person's degree or profession does not insulate that
person from a citizen's responsibility to learn about unpleasant events,
particularly when one's own government plays a direct role in the crisis.
In the specific case of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, I think that
Wisner's posting of a brief note concerning a website that has information
on the matter is entirely appropriate. This case either is, or is rapidly
approaching, a complex disaster (in the scientific sense of that phrase)
due to the combination of human actions and environmental crisis. Nor are
Israel and Palestine the only places in the world where this is true. The
complex disasters in South Sudan and Somalia are others.  It would not be
difficult to come up with a longer list.

The conclusions that you draw about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict are up
to you. But the matter will not go away simply because some people prefer
not to discuss it.

Regards,
Chris Simpson






                    Ben Wisner <[log in to unmask]>
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                    group on natural hazards               Subject:     'Earthquake' in the West Bank
                    and disaste
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                    AIL.AC.UK>


                    04/16/2002 11:29 AM
                    Please respond to This is a
                    multidisciplinary discussion
                    group on natural hazards
                    and disaste






Dear Colleagues,

I would like to call your attention to a new page created for RADIX
(http://www.anglia.ac.uk/geography/radix ) on the humanitarian situation
in Israel/ Palestine.  As many of you know, RADIX began a little over a
year ago due to questions about human rights in disasters.  Over the
past two weeks numerous U.N. and other bodies have objected to Israeli
military violation of the most basic humanitarian treaties and standards
dealing with care of civilians in war.  That situation continues, and as
hazard/ disaster researchers and practitioners, I feel we should take a
stand.

The International Committee of the Red Cross recently described the
situation in the Jenin refugee camp as like the landscape of an
'earthquake'.  Here is an AF-P item
(
http://wwww.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/9ca65951ee22658ec125663300408599/d87a8462d957a27a85256b9c006b8782?OpenDocument

) reporting on the ICRC observations:

ICRC: Humanitarian aid needed in Jenin like in "quake zone"

GENEVA, April 15 (AFP) - The devastated Jenin refugee camp in the West
Bank needs humanitarian aid like that required in an hit by an
earthquake, a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross
told AFP Monday.

"ICRC delegates, who today went to a small part of the camp, saw there a
scene like from an earthquake: collapsed houses, debris everywhere,
destroyed roads," spokesman Vincent Lusser told AFP.

The ICRC team was among three who the Israeli army escorted Monday into
the
Palestinian refugee camp in the West Bank, the first to visit the camp
since an Israeli assault began there more than ten days ago.

"When they (the delegates) talk of an earthquake, they do it to explain
the situation we face practically... That is the classic means of
evacuation by (ambulance) are absolutely not sufficient or adapted" to
the situation, Lusser said.

The mayor of Jenin town, Walid Abu Mueiss told AFP earlier from Jenin
the team had found 15 bodies, seven of which were removed to Jenin town.

He said the team then gave up, citing the dangers of unexploded bombs
and the difficulties of digging in rubble without machinery.

The ICRC spokesman said a joint ICRC and Palestinian Red Cross team had
taken out seven bodies early Monday, and returned later to evacuate
three sick or wounded civilians as well as bring water and food to
civilians stuck in their homes.

"This is the beginning of an immense task, extremely hard," Lusser said.
"We need to
discuss technical and security means."

"That is certainly something which we will now again raise with Israeli
authorities, who are ultimately responsible so that the operation is
brought to a successful end."

Palestinians have charged that hundreds, many innocent civilians, were
massacred during the fierce fighting, a charge the Israeli army -- which
lost 23 soldiers in the combats -- angrily refutes.

It says those killed were Palestinian gunmen who died in house-to-house
combat.

Regards,  BEN
Dr. Ben Wisner, Oberlin College and London School of Economics