{josquote}"I reiterate that we will treat the population [of Gaza] with silk gloves"
- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert}{/josquote}
I am not sure that most
people understand the meaning of the name "Operation Cast Lead" chosen
by Israel for its murderous and criminal attack on Gaza. The name is
borrowed from a Hebrew nursery rhyme which was (and may still be) very
popular among Israeli children in the 1950s. In this song, a father
promises to his child a special Hannukah gift: "a cast lead sevivon." Sevivon,
in Hebrew (A dreidel in Yiddish) is a four-sided spinning top, played
with during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Somebody, in the Israeli
army, who apparently feels nostalgic about his childhood, decided that
if Israeli kids would enjoy a sevivon cast from lead there is
no reason why Palestinian children would not appreciate it too. After
all Operation Cast Lead is not the first (and unfortunately, will not
be the last) of Israel's cruel war games.
The cynicism embedded in the name, selected for what Ari Shavit, one of
Israel's most celebrated commentators, called "an intelligent,
impressive operation," is symptomatic to the cold, meticulous and
calculated cruelty with which this attack was "designed," "executed"
and "marketed" to the world. As the perpetrators themselves proudly
boast, Operation Cast Lead is not only a great military victory but
also a success story of Israeli hasbara (meaning in Hebrew, explanation, but practically referring to misinformation, spin and lies).
. . .