Some of these stories retrieve sadness, innocence, faith, and heroism. The West Bank twins who died on two consecutive days as one tried to avenge the other, the man who died on his wedding night, and the child who wasted away in the arms of his father are all becoming part of a memory crowded with stories and filled with sadness. And with the continuation of the Palestinian Intifada, more and more stories are being told. This is how Palestinians commemorate the legacy of their martyrs, so that the memories remain alive, rather than becoming cold statistics, which often fail to present the human tragedy. The Israeli website Virtual News from Jerusalem, meanwhile, carries a chilling chat-board discussion of the army assassination squads who are killing off alleged intifada activists.
Most contributors heartily favour the tactic.
The surgical removal of belligerents is far preferable to carpet-bombing. Tanks and artillery do collateral damage.