it is clear that the scale of damage is unprecedented, with approximately 13 percent of the housing stock affected, five percent of the housing stock is uninhabitable – an estimated 18,000 housing units have been either destroyed or severely damaged.
This on top of a shortage of 71,000 housing units before the Israeli attack.
— THE ELECTRONIC INTIFADA
This is a real challenge for architecture. I urge Architecture for Humanity to directly involve and bring this crisis into their working platform, producing ideas of reconstruction.
28 Comments
Why is the damage in Gaza-- the result of a two-sided conflict-- being posited as a consequence of "the Israeli attack"?
Seriously, can you think?
The damage is in Gaza and caused by the Israeli bombing attacks. Duh.
which is caused by ham-ass's constant firing of rockets into isreal. d'oh!
because the Palestinians did not colonize themselves in order to replace themselves with European colonizers who believed that Palestinians were subhuman and that, therefore, the land was "uninhabited" (ie by a humanity deserving of equal consideration)
because Palestinians did not commit a history of massacres against themselves in order to drive thesmeves away
because Palestinians did not force themselves under an apartheid regime that has their ethnic cleansing in mind
because the Palestinians did not throw themselves off their land, incarcerate their refugees in Gaza, near-starve them
because the Palestinians are not, as we speak -and after we speak- throwing more and more Palestinians off their land and turning them away from their own homes - historically owned and passed down generationally- because the Palestinians did not want to un-Palestinize their homeland and render it a racist "Jewish state"
because, certainly, the Palestinians did not shoot at themselves, killing 490 of their kids amongst 2139, overwhelmingly civilian.
and certainly not because Palestinians force the Israelis, every couple of years, to "mow the lawn", ie to massacre a part of the Palestinian population purposefully to cut down on their ability to prolong and enrich their existence on their own homeland.
because, above all, this is not a conflict - just as much as the "damage in Gaza" is not damage but a widespread destruction. and this shows how, by minimizing the "damage in Gaza" and by rendering this into a benign description of a "conflict", let alone "two-sided", you are being a bit of a maverick . You do not serious questions - in fact, your questions are loaded with vocabulary deliberately intended to play down the truth and to introduce more obfuscating rhetoric the intention of which is to, at least, cast a semblance of moral culpability over the two parties, the genocidal acts of the colonizer and the perpetrator of historical crimes against the indigenous people of Palestine and, on the other hand, the self-defensive acts of the colonized, the Palestinians.
In spite of this, there is one positive improvement in those who still support the Zionist crap. They're not playing the "morally superior" card with as much credibility nowadays - as news of their atrocious acts can no longer be as well contained, what with the internet nowadays. So, instead, their plan B is to try to portray the other side at least as equally inhumane as they are ie that there is some moral equivalence..and therefore, for the international community to put their hands up and call this a "two sided conflict", leaving the vastly militarily superior side to target, deliberately, civilians on the other side.
Totally, preposterous of course; one needs to be at the level of undertaking a cohesive historical programme of organized ethnic cleansing and genocide of another people - over the duration of more than 7 decades- in order for any (im)moral equivalence with the Zionist entity to be viable.
Please explain how Israel "targets civilians."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/07/09/roof-knocking-the-israeli-mjilitarys-tactic-of-phoning-palestinians-it-is-about-to-bomb/
Orhan, do you speak to your architecture students that way when they ask you questions?
First Hamas now Orhan (never fails)
Can you guys stay on the content? News item calls attention to a specific programming of action on the humanitarian/architectural/urban issue. You are talking about something else. Knee-jerk reaction without too much thinking.
FRaC, most of the time your reactive responses are trashcan material and this is one of them.
SQ, I talk to my students very well and you could be my student if you are old enough that is.
The humanitarian issue is undoubtedly real, and your call to action is noble; that said, it's being framed in politicized terms and it's perfectly fair to challenge those terms.
SQ, this is not about nobility or anything that colonial.
There are a lot of ideas architects, engineers, urban designers can generate regarding this crisis. I sure would want to run a design studio on it but it is not possible for me to do it with the curriculum I am working with at the moment. I am certain many studios in the architecture schools will be doing projects to solve or deal with Gaza housing and infrastructure. If you are a thesis student, this would be a very good one.
Have good Labor Day. I am personally working continuously on a competition project with a team of people since last month and today is no different.
Maybe Archinect should organize and house an ideas competition for this problem in Gaza.
Bryan Boyer?
UN states 7 out of 10 murdered Palestinians were civilian, a huge chunk of which were kids. Israel and uses precision grade warfare technologies. On the other hand, Palestinian resistance forces uses far less technologically enabled weaponry and yet their targets have been overwhelmingly military personnel. The serious demand should not be to explain how Israel targets civilians....but rather how they cannot but be targetting civilians.
From
http://www.globalresearch.ca/israel-speaks-we-purposefully-attack-civilians-because-they-deserve-it/5394525 In a video recording dated in 2012, Netanyahu can be seen speaking to what presumably are family members, women and children, completely unawares to the fact that his remarks are being recorded the entire time. Netanyahu explains that, “The main thing, first of all, is to hit them [the Arabs]. Not just one blow, but blows that are so painful that the price will be too heavy to be borne,” a policy doctrine we are now seeing play out in Israel’s current assault on Gaza in which the ‘price’ that is intended to be ‘too heavy to be borne,’ is measured in the indiscriminate murder of innocent civilian lives- their homes, their playgrounds, their beaches, their schools, their mosques, their hospitals; Israel has shown in Protective Edge that no one and no place in Gaza, not even children’s playgrounds and hospitals in which no militants whatsoever are present, is immune from the all-powerful roar of the highly-tuned, well-oiled and technologically sophisticated multi-billion dollar US-made killing machine that it has now descended upon the mostly defenseless, economically strangled, and poverty-induced population of Gaza (aWikiLeaks cable quoted an Israeli official in 2008 telling the US that they would “keep Gaza’s economy on the brink of collapse,” to ensure that the economy was “functioning at the lowest level possible consistent with avoiding a humanitarian crisis.”)
For example, I know some people in this group and it could go into that direction. So it is a call for Studio X too.
Architectures of Security Studio X
To present this as merely a 'humanitarian catastrophe', like an earthquake or tsunami, is a farcical attemp at obfuscating the responsibility of Israel in committing massive scale war crimes against unarmed civilians within a developing hustory of colonialism and ethnic cleansing. The Palestinian people did not up and commit suicide en masse. The buildings, homes, schools and hispitals did not will themselves to explosion.
The housing problem is important, but I would like to see things taken a step further. In this case especially, the decentralization of resource production can be extremely helpful to the people for obvious reasons, but also act the greatest form of peaceful rebellion. If somehow productive infrastructure, micro farms, etc could be integrated in a workable yet low tech way, a certain level of independence from economic control could be achieved. Not sure exactly what this would look like, but there are people living off of "living machines" out in the american deserts. The technology is all low tech. Similar climate. The best thing about such systems is that water can be cleaned, food produced, some passive heating and cooling can be integrated from the thermal mass of the water and the evapotranspiration of plants. The only technology barrier would really be an electricity source which can be achieved with on site solar cells. In essence, a certain degree of self sufficiency can be achieved which would in a way act as a form of rebellion. While seperation is opposite of the goal of the one state solution, it may be a good first step. Maybe the control needs to be broken first before any political solution can happen. Decentralization of resources will break the dependency that is being used to subjugate the people. Of course first there needs to be an end to the bombings...I personally think it would be doable to transform gaza into an almost "self sufficient" city with low tech systems such as aquaponics, rain water harvesting, composting, etc etc...Maybe I'm being too positive? I'm not talking about some stylized green washed bullshit. A real system that may not be pretty but would work.
http://www.unrwa.org/newsroom/press-releases/unrwa-strongly-condemns-placement-rockets-school
AGENCY DEMANDS FULL RESPECT FOR THE SANCTITY OF ITS PREMISES IN GAZA
East Jerusalem
Yesterday, in the course of the regular inspection of its premises, UNRWA discovered approximately 20 rockets hidden in a vacant school in the Gaza Strip. UNRWA strongly condemns the group or groups responsible for placing the weapons in one of its installations. This is a flagrant violation of the inviolability of its premises under international law. This incident, which is the first of its kind in Gaza, endangered civilians including staff and put at risk UNRWA’s vital mission to assist and protect Palestine refugees in Gaza.
Immediately after discovery, the Agency informed the relevant parties and successfully took all necessary measures for the removal of the objects in order to preserve the safety and security of the school. UNRWA has launched a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident.
UNRWA has strong, established procedures to maintain the neutrality of all its premises, including a strict no-weapons policy and routine inspections of its installations, to ensure they are only used for humanitarian purposes. UNRWA will uphold and further reinforce its procedures.
Palestinian civilians in Gaza rely on UNRWA to provide humanitarian assistance and shelter. At all times, and especially during escalations of violence, the sanctity and integrity of UN installations must be respected.
http://www.algemeiner.com/2014/07/22/unrwa-admits-finding-more-rockets-hidden-in-gaza-school-second-time-in-a-week/
In the second case in a week, the UN Agency responsible for Palestinians admitted that its staff had discovered rockets hidden in their schools in the Gaza Strip.
“Today, in the course of the regular inspection of its premises, UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), discovered rockets hidden in a vacant school in the Gaza Strip,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday evening.
“As soon as the rockets were discovered, UNRWA staff were withdrawn from the premises, and so we are unable to confirm the precise number of rockets. The school is situated between two other UNRWA schools that currently each accommodate 1,500 internally displaced persons,” the organization said.
UNRWA said it “strongly and unequivocally condemns the group or groups responsible for this flagrant violation of the inviolability of its premises under international law,” but did not name any Palestinian entities, like Hamas, which rules the coastal enclave.
“The Agency immediately informed the relevant parties and is pursuing all possible measures for the removal of the objects in order to preserve the safety and security of the school. UNRWA will launch a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident,” the agency said.
The statement is almost identical to one released after the last hidden rockets case, when the organization found 20 rockets in another Gaza educational facility on July 16th, in the midst of fighting in Operation Protective Edge.
A day later, Israel’s UN Ambassador said he was certain that more such facilities housed Hamas weaponry.
“Yesterday, UNRWA admitted that it mysteriously found 20 missiles in one of its schools,” Ambassador Ron Prosor said on Friday in an emergency Security Council session on Gaza.
“I’m sure that if UNRWA takes the time to check its other facilities, it will discover that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Hamas is using UN facilities to commit a double war crime by targeting Israeli civilians while hiding behind Palestinian civilians.”
We already have a thread dedicated to this. No need to bring it here, too.
Yes, all those 9 year olds should arm themselves and kill all those Hamas men on the spot for putting rockets in their school. Wait! Israel killed them before they could kill Hamas.
Israel as a friend of Hamas?
Please keep this on the subject. We are not discussing whodunnit here.
Orhan, with all due respect, what are you talking about?
Though it is very unconvincing and pointless that Israel bombed the schools and killed hundreds of children and it was ah so reasonable, you are still talking about why Israel bombed Gaza. I am talking about how to find architectural and urban solutions to the damage done. Go back to the news item and my open call for assessing the damage and start generating solutions. We have hundreds of thousands of Gazans who lost their homes and everything else they have had.
I am soliciting more of responses like jla-x has posted. He has got it and offering at least a vision and some kind of optimism. Thank you!
http://m.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-20125915
Check this out Orhan. Pretty interesting and the kind of thing i was talking about. I'll try to look for more info on this.
Israel just announced it's plan to take another 1000 acres from the West Bank for Settlements. Why do the Palestinians always shoot their rockets first? The only solution is for Israel to annex the West Bank officially rather than just run it as some kind of internment camp and call it a "territory". Being able to live peacefully with minority populations is the only solution to any of these conflicts, whether they be in the middle east or Missouri. To hide behind religion or any ideology is pure bullshit.
Exactly.
to Orhan's point - none of you are real historians or real politicians so keep wasting the airwaves...
Asking where AFH is on this is real question? This is a better question than asking Zaha how she feels about the workers conditions in Qatar and turning it into an editorial agenda.
to give you an example on how to approach this, besides Jla-X proposal, from Orhan's link to Studio X
"The Studio-X Global series Security Regimes seeks to understand the ways in which architecture participates in what Giorgio Agamben has called, in his book State of Exception, the “unprecedented generalization of the paradigm of security as the normal technique of government.” By examining global spaces of exception, from detention camps to the particular spatial and geopolitical order constructed by mass surveillance and drone strikes, this research aims to understand and represent the relationship between architecture and security, and their articulation at the intersection of legal and physical environments."
We can all read Giorgio Agamben, which I highly recommend, but we can not turn around and be Giorgio - as architects. What you can do as an architect is "examine" and "aim to understand" in our language of architecture and provide initially conceptual proposals and work them out in the language of architecture.
If you want to be a political architect, at least be an architect.
I really think jla-x has a big picture on self reliance and something can work. Imagine world's first zero energy nation. Eastern Mediterraneans have a way to work with agriculture under relatively arid conditions.The sustainable survival skills(when not interrupted by bombs) are already well known and practiced for centuries.
It is great framework for conceptual departure that can be turned into a tangible goal. Who knows given the peaceful conditions Palestinians can export their know how and products, revive their economy. But of course the choke hold must be lifted and Israeli expansion tactics must be stopped.
Probably economically viable community would not buy into more radicalized and hardened stance either.
I am giving a simple goal here realizing implementation needs much more bolder support from international community at all levels.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsB-fFjmwog
It is a little expected not a sound from AFH? Anybody knows AFH's position on Gaza?
Israel and Palestinians reach Gaza reconstruction deal under UN supervision
The Palestinian Authority said in a study recently that the reconstruction work would cost $7.8 billion, two and a half times Gaza's gross domestic product.
The United Nations, Israel and the Palestinian Authority have reached a deal to allow reconstruction work to begin in the war-torn Gaza Strip with UN monitoring of the use of materials, UN Middle East envoy Robert Serry said on Tuesday.
The Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories confirmed that Israel had agreed to the United Nations mechanism. The mechanism will enable the rehabilitation of the Strip while preserving security interests," COGAT said in a statement.
Serry told the UN Security Council that the United Nations had brokered the deal "to enable work at the scale required in the strip, involving the private sector in Gaza and giving a lead role to the Palestinian Authority in the reconstruction effort, while providing security assurances through UN monitoring that these materials will not be diverted from their entirely civilian purpose."
Fifty days of conflict in Gaza between Hamas militants and Israel, which ended late last month, has left swathes of the Mediterranean enclave in ruins.
The Palestinian Authority said in a study recently that the reconstruction work would cost $7.8 billion, two and a half times Gaza's gross domestic product, including $2.5 billion for the reconstruction of homes and $250 million for energy.
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