2012 Iowa State Cyclones football team, Rankings
In the week three (September 16) AP poll Iowa State was ranked 33rd with 15 points. In the week four (September 23) coaches poll Iowa State was ranked 29th receiving 45 points. In the week four (September 23) AP poll Iowa State was ranked 32nd with 16 points. In the week five (September 30) coaches poll Iowa State was not ranked and didn't receive any votes. In the week five (September 30) AP poll Iowa State was ranked T–38th with 3 points. In the week six (October 7) coaches poll Iowa State was ranked 25th receiving 73 points. In the week six (October 7) AP poll Iowa State was ranked 28th with 54 points.


2012 Ipswich Borough Council election
The 2012 Ipswich Council election took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of Ipswich Council in England. This was on the same day as other 2012 United Kingdom local elections. Ipswich Borough Council has 48 councillors who are elected for a term of four years. The councillors are elected in 'thirds' with one councillor in each of the 16 wards retiring each year for three out of four years. Every fourth year there is a break from the borough council elections and elections for county councillors are held instead. Ipswich Borough Council is also responsible for the administration of UK Parliamentary general elections, formerly European Parliamentary elections and national and local referendums.


2012 Iran Futsal's 2nd Division
The 2012 Iranian Futsal 2nd Division will be divided into two phases.


2012 Iran Futsal's 2nd Division
The league will also be composed of 24 teams divided into two divisions of 12 teams each, whose teams will be divided geographically. Teams will play only other teams in their own division, once at home and once away for a total of 22 matches each.


2012 Iranian legislative election
The parliamentary election for the 9th Islamic Consultative Assembly, or Majlis, were held in Iran on Friday, 2 March 2012 with a second round on 4 May 2012 in those 65 districts where no candidate received 25% or more of the votes cast. More than 5,000 candidates registered but more than a third were disqualified by the Guardian Council leaving about 3,400 candidates to run for the 290 seat representing the 31 provinces.


2012 Iranian legislative election
The election has been described by journalists and analysts "as a contest between" Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, with Khamenei supporters winning a large majority of seats. Iranian officials and state media have described the election as a sign of Iranians' trust in the Islamic Republic and a message to the West rejecting pressure over Iran's nuclear program. Although no final election turnout figures were released, state media emphasized that voter turnout was high.


2012 Iranian legislative election
The parliament has "no direct control over key foreign and security policy matters" but some influence over those policies and coming elections. In the wake of the crushing of reformist protest against the 2009 election results, few if any reformist candidates were allowed by the Guardian Council to run. The new parliament was opened on 27 May 2012.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Background
After two consecutive wins in 2004 and 2008, the governing conservatives are hoping to secure yet another majority in the parliament.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Background, Events since the 2008 election
The 2008 election saw a majority win for the conservatives and supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but in the last years of the parliament, It was a despite with the president and the parliament, major in the budget approval. The parliament elected Ali Larijani, a former opponent of Ahmadinejad in the 2005 presidential election as the chairman. The first disagreement with the government was the vote of no confidence and dismissal of then Interior Minister, Ali Kordan, just three months after the opening of the new parliament.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Background, Events since the 2008 election
The presidential election was held in June 2009 in which Ahmadinejad was re-elected as the president. This was very despite with the results. Opposition repudiated the result and claimed that there was fraud in the election. The inauguration ceremony, held in parliament on 5 August 2009, was not attended by more than 60 of the 290 members of Parliament. Parliament also rejected three of the introduced ministers of Ahmadinejad's second cabinet.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system
The registration of candidates was handled by the Interior Ministry and candidates are vetted by the Guardian Council.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system
Since 2007, Iran has been divided into 207 electoral districts. These districts are roughly based on geography, but shaped according to the number of voters so that each district holds roughly the same number of registered voters. 202 districts are Muslim majority and 5 districts belong to the recognized religious minorities. Therefore, these districts do not correspond to the borders of top administrative divisions within Iran and each district contains one or more or parts of several provinces of Iran. The legal term of the parliament is four years. The elections must be held before the dissolution of the parliament.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system
The new members must be sworn three months after their elections in the first day of opening of the parliament. The speaker and deputy speakers are elected in the opening day. In the time of war and military occupation, after the proposal of the president and approval of three-fourths of the members of the parliament and approval of the Guardian Council, elections can be postponed in the occupied areas or the entire country for a certain period.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system
If in a district, no one can earn ¼ of the votes, a second round election will be held after four weeks. If an elected MP dies, resigns or leaves office for other reasons, Ministry of the Interior must hold the election in her/his districts in less than seven months. None of the candidates can nominate herself/himself in more than one district. If so, her/his candidacy will be canceled and they will be disenfranchised. Voting must be an official holiday.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system, Qualifications
According to Iran's law, in order to qualify as a candidate one must:


2012 Iranian legislative election, Electoral system, Qualifications
Candidate will be disqualified if he/she is found to be mentally impaired, actively supporting the Shah or supporting political parties and organizations deemed illegal or been charged with anti-government activity, converted to another faith or has otherwise renounced the Islamic faith, have been found guilty of corruption, treason, fraud, bribery, is an addict or trafficker or have been found guilty of violating Shariat law.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Campaign
The chief of the Council of Guardians, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, has said that reformists he labeled as traitors "need not participate." Former president Mohammad Khatami demanded that political prisoners be freed and that former presidential candidates Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mahdi Karroubi be released from house arrest as a precondition for his movements participation. Since his call went unheeded Ali Mohammad-Gharibani, head of the Reformist Front Coordination Council, said: "Despite efforts...to create an appropriate election climate, unfortunately more restrictions have been imposed. Therefore, the council has decided that it won’t issue any election list and won’t support anyone."


2012 Iranian legislative election, Campaign
The electoral campaign was started on 23 February and ended on 1 March. Over 5,400 had registered to contest the 290 parliamentary seats. More than 47,000 polling stations will operate nationwide during the elections. Some 3.9 million people will cast their votes for the first time. According to Iran’s Interior Ministry, the election process will be managed by some 850,000 observers in 47,000 polling stations and 1,000 constituencies across the country.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Campaign, Registration and vetting of candidates
The registration ran from 24–30 January 2012. 5,405 people applied at the Interior Ministry to stand as candidates. These included 490 women. 1,006 applied in Tehran. North Khorasan Province had the smallest number with 39 people. The number of applications was down from the 2008 parliamentary elections when 7,597 applied. According to Aljazeera commentators, the number of rejections—including 33 sitting members of parliament—can be attributed primarily to stricter educational requirements, and the narrowing of what is considered politically acceptable by the Guardian Council.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Campaign, Registration and vetting of candidates
Beginning with the 2012 elections, candidates have to have at least a master's degree to stand for elections, not just a Bachelors as in earlier elections. In addition candidate hopefuls may have been disqualified for affiliation with leftist organisations, the reformist camp, or even President Ahmadinejad.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Political parties and coalitions
According to Neil MacFarquhar of The New York Times, "there are no real political parties in Iran, only murky, shifting alliances of political figures," but according to Al Jazeera, the vote is a contest between the United Front of Principlists, who support Supreme Leader Khamenei, and the Front of Islamic Revolution Stability, which backs Ahmadinejad.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Political parties and coalitions, Reformists
The Council for coordinating the Reforms Front or simply "Reforms Front" (Persian: جبهه اصلاحات), the highest decision-making body inside Iranian reform movement, called the elections 'illegal and unfair' and “decided not to present a unified list [of candidates] and not to support anyone [in the race].” However, some member groups inside the council including Worker House and Democracy Party, and some individual reformists formed the "Reformists Front" (Persian: جبهه اصلاح‌طلبان) led by Mostafa Kavakebian to compete in the elections. Some reformist groups like Assembly of Qom Seminary Scholars and Researchers, Association of Combatant Clerics and Islamic Iran Participation Front ruled out any cooperation with this group, and some labeled them as “fake reformists” (Persian: اصلاح‌طلبان بدلی).


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results
According to Mizan Online, the official news agency of Iranian Judiciary, 182 were conservative, 13 were reformer and 88 were independent (excluding 5 religious minority members and 2 vacant seats).


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results
According to Stratfor, the United Front of Conservatives and Stability Front won 98 and 43 seats respectively, while other political parties and independents took the rest.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results
The affiliations of candidates are determined on the basis of the candidacy lists in which their names appeared. Given the overlap of candidacy lists, the share of each group might be claimed more or less than what is in the table, which shows the results out of 225 confirmed seats.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
The government hopes that the high turnout it claims will give it a boost. According to a statement issued on the Web site of the Foreign Ministry, by turning out in droves, Iranians


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
“especially in this sensitive historical era, have shown that, despite all of the conspiracies, pressures, and sanctions, and the bleak portrait painted by the media of global arrogance, they will continue defending independence and the national interest.”


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
However, the foreign journalist Laura Secor found a polling station in Tehran (Hosseiniyeh Ershad) where she had always seen long lines of voters in previous elections, nearly empty this year.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
Majid Zavari, a Tehran-based political analyst, said the economy and the persistent unemployment would be pivotal issues in the election: "From one end, Iranian society is facing high unemployment, particularly among educated youth who, despite university degrees, do not have decent living standards. This has increased discontent amongst people," Zavari told Al Jazeera.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
According to analyst, Maryam Khatibi, "reformists are nowhere to be seen," in the election campaign. Nasser Karimi and Brian Murphy of the Associated Press see the election as divided between pro-Ahmadinejad conservatives and pro-Ali Khamenei conservatives.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
Liberals, reformists and youth groups that led the protests are virtually absent from the parliamentary ballots after relentless crackdowns and arrests. Conservatives – now left without a unifying foe – have splintered into various factions either backing or rejecting Ahmadinejad for daring to challenge Khamenei and the ruling clerics.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Analysis
However, Mohammad Khatami — former president of the Islamic Republic and the "spiritual leader of the reformist movement" — who had urged Iranians not to vote, did end up voting March 2.


2012 Iranian legislative election, Results, Turnout
According to the official accounts, out of 48,288,799 eligible voters, 26,472,760 turned out.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand
In June 2012, Ireland toured New Zealand playing three Tests against the All Blacks. The Irish tour was one in a series of tours by northern teams to be hosted by southern hemisphere nations. It was marketed as the 'Steinlager Series'.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand
In planning the series, it was anticipated that Ireland would also face provincial and Māori opposition, however, to allow Ireland to focus on the Tests, the IRFU decided that there would be no mid-week fixtures.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand
New Zealand won the series 3–0. In the third and final Test in Hamilton on 23 June, the All Blacks won 60–0, inflicting upon Ireland their largest-ever defeat.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Test matches, First Test
Touch judges: Jaco Peyper James LeckieTelevision match official: Matt Goddard


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Test matches, Second Test
Touch judges: Romain Poite Pascal GauzereTelevision match official: Matt Goddard


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Test matches, Third Test
Touch judges: Pascal Gauzere James LeckieTelevision match official: Matt Goddard


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Touring squad
Ireland's 30-man squad for the three-Test tour of New Zealand. Ireland's initial squad for the clash against the Barbarians was announced on 15 May, no Leinster players were selected due to the RaboDirect PRO12 final. Ireland's 29-man squad for the three-Test tour of New Zealand was named on 21 May. Four additional players were added to the squad. Tommy Bowe was ruled out of the tour in early April after undergoing surgery to remove a haematoma. Stephen Ferris was ruled out of the tour due to a calf injury, he was replaced by McLaughlin.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Touring squad
Isaac Boss was ruled out of the tour owing to an ongoing thigh problem, he was replaced by Marshall. Paul O'Connell was ruled out of the tour after failing to recover sufficiently from a knee injury, he was replaced by McCarthy. The additional players were Wilkinson and Henry. Loughney was also included to provide cover for Ross.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Touring squad
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Home squad
New Zealand 30-man squad named for the three-Test series against Ireland. Hika Elliot will train with the squad to provide cover for Keven Mealamu.


2012 Ireland rugby union tour of New Zealand, Home squad
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.


2012 Ireland women's Tri-Nation Series
The 2012 Ireland women's Tri-Series were two cricket tournaments that took place in Ireland in 2012: the Ireland women's ODI Tri-Series and the Ireland women's T20 Tri-Series. Ireland, Bangladesh and Pakistan competed in both tournaments, and they were both won by Pakistan. The series were part of Pakistan's tour of England and Ireland and Bangladesh's tour of Ireland.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby
The 2012 Ladbrokes Irish Greyhound Derby Final took place on 8 September 2012 at Shelbourne Park.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby
The winner Skywalker Puma won €120,000 and was trained by Frances O'Donnell, owned by Ray Patterson and bred by Paddy Purtill. The race was sponsored by the Ladbrokes.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
Dolores Ruth entered her four Razldazl greyhounds for the 2012 Irish Derby still trying to recover from her bad luck experience during the 2012 English Greyhound Derby final. The Razldazl team of Jayfkay, Rioga, Bugatti and her defending champion George led the ante-post betting followed closely by Scottish Greyhound Derby champion Barefoot Allstar, Northern Irish Derby champion Captain Scolari, Champion Stakes winner & runner-up Droopys Jet and Ballymac Vic and the Tyrur brothers Big Mike & McGuigan, the latter was the 2010 champion.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
In the preliminary round Razldazl George only finished fourth and Captain Scolari fifth but the pair were lucky because they still qualified for the next round. Ballymac Vic and Tyrur Big Mike both won well but Razldazl Jayfkay was a shock elimination.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
After round two Phil Gough's Sparta Maestro became the new favourite after two fast wins but Tyrur Big Mike finished lame and Tyrur McGuigan, Rockchase Bullet and Captain Scolari were all eliminated. There were further surprises in the third round as Sparta Maestro, Barefoot Allstar and Razldazl Rioga were all defeated but Ballymac Vic recorded a fast 29.44 success.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
In the quarter finals Droopys Jet beat Razldazl George by a short head before Laughil Billy won the second in 29.61. Ballymac Vic was eliminated in a troubled heat won by Kilbarry Rover and the fourth and final heat was taken by Tyrur Sugar Ray who set the fastest time of 29.29.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
In the semi-finals Skywalker Puma overtook early leader Razldazl Bugatti and pulled clear of the field by over six lengths, Bugatti faded badly finishing last with Camas and Coolykereen Imp qualifying for the final. The second semi was won by Cuil Cougar from Tyrur Sugar Ray and Razldazl George with Droopys Jet failing to get to final.


2012 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition Report
Skywalker Puma trained by Frances O'Donnell finished the race very strongly to catch early leader Cuil Cougar. Cougar had led for most of the race and just failed to hold off Skywalker Puma who went on to win by a head. Defending champion Razldazl George performed well to take third place but finished lame and retired.


2012 Irish budget
The 2012 Irish budget was the Irish Government budget for the 2012 fiscal year, presented to Dáil Éireann in two parts on 5–6 December 2011. It was the first budget of the 31st Dáil, with the first part delivered by Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin, and the second part delivered by Minister for Finance Michael Noonan. The budget contained tax increases, and spending cuts of €3.6bn for 2012.


2012 Irish budget, Before the budget
The budget was preceded by a rare televised national address by a taoiseach when Enda Kenny spoke to the country two days beforehand. This was only the sixth time that a taoiseach has addressed the nation, reflecting the gravity of the Irish economic condition, in what Kenny stressed were "exceptional" circumstances. The address drew the second highest television audience of the year on Irish television. The following day, Thomas Pringle TD replied on television in an address on behalf of the opposition technical group of TDs in Dáil Éireann.


2012 Irish budget, Before the budget
In another departure from tradition, the cuts in public spending were announced the day before Budget Day by Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, in the Comprehensive Expenditure Report.


2012 Irish budget, After the budget
The Bill proposing the introduction of a "household charge" passed by 90 to 47 votes in the Dáil late on 14 December 2011. The following day, nine TDs helped launch a nationwide campaign against the household charge.


2012 Iron Trail Motors Shoot-Out
The 2012 Iron Trail Motors Shoot-Out was held from December 13 to 16 at the Range Recreation and Civic Center in Eveleth, Minnesota as part of the 2012–13 World Curling Tour. Both the men's and women's events were being held in a round robin format. The purse for the men's event was USD$21,500, and the purse for the women's event was USD$12,500. In the men's final, Tyler George won his second title at Curl Mesabi with a win over last year's runner-up Todd Birr, wrapping up the game with a score of 5–1 in five ends. In the women's final, Jessie Kaufman of Alberta won her first title by defeating last year's runner-up Allison Pottinger with a score of 5–2.


2012 Iron Trail Motors Shoot-Out
The Iron Trail Motors Shoot-Out was the final event in the season in which teams were able to earn qualifying points for the 2013 United States National Curling Championships on the United States' Order of Merit system, which awards spots to the top two finishers on the Order of Merit.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship
The 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship was a triathlon competition held at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nevada on September 9, 2012. The championship was sponsored by the United States Marine Corps and organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) and was the culmination of the Ironman 70.3 series of events that occurred from August 14, 2011 through August 13, 2012. Athletes, both professional and amateur, earned a spot in the championship race by qualifying in races throughout the 70.3 series.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification
The 2012 Ironman 70.3 Series featured 57 events that enabled qualification to the 2012 World Championship event, many of which were making their first appearance in the series due to WTC's expansion of the 70.3 brand. Two of those events, Japan and Syracuse, appeared twice during the qualifying year due to changes in these event's positioning within the qualifying year.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification
Professional triathletes qualified for the championship race by competing in races during the qualifying period, earning points towards their pro rankings. An athlete’s five highest scoring races were counted toward their pro rankings. The top 50 males and top 30 females in the pro rankings qualified for the championship race. Professional athletes were also eligible for prize purses at each qualifying event, which ranged in total size from $15,000 to $75,000.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification
Amateur triathletes could qualify for the championship race by earning a qualifying slot at one of the qualifying events or through the Physically Challenged Lottery. At qualifying events, slots were allocated to each age group category, male and female, with the number of slots given out based on that category's proportional representation of the overall field. Each age group category would be tentatively allocated one qualifying spot in each qualifying event. Some 70.3 events also serve as qualifiers for the full Ironman World Championships in Hawaii.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification, Qualifying Ironman 70.3s
†Also served as a 2012 Ironman World Championship qualifier. ‡Also served as a 2012 Ironman World Championship qualifier, 3 handcycle entries only. ∗Ironman 70.3 U.S. Handcycle Championship


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification, 2012 Ironman 70.3 Series results, Men
*Swim course shortened due to weather and safety concerns. * *Swim leg canceled due to high water. * **Swim leg canceled due to high wind. Course was a 2 mi run, 52 mi bike, and 13.1 mi run. †Bike shortened to 15 miles due to cold weather conditions. ††Shortened to Olympic distance due to hot weather conditions.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Qualification, 2012 Ironman 70.3 Series results, Women
*Swim course shortened due to weather and safety concerns. * *Swim leg canceled due to high water. * **Swim leg canceled due to high wind. Course was a 2 mi run, 52 mi bike, and 13.1 mi run. †Bike shortened to 15 miles due to cold weather conditions. ††Shortened to Olympic distance due to hot weather conditions.


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Lance Armstrong
In 2012, Lance Armstrong was pursuing qualification into the 2012 Ironman World Championship. He made his return to long distance triathlon in the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Panama race, on February 12, 2012. He finished with a time of 3:50:55, second overall to Bevan Docherty. He also entered half-Ironman distance races in Texas (7th) and St. Croix (3rd) before breaking through with victories at Ironman 70.3 Florida and Ironman 70.3 Hawaii. He was scheduled to next participate in Ironman France on June 24. However, on June 13, 2012, the United States Anti-


2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, Lance Armstrong
Doping Agency (USADA) accused Armstrong of doping and trafficking of drugs, based on blood samples from 2009 and 2010. Armstrong was initially suspended and eventually banned from participating in sports sanctioned by WADA. He chose not to appeal the ban. Because of the suspension and subsequent ban, Armstrong was prohibited from racing Ironman branded events to due World Triathlon Corporation anti-doping policies.


2012 Ironman World Championship
The 2012 Ironman World Championship was a long distance triathlon competition held on October 13, 2012 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. The championship won by Pete Jacobs of Australia and Leanda Cave of England. It was the 36th such Ironman Triathlon World Championship, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. The championship is organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC).


2012 Ironman World Championship, Qualification
For entry into the 2012 World Championship race, amateur athletes were required to qualify through a performance at an Ironman or selected Ironman 70.3 race. Entry into the championship race could also be obtained through a random allocation lottery or through the Ironman’s charitable eBay auction. The division of athletes was divided into professional, age group, physically challenged, and hand cycle divisions.


2012 Ironman World Championship, Qualification
For professional triathletes, the 2012 championship season marked the second year of a point system that determined which professional triathletes would qualify for the championship race. To qualify, points were earned by competing in WTC sanctioned Ironman and Ironman 70.3 events throughout the qualifying year. For the 2012 championship race that period was September 1, 2011 to August 31, 2012. The top 50 male and top 30 female pros in points at the end of the qualifying year qualified to race in Kona. An athlete's five highest scoring races were counted in the point totals.


2012 Ironman World Championship, Qualification
At least one Ironman race must have been completed and only three Ironman 70.3 races could count towards an athlete's overall point total. Prior champions receive an automatic entry for the Championship race for a period of five years after their last championship performance provided that they competed in at least one full-distance Ironman race during the qualifying year. Their entry does not count toward the number of available qualifying spots.


2012 Ironman World Championship, Qualification
The Ironman 2012 series consisted of 28 Ironman races plus the 2011 Ironman World Championship which was itself a qualifier for the 2012 Championship.


2012 Irwin Tools Night Race
The 2012 Irwin Tools Night Race was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on August 25, 2012 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. Contested over 500 laps, it was the twenty-fourth race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.


2012 Irwin Tools Night Race
Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing won the race, his first at Bristol and third of the 2012 season. Jimmie Johnson finished second and Jeff Gordon was third. Nearly 150,000 people attended this 189-minute racing event.


2012 Irwin Tools Night Race
This race was broadcast on ABC (through ESPN on ABC), but was not available in all areas. A handful of ABC affiliates aired NFL preseason football games, with most of the affected affiliates preempting the race altogether, although at least one joined the race in progress in its final hour. Because of this, WOTV in Battle Creek, Michigan was the only West Michigan ABC affiliate airing the race, as WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan was simulcasting WXYZ-TV in Southfield, Michigan's Detroit Lions coverage and, unlike WXYZ-TV, chose not to join the race in progress, choosing to air syndicated programming instead.


2012 Irwin Tools Night Race, Qualifying
Sprint Cup qualifying was to begin on August 24 at 5:00pm EST after the Nationwide Series qualifying. Just before the Cup cars were to take their laps, rain poured on the track. As the Cup cars were unable to make time and with the Nationwide race to run on Friday night, NASCAR cancelled qualifying and set the field according to the following criteria: The field would consist of the Top 35 in owner's points and those with the most attempts. In the event that multiple teams have the same number of starts, preference is given to the team higher in owner's points. The field would be set by their lap times during the practice session.


2012 Irwin Tools Night Race, Qualifying
As a result, Casey Mears, at a time of 15.701 seconds, won the pole, followed by Brad Keselowski, Greg Biffle, Joey Logano, and Aric Almirola. Four drivers would not race due to the number of attempts: Scott Speed, Kelly Bires, J. J. Yeley, and Reed Sorenson.


2012 Isle of Man TT
2012 Isle of Man TT were held between Saturday 26 May and Saturday 9 June 2012 on the 37.73-mile Isle of Man TT Mountain Course. The 2012 Isle of Man TT Festival also included the Pre-TT Classic Races on 25, 26 & 28 May 2012 and the Post-TT Races on 9 June 2012 and both events held on the Billown Circuit.


2012 Isle of Man TT
After winning the first event of the 2012 Isle of Man TT the Superbike TT race, the works Honda rider John McGuinness later in the week won for the first time the 1000cc Superstock TT race to raise his tally to nineteen Isle of Man TT wins and the Joey Dunlop TT Championship by 74 points from Bruce Anstey and Cameron Donald in third place. After a year's sabbatical, the Isle of Man sidecar TT competitor Dave Molyneux returned to racing at the Isle of Man TT to win both Sidecar TT Races 1 & 2 in convincing style.


2012 Isle of Man TT
The New Zealander, Bruce Anstey repeated his 2011 success and again won the 600cc Supersport TT Race 1. After retiring from the lead of Supersport TT Race 1 on lap 3, the second Supersport TT Race was won by Michael Dunlop after the race was delayed by problems with weather on the Snaefell Mountain Course. The third running of the TT Zero was again won by Michael Rutter riding the electric powered MotoCzysz motor-cycle and also breaking the prestigious 100 mph barrier with a lap at an average race speed of 104.056 mph.


2012 Isle of Man TT
The Blue Riband event of the 2012 TT Race week the Senior TT was held over to the next day due to heavy rain and low cloud on the TT Mountain Course. The rescheduled Senior TT race was later cancelled for the first time in the history of the event due to further problems with low cloud and rain showers on the section of the TT Course from the Mountain Mile to the 32nd Milestone. The last race of the 2012 Isle of Man TT Races, the Lightweight TT making a return to the race programme for 650cc Supertwin motor-cycles and after being reduced in length produced an inaugural win for Ryan Farquhar in the new class.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Superbike TT final standings.
2 June 2012 6 Laps (236.38 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Superbike TT final standings.
Fastest Lap: John McGuinness – 130.483 mph (17' 20.97) on lap 1.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Sidecar TT Race 1 TT final standings
2 June 2012 3 Laps (113.00 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Sidecar TT Race 1 TT final standings
Fastest Lap: Dave Molyneux/Patrick Farrance – 113.590 mph (19' 55.77) on lap 3.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Junior TT Race 1
4 June 2012 4 Laps (150.73 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Junior TT Race 1
Fastest Lap: Michael Dunlop – 126.948 mph (17' 49.95) on lap 2.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Superstock TT Race final standings.
4 June 2012 4 Laps (150.73 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Superstock TT Race final standings.
Fastest Lap: Michael Dunlop – 129.253 mph (17' 30.87) on lap 4.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 TT Zero Race
6 June 2012 1 Lap (37.73 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 TT Zero Race
Fastest Lap and New Race Record: Michael Rutter – 104.056 mph (22' 23.97) on lap 1.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Sidecar TT Race 2 TT final standings
6 June 2012 3 Laps (113.00 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Sidecar TT Race 2 TT final standings
Fastest Lap: Dave Molyneux/Patrick Farrance – 114.486 mph (19' 46.42) on lap 3.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Junior TT Race 2
6 June 2012 4 Laps (150.73 Miles) TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Junior TT Race 2
Fastest Lap: Michael Dunlop – 125.629 mph (18' 01.19) on lap 4.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Lightweight TT
9 June 2012 3 Laps (113.00 Miles) * Reduced Race Distance - TT Mountain Course.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Results, Race results, 2012 Supersport Lightweight TT
Fastest Lap: Michael Rutter – 115.554 mph (19' 35.45) on lap 3.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Newcomers line-up at the start-line at the TT Grandstand for the Competitors Speed Control-Lap 26 May 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Lightweight TT competitors line-up on Glencrutchery Road for the first timed practice session including Ian Pattinson(9), John Burrows(21) & James Hillier(1) 26 May 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Pre -TT Classic Races – Race 7 Superbike Race; Jamie Coward (3), Guy Martin (8) 28 May 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
John McGuinness awaits the start of the Monday Evening Practice Session – 28 May 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Thursday Evening Practice Dave Molyneux/Patrick Farrance DMR 600cc Parliament Square, Ramsey– 31 May 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Friday Evening Practice Cameron Donald Supersport TT 600cc Honda Parliament Square, Ramsey – 1 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
18th Isle of Man TT race win for John McGuinness and new race record. Superbike TT 999cc Honda Parliament Square, Ramsey – 2 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
A delayed Supersport TT Race 1 is won by New Zealander Bruce Anstey 600cc Honda Parliament Square, Ramsey – 4 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Michael Rutter breaks the 100 mph lap barrier in practice 4 June 2012.


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
19th Isle of Man TT race win for John McGuinness Superstock TT 1000cc Honda Parliament Square, Ramsey – 4 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
TT Zero Race - (2) Mark Miller Motoczysz Elpc followed by (3) John McGuinness MUGEN Shinden in a race won by Michael Rutter Motoczysz Elpc 6 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Lap 3 - Sidecar TT Race 2 Dave Molyneux/Patrick Farrance (1) DMR 600cc Kawasaki 6 June 2012


2012 Isle of Man TT, Gallery
Supersport TT Race 2 Michael Dunlop Yamaha 600cc 6 June 2012


2012 Israeli Basketball League Cup
The 2012 Israeli Basketball League Cup was the 7th edition of the Israeli Basketball League Cup pre-season tournament. It plays between October 2 and October 6 mainly at Romema Arena in Haifa, as Kiryat Ata Hall hosted two quarterfinals games.


2012 Israeli Basketball League Cup, Teams Participating
As the format states, the top eight teams on the 2011–12 Israeli Super League should competed in the tournament. However, two changes has been made as the owner of Habik'a, who finished at 8th place, moved his license To Eilat to form Hapoel Eilat. The second change made as the hosts Maccabi Haifa replaced Ironi Ashkelon Who finished at the 6th place last season.


2012 Israeli Final Four
The 2012 Israeli Final Four was the 7th Israeli Final Four tournament and the concluding tournament of the 2011–12 Israeli Basketball Super League. The event was held at Yad Eliyahu Arena, Tel Aviv, Israel on 22 and 24 May 2012 to determine the winner of the 2011–12 Israeli League. The Participating teams are: Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Holon, Maccabi Ashdod and Maccabi Rishon LeZion.


2012 Israeli Final Four, Venue
The Yad Eliyahu Arena is an indoor sports arena in Tel Aviv, Israel. Opened in 1963 as an open-air venue with a capacity of 5,000, it was covered in 1972, and further renovations since then have brought its current capacity to 11,700. It had hosted the 1971–1972 FIBA European Champions Cup final, the 1993–94 FIBA European Championship Final Four, the 2003–2004 Euroleague Final Four, and all previous Israeli Final Fours.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
In November 2012, the Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Pillar of Defense (Hebrew: עַמּוּד עָנָן, ʿAmúd ʿAnán, literally: "Pillar of Cloud") which was an eight-day campaign in the Hamas-governed Gaza Strip, which began on 14 November 2012 with the killing of Ahmed Jabari, chief of the Gaza military wing of Hamas by an Israeli airstrike.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
The operation was preceded by a period with a number of mutual Israeli–Palestinian responsive attacks. According to the Israeli government, the operation began in response to the launch of over 100 rockets at Israel during a 24-hour period, an attack by Gaza militants on an Israeli military patrol jeep within Israeli borders, and an explosion caused by IEDs, which occurred near Israeli soldiers, on the Israeli side of a tunnel passing under the Israeli West Bank barrier.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
The Israeli government stated that the aims of the military operation were to halt rocket attacks against civilian targets originating from the Gaza Strip and to disrupt the capabilities of militant organizations. The Palestinians blamed the Israeli government for the upsurge in violence, accusing the IDF of attacks on Gazan civilians in the days leading up to the operation. They cited the blockade of the Gaza Strip and the occupation of West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as the reason for rocket attacks.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
During the course of the operation, the IDF claimed to have struck more than 1,500 sites in the Gaza Strip, including rocket launchpads, weapon depots, government facilities, and apartment blocks. According to a UNHCR report, 174 Palestinians were killed and hundreds were wounded. Many families were displaced. One airstrike killed ten members of the al-Dalu family. Some Palestinian casualties were caused by misfired Palestinian rockets landing inside the Gaza Strip. Eight Palestinians were executed by members of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades for alleged collaboration with Israel.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
During the operation, Hamas, the al-Qassam Brigades and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) further intensified their rocket attacks on Israeli cities and towns, in an operation code named Operation Stones of Baked Clay (Arabic: حجارة سجيل, ḥijārat sijīl) by the al-Qassam Brigades, firing over 1,456 rockets into Israel, and an additional 142 which fell inside Gaza itself. Palestinian militant groups used weapons including Iranian-made Fajr-5, Russian-made Grad rockets, Qassams, and mortars. Some of these weapons were fired into Rishon LeZion, Beersheba, Ashdod, Ashkelon, and other population centers.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
Tel Aviv was hit for the first time since the 1991 Gulf War, and rockets were fired at Jerusalem. The rockets killed three Israeli civilians in a direct hit on a home in Kiryat Malachi. By the end of the operation, six Israelis had been killed, two hundred forty were injured, and more than two hundred had been treated for anxiety by Magen David Adom. About 421 rockets were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system, another 142 fell on Gaza itself, 875 fell in open areas, and 58 hit urban areas in Israel. A bus in Tel Aviv was bombed by an Arab-Israeli, injuring 28 civilians.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip
Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, and other Western countries expressed support for what they considered Israel's right to defend itself, or condemned the Hamas rocket attacks on Israel. China, Iran, Russia, Egypt, Turkey, and several other Arab and Muslim countries condemned the Israeli operation. The United Nations Security Council held an emergency session on the situation, but did not reach a decision. After days of negotiations between Hamas and Israel, a ceasefire mediated by Egypt was announced on 21 November. Both sides claimed victory. Israel said that it had achieved its aim of crippling Hamas's rocket-launching ability, while Hamas stated that Israel's option of invading Gaza had ended. According to Human Rights Watch, both sides violated the laws of war during the fighting.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Etymology
Although the official English name of the operation is Pillar of Defense, the Hebrew name translates as Pillar of Cloud. Eytan Buchman, head of the IDF's North American media desk, explained that this usage refers to the Pillar of Cloud in the Bible that protected the Israelites during the Exodus and guided them to the Promised Land (). The Hebrew Bible and the New Testament elaborate on the story, specifying that the Pillar of Cloud shielded the Israelites from the Egyptians' arrows and catapults. The analogy is thus to the Israel Defense Forces, which shielded Israeli citizens from rocket attacks.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Etymology
Hamas labelled its actions as "Operation Stones of Shale" (Qur'an 105:4).


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
The Gaza Strip is defined by the 1949 Armistice lines following the 1948 Arab–Israeli war. About 1.1 of 1.5 million residents of Gaza are registered as refugees from the war. Egypt occupied Gaza from 1948 to 1967 and with the Six-Day War Israel became the occupying power.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
In February 2005 Israel, the Palestinian National Authority, Hamas and Islamic Jihad committed to a ceasefire, which according to some marks end to the Second Intifada. Some place the end-date earlier in October 2004 Others signal the death of Yasser Arafat in November 2004 and the subsequent rise of Hamas as heralding the end of the major period conflict that was the second intifada. However Palestinian suicide bombings against Israelis continued following the February ceasefire.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
Schachter, addressing the range of end-date options, pointed to the progressive decrease in suicide bombings starting in 2004 and culminating in an indeterminate end period in 2005. On 17 March 2005 the 13 main Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad agreed to be bound by the February agreement, conditional on cessation of Israeli military operations.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
Concurrent to the Second Intifada (2000-2005), Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon proposed the Israeli disengagement from Gaza in 2003, which was approved by the Israeli government in June 2004, and the Knesset in February 2005. The unilateral withdrawal plan was executed in August 2005 and completed in September 2005. Nonetheless, the ICRC, the UN and various human rights organizations consider Israel still to be the de facto occupying power due to its control of Gaza's borders, air space and territorial waters.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
The following year (2006) Hamas won a majority of seats in the Palestinian legislative elections. This outcome surprised Israel and the United States who had anticipated the return of the Fatah opposition to power and, together with the Quartet, they demanded Hamas accept all previous agreements, recognize Israel's right to exist, and renounce violence. When Hamas refused, they cut off aid to the Palestinian Authority. In mid-2006 an Israeli soldier was captured by Hamas in a cross-border raid. The United States and Israel, in response to Fatah moves in October 2006 to form a unity government with Hamas, tried to undo the elections by arming and training Fatah to overthrow Hamas in Gaza. In June 2007 Hamas took complete power of Gaza by force.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
Israel then defined Gaza as a "hostile territory" forming no part of a sovereign state and put Gaza under a comprehensive economic and political blockade, which also denied access to a third of its arable land and 85% of its fishing areas. It has led to considerable economic damage and humanitarian problems in Gaza. The overwhelming consensus of international institutions is that the blockade is a form of collective punishment and illegal. Israel maintains that the blockade is legal and necessary to limit Palestinian rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip on its cities and to prevent Hamas from obtaining other weapons.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
In late December 2008, a series of escalations culminated in Israel launching aerial and naval attacks on Gaza and a few days later, a ground invasion. The conflict resulted in between 1,166 and 1,417 Palestinian and 13 Israeli deaths (4 from friendly fire), with significant damage to infrastructure in Gaza. It ended with a unilateral ceasefire by Israel, followed by Hamas declaring a one-week ceasefire.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
After the 2008–2009 escalation the two sides observed an informal and uneasy cease-fire, although rocket fire from Gaza never completely stopped and Israel conducted raids in Gaza. The IDF noted a steady increase in the number of rockets fired into southern Israel by militant groups in Gaza. By 2011, there were 680, and in 2012, 797 (through 13 November). Hamas demanded that Israel end the naval blockade of Gaza's coastline as a condition to end rocket fire. According to Israeli human rights group, B'Tselem, the Israeli security forces killed 273 Palestinians in the Gaza strip between the end of Operation Cast Lead and 30 October 2012, 113 of whom were civilians not taking part in hostilities.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Background
According to Israeli security officials, Hamas, with aid from Iranian technical experts and the Sudanese government, smuggled into Gaza Iranian-made Fajr-5 rockets with increased range and lethality, placing the highly populated Israeli central district, and other metropolitan areas in range. However, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari stated "We haven't sent any weapons to Gaza because it is under blockade, but we are honoured to announce that we gave them the technology of how to make Fajr-5 missiles." Meanwhile, Ali Larijani said Iran was "honored" to help Gaza's Hamas with "material and military aspects". There are roughly 35,000 Palestinian militants in Gaza. Israel, which receives billions of dollars of military aid from the US, has a conscript army of 175,000, with 450,000 in reserve equipped with modern weapons systems including F-16 fighter-bombers, Apache helicopter gun ships and Merkava tanks.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Several factors acted to increase tensions between Israel and Hamas.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Israel restricted Gazan fishing due to concerns the fishing boats could be used for smuggling arms and other contraband. Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported 92 Israeli attacks within the 3 miles zone against Palestinian fishermen in the first half of 2012 with 43 men arrested, 18 boats confiscated and 4 times equipment damaged and confiscated. Israel has imposed a limited fishing zone, limiting Gazan fishermen to fishing within three nautical miles instead of the twenty stipulated in the Oslo Accords. Fishery provides Gaza with a large share of its food production and provided more than 12,000 jobs. According to Amira Hass, the Israeli Navy routinely fire on Palestinian fishermen, sometimes detaining and transferring them for a minor interrogation at the Shin Bet security service's offices in Ashdod.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
According to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, in July and August, 11 Israeli attacks took place and 2 fishermen were detained. One boat was confiscated. On 28 September 2012, Israeli soldiers entered the Gaza Strip and attacked a group of Palestinian fishermen who were fishing at the beach near the border, wounding one of them and mortally wounding his brother. The Israeli army said they had fired on two Palestinians who had entered a restricted zone near the security barrier.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
The family of the killed fisherman said that the fishers used to fish there and that the soldiers knew who they were and used to watch the Palestinian fishermen. In one of 11 other attacks in September, the Israeli Navy reportedly tried to drown two fishing boats. In October, PCHR documented 11 Israeli attacks against fishermen in which 8 fishermen were arrested while fishing approximately 2 miles off the shore. Two fishing boats and equipment were confiscated.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Also in October 2012, there were several mutual Israeli–Palestinian attacks, each a response to a previous response/attack by the other side. Palestinian farmers accused Israeli forces of opening fire on them and on local and international activists while they harvested olives near the border in the northern Gaza Strip. Israel said the army had no record of an attack in that area. Palestinian groups planted bombs alongside the border and attacked Israeli farmers with rockets. According to a summary by Shin Bet, 92 separate attacks occurred in October 2012, with 171 rockets and mortar shells fired against Israel. Gazan groups alleged retaliation against Israeli attacks that had killed or wounded civilians and militants alike.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
An arms factory in Khartoum, Sudan, alleged to have participated in arms-smuggling to Hamas, exploded on 23 October 2012. The Israeli government refused to either confirm or deny its involvement, though the explosion was widely believed to be a long-range attack by the Israeli Air Force.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 24 October, after a week in which dozens of rockets struck Israel and Israel conducted strikes against militant targets in Gaza, 80 rockets and mortars were fired from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel over a 24-hour period. Thirty-two missiles struck the Lachish region and 28 the western Negev. A rocket strike on the agricultural area of the Eshkol region severely wounded two Thai workers. Earlier that day three members of a Palestinian rocket-launching squad had been killed by airstrikes, and Israeli tanks had returned fire at launching sites in Gaza.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Hamas promised to "continue carrying the rifle...until the liberation of Palestine and the defeat of the occupation." On 25 October, a ceasefire was allegedly negotiated by Egypt, but the existence of any truce was disputed both by Israeli and Palestinian officials. Although aggression continued in the following days, there were no more casualties on either side until 2 November.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 2 November, a 22-year-old Palestinian who, according to the IDF, was suspected of attempting to place an explosive device on the Gaza-Israel border, was seriously wounded on Friday morning by Israeli tank fire. According to the IDF, he had been suspected of attempting to place an explosive device on the Gaza-Israel border. On 5 November, Israeli soldiers shot and killed a 20-year-old Palestinian man who approached a fence near Gaza's side of the border with Israel, reportedly ignoring warning shots and instructions to leave the area. Palestinians said that the man was unarmed, suffered from mental issues, and was constantly on medication. His relatives later said that he had approached the border before, and that at those times, Israeli soldiers used to take him back to Gazan authorities.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 5 November, a Palestinian roadside bomb exploded and Israeli soldiers were injured. On 7 November, the armed wing of the Hamas movement and the Islamic Jihad group fired a volley of rockets at Israel, a day after an Israeli strike against targets in the Gaza Strip. In the Israeli strike, one Islamic Jihad fighter had been wounded, as well as four children at a suspected rocket launch area. It also damaged a mosque and a water tower.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 8 November, the IDF made a short-range incursion into Gaza after finding more bombs along the border, leading to a gunfight with the Popular Resistance Committees. During the clash, a 13-year-old Palestinian boy was killed. Palestinians claimed that his death occurred "by machine-gun fire, either from IDF helicopters or tanks that took part in the incident." Later that day, Palestinian militants detonated an explosives-packed tunnel they had dug on the border, wounding four Israeli soldiers. Hamas's military wing claimed responsibility for the blast, stating that it was in response to the killing of the boy.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
According to Arutz Sheva, 2 Qassam rockets were fired into Israel on 9 November, exploding on open ground.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 10 November, militants fired an anti-tank missile at an IDF Jeep on routine patrol near Israel's side of the border. Four soldiers were wounded, one of whom was in critical condition following the attack. The IDF shelled the source of the fire and pre-chosen targets in the Sa'ajiya area. Four teenagers, aged 16 to 18, were killed by an Israeli airstrike in a sports stadium while they played soccer.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Gaza militants then fired at least 30 rockets and several mortar shells into southern Israel, The Color Red siren was sounded in Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gan Yavne, and surrounding areas causing Israelis within seven kilometers of the Gaza Strip to remain near protected areas. The Gan Yavne regional council canceled school because of the rocket barrage.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
The sides continued to exchange fire for several days after the incident. Palestinian militants fired more than 100 rockets, striking homes in Israeli cities, one landing near a school. Several Israelis were wounded by shrapnel in a barrage designed to coincide with the morning commute to work. Two people were injured when their car sustained a direct hit. Schools across southern Israel were closed.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
The mayor of Beersheba, Ruvik Danilovich, explained, "We have experienced hits on our education institutions in the past ... 40,000 children will remain at home today because of the attack that hit us out of the blue." Israel carried out further airstrikes in Gaza. Six Palestinian militants were killed, including one militant belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
In the days before the operation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that Israel's reaction would come "at the appropriate time." However, following a cabinet meeting in the morning before the operation, Minister Benny Begin said that "the current exchange of hostilities seems to be over." According to one Israeli analyst, these mixed messages, the expected diplomatic repercussions from Egypt and the risks of a war on the eve of the Israeli elections were three factors designed to foster a laissez-faire atmosphere for Gaza's Palestinian leaders.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
On 12 November, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) officials indicated a willingness to discuss a ceasefire. A PIJ spokesman said, "The ball is in Israel's court. The resistance factions will observe Israel's behavior on the ground and will act accordingly." However, Palestinians fired 12 rockets at Israel throughout the day. A factory and a house were hit, and three civilians were wounded. Israel asked the UN Security Council to condemn the rocket attacks, with Minister Barak saying that Israel "would not accept the harm to daily life of our civilians."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Pre-operation events
Gershon Baskin, an Israeli peace activist who was a mediator between Israel and Hamas in the negotiations that resulted in the release of Gilad Shalit, reported that hours before the strike that killed Ahmed Jabari, Jabari had received a draft of a long-term ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. According to Reuven Pedatzur, the negotiations had been conducted with the consent of Ehud Barak, and a week before the strike IDF officials had asked to be briefed on their progress, but permission for the briefing was denied.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire
The two main parties, Israel and Hamas, refused to deal with each other directly. Instead, negotiations were conducted thorough intermediaries. Officials from the US and Egypt acted as the facilitators.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Attempts at ceasefire
Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas were mediated by Egypt. Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi predicted the negotiations would lead to positive results very soon. By contrast, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, after meeting with Netanyahu, said that the process would take place in the "days ahead." UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon also met with Netanyahu to attempt to end the violence. Turkish foreign ministers and Arab League diplomats were sent to Gaza to promote a truce between the warring parties.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Attempts at ceasefire
According to reports in Cairo, Israel made six demands for a ceasefire:


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Attempts at ceasefire
Hamas's demands for a ceasefire included the lifting of the naval blockade of Gaza, international community guarantees for the cessation of targeted killings, an end to IDF cross-border raids, and the cessation of attack. Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal additionally wanted "international guarantees" for the lifting of the blockade.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Ceasefire of 21 November
On 21 November, Mohamed Kamel Amr, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, and Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, announced a ceasefire that would take effect at 21:00 GMT+2. The agreement distributed by the Egyptian presidency reads:


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Ceasefire of 21 November
1.a. Israel shall stop all hostilities in the Gaza Strip land, sea and air including incursions and targeting of individuals. b. All Palestinian factions shall stop all hostilities from the Gaza Strip against Israel including rocket attacks, and all attacks along the border. c. Opening the crossings and facilitating the movements of people and transfer of goods, and refraining from restricting residents' free movements, and targeting residents in border areas and procedures of implementation shall be dealt with after 24 hours from the start of the ceasefire. d. Other matters as may be requested shall be addressed.2.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Ceasefire of 21 November
Implementation Mechanism:  a. Setting up the zero hour for the Ceasefire Understanding to enter into effect. b. Egypt shall receive assurances from each party that the party commits to what was agreed upon. c. Each party shall commit itself not to perform any acts that would breach this understanding. In case of any observations, Egypt – as the sponsor of this understanding – shall be informed to follow up.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Ceasefire of 21 November
Khaled Meshal, the exiled leader of Hamas, thanked Egypt for mediating the ceasefire and claimed that Israel had been defeated. He also praised Iran for providing militants with financing and arms. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Operation Pillar of Defense had been successful and thanked US President Obama for his "unwavering support for Israel's right to defend itself."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Post-ceasefire incidents
An explosion took place in Gaza in unclear circumstances after the ceasefire; no casualties were reported. A Palestinian man was killed and three others wounded by stray gunfire as gunmen in Gaza fired in the air to celebrate the ceasefire deal. In the hour after the ceasefire was declared, twelve rockets were launched from Gaza into Israel. All of them landed in open areas. Air raid sirens sounded in Eshkol, Sderot, Hof Ashkelon, Ashdod, Kiryat Malachi and Sha'ar Hanegev. One rocket over Ashdod was intercepted by the Iron Dome.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Post-ceasefire incidents
The day after the ceasefire Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian farmer and wounded another 19. The survivors, who thought the terms of the truce allowed them access to their land, said they ventured into the Israeli-established "buffer zone" inside Gaza's border to pray, while climbing on the Israeli Defense Wall. The Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, complained to the organization that the attack was a violation of the ceasefire. On 28 November, Israel opened fire on two fishing boats off the coast of Gaza and detained nine Gazan fishermen.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Ceasefire, Post-ceasefire incidents
According to Mahfouth al-Kabriti, the head of Gaza's fishing association, the fishermen were six miles off the coast – the limit within which, as Israel agreed in the ceasefire deal, Gazan fishermen could sail. According to the Israeli Navy, the fishermen had ventured beyond the area designated as allowable for fishing, and did not heed requests to return to the area before being detained. On 30 November, another young Gazan man, 21-year-old Mahmoud Jaroun, was shot dead by Israeli forces in Rafah. According to Ma'an News Agency, Israeli forces had already violated the ceasefire several times by the beginning of December 2012 by firing at Palestinian farmers. On 1 December, Islamic Jihad warned that more "Israeli violations of a ceasefire deal" would move the group to respond.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
The conflict sparked widespread protests in the West Bank, leading to an upsurge in clashes between Palestinians and the IDF. On 14 November, two Israelis were lightly injured when their vehicle was stoned near Gush Etzion. The road from Jerusalem to Gush Etzion was closed as a result of fierce protests.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
On 18 November, a 31-year-old Palestinian man participating in a demonstration in Nabi Salih was killed by Israeli fire. The IDF, which described the protest as "illegal and violent", launched an investigation into the incident. By 19 November, over 50 Palestinians had been reported injured during solidarity protests held in East Jerusalem, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Beit Ummar, and Qalandia.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
On 19 November, thousands marched in response to the killing of a protester the previous day. An Israeli civilian vehicle was firebombed on Highway 60 in the West Bank. The passengers managed to flee before the vehicle was incinerated. According to Israel Hayom, a protester in Halhul who attempted to attack an Israeli soldier was shot and killed. Agence France-Presse (AFP) stated that the circumstances of the killing were unclear. The Palestinian police and ambulance service stated that no clashes had taken place where the man was killed. The IDF launched an investigation into the incident.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
Five firebombs were thrown at an Israeli Border Police base in Atarot. Assailants opened fire on Israeli soldiers at a military base near Jenin. Palestinians tried to infiltrate Nahliel by cutting through the security fence surrounding the Israeli town. Palestinians stoned Israeli vehicles on Route 443, a main highway connecting Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. A 22-year-old Palestinian in Hebron attempting to throw a firebomb at a soldier was shot and wounded. A Border Police officer was injured during a demonstration in Qalandiya.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
On 20 November, an Israeli soldier was lightly wounded in clashes with Palestinian protesters near Gush Etzion, and an Israeli civilian woman was moderately injured in a stoning attack on a vehicle near Husan. Palestinian demonstrations throughout the West Bank that day praised the rocket strikes and called for a new uprising and the abandonment of diplomacy with Israel. According to The Christian Science Monitor, the demonstrations signaled a blow to the prestige of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has supported talks with Israel.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
Further protests and clashes occurred throughout the West Bank on 21–22 November. Thousands of Palestinians protested the death of Rushdi al-Tamimi, whose funeral procession passed through Ramallah and Birzeit University before ending in Tamimi's hometown of Nabi Salih. Several protesters attending the funeral lobbed stones at Israeli troops manning the entrance of the village, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Hundreds of mourners attended the funeral of the Palestinian man killed in Hebron on 20 November.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, West Bank
Following his burial many young protesters approached an Israeli settlement near Bab al-Zawiya Square, sparking clashes with Israeli forces who fired rubber bullets and tear gas. About 40 Palestinians were injured. In the city of Nablus, hundreds of protesters waved Hamas flags. The entrance to Bani Naim was closed by the IDF after clashes between them and the town's residents. Meanwhile, the northern West Bank village of al-Jalama was declared "a closed military zone" after hundreds of Palestinian demonstrators protested at the village checkpoint. Five Palestinians were arrested in house raids by the Israeli military in Ya'bad and Tubas. Israel alleged that the detained men had previously thrown stones at Israeli troops.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, Other
On 14 November, the Egyptian military confirmed that four rockets had been fired from Sinai toward Israel by militant groups in an area with a history in the prior eighteen months of cross-border shootings and rocket launches.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, Other
On 20 November, a Lebanese army patrol discovered two ready-to-launch 107mm Grad rockets between the villages of Halta and Mari, about 2 miles from the Israeli border. The forces defused the rockets. IDF official Brigadier General Yoav Mordechai said Palestinian factions in Lebanon were probably behind the plot. (See: List of Lebanese rocket attacks on Israel.)


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Spillover, Other
On 21 November, the day of the ceasefire, two rockets fired from Lebanon at Israel landed within Lebanon, according to Beirut officials. The next day, the Lebanese army disarmed an additional rocket aimed at Israel, this one in Marjayoun, about 10 kilometers from the border.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Israeli casualties
Four Israeli civilians and two soldiers were killed in Palestinian rocket attacks. Three of the civilians died in a direct hit on an apartment building in Kiryat Malakhi. The fourth Israeli civilian death was an Israeli-Arab contractor for the Israeli Defense Ministry who was killed in a rocket attack in the Eshkol Region. Both of the Israeli military fatalities were killed in rocket and mortar barrages on the Eshkol Regional Council. One of them was wounded on the last day of the conflict and died of his injuries on 22 November. By 20 November, almost 250 Israelis had been injured in rocket attacks, including at least 10 soldiers. Another 28 people were injured in a bus bombing in Tel Aviv.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Israeli casualties
The IDF credited the low Israeli casualty rate to a number of factors, both offensive and defensive: its preemptive targeting of launching pads and rocket arsenals, its ability to strike militants in the act of launching rockets, the 80%+ success rate of Israel's Iron Dome missile interception system, the existence of bomb-proof rooms in every Israeli house, the implementation of the Red Color alarm system, and public outreach efforts by its Home Front Command.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
In March 2013 the United Nations Human Rights Council issued a report stating 174 Palestinians in total died, 107 of them civilians. According to B'Tselem, 167 Palestinians were killed, including 62 Palestinians who took part in the hostilities and seven other who were targets of assassination. The Israel Defense Forces have stated that out of 177 Palestinians killed, 120 were militants, and that the IDF never deliberately targets civilians. Based on a large-scale survey, Al Mezan counted 129 civilians and 39 combatants killed.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
The Israeli air force says that it takes all possible measures to avoid harming Palestinian civilians, utilizing precision strikes and issuing preemptive warnings to Palestinian residents. The IDF alleges that it disseminated warning leaflets instructing civilians to avoid areas used by Hamas for firing rockets, and also phoned residents in warnings. It says targets were deliberately missed on the first strike to allow the non-combatants to vacate the area and missions were aborted because of a civilian presence.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
On 19 November 2012, an Israeli airstrike killed ten members of the Dalu family, including five children as well as two neighbors, in the deadliest single strike of the entire operation. According to the UN, a relative said to be a member of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades was the target. Human Rights Watch stated it had found evidence on the ground in Gaza that supported the Israeli's claim that the suspected target, Mohammad Al-Dalou, was a member of Hamas' armed wing.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
A surviving family member denied that a warning had been given to his family to flee the home: "They didn’t give us a warning. They just hit the house with the children in it. My daughters were in their youth. What did they do to them?". The IDF policy of targeting family homes of alleged militants has been criticized due to the high potential of creating civilian casualties. Competing theories for the attack were offered. One Israeli paper stated the IDF believed a militant was inside, while two others said the wrong house was targeted.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
IDF spokeswoman Avital Leibovich at first stated that the event was an accident and the target was a man, Yihia Abayah, supposedly responsible for launching 200–300 rockets into Israel. A relative of the family said that man is not known and rejected his existence. Later, the IDF changed justification for the attack to say that it was intentional and aimed at Mohamed al-Dalu, a Gazan police officer who died in the strike.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties
The most notable fatality of a Palestinian militant was that of Ahmed Jabari, a high-level commander in Hamas. The PCHR stated that the number of injured people had reached 1,000.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Combatants versus non-combatants
The media and combating parties, in counting the casualties, often use different definitions of "combatants" or "militants". The International Committee of the Red Cross regards persons as civilians if they do not fulfill a "continuous combat function" (for example, many police officers) or do not participate directly in hostilities. Civilians are entitled to protection and may not be the object of an attack. The fact that a person killed was a member of any particular Palestinian organization does not, in and of itself, prove that he took part in the hostilities or that he lost the protection given him as a civilian.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Combatants versus non-combatants
Some political or armed groups often declare killed persons, including children, one of their members and adopt them as "martyrs" placing their photographs on their websites and commending their contribution to resisting occupation. Their families may accept this for various reasons, including the willingness of armed groups to provide financial support to the families and pay for funeral costs of the persons killed. This does not mean that those persons killed were involved in militant activities in any way.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Public execution of alleged informants by Hamas
Seven Palestinians have been publicly executed by militants for alleged collaboration with Israel. One man, Ashraf Ouaida, was killed on 16 November near a mosque in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City. An eyewitness said he saw two masked men emerge from a Jeep, drag the victim underneath a Hamas billboard and shoot him multiple times in the head, before hanging a poster citing his alleged crimes.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Public execution of alleged informants by Hamas
Militants shot six other Palestinians in the street on 20 November. According to witnesses, the men were pulled out of a van, forced to lie face down on the street and then shot dead. Five of the bodies were left in a pile while a mob stomped and spit on them. A sixth body was tied to a motorcycle and dragged through the main streets of Gaza City as onlookers screamed, "Spy! Spy!". Militants posted a sign naming the six victims. Hamas's radio station, Voice of al-Aqsa, quoted security sources, alleging that they "possessed hi-tech equipment and filming equipment to take footage of positions".


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Public execution of alleged informants by Hamas
The man whose body was tied to a motorcycle, Ribhi Badawi, was a member of Jaljalat, an Islamist group that maintains a rivalry with Hamas. Badawi's family, neighbors, and friends maintained that the allegations of his having spied for Israel were "absurd", noting that he had spent the previous four years in a Hamas prison under armed guard. His widow stated that he confessed to aiding Israel after being tortured by Hamas for seven months with methods that included being burned, having his jaw and teeth broken, and being hung for 45 days by his arms and legs.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Public execution of alleged informants by Hamas
On 21 November, Hamas deputy leader Moussa Abu Marzouk condemned the killings as "unlawful", adding that any punishments or executions must follow the legal process. He further added that those behind the killings must be punished.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
Some of the Palestinian civilian deaths are believed to have been caused by a Palestinian rocket that fell short of its target, not by Israel, and two were "high-profile" incidents. The UN report into the events by the High Commissioner for Human Rights found that of the 174 Palestinians killed, 168 were killed by Israeli military action, while 6 civilians may have been killed by Palestinian armed groups firing rockets from Gaza.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
BBC Arabic photojournalist Jihad Masharawi lost his 11-month-old son and sister-in-law to what appeared to be an Israeli airstrike. Many international organizations condemned Israel for their deaths. Human Rights Watch reported that Israel was responsible for the deaths, based on "news reports and witnesses". The Palestinian Center for Human Rights stated that "an Israeli warplane fired a missile at a house belonging to Ali Nemer al-Mishrawi in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. Two members of the family (a woman and a toddler) were killed: Hiba Aadel Fadel al-Mishrawi, 19; and Omar Jihad al-Mishrawi, 11 months."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
The latest investigation by the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights suggested that the incident was most likely the result of an errant Palestinian rocket launched towards Israel, but fell back into Gaza. Two members of the family (a woman and a toddler) were initially killed: Hiba Aadel Fadel al-Mishrawi, 19; and Omar Jihad al-Mishrawi, 11 months." Ahmed al-Mishrawi, 18, later died from his injuries. According to Jihad al-Mishrawi, his residential neighborhood in the Sabra district saw no fighting before this incident.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
The death of four-year-old Mohammed Sadallah after an explosion in Annazla appeared to have been the result of a misfiring home-made rocket, not a bomb dropped by Israel as originally alleged by Hamas. Hamas officials and relatives said that the four-year-old Gazan boy was killed in an Israeli airstrike on 16 November. Israel denied that it carried out any attacks in the area at the time.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
According to The New York Times, "the damage was nowhere near severe enough to have come from an Israeli F-16, raising the possibility that an errant missile fired by Palestinian militants was responsible for the deaths." Experts from the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights examined the site and opined that the explosion was caused by a Palestinian rocket; the boy's mother acknowledged that Palestinian militants might have been responsible.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
The Associated Press reported that "no one appeared to have witnessed the strike" and that "local security officials quickly took what remained of the projectile, making it impossible to verify who fired it." A United Nations Report released in March 2013 concluded that Sadallah "[was] killed by what appeared to be a Palestinian rocket that fell short of Israel" and not by an Israeli airstrike.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Casualties, Palestinian casualties, Palestinian casualties from Palestinian fire
The UN reported that at least one other child and adult had also been killed by Hamas fire.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Damage
Based on a large-scale survey by workers in the field, which Al Mezan claims to be extremely accurate, Al Mezan reported the total destruction of 124 houses located in all of the Gaza Strip, and partial damage of 2,050 homes. In just one week, the Israeli army destroyed numerous public and private premises, including 52 places of worship, 25 non-governmental organizations (NGOs), 97 schools, 15 health institutions, 14 journalist premises, 8 police stations, 16 government buildings, and 11 political sites. Fifteen factories and 192 trade shops were damaged or destroyed. Twelve water wells as well as agricultural lands were destroyed.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Targeting of civilians
Both U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay condemned the continuing indiscriminate attacks and targeting of civilians in Israel by militants from Gaza.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Targeting of civilians
Human Rights Watch stated that armed Palestinian groups fired hundreds of rockets at Israeli cities, violating international humanitarian law, and that statements by Palestinian groups that they deliberately targeted Israeli civilians demonstrated an "intent to commit war crimes." HRW's Middle East director Sarah Leah Whitson said that Palestinian groups made clear that "harming civilians was their aim" and said that the launching rockets at populated areas had no legal justification. International humanitarian law prohibits deliberate attacks on civilians, and intentional violations can be war crimes.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Targeting of civilians
A report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that "Palestinian armed groups continuously violated international humanitarian law, by launching indiscriminate attacks on Israel and by attacking civilians". The report further stated, "While some projectiles were directed at military objectives, many, if not the vast majority of the Palestinian attacks on Israel constituted indiscriminate attacks. Such attacks violate international humanitarian law. ... Most rockets fired by the armed groups did not seem to be directed at a specific military objective. Furthermore, many Palestinian armed groups directly and indirectly indicated their determination to – and took responsibility for – attacks on Israeli civilians or large population centres in Israel. Such acts clearly violate international humanitarian law."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Firing rockets from populated areas
Human Rights Watch stated that Palestinian groups endangered civilians by "repeatedly fir[ing] rockets from densely populated areas, near homes, businesses, and a hotel". Under international law, parties to a conflict may not place military targets in or near densely populated areas. One rocket was launched close to the Shawa and Housari Building, where various Palestinian and international media have offices; another was fired from the yard of a house near the Deira Hotel. Human Rights Watch said it had not been able to identify any instance where civilians had been warned to evacuate an area before a rocket launch by Palestinian militants.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Firing rockets from populated areas
Col. Richard Kemp, former Commander of British Forces in Afghanistan, said: "The use of the civilian population by Hamas is undoubtedly a war crime because not only are they hiding themselves under a civilian population, [but] they are also putting the civilian population at risk. In my view, if there are civilian casualties, the responsibility does not lie with the IDF, but with Hamas, who deliberately placed them there." Richard Landes criticised Hamas for firing from the midst of civilians, a practice leading to casualties blamed on Israeli counter-strikes to garner Western sympathy. Danny Ayalon said that Hamas's firing of rockets from built-up civilian areas was a "double war crime", noting that ten percent of them did not reach Israel.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Firing rockets from populated areas
The IDF stated that Hamas makes use of "human shield" tactics and said "By operating from densely populated areas, Hamas willingly endangers its own people, turning their houses and schools into terror sites and weapon depots." The Jerusalem Post and Fox News said Palestinian rocket launch-sites were put next to hospitals, schools, mosques, and playgrounds. On 21 November a long-range Qassam rocket, of the type Israel has accused Iran of supplying to Hamas, was fired from within 500 yards of the hospital and hit Gush Etzion, southeast of Jerusalem. An IDF spokesman stated they had released footage of "rocket fire from a mosque courtyard, prayer houses, public places and homes".


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Firing rockets from populated areas
In March 2013, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) released a report criticizing Palestinian groups for launching rocket attacks from densely populated areas. The report stated that "The [Palestinian] armed groups failed to take all feasible precautions in attacks, in particular by launching rockets from populated areas, which put the population at grave risk."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Allegations that Islamic Jihad members were disguised as journalists
The IDF accused Gaza militants of abusing the protection afforded to journalists. On 20 November 2012 Muhammed Shamalah, commander of Hamas forces in southern Gaza and head of its militant training programs, was targeted by an Israeli air strike. At the time, he was driving a car which, according to the IDF, was clearly labeled "TV," indicating it to be a press vehicle.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Allegations that Islamic Jihad members were disguised as journalists
The PCHR reported that an Israeli strike had killed al-Quds Radio journalist Muhammed Abu Eisha. The UN, The New York Times, Reporters without Borders, and Human Rights Watch condemned Israel for the attack. Frankfurter Allgemeine reported that PCHR failed to mention that Eisha was also a member of the Islamic Jihad and had participated in rocket attacks against Israel. Eisha's name and photo appeared on the Islamic Jihad's website at the time of his death.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Hamas, Killing of alleged collaborators
The March 2013 report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) criticized Palestinian militant groups for "summarily executing alleged Israeli spies in breach of humanitarian law".


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Disproportionate force/Targeting of civilians
A report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was harshly critical of the conduct of the Israeli army. The report stated that the IDF had "failed in many instances to respect international law", and that it did not "consistently uphold the basic principles of conduct of hostilities, namely, the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions".


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Disproportionate force/Targeting of civilians
The Israeli airstrike that killed 12 civilians, including 10 members of the Al-Dalu family, has been called a "disproportionate" use of force and a war crime by Human Rights Watch, which stated that the attack had yet to be justified by Israel, and called for the perpetrators of the strike to be punished and the surviving members of victims' families to be compensated. Palestinian Center for Human Rights condemned it as "an example of blatant targeting of civilians". According to The New York Times, "political leaders and human rights advocates have called the [Dalu family] deaths a massacre and a war crime."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Disproportionate force/Targeting of civilians
British MP Gerald Kaufman criticized the Israeli offensive, and its broader context — of occupation of the West Bank and the siege of Gaza — as war crimes. In an emergency meeting of the Arab League, foreign ministers of member-states accused Israel of perpetrating war crimes and crimes against humanity.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Disproportionate force/Targeting of civilians
Turkey and Iran accused Israel of committing war crimes and refused to consider the Israeli airstrikes self-defense. Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israel of committing "ethnic cleansing" of Palestinians.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
In four Israeli attacks on media facilities and journalists, ten media workers were wounded, and two cameramen and a two-year-old was killed.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
The Israeli government stated that each of the attacks were on a legitimate military target. Ths Israeli army stated that foreign journalists were used as human shields by Hamas, after attacks on two media centers in Gaza containing Hamas communications devices.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
Human Rights Watch conducted an investigation into these incidents and concluded that "there were no indications that these targets were valid military objectives." and thus "violated the laws of war by targeting civilians and civilian objects that were making no apparent contribution to Palestinian military operations". HRW further stated that journalists and civilian broadcasting facilities were not legitimate military targets simply because they broadcast pro-Hamas or anti-Israel propaganda.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
In one separate incident, according to the IDF, it hit four Islamic Jihad militants hiding out in a media center in Gaza, the Al-Sharouk compound. PIJ reported by text message that one of their senior militant operatives, Ramez Harb, was killed in the airstrike. as well as Palestinian cameramen. Israel warned the foreign journalists to leave the building before the strike. One foreign journalist that worked there spoke of his anger that the building was being used as a hideout by Palestinian militants, endangering many people. Human Rights Watch said this attack appeared to be on a military target, and that if Palestinians conducting military operations were present, they were violating international law by placing civilians at unnecessary risk.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
The Israeli military's alleged targeting of journalists was also condemned by Reporters without Borders. Christophe Deloire, secretary-general of RWB, said "Even if the targeted media support Hamas, this does not in any way legitimize the attacks. ... Attacks on civilian targets are war crimes and serious violations of the Geneva Conventions. Those responsible must be identified." Writing for The New York Times, David Carr noted that IDF spokeswoman Avital Leibovich, who said that the journalists were "people who have relevance to terror activity", did not identify the strike as a mistake. Carr accused Israel of deliberately targeting journalists under the cover of war, using "amorphous" phrases such as "relevance to terror activity" to justify the attacks.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Alleged war crimes, Israel, Bombing of media facilities
NGO Monitor stated that Hamas in Gaza "terrorizes the international press" because it put its own operational communication antennas on top of buildings whose lower floors house foreign media outlets.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet
The IDF made widespread use of Twitter and a liveblog to give an up-to-date account of its operations. The military wing of Hamas also made use of Twitter, publicising its rocket and mortar attacks and tweeting when Israeli casualties were reported. Foreign Policy magazine labeled this effort a "milestone in military communications." Twitter had previously been used to present information regarding military engagements by both the Kenya Defence Forces and Al Shabaab during the KDF's operation against Al Shabaab in Somalia in 2011. The IDF's Twitter account gained more than 50,000 new followers in 24 hours.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet
An app based on an idea provided by a 13-year-old was developed to supply up-to-date reports of imminent missile attacks and send information of the location and timing of the public "Color Red" alerts. The app allowed users extra time to run to bomb shelters.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet
Hamas produced a video that threatened the lives of Israeli citizens and warned, "Wait soon for us in the bus stops and cafes." The video became a popular target for parody because of its technical problems and the broken Hebrew written and spoken in it.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet
During the campaign, pro-Palestinian hackers launched a concerted effort to cripple Israeli websites. Israeli websites faced over 60 million hacking attempts, which failed to cause any significant damage. In April 2013 Anonymous attacked many Israeli websites in response to the IDF offensive in Gaza. They called the attack #OpIsrael and claimed to have taken down at least 700 sites as of 18 November 2012. The Israeli Defense Forces claimed to have deflected 44 million cyber attacks by that date. Many of the websites were replaced with messages condemning the Israeli campaign and expressing support for the citizens of Gaza.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet
Hackers from Kuwait disrupted the website of Likud MK Danny Danon, who had posted an online petition urging the government of Israel to cease providing the Gaza Strip with electricity. The Facebook and Twitter accounts of Israeli Vice Prime Minister and Likud MK Silvan Shalom were hacked by a pro-Palestinian group called ZCompanyHackingCrew.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet, Criticism of IDF media campaign
The IDF's blog incorporates gamification features where visitors are awarded points and given badges for things such as visiting the blog or sharing its contents on their social networks. Although the blog had had these features previously, they had been disabled before Operation Pillar of Defense due to "high traffic." They were re-enabled shortly after the operation began. Multiple commentators have described the timing of their re-enablement just after the launch of Operation Pillar of Defense as offensive. ReadWrite's Jon Mitchell described it as "absolutely horrendous", and The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg called it "disgraceful."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet, Criticism of IDF media campaign
Israel's social media campaign around Operation Pillar of Defense has been perceived by some parties as overly aggressive or otherwise inappropriate. Wired described Israel's efforts as "hyper-pugnacious," and Foreign Policy's Michael Koplow expressed fears that Israel's social media campaign might contribute to some people's "fear of Israel run amok with no regard for the collateral damage being caused."


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet, Allegations of Hamas disinformation
Hamas attempted to conduct "psychological warfare" consisting primarily of fake emails and Facebook postings. Many Israelis received a false announcement from an "IDF Spokesman" warning that "terrorists in Gaza can track you and direct their Katyushas to your location!" if they opened their text messages. Thousands received emails in broken Hebrew that "the military censorship of military intelligence" was concealing information about attacks on soldiers and urged them to view the "picture of the field of death in which our soldiers are falling in Gaza." The attached YouTube videos, though claiming to show an IDF jeep struck by a missile, was in fact a vehicle of the Reuters news agency that had been hit on the border.


2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, Social media and Internet, Allegations of Hamas disinformation
Hamas warned Gazan civilians against spreading unsourced information, claiming that such behavior harmed national security and aided Israel's "psychological war". The Interior Ministry said that it would convey any "needed information" in order to "safeguard the truth." The statement came after Hamas gunmen publicly shot a Gaza resident multiple times in the head for allegedly collaborating with Israeli authorities. Richard Landes, a blogger and American Associate Professor of history at Boston University, accused Hamas of "brazen hypocrisy" and exploiting a death they had caused in order to garner Western sympathy.