The world was surprised on Saturday 07 November by the statement of the former US President Barack #Obama in an interview with the “Pod Save #America” programme about the war in #Gaza, where he said: “We have to admit that no one’s hands are clean from what is happening (between #Hamas and #Israel), and that we are all complicit to some extent.”
This coincided with another surprise; where a group of Congress men and women addressed a letter to US Secretary of State Antony #Blinken – despite their support to the right of #Israel in “self-defence” – stressing the importance of delivering humanitarian aid to #Gaza, and the commitment of the Israeli government to follow international laws in its military operations to prevent further violence, and to pave the way for the intensive diplomatic efforts to reach a sustainable peace.
Good positions reflecting hope, but when we consider what is happening on the ground, they remain just talks not accompanied by action. The American saying “Talk is cheap” is suitable for a temporary title for the unconventional crisis of violence we are living.
In reality “actions speak louder than words”. The positions of the West and the #United_States are resounding, and their absolute bias towards #Israel is unashamed and unhesitating.
One week following the “Al-Aqsa Flood” of #Hamas on October 7, the #United_States of #America sent two of the largest and most dangerous aircraft carriers in the world, “#Gerald_Ford” and “#Dwight_Eisenhower,” to provide assistance to its first ally, as Associated Press agency described it. Joined on November 6 by a nuclear-powered Ohio submarine capable of carrying nuclear warheads, as announced by the #US_Central_Command on social media.
These steps were followed by unprecedented support from the West to #Israel. The video clip’s images of the moment British Prime Minister #Rishi_Sunak arrived in #Israel on board of a military plane carrying weapons and supporting equipment are still fresh in our mind.
Forty days after the start of the Israeli-led genocide against the Palestinians, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz confirmed, during his recent visit to Tel Aviv on Tuesday, that his country “has only one place, during the hard times in which the Jewish state finds itself, and that is alongside #Israel.”
We have this war of duality, that we have never seen like before. It even indicates the extent of the hidden fanaticism of some Westerners against Arabs and Muslims. It has become a traditional model for winning votes, and even an optional strategy in #America that is not ashamed to help Donald #Trump, Republican candidate #Ron_DeSantis, and others. They threaten to prevent Arabs and Muslims from entering universities and banning them from entering the #United_States.
As for Europeans, they are no less obstinate, as a number of Europeans #football players of Arab origins face waves of persecution for their sympathy with the Palestinian people. The German team Mainz terminated the contract of its player #Anwar_El_Ghazi because of his support for the people of #Gaza, while #Karim_Benzema was banned by stripping him of the “Ballon d'Or” award and French citizenship for the same reason. Where is the freedom of expression that Europeans and Americans both call for? Doesn't the West, which sanctifies this right, rejects that the actions of its governments now are disgusting double standards?
The humanitarian catastrophe that we witness daily in #Palestine add more pain to these positions in the West, despite that many cities and capitals are witnessing distinguished electoral protests on the policies of their governments and their absolute support for the actions of the Israeli government. Is this the “self-defence” that parties in the international community are based on its legitimacy when they support #Israel?
The speech, by Heritage Minister #Amichai_Eliyahu, in which he called for a nuclear battle in the #Gaza Strip and kill everyone, was widely condemned by the world. However, Eliyahu would not have expressed these extremist and brutal statements if he didn’t have confidence in gigantic Western support for his country until this moment.
What is the secret of ##Europe and the #United_States ‘absolute support for #Israel? Has it become affected by historical guilt? The war that the Israeli government is leading against the Palestinian people in #Gaza is as brutal as the Holocaust genocide against the Jews during World War II, under the gaze and strange silence of the West. Chancellor Schulz explains his country's position by saying that "Germany's history and the responsibility it had for the Holocaust requires us to help maintain the security and existence of #Israel," but should the Palestinians continue to pay the price for these sins?
We realize that #Israel is the first ally of the #United_States and the West and the protector of its interests in the region, and we witness daily how the world rises to action against anything that threatens its security. But no one denies the existence of the Israeli state, efforts are intensified daily to live with its existence in peace. Aren’t the Palestinians, the biggest losers in this region, allowed to live in safety and stability in a state with an independent entity?
139 out of 193 member states of the United Nations have recognized the Palestinian territories as a Palestinian state, while the #United_States, France, and Great #Britain insisted on not recognizing the Palestinian territories as a peaceful state of #Palestine until the conflict with #Israel is resolved. Can we deal peacefully between the two entities with this huge difference in power?
The security situation in #Palestine will not stabilize as long as its people can’t live in dignity, independence, and security, and their decision-making power is taken away from them, and they are practically fighting a giant they can’t even force to listen to their requests.
In the face of this imbalance between the parties, the #United_States and the West are required to stop this bloodshed which resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, and to supervise Palestinian elections that will result in a government of honest, patriotic men capable of negotiating with #Israel and reaching sustainable peace.