Monday, 7 October marks the first anniversary of the brutal Hamas attack in southern Israel when the security of the Zionist regime was breached and over a thousand Israelis were killed.
Although any form of violence should be condemned, the wider context in which the Hamas attack was staged must be considered. It was an eruption of violence from Palestinians living in what has been described as the world’s “largest open-air prison“, subjected to prolonged humiliation, harassment and collective punishment.
This date must also be remembered for the horrific Zionist regime’s response to the Hamas incursion. Israel’s relentless bombardment has levelled much of Gaza, rendering it uninhabitable. Remember, many Palestinians had taken refuge in Gaza after 1948, when the state of Israel was carved out of historic Palestine.
Driven by purported ‘vengeance’, Zionist forces have so far killed over 43,000 Palestinians, about 70% of them children and women.
The Zionist regime has used the Hamas attack as justification for the genocidal carnage Israeli forces have inflicted on Gaza after 7 October.
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Zionist apologists often trot out the argument that the bombardment of Gaza is “Israel’s right to defend itself“. But defend from whom? The very people Israel ‘Defense’ Forces and illegal Israeli settlers have been humiliating and killing all these decades?
Such a worldview is reflected in the Western mainstream media’s familiar and predictable framing of the bloody incident in most interviews. “Do you condemn Hamas” for the atrocities that occurred on 7 October, they ask. This is the way Western media propaganda builds up Israeli victimhood.
This biased perspective overlooks how the Palestinians’ mounting sense of pent-up desperation and despair exploded in the 7 October offensive.
Ordinary Palestinians have long opposed the Zionist settler-colonial project, whose existential objective aims to dehumanise and ultimately displace them from their land. These aims can be found in various statements by top Israeli leaders and officials.
The Hamas attack was also launched at a historical juncture when Saudi Arabia was on the verge of normalising ties with Israel under the Abraham Accords. This initiative could have sidelined the Palestinian question or effectively erased it from the mainstream narrative.
The aftermath of 7 October should remind us that some people, particularly Western government leaders, have not only lost their sense of humanity and justice. They are also deeply complicit in the Israeli colonialist project and the ongoing genocide.
Consider the obscene killing of Palestinian children, some of whom had their bodies shredded by Israeli bombs raining down on Gaza.
This has not pricked the conscience of these Western leaders, to their eternal shame. They style themselves as paragons of human rights, freedom, justice and democracy. Yet they do not hesitate to help fund and arm the Zionist regime in crushing Palestinian lives, hopes and dreams.
Israel and its Western backers have upended the treasured rules-based international human rights law. They have shown that might is always right, so they can do whatever they want with utter impunity.
It doesn’t help that certain Islamic-Arab regimes appear to be acting in connivance. They could have at least recalled their envoys from Tel Aviv as a sign of protest against the Zionist regime’s bloody belligerence.
That’s not all. The mighty have shown they have a monopoly over the right to judge others as they please. They have labelled Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis as militants and terrorists for opposing Israeli occupation and genocide. They even portray these groups as subhumans and treat them accordingly.
If everything else fails, they accuse critics of Israel – both Jews (like the American Jewish Voice for Peace) and others – of being antisemitic. This accusation, mind you, does not stand up to scrutiny. Indeed, it would be regarded as a violation of freedom of expression in normal circumstances.
Israel is a state armed to the teeth. It has terrorised innocent and unarmed Palestinian civilians for decades and blatantly practises apartheid. Yet, Western leaders and their media describe the nation as the only ‘democracy’ in West Asia that only wants to defend itself from ‘existential threats’ in the region.
It would be unduly generous to paint Israel as merely a misbehaving entity. Such a characterisation would do injustice to the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have been displaced, killed, injured and maimed since the first Nakba in 1948.
It was not a brilliant scheme to electronically detonate pagers and walkie talkies, used by many Lebanese civilians, resulting in hundreds being killed and injured. No, it was murderous, an act of terror.
The Zionist regime has crossed so many red lines, its brutality extending beyond military actions. It has detained countless Palestinians, including children, without trial. It has even tortured and sexually abused Palestinian prisoners. Shockingly, ordinary people in Israel even protested against attempts to hold Zionist soldiers accountable for raping jailed Palestinians.
Zionist forces have systematically destroyed treasured schools, libraries, museums and universities in Gaza, which documented and preserved Palestinian culture, identity, knowledge and memory.
They have blocked food, fuel, water and medicine – crucial for human survival – from reaching the Palestinian “human animals“. As a result, diseases have spread, claiming many lives.
Israeli forces have deliberately bombed hospitals, UN-designated shelters and houses of worship. They have killed at least 138 journalists and media workers. This is deeply concerning to those who value media freedom and want to know what is happening in the occupied territories.
Israeli troops have even desecrated Palestinian graves. They have bombed refugee camps housing entire refugee families.
Most disturbingly, some Israelis have been seen cheering such bloody atrocities.
All the while, those in the military-industrial complex around the world have reaped massive profits as arms sales have skyrocketed.
We are on a slippery slope. The barbarism that has visited people of colour – the Palestinians and other Arabs – has become normalised.
Compare that to Western leaders’ and their corporate media’s swift reaction when Iran fired about 200 missiles at Israel. They condemned the missile launch as barbaric, even though it was a response to Israel’s killing of Palestinian and Hezbollah leaders. They conveniently ignored the fact that the missiles had not targeted Israeli civilians.
Such racism, hypocrisy and double standards is breathtaking.
The violent madness of the bloodthirsty Zionist regime has to stop.
In light of this, it was apt for Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Mohamad Hassan to call for a revamp of the UN, especially the Security Council that grants veto powers to its five permanent members – the US, the UK, France, Russia and China. Too often, the veto power has been abused to obstruct resolutions calling for conflict resolution, security and justice. What’s more, the permanent membership of the Security Council does not adequately represent the political will and aspirations of most nations.
Such substantive reform will help foster a more peaceful and humane world. The international community cannot afford to have a few of its members running amok while the UN remains politically impotent.
Mustafa K Anuar
Co-editor, Aliran newsletter
6 October 2024
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
I have been reading several articles about this Middle Eastern Confilict over the past 10 years. Actually we have all been blinded with the present situation but Not understanding about the History.
Another is Why the Other Arab Countries DO NOT want these Palestinians? Look at their uncouth behaviour at Wisma Transit.
There are Muslim Arabs living in Israel with all rights. Why does a POOR country ( Palestinians impression of Malaysia ) WANT to give that place and face.
We need to take care of our Rightful citizens who have contributed to Nation building or their Forefathers have with understanding of Malaysian culture , language and history.
Malaysia is overrun with illegal immigrants .