The war on Gaza places heavy moral burden on millions of people across the globe, as the world helplessly watches the awful massacres the Israeli military deals to a captive and defenseless population. The pain and anguish felt by all people of conscience is triggered, not only by the images of thousands of killed and maimed children, but equally so by the feeling of helplessness when the leaders of world powers do nothing to stop the carnage in Gaza, but instead extend unconditional financial, military, and political support to the Israeli killing machine.
Targeting civilians and taking civilian hostages is not acceptable and must be condemned regardless of who is implicated in such an act, be it Palestinian or Israeli. And the greater the number and the longer the time of their captivity the greater the condemnation and moral indignation must be. While the principle is clear, the reality and context of the attacks and counterattacks are not. The rush by Western politicians and pundits to condemn Palestinian and condone the genocide taking place in Gaza before our eyes is unjustifiable and outrageous and must be rejected. Israel’s effort to play the victim when it has for 15 years held the people of Gaza hostages in the largest open prison the world has ever known. The leaders of Western democracies cannot condemn the desperate act of Palestinians but fail to condemn the inhuman and devastating land-and-sea blockade Israel continues to impose on Gaza since 2005 with no end in sight!
As of today, Israel bombardment of Gaza resulted in the death of over 16,000 civilians, including 5,000 children, and caused over 20, 000 injuries. Half of Gazan residential neighborhoods have been reduced to rubbles, and Israel continues to prevent essential items from reaching the people of Gaza, including water, food, medicine, and fuel. This must stop and the people of Gaza should be saved from additional pain and suffering, which goes back to the day of Nakba when Zionist militias ethnic cleansed half of the Palestinian population in 1947.
What happened in the last 42 days, since Israel launched an all-out war against Gaza in retaliation to the Oct 7 attacks by Hamas has turned the world upside down. The horrific images of the brutal and inhumane attacks that constitute Israel’s collective punishment against the Palestinian people will shape the consciousness of humanity for years to come and should inspire people of conscience worldwide to work towards ending the Palestinian pain and suffering.
