By Dr. Mohammad Ghitreef*
After so much destruction in Gaza, the global conscience finally woke up and the UNSC on November 15,2023 passed a resolution to end the deadly Israeli air strikes in Gaza, yet Israel didn’t waste a minute to refuse its implementation. It is supposed globally that the decision adopted by UNSC is a binding imperative and mandatory for every member country, yet the fact of the matter is that it is not the first time Israel has defied its resolution but there are nearly 150 resolutions violated by Israel with impunity, with the brazen US connivance. Had it been any Muslim country to dare a defiance of any such resolution the world powers would have invaded it vehemently with wasting no time as they did with Iraq when the latter invaded and captured Kuwait, resulting in the first Gulf War.
Americans’ wickedness, bigotry, blind and biased support for Israel has grown so much that the whole world is crying out for the massacre of innocent children, women, and elderly people in Gaza, but the American administration believes in the Israeli stories, that Hamas has built its command centres underneath mosques, refugee camps, and hospitals. From where underground and secret activities are conducted, the United States does not even ask for any evidence from Israel.
Just by believing in Israel’s statements, Jo Biden’s administration is excusing for Israel on its unscrupulous bombardment of the Gaza and not urging Israel for an immediate ceasefire.
The whole world saw what happened in al-Shafa hospital. All the evidence that the Israeli army presented supporting their claim, Al Jazeera reporters showed that one by one they were all lies. Some weapons were secretly carried up there by the Israeli army itself in food packets to show the world as evidence of their claim and so on. The propaganda of the latter is being done by Western media and the mainstream Indian media as well. But in today’s era of social media, where can the truth be hidden, everything is coming out to the public. That the Israeli propaganda is completely false and the result is that no one in the world is ready to believe further in this propaganda. This is why the sympathies of the whole world are with Palestine today. It is a great shift in terms of opinion because war has its own dynamics, although twelve thousand people were to sacrifice their lives for this, including five thousand children and one thousand women.
The Palestine story is not complete without mentioning the dubious role of many neighbouring Arab countries.
There is no will in the neighbouring Arab or Muslim countries to escalate the conflict and engage with Israel in war. What they say publicly condemning Israel is merely lip service for the consumption of their common masses who are in rage and in the street in every country. Every country has its parochial national interest first. The Ummah is a distant dream, a delusion! And the Palestinian lives do not matter to them. It is not that they have no power, rather they have no will.
They showed their powers when it came to their national or personal hurt ego. We can cite here some recent examples to cement our stance in this regard. Some time ago when Jamal Khashoggi, an American citizen journalist of Saudi origin, was murdered inhumanly by Saudi secret agents in the Saudi Embassy in Ankara, on the behest of Bin Salman the US President Joe Biden termed Bin Salman as a “pariah”, then enraged MBS at once had decreased the daily oil production leading to collapsing of the dollar value. Then Joe Biden sent a special envoy to Riyadh placating him. Canada also has uttered some critical remarks on Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights violations, MBS threw the Canadian ambassador out of the kingdom and recalled his ambassador from Canada.
After some time, Canada also sought to restore its relations with the kingdom. Türkiye is no exception too, as it bombed Kurdish separatists in Syria and Iraq though secular Kurds have been in the American camp for a long time, Türkiye was not hesitant to do so and even in intervening in Cyprus, which has a sizable Turkish population the US or EU backlash could not deter him from intervention. So Saudi Arabia and Türkiye have the clout and power to punish Israel yet they lack the will to do that. Yet later Türkiye stopped a deal in the energy sector between her and Israel and called its ambassador also from Israel. Erdogan has dubbed Israel as a terrorist state in the Turkish parliament as well verbally and not officially. But didn’t stop her trade with Israel and supply her with oil and other commodities although some media reports are suggesting that Turkiye has asked US navy not to enter black sea. In Jordan, the parliament is thinking of reviewing its relations with the Jewish entity, they also cancelled a deal. These are symbolic gestures that cannot stop the Israeli hegemonic terror state at this time which is direly needed.
Also, many Arab and Muslim countries have no high moral position to preach to Israel as their human rights violations and suppression of the political voices of dissent is also have been reported times and again. They may participate in rebuilding Gaza and give a good deal of humanitarian aid to ruined and displaced poor Gazans, yet they have no genuine intention for the time being to stop Israel. The Vision 2030 and modernizing (read Westernizing and secularizing) Saudi Arabia are more important to MBS. They even did not cancelled Mausamur Riyaz (a concert) for that matter. It shows their apathy and audacity as well.Although there is a reconciliation between Riyadh and Tehran for the time being and Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi took initiation when he went to Riyadh and MBS also welcomed him very warmly, there is a fact that Riyadh still is suspicious and concerned about Iran’s geopolitics in the region and its proxy’s misadventures there. It is regretted to say that they are seen by Arabs as an immediate security threat greater than Israel! This is why it didn’t freeze its normalization proces with Israel only delayed it for the time being. It is highly likely to come on the table once again after the war on Gaza ended.
Now in the face of the ongoing brutal and inhuman Israeli and sanguine onslaught on Gaza, it seems that Hamas eventually may lose its control on Gaza. It could have been prevented with the build-up of greater pressure on Israel by Muslim world bodies, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately, this has not happened. So now the only way for Hamas is to opt for a long-term guerrilla war fare. The temporary and time-bound ceasefire may be helpful to reinvent its position with an easing for Gazans.
In this very critical phase of history, the PA led by President Mahmood Abbas should not stand on the wrong side of history. There may be some differences of opinion and strategy on how to face the oppressive occupation between PA and Hamas, yet after all both fully agree with the basic goal of freedom from the occupying Israel. The criminal war on Gaza is a war on all the Palestinians, hence there should be full solidarity with Gaza on the part of PA.
Palestinians have no option but to resist the aggression and to fight back the oppression with all available means, and to fight with conviction that in the end, they will prevail.
Palestine belongs to the Palestinians. There can be no compromise on it. All of which has been usurped by Israel. However, the area that remained until 1967, which is internationally recognized as the legal Palestinian territory now, includes Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Israel also nearly absorbed the West Bank with its hundreds of illegal Jewish settlements and security check posts. It had been engaged in Judaizing East Jerusalem to the core so it should lose its Islamic and Arabic character. And the establishment of a free and sovereign Palestinian state should be an unfulfilled dream forever. America and the West and unfortunately some neighbouring Arab countries also are participants in this Israeli conspiracy. And now they plan to forcefully push the Palestinians out of the area. Or, at least, to put their favorite cronies at the helm of affairs in Palestine.
It is now up to Hamas and its regional backers to guarantee that the Palestinian people have the freedom to select their representatives and will cede control of their government to whomsoever they please. Anything less than that will not be tolerated.
*Research Associate with
Idaretahzibul Akhlaq
The writer can be reached at: mohammad.ghitreef@gmail.com