“Power” is the Truth: Israelis Naked Atrocities on Palestinians
Time and again, Israel has proven the legitimacy of an old saying “might is right” and “power” is the ultimate truth for inflicting any injustice. The monumental injustice that started with imperial Britain in early 20th century is now being perpetuated by the United States. Injustice and occupation of the three million Palestinians is the heart of the problem. How can one equate the terrorism by the most powerful Israeli state with the Hamas terrorism where ordinary Palestinians are fighting for their rights and dignity with whatever means they have: stones, knives and primitive rockets?
Same old story. Out of utter frustration, hopelessness and outright injustice, the Palestinian teenagers start throwing rocks on Israeli soldiers while soldiers responding with sophisticated ammunition. Then Hamas starts firing barrage of medieval rockets on Israeli settlers in neighbouring cities which largely prove ineffective as they are successfully shielded by Israeli iron dome. Then Israelis tanks and planes start showering Palestinians and their residences with shells and missiles killing hundreds, wounding thousands, and destroying whatever buildings and structures that exist.
However, this time around there is a new twist. Arabs living in Jerusalem and inside Israeli territory have started clashing with their Jewish neighbours after forced eviction from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah. One used to wonder how come Israel could sustain its claim as being the only civilised democracy in the middle of Arab totalitarian regimes. A country with a history of occupation, oppression, illegal settlements and credential of a Jewish state while a large Arab population living amongst them. Yes, one can have it as far as there is blessing and financial support of imperial “civilized” West. Arabs, who have been living in that land for centuries, but many of them only have legal status of “residents” that highly restrict their property and other citizenry rights.
West always blame Hamas rock throwing teenagers and launching firecrackers (ancient ineffective rockets) while completely ignoring the atrocities committed by the most powerful and sophisticated weapons of destruction used by Israeli state. Even the Media building in Gaza, home of Associated Press, Al-Jazeera and other news agencies was flattened by Israeli’s precision bombing with the illusion that the World will not be able to see Israeli savageries. Is this not a war crime? What will it take UN, ICC and other international agencies to implement some justice and make Israel repay, at least a fraction for its crimes?
Psychologists have to explain how a nation (Israel) or people (Jews) who have been persecuted in history repeatedly and have gone through the hell of Holocaust as early as this century, but continues inflicting so much pain and sufferings on other human beings with no remorse.
What should one expect from others when many of Palestinians’ own Arab brethren are capitulated and competing to bow their heads in front of the highness of the Jewish state hoping to have some brighter economic future and receiving technology bonanza? And in the process, throwing Palestinians on to a fast-coming train time and again with the hope that Palestinians’ voice and their resistance will be silenced forever and Arab rulers could rule in peace without much distraction.
There was some hope that the President Biden will be different from Trump. He seemed to be receptive to human sufferings, recognises systematic racism and believes in ‘Black Lives Matter’. But then, why do Palestinians Lives Not Matter? Is colour of Palestinians blood and flesh different from other human beings? Don’t they have same feelings for pain and sufferings as others? Note that US provides four billion dollars worth of sophisticated military equipment to Israel each year to suppress a worn and demoralized Palestinian population and to allow Israel to maintain her hegemony in the region.
What is the point in helping Palestinians in construction and rehabilitation of those infrastructures which will be flattened by Israel in precise bombing any time? Israel will continue testing newly acquired military gadgets and sharpen their target practices. It would be prudent for Palestinians to live in tents and huts like nomads to avoid their property damages, beside saving their limbs and lives from barrage of Israeli military assaults.
This is a Western hypocrisy of unparalleled proportion: one cannot question Holocaust, but one can continue to insult and demean Prophet Mohammad of Islam in the name of “free speech” which rip the hearts of two-billion Muslims. If there is such a thing as “free speech,” why is it not applied universally? One can not be selective and biased while applying so-called Western moral standards. At the top, many in the West wholeheartedly believe the narrative that any criticism of Israel is tantamount to “anti-Semitism” and critics deserve to be banished or punished.
Bottom line: Israel can never be safe unless the Palestinians are safe. The present status of a democratic Jewish state with Palestinians’ occupation is a fallacy. It is Apartheid, plain and simple.
About Mahmood Iqbal
An Economist (PhD). Former Principal Economist, The Conference Board of Canada. A Retired Adjunct Professor, Carleton University, Canada. The author of “No PhDs Please: This is Canada.” Besides doing research on serious economic and policy issues for the last 25 years, like to write journalistic pieces on subjects of interest. An amateur Photographer. … Blog appears to be appropriate venue to post my wondering thoughts without any peer pressure and academic review process.
This entry was posted in Opinion and tagged Atrocities, Israel, Palestinian. Bookmark the permalink.
Originally published at http://ipotpourri.wordpress.com on May 17, 2021.
