ALL CHILDREN MATTER
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An act of terrorism is “an act, including but not limited to the use of force or violence and/or the threat thereof, of any person or group(s) of persons, whether acting alone or on behalf of or in connection with any organization(s) or government(s), committed for political, religious, ideological or similar purposes including the intention to influence any government and/or to put the public, or any section of the public, in fear.”
On the wake of the 7th of October, the international community has swiftly, collectively and unequivocally condemned the terrorist acts committed by Hamas (1), and it should equally condemn terrorism by the Israeli army and government that is being so brutally and ferociously aimed at civilians of Gaza for the past three weeks and is still on going. In fact, an army that describes itself as “the most moral in the world” (2) should be held to a higher standard than a terrorist group.
The current Israeli Government, formed on 29th December 2022 is notable for its inclusion of far-right politicians, the coalition consists of seven parties including Likud and Otzma Yehudit. In FP, Zach Dorfman, senior fellow at Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs said: “Otzma Yehudit, is, in fact, just the newest face of the old Kach party, the radical movement founded decades ago by the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, the most infamous Jewish extremist of the latter 20th century…by offering them a shot at government, Netanyahu is giving the stamp of approval to a party as rooted in terrorism as Hamas.?(3)
The Likud party that was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon and has led or been part of most Israeli governments since 1977.? Menachem Begin was the leader of Irgun, the political predecessor to Israel's right-wing Herut "Freedom" party, which led to today's Likud. Irgun was a Zionist militant group (a breakaway from the larger Jewish paramilitary organisation Haganah) which committed massacres against the Palestinians and Begin was described by the British government as the “leader of the notorious terrorist organisation” after the bombing of the King David Hotel.
1.1 million children of GAZA are NOT terrorists
In reality though, #Israel is committing more than terrorism but a #genocide and #ethnic-cleansing of Palestinians in #Gaza and the #West-Bank. Here is a sample of Israeli and US officials’ statements post October 7th
“It is an entire nation out there that is responsible. It is not true that this rhetoric about civilians not aware, no involved. It’s absolutely not true”- Israeli President Isaac Herzog
“The children in Gaza brought it upon themselves.” -? Israeli Kenneset member Merav Bin-Ari
“We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly” - Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant
“Do whatever it takes. Raze this place to the ground” – US senator Lindsey Graham
“You can’t coexist- they have to be eradicated” – US Senator Marco Rubio
To date, in Gaza: at least 8,005 were killed including 3,324 children, 2,062 women and 29 journalists. There are at least 20,242 injured, 6,801 are children.? 1830,00 residential units damaged, 221 educational facilities, and 38 places of worship completely destroyed by the Israeli bombing including the historic Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza. (4)?
Israel ordered hospitals to evacuate putting patients’ lives at risk, including babies in incubators and patients in ICU units. The WHO documented more than 72 attacks on health care in the Gaza Strip affecting 34 health care facilities (including 19 hospitals damaged) and 24 ambulances. (5)
Israel bombed Al Ahli Hospital killing more than 470 people on 17th October. The Palestinian Anglican Archbishop Hosam Naoum, who oversees and runs Al Ahli hospital, said that the Israeli military had called and texted hospital managers at least three times since Oct. 14, asking its patients and staff to leave the hospital compound. (6)
Israel is now claiming Al Shifa Hospital is used as a Hamas base which Dr Mads Gilbert, the Norwegian humanitarian doctor working in Gaza has said that he has never seen anything during times of war or peace that looks like or function as a command centre in the hospital.(7)
Dr Gilbert also reported the alarming threat from Israel to bomb Al Quds Hospital. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has announced that Israeli strikes on Sunday 29th Oct damaged sections in the packed Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City, after receiving two phone calls from the Israeli military to evacuate. A video the Red Crescent posted on X, formerly Twitter, of the hospital following the strikes shows rooms covered in debris and dust and the windows blown out. People covered their noses and mouths, panicking as they tried to leave the hospital with their children. (8) It is worth noting that the humanitarian doctor describes the situation saying “Gaza makes hell look like a tea party”
Cutting off electricity, food, water, and fuel supplies to the people of Gaza is #collective-punishment and a #war-crime and must also be condemned in the strongest possible manner. It is good to see that there are Israeli voices who see this for what it is. The Ex-Israeli Peace Negotiator Daniel Levy, in an interview with the BBC, said: “Can someone credibly tell me that when a leadership of a country says, ‘We are cutting off??food, electricity, water, all supplies to an entire civilian population,’ that they are targeting militants?” He further commented that the USA must change course to end Israel's impunity toward Palestinians. (9)
Amira Hass the only Israeli Jewish journalist to have spent 30 years living in and reporting from Gaza and the West Bank says: “The Israeli government is carrying on the political program of the extreme fascist, messianic, religious, right-wing — settler right-wing party led by Bezalel Smotrich, who already, in 2017, said that he has a plan for Palestinians. They have three options; he told the Palestinians. You either give in and accept that you will never have a state, you will never be free, you will never have your right for self-determination materialized, and then you can live as a fifth-rate, sixth-rate, whatever, individuals in this —?in Israel. The second option for you is to emigrate, as we call sometimes by transfer, by willing — wilful transfer, expulsion by consent. And the third option, if you don’t agree to give in and if you don’t agree to emigrate and you resist, the Israeli army will know what to do with you. And this is what is happening now both in Gaza and the West Bank. Israel is carrying out the plan, the political plan, of these extreme fascist settlers, colonizing right wing.”(10)
Today, in Gaza, we are witnessing a continuation of the 1948 Nakba. Illan Pappe says: “Palestine was destroyed in 12 months - but the Nakba has gone on for 75 years” . In the quotes that follow, Ilan Pappe describes the crimes in gruesome detail. (11)
Illan Pappe documents that “since June 1967, one million Palestinians have been imprisoned at least once in their lives. And with imprisonment, come abuse, torture and permanent detention without trial.” … “It is not always easy to stick to your moral compass, but if it does point north – towards decolonization and liberation – then it will most likely guide you through the fog of poisonous propaganda.” Each year?approximately 500-700 Palestinian children, some as young as 12 years old, are detained and prosecuted in the Israeli military.
The UN independent human rights experts?called on all parties?to the conflict in Gaza and Israel to respect the ceasefire and urged an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into the attacks on civilian populations and other “gross violations of human rights”, according to a statement released through the UN rights office (OHCHR). (12)
Dr Gabor Mate, the Jewish holocaust survivor describes the situation as “the longest ethnic cleansing operation in the 20th and 21st century”.
Gideon Levy had in the past said “I don’t recall one occupation which the occupier present itself as the victim, not only the victim but the only victim . If to quote here the late Golda Ma’ir, she once said we will never forget the Arabs for forcing us to kill their children; we are the victims, we are forced to kill their children, poor us. And as the victim and only victim in history, again it enables us the right to do whatever we want, and nobody will tell us what we can do because we are the only victim.” (13)
The first step of healing and recovery is diagnosis. We need more honest voices all over the world that would speak the truth about the #Palestinian-suffering, but more than ever, we need these voices to come out of Israel, and then and only then the path to peace can be safely trodden.
All human lives matter, the innocent Israeli lives lost on 7th October and the Palestinian lives lost since then and before then. They all matter.
Is killing A Palestinian Child every ten minutes an act of Self-Defence?? (14)
It is not a question of being pro-Israel or pro-Palestine! At this point of history, it is whether you are pro-humanity, or not? #Genocide happens when people tell themselves it is #too-complicated to understand, accept #dehumanisation of the other, or say “it’s not my place to say something”. Every one of us has the #moral-duty as a #human-being to preserve #human-life, to stand up for the propaganda that says that innocent civilians are terrorists, they are NOT.
All of the above does not matter, talking politics now is a distraction, it is like trying to revise for your annual exam one day before the test. All of this is too late and does not matter right now! What truly matters now is to #CEASE-FIRE and get #Humanitarian-Aid, and move towards #Peace.
The only thing that matters right now is the 1.10 million children of Gaza(15)
All of them,
the 3,324 who were killed,
the ones killed at 1 days old, before having a birth certificate,
the ones killed as they were crawling,
the ones killed as they were sleeping,
the ones killed as they were playing,
the ones who were killed in the hospital bombing,
the one who were killed as they were eating,
the ones killed before they had their meal,?
the ones killed as they were being funny, naughty, happy, silly, bored, cheeky!
the 6,801 who were injured,
the ones who suffered amputated limbs,
the ones who suffered fourth degree burns,
the ones who were operated on with no aesthetic,
the ones who are still lost, under the rubble unable to cry or crying but to no avail,
the ones who stayed alive under the rubble for days before losing their hold of life,
the ones buried in mass graves,
the one buried under the homes,
the ones who are hungry,
the ones who are thirsty,
the ones who suffered a loss, ?
the ones who lost their siblings,
the ones who lost mums,
the ones who lost their dads,
the ones who lost their entire family,
the ones who will live with lifelong trauma,
the ones who wrote their names on their limbs and abdomen so they could be identified if they were bombed to pieces,
the ones playing dead as this is what they see everyday,
the ones whose mums write their names on them so they would be identified if the bombing turns them dismembered,
the babies who aren’t getting their milk,
the toddler who aren’t exploring,
the ones woken up from their sweet dreams by Israeli war planes,
the one who’ve never known peace, ??
the ones born into this hell on earth,
the embryos killed before they had their first cry,
the babies just born – saved from mothers that were killed in the bombing,
the ones that lost their homes, toys, books, and familiar places,
the ones who lost their dreams and future,
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They are, every one of them is a stain on our conscience.
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#CEASE-FIRE and get #Humanitarian-Aid, stop this madness today.
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(1)
Reports of rape and beheading children were not supported by forensic/medical evidence or refuted, and Hamas denied these allegations, also there are reports of Israeli civilians killed in the crossfire between Hamas and the Israeli army.
What We Know About Three Widespread Israel-Hamas War Claims
CNN: Israeli official says government cannot confirm babies were beheaded in Hamas attack
Israeli forces shot their own civilians, kibbutz survivor says
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(2)
This claim that the Israeli army is the ‘most moral in the world’ has been strongly contested by human rights bodies and international institutions in their analysis of recent military engagements in the West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon. Yet at the same time, many in Israel believe this claim, including the general public, military personnel and politicians; Ethics as a Weapon of?War; Militarism and Morality in?Israel
Former Israeli Soldiers Tell of Harassment of Palestinians
This ex Israeli soldier explains how they harass Palestinians
Former Israeli soldiers disclose routine mistreatment of Palestinian children
Israel / Palestine; Trauma with Dr. Gabor Maté (2021)
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(3)
FP- Netanyahu’s Far-Right Partners Were Birthed by U.S. Terrorists
HAARTEZ - Testimonies From the Censored Deir Yassin Massacre: 'They Piled Bodies and Burned Them'
HAARETZ- Historian on King David Hotel Bombing: 'It Was an Act of Terror'
Indoctri(nation) - What Average Israelis Think of Arabs
I picture a dead Arab”: In disturbing video, Israeli children’s words echo indoctrination
Israeli students say they want to kill Arabs as teacher promotes hatred
‘They Came Here to Attack Arabs.’ Welcome to Life in Israel’s ‘Mixed Cities’
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(4)
Gaza killed and injured children 2023
Orthodox Church destroyed after huge explosion in Gaza
Israel-Hamas war in maps and charts live tracker – more than 8,000 Palestinians killed
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(5)
Evacuation orders by Israel to hospitals in northern Gaza are a death sentence for the sick and injured
New analyses suggest Israeli artillery shell responsible for al-Ahli Hospital blast
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领英推荐
(6)
WHO statement on attack on Al Ahli Arab Hospital and reported large-scale casualties
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NY Times - What We Know About the Explosion at the Hospital in Gaza
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(7)
CNN Arabic – Al Shifa Hospital, Dr Mads Gilbert
(8)
Dr Mads Gilbert reveals Israel's alarming threat to bomb Al-Quds Hospital
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The Israeli occupation forces deliberately continue to launch rockets directly near Al-Quds hospital
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(9)
Daniel Levy on BBC World News (October 11th)
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“Step Back from the Brink”: Ex-Israeli Peace Negotiator Daniel Levy Decries Israel’s Actions in Gaza
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Israel-Hamas war: A third of Gaza hospitals shut due to lack of fuel as Pope Francis renews call for aid
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Israel-Hamas war: UN calls for more aid to be allowed into Gaza amid 'collective punishment' blockade
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Israel Still Blocking Aid to Civilians in Gaza
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Amnesty International: Israel must lift illegal and inhumane blockade on Gaza as power plant runs out of fuel
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Israel’s Collective Punishment of Gaza is a Crime
Israel Can’t Imprison Two Million Gazans Without Paying a Cruel Price
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(10)
Israeli Journalist Amira Hass: How Can the World Stand By and Witness Israel's Slaughter in Gaza?
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Israeli Journalist Amira Hass, Daughter of Holocaust Survivors, Calls for Gaza Ceasefire Now
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(11)
Western Silence Needs to be Confronted: Ilan Pappe on the Nakba, Gaza and Inclusive Solidarity
?My Israeli Friends: This is Why I Support Palestinians – ILAN PAPPE
?Nakba Fact Sheet
?Palestine was destroyed in 12 months - but the Nakba has gone on for 75 years
Tantura documentary
Israel’s hard-line stance - Palestinian children tried in military courts | DW Documentary
Number of Palestinian Children (12-17) in Israeli Military Detention
Statistics on Palestinian minors in Israeli custody
(12)
Ceasefire can’t hide scale of destruction in Gaza, UN warns, as rights experts call for ICC probe
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(13)
Jewish doctor speaks out on Israel and Palestine
Russell brand interviewed Gabor Mate to speaks about Palestine and Israel
Gideon Levy: Israel has no clue what it’s doing in Gaza
Gideon Levy: An Alternative That Could Lead To Peace In Israel amp; Gaza | Listen To Israeli Journalist Gideon Levy
Gideon Levy: The Zionist Tango: Step Left, Step Right
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(14)
David Hearst: Israel amp; The Myth of Self Defence
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(15)
“Don’t be scared, father” - A moment between a Palestinian boy and his father in Gaza hospital
Gaza children are having a difficult time dealing with the horror that Israel has been inflicting.
CNN Arabic- 6-year-old boy was holding his mom's hand to go make a sandwich -- then the airstrikes hit
CNN Arabic- Children with no parents – victims of the Israeli strikes on Gaza
British girl trapped in Gaza: I'm scared of dying in a bomb
Gazans rescue children under rubble as bombing ensues
British children trapped in Gaza describe seeing bombs and dead people
Gaza hospitals overwhelmed; children injured and killed in Israeli bombing
Palestinian child witnessed the bombing
Palestinian child is dug out from beneath rubble following airstrike
‘Don’t be afraid, Dad is coming’: Gaza children awakened by explosions amid Israeli air strikes
Moment Palestinian doctor is forced to identify son killed in airstrike while on shift| ITV News
CNN: Videos show impact of strikes on children in Gaza
Gazan mother breaks down after losing three children in Israeli strike
I want to go home. A crying child who survived an Israeli bombing
"I want Mum" a chilling scene of a little girl searching for her mother among the injured
Baby: mum was martyred and he emerged from her womb alive
Gaza Children
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1 年If you get a chance for a quick read of my article, then want to understand more, maybe spare a couple of hours this weekend to watch this calm, explanatory, balanced conversation. It is a brilliant interview. Piers Morgan vs Bassem Youssef Round 2 | Two-Hour Special Interview https://youtu.be/rqjO5Z9Lt_M?feature=shared
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