It has been one year since the commencement of the ongoing genocide of Palestinians and 76 years of illegal occupation.
Before anything else, I condemn the acts committed on October 7, 2023. As a Muslim, condemning the acts of terror organizations is not foreign to me. Society has ripped out a condemnation from the mouths of me and every other Muslim my age for 9/11, an event that happened six years before I was born. In middle school, I had to condemn the acts of terrorist organizations to ignorant adults and explain how Muslims/Arabs are not terrorists. Despite my familiarity with this, I’m still in awe that society remains in its ignorant state, continuing to squeeze at the Muslim throat, demanding we condemn acts of terror.
But when I condemn, I do not leave room for double standards. It is absurd that a year into this warfare, people still unequivocally support all actions committed by the state of Israel— actions that are nothing short of war crimes.
The IDF has fired 355 rounds into six-year-old Hind Rajab, according to Doctors Without Borders. The IDF directed Palestinians to go to ‘safe zones’ only to bomb those very areas. Protests even erupted for the “right” to rape which Israeli lawmaker Hanoch Milwidsky defended, according to NBC News.
Yet, the West doesn’t hesitate to make excuses and defend Israel’s crimes against humanity.
Israel has thrived on propaganda, influencing Western support for its military actions. This propaganda has poisoned the minds of many, leading them to believe that dropping 70,000 tons of bombs, as reported by the nonprofit organization Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, on the Gaza Strip (which is only 25 miles long and six miles wide) is morally justified.
However, under international humanitarian law, Israel cannot legitimately claim self-defense, as they are illegally occupying Gaza, which is the official ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Therefore, Israel’s retaliation is a war crime. But so is the use of white phosphorus, according to Human Rights Watch—a chemical agent that can cause severe burns, irritation, and damage to organs like the heart, lungs, bones, etc.—that the illegal settler state often employs, yet it often goes unnoticed.
Israel has taken no accountability for the many lives it has unjustly taken.
To deepen your understanding of the Palestinian situation, follow @EyeOnPalestine on Instagram. Consider supporting events organized by the Harrisburg Palestine Coalition. Additionally, contacting Governor Josh Shapiro can help urge him to prioritize human rights in U.S. foreign policy.
