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On the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, an open letter to the liberal democratic world
To the legislators and policy makers of the liberal democratic world represented by the European Union, the United States:
Seventy-five consecutive years of biased positions in favor of Israel have not ended the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. It is time to rethink our policies.
More than ten days into Israel's Hamas war, millions of Palestinian civilians in Gaza remain trapped in desperate conditions, and Hamas still holds hundreds of Israeli hostages.
I myself have experienced very many sleepless nights of tossing and turning, hot tears for all the lives lost, and a deep sense of unease about my own position. I have not been able to eat or drink.
I have seen Machiavellian statements by extreme pro-Israel groups to destroy Hamas at all costs, Nazi statements by the Israeli Defense Minister that the Palestinians are human animals, and terrorist statements by extreme pro-Palestinian groups to start a Jihad against the Jews, calling for the destruction of Israel and the deportation of all Jews to Europe and the United States.
I can deeply understand the feelings of anger and the desire for vengeance on both opposing sides of the conflict. However, extreme voices go against the values espoused in the liberal democratic world. I believe that the point of engaging in politics is to remove the pressure of decision-making brought about by these extreme voices and to find a path that will end the zero-sum game and spiral of violence.
I believe that we should abandon the position of favoritism toward Israel and adopt a position of firm defense of international law, both against Hamas terrorism, Fatah authoritarianism, and the Netanyahu government's violations of international law, whether it be the collective punishment constituted by the 17-year blockade of Gaza, or the apartheid constituted by the illegal occupation of the West Bank.
While I deeply understand the Jewish community's fear of anti-Semitism and its historic resentment of the first Middle East war. Yet I continue to believe that we should intervene in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict from a position of firm defense of international law. Without discussing morality, but only strategy, my reasons are as follows:
The double standard that the liberal democratic world upholds in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is continuing to and seriously undermining the credibility and leadership of the liberal democratic world in the Arab world and among the community of human rights defenders. The culture of impunity for violations of international law by the far-right Israeli government has made international law a non-binding document that fuels the Netanyahu government's retaliatory actions against Palestinian civilians.
As the makers of international law, we should be physically defending it, instead of this fueling anti-American and anti-European sentiment in the Arab world, which poses a serious challenge to our national security. Authoritarian states like China and Russia will also use this opportunity to attack the hypocrisy of the liberal democratic world.
So we need a policy paradigm shift. I am very disappointed by the lack of such a discussion and the continued bias in favor of Israel.
We need to unite moderate forces on both sides of the conflict, including left-wing Jews who also love Israel, and Palestinians who are willing to talk to Israel. Let their voices be heard. While moderate voices are always drowned out by extreme voices, it is our responsibility to provide a platform for these moderate, not vengeful, voices.
Let's not accuse Netanyahu of anti-Semitism because someone criticizes his government's violations of international law, or assume that all Muslims are terrorists because Muslim extremists like Hamas call for jihad.
We cannot ban peaceful demonstrations by Palestinian communities that do not attack Jewish communities.
We should respect the views of authoritative international organizations, including the United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and others.
We liberal democracies should be the defenders of international law and not condone the destruction of international law by a liberal democracy. That way authoritarian countries like China and Russia that undermine international law will catch us and look at us funny. If we liberal democracies take the lead in destroying international law, I believe liberal democracy will eventually fail.
When you fight terrorism the way terrorism is fought, when you fight violations of international law with violations of international law, you become Machiavellian and you have become no different from your enemies, the terrorists you are dealing with. The application of double standards to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is the downfall of liberal democracy.
Although I have always been a staunch supporter of liberal democracy, and my vision is a world without the existence of dictators, I have not been able to bear to criticize liberal democracy. This is because I am afraid that my criticisms of liberal democracy may instead contribute to the power of authoritarianism. However, this time, in the face of the double standards of liberal democracies with regard to human rights, I really want to say to you, as Greta Thunberg did: President Biden, Prime Minister Sunak, and European Commission President Von der Leyen, WHAT A SHAME OF YOU!
There's no comparison at all between Russia's invasion of the Ukraine and Israel's war with Hamas. The Ukrainian army did not invade Russia, nor did it deliberately kill Russian civilians, Ukraine acted in self-defense in compliance with international law, and that is why we will continue to firmly support and militarily assist Ukraine. It is unconscionable that the US and the UK should continue to militarily aid Israel when the Israeli army clearly has an overwhelming superiority over Hamas in terms of combat power! We in the liberal democratic world are responsible when this asymmetrical fighting turns into a massacre of the Palestinians!
In conclusion, I once again feel deeply the pain of all the lives that have been lost in this protracted conflict for 75 years. I am confident that our efforts will ultimately be worthy of all the lives lost. I deeply hope for Palestinian-Israeli reconciliation. Both Jews and Palestinians can live in peace on the same land. Whether the final solution to that peace is a one-state solution, a two-state solution, or a three-state solution. And the Palestinians can finally live in a liberal democratic society.
All lives matter!
22.10.2023
Note: This article was published here after attempts to submit it to numerous platforms were rejected.
Attachment:
https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org
https://www.alhaq.org/advocacy/20136.html
Israel: un rights chief calls for end to 'culture of impunity'
https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/05/1118272
“ISRAEL RESPONDS TO HAMAS CRIMES BY ORDERING MASS WAR CRIMES IN GAZA
Years of impunity for Israeli crimes against civilians have bred a culture of disregard for international law.”
https://theintercept.com/2023/10/09/israel-hamas-war-crimes-palestinians/
Israel has a horrific track record of committing war crimes with impunity in previous wars on Gaza.
Israel's collective punishment of Palestinians illegal and an affront to justice: UN expert
Israel's occupation of Palestinian Territory is 'apartheid': UN rights expert
https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/03/1114702
They also stressed that indiscriminate rocket attacks, bombing of civilian infrastructure and shelling densely populated areas constitute grave breaches of international humanitarian law, whether committed by Palestinian armed groups or by Israeli Defence Forces. They also stressed that indiscriminate rocket attacks, bombing of civilian infrastructure and shelling densely populated areas constitute grave breaches of international humanitarian law, whether committed by Palestinian armed groups or by Israeli Defense Forces.
Europe: Right to protest must be protected during latest escalations in Israel/OPT
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