By: Umme Laila
The conflict between Hamas and Israel that was started on October 7 has yet not led to any ceasefire, exposing the failure of international institutions like the United Nations. Russia and Brazil presented a resolution for a ceasefire in the UNSC but the USA once again protected its ally Israel and used its right of veto in favor of Israel. It calls for the international community to rethink the Western narratives of Democracy, liberalism, and Human rights. It seems like the rule of the jungle, a war attacking counter-value targets killing innocent lives and the majority of them are children. This war provided Israel with an opportunity to cut down the number of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip through Genocide.
The war started on October 7 when Hamas, a Palestinian group controlling the administration of Gaza, launched a surprise attack on Israel killing at least 1400 Israelis. Israel retaliated by bombing the densely populated Gaza Strip resulting in the death of more than 3700 civilians. Besides living spaces, mosques, churches, and hospitals are under attack.
Palestinians are facing a complete siege with no water, electricity, gas, food, or medicines for the last two weeks. Israel has blocked the aid at the Egyptian border. Hospitals are run out of basic medical supplies and apparatus to treat a huge number of injured civilians. Doctors are operating without anesthesia. New-born are dying due to electricity shortages in incubation centers. Those who survived the bombing are going through physical and mental injuries. Using chemical weapons like phosphorus is a violation of International Law and human rights because of its irreparable damage to human health. Innocent children are being butchered like animals. Is the attack on Ahli Arab Hospital killing more than 500 civilians justified? Was it a Hamas Base? Is the attack on the Greek Orthodox Church serving as a shelter for homeless, injured Palestinians justified? More than 1,000 Children have been killed now, are they all Hamas operatives in Gaza? This is a violation of International Law and Human rights demanding a response at the global level.
This Wednesday, I got the opportunity to meet the Head of the diplomatic mission of Palestine in Islamabad. He gave a short brief about the situation in Gaza at Islamabad Policy Research Institute, Islamabad in a seminar. It’s difficult for me to describe the pain in words of a man who doesn’t know whether his family is dead or alive back in Gaza. He talked about the violation of basic human rights in Gaza. How humans are being treated like animals? How does this so-called democratic world demand human rights and independence for Ukrainians but not for Palestinians? His Excellency also shed light on the response of the Muslim world. The majority of the Muslim leaders gave unclear statements on their stance on the ongoing conflict. He doesn’t want military support from the Muslim world but only diplomatic and political support to raise voices for the resolution of this bloody game of ethnic cleansing.
The dichotomy of the Western approach to human rights and decolonization is exposed once again in front of the world. Both media and political elites are supporting Israel calling the bombing of Gaza as self-defense. The propaganda warfare is also at its peak by distorting facts to shift the sympathy towards Israel such as by calling the attack on the hospital a mistake by Hamas and showing pictures of innocent children suffering from the war in Gaza as the children of Israel. The history is repeating itself. The situation is the same in the post-colonial period when colonial masters committed genocide against brown and black people of the Eastern world but it was not recognized until practiced within European borders. Aren’t we still living in the world of colonial masters, controlling directly or indirectly?
Chances of ceasefire
The destruction caused by this deep dehumanization in Gaza would require years to rehabilitate if a ceasefire took place today. But there seems no chance of a ceasefire as the US already vetoed a resolution presented by Brazil and Russia in the UNSC. It is so unfortunate that still there is no collective strong response from the Muslim World.
The writer is a student of Strategic studies at the National Defense University, Islamabad.