complicity

Starmer tries to make SNP Gaza ceasefire motion all about Israel’s feelings

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Article republished from the Skwawkbox for non-commercial use.

Labour amendments betray Gaza’s murdered and oppressed civilians and uses classic asymmetric language to value Palestinian life less than Israeli

Keir Starmer – after days of posing to try to bring Muslim and other decent voters onside by mouthing ceasefire language – has yet again betrayed the two million people in Gaza suffering violence and starvation and the more than 100,000 people murdered and maimed by Israel.

While the ‘mainstream’ media speculated whether Starmer would order MPs to support the SNP’s motion demanding a ceasefire, which is being debated in Parliament tomorrow, more realistic observers knew it was inevitable that Starmer would do the minimum he hopes will fool voters opposed to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, while protecting the interests of the pro-Israel right.

And so he did: Labour has tabled amendments to the original motion that gut it of its impact and has gone as far as making the motion more about Hamas’s supposed guilt and the feelings of Israel and its supporters. And the amendment uses the classic tactics of politicians and ‘mainstream’ media to present Israeli lives and suffering as more valuable than Palestinian.

In Starmer’s worldview, Palestinians are not being murdered by Israel – their lives are just ‘lost’, as if to a natural disaster and not to a campaign of mechanised mass murder. The sheer number of their deaths is presented as ‘intolerable’, but the loss of Israeli lives to Palestinian resistance is ‘horror’. Israelis have the ‘right to assurance’ against attack, but there is no mention of a Palestinian right not to be murdered by the occupation regime. Israel ‘cannot be expected’ to stop fighting if Hamas does not stop – but there is no acknowledgement that Hamas’s violence takes place against a backdrop of decades of wanton violence and oppression by the occupiers. Israel must be ‘safe and secure’ – but a Palestinian state only merits ‘viable’.

The SNP motion is an exemplar of directness and simplicity and rightly focuses on the many tens of thousands of civilians slaughtered by Israel, as well as on the forced displacement of 1.5 million Palestinians into Rafah, where they remain under constant bombardment and the threat of an all-out ground assault:

Labour’s lickspittle version calls resistance ‘terrorism’ but does not mention the Israeli terror state’s genocide and other war crimes, or the fact that so many are dying in Rafah because they were forced to cram there under bomb and bullet – and clearly hasn’t even been proofread, calling for ‘the UN Security Council to be meet urgently’:

Starmer is trying to mask his support for Israel’s war crimes and hoping that the millions in this country disgusted by that support will be fooled. His disregard for the true plight of Palestinians and his complicity in the war crimes being perpetrated against them by Israel is beyond contemptible.

Article republished from the Skwawkbox for non-commercial use. ENDS

Zionist Keir Starmer supports Israel's Gaza genocide.
Zionist Keir Starmer supports Israel’s Gaza genocide.

Zionist Keir Starmer supports Israel’s Gaza genocide.
Continue ReadingStarmer tries to make SNP Gaza ceasefire motion all about Israel’s feelings

Lula Recalls Israel Envoy Amid Escalating Clash Over Genocide Remarks

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Original article by BRETT WILKINS republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva addresses the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on February 17, 2024.  (Photo: Ricardo Stuckert via Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva/Facebook)

The Brazilian president’s move comes after the leftist leader was declared persona non grata in Israel for comparing its genocidal war on Gaza to Hitler’s extermination of Jews.

Brazil recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv for talks on Monday after Israel’s foreign minister declared Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva persona non grata for condemning the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Israeli state broadcaster Kan reported that Lula recalled Brazilian Ambassador Frederico Meyer amid the escalating row over comments the leftist leader made over the weekend in Ethiopia. The Brazilian news site Carta Capital reported that Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieria called Israeli Ambassador Daniel Zonshine for a meeting on Monday.

This, after Lula told attendees at the African Union (A.U.) summit in Addis Ababa on Sunday that “what’s happening in the Gaza Strip isn’t a war, it’s a genocide.”

“It’s not a war of soldiers against soldiers,” Lula continued. “It’s a war between a highly prepared army and women and children.”

“It is important to remember that in 2010 Brazil was the first country to recognize the Palestinian state,” he said. “What is happening in the Gaza Strip and with the Palestinian people did not exist at any other historical moment. In fact, it existed when Hitler decided to kill the Jews.”

Lula asked: “Who will help rebuild those houses that were destroyed? Who will repay the lives of 30,000 people who have died, 70,000 who are injured? Who will return the lives of the children who died without knowing why they were dying?”

According to Palestinian officials, at least 29,092 Palestinians—mostly women and children—have been killed, 69,028 wounded, and more than 7,000 others left missing and presumed dead under the rubble as a result of Israel’s 136-day assault on the besieged coastal enclave of 2.3 million people, around 90% of whom have been forcibly displaced.

Lula’s remarks were well received by A.U. summit attendees, who issued a statement condemning Israel’s “brutal” war on Gaza.

“Gaza is being completely annihilated and its people are deprived of all of their rights,” declared A.U. Commission Chair Moussa Faki Mahamat, who added that he “condemns the Israeli operation, which is unparalleled in the history of humanity.”

Mahamat underscored his support for South Africa as it leads a Gaza genocide case at the International Court of Justice, which found in a provisional ruling last month that Israel is “plausibly” committing genocide against the Palestinian people.

Israeli leaders were incensed by Lula’s remarks. Right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said da Silva had “crossed a line.”

“The words of the president of Brazil are shameful and alarming,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “This is a trivialization of the Holocaust and an attempt to harm the Jewish people and Israel’s right to defend itself.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz called Lula’s comments “shameful and grave.”

Katz summoned Meyer for a reprimand at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, where the Jewish Brazilian diplomat—whose country sent 20,000 troops to fight the Nazis in World War II—was paraded before a list of Jews killed by the Third Reich.

“We will not forget and we will not forgive,” Katz told Meyer. “In my name, and in the name of all Israeli citizens, tell President Lula that he is persona non grata in Israel until he retracts his statements.”

Persona non grata is Latin for “unwelcome person.” Legally, “it refers to the practice of a state prohibiting a diplomat from entering the country as a diplomat, or censuring a diplomat already resident in the country for conduct unbecoming of the status of a diplomat,” according to the U.S. State Department.

Celso Amorim, a former foreign and defense minister who now serves as Lula’s chief adviser for international affairs, called Katz’s declaration “absurd.”

“It only increases Israel’s isolation,” Amorim told Brazilian journalist Andréia Sadi. “Lula is sought all over the world and at the moment, Israel is persona non grata.”

Palestine defenders in Brazil and beyond embraced Israel’s rebuke of Lula. The Arab Palestinian Federation of Brazil said on social media that it’s “an honor for Lula’s biography” to be “persona non grata in the colonial occupation that calls itself a country.”

Original article by BRETT WILKINS republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Continue ReadingLula Recalls Israel Envoy Amid Escalating Clash Over Genocide Remarks

Palestine supporters in Bristol lay siege to arms company providing Israel with weapons

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/palestine-supporters-bristol-lay-siege-arms-company-providing-israel-weapons

Protesters outside the Israeli military technology company Elbit Systems’ Bristol HQ Photo: Cymru Peace Coalition

MORE than 100 Palestine supporters have laid siege to an arms company providing Israel with weapons being used to attack Gaza.

Israeli-owned Elbit Systems supplies Israel with 85 per cent of the military drones being used to attack Gaza and 85 per cent of the Israeli Defence Force’s land-based military equipment.

The weapons are produced at four Elbit factories in Britain. The company also has its headquarters offices in Bristol.

Activists mounted “peace pickets” today at Elbit’s Bristol headquarters and its factory at Aztec West in Bristol.

The action was organised by Cymru Peace Coalition.

…

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/palestine-supporters-bristol-lay-siege-arms-company-providing-israel-weapons

Continue ReadingPalestine supporters in Bristol lay siege to arms company providing Israel with weapons

With Rafah Under Siege, ICJ Reiterates Israeli Obligations Under Genocide Convention

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Original article by JESSICA CORBETT republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Palestinian children hold placards during a march demanding an end to the war and their right to live, education, and play on February 14, 2024 in Rafah, Gaza.  (Photo: Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images.

A South African leader welcomed the court’s affirmation that “the perilous situation demands immediate and effective implementation of the provisional measures” from its earlier ruling.

As Israeli forces plan a full-scale assault on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, the International Court of Justice on Friday forcefully reminded Israel that it must comply with a January order to meet its obligations under the Genocide Convention.

South Africa—which is leading the genocide case against Israel that led to six provisional measures from the ICJ last month—asked the World Court for emergency action on Tuesday in light of the Israeli plan to attack Rafah, whose population has surged to roughly 1.5 million as Palestinians have fled bombings and raids in northern Gaza.

The ICJ, which is part of the United Nations, weighed in just a day after Israel submitted its response to South Africa’s request.

“The court notes that the most recent developments in the Gaza Strip, and in Rafah in particular, ‘would exponentially increase what is already a humanitarian nightmare with untold regional consequences,'” the ICJ said Friday, quoting United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the U.N. General Assembly last week.

“This perilous situation demands immediate and effective implementation of the provisional measures indicated by the court in its order of 26 January 2024, which are applicable throughout the Gaza Strip, including in Rafah, and does not demand the indication of additional provisional measures,” the World Court continued.

“The court emphasizes that the state of Israel remains bound to fully comply with its obligations under the Genocide Convention and with the said order, including by ensuring the safety and security of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip,” the ICJ added.

https://twitter.com/MollyQuell/status/1758580075992137801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1758580075992137801%7Ctwgr%5E474f1f815d7484d425c8f262ce6155acb43a69f5%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Frafah-gaza

Clayson Monyela of South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation said on social media that his country welcomes the development.

“The court has affirmed our view that the perilous situation demands immediate and effective implementation of the provisional measures indicated by the court in its order of 26 January 2024 which are applicable throughout the Gaza Strip and has clarified that this includes Rafah,” he said.

The ICJ’s decision comes as countries including South Africa prepare to participate in hearings before the Hague-based court next week about Israel’s 57-year occupation of Palestine. South African representatives are set to present second, after the Palestinians.

Original article by JESSICA CORBETT republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Continue ReadingWith Rafah Under Siege, ICJ Reiterates Israeli Obligations Under Genocide Convention

Israeli Assault Leaves Gaza’s Nasser Hospital ‘Not Functional’

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Original article by JESSICA CORBETT republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Injured Palestinians are brought to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, Gaza on January 22, 2024.  (Photo: Belal Khaled/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The WHO “was not permitted to enter” the facility in recent days, said the agency chief, warning that “the cost of delays will be paid by patients’ lives.”

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced Sunday that the largest hospital in the southern Gaza Strip “is not functional anymore, after a weeklong siege followed by the ongoing raid” by Israeli forces.

After claiming that Hamas was using Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis for “military activity” and some hostages’ bodies may be there, the Israel Defense Forces on Thursday began raiding the facility, where around 10,000 people had sought shelter. Sources there said the IDF bombed “a ward full of patients” and multiple people who were dependent on oxygen have died due to power outages.

Tedros highlighted on Sunday that the WHO team “was not permitted to enter” the facility in recent days “to assess the conditions of the patients and critical medical needs, despite reaching the hospital compound to deliver fuel alongside partners.”

“There are still about 200 patients in the hospital. At least 20 need to be urgently referred to other hospitals to receive healthcare; medical referral is every patient’s right,” he added. “The cost of delays will be paid by patients’ lives. Access to the patients and hospital should be facilitated.”

Later Sunday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said that “150 patients who cannot move are piled inside the rooms and corridors of the old building at Nasser Medical Complex without medical care after the arrest of 70 of the complex’s management and medical staff.”

“The occupation refuses to evacuate patients for treatment in other hospitals, which endangers their lives, including seven intensive care patients, five dialysis patients, [and] three newborns in the nursery, in addition to cases of burns, amputations, quadriplegia, childbirth, and others,” the ministry added.

The IDF said on Telegram that in its operations around the facility, Israeli troops apprehended “hundreds of terrorists and other terror suspects who were hiding in the hospital, some of whom had posed as medical staff,” including alleged participants in the October 7 Hamas-led attack that led to the war.

Noting IDF claims that soldiers aimed to recover the remains of hostages believed to be in the facility, The Washington Postreported that “Israeli forces have not yet found the bodies of any hostages but said on Sunday that they discovered medicine at the hospital bearing the names of Israelis who were abducted by Hamas.”

The Israeli assault on the Hamas-governed enclave has killed nearly 29,000 Palestinians, injured over 68,800 others, devastated civilian infrastructure—including hospitals—and left most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents displaced, hungry, and at risk of disease. Global experts and critics have accused Israel of genocide, including in a South Africa-led case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

In response to IDF orders to leave northern Gaza, most residents are now crammed into the southern part of the strip. According toAl-Jazeera:

Al-Amal Hospital, the only other major medical facility still operational in Khan Younis, continues to be a target of Israeli attacks. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) on Sunday said Israeli forces targeted the third floor of the hospital with artillery fire.

The Israeli military has expanded its siege on Khan Younis and its medical facilities as it pushed further south into Rafah on the border with Egypt.

Throughout the week, people around the world including humanitarian and United Nations leaders have pressured Israel to refrain from a full-scale attack on Rafah. The ICJ on Friday echoed U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres’ warning that it “would exponentially increase what is already a humanitarian nightmare with untold regional consequences.”

Original article by JESSICA CORBETT republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Continue ReadingIsraeli Assault Leaves Gaza’s Nasser Hospital ‘Not Functional’