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This thread is for any “breaking news” bulletins concerning the crisis in Gaza that could be of interest to readers of the Craig Murray blog.
Please post any urgent news stories or updates here, rather than in the comments section under Craig’s articles. If you want to cite the story in an ongoing conversation there, you should link to the corresponding reply in this forum thread.
Waking up to a new day only to find out that Israel have struck even more hospitals, including a children’s hospital!
The Israeli army has targeted the entrance of al-Nasr Children’s Hospital in western Gaza City
Israel is on par with the nazis in their fanatical racism and callous attitude to human life. I just repeating myself but how can people with power be silent over this? How?
Watch US protestors physically hang onto the side of a US military ship that’s loaded with weapons bound for Israel in order to stop it from leaving the port.
Looks like Russian/Israeli relations could deteriorate, and this could among one of the reason.
“Israel’s relationship with Russia is deteriorating after it was revealed that MOSSAD had sent intelligence officers to Ukraine prior to Oct 7 Hamas attack to help Ukraine on planning attacks on Russian troops.”
Support for the Palestinians is growing.
“The Algerian parliament voted unanimously to support the Palestinian resistance to Israel’s war on Gaza. The decision to enter the war or not is with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.”
https://nitter.net/MintPressNews/status/1720498794259747295#m
Algerians know a thing or two about fighting off oppressive colonialism.
https://nitter.net/Kathleen_Tyson_/status/1719694622442537021#m
It is absurd that almost after 1 month of non-stop bombing one read statements by the arab states and US and it is like they are from the first day of the fighting. Nothing will move them.
Israel ‘committing war crimes’ in Gaza, Jordan FM says
“We don’t accept that this is self-defence,” Safadi said, calling for an immediate ceasefire. “It cannot be justified under any pretext and it will not bring Israel security, it will not bring the region peace.”
Following meeting with Arab leaders, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says “we remain resolutely committed and focused on securing the release of hostages held by Hamas”.
Blinken says the US believes the status quo of a Hamas-controlled Gaza cannot continue and he discussed with his Arab counterparts how to chart a better path forward towards a two-state solution.
Note also that Blinken is (only) commited to release hostages in Gaza, not stopping the genocide and not commited to release any palestinians in israeli prisons.
Remember the Gaza workers that disapeared in Israel after 7th of october?
Thousands of Gaza workers go ‘missing’ in Israel amid wartime mass arrests
Palestinians whose permits to work in Israel were revoked are believed to be held in detention camps, but Israel has so far refused to release information about them, human rights groups say.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/28/thousands-of-gaza-workers-go-missing-in-israel-amid-wartime-mass-arrests
Now some of them have been released and they speak of humiliating torture and inhumane and sadistic violent treatment by Israel, atleast one of them was murdered in jail. These workers had no ties whatsoever to Hamas, still they were jailed and collectively punished just because they are from Gaza!See all consequtive posts/videos and their testimonies:
https://nitter.net/muhammadshehad2/status/1720539190402670871#m
Imagine the horror of being confined for almost 1 month and coming back to Gaza only to find your house, wife, kids all slaughtered.
this is a Palestine protest English stlye
Massive pro-Palestine protest in Liverpool Street Station, London. pic.twitter.com/4gU4c8mNAZ
— Clash Report (@clashreport) October 31, 2023
this is Berlin style
SIde A
Rund 200 Studenten haben sich am Freitag vor der @FU_Berlin versammelt, um für Palästina zu demonstrieren. Sie verurteilen den Krieg in #Gaza als „Völkermord“. Auch ein kleiner Gegenprotest formte sich schnell. pic.twitter.com/nm5rGCozqQ
— Berliner Zeitung (@berlinerzeitung) November 3, 2023
Side B
An der @FU_Berlin versammeln sich aktuell Studierende für eine Pro-Palästina-Kundgebung. In Flyern wird die Universitäts-Leitung aufgefordert, eine Erklärung abzugeben, die „den Krieg gegen #Gaza als Völkermord“ und #Israel als „Apartheid“ bezeichnet. pic.twitter.com/6HpIt0iIvO
— Berliner Zeitung (@berlinerzeitung) November 3, 2023
aspects I don´t know much about:
“China and Israel have enjoyed serious ties. What happens now? – Beijing, in an effort at neutrality, has called for a ceasefire and protection of civilians in the Gaza war.”
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/china-israel/
But being this by RS I am naturally cautious.
“We know that Beijing wants to prevent the escalation of the crisis, but I do not think that it has enough instruments to defuse the crisis,” said Nurettin Akçay, of the Center for Global Studies at Shanghai University. He explained that China’s limited leverage over Israel is a major obstacle to Beijing successfully de-escalating this conflict through diplomatic means. “It is my belief that China’s position in the Middle East is somewhat overstated. Its actual power to shape events in the region is quite limited, despite its economic clout. The ongoing crisis has highlighted the fact that China lacks the necessary hard power to pursue its objectives,” he told RS.”
“Nasrallah & the Future of the War”
“The Hizbullah leader all but made it clear that a larger war is inevitable but he did not want to be the one to announce it.”
by As`ad AbuKhalilas most of his pieces, interesting:
“The expectations for Hizbullah leader Hasan Nasrallah’s speech on Friday were very high; even the U.S. National Security Council’s spokesperson at the White House admitted that they too were awaiting the speech. In the Arab world there was anticipation or a general wish that Nasrallah would declare an official entry into the larger war, thereby igniting a regional conflict that would change the shape of the Middle East.”
“Hizbullah, unwisely, increased expectations by releasing video teasers showing Nasrallah walking or seated. Israelis and much of the world were holding their breaths. Lebanese were nervous but hopeful that Nasrallah would take their plight into consideration.”
“Hizbulllah is the first Arab political party, or even state if we add them to the mix, which devotes energy and resources to engage in psychological warfare against the Israelis. The PLO had no notion of that, and the speeches of its leaders (and of Arab leaders) were bombastic and emotional and did not rely on a base of military power and preparedness. Nasrallah is an expert on Israel; he spends hours reading about Israel and its politics and military.”
“Nasrallah must have felt enormous pressure before the speech. For a leader who uniquely (in the history of Arab leaders and of Israel) makes decisions on the basis of a cost-benefit analysis, Nasrallah’s hands were a bit tied in Lebanon.”“Weeks before Nasrallah’s speech, journalists on the payroll of Gulf regimes and journalists who work for media funded by NATO governments and George Soros came together and promoted a petition rejecting the war between Lebanon and Israel, insisting that Lebanon is too fatigued to participate in a war against Israel. Money was mysteriously made available for those people to buy billboards sending the same message: that Hizbullah should keep Lebanon out of the war.”
“The movement did not spread much, but it registered with people who are worried about their living conditions, in the wake of the economic collapse and the elimination of people’s life savings. It did not help that Israeli leaders make weekly threats that they would turn Lebanon back to the pre-industrial age or that they would threaten to eliminate Lebanon altogether.”
Just came here to say thank you to all of you guys for filling up this thread. I have no other way to find out this news other than to read what you have collected from different parts of the Internet. Highly appreciated.
Thanks also to the moderators for creating this discussion thread.
And my thanks to Jack, whose activism apparently prompted the creation of this thread. And perhaps sympathy too? It seems Jack’s activity also led to moderator restrictions.
Jack, if you are reading this, then I send you warm greetings from Russia and ask you not to be upset. I hope you can find an acceptable compromise between your activism and the commenting rules. Best regards!Let me make a small contribution to this thread.
The Russian news agency, citing the Kan radio station, reports today that Netanyahu has suspended Amichai Eliyahu from participating in government meetings.
Amichai Eliyahu is the Minister of Heritage (!) He spoke about the possibility of dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza in an interview with the Kol Berama radio station. In addition, he spoke out against allowing any humanitarian aid into the enclave. He said Israel would not “hand over humanitarian aid to the Nazis” and “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza.”
Eliyahu is a member of the nationalist Zionist Otzma Yehudit (Powerful Israel) party, led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, known for his controversial anti-Palestinian attacks. The party’s ideology denies the possibility of creating a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River.
sources:
Russian Info Agency
https://ria.ru/20231105/gaza-1907565772.html
Radio Kan in English
Tweets by kan_english
—-
There’s some hope for Palestinians, I think. At least some chance for settling the conflict. I believe that Netanyahu’s move to exclude mad dogs from government meetings is a good sign.The Times of Israel also reports on the Heritage Minister
<b>Far-right minister: Nuking Gaza is an option, population should ‘go to Ireland or deserts’</b>
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/far-right-minister-nuking-gaza-is-an-option-population-should-go-to-ireland-or-deserts/
…He backs retaking the Strip’s territory and restoring the settlements there. Asked about the fate of the Palestinian population, he says:
“They can go to Ireland or deserts, the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves.”
He says the northern Strip has no right to exist, adding that anyone waving a Palestinian or Hamas flag “shouldn’t continue living on the face of the earth.”
—
Ireland must be more than happy to know that someone in Israel has plans for them to make room to give space to the Palestinians, so that Israel can take the territories for itself.when I visited Ireland as a high schooler I was told the country was short of men, 70% of the population being female.
So the Israelis do have a point.* * *
More serious,Chris Hedges with his latest piece and some nice fun facts on Netanyahu
(I am everything but a Rabin fan, a war criminal like all of them, but there is always someone even worse I guess):“Israel’s Final Solution for the Palestinians
When Jewish extremists, fanatic Zionists, religious zealots, ultranationalists and crypto-fascists in the apartheid state of Israel say they want to wipe Gaza off the face of the earth, believe them.”
https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/israels-final-solution-for-the-palestiniansp.s. however I personally disagree with using terms like “final solution” simply because it being so serious a matter that it´s inadequate for rhetoric use. And argueing in favour of Nazis, extermination even is not equal to executing that. Lets keep separate deed and word. But Hedges as always and nonetheless highly recommended
excerpt:
“I covered the birth of Jewish fascism in Israel. I reported on the extremist Meir Kahane, who was barred from running for office and whose Kach Party was outlawed in 1994 and declared a terrorist organization by Israel and the United States. I attended political rallies held by Benjamin Netanyahu, who received lavish funding from rightwing Americans, when he ran against Yitzhak Rabin, who was negotiating a peace settlement with the Palestinians. Netanyahu’s supporters chanted “Death to Rabin.” They burned an effigy of Rabin dressed in a Nazi uniform. Netanyahu marched in front of a mock funeral for Rabin.Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated on Nov. 4, 1995 by a Jewish fanatic. Rabin’s widow, Lehea, blamed Netanyahu and his supporters for her husband’s murder.
Netanyahu, who first became prime minister in 1996, has spent his political career nurturing Jewish extremists, including Avigdor Lieberman, Gideon Sa’ar, Naftali Bennett, and Ayelet Shaked. His father, Benzion — who worked as an assistant to the Zionist pioneer Vladimir Jabotinsky, who Benito Mussolini referred to as “a good fascist” — was a leader in the Herut Party that called on the Jewish state to seize all the land of historic Palestine. Many of those who formed the Herut Party carried out terrorist attacks during the 1948 war that established the state of Israel. Albert Einstein, Hannah Arendt, Sidney Hook and other Jewish intellectuals, described the Herut Party in a statement published in The New York Times as a “political party closely akin in its organization, methods, political philosophy and social appeal to Nazi and Fascist parties.
“The left is no longer capable of overcoming the toxic ultra-nationalism that has evolved here,” Zeev Sternhell, a Holocaust survivor and Israel’s foremost authority on fascism, warned in 2018, “the kind whose European strain almost wiped out a majority of the Jewish people.” Sternhell added, “[W]e see not just a growing Israeli fascism but racism akin to Nazism in its early stages.”
Thank you so much for your kind words Tatyana, yes I guess we have to share links here instead, not optimal but it is what it is.
Jack, just to let you know, in my personal system you get the codename Alexander Matrosov 🙂 thank you for your sacrifice
Irish foreign minister ratcheting up a notch Ireland’s criticism of Israeli actions in Gaza stating “We certainly could be watching war crimes unfolding,” Mr Martin told RTÉ’s This Week programme on Sunday.
Also, in the same piece:
“There is “no evidence” that Ireland’s stance on the war in Gaza has led to Israel blocking Irish citizens from leaving the enclave,….”Enough people had questioned that aspect for the Irish government to make some kind of statement about it. I had asked that in this post in a different thread:
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2023/11/a-textbook-case-of-genocide/comment-page-2/#comment-1049160Just to complicate things a little further one of the hostages taken by Hamas is an eight year old irish girl.
https://archive.ph/E7EC5/again?url=https://www.irishtimes.com/world/middle-east/2023/11/05/emily-hand-believed-killed-by-hamas-now-thought-to-be-alive-in-gaza-her-irish-father-says/I guess diplomacy must tread carefully.
Dang it. Sorry mods, forgot this forum treats links differently from main forum. And thanks for the spelling corrections in other posts. It was a typo, I swear….
JACK
you had asked about German law and protest/no protest.
There is a shorter German language legal text from, I guess, a “conservative” constitutional blog (but most legal blogs of that kind would be conservative; as the law is state-affirming, it must be).
It´s more a summary with the legal minutes hyperlinked.
“Pro-Palestine as an imminent danger?
On the erosion of the right of assembly in heated times”https://verfassungsblog.de/pro-palastina-als-unmittelbare-gefahr/
protest:
The only safe ground for prohibiting protest in advance is the threat to public order and security. But even for “order” there are limits as of late. (Every such law can have variations since the FRG is just that a federation of states with certain liberties.)In particular cases the state or police force is supposed to enforce the law only on location if it sees it as fit and necessary (as has happened with assumed affirmation of Hamas´ attacks during actual demonstrations.)
City administrations have therefore adopted general prohibitions.
The prohibition in advance makes necessary for the administration to offer/deliver an estimate of the potential threat/danger posed by a protesting group based on potential prior protests by those groups asking for public protest permits.
This way the city administrations avoids being pressed into actually judging the political details of each case in regards of the broader political context and situation (e.g. what would happen if at the same time UN-SC would unanimously convict Israel of war crimes?).
The article argues apparently the state bodies seem to have difficulties in judging those political points right now.
(vulgo: The people working in the administrations either are uninformed about Palestine, or KNOW it’s “complicated” in their view, or are afraid to cause major trouble since they feel overwhelmed in general with their workload. It would be interesting to know if police forces strained by one conflict, e.g. climate protests, would lead to more severe ruling in other areas since there are limited police forces at one´s disposal.)
As to Shoah: There is a stately “reasoning” to show solidarity but no binding legal ruling.
from the abstract of a linked study 2023:
“Since Angela Merkel’s speech to the Knesset in 2008, Israel’s security and existence have been part of Germany’s raison d’être. The article examines the question of legal implications and comes to the conclusion that there are almost none: The commitment to Israel’s existence and security as Germany’s raison d’état is a political measure and not a right. As such, it is subject to the law and only exists within its boundaries, although this makes it more effective in many respects, and certainly more flexible.”
There is a “Deutsche Welle” summary of various legal views also linked. So nothing revolutionary there. However, they all agree that the above-mentioned “raison d’état” is not real or binding.
The best comment states why:
“(…)
“Possible collision of the German “raison d’état” with international lawThe application of “reason of state” gives priority to a state interest – which in turn could collide with international law. “There is no hierarchy in international law,” said Joost Hiltermann, MENA Program Director at the International Crisis Group, in an interview with DW. “Whatever Germany may say about its intrinsic right to stand with Israel does not absolve it from its responsibility to respect and uphold international humanitarian law, which regulates the means of warfare.”
If Israel were to violate international law in the pursuit of its security interests, Germany would quickly find itself in a difficult legal situation. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly made it clear that Israel must abide by international law.
(…)”This is the reason, as I said days ago that Scholz MUST claim that Israeli actions are legal. If not he would have to draw consequences as can be seen in South America or potentially Ireland (?).
Germany is dragging its feet.
Now as I said this sentiment is not entirely hypocrisy by Scholz´ generation of Germans or older.
That the view is inconsistent does not mean it can not be part of their private ethical verdicts.Which again proves in my view that the “knowledge base” of this conflict and its history in Germany is utterly distorted and distorting.
re: antisemitism (StGB = criminal law):
“(…)
Criminal law initially sets the limits for expressions of opinion at gatherings. Reference should be made here, for example, to the chain references in § 140 StGB, to incitement of the people according to § 130 StGB, with the special feature of denying the Holocaust as a non-“general law” within the meaning of Art. 5 Para. 2 GG. The criminal liability of anti-Semitic statements would also be such a “special right” within the meaning of Article 5 of the Basic Law, as emphasized by the Wunsiedel decision of the Federal Constitutional Court. Insult under Section 185 of the German Criminal Code (StGB) comes into consideration in this context, as does the burning of state flags. The criminal liability of flag burning was considerably extended in 2020 by Section 104 (1) sentences 2 and 3 StGB and even extends to the symbolic act of burning a flag owned by the perpetrator.
(…)”Now of course this would bring us back to the delicate matter of the legally binding definition of “anti-semitic” in German law and how that correlates with Israeli government policy.
But I would have to look into that some other time.
—
[ Mod: AG, I appreciate this new approach to separating news from views isn’t immediately intuitive, but your contribution really belongs in the BTL comments section – because it consists primarily of original content and is arguing for a personal opinion, with quotations cited in support of your own position.The “breaking news” thread is intended for the kind of opinionless news bulletins – consisting mainly of a headline and a link, sometimes with a quoted excerpt – that were being interspersed between the conversations under Craig’s articles with increasing frequency (and arguably disrupting the flow of reasoned arguments that actually belong there).
I hope the distinction will become easier to grasp as more examples are posted. ]
Norman Finkelstein with a long response after Bernie Sanders on CNN opposed a cease-fire
https://normanfinkelstein.substack.com/p/a-response-to-senator-bernie-sanders(transcript or video 40 min.)
Intro:
“RUSH TRANSCRIPT
My name is Norm Finkelstein. I heard Bernie Sanders’ statement this evening opposing the ceasefire. I had planned to spend this evening reading, as I’ve fallen dreadfully behind in my reading and unless I keep reading, I can’t bring anything fresh and important to what’s happening now. I was so furious at that remark of Bernie’s, when he said he opposed the ceasefiree and my innards started to writhe and I decided I had to respond. Now this is wholly unrehearsed.”
p.s. this Sanders stunt could cost the Democrats some votes next year.
@Mod: What would you suggest:
If I post an entire German piece machine-translated by me (or at least a major chunk so readers get the gist) as this one:
https://verfassungsblog.de/solidaritat-mit-israel-aber-kein-blankoscheck/however without a longer verdict of my own, do that here or rather under the blog entry?
It is again a German lawyers´ assessment of the situation at hand important as a “counter-view” (that´s my major concern right now.)
—
[ Mod: Yes, that would be essentially just an external link (with a very lengthy passage translated from it as evidence of what can be found there) – so it should be posted in this forum thread rather than in the article comments. ]Hi AG..Yes I’ve got the video Up…Watched the first 15 mins.. So need to get back to it..Norman was great last night on George Galloway too.
Right! I totally forgot about him talking to Galloway.
The second day I try to make out what is the video you mention. Someone says Mr. Murray was on the Grayzone, another person says Mr. Murray speaks with Mr. Galloway. I wish someobody posted the link. Seems we are in the right place for posting the links.
Yesterday’s episode of The Mother Of All Talk Shows (TMOATS), featuring Norman Finkelstein and Craig Murray, can be found here: Episode 288 (5 Nov 2023) – YouTube, 2h 10m 10s
00:30:50 Prof. Norman Finkelstein
01:30:00 Hon. Craig Murraythis is a good example for how dumb a nice educated fellow can be:
Robert Wright from Non-Zero podcast talks to Daniel Seidemann
“Can Israel-Palestine Be Solved?”, 87 min.
https://nonzero.substack.com/p/can-israel-palestine-be-solved-robert#detailsCV Seideman, attorney from Jerusalem with ties to the Ehud Barak government and Cornell University among others
https://t-j.org.il/about-terrestrial-jerusalem/bios/I was just listening to 1:00:00-1:20:00
example: He once conversed over Hiroshima and Nagasaki with a later US Air Force General. He was stunned to hear the man argue that Hiroshima was no war crime but Nagasaki was. He can well be stunned and I don´t expect him to insult the General during their conversation, neither would I, but in hindsight, please reconsider. On that note Seideman says: Israel of course has no choice but to attack now. This guy surely must know the facts on the ground there. (Or DOES he?). And still no doubts.
The TC stamps are:
2:38 The significance of Jerusalem in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
12:41 Will the current crisis explode into a wider war?
17:02 Israel’s ultra-nationalist minister of national security
26:13 Settler attacks intensify in the West Bank
40:15 The two-state solution is dead—can it be revived?
56:23 Has Israel lost the support of western young people?
1:03:47 What Hamas hoped to accomplish on October 7
1:14:35 How hopelessness drives support for Hamas
1:23:02 Can one-state aspirations produce a two-state solution?Justin..Thanks for Filtering that for our Friend Tatyana..Cheers
following Finkelstein´s and JACK´s traces of the “Martyrdom” study – “Operation Cast Lead” was followed by “Pillar of Defense” 2012. That was initiated by the assassination of Hamas truce negotiator Ahmad Jaabari. As Finkelstein says, the killing occured a few hours before the longterm cease-fire was to be signed. This would have confronted PM Netanyahu at that time with a peaceful sit. which he does not like.
The article suggesting that killing Jaabari was to sabotage the peace is written by his then Israeli counterpart Gershon Baskin. This is also quoted in Finkelstein´s book.
The article archived here, originally on The Daily Beast
“Assassinating The Chance For Calm”
originally published Nov.15 2012
by Gershon Baskin
https://archive.ph/NJq8L#selection-1247.66-1247.79An anonymous BBC reporter on JACOBIN writing about what is going on internally with BBC concerning Gaza:
“The BBC Is Failing to Report the Ugly Truth About Israel’s War On Gaza”
By Anonymous BBC Journalist
Britain’s BBC is one of the world’s most influential and trusted news sources. But pressure from conservative political elites has warped its coverage of Israel’s war and caused it to downplay the violence being inflicted on Palestinian civilians.
https://jacobin.com/2023/11/bbc-israel-gaza-reporting-double-standards
The hypocrisy by the west regarding Ukraine and Israel is really immense:
IOC: israeli athletes will not be banned from sports participation, individuals are not responsible for what their governments are doing
https://swentr.site/news/586448-russia-olympic-hypocrisy-paris/
Meawhile the same IOC banned russian athletes just like that!Or take the hypocrisy of the ICC (the international criminal court)
<i>And one last sentence about the ICC, because that’s another illustration of Western double standards. The chief prosecutor instituted a full investigation of war crimes but the present chief prosecutor Karim Khan, a British barrister, has completely failed to make progress in that investigation.On the other hand, when Russia invaded Ukraine, within two days, he announced that he was going to institute a war crimes investigation, and within a week, he sent an advance team to Kyiv to start gathering the evidence for a war crimes investigation and trial. So, you couldn’t have a starker example of Western hypocrisy than condoning everything, all the war crimes that Israel commits, but supporting the ICC in its pursuit of Russian war crimes in the Ukraine.</i>
https://thewire.in/world/full-text-israel-palestine-karan-thapar-avi-shlaimSigh, Biden send advisor/envoy to Lebanon to ease the situation – his name is Amos Hochstein, born in… Israel and served in the IDF for three years!
US envoy urges ‘restoring calm’ on Lebanon-Israel border
Visiting US envoy Amos Hochstein on Tuesday urged for calm to return to Lebanon’s southern border with Israel, after weeks of skirmishes following the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20231107-us-envoy-urges-restoring-calm-on-lebanon-israel-borderWith people like this in charge there is no wonder why the US are not calling for a ceasefire..
Finkelstein and Maté at a live event discussing at OR Bookstore in NYC 5 hours ago, 2 hours long, I just got the message:
https://normanfinkelstein.substack.com/p/norman-finkelstein-goes-live-in-just“Israel Is Cracking Down on Internal Dissent”
By Isaac KD
Ronit Kory
Oren SchweitzerAs its indiscriminate assault on Gaza continues, Israel is ramping up repression of its own citizens for speaking out against the brutal war. The clampdown demonstrates the fragility of a “democracy” premised on occupation and apartheid.
https://jacobin.com/2023/11/israel-cracking-down-internal-dissent-gaza-idf-benjamin-netanyahu
severe stuff in Europe hardly anyone reports, in this detail may be nobody (I am leaving space for some doubt since I have not checked every major paper.)
“(…)
Though there aren’t any confirmed cases of Palestinians being shipped to Gaza, the police chief’s words were no idle threat. Two weeks ago, a popular left-wing Israeli commentator, who wishes to remain anonymous, recorded and shared a video telling his followers to not post too much about the ongoing war in Gaza, warning them they might be prosecuted for opposing the government’s war policy. For the crime of posting this video, the police beat both him and his father and detained him for several days. The government also closed his bank account, claiming he is a “supporter of terrorism.”This has been the reality for many brave Israelis these past two weeks who have been willing to speak out against the Netanyahu government and its destructive war. Among those who have been arrested is Dalal Abu Amneh, a popular Palestinian-Israeli singer, who the Israeli police threw into solitary confinement for two days for posting a picture of the Palestinian flag. Other arrests have gone unreported due to fear of future reprisals.
The internal crackdown on dissent hasn’t been limited to Palestinian Israelis. At the beginning of the war, Ofer Cassif, the only Jewish socialist member of Israel’s Knesset, was suspended for forty-five days for his public criticism of Israel’s war policy, calling for an end to the Israeli occupation, and comparing the slaughter of Gazans to the Nazis’ “Final Solution.” Left-wing activists have even been arrested for putting up posters stating “Jews and Arabs, we will get through this together.”
The handful of antiwar protests have been met with state violence. The day after the massacre at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, the Herak Haifa movement, a broad social movement of Palestinians in Haifa, called a demonstration in the city. They were met by a mob of cops, who beat up and arrested the organizers before the protest began and arrested a journalist who was taking videos of the arrests.
(…)”Responding resolutely and hard, to punish the Hamas barbarians, is one thing; to keep hitting the civilians is another. Listen to this American nurse. It’s more than a harrowing tale: one cannot believe that the scenes she’s describing are happening in our time:
American nurse who got out of Gaza describes desperation she saw (CNN, 7 Nov 2023) – YouTube, 8m 53s
Islamophobe Douglas Murray blast palestinians for their mistreatment of a woman during 7th of october
Douglas Murray blasts Gazans for cheering on as woman paraded half-naked
That palestinians, in the millions have been mistreated for decades is apparently of no concern for Murray. Land theft, occupation, racism, arbitrary detention, torture, beating of kids, killing, wanton destruction, men/female rape by israeli soldiers is what palestinians endure day in and day out but as soon as 1 jewish woman is mistreated, oh then he wakes up trying to make a moral argument!?
Israelis held to an ‘unfair’ and ‘intolerable’ standard: Douglas Murray
How could your mind get so perverse that you believe that a child killing, hospital bombing regime is treated unfairly?
What is is it far-right and Israel? Is it the nazi-like ideology they are drawn to?
Just a note of appreciation to the posters here… this is actually a pretty good thread, distilling the relevant news not promoted terribly well on MSM, and doing a better job of it than a number of sites dedicated to news aggregation.
I highly recommend this lecture by Ilan Pappe who is a professor in the Middle East department in Exeter University. It not only gives a quick historical background but also analysis the current situation. He also gives advice as how to tackle the current attempts at limiting criticism of Israel by conflating anti zionism with antisemitism.
Le Monde today, calls Israeli attack on French Institute in Gaza incomprehensible, Presumably because any other wording would be in danger of new rules on not criticising Israel. See https://www.lemonde.fr/en/france/article/2023/11/03/france-calls-israeli-strike-on-the-french-institute-in-gaza-incomprehensible_6225716_7.html
similiar topic: officialdom –
At the daily press conference of the German government the government representatives present see no legal problem with what the IDF is doing in Gaza.
German language article:
“Over 4000 children killed in Gaza fall under the German government’s “right to self-defense”
Über 4000 getötete Kinder in Gaza fallen für Bundesregierung unter „Recht auf Selbstverteidigung“
It includes this UN-statistics per image in English on current fatalities (10,569 killed and 26,475 injured) and damage inflicted:
https://www.nachdenkseiten.de/upload/bilder/231109-BPK-Screen1.jpg(…)At the recent Federal Press Conference, the German government stated that it “expressly” distances itself from the assessment that Israel is breaking international humanitarian law with its actions. On the contrary, Tel Aviv has the “permanent right” to “defend” itself accordingly.(…)
The piece itself is quoting excerpts from the Q&A:
Deputy speaker of the government, Hoffmann:
“(…)We believe that Israel has the right to defend itself after the brutal and inhumane attack by Hamas, which claimed the lives of 1,400 Israelis, and that this right is permanent, as the attacks on Israel and the threat to Israel continue. In this respect, we are of the opinion that Israel has the right to defend itself.
(…)
Q: Ms Hoffmann, UN Secretary-General António Guterres is talking about a “children’s cemetery” in Gaza. Would the German government agree to this?
(…)
A: As I said, we are of the opinion that Israel has the right to defend itself. But we assume, as the Federal Chancellor has said on several occasions, that Israel, as a democratically constituted country, is aware of international law and abides by it. That is what we assume.We are, of course, aware of what is happening in Gaza and, above all, we are very concerned about the humanitarian situation and believe that humanitarian aid could be provided. We ourselves have also increased humanitarian aid for the people in Gaza and have spoken out in favor of humanitarian ceasefires there in order to be able to provide this aid and care for the population there.
(on the current G7 meeting in Tokyo and statements made by Baerbock there):
A: The Minister has given the following points of orientation: Gaza must no longer pose a terrorist threat in future; Palestinians must not be displaced; no occupation of Gaza, but the best possible international protection; no territorial reduction of Gaza; no solution over the heads of the Palestinians.
(on numbers of casualties):
A: Of course, and this has been expressed time and again, the aim is to avoid civilian casualties in this conflict as far as possible. This is an important concern and we see that this should be ensured as far as possible.
I can’t give you specific figures at this point. As I believe Mr. Hebestreit made very clear at the last government press conference, we do not have any credible information, because Hamas is not a credible source for us, and certainly not when it comes to casualty figures. In this respect, I cannot provide exact figures here.
(…)”oh and from our fathers of democracy:
US House Votes to Censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib over Criticism of Israel’s War on Gaza
US House Votes to Censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib over Criticism of Israel’s War on Gaza
“The resolution was passed in a 234-188 vote. Twenty-two Democrats voted with Republicans to rebuke Tlaib.
The resolution accused Tlaib of “promoting false narratives regarding the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and for calling for the destruction of the state of Israel.”
The controversy was further fuelled by a video she shared on social media that included the slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
“I will not be silenced and I will not let you distort my words,” said the congresswoman representing Michigan.
“I can’t believe we have to say this, but Palestinian people are not disposable. We are human beings just like anyone else.”
p.a. if on thinks about all this – its just incredible. When one assumed after the intellectual failures in the UKR case it could not become worse…
