Many of you will have heard about Hamas’ attack against Israelis on 7 October 2023. In response, the Israeli government has launched uncountable military attacks on the Gaza strip which have so far claimed 30,000+ Palestinian lives, of which 15,000 were children and infants. Many of them still lie under the rubble today. 60,000+ have been injured as the war entered its fifth month.
Entire Palestinian families have been wiped out, children orphaned before they could even walk or talk. Fathers and mothers our age have had to bury their children whose legs and arms have been amputated on cold hospital floors, without anaesthesia. Children detained in Israeli prisons. More than a hundred of journalists – Palestinians mainly – have been murdered as Israel continues to deny access to Gaza to international outlets.
1.5 million people (literally the size of the Mauritian population) have been displaced in what international media has for too long described as the world’s only open-air prison. To offer some perspective, Gaza is five times smaller than Mauritius. Hospitals, schools, makeshift refugee areas raided. Access to food, water and electricity has been cut off while the whole world watches a people die in agony amidst what has clearly become a massive, unfathomable humanitarian crisis.
UNICEF spokesperson James Elder stated in December 2023 that in his twenty years at UNICEF, he had never seen ‘such devastation and despair as is happening in Gaza. The intensity of the attacks, the massive number of child casualties, the desperation and panic of the people on the move – people who already have nothing – is palpable. It is humanitarian disaster on top of humanitarian disaster.’
The response of the international community, especially from the West, has been deeply disturbing. In the name of so-called friendships and geopolitical interests, they have chosen repeatedly not to call out Israeli’s disproportionate military response and indiscriminate killing of children. And so, despite their own ally admitting publicly only a few days ago that they would never accept a two-states solution and intend to further wage an atrocious war in the South of Gaza. Calls for ceasefire have been vain despite the fact that Palestinians have been under occupation for decades now.
The court case brought forward by South Africa against Israel before the International Court of Justice earlier this year, has brought hope to many of us, after the ICJ ruled that there were plausible concerns that Israel had been waging a genocidal war against Palestinians.
Why do I care? And why should we care? Do our voices, thousands of kilometres away, mean anything at all? The answer is yes, they do.
Because that is the world we will leave behind. And our children, and their children after them, will remember our silence. The world remained silent when our Chagossian brothers and sisters were forcibly removed from their native islands in the 1960s. We cannot let anything close to this happen again.
So what can you, as an individual do, to make a difference?
Educate yourself. History, conflicts and wars have always been complex but do not let that discourage you nor anyone claim that you ‘don’t understand’. There is a wealth of resources online including from Gazan outlets and incredibly brave journalists, which will provide you with facts and perspectives from both sides. International organisations including Human Rights Watch and several senior officials from UN agencies have spoken up about the genocide. This is our chance to listen and learn.
Speak up and do not be afraid. Do not let yourselves be threatened into silence. No one should have to lose their job or be shunned for standing up for what is right. Palestinians, the people of Congo and many of our African brothers and sisters from war-torn countries need us to stand by their side – now more than ever.
Bring up this difficult topic in your social circles. It is our responsibility as citizens of the world to provide open, judgement-free platforms for our friends and families to share their views on sensitive issues. Genuine, informed dialogue builds bridges between us and with others.
On Monday 19 February, the International Court of Justice began hearings to look at the legal consequences of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, a month after South Africa accused Israel in a separate court case of committing genocidal acts. Al Jazeera noted that ‘in a first-of-its-kind case, at least 52 countries [including Mauritius] will present arguments on controversial Israeli policies in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and occupied East Jerusalem. It’s the largest number of parties to participate in any single ICJ case since the court was established in 1945.’
We will and should watch this closely.
The Afrindian 