Israel's 'final solution' in occupied Palestine

Premature babies gasping for breath in a bombed-out hospital without functioning incubators, a father collecting the pieces of what was once his child from the shell-shocked streets, a blood covered garment of a young girl camouflaging her body beyond recognition, scores of bodies in shrouds lying in front of a hospital with pall bearers scurrying for cover from bombs and artillery shells raining down. These are not images from a war archive of the past, capturing scenes of a war over a period of time but covering twenty four hours of a day in the war now raging in Gaza with full fury. 'War' would be a misnomer to describe the images because the casualties are not combatants against IDF (Israeli Defence Force) but innocent civilians. They neither are collateral victims nor caught in cross fires being at the wrong place at the wrong time. They have been targeted for killing by IDF in cold blood because, in the language of the Israeli defence minister, they are 'human animals'. The Israeli prime minister has gone one notch higher, quoting chapter and verse from Old Testament and intoning in a television speech, 'Go, kill Amaelkites, their men, women and children, their animals'. The Biblical tribe of Amalek ceased to exist long ago, but the memory of their enmity and assaults against Jews is remembered and reminded of to beware of present day enemies and be ever ready to annihilate them, lock, stock and barrel.
Having occupied the land of the Palestinians through successive wars, beginning from 1948, the Israeli government has followed a policy of marginalisation through construction of concrete walls, barbed wire fences, check-points restricting movements in and out of their blockaded areas. These are also designed to erase every viable sign of nationhood for Palestinians. Not at all enamoured of the idea of 'resolving' the Palestine problem, the Israelis opted for 'managing' it through the above policy of apartheid with the connivance of its mentor America long ago. As part of this strategy, at the slightest sign of protest or resistance by militant Palestinians, the IDF has sprung into action decimating them with lethal force, using tanks, planes and artillery. Alongside, illegal settlements in Palestine land in the West bank has moved apace as a covert policy of Israeli governments of every stripe, reaching a climax under the present one, having ultra rightists as cabinet members. America and Europe used to caution Israel in the past against this illegal step on the ground that it may jeopardise a peaceful settlement in future. But over time, their mild voices have died down, giving the settlers a smooth sailing. The occasional talk of a 'two state solution', by way of lip service, ceased even to be an innocuous reference once discussions about normalisation of relations between Arab neighbours and Israel, brokered by America under Abraham Accord, started in recent years. There appeared to be tacit acceptance of the former Israeli prime minister Golda Meir's view that there is no such entity as 'Palestinians'.
Perhaps apprehending total oblivion of their cause in the world outside, the Gaza-based militant group Hamas made a desperate, almost last ditch attempt, at drawing attention of the world community by breaching the barbed wire fence that had imprisoned Gaza's 2.4 million Palestinians since 2007. Probably, their objectives were to kill as many security personnel as possible to make headline news and to take civilian and high value security members as hostages for future bargain in prisoner exchange. Why this daring attack by Hamas on October 7 led to killing of civilians is still a mystery. Perhaps they considered civilians living in surrounding kibbutzes as legitimate tagets, being illegal settlers on their land. Be that as it may, the killing of civilians brought the ire of world leaders upon Hamas which had already been declared as 'terrorists' by European countries and America. They made a beeline to Tel Aviv, declaring solidarity with Israel and repeatedly saying 'Israel has the right to self defence', as if there was any question about that from any quarters. Israeli government, stung to the core at the humiliation by the ragtag force of Hamas, had already decided to come down hard on not only Hamas, but Palestinians as a whole. Netanyahu's bluster immediately after the October 7 attack about 'changing the map of Middle-East' revealed the new intention of the Israeli government. When carpet bombing in northern Gaza reduced residential buildings into rubbles, it appeared that Israel was wreaking collective punishment against Palestinians. But when power, water and fuel supplies were terminated it became evident that what Israel was aiming at was nothing short of ethnic cleansing with a view to occupying Gaza for good. The fangs of genocidal war were further bared when schools, hospitals, ambulances and bakeries were bombed, killing thousands and leading many more to deaths in slow motion. The IDF dropped leaflets from air, telling residents of north Gaza to go to safe zones in the south. They were mercilessly bombed on their panicky journey south. There have not been more naked examples of crime against humanity and war crimes in recent memory.
When some criticism arose around the world for killing of civilians, the Israeli government pointed out that Hamas was hiding behind civilians and so they were responsible for civilian deaths, an argument echoed by America and other countries supporting Israel's 'right to self- defence.' This argument ignored the fact that in a densely populated urban area, militants and civilians per force live cheek by jowl and failure of precision bombing inevitably leads to high civilian casualties. The argument also glosses over the fact that Hamas' movements are mostly in the warren of labyrinthine tunnels underneath Gaza. In the face of rising civilian casualties that gave them discomfort, all that some of the American and European leaders ventured to say was use of 'restraint' and 'observance of international law' by the Israelis. These mild admonitions predictably left Israel unmoved and it went on its killing spree in gay abandon. Several resolutions in the Security Council for humanitarian ceasefire failed to pass because of exercise of veto power by America. After a month and a half of incessant bombing and killing more than 15,000 Palestinians, Netanyahu government agreed, under pressure from the families of hostages, to four days of ceasefire to facilitate exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Two more days were added to this leading to the release of 128 Israeli hostages, mostly women and children. Almost every hostage released looked reasonably healthy and normal, a great surprise given the austere and harsh condition of living in the tunnels. Some of them even said 'Shukran' - thanks to their captors while boarding Red Cross vehicles. Their demeanour gave the lie to subsequent allegations of mistreatment, including rape and sexual assaults .The concerted effort by media like CNN and Israeli public relations machinery at depicting Hamas as rapists is the latest strategy to show them as the 'Other', the enemy of civilised world. The drumbeat of Israeli authorities at establishing a binary relation between Hamas and the western world, with Israel as the gatekeeper for the West, has been persistent since October 7. The sanguinary regime in Israel is bending over backward to demonstrate that they are waging a civilisational war against barbarians. If the killing of civilians by Hamas during their October 7 incursions into Israel was 'barbaric', the prolonged massacre of civilian Palestinians in Gaza constitutes barbarity thousands times over and glaringly so because it is being enacted by an occupying power.
During the temporary ceasefire Hamas demanded the ratio of Palestinian prisoners' and Israeli high value hostage release to be at par with previous practice but Israeli government refused, showing the low priority they attach to hostage release. After the end of the temporary ceasefire, Israel has started incessant and deadly bombing in southern Gaza, an area declared earlier a 'safe zone' by them. They are now asking the twice- displaced Gaza refugees to go further south towards Egyptian border, though UN agencies have been saying repeatedly there are no so safe zone left in Gaza. The intention of Israeli authorities is as clear as daylight: forcing the Gaza residents to cross over to Sinai, Egypt. As of now, the Egyptian government is holding the border crossing shut against refugees. But in the face of panic-stricken people how long can they hold back is problematic, to say the least. Similar pressure is being put on the Palestinians in the West bank simultaneously, by IDF and illegal settlers, bent upon evicting the Palestinians from their villages. It is Naqba -- catastrophe all over again, but more horrifying and bleak than in 1948 or 1967.
By now the grand design of the present Israeli government for ethnic cleansing through genocidal attack has become crystal clear. Part of the population in Gaza and West bank will be decimated by bombs, part by starvation and lack of medical care. But a greater number will perish in epidemics like cholera, typhoid and diahorrea caused by absence of clean water that the scorched earth policy of Israel has ensured. Those lucky (?) enough to survive will live in indignity and servitude, never to raise their head again. No greater diabolical plan of obliterating a nation ever came out of human brain in the long and infamous history of conflict and war. Even Hitler's Holocaust pales into insignificance compared to this multi-headed weapon of mass destruction devised by Israel. To many, the 'final solution' of Hitler for Jews appear as simpler and more straightforward.
Having lost the non-binding majority vote in the UN General Assembly, the Israeli ambassador wore the Star of David on his lapel, in an obvious attempt at reminding others of the victimhood of Jews in Nazi Germany. In the present context where the Jews in Israel, particularly their government, has made victims of the Palestinians, the spectacle of the Israeli diplomat masquerading as victim looked pathetic, even ludicrous. Real politic may have mobilised America and Europe (with honourable exceptions) behind it, but if the Israeli government is not living in fool's paradise, should know that their misanthropic conduct has made them the subject of hatred worldwide by people who do not care about real politic and moral relativism. This hatred is equally directed at America, United Kingdom, Germany and all those countries who are cheer leading Israel in its genocidal frenzy. History will remember their cynical disregard for human rights that has led to events the world declared should happen 'never again'.
Hamas will be eventually vanquished, outmanned and outgunned as they are. But they have already won a moral victory over Israelis, the concerted efforts at demonising them notwithstanding.

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