Danger still lurks in every corner of Gaza. It resembles a ghost town. What we discover is beyond comprehension. Palestinians’ brutal killing by an Israeli air strike on their homes is disconsolate. Their houses lay in ruins and their bodies lay decomposing, stray dogs and cats trying to gnaw at them. Relatives dug shallow graves and buried them.
This was the second time Palestinians had to bury nephews and nieces killed by an Israeli bombardment. The pain was too unbearable. Upon returning home, several overcome by grief, suffered a sudden loss of vision. The cause of this tragic affliction is clear, leaving everyone bewildered and devastated.
Student protestors and faculty members on college campuses across the United States are calling for a lasting cease-fire in Gaza, a termination of the US military assistance for Israel, university divestment from arms suppliers and other companies earning from the war, and a pardon for students and faculty members fired for protesting.
Given the US backing of Israel’s self-defense campaign in Gaza, generated by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct 7, which has occasioned the loss of more than 34,000 Palestinian lives, including those of women and children, protestors’ demands are fully justified.
The US has seized on Israel’s response to the attack as the opening to use Tel Aviv as its enforcer to spread its overall Middle East geopolitical agenda to lessen the influence of Iran and Russia in the region. Neither the Joe Biden administration nor the Benjamin Netanyahu government of Israel cares about the hostages it is believed that Hamas and other groups still hold, not to mention the plight of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
Washington’s veto of the State of Palestine’s membership in the United Nations and the US lawmakers’ approval of new military aid for Israel last week, which triggered the student protests in the US, have made it crystal clear that it is the real obstacle to peace in Gaza.
Joe Biden told reporters two days ago that he condemned both anti-Semitic protests and those who do not understand what is going on with the Palestinians. However, who is it that does not understand that? The protesters have a very clear understanding of what is going on. They are calling for a cease-fire and for the colleges to divest from the US weapons manufacturers that are providing arms to Israel.
Resembling the Ukraine crisis, the upcoming US presidential election has become a complicating factor making the situation in the Middle East an extension of the US’ domestic political games. The US stance on the two regional crises reflects the latest shakings and vibrations of interest exchanges at home rather than the real interests of the nation.
Protests in the US have also brought into the public eye the impact of outside groups, influential alumni, and big-money donors on colleges, who, having stakes in the US support of Israel, are pressuring the college administrators to silence the protesters.
The divide between the US elites and ordinary Americans, and the internal partitions within the two are reinforcing each other in a nasty cycle resulting in a series of inconsistent foreign policies of the US. The US airdrop of aid for Gaza, and the conflict between US law enforcers and the US students and teachers are both unpleasant shows of that. So is the US’ schizoid three-in-one China policy of confrontation, competition, and, supposedly, cooperation.
The reaction against the widespread protests against the country’s one-sided pro-Israel policy, and the Biden administration’s casual response to them, and the law enforcement departments’ crackdown on the protesters speak volumes about the root cause of not only the Gaza crisis but also the complications in US society.
A wasteland of desperation
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26.04.2024
Danger still lurks in every corner of Gaza. It resembles a ghost town. What we discover is beyond comprehension. Palestinians’ brutal killing by an Israeli air strike on their homes is disconsolate. Their houses lay in ruins and their bodies lay decomposing, stray dogs and cats trying to gnaw at them. Relatives dug shallow graves and buried them.
This was the second time Palestinians had to bury nephews and nieces killed by an Israeli bombardment. The pain was too unbearable. Upon returning home, several overcome by grief, suffered a sudden loss of vision. The cause of this tragic affliction is clear, leaving everyone bewildered and devastated.
Student protestors and faculty members on college campuses across the United States are calling for a lasting cease-fire in Gaza, a termination of the US military assistance for Israel, university divestment from arms suppliers and other companies earning from the war, and a pardon for students........
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