I
Last night, about 500 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza’s Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital. The scenes of destruction from the hospital were horrific, even by the standards of the past 12 days.
The hospital was being used as a shelter by thousands of Gazans already under total siege, with no access to food, fuel, water, or medical supplies.
This morning, US President Joe Biden arrived in Israel and pledged support in its genocide against Palestinians, and blamed militants for the attack on the hospital.
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II
Where do we go from here?
The colonizer and terrorist state of Israel can win, Hamas can lose, and the oppressed Palestinians can die for their country because of the collective punishment they face. But what does it testify?
Let’s quickly admit that nothing that the Palestinian or Israeli leadership did over the past 75 years was good for the people of both countries and for the first time, the Israelis felt that.
We chant “Free Palestine” all year round and act as if the Palestinian deaths are an inevitable part of the Palestinian liberation. And when they die, we call them martyrs to console ourselves. We are devaluing life either way.
Our protests did not stop Hamas from attacking Israel or even Israel’s years of oppression of Palestinians, which led Hamas to that attack. Likewise, the movements of peaceful Jews did not stop other Jews from gunning down fellow Palestinians. On the other hand, winning a narrative/social media war is not the flex Muslims think it is. Even now, we’re picking sides on who’s having it worse, Muslims or Jews.
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III
Many ask Muslim states to take action as if we are all united. I mean, the first thing we’ll do is fight among ourselves. And if Israel can attack Palestinians, what makes you think it won’t kill Saudis?
“Tie your camel first, and then put your trust in Allah.” – Prophet Mohammad PBUH
There is no military solution to any conflict. We don’t have a way to stop the genocide because we haven’t built a neutral party that talks about humans instead of Israelis or Palestinians. We have turned it into a religious and land fight for the promised land, which is why we’re so divided and suffering. And the so-called liberal order benefits from that, from war. It helps people like Netanyahu or Biden because it becomes their chance to shine. War also financially benefits their militaries and weapon industries.
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IV
So, what’s the solution? At the moment, none.
We only win if we recuperate humanity and unity against the trial instead of against each other. Instead of thinking like Israelis and Palestinians, Muslims and Jews, we should rearrange ourselves as humans, activists, and antifascists. We owe it to the children of Palestine.
To achieve this unity, both parties must give up on what divides them. Once we unite for the sake of humanity, we can cross the sea. We must remember that we are all – Jews and Muslims – our brother’s keepers like Moses and Aron.
Then when G-d asks [Cain], Where is your brother Abel?’ he arrogantly responds, ‘I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?’
In essence, the entire Bible is written as an affirmative response to this.
– Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Literacy
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