I'm disgusted with my government. I suppose that is not unusual, but aiding and abetting genocide, ie, the Israeli attack on Gaza, goes way beyond the pale.
Let's first deal with a few assumptions that people may make. Am I anti semitic? Of course I'll answer no, but then, so would many obvious anti semites. By chance, my son was technically Jewish, though, unfortunately, he didn't live long enough to decide whether or not he wanted to follow the Jewish traditions. His mother was a great supporter of the Palestinian cause, but for her father, Israel could do no wrong. I am not a holocaust denier, some of my sons relatives were murdered in that event, nor do I go along with conspiracy theories of secret societies, dominated by Jews, plotting to take over the world.
Am I anti Israeli? Well, no, not as such. While I question the long term wisdom of setting up Israel in 1948, if I were around at the time I would probably have supported the idea. Israel is a fact and it has millions of citizens and it is simply not realistic to wish for it to disappear. However, everyone needs to understand that each time Israel has expanded it has been by violence. The pattern has generally been that it has been attacked by it's neighbours who were pissed off about their land being stolen, only for the Israeli forces to win and take more land, which pisses off the neighbours even more. Some people would take that to be anti-semitic, but I would just like to see an Israel living peacefully with its neighbours and using its vast wealth to help them rather than kill them. Of course, it takes two to tango, and it's hard to make friends with someone whose home you've stolen at gunpoint.
Do I support Hamas? No, of course not. They are basically genocidal religious maniacs who would rejoice at the annihilation of all Jews. The fact that they are in power in Gaza is the inevitable result of the hard line attitude of successive Israeli governments. The extremists on both sides feed on each other to grow stronger. That's the big problem. As well as right wing deeply dishonest populists, the Israeli government now also contains genocidal religious maniacs who believe the complete lands of Judea and Samaria to be rightfully theirs by order of God and who would rejoice at the annihilation of all Palestinians.
Back in 1915 there was a little remembered genocide. It's little remembered partly because at the time the world's focus was on the thousands upon thousands of combatants who were dying daily in the Great War. But, the amnesia is also partly because the Turkish perpetrators to this day refuse to acknowledge their guilt. I understand it's quite dangerous to talk about it in Turkey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_genocide#Legacy
When the plans for the 'Final Solution' were put to Hitler he apparently asked the rhetorical question "Who now remembers the Armenian Christians?". And so the Holocaust went ahead.
When I saw the news this morning that the Israeli "Defence" Force had told the occupants of Northern Gaza to move South, an impossibility, it reminds me so much of the Turkish events of 1915. Of course, when the Israelis invade, any 'collateral damage' of women, children, disabled, sick and injured will be their own fault for not heeding this impossible order. Any able bodied men killed will be labelled as Hamas 'terrorists' armed or not. Israel can wash its hands of the genocide.
Instead of supporting Israel, sending warships to the area etc, our governments, and all decent governments in the world, should be condemning the Israeli government, perhaps even sending a peacekeeping force to protect the Gazans.
One more thing. It is said that the Hamas attack on Israel was the result of a huge failure of intelligence on the part of Mossad. I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I find that very hard to believe. However, in the Israeli government there is a leader who is facing corruption charges and many hard liners who would love an excuse for a 'Final Solution'. Probably many in Mossad feel the same way, I don't know.
When my Jewish ex and her dad argued with each other about Middle Eastern politics I kept my head down. They loved each other undoubtedly, but they pulled no punches. I remember once, when Israeli forces had made an incursion into Palestinian lands she shouted at him, "What do you call this, the final solution. I cringed, it wasn't. Not then.
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