Note: in my “from the news” posts, quotes are shown italicised and blue, my comments are in a different shade of blue, and “good” items are shown in green.
I have loosely grouped the posts where such seemed reasonable, but that
is subjective (i.e., my opinion - others are free to disagree), and
challenging, as some posts belong in multiple “groups”.
Reporting on recent and currrently ongoing war in West Asia (I object to the colonial term “Middle East”), in imperialistic Israel, Gaza, and adjoining nations, includes the following:
Note: as with other mass murderers/serial killers/and the like, violent extremists crave publicity, so I refuse to give that to them - I will avoid using their names (which is a policy adopted by good law enforcement and media for other mass murderers), and I will not give them the satisfaction of being described with the T word.
This is explained further in my post at https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2023/10/from-news-on-war-in-west-asia-content_25.html.
Note also that the genocidal intent of the VE group I refuse to name is, and has been for some time, clear, according to this
from experts in that topic. Information suggests that several thousand
of the Palestinian deaths to date are likely to be from that group -
maybe up to 20% (as a maximum) of the total: the rest - more than 80% -
are innocent civilians, including babies, toddlers, and children.
In my opinion, a safe place for Jewish people has to exist because of the world’s collective failures in the 1930s and 40s (the problem was not only Germany, but every nation that rejected Jewish asylum seekers/refugees [including my nation - although Yorta Yorta man William Cooper was a notable “upstander”] or allowed antisemitism - and that continues now) ... but
the Arab nations’ proposal for a single nation with Arab and Jewish
provinces should have been given more consideration, IMO, and now that MUST be as part of a two state solution, lest Israel’s foundation and existence be inherently based on an injustice - which, as part of correcting an injustice, intrinsically morally weakens that foundation and existence.
Note also: this, on when criticism of Israel becomes antisemitism; and Israel’s conduct since the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the collapse of the Oslo Accords has - in addition to devastating and often displacing and killing its victims - been damaging of its standing (and devastating to those people on the receiving end), and its conduct now risks an even more self-damaging Pyrrhic “victory”. One day Israel will collectively recover enough from the events of 7th October to look around and grieve, shocked, at what they have done ...
- “Between Exclusion and Exploitation” https://jewishcurrents.org/palestinian-workers-israel-far-right “Israel’s far right wants to permanently replace Palestinian workers, but employing them has become key to maintaining the occupation. ... In the first two decades after it occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967, Israel opted to integrate a Palestinian labour force in the hopes that ensuring a basic level of welfare for Palestinians would maintain calm. But Israel changed tack with the onset of the First Intifada, the late 1980s Palestinian uprising against the occupation.”
- “Netanyahu ‘determined’ to carry out Rafah assault despite pleas from Biden” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/20/benjamin-netanyahu-israel-rafah-gaza-attack-joe-biden
- “‘Moral failure’: US House approves bill that would ban UNRWA funding | UNRWA News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/22/moral-failure-us-house-approves-bill-that-would-ban-unrwa-funding
- “Gaza update: the prospect of mass famine is beginning to change minds in Washington” https://theconversation.com/gaza-update-the-prospect-of-mass-famine-is-beginning-to-change-minds-in-washington-226268 When we have photos like those from Biafra in the 1960s or Bosnia in the 1990s, this effect will be accelerated and become more pronounced
on peace/ceasefires:
- “Gaza ceasefire hopes rise after _____ abandons key demands” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/16/gaza-ceasefire-hopes-rise-after-_____-abandons-key-demands “Israeli
negotiators are heading to Qatar after the group dropped calls for a
permanent end to hostilities and agreed a 40-day pause” “US calls for immediate Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal in draft UN resolution” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/21/us-calls-for-immediate-ceasefire-in-gaza-with-draft-un-resolution “Source says wording suggests significant movement in US position as pressure mounts on Israel to halt campaign” but “UN Security Council does not pass draft US resolution on Gaza ceasefire | Israel War on Gaza News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/22/un-security-council-does-not-pass-us-resolution-calling-for-gaza-ceasefire “Russia and China veto US resolution stating imperative of ‘immediate and sustained ceasefire’ in Gaza” https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/03/1147856 This smacks of getting even - revenge for all the times the USA vetoed similar resolutions “Gaza ceasefire talks: What are Israel and _____ saying? | News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/20/gaza-ceasefire-talks-what-are-israel-and-_____-saying
on human rights and human suffering (on both sides) aspects:
- “Imminent famine in northern Gaza is ‘entirely man-made disaster’: Guterres” https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/03/1147656 “Gaza headed towards famine amid Israeli aid curbs: What to know” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/18/famine-expected-in-gaza-between-now-and-may-what-to-know “Famine imminent in parts of Gaza as 1.1 million people face 'catastrophic' food shortages” https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/famine-imminent-in-parts-of-gaza-as-1-1-million-people-face-catastrophic-food-shortages/tqwwjvlkl “The New Humanitarian | Thousands will now die of starvation and disease in Gaza: Alex de Waal” https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/interview/2024/03/21/thousands-will-now-die-starvation-and-disease-gaza-alex-de-waal
- “Gaza: UN aid team reaches stricken north, confirms ‘shocking’ disease and hunger” https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/03/1147861
- “Severely injured patients trapped in Gaza’s hospitals as evacuations are halted” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/17/severely-injured-patients-are-left-in-limbo-as-charitys-relief-efforts-are-scuppered “Doctors [from the United States, United Kingdom and France] who visited Gaza speak [at the UN] of ‘appalling atrocities’ from Israel’s offensive” https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20240320-doctors-who-visited-gaza-speak-of-appalling-atrocities-from-israel-s-offensive
- “The New Humanitarian | Behind the numbers: Gaza’s record aid worker death toll” https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/maps-and-graphics/2024/03/21/behind-numbers-gaza-unprecedented-aid-worker-death-toll
- “More than 7,350 West Bank Palestinians arrested by Israel during Gaza war | Israel War on Gaza News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/3/22/israel-arrested-over-7350-west-bank-palestinians-since-war-on-gaza-began
on military aspects:
- “Israel tells civilians to evacuate after taking control of al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/18/al-shifa-hospital-raid-gaza-palestine-israel-idf-hamas-terrorist-activity-claims “Fierce clashes between IDF and _____ after Israel takes control of key hospital” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/18/clashes-idf-_____-israel-takes-control-key-al-shifa-hospital “Israeli military says 90 people killed in Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital raid | Israel War on Gaza News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/20/israeli-military-says-90-people-killed-in-gazas-al-shifa-hospital-raid “Israel’s Shifa raid shows its grip is slipping as a ‘forever war’ looms” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/18/israel-shifa-raid-shows-its-grip-is-slipping-as-a-forever-war-looms
regionally:
- “Will Current Israeli-Lebanese Fighting derail Historic Land Border Agreement?” https://www.juancole.com/2024/03/lebanese-fighting-agreement.html A good assessment - including consideration of what the Lebanese public want
internationally:
- “Canada stops arms sales to Israel: Who else has blocked weapons exports? | Israel War on Gaza News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/15/which-countries-have-stopped-supplying-arms-to-israel “Is Canada’s Decision to cut Arms Sales to Israel a Bellwether for NATO?” https://www.juancole.com/2024/03/canadas-decision-bellwether.html The answer is potentially yes, despite the insignificant impact of this action, for reasons outlined in the article
- “‘Rendered invisible’: A wave of anti-Arab violence tests US hate crime laws | Racism News | Al Jazeera” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/longform/2024/3/20/rendered-invisible-a-wave-of-anti-arab-violence-tests-us-hate-crime-laws
- “Guerrilla festival no-photo2024 is highlighting the unseen work of Palestinian photographers in Gaza” https://theconversation.com/guerrilla-festival-no-photo2024-is-highlighting-the-unseen-work-of-palestinian-photographers-in-gaza-225182 “The
anonymous artists and activists behind no-photo2024 are highlighting
the exclusion of Palestinian photographers from the PHOTO 2024 festival,
now showing in Melbourne. ... In this post-photographic AI-driven
age, no-photo2024 promotes a much needed conversation about the ethical
responsibilities of creating, curating and consuming photographs. It
challenges the photographic community to move beyond aesthetic
appreciation and engage with images as participants in a shared,
precarious world.”
My links for activism post may aid any activism you may decide to do on any/all of these. If you do, don’t get too fixated on specific instances of problems - important though they may well be: take a moment to also consider the broader issues these incidents and groups of incidents may suggest/reveal.
Assumptions / basis
In writing this, I have assumed / started from the following:
- this blog states quite clearly that it is about political and human rights matters, including lived experience of problems, and thus I will assume readers are reasonable people who have noted the content warning in the post header;
Possible flaws
Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider:
- there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend Brendan
Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”;
- I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
If they are of any use of interest, the activism information links from my former news posts are available in this post.
If you appreciated this post, please consider promoting it - there are some links below.
Copyright © Kayleen White 2016-2024 NO AI
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