THe issued an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, to the surprise of many in the international community. How can a constitutional democracy, which is supposed to be bound by the rule of law and have an autonomous judiciary, claim to be so? Get used to it Is there such a serious violation of international law and norms?
But those who have watched the genocide unfold over the past year in horror and shock did not need the ICC's revelations to realize the extent of the war crimes and atrocities committed in Gaza. Palestinians in the bombed-out Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank, or the ruins of illegally annexed East Jerusalem were certainly not surprised. For decades, generations of Palestinians have been stripped of their basic rights and freedoms in the name of Israeli occupation. To them, the idea of Israel's rule of law is as absurd as colonial-era attempts to justify tyranny through empty legality.
same empty concept Legality is currently being used by the Israeli government – To justify the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, the targeting of hospitals and medical centers, blocking the distribution of humanitarian aid, and the forced expulsion of northern Gaza residents. When starvation and deprivation of the basic necessities of human life have been used as instruments of war for over a year, what other word but genocide can be used to describe that reality? At the same time, ethnic cleansing campaigns continue to unfold in the West Bank. There are over 20 communities They are forcibly expelled amid escalating levels of settler violence. In that regard, the ICC's warrant is too little, too late.
The Palestinians weren't surprised, and truth be told, neither were the Israelis. We read and see Israeli government statements unfiltered and untranslated. We know that senior ministers celebrated the killing of innocent people while others did. announced their plans Empty more than half of the population to make way for Jewish settlements within the next few years. When I, as a member of parliament, spoke out against these crimes in parliament, I was severely punished. I am currently suspended from all parliamentary activities for six months for using the term 'genocide'. The Ethics Committee said it reached its decision based on my use of the term “genocide” and my objections to the alleged war crimes committed in Gaza.
In the Orwellian dystopia of the Israeli parliament, those who celebrate war crimes are considered heroes, and those who fight for justice are persecuted as traitors. My punishment is a continuation of the political persecution of opponents of the dirty war and critics of Netanyahu's bloody rule.
I'm not the only one who opposes his tyranny. A consistent political opposition within Israel, made up of democratic Jews and Arab citizens, also considers the concept of democracy in Israel under Netanyahu to be absurd. Democracy in Israel never really existed due to the definition of the State of Israel as an ethnic concept that contradicts political egalitarianism.
A state that declares one group to be politically superior to another based on fundamental law is not considered a democracy, but a nationalism. Since its founding, Israel has promoted discriminatory policies against its Palestinian citizens in all areas of life, including housing, employment, welfare, and education. Even Israel's basic law, Human Dignity and Freedom, which is considered to be Israel's bill of rights, does not mention the right to equality.
However, the current Netanyahu administration is unique among its predecessors in that it makes no attempt to defend the illusion of democracy. It is made up of the worst of Israeli society, more vile pastors, more racist bigots, more messianic settlers, more criminal fanatics. “The Jewish people own the sole and inalienable right to the entire territory of Israel, 'Eretz Yisrael,' and the government will develop settlements in all its territories, including Judea and Samaria.” It is written in the first bullet point of the formation coalition. agreement. That was before the October 7 attack, which my compatriots and I condemned in the harshest terms. We said that even the entirety of the atrocities of occupation cannot justify the horrifying massacre of innocent people such as that committed by Hamas, but equally that horrifying atrocity does not justify Israel's There is no justification for the genocide committed in .
Now, with each passing day, the Israeli government is building a state that is more monolithic, more violent, and more unashamedly racist. In the name of fighting terrorism, the passage of bills that would shrink the democratic sphere is accelerating. Teachers, academics, students, journalists, and workers are all targeted, censored, and silenced. A special bill is currently being drafted that would ban political parties with a predominantly Arab Israeli constituency from participating in national elections.
Fanatic settlers are waiting for the green light to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, and are actually conducting a movement outside the border, unhindered by law enforcement. Palestinians are increasingly concentrated in smaller enclaves and increasingly targeted by powerful military forces. “”definitive plan“, first conceived by MK Bezalel Smotrich, is in progress Netanyahu is Israel's first prime minister in decades and is pursuing dreams of expanding the nation's territory. To carry out this plan, he intends to drown the entire region in rivers of blood, Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians alike. his government There is nothing wrong with sacrificing hostages and giving up all hope for complete victory. ceasefire And peace.
We must continue to believe that a just peace is possible and act to achieve it. When people feel that freedom and justice are close, they tend to reject prejudice and violence and embrace more rational and peaceful solutions. Therefore, even the most violent conflicts can be brought to an end.
Hope must remain alive in Israel and Palestine, but hope should not blind us from today's darkening realities. The international community needs to understand that supporting the Israeli government is the opposite of supporting the Israeli people. This is the government we fear the most and should eliminate. If you truly want the best for both Palestinians and Israelis, arm us with the means of peace and freedom, not war and destruction.
