THE massacre of innocents continues in the killing fields of Gaza, as most of the world looks away. Moreover, many of Israel’s foreign enablers are shedding crocodile tears over the Palestinians’ suffering, yet dutifully continue to arm and support the Zionist state as it conducts one of the bloodiest campaigns of extermination against a civilian population in the modern era. The latest outrage came on Saturday, when Israel attacked the Mawasi refugee camp in Khan Younis. Tel Aviv dispatched fighter jets and drones against defenceless people living in tents. At least 90 people were slaughtered, and some 300 injured in what was supposed to be a ‘safe zone’ protected under international law. But as the world has witnessed over the past nine months, no place in Gaza is safe from Israel’s murderous forays. Tel Aviv claimed two senior Hamas commanders were killed in the attack; the Palestinian group has denied this. The Mawasi massacre was followed a day later with an attack on a school doubling as a refugee camp in Nuseirat. At least 17 people perished in that atrocity.

For the Palestinian people, this has turned into a battle of survival. Most of the West stands loyally by Israel as it murders innocents, while, true to form, the Muslim world remains conspicuous by its absence. Veteran Palestinian leader Hanan Ashrawi succinctly summed up the dismal state of affairs when she said that “American bombs ... rain down on Gaza” while “Israeli government and thugs” prevent food, medicine and fuel from reaching this forsaken territory. Ceasefire talks are going nowhere as Benjamin Netanyahu is cunningly pretending to talk peace, while mercilessly pounding Gaza. What is clear is that a return to the pre-Oct 7 status quo is impossible. When the dust clears, either the Palestinians will secure freedom and dignity, or Israel will succeed in its mission of ethnically cleansing this ancient people from their homeland.

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2024