By Phalapoem editor , 7/12/2024
The Holocaust, particularly the atrocities committed in Auschwitz (Oświęcim), remains one of the most horrifying examples of human suffering and genocide in history. Millions of Jews, along with Roma, Polish people political prisoners, and others, were systematically exterminated by the Nazi regime in a campaign of industrialized murder. Today, as the world witnesses the destruction in Gaza by the apartheid entity of Israel , many draw parallels between the two tragedies, noting the shared elements of destruction, dehumanization, and immense human suffering.
While the contexts and scales of these events differ, comparing them is not an exercise in diminishing the suffering of one group but rather an attempt to highlight how patterns of systemic violence and oppression repeat across history.
Destruction of Human Life• Oświęcim (Auschwitz):
Auschwitz became the epicenter of Nazi brutality, where over a million people, primarily Jews, were killed in gas chambers, through starvation, forced labor, and medical experiments. This systematic extermination was designed to erase an entire group of people based on their ethnicity and religion. Victims were stripped of their humanity, treated as numbers, and denied their most basic rights.
• Gaza:
In Gaza, Palestinians face relentless bombardments by Israeli occupation forces , ethnic cleansing , and blockades of food, medicine and water that create a humanitarian catastrophe and Israeli-made starvation . Over the years, tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed, including women and children, with entire families wiped out in discriminate strikes by Israeli troops . The deliberate Israeli destruction of homes, schools, universities, mosques, churches, hospitals, and basic infrastructure has left Gazans with little to no means of survival, effectively rendering them prisoners in their own land. According to Amnesty International, the Israeli intent was meant to be a systematic extermination of a group of people and the result is evident as mass death, widespread trauma, and the slow erasure of a people which constitutes a genocide.
Dehumanization
• Oświęcim:
The Holocaust relied on extreme dehumanization, where Jews were portrayed as subhuman in Nazi propaganda, enabling their systematic annihilation. Stripped of their identities, tattooed with numbers, and herded into concentration camps, victims were treated as expendable objects rather than human beings.
• Gaza:
Palestinians in Gaza are similarly dehumanized by Israeli leaders including the Israeli president and in their media. Labeled as “terrorists” or animals or collateral damage, their lives are often portrayed as less valuable. This dehumanization fuels a global apathy that allows the ongoing Israeli blockade, bombing campaigns, and displacement to continue with minimal accountability. Palestinians, like Holocaust victims have reportedly been marked with numbers on their foreheads or hands, stripped of their dignity, and subjected to inhumane treatment. Moreover, they are frequently used as human shields during military operations, a practice that underscores the stripping away of their humanity and rights. These actions reflect a disturbing disregard for their identity, agency, and worth as human beings.
The Machinery of Destruction
• Oświęcim:
The Nazis developed a cold, calculated system to facilitate genocide: gas chambers, crematoria, and an entire infrastructure designed for mass murder. Auschwitz was not just a camp but a factory of death, where killing was industrialized and impersonal.
• Gaza:
In Gaza, destruction comes from advanced modern Israeli and American weaponry and airstrikes, but with a middle age siege tactics. Civilian areas are repeatedly targeted by Israeli forces , resulting in indiscriminate casualties, the vast majority of which are women and children. The israeli blockade, cutting off food, medical supplies, and other essentials, functions as a form of collective punishment, slowly suffocating the population. While the tools are different, the outcome—massive loss of life and suffering—is eerily similar.
Human Suffering and Trauma
• Oświęcim:
The Holocaust left survivors scarred for life, carrying the weight of unimaginable loss and trauma. Entire families and communities were eradicated, leaving a void that could never be filled. Survivors lived with the constant pain of witnessing atrocities and losing loved ones in the most inhumane ways.
• Gaza:
The suffering in Gaza is similarly intergenerational. Children grow up amidst the rubble of their homes, living under the constant threat of violence. Families mourn the loss of loved ones, often unable to even bury their dead with dignity. The psychological toll of living under Israeli siege and witnessing death and destruction has left deep scars on the collective Palestinian psyche.
Global Complicity and Silence
• Oświęcim:
During the Holocaust, much of the world turned a blind eye, with many nations refusing to act until it was too late. The cries of those in Auschwitz went unanswered, allowing the genocide to continue unchecked.
• Gaza:
Today, Gaza faces a similar silence from much of the international community. Despite widespread and televised documentation of the genocide and destruction and pleas for intervention, political interests and alliances often take precedence over human rights. Just as the world failed to stop Auschwitz in time, it risks failing Gaza by allowing its suffering to continue.
Lessons Unlearned
Both Auschwitz and Gaza serve as stark reminders of what happens when humanity turns its back on oppression. While the Holocaust was a deliberate, systematic genocide on an unparalleled scale, the ongoing war on Gaza represents a modern iteration of genocide, ethnic cleansing , and dehumanization. The tools may have changed, but the suffering remains the same.
The world vowed “Never Again” after Auschwitz, but Gaza stands as a testament to humanity’s failure to uphold that promise. If we are to truly honor the memory of Holocaust victims, we must recognize and confront the suffering in Gaza—not as a comparison to diminish either tragedy but as a call to action to prevent history from repeating itself. Silence in the face of oppression, whether in Auschwitz or Gaza, makes us complicit in the suffering of others.