Recent Comments
Categories
- Abu Sami
- Admin
- Admin
- Admin Message to The Palestinian Nation
- Alina-Palestina
- American Congressmen Terrorists
- Amnesty International
- Anas Al-Sharif
- Assaf
- Astromystic
- Banksy
- Barghouthi
- Basel Adra
- BBC
- Blindboy podcast
- Caitlin Johnstone
- Cardiovascular disease
- Caricatures
- Celebrities
- Chris Hedges
- Comedy
- Couple Sculptures
- Disabled People in Palestine
- Dr Husam Abu Safia
- Edward Said
- Evidence of Israeli Fascism and Nazism and Genocide
- Francesca Albanese
- Gaza
- Gaza Journalists
- Gazaleh
- Haaretz
- Hamadeh
- Heba Al Agha
- Hilmi
- Hind Rajab
- Hossam Shabat
- Illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine
- In Handala’s Playground
- Ireland
- Jeremy Corbyn
- Justice
- Karim Khan
- Katie Halper
- Lama
- Lowkey
- Macklemore
- Mahmoud Darwish
- Malak Matar
- Malik Qraiqea
- Massacres & genocides
- Max Blumenthal
- Media
- Mehdi Hassan
- Middle East
- Mohammed El Kurd
- Mustafa Barghouthi
- News from the apartheid
- Nobel Gaza Donkey ‘NGD’
- Norman Finkelstein
- Osama Hajjaj
- Osama Nazzal
- Other pictures
- Other videos
- Owen Jones
- Palestinian agriculture
- Palestinian art & culture
- Palestinian cities, towns, villages and camps
- Palestinian creativity
- Palestinian cuisine
- Palestinian dabke
- Palestinian diaspora
- Palestinian history
- Palestinian Hostages in Israeli torture centres
- Palestinian prisoners
- Palestinian Prisoners
- Palestinian Resilience Day
- Palestinian Women
- Peace
- Phalapoem editor
- Philip Giraldi
- Pictures
- Piers Morgan
- Poems
- Politics
- Ralph Nader
- Roger Waters
- Sami Yusuf
- Sliman Mansour
- Smirat’s Column
- Songs
- South Africa
- Starvation war
- Susan Abullhawa
- UK
- Uncategorized
- UNRWA
- USA
- Videos
- Voice of Palestine
- Wael Al Dahdouh
ICJ Ruling: Israel Must Stop Genocide
Trita Parsi
The ICJ just ruled against Israel and determined that South Africa successfully argued that Israel’s conduct plausibly could constitute genocide. The Court imposes several injunctions against Israel and reminds Israel that its rulings are binding, according to international law. A final ruling will still take more time, but this ruling will have significant political repercussions. Here are a few thoughts.
This is a devastating blow to Israel’s global standing. To put it in context, Israel has worked ferociously for the last two decades to defeat the BDS movement – Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions – not because it will have a significant economic impact on Israel, but because of the manner that it could delegitimize Israel internationally. However, the ruling of the ICJ that Israel is plausibly engaged in genocide is far more devastating to Israel’s legitimacy than anything BDS could have achieved.
Just as much as Israel’s political system has publicly been increasingly associated with apartheid in the past few years, following groundbreaking reports by major human rights organizations such as Amnesty, Israel will now increasingly be publicly associated with genocide – as will likely those countries that have supported Israel and its military campaign in Gaza, such as the US under Biden.
The implications for the United States, as a result, are also significant. Firstly because the court does not have the ability to implement its ruling. Instead, the matter will go to the Security Council, where the Biden administration will once again face the choice of protecting Israel politically by casting a veto, and by that, further isolate the United States, or to allow the Security Council to act and pay a domestic political cost for “not standing by Israel.”
So far, the Biden administration has refused to say if it will respect ICJ’s decision. Of course, in previous cases in front of the ICJ, such as Myanmar, Ukraine & Syria, the US and Western states stressed that ICJ provisional measures are binding and must be fully implemented.
The double standards of US foreign policy will hit a new low if, in this case, Biden not only argues against the ICJ, but actively acts to prevent and block the implementation of its ruling. It is perhaps not surprising that senior Biden administration officials have largely ceased using the term “rules-based order” since October 7.
It also raises questions about how Biden’s policy of bear-hugging Israel may have contributed to Israel’s conduct in terms of genocide. Biden could have offered more measured support and pushed back hard against Israeli excesses – and by that, prevented Israel from engaging in actions that can fall under the category of genocide. But he didn’t.
Instead, Biden offered unconditional support combined with zero public criticism of Israel’s conduct and only limited push-back behind the scenes. A different American approach could have shaped Israel’s war efforts in a manner that arguably would not have been preliminarily ruled by the ICJ as plausibly meeting the standards of genocide.
This shows that America undermines its own interest as well as that of its partners when it offers them blank checks and complete and unquestionable protection. The absence of checks and balances such protection offers fuels reckless behavior all around. As such, Biden’s unconditional support may have undermined Israel, in the final analysis.
This ruling may also boost those arguing that they, as signatories of the Genocide Convention, have a positive obligation to prevent genocide. The Houthis, for instance, have justified their attacks against ships heading to Israeli ports in the Red Sea, citing this positive obligation. What legal implications will the court’s ruling have as a result on the US and UK’s military action against the Houthis?
The implications for Europe will also be considerable. The US is rather accustomed and comfortable setting aside international law and ignoring international institutions. Europe is not.
International law and institutions play a much more central role in European security thinking. The decision will continue to split Europe. But the fact that some key EU states will reject the ICJ’s ruling will profoundly contradict and undermine Europe’s broader security paradigm.
Final point: The mere application of South Africa’s application to the ICJ appears to have moderated Israel’s war conduct. Plans to ethically cleanse Gaza and send its residents to third countries appear to have been somewhat paused, presumably because of how such actions would boost South Africa’s application. If so, it shows that the Court, in an era where the force of international law is increasingly questioned, has had a greater impact in terms of deterring unlawful Israeli actions than anything the Biden administration has done.
Netanyahu’s Reign of Cruelty: A Leader Who Celebrates Palestinian Suffering and Embodies Western Hypocrisy
Phalapoem editor, 27/01/2025
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving Prime Minister, has become a symbol of the relentless oppression and dehumanization of the Palestinian people. His policies and rhetoric reveal a disturbing indifference—if not outright celebration—of Palestinian suffering, while his alignment with certain Western leaders like Biden, Trump , Schultz and Starmer underscores a shared disregard for justice, human rights, and international law. To many, Netanyahu’s actions and words reflect not just political strategy, but a deeply troubling psychological disposition that thrives on the pain of others.
A Legacy of Brutality
Netanyahu’s tenure has been marked by an escalation of violence and systemic oppression against Palestinians. From the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank to the devastating military assaults on Gaza, his policies have inflicted immeasurable suffering on millions of people. Under his leadership, Israel has tightened its blockade on Gaza, turning it into an uninhabitable prison where 2.3 million Palestinians struggle to survive amidst poverty, unemployment, and crumbling infrastructure.
Netanyahu’s government has also normalized the use of excessive force against Palestinian civilians, including during the Great March of Return protests in 2018, where Israeli snipers killed over 200 unarmed demonstrators, including children, journalists, and medical workers. His response to such atrocities has been chillingly dismissive, often framing these actions as necessary for Israel’s security while ignoring the blatant violations of human rights.
Celebrating Suffering
What sets Netanyahu apart is not just his policies, but his apparent glee in the suffering of Palestinians. He has repeatedly used dehumanizing language to describe Palestinians, referring to them as threats to be neutralized rather than as human beings with inherent rights. His government has celebrated gaza genocide that result in massive civilian casualties, often framing them as “successes” while ignoring the humanitarian cost.
In 2021, during the brutal 11-day assault on Gaza that killed over 250 Palestinians, including 66 children, Netanyahu boasted about the “achievements” of the operation, calling it a “great success.” His rhetoric revealed a callous disregard for the lives lost and the families torn apart. For Netanyahu, Palestinian suffering is not a tragedy—it is a political tool, a means to consolidate power and rally support from hardline factions.
Shared Values with Western Leaders
Netanyahu’s alignment with certain Western leaders highlights a disturbing trend: the normalization of cruelty and the abandonment of human rights in favor of political expediency. Leaders like U.S. President Biden and Trump and others have embraced Netanyahu’s agenda, offering unwavering support for his policies while turning a blind eye to the atrocities committed against Palestinians.
Trump’s so-called “Peace Plan,” crafted in collaboration with Netanyahu, was a blatant attempt to legitimize Israeli annexation of Palestinian land and deny Palestinians their basic rights. Similarly, some European leaders have prioritized economic and political ties with Israel over holding it accountable for its violations of international law. This complicity has emboldened Netanyahu, allowing him to continue his oppressive policies with impunity.
A Psychopathic Disposition
Netanyahu’s actions and rhetoric raise troubling questions about his psychological disposition. His ability to celebrate the suffering of others, his lack of empathy for the victims of his policies, and his relentless pursuit of power at any cost are hallmarks of a deeply troubling mindset. Psychopathy, characterized by a lack of remorse, manipulative behavior, and a disregard for the rights of others, seems to resonate with Netanyahu’s approach to governance.
His willingness to sacrifice human lives for political gain, his exploitation of fear and division, and his refusal to acknowledge the humanity of Palestinians all point to a leader who is not just ruthless, but fundamentally detached from the moral principles that should guide political leadership. He has never described his neighbours as Palestinians but referred to them as Arabs.
Netanyahu’s reign has been a dark chapter in the history of the Israeli occupation of Palestine, marked by violence, oppression, and a blatant disregard for human rights. His alignment with Western leaders who share his values of cruelty and hypocrisy has only deepened the suffering of the Palestinian people.
The international community must no longer turn a blind eye to Netanyahu’s actions. It is time to hold him accountable for the genocide, starvation and ethnic cleansing committed under his leadership, to demand an end to the apartheid polices, occupation and the blockade, and to work toward a future where justice, equality, and human rights are upheld for all.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s legacy is one of cruelty and injustice. His celebration of Palestinian suffering and his alignment with Western leaders who share his disregard for human rights reveal a leader who is not just politically dangerous, but morally bankrupt. The world must recognize the urgency of this moment and take a stand against the oppression of the Palestinian people. Only through accountability, solidarity, and a commitment to justice can we hope to end Israeli violence and build a future where all people can live in dignity and peace.
Posted in News from the apartheid, Palestinian history, Phalapoem editor, UK, USA
Tagged Joe Biden, Netanyahu, Psychopath, Schultz, Starmer, trump, western leaders
Comments Off on Netanyahu’s Reign of Cruelty: A Leader Who Celebrates Palestinian Suffering and Embodies Western Hypocrisy
A Tale of Two Returns: Palestinians and Israeli Settlers
Phalapoem editor, 27/01/2025
The stark contrast between the return narratives of Palestinians and Israeli settlers offers a window into the deep inequalities and injustices underpinning the ongoing Israeli occupation. While Palestinians continue to live in the shadow of destruction, displacement, inhumane checkpoints, separation wall, and denial of their right to return to their homes, Israeli settlers are afforded the luxury of returning to Europe leaving behind intact homes, even as a genocidal assault unfolds in Gaza. This comparison highlights the systemic disparities in rights, agency, and humanity afforded to both groups living in Israeli apartheid.
Palestinians: A Right to Return Denied
For Palestinians, the right to return is a cornerstone of their struggle. Since the Nakba (the Catastrophe) in 1948, when over 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced, millions of Palestinian refugees and their descendants have been denied the right to return to their homes, despite this being enshrined in international law. Today, as Israeli bombs decimate Gaza, countless Palestinians face renewed displacement, many losing their homes for the second or third time.
Even when the immediate violence subsides, the idea of return remains a distant dream for most Palestinians. Israeli racist policies systematically prevent Palestinians from reclaiming their homes and lands, often replacing them with illegal settlements or military zones. The destroyed homes in Gaza, the West Bank, and historic Palestine are not merely the result of war but a deliberate and apartheid strategy of erasure, ensuring that Palestinians remain stateless and displaced.
Israeli Settlers: The Privilege of Return
In sharp contrast, Israeli settlers—many of whom are recent arrivals to the region—enjoy the privilege of dual or even multiple citizenships. As the world witnesses the Israeli army’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, some settlers have chosen to return to Europe, citing safety concerns. Their homes in Israel remain intact, untouched by the violence they often support or enable, yet their departure is met with understanding and facilitated by international networks that prioritize their comfort and security.
This privilege reflects the broader reality of the Israeli settler-colonial project: settlers can return to ancestral or adopted homelands in Europe or elsewhere, while Palestinians, whose ties to the land span generations, are denied the same right. The settlers’ mobility is a testament to the systems of power and privilege that sustain the occupation, allowing them to move freely while Palestinians remain trapped under siege or in exile.
The stark disparity in the treatment of Palestinians and Israeli settlers underscores the deeply political nature of the “right to return.” For Palestinians, it is a matter of justice, rooted in historical ties to the land and recognized by UN Resolution 194. For Israeli settlers, return is a choice, not a necessity, enabled by the same structures that deny Palestinians their basic rights.
This disparity also reflects the broader dynamics of dehumanization. Palestinians, portrayed as threats or burdens, are denied the right to rebuild their lives. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers, often seen as agents of a “civilising ” project, are afforded every opportunity to thrive, even if it means leaving their supposed homeland behind.
The ongoing genocide in Gaza further highlights the hypocrisy of these dynamics. As tens of thousands of Palestinians are killed or displaced, their calls for justice are met with indifference or outright hostility from western governments. Meanwhile, the international community quietly enables the mobility and safety of Israeli settlers, even as they benefit from or support policies that perpetuate Palestinian suffering.
This hypocrisy is most evident in the framing of the occupation. Palestinian refugees are often depicted as eternal victims or security threats, while Israeli settlers are portrayed as pioneers or victims of anti-Semitism when they choose to return to Europe. The global narrative reinforces the idea that some lives are worth protecting, while others are expendable.
The comparison between the return of Palestinians to their destroyed homes and the return of Israeli settlers to Europe exposes the profound injustices at the heart of the Israeli occupation. It is a tale of two returns: one denied by systemic violence and oppression, and the other enabled by privilege and international complicity.
For Palestinians, the right to return is not just a legal principle but a symbol of their enduring connection to the land and their resilience in the face of displacement. For Israeli settlers, the ability to leave their homes intact underscores the colonial nature of the occupation, where the land is treated as a temporary asset rather than a shared homeland.
Until these disparities are addressed and the right to return is universally recognized, the cycle of displacement and inequality will persist, denying justice and peace to millions of Palestinians.
Posted in Admin, Gaza, Justice, Massacres & genocides, News from the apartheid, Palestinian art & culture, Phalapoem editor
Tagged Apartheid, Gaza war, genocide, Israel, israel’s apartheid, israeli occupation, justice, Palestine
Comments Off on A Tale of Two Returns: Palestinians and Israeli Settlers
Israel’s Apartheid Against Palestinians: Amnesty International Report , February 1, 2022
Watch
In May 2021, Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah, a neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem, began protesting against Israel’s plan to forcibly evict them from their homes to make way for Jewish settlers. Many of the families are refugees, who settled in Sheikh Jarrah after being forcibly displaced around the time of Israel’s establishment as a state in 1948. Since Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank in 1967, Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah have been continuously targeted by Israeli authorities, who use discriminatory laws to systematically dispossess Palestinians of their land and homes for the benefit of Jewish Israelis.
In response to the demonstrations in Sheikh Jarrah, thousands of Palestinians across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) held their own protests in support of the families, and against their shared experience of fragmentation, dispossession, and segregation. These were met with excessive and deadly force by Israeli authorities with thousands injured, arrested and detained.
The events of May 2021 were emblematic of the oppression which Palestinians have faced every day, for decades. The discrimination, the dispossession, the repression of dissent, the killings and injuries – all are part of a system which is designed to privilege Jewish Israelis at the expense of Palestinians.
This is apartheid.
Amnesty International’s new investigation shows that Israel imposes a system of oppression and domination against Palestinians across all areas under its control: in Israel and the OPT, and against Palestinian refugees, in order to benefit Jewish Israelis. This amounts to apartheid as prohibited in international law.
Laws, policies and practices which are intended to maintain a cruel system of control over Palestinians, have left them fragmented geographically and politically, frequently impoverished, and in a constant state of fear and insecurity.
WHAT IS APARTHEID?
Apartheid is a violation of public international law, a grave violation of internationally protected human rights, and a crime against humanity under international criminal law.
The term “apartheid” was originally used to refer to a political system in South Africa which explicitly enforced racial segregation, and the domination and oppression of one racial group by another. It has since been adopted by the international community to condemn and criminalize such systems and practices wherever they occur in the world.
The crime against humanity of apartheid under the Apartheid Convention, the Rome Statute and customary international law is committed when any inhuman or inhumane act (essentially a serious human rights violation) is perpetrated in the context of an institutionalised regime of systematic oppression and domination by one racial group over another, with the intention to maintain that system.
Apartheid can best be understood as a system of prolonged and cruel discriminatory treatment by one racial group of members of another with the intention to control the second racial group.
Amnesty International has created a free 90-minute course called “Deconstructing Israel’s Apartheid Against Palestinians”.To learn more about the crime of apartheid in international law, what apartheid looks like in Israel/OPT, and how it affects Palestinians’ lives, sign up to our course on Amnesty International’s human rights education academy.
WHY IS AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGNING AGAINST APARTHEID?
I do not know why the entire world is watching what is happening and letting Israel get away with it? It is time the world stopped spoiling Israel Nabil el-Kurd, one of the residents under threat of forced eviction in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah
Apartheid is not acceptable anywhere in the world. So why has the world accepted it against Palestinians?
Human rights have long been side-lined by the international community when dealing with the decades-long struggle and suffering of Palestinians. Palestinians facing the brutality of Israel’s repression have been calling for an understanding of Israel’s rule as apartheid for over two decades. Over time, a broader international recognition of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians as apartheid has begun to take shape.
Yet, governments with the responsibility and power to do something have refused to take any meaningful action to hold Israel accountable. Instead, they have been hiding behind a moribund peace process at the expense of human rights and accountability. Unfortunately, the situation today is one of no progress towards a just solution and worsening human rights for Palestinians.
Amnesty is calling for Israel to end the international wrong, and crime, of apartheid, by dismantling measures of fragmentation, segregation, discrimination, and deprivation, currently in place against the Palestinian population.
TELL ISRAEL: DEMOLISH APARTHEID, NOT PALESTINIAN HOMES
The Palestinian experience of being denied a home is at the heart of Israel’s apartheid system. That’s why, as a first step towards dismantling this system, we are calling on Israel to end the practice of home demolitions.
Palestinian families need people to stand with them against injustice and discrimination, by taking action to help them protect their homes.
Israel is not a state of all its citizens… [but rather] the nation-state of the Jewish people and only them Israel’s then prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu (message posted online in March 2019)
ISRAEL’S SYSTEM OF OPPRESSION AND DOMINATION OF PALESTINIANS
Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, successive governments have created and maintained a system of laws, policies, and practices designed to oppress and dominate Palestinians. This system plays out in different ways across the different areas where Israel exercises control over Palestinians’ rights, but the intent is always the same: to privilege Jewish Israelis at the expense of Palestinians.
Israeli authorities have done this through four main strategies:
Fragmentation into domains of control
At the heart of the system is keeping Palestinian separated from each other into distinct territorial, legal and administrative domains
Dispossession of land and property
Decades of discriminatory land and property seizures, home demolitions and forced evictions
Segregation and control
A system of laws and policies that keep Palestinians restricted to enclaves, subject to several measures that control their lives, and segregated from Jewish Israelis
Deprivation of economic & social rights
The deliberate impoverishment of Palestinians keeping them at great disadvantage in comparison to Jewish Israelis
FRAGMENTATION INTO DOMAINS OF CONTROL
In the course of establishing Israel as a Jewish state in 1948, Israel expelled hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and destroyed hundreds of Palestinian villages, in what amounted to ethnic cleansing.
Since then, successive governments have designed laws and policies to ensure the continued fragmentation of the Palestinian population. Palestinians are confined to enclaves in Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and the refugee communities, where they are subject to different legal and administrative regimes. This has had the effect of undermining family, social and political ties between Palestinian communities and suppressing sustained dissent against the apartheid system; it also helps to maximise Jewish Israeli control over land and maintain a Jewish demographic majority.
Millions of Palestinians remain displaced as refugees and continue to be physically isolated from those residing in Israel and the OPT through Israel’s continuous denial of their right to return to their homes, towns and villages.
DISPOSSESSION OF LAND AND PROPERTY
Since 1948, Israel has enforced massive and cruel land seizures to dispossess Palestinians of their land and homes. Although Palestinians in Israel and the OPT are subjected to different legal and administrative regimes, Israel has used similar land expropriation measures across all areas – for example, since 1948, Israel has expropriated land in areas of strategic importance that include significant Palestinian populations such as the Galilee and the Negev/Naqab, and used similar measures in the OPT following Israel’s military occupation in 1967. In order to maximize Jewish Israeli control over land and minimize the Palestinian presence, Palestinians have been confined to separate, densely populated enclaves. While Israeli policies have allowed for the discriminatory allocation of state land to be used almost exclusively to benefit Jewish Israelis both inside of Israel and in the OPT.
SEGREGATION AND CONTROL
Successive Israeli governments have pursued a strategy of establishing domination through discriminatory laws and policies which segregate Palestinians into enclaves, based on their legal status and residence.
Israel denies Palestinian citizens their rights to equal nationality and status, while Palestinians in the OPT face severe restrictions on freedom of movement. Israel also restricts Palestinians’ rights to family unification in a profoundly discriminatory manner: for example, Palestinians from the OPT cannot gain residency or citizenship through marriage, which Jewish Israelis can.
Israel also places severe limitations on Palestinians’ civil and political rights, to suppress dissent and maintain the system of oppression and domination. For example, millions of Palestinians in the West Bank remain subject to Israel’s military rule and draconian military orders adopted since 1967.
DEPRIVATION OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RIGHTS
These measures have left Palestinians marginalized, impoverished and economically disadvantaged across Israel and the OPT.
Decades of discriminatory allocation of resources by Israeli authorities, for the benefit of Jewish Israeli citizens in Israel and Israeli settlers in the OPT, compound these inequalities. For example, millions of Palestinians inside of Israel and East Jerusalem live in densely populated areas that are generally underdeveloped and lack adequate essential services such as garbage collection, electricity, public transportation and water and sanitation infrastructure.
Palestinians across all areas under Israel’s control have fewer opportunities to earn a living and engage in business than Jewish Israelis. They experience discriminatory limitations on access to and use of farmland, water, gas and oil amongst other natural resources, as well as restrictions on the provision of health, education and basic services.
In addition, Israeli authorities have appropriated the vast majority of Palestinians’ natural resources in the OPT for the economic benefit of Jewish citizens in Israel and in the illegal settlements.
LIFE UNDER APARTHEID
DENIED A HOME: DEMOLITIONS AND FORCED EVICTIONS
Palestinians are systematically subjected to home demolitions and forced evictions, and live in constant fear of losing their homes.
For more than 73 years, Israel has been forcibly displacing entire Palestinian communities. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians’ homes have been demolished, causing terrible trauma & suffering. More than 6 million Palestinians remain refugees, the vast majority of whom live in refugee camps including outside of Israel/OPT. There are over 100,000 Palestinians in the OPT and another 68,000 inside of Israel at imminent risk of losing their homes, many for the second or third time.
Palestinians are caught in a Catch-22 situation. Israel requires them to obtain a permit to build or even erect a structure such as a tent, but – unlike Jewish Israeli applicants – rarely issues them a permit. Many Palestinians are forced to build without permits. Israel then demolishes Palestinian homes on the basis that they were built “illegally”. Israel uses these discriminatory planning and zoning policies to create unbearable living conditions to force Palestinians to leave their homes to allow for the expansion of Jewish settlement.
Mohammed Al-Rajabi, a resident of Al-Bustan area in Silwan, whose home was demolished by Israeli authorities on 23 June 2020 on the basis that it was built “illegally”, described to Amnesty International the devastating impact on his family:
This is extremely hard to deal with. It might be difficult to put into words… and I sensed that it was harder on my kids than on us. They were really excited for us to have this new home. I’m going to keep the photos from that day and show them to my children when they grow up, so they do not forget what happened to us. I will tell them, ‘you see what kind of memories I have to pass on to you?’ My plan was for them to have a warm family home close to their loved ones and family members. Now I’m passing on the memories of their first childhood home being destroyedMohammed Al-Rajabi, a resident of Al-Bustan area in Silwan
FRAGMENTED LOVE: SEPARATION OF PALESTINIAN FAMILIES
Israel has enacted discriminatory laws and policies that disrupt family life for Palestinians. Since 2002, Israel has adopted a policy of prohibiting Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza from gaining status in Israel or East Jerusalem through marriage, thus preventing family unification.
Israel has long used discriminatory laws and policies to separate Palestinians from their families. For example, Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza cannot gain legal status in Israel or occupied East Jerusalem through marriage, denying their rights to family unification. This policy has forced thousands of Palestinians to live apart from their loved ones; others are forced to go abroad, or live in constant fear of being arrested, expelled or deported.
These measures explicitly target Palestinians, and not Jewish Israelis, and are primarily guided by demographic considerations that aim to minimize Palestinian presence inside Israel/OPT.
Sumaia, was born and raised in Lod in central Israel. She married her husband, who is from the Gaza Strip, in 1998 and he moved to live with her in Lod. In 2000, Sumaia and her husband began the process of applying for family unification, so they could live together legally. The family unification process took 18 years, during which the couple lived in fear and anxiety. Sumaia told Amnesty International:
The government is controlling every detail of our lives, they are in our bedroom, in our homes. One of the most extreme cases was when they arrested my husband in 2004 while I was giving birth to one of my daughters…while I was in the delivery room they arrested himSumaia
UNDER SIEGE
Over the past 14 years, more than 2 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been living under Israel’s illegal blockade. Along with four major military offensivesh, the blockade has had catastrophic consequences for the people of Gaza.
The blockade is a form of collective punishment. It forces Gaza’s population – the majority of whom are refugees or their descendants who fled in 1948 – to live in increasingly dire conditions. There are severe shortages of housing, drinking water, electricity, essential medicines and medical care, food, educational equipment and building materials. In 2020, Gaza had the world’s highest unemployment rate, and more than half of its population was living below the poverty line.
On 30 March 2018, Palestinians in Gaza launched the Great March of Return, a series of weekly mass demonstrations along the fence between Gaza and Israel.They were demanding their right to return to their villages and towns in what is now Israel, as well as an end to Israel’s blockade on Gaza. The response was brutal: by the end of 2019, Israeli forces had killed 214 civilians, including 46 children, and injured more than 8,000 others with live ammunition. A total of 156 of those injured had to have limbs amputated. More than 1,200 patients require long-term, complex and expensive therapy and rehabilitation, and tens of thousands more require psycho-social support -none of which are widely available in Gaza.
The blockade prevents Palestinians from accessing adequate healthcare, in particular life-saving and other emergency medical treatment only available outside Gaza. The Israeli authorities often delay these permits and sometimes fail to provide them at all.
Adham Al-Hajjar, 36, is a freelance journalist and lives in Gaza City. On 6 April 2018, while he was covering the Great March of Return demonstrations, Israeli snipers positioned along the fence separating Gaza from Israel shot him. He is unable to get the medical help he needs in Gaza because of the debilitated health services there.
The bullet that entered my leg did not just enter and leave my body. It entered and stopped everything; it stopped my life. Just because a soldier pulled the trigger without thinking of how it would devastate my life. Did he or she ever think about what this would cause? I am walking around as a dead man, everything in my life froze from the moment that bullet entered my legAdham Al-Hajjar
CRIMINAL PATTERNS
Israel has been systematically committing serious human rights violations against Palestinians for decades. Violations such as forcible transfer, administrative detention, torture, unlawful killings and serious injuries, and the denial of basic rights and freedoms have been well documented by Amnesty and others. It is clear that Israel’s apartheid system is being maintained through committing these abuses—which have been perpetrated with almost total impunity.
They form part of a widespread and systematic attack against the Palestinian population, carried out within the context of Israel’s institutionalised regime of systematic oppression and domination over Palestinians, and therefore constitute crimes against humanity of apartheid.
DISMANTLING THE SYSTEM
There is no place for apartheid in our world. It is a crime against humanity, and it has to end.
Israeli authorities have enjoyed impunity for too long. The international failure to hold Israel to account means Palestinians are still suffering every single day. It’s time to speak up, to stand with Palestinians and tell Israel that we will not tolerate apartheid.
For decades, Palestinians have been calling for an end to the oppression they live under. All too often, they pay a terrible price for standing up for their rights, and they have long been calling for others around the world to help them.
Let this be the beginning of an end to Israel’s system of apartheid against Palestinians.
Join us in the fight for justice, freedom, and equality for all.
TELL ISRAEL: DEMOLISH APARTHEID, NOT PALESTINIAN HOMES
The Palestinian experience of being denied a home is at the heart of Israel’s apartheid system. That’s why, as a first step towards dismantling this system, we are calling on Israel to end the practice of home demolitions.
Palestinian families need people to stand with them against injustice and discrimination, by taking action to help them protect their homes.
Further Reading
Fading Echoes of Hope
Where justice falters and sighs are heard, Israel's army casts shadows, dreams interred. No future for Palestinians, hopes confined, A somber tale, the Israeli army enshrined. America applauds, a partner in the scheme, Western nations follow, lost in the gleam. Arab lands in silence, trembling with fear, Uttering 'no' is too heavy, consequences severe. China and Russia, oblivious to the plight, Financial interest veils, obscuring the light. Latin America's voice, feeble and small, Against the Israeli army, struggling to call. Palestinians encircled by the army's might, A tragic tale, an oppressive night. Shame upon this world, where justice is blurred, In the echoes of sorrow, a plea unheard.
Shared Values of Oppression: Western Colonialism and Israel’s Occupation of Palestine
Phalapoem editor, 25/01/2025
The ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestine, particularly the events surrounding Gaza, is marked by systemic oppression, land theft, genocide and dehumanization. These features are not unique to Israel; they echo the colonial histories and contemporary practices of many Western governments. This shared ideological framework helps explain the West’s complicity in Israel’s actions, its suppression of pro-Palestine movements, and its glaring double standards in addressing the human rights of Palestinians.
Common Features: Land Theft, Supremacy, and Dehumanization
The cornerstone of Israel’s occupation is the ongoing theft of Palestinian land. From the Nakba in 1948 to the annexation of the West Bank and the siege of Gaza, Israel’s territorial expansion mirrors the colonial land grabs undertaken by Western powers throughout history. Settler-colonialism, whether in the Americas, Australia, or Africa, has always relied on the dispossession of indigenous peoples, underpinned by a narrative of racial or cultural supremacy.
This supremacy manifests in Israel’s treatment of Palestinians as expendable, their rights negotiable, and their humanity ignored. Western governments, too, have long dehumanized those they seek to dominate—be it enslaved Africans, indigenous populations, or communities in the Global South subjected to imperial interventions. The dehumanization of Palestinians, then, is not an aberration but a continuation of a long history of viewing certain peoples as obstacles to progress or security.
Complicity in Genocide
Western complicity in Israel’s actions, including genocide in Gaza, is rooted in strategic and ideological alignments. Israel is often viewed as a Western outpost in the Middle East, a bulwark against regional powers that challenge Western dominance. This geopolitical utility makes Western governments unwilling to criticize Israel, let alone hold it accountable for violations of international law.
Furthermore, Israel’s actions align with a global trend among Western governments of prioritizing state security over human rights. The framing of Palestinians mirrors the way Western powers justify their own violence against marginalized groups. Whether it’s drone strikes in the Middle East or crackdowns on indigenous resistance movements, the West and Israel share a common rationale: violence is justified when it serves the interests of the powerful.
Suppression of the Pro-Palestine Movement
Western governments have gone to great lengths to suppress pro-Palestine movements, from criminalizing protests to censoring criticism of Israel under the guise of combating antisemitism. This suppression stems from a fear that these movements expose the hypocrisy of Western democracies. The pro-Palestine movement highlights the double standards of nations that claim to champion human rights while supporting or ignoring Israel’s violations.
Moreover, these movements threaten to disrupt Western narratives about Israel as a democratic state and an ally in the fight against “extremism.” Acknowledging the legitimacy of Palestinian resistance would force Western governments to confront their complicity in decades of suffering, something they are unwilling to do.
The Double Standard on Hostages
The Western response to the hostage situation further illustrates its bias. Thousands of Palestinians, including children, languish in Israeli prisons, often without trial or due process. Their plight is met with silence. In stark contrast, the capture of Israeli hostages by Palestinian groups prompts urgent international mobilization and outrage.
This disparity is not accidental. It reflects a deeply entrenched view that Israeli lives are more valuable than Palestinian ones. By ignoring Palestinian hostages, Western governments tacitly endorse Israel’s systemic violence while erasing the humanity of those who resist.
The shared values of land theft, supremacy, and dehumanization tie Western governments to the Israeli occupation. Their complicity in Israel’s actions is not only about geopolitics but also about maintaining systems of power that have long marginalized the oppressed. The suppression of pro-Palestine movements and the indifference to Palestinian suffering are symptoms of a broader unwillingness to confront the legacies and continuities of colonialism.
However, history has shown that such systems of oppression are not invincible. As global solidarity with Palestine grows, the cracks in this complicity will become harder to ignore. The fight for justice and freedom in Palestine is part of a larger struggle against the systems that dehumanize and dispossess, and it will continue to inspire movements around the world.