The war in Israel and Palestine did not begin on Oct. 7, 2023. It began before the state of Israel was created. In his book, Gaza: An Inquest into its Martyrdom, noted Israeli historian Norman Finkelstein writes, “In 1947, the U.N. General Assembly approved a resolution partitioning British-mandated Palestine into a Jewish state incorporating 56 percent of Palestine, and an Arab state incorporating the remaining 44 percent. In the war that ensued after passage of the resolution, the newly born state of Israel expanded its borders to incorporate nearly 80 percent of Palestine.”
According to Al Jazeera, between 1947 and 1949, more than 80 percent of Palestinians in what became Israel were expelled, and approximately 80 percent of Palestinian land was seized by Zionists.
Although the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 194 in 1948, affirming the right of return of Palestinian refugees, Israel has refused to implement this resolution. Instead, the state of Israel has participated in ethnic cleansing, the removal of Palestinians from their land. By 1967, Israel occupied historic Palestine, including the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights and the Egyptian Sinai.
So, no, this is not a new war, and Israel has used Oct. 7 as a pretext to cleanse Gaza of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, who may never be able to return to their homes.
What Israel has done to the Palestinian people is inhumane. They have colonized traditional Palestinian land by force. The Israeli army can knock on any Palestinian front door and order the owners to leave. Refuse and you can be killed on the spot. Thousands have been.
Now the Israeli government is waging war on the Palestinians in Gaza. Not just on Hamas, but on the Palestinian people. Israel justifies its attacks on hospitals and schools and refugee camps, saying Hamas is hidden among them. So, they use 2,000-pound American bunker-busting bombs that kill men, women, and children indiscriminately.
Lebanon is Israel’s current target. Pagers and walkie-talkies their bombs. These have killed or wounded hundreds of innocents, not just members of Hezbollah.
Where is the outrage? If America had carried out these bombings in Lebanon, the world would rise up against our actions. Israel deserves to be condemned for this new level of warfare. It is a new form of terrorism. Israel has become a terrorist state.
At the same time, Israel has prevented medicine, food, and water from getting to Palestinian refugees. This has been confirmed by the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the State Department’s refugees bureau. U.S. law requires our government to stop arms shipments to countries that prevent the delivery of U.S. backed aid. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has ignored these findings in order to keep our weapons flowing to the Israeli military to continue its assault on Gaza.
Now Israel has begun a land invasion of Lebanon, broadening the conflict. This has caused Iran to begin missile and drone strikes on Israel, a country that possesses nuclear weapons.
America must stop this madness by ending all weapons delivery to Israel, and by joining with the United Nations in imposing and enforcing a cease-fire in both Palestine and Lebanon. We may be on the brink of a nuclear war in the Middle East. America must do all it can to prevent that war. Staying the course with Israel is not an option. We must impose a cease-fire now. Δ
Gale McNeeley writes to the New Times from Santa Maria. Send a letter for publication to letters@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Nov 7-17, 2024.
