For more than a year, those calling for an end to Israel’s slaughter of civilians in Gaza have been relentlessly vilified: as apologists for Hamas, as antisemites, even as supporters of a genocide against Israel and the wider Jewish people.
These smears have been buttressed by western politicians and the media insisting that Israel is conducting a legitimate, “defensive” war with limited aims: supposedly to eradicate Hamas and free a few dozen remaining Israeli hostages.
The bigger picture has had to be swept from view. That Israel has levelled the infrastructure in Gaza needed to sustain life; bombarded Palestinians wherever they have sought refuge; butchered many tens of thousands of civilians – or more likely hundreds of thousands; and actively starved most of the population by withholding aid.
And, overlooked in all of this, Israel has failed to make any significant impact on Hamas’ fighting ability and has almost certainly endangered the lives of the hostages with its indiscriminate bombing campaigns. …more
