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Scheerpost reporting on the NYT that now too acknowledges the ferocity of Gaza killings.
“The New York Times Reports Gaza Civilians ‘Are Being Killed at Historic Pace’”
https://scheerpost.com/2023/11/27/the-new-york-times-reports-gaza-civilians-are-being-killed-at-historic-pace/the NYT article:
“Gaza Civilians, Under Israeli Barrage, Are Being Killed at Historic Pace
Even a conservative assessment of the reported Gaza casualty figures shows that the rate of death during Israel’s assault has few precedents in this century, experts say.”
https://archive.is/UWzUK“Berlin University of the Arts prohibits solidarity strike for Palestine in its entrance hall
There were no pictures like the one with the red hands from November 13th on Wednesday. A working group against anti-Semitism has now been founded at the University of the Arts.”
“There should be demonstrations for solidarity with Palestine – and against the “one-sided solidarity” of the UdK, its “disappointing inaction”. The University published a statement on its website on October 10th in which it expressed its dismay at Hamas’ violent attacks on Israel and displayed an Israeli flag on it. At the beginning of November, the directorate declared that this was about Israel’s right to exist. And further: “We see that many innocent people become victims and enormous suffering occurs.”
p.s. There were times when German universities were spaces of political avantgarde and bold progressive thinking. In the last 2 years they have delicately failed in this regard. Today academia is not opposed to major government agendae or questioning them as any such institution should be doing but confirming and affirming them and silencing internal dissent.
This is actually a smart piece by Gilbert Doctorow:
He compares the hundreds of thousands of Russians who fled the UKR war as one major Western news story, with the fact that 300,000 Israelis have now fled from Israel for the same reasons, but no one seems to report it in the West.
Jeremy Scahill on Democracy Now:
“Israel’s “Lethal Lie” About Al-Shifa Hospital as Hamas Base Was Co-Signed by Biden”
https://www.democracynow.org/2023/11/28/jeremy_scahill_israel_palestine_gaza_warThe most important paragraphs (for me):
On how Israel built the area under the hospital + how Israel is incarcerating Palestinian kids and calls them terrorists:
“in the 1980s, the Israelis began to do extensive construction on it. In fact, I was looking at the Israeli Architecture Archives that were set up, and you can go back and look at [inaudible] from that era, and two Tel Aviv architects oversaw the expansion of the Al-Shifa Hospital. And by 1983, they had finished the construction of underground facilities at the hospital.
Now, we should also say, it’s not uncommon for hospitals the world over to have underground facilities for a variety of reasons. But when you’re in an active war zone, it’s very common. In fact, Israel has many underground facilities at its hospitals throughout Israel and has been using them since October 7th, certainly. They’re considered more secure places to hold vulnerable patients.
And so, what we know about Israel’s construction is that they at least built an underground operating room. They built a network of tunnels. And, in fact, during some of the construction, the son of one of the Israeli architects who designed the underground facility said that when Israel was building these in the 1980s, they hired people from Hamas as security to guard the construction project to ensure that it wouldn’t get attacked.
(…)
Israel released a list of 300 names that it said were fair game for a hostage-prisoner handover because of the truce with Hamas. And I went through all 15 pages of those names. I read each of the individual dates of birth, the dates of arrest, what the nature of the charges were — if there were any charges. Some of them don’t even list any actual charges against them. And what I discovered is that of the 300 names, 233 of these prisoners — most of them are teenage boys, some are — there’s a teenage girl who’s 15 years old — the 233 of 300 have not been convicted of anything. They haven’t been sentenced for anything. And Israel is the only country in the so-called developed world that tries children in military courts.
And so, you know, the Israeli narrative is that these are all hardened terrorists, because Palestinians are not allowed to have any context. Palestinians are not treated as full human beings. So, when a child — maybe his brother was killed by the Israeli forces, maybe his mother was killed by the Israeli forces — throws a rock at a soldier, their houses are often then raided at night. They’re snatched. They’re taken to interrogation without the presence of a parent or a lawyer. And then they’re pressured into pleading guilty under threat of spending years in a military judicial process.”
Israel and US moot Gaza exit for Hamas fighters – WSJ
An arrangement similar to the Reagan-negotiated deal to lift the siege of Beirut is reportedly being discussed
https://swentr.site/news/588253-hamas-fighters-relocation-beirut/So elected palestinians leaders are to ones to be evicted, not the occupier, genocidal regime??
Who do they think they are demanding this or that??
In other news:
Palestinian FM pleads for international protection, says nation faces ‘existential threat’
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/11/29/715520/Palestinian-FM-pleads-for-internationa-protection,-says-nation-faces-%E2%80%98existential-threat%E2%80%99Unfortunately I have no sympathy for the corrupt PA, I thought perhaps that they would be silent on Gaza because they dislike Hamas, but when Israel took the war to the West Bank they are still silent and remain passive.
Gaza Civilians, Under Israeli Barrage, Are Being Killed at Historic Pace
Even a conservative assessment of the reported Gaza casualty figures shows that the rate of death during Israel’s assault has few precedents in this century, experts say.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/25/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-death-toll.htmlSadly I believe the window to change the situation for the better is long gone now, especially because of the useless ceasfire. Just look how resistance, protests movement in the west nosedived past couple of days.
There should not be a ceasefire, there should be a demand that Israel stop its senseless bombing and ethnic cleansing.JACK
so the NYT text is now put in fron to the paywall? (originally it was behind hence I had to archive it). I assume considerable readership response.
* * *
“Washington Green Lights Resumption Of Israel’s Killing SpreeYesterday U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited Israel. He gave a green light to the radical Netanyahoo regime’s intent to genocide more people in Gaza.”
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2023/12/washington-green-lights-resumption-of-israels-killing-spree.html#comments
with a few linksquoted from the Axios link there:
“Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Gen. Herzi Halevi told Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Thursday that the Israeli military operation in Gaza, including in the southern part of the enclave, is expected to take “more than a few additional weeks,” three people with direct knowledge of the meeting said.
…
Blinken didn’t ask Israel to stop the operation but expressed concern and said the longer the high-intensity military campaign goes on, the more international pressure will build on both the U.S. and Israel to stop it, one source said.
…
What they’re saying: Netanyahu said in a statement after the meeting with Blinken that Israel will continue the war until it achieves three goals: freeing all of our hostages, completely eliminating Hamas and ensuring that no threat like this will ever come from Gaza again.”AG
so the NYT text is now put in fron to the paywall? (originally it was behind hence I had to archive it). I assume considerable readership response.
Here you go:
https://archive.is/6lUoHIn other news: Over 3000 palestinians has been kidnapped by Israel since the october 7.
Number of Palestinians arrested since Oct. 7 climbs to 3,200: Palestinian group
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/number-of-palestinians-arrested-since-oct-7-climbs-to-3-200-palestinian-group/3065314Over 3000. How much MSM report on that? Nothing! Meanwhile MSM care for 200 kidnapped israelis by palestinians get prime coverage 24/7.
The whole idea that Israel have kidnapped thousands of palestinians and at the same time release some few palestinians through the hostage-deal are so incredibly cynical and disgusting behavior by Israel.
thx Jack
however we have done the job twice now 😉* * *
The Intercept with a 1h-podcast on
The Squad and its opposition to the major D. party:
https://theintercept.com/2023/12/01/deconstructed-podcast-the-squad-aoc-book/
with focus on pressure by Israeli lobby groups
“the Squad’s relationship to Democratic leadership, criticism of its willingness to stand up to Democratic Party bosses, and the big-money operation launched by pro-Israel super PACS, organized by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, to oust members of the Squad and purge the party of Democrats who agree with them.”
AG
Oh sorry I did not see that you had already posted this. My bad!
Good interview with Norman Finkelstein on Israel, Hillary, Human Shields & Ben Shapiro and Jordan Peterson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFbdKdwqlZw
The humilitary and knowledge that Finkelstein have is really something, what a person!And of course the ceasefire have been breached by Israel have already killed over 100 palestinians.
Over 109 Palestinians killed since ceasefire ended – Gaza
https://swentr.site/news/588353-gaza-civilians-killed-israel-ceasefire/100 palestinian lives that will each go unreported and a perpetrator that will never face justice and the arab states are more silent than ever, they did not throw palestinians under the bus, they throwed them under israeli tanks.
Just imagine if palestinians breached the ceasefire and murdered 100 israelis, Israel and the west they would fume and “have the right” to “defend” itself, but now? Nah palestinians have no such right. Sickening…
Jack re: self-defense
Again German government press conference:
(29/11/23)
The question was referring to the ICJ´s 2004 verdict (The Wall) discussed here on the blog in length, too.
The German government spokesman answered by quoting an exchange on that same topic that had taken place in a conference already Nov. 1st.Q: Mr. Fischer, on Monday you said with regard to the West Bank that it is up to Israel, as the occupying power, to ensure the security and integrity of the Palestinian population in the West Bank. According to the German government, the UN, the EU and the USA, Israel is also an occupying power in Gaza. Do these words also apply to the security and integrity of the Palestinian population in Gaza?
A: Fischer (SoS)
We have already talked about the fact that we also consider Gaza to be part of the occupied territories. However, there are special features there because Israel has not been present in Gaza itself or exercised control there, but has only controlled the borders. It was therefore not an occupation in the conventional sense.At the same time, since the Hamas attack, the rules of occupation law have been overridden by the rules governing the armed conflict. At present, we are not dealing with a stabilized occupation situation in which the question of relations between the occupying power and the population in the occupied territory can be addressed. We are currently dealing with an armed conflict characterized by massive fighting. This overrides the provisions of occupation law.
Q: In other words, the security and integrity of the Palestinian population in Gaza is not the task of the Israeli army.
A: Fischer (AA)
I have told you what I have to say. What applies there at the moment are the rules of armed conflict, which we have discussed at length in past government press conferences.p.s. obviously a fake answer. And these people only get away with it because 99% of the journalists don´t know and give a shit.
Jack
this is an odd example of a human rights expert arguing in favour of self-defense:
“War Crimes” by Conor Gearty, Prof for human rights law at the LSE
https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n23/conor-gearty/short-cutsI posted this piece before on this blog but too late since everyone had moved to the next lead post.
“(…)
All agree that Israel has a right to defend itself, though there are many differences of opinion among lawyers as to the basis for this. What no one contests, however, is that serious violations of humanitarian law by your opponent do not give you licence to do the same to them.
(…)”I wonder what you would make of the text.
As a non-native speaker I found it confusing. Eventually leaving unclear on what the author really thinks.Lowkey’s account on X has been suspended, as of earlier on today
AG
I am not native speaker myself (scandinavian) but I believe that was a good text you shared but it suffer from the usual feebleness when it comes to criticism of Israel in the western discourse. It is always impartial, muted, it is always this beating around the bush type soft, sobering language – even though we are dealing with grave, severe war crimes – the language should be the complete opposite. This desensitization type of talk is in great part why Israel is able to keep killing day in and day out because westerners have been lulled into that the situation is not that bad and so on and so forth.
It seems that all too many westerners are too afraid of speaking out against Israel and instead sit on the fence, the lefits have been all too shook by right-wing cancel-culture and fear being accused of antisemitism, it is really terrible to watch. If the rightwingers can openly support Israel when they breach international law, why is it so hard for leftist parties throughout the west, to openly support the opressed, the occupied, the slaughtered palestinians?
Jack
thx for taking the time and for your view@will moon: who is Lowkey?
NYT reporting the leak that IDF knew every detail about HAMAS attack one year before:
“Israel Knew Hamas’s Attack Plan More Than a Year Ago
A blueprint reviewed by The Times laid out the attack in detail. Israeli officials dismissed it as aspirational and ignored specific warnings.”“The approximately 40-page document, which the Israeli authorities code-named “Jericho Wall,” outlined, point by point, exactly the kind of devastating invasion that led to the deaths of about 1,200 people.”
Larry Johnson points out British FT already had the story a week before the NYT.
* * *
“Report Details How Israel Intentionally Targets Civilians in Gaza
The report from +972 Magzine says Israel intentionally destroys civilian areas as part of a strategy to put pressure on Hamas”
https://news.antiwar.com/2023/11/30/report-details-how-israel-intentionally-targets-civilians-in-gaza/AG, Lowkey is a British rapper who is interested in social and political issues. He has become a rallying point for those who disavow Israeli murder of civilians in Palestine and the British state’s support and facilitation of this violence.
I became aware of him due to the Grenfell Tower Fire – he released a song about this highly avoidable tragedy which was widely listened to in Britain.
His X feed was getting wider and wider notice. He was using it to publicise aspects of Israel’s current attack on Gaza – not anymore. Several commentators on this site have mentioned his X feed, including Clark and Republic of Scotland, the latter twigged me to nitter. I find the idea of registering to use/read/watch X a painful one.
He appears at Mint Press, hosting a show called the Watchdog, often with Alan Mcleod, one of Mint Press’s knowledgeable journalists (as opposed to ignorant presstitutes). His content is well researched and delivers cogent analysis – essential for those who can’t stomach the Stalinist output spewed by most media in Britain.
will moon
thank you!
Mcleod I know and value. Due to time I never looked into that podcast you mention, though.* * *
It´s funny that I wrote about “War Crimes” by Conor Gearty in the LRB above.
Because just yesterday a decent German site brought a commentary on the problematic use of the term “genocide”.
The author quoted Gearty in LRB as evidence. But e.g. failed to quote the first sentence by Gearty “the right for self-defense”.
Even though this kind of author/text would usually take into consideration ICJ 2004 ruling contradicting that right and draw adequate conclusions.
But here this is not the case. This shows you how timid and weak German thinking and argumentation is and how deep this issue reaches into German academic thinking re: Israel. Thats just how it is.
(Still I link the article below.)– This site is a rather old-fashioned West German initiative – founded mid-90s by Classic antiwar folks and scholars and activists, which means, strictly against NATO but in terms of Israel there is always a certain lack of consistency and caution, which is probably a German endemic problem.
Unfortunately so. But I have learned a lot from this site. Their in-depth studies on NATO and WMD policy and geopolitics against Russia over the last 3 decades are very good.(They try to be “neutral” which can lead to certain weaknesses in verdicts as is e.g. the case with Israel. Its just imcomprehensible to equal 1200 with 15,000 not to mention the decades before Oct. 2023. That I will never understand albeit I grew up here.) –
text:
““Genocide” – difficult terrain
An answer or addition to the alleged “genocide” in Gaza”
by Berhard Klaus
Dec. 1st 2023
https://www-imi–online-de.translate.goog/2023/12/01/genozid-ein-schwieriges-terrain/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wappbtw: anyone here remember Mel Brooks´ “We Jews Are In Space?”
A 60 second spoof?
(I don´t know what Brooks did have in mind. But its not an unpolitical joke. And I wonder how campuses in the US would react to the projection of THAT movie today)AG – In 1975 British sci-fi writer M John Harrison published a book called “The Centauri Device”. In this story humans had reached the stars. There were only two factions – IWG (Israeli World Government) and UASR (United Arab Socialist Republic) – equally powerful and vying for control of “the human experience” on an inter-galatic scale. All other earth ideologies and philosophies were degenerate and irrevelant though the galaxy had spawned several new and extreme challengers to the duopolistic grip of the two earth factions.
When I read it back then, it seemed like a far-fetched though highly entertaining story. I re-read it last year and it seemed not so far-fetched after all –
will moon
no, never heard of that one (GERMANY!) – sounds cool. thx for the info.Berin library network even has 2 (!) copies in German by “low-brow” Sci-Fi/Fantasy publisher Heyne, published 2006.
(I assume that´s only due to Germany winning the Soccer World Cup that same year. So this was allowed…)* * *
A little teach-in:
excellent 60 min. between Chris Hedges and Rashid Khalidi (tenure Columbia Univers.) on the history, beginning with the Balfour Declaration:
“The Chris Hedges Report with Columbia University Professor Rashid Khalidi on Zionism’s 100-year war against Palestinians.”
3 pieces by Mouin Rabbani on the current situation as unfolding:
“Mouin Rabbani: Israel has lost the plot
This is Mouin Rabbani’s latest assessment of Israel’s Unfulfilled Objective: Eliminating Hamas”
27/11/23https://normanfinkelstein.substack.com/p/mouin-rabbani-israel-has-lost-the
“Mouin Rabbani: The “Hamas-ISIS” line has become untenable
This writing by Mouin Rabbani critiques the failing strategies of US propaganda”
30/11/23https://normanfinkelstein.substack.com/p/mouin-rabbani-the-hamas-isis-line
“Mouin Rabbani: A Post-Ceasefire Analysis”
2/12/23https://normanfinkelstein.substack.com/p/mouin-rabbani-a-post-ceasefire-analysis
Azmi Bishara: Every Arab state needs to support the Palestinians today – it is in their own interest
On Egypt’s behaviour towards the humanitarian disaster in Gaza, Bishara says: “As long as a large state like Egypt waits for permission from the other party to either deliver aid or take the wounded, it is not exploiting the leverage it has as the largest Arab state, from which more is expected today”.
Politically, Bishara repeated that “what happens in the Gaza Strip needs an Arab stance where serious steps are adopted against Israel like severing relations and other strategic measures”.
Bishara mentioned that some Arab states have banned the raising of Palestinian flags, as well as any demonstrations of solidarity with the Palestinians.
Bishara warned that if the Arabs fail to make a stance “regarding what is happening, once the war is over, Israel will feel it will never need to offer anything at all to the Arabs”.
https://www.newarab.com/news/azmi-bishara-arab-world-needs-support-palestinians-today
Why does Saudi Arabia describe Hamas as a terrorist organisation?
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180309-why-does-saudi-arabia-describe-hamas-as-a-terrorist-organisation/
Meanwhile the same Saudi Arabia refuse to label a terror-regime.The only thing the disgraceful arab leaders have done for almost 60 days is…hold on now. Vocally condemned Israel! Oh so brave they are huh, sigh. If that is the only thing they could do they better shut up for good with those pathetic condemnations.
OIC Strongly Condemns Resumption of Israeli Aggression on Gaza Strip
https://english.wafa.ps/Pages/Details/138801
And look at this, the cry-baby is sad because he is not getting his entitled attention:
Zelensky meets Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch, says Gaza ‘blurring’ world attention
https://www.newarab.com/news/zelensky-meets-fox-ceo-says-gaza-blurring-world-attention
Interesting too that Zelensky support Israel’s war. So much for standing up to annexation, occupation and “rule based order”. What a joke.
Follow up to my earlier post about arab states complicity and naive support for Israel…. well this is what you get Qatar:
Israeli strike destroys Qatar-funded housing complex
Israeli air strikes have hit a cluster of multistorey buildings in Hamad City, a Qatari-funded housing development on the outskirts of Khan Younis. Huge clouds of smoke have engulfed the complex. There is no immediate word on casualties.
The attacks came at almost exactly the same time Israeli negotiators pulled out of truce talks in Qatar. Hamad City is named for former Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who laid the foundation stone on a visit 11 years ago.Hamas should indeed fight and urge regime change in those arab corrupt nations. Return the same medicine to them, make them feel the same pain palestinians have felt past 60 days.
“Hamas Uses Human Shields? The Evidence”
by UK reporter Robert Inkalesh / MintPressNews
https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/02/hamas-uses-human-shields-the-evidence-2/open access scholarship:
“Ordinary Jerusalem, 1840-1940
Opening New Archives, Revisiting a Global City”https://brill.com/edcollbook-oa/title/36309
content:
“In Ordinary Jerusalem, Angelos Dalachanis, Vincent Lemire and thirty-five scholars depict the ordinary history of an extraordinary global city in the late Ottoman and Mandate periods. Utilizing largely unknown archives, they revisit the holy city of three religions, which has often been defined solely as an eternal battlefield and studied exclusively through the prism of geopolitics and religion. At the core of their analysis are topics and issues developed by the European Research Council-funded project “Opening Jerusalem Archives: For a Connected History of Citadinité in the Holy City, 1840–1940.” Drawn from the French vocabulary of geography and urban sociology, the concept of citadinité describes the dynamic identity relationship a city’s inhabitants develop with each other and with their urban environment.”
