US President Joe Biden said - today, Wednesday - during his "solidarity" visit to Tel Aviv that Israel must return to a safe place for Jews, he Reiterated his old saying: If there was no Israel, we would work to establish it

Biden added that the operation of the Palestinian resistance movement (Hamas) left a deep wound on the Israelis, likening the "Al-Aqsa Flood" operation to being 15 times greater than the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Biden addressed the Israelis, saying that there were those who wanted to break their will, but he “did not succeed,” expressing his solidarity with their “pain” as a result of Hamas holding about 250 prisoners.

In his speech, the American President stressed the priority of the issue of releasing prisoners.

Biden pointed out the need to work on a two-state solution and integrate Israel into its surroundings, stressing that the United States stands by Israel during what he described as the dark days.

During his visit, which came after the Baptist Hospital massacre, the US President warned other countries against attacking Israel, while adopting the Israeli narrative that holds the Palestinian resistance responsible for the bombing of the hospital, citing data presented to him by the US Department of Defense.

Biden also stated that he will ask Congress to provide unprecedented supplies to Tel Aviv this week to support Iron Dome and the State of Israel in general.

Biden read his speech at a hotel in Tel Aviv, amid intense security measures, with snipers stationed on the rooftops of nearby houses.

The US President considers Israel's presence in the Middle East to protect their interests in the region, as he affirmed in more than one speech the United States' full and unconditional support for Tel Aviv.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, mired in a conflict with Ukraine from which he sees no way out, finds in the confrontation between the Hamas movement and Israel an unexpected, but risky, way to move the geopolitical lines in the region, according to a report prepared by Agence France-Presse.

Here is an overview of the Russian President's five major goals, some of which were no doubt discussed in his talks today (Wednesday) with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on the sidelines of the New Silk Roads Forum in Beijing:

Removing Ukraine from the spotlight

600 days after the start of the war in Ukraine that is likely to continue for a long time, the crisis in the Middle East allows the international community to divert attention from the Ukrainian crisis.

Deputy Director of the French-Russian Observatory, Igor Delanoue, says, “The Hamas attack contributes, due to its consequences, to depleting general Western interest in Ukraine.”

Alexander Gabuev, from the Carnegie Center, explains that “this conflict is a blessing for Russia because it diverts a lot of attention from the United States and the West,” stressing that the American administration intends to devote a lot of time to the current crisis in the Middle East, at least until the presidential elections. In November 2024.

This perspective complicates Vladimir Putin's game, as a Republican victory would serve his interests because some of them seek to reconsider American aid to Kiev. The Israeli issue is also very sensitive among the American right.

Avoid clutter

The Middle East is a region of great importance to Russia, and some voices in the West have even expressed doubts that the Kremlin played a role in the attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7.

But there is no concrete evidence to confirm this hypothesis. “I have not seen any evidence of direct Russian support for Hamas and this attack - in terms of planning, weapons and execution,” says Hannah Knott, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a think tank in Washington. “Let us be clear: Russian assistance was not necessary.”

Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of the specialized website RPolitik, believes, for her part, that “a severe escalation, which could even lead to an open conflict between Iran and Israel, could harm the established Russian presence in the Middle East and the current status of its campaign in Syria.”

It stresses that Russian military bases in Syria allow “to highlight Moscow’s influence in Africa and the Middle East.”

Improving Iran's situation

The rapprochement between Tehran and Moscow has become one of the keys to Russian diplomacy, especially with the extensive use of Iranian drones in Ukraine. Tehran is a major supporter of the Hamas movement, similar to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Here too, Moscow appears to be pulling the strings of the game. “Russia’s war in Ukraine has strengthened military relations with Iran,” says Nigel Gould-Davies of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). Hamas officials have visited Moscow at least three times since Russia invaded Ukraine.

He added: “The question has always been how far this cooperation can reach without causing Israel to rethink its relations with Moscow.” Moscow also fears that any harsh retaliation against Iran would weaken one of its few close allies.

Arranging the situation in Israel

At the same time, Moscow must be careful to arrange Israel's situation, especially since personal relations are good between Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Israeli military factories have not delivered any weapons to Kiev's forces.

Dmitry Minnik, of the French Institute of International Relations, says: “The Kremlin has so far succeeded in keeping Israel out of the war in Ukraine, and would like this Western country not to be an additional supporter of Ukraine.”

However, the Russian President refrained from describing the Hamas attacks on October 7 as “terrorist,” as the West did.

This position “indicates the change in his political priorities” and the fact that he is now addressing pro-Palestinian public opinion in the Middle East and Southern Hemisphere, according to Hannah Knott, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Weakening the West

The primary goal of Russian diplomacy is to weaken the Western world order, a project shared in particular by its Chinese, Iranian, and North Korean allies.

The Kremlin head also directly blamed Washington for the crisis in the Middle East.

In this regard, Tatiana Stanovaya believes that the situation in the region “contributes to spreading anti-Western rhetoric by accusing it of causing global instability and reopening historical conflicts.”

Igor Delanoe points out that “Israeli retaliation against Gaza is characterized by a torrent of fire, which will undoubtedly highlight what may be considered double standards in the Western reaction to the use of force.”

Dmitry Minnik, from the French Institute of International Relations, says: “What unites part of the countries of the South and Russia is not so much the exchange of positive values, but rather resentment, even hatred, and often an irrational perception of the West,” adding: “This relationship with the West has sources.” Several constitute inexhaustible fertile ground for Moscow.

Source: Al Sharq Al Awsat

On Wednesday evening, the Israeli occupation forces closed the main entrance to the village of Bzearia, northwest of Nablus, with dirt berms.

Eyewitnesses said that the occupation forces, accompanied by a military bulldozer, stormed the village and closed the eastern entrance with dirt barriers, which obstructed the movement of citizens in the village, and the movement of citizens between the cities of Jenin and Tulkarm.

This evening, the entrance to the village witnessed an attack by colonists on citizens’ vehicles, which resulted in a woman being hit in the head with a stone, and the windows of a number of vehicles being shattered.

By Dr. Amro El Shobaki

The Palestinian issue was not just the issue of a people struggling to regain their land and build their independent state. Rather, from the first day of Israel’s establishment, it opened the door to an intellectual debate about the nature of this conflict and ways to solve it. The Arabs knew a division between moderates and extremists, supporters of a peaceful solution and armed conflict, and an ideological disagreement about Tools for managing this conflict and the position on the existence of Israel.

The Hamas operation on October 7 succeeded in restoring a large part of the Arab divisions over the Palestinian issue, and expressed some of the ideological differences about the path of settlement and peaceful solutions. It was not just a military operation that caused this unprecedented number of victims. The Israelis were also characterized by mastery, professionalism, and strategic deception, in which “Hamas” succeeded in deceiving everyone when it refrained from participating in the recent confrontations between “Jihad” and Israel, as many Western reports and research papers came out that talked about “Hamas’ neutrality,” including one of the papers “ Carnegie Center for Peace” under the title “Hamas from Resistance to Neutralization,” following its non-participation in the armed confrontations that took place last May, and that the matter had nothing to do with neutrality or only preoccupation with managing the affairs of the Gaza Strip, but rather was a process of deception. A complete strategy that made observers in the West and Israel believe that Hamas was on its way to becoming an “administration” and not a resistance movement.

Hence, the Hamas operation, despite the violence of the Israeli reaction and its harsh repercussions on the Palestinian people, nevertheless entered the path of elaborate and professional operations that were absent from many of the practices of the forces of resistance and extremism, which were often characterized by randomness, flashy slogans, and a preoccupation with outbidding the forces of moderation. Without offering a real alternative.

The truth is that any look at previous confrontations between armed resistance factions and Israel will discover a huge difference between the Palestinian victims and their Israeli counterparts. The 2008 clashes killed 13 Israelis compared to 1,400 Palestinians, and the 2014 summer confrontations lasted 50 days and were led by the Hamas movement, in which 73 Israelis were killed compared to more than 2,000 Palestinians. And the armed confrontations between the “Jihad” movement and Israel in 2019 and 2022, and then last May also witnessed a big difference between the Palestinian and Israeli victims.

It is certain that the position on all of these operations represented one of the main aspects of disagreement between the movement of moderation and peace settlement, and the forces of opposition and armed resistance, especially since Israel seemed not to be concerned about the option of armed resistance due to its limited impact, because if one Israeli was killed, it would be met with the death of 100 Palestinians.

It is certain that the October 7th operation was different from all previous armed confrontations that dealt a sudden and unprecedented blow to the Israeli side, and its professionalism and accuracy neutralized the main criticism directed at the armed resistance factions and the Arab resistance movement since the defeat of 1967, that they are movements concerned with ideological slogans and banners. It is far from being professional and capable of effective deterrence and resistance.

It is true that the killing of 1,300 Israelis was met with an earth-shattering Hebrew response, the price of which was paid by civilians in the Gaza Strip, and that Israel’s strategy is now based on dismantling Hamas’ military power and targeting its military and political leaders alike through a ground invasion.

However, this extremely violent and oppressive response only vaguely raised the usual “ideological” question in the Arab world, especially Egypt, about the feasibility of armed resistance operations and the returns from them, which had been raised forcefully in previous times.

This transformation is due to two things: The first, as we previously pointed out, is the strength and professionalism of the Palestinian process, and everyone discovered after 20 years of Israeli settlement policies that it emptied the Arab moderation project of its content after it destroyed the Oslo Accords and the two-state solution and completely weakened the Palestinian Authority. As for the reason? 

The second is due to the blatant American and Western bias towards Israel politically and in the media (the media performance of a number of major Western newspapers has improved in recent days after witnessing the Gaza massacres), which made the Arab division between moderates and opponents decline significantly, because the principled position of the Arab Moderation Movement is to refuse to harm any civilian and its disagreement with the forces of resistance and armed resistance do not call for the killing of civilians, but consider targeting them as a response to the crimes of the occupation. 

Both trends discovered that the leaders of major democratic countries distinguish between Palestinian and Israeli civilians on national, religious, and cultural grounds, a position that was shocking to Arab public opinion with its various political orientations and ideological differences. .

The blatant Western and American bias towards Israel and considering that there are victims to be mourned for and others who are worthless, everyone questioned the greater values related to justice, international legitimacy and equality between peoples, and led to a decline in ideological differences in the Arab world regarding the position on the path of settlement and the disagreement between supporters of normalization and its opponents and between options for extremism. And moderation.

What is happening in Gaza, despite its tragedies, has put the Arab world, perhaps since the 1973 war, before major questions related to identity and how the world views them, their issues and their priorities, not only with regard to the Palestinian issue but also to the rest of the issues, and these are questions closer to the “existential” questions that have been covered in a way. It greatly affects the ideological divisions between moderates and extremists, and between supporters of peace and supporters of war, which is a remarkable shift whose repercussions will be significant.

Source: Al Sharq Al Awsat

At a time when Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced, from Beirut, that his country was holding talks for the purpose of mediating the release of Israeli and foreign prisoners from Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip, and that the countries of the world to which the foreign prisoners belong had blessed this step and assigned him to negotiate on their behalf, The Israeli government continued to marginalize these negotiations and insist on liberating the prisoners by force.

The new Israeli official in charge of this file, Brigadier General Gal Hirsch, said that the government is making great efforts on the issue, but he did not provide any details and did not express any intention to enter into negotiations. He said, "Hamas must release them unconditionally."

Israel initially rejected any talk of mediation to conclude an exchange deal. It rejected a proposal for a preliminary deal, according to which children, the elderly, women, and sick Israeli and foreign prisoners would be released, in exchange for sick, women, and children Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons as well. But the American administration, along with strong support for Israel, requested a change in the Israeli approach and placed the issue of prisoners at the top of the scale of attention. It sent a specialized delegation to address this file, including Stephen Gillan, Deputy Presidential Envoy for Prisoners and Missing Persons Affairs, and a group of American experts on the subject.

In a meeting with Hersh and his crew, Gilan said that the United States stands by the security of Israel and the return of its prisoners, and that the United States has a specialized staff that works permanently to follow up on the affairs of prisoners and missing persons, and that it also has a number of figures who participated in negotiations to release prisoners in several places in the world. He has gained rich experience in this field, and he personally and all his team put their energies into serving the State of Israel to help release the hostages.

An American team remained in Tel Aviv to follow up on the issue and prevent it from being marginalized. With the publication of information about the prisoners and the revelation that at least a fifth of them were foreign citizens: French, British, Germans, Chinese, Thais, South Africans and others, their countries began to exert pressure to change the Israeli approach and demand that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government be careful in its bombing so that none of the prisoners would be harmed. In Israel, too, many voices have been raised demanding that the government change its approach and abandon its stubborn position of not concluding exchange deals. Two Hebrew newspapers called on the government to put the release of Israeli and foreign prisoners at the top of its attention, even if the price is the release of all Palestinian prisoners and the closure of prisons.

Hence, the Turkish proposal was encouraging to those who support this position and demand a deal to release them. On Tuesday evening, it was published in Israel that “a support ship from Turkey docked in Haifa port carrying 4,500 tons of vegetables, 80 percent of which were tomatoes, requested by Israel after its agricultural sector was damaged by the war in Gaza.” This rapid assistance was considered a goodwill gesture from Ankara to facilitate dialogue on the necessity of concluding a deal. Sources in Tel Aviv said that Turkey maintains an open line of communication with the Hamas leadership and received a green light from this leadership to conduct negotiations. It confirmed that the statements made by Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the military arm of Hamas, about the status and numbers of prisoners, and the publication of the tape in which the Israeli prisoner of French origin, Maya Shem, appeared, is part of the response of the Hamas leadership to Turkey.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, had published a tape on Monday, in which Shim appeared receiving medical care after suffering an injury to her right hand. She said that she is 21 years old and that she is still in Gaza. The prisoner praised the treatment of the “Al-Qassam” officers, explaining that “she was injured in the hand and underwent a 3-hour surgery, and they took care of her and provided her with the required medicine, care and medication.” She asked to return to her family “as quickly as possible,” saying: “Please get us out of here.”

The Israeli army responded to this tape with a statement published on the “X” platform in which it said that its representatives were making “contacts with the family,” considering that “Hamas is trying, by publishing the video, to show itself as a humanitarian organization.” He stressed that he "is working with all intelligence and operational means to return the kidnapped people."

In Paris, the publication of the tape sparked widespread reactions. The Elysee Palace said that President Emmanuel Macron “denounces the kidnapping of innocent people and calls for their immediate liberation” and that he is “committed to releasing the citizens of his country,” amid expectations that he will visit Tel Aviv to “stand in solidarity with it against (Hamas) terrorism and seek to release the prisoners and provide food aid to the people of Gaza and address their suffering.” Great humanity.

Sources in Tel Aviv said that Western countries disagree with Israel and show a willingness to negotiate the release of the hostages, and when they reach an agreement through their own efforts, they will seek to persuade Israel and perhaps pressure it until it accepts it and releases prisoners to help free the rest of the prisoners.

It is noteworthy that Israel estimates the number of prisoners at two hundred people, while Abu Ubaida announced that their number is between 200 and 250 prisoners or more. Hamas holds prisoners in underground detention centers in various places and claimed that 9 of them were killed due to Israeli bombing.

Source: Al Sharq Al Awsat

On Wednesday, China condemned the Israeli attack that targeted the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which resulted in the death and injury of hundreds of Palestinians, expressing its shock.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said: “We mourn the victims and express our sincere sympathy to the injured.”

He added: "China calls for an immediate ceasefire, a cessation of hostilities, and every effort to be made to protect civilians and avoid a worse humanitarian catastrophe."

On Tuesday evening, the Israeli occupation forces committed a new massacre that resulted in the martyrdom and injury of hundreds of our people in the Gaza Strip, after bombing the Arab National Hospital (Al-Baptist) in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City.

1. Conviction in Ramallah, Amman, and Cairo that Israel will revive the plan of displacement to Sinai and Jordan
2. The relationship between the American administration and the Palestinian Authority is marred by great tension these days, against the backdrop of unlimited American support for Israel in its war on the Gaza Strip.
3. 
   
4. Palestinian sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the main disagreement with the United States today is related to America’s position in support of the continuation of the war on the Gaza Strip “until the end that Israel wants.”
5. 
   
6. According to the sources, the American administration does not want to stop the war, but rather “lift the cover on Hamas, Palestinian and Arab, and neutralize the other fronts,” which is the main reason for the worsening dispute.
7. 
   
8. The sources confirmed that the cancellation of the quadripartite summit, which was supposed to bring together US President Joe Biden with Jordanian King Abdul II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in Amman, on Wednesday, came after the Arab presidents realized that it would not lead to any progress in terms of Stopping the war, and that this was not acceptable after the Baptist Hospital massacre, in which Israel killed about 500 Palestinians who fled with their families to the hospital.

Source: Asharq Al-Awsat

Today, Wednesday, Israel asked its citizens to leave Turkey as soon as possible after angry demonstrations in front of the Israeli embassy in Ankara following the Baptist Hospital massacre yesterday. It also evacuated the employees of its embassies in Morocco and Egypt.

The Israeli Consulate in Ankara raised the security alert for Israelis in Turkey to the highest level.

While the Israeli National Security Council justified the request to leave with “increasing terrorist threats against Israelis abroad,” warning Israelis against traveling to Turkey.

Demonstrations took place in about 12 Turkish cities yesterday, Tuesday, especially in front of the Israeli embassy in Ankara, denouncing Israel's bombing of the Baptist Hospital, which resulted in the death of at least 500 Palestinians, most of whom were women and children who took refuge in the hospital because they believed it was safe.

Evacuation of embassies

The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs evacuated the employees of its embassies in Cairo and Rabat, after demonstrations condemning the bombing of Baptist Hospital.

Thousands of Egyptians demonstrated today in a number of governorates, including Minya in the south, Dakahlia, and Menoufia in the Nile Delta, denouncing the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza since October 7, in the wake of Operation “Al-Aqsa Flood” launched by the Palestinian resistance.

For its part, Morocco denounced - in a statement by its Foreign Ministry - the Israeli bombing of the Baptist Hospital in the Gaza Strip, and thousands demonstrated in Rabat last Sunday in support of the besieged Gaza Strip and to denounce normalization with the Israeli occupation.

Today, Wednesday, Arab and international reactions to the Israeli bombing of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza City, which resulted in the death of about 500 Palestinians and the injury of hundreds of others, continued. In contrast, US President Joe Biden adopted the Israeli story that claims that the hospital was hit as a result of a “missile launch failure” by the Palestinian resistance. Yesterday evening, Tuesday, several countries and international organizations held Tel Aviv responsible for the massacre, while others called for an investigation to determine the party responsible for what happened.

The following is a new series of Arab and international positions that followed the positions that were recorded hours after the massacre: Lebanon Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdullah Bouhabib said, on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in the Saudi city of Jeddah, that the continuation of the aggression against Gaza may ignite a fire that will consume the entire region. TurkeyA Turkish official announced that his country will declare national mourning for 3 days after the bombing of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza.Iran Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi said - today, Wednesday - that the crimes committed in Gaza and Palestine will be met with revenge from the peoples and the Islamic nation. Spain Spain condemned the Israeli attack on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza It described it as a "massacre." Italy Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he felt pain over the killing of hundreds in the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, stressing the need to protect civilians in all circumstances. Norway Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Ede expressed his deep concern about Israel's targeting of a hospital Crowded with displaced people in Gaza, he said that hospitals are protected under international humanitarian law and attacks against them are illegal, calling for the protection of civilians and health institutions.

Finland

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö described the bombing of the Baptist Hospital as “terrifying,” calling for respect for international humanitarian law in all circumstances and opening an investigation into the violations.

China

Today, Wednesday, China strongly condemned the Israeli attack on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, and said that it was shocked by that. Afghanistan: The spokesman for the Afghan interim government, Zabihullah Mujahid, said that Israel is committing a war crime in Gaza, stressing that those who support these Israeli practices or remain silent about them They are considered partners in this injustice.

Brazil

Brazilian President Lula da Silva said - today, Wednesday - that the raid on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza was an “unjustifiable tragedy,” and renewed his call for international humanitarian intervention and a ceasefire in the region. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel strongly condemned the targeting of the Baptist Hospital, and said: His country condemns in the strongest terms the Israeli bomb attack on this hospital.

Canada

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that news of the attack on Baptist Hospital in Gaza was "horrific and completely unacceptable," adding that "it is unacceptable to bomb a hospital."

Australia

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the targeting of Baptist Hospital in Gaza, and described the scenes coming from there as very sad, saying that the lives of civilians are important, whether they are Israelis or Palestinians.

Source: Al Jazeera + agencies

Today, Wednesday, Israeli occupation artillery bombed the outskirts of Shebaa Farms, Kfar Shuba, Halta, and Al Khraiba in southern Lebanon, and the bombing targeted farms in Kfar Shuba.

The Lebanese border is also witnessing intense flights of Israeli reconnaissance planes and helicopters in the airspace of the villages of Mays al-Jabal, Hula, Markaba, and Al-Adiseh in southern Lebanon.

Two citizens were injured by Israeli occupation bullets, and a woman was hit with a stone in the head, this evening, Wednesday, during confrontations that broke out with the Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank.

In Bethlehem, a young man was injured by live bullets in the village of Dar Salah, east of the city.

According to local sources, the confrontations were concentrated in the Wadi al-Hummus area, located between the villages of Dar Salah, east of Bethlehem, and Sur Baher, Jerusalem, where the occupation forces fired bullets, poison gas bombs, and sound bombs, which led to the injury of a young man with a live bullet in the abdomen. He was transferred to one of the centers. Medical.

In Nablus, a citizen was injured by live bullets during clashes that broke out at the Huwwara military checkpoint, south of Nablus.

Palestinian Red Crescent sources reported that a young man was injured by live bullets in the foot and was taken to the hospital to receive treatment.

Meanwhile, a 48-year-old woman was injured by a stone in the head as a result of settlers attacking citizens’ vehicles near the town of Burqa, north of Nablus. She was transferred to Rafidia Governmental Hospital to receive treatment.

Local sources explained that settlers closed the entrance to the eastern village of Bazaria, on the road between Jenin and Nablus, and opened fire on citizens' vehicles and smashed their windows.

The Lebanese Hezbollah published clips of what it said was an operation targeting soldiers in the Israeli occupation army at the Ramya site in southern Lebanon.

According to what was stated in the video clip, the Ramya site includes “a border company command within the Zarit Battalion sector of the Western Brigade in the Galilee Division,” and contains many technical surveillance devices and communications media, and the site is occupied by a vehicle company from the 605th Engineering Forces, reinforced by a platoon of armored vehicles. 

A correspondent reported Al Jazeera reported earlier that light weapons fire had occurred in the vicinity of the town of Zarit near the Israeli-Lebanese border, while Israeli bombing targeted the vicinity of the towns of Alma al-Shaab and Ramiya in southern Lebanon. For its part, the Israeli army said that some of its positions on the Lebanese border were subject to fire, adding that His forces respond to the sources of fire.

Source: Al Jazeera

Demonstrations and protest events continued in several Arab and Islamic cities denouncing the Israeli aggression on Gaza and the Baptist Hospital massacre, which was committed by the Israeli occupation forces and left more than 500 martyrs.

• Tunisia
  Several demonstrations were launched in Tunisian cities denouncing the Israeli massacre, and the National Salvation Front and the Tunisian General Labor Union called for protests in the Tunisian capital. The demonstrators raised slogans demanding an end to the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, and stressing solidarity with the Palestinian people.

A number of Tunis residents also went out in a demonstration in front of the French embassy to express their protest against the massacres committed by the Israeli occupation.

• Sultanate of Oman
  Dozens of Omanis participated in a protest in front of the US Embassy in Muscat, denouncing the Israeli massacres against the Palestinian people. The demonstrators raised slogans in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance and rejected normalization with the occupation.

• Iraq
  Iraqi institutions witnessed several protests denouncing the bombing that targeted the National Baptist Hospital in Gaza.

At the University of Baghdad, thousands of students and professors organized a protest in which they declared their solidarity with the Palestinians, during which they demanded an end to the Israeli attacks.

Yesterday, Tuesday, Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani directed employees and members of all state departments, facilities and formations, and students of universities and schools throughout Iraq, to perform a stand of solidarity and mourning in their workplaces in loyalty and reverence for the innocent souls of the Palestinian people who were martyred in the attack on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza.

• Iran
  Iranians demonstrated this Wednesday morning in the cities of Mashhad, Tehran, Diyar Kariman and Arak, in solidarity with the people of Gaza and to denounce the Baptist Hospital massacre in which hundreds were martyred.

• Jordan
  Jordanian pages published a live broadcast of dozens of students at Al-Hussein Bin Talal University in Jordan, in a demonstration of solidarity with the people of Gaza and the massacres they are being subjected to.

• Lebanon
  Demonstrations took place in Palestinian refugee camps and cities in Lebanon, in solidarity with Palestine, and hundreds of people from Nabatieh, southern Lebanon, gathered in a solidarity stand called for by Hezbollah in solidarity with Gaza and in denunciation of the massacres against children.

Lebanese media platforms published scenes of a protest by health teams in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp.

• Morocco

In Morocco, lawyers stood in Casablanca in protest against the crimes of the occupation against the Palestinian people.

• Idlib
  Dozens of Atma residents in the Idlib countryside, northern Syria, went out in a demonstration, raising Palestinian flags, in solidarity with Gaza and the crimes it is being subjected to by the occupation army.

• Egypt
  Dozens of students from Minya University in Upper Egypt, Mansoura University and Fayoum University organized a massive demonstration on Wednesday in support of the Palestinian cause, rejecting the Israeli aggression on Gaza, and denouncing the bombing of the Baptist Hospital, which left hundreds of martyrs.

A number of lawyers also organized a protest in the city of Alexandria, Egypt, to denounce the massacre.

• Türkiye
  Thousands of Turkish citizens demonstrated in front of the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul, denouncing the massacre at the National Baptist Hospital in Gaza. The demonstrators chanted slogans against the Israeli occupation, describing the massacre as a war crime against the people of Gaza. The city of Istanbul also witnessed demonstrations in both parts of the city, in addition to other demonstrations in the capital, Ankara, and the cities of Van, Kayseri, and Diyarbakir.

In a call with Andrew Miller, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs, on Monday, leaders of the Palestinian, Arab and Islamic community criticized the administration of US President Joe Biden “for being insensitive and even reckless in its rhetoric after the Hamas attack on Israel last week,” which puts the community in the circle of being targeted by Before racist extremists, according to what was published by the American newspaper Politico on Wednesday.

“The discussion was a frank expression of concerns about the conduct of President (Biden) and his team. It came at a particularly sensitive time: in the wake of the fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian-American child in the Chicago area, which authorities described as “It is a hate crime,” according to Politico.

The newspaper said that in a call on Monday, (which was first reported by Politico), Zaha Hassan, a human rights lawyer, addressed what she believed was the Biden administration’s problematic language, noting that: “At a press conference last week, a State Department spokesperson declined to say specifically Directed that Israel should stop cutting off medicine, water and humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, although he said he expected Israel to abide by international law.

“He gave the impression that it was okay to do this to Palestinians because they are Palestinians,” she said in the call. "This is inhumane, and it opens the door for people to think that some things are okay because they must be bad people. They must be terrorists."

Also on the call, Warren David, president of Arab America, told Andrew Miller, deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli-Palestinian affairs, that his members were “angry — outraged — to say the least about the rhetoric coming out of the Arabs.” The last few days” of the Biden administration.

David warned against the “demonization of Palestinians in Gaza and Arabs in general,” which “has already led to an escalation of hatred” against them. Miller asked what the State Department and President Joe Biden intend to do to “undo their negative rhetoric” in light of the killing of Wadih Fayoum.

“We feel that significant damage has been done in terms of the image of Arabs in the United States,” David said on the call. “In some ways, this is worse than what happened on September 11.”

In response, Miller stressed that "the Biden administration's intent was certainly not to stir up anti-Arab sentiment" and welcomed further discussions "to make sure we're not inadvertently contributing to a problem." He also said that "the Palestinian people are not responsible for the actions of Hamas" and that the administration takes the safety of minorities "very seriously."

The call starkly highlighted how fearful Arab Americans and Muslims across the country are of becoming victims of a 9/11-style backlash following the Hamas rampage. It also highlighted the growing frustration they felt with the administration's stance, even as the president's tone evolved.

These frustrations, as well as the uneasiness expressed in the call, may become more important as the conflict in Israel escalates. As Biden prepared to travel to Israel this week, an explosion in a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of people and heightened international alarm about civilian casualties. Israel and Hamas made conflicting accusations of responsibility for the explosion

With its continuous bombing of Gaza, Israel has killed more than 3,500 Palestinians (as of Wednesday morning) since the start of the war it launched against the besieged Strip, while the death toll in Israel rose to 1,400, according to the Israeli authorities.

“We cannot lose sight of the fact that the vast majority of Palestinians had nothing to do with the horrific attacks by Hamas and Hamas, and that they are suffering as a result as well,” Biden said in a statement.

He made similar comments at a Human Rights Campaign dinner this weekend, denouncing the “humanitarian crisis in Gaza.” After the killing of the Fayoumi child, Biden said he was "shocked and disgusted" by the news. He added: "This horrific act of hate has no place in America."

But some Arab American and Muslim leaders, as well as their allies, dismissed Biden's latest comments as too little, too late. They said in interviews that they were horrified by recent statements by foreign policy hawks such as Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), who described the war between Israel and Hamas as a "religious war." But they said they were also troubled by statements often made by Biden officials and other Democrats who align with them.

Many expressed disappointment in comments made last week by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who called progressive lawmakers' call for a ceasefire "disgraceful," "wrong" and "abhorrent." They were particularly frustrated given that two of the top liberal politicians calling for a ceasefire are Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). The two members, the first Muslim women elected to Congress, were among a group of progressive lawmakers of color who received a security briefing from Capitol Police amid escalating threats.

White House officials said Biden stood firm against Islamophobia and anti-Semitism throughout his presidency. They noted that he has repeatedly stated that Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people, ordered his top national security officials to meet with Muslim leaders last week, and called on law enforcement officials to identify any potential domestic threats that may arise in relation to Israel. - Hamas war.

James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute and a member of the Democratic National Committee, told Politico that he was “deeply concerned” by the recent rhetoric of Biden and his aides.

“There was no language of sympathy for the Palestinians in the initial statements. He added that there was no call for a ceasefire or restraint.

In turn, Khalil Jahshan, executive director of the Arab Center in Washington, D.C., who participated in the call on Monday, said that in previous discussions with Biden officials last week, Arab American and Muslim leaders raised “the issue of domestic violence here and the need to combat domestic violence.” Let the president open his mouth and say that this is not a war against his fellow Americans.”

Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), stressed on Wednesday that Gaza is witnessing an “unprecedented catastrophe,” and said that “the world seems to have lost its humanity.”

Lazzarini indicated in a statement carried by the Arab World News Agency that an UNRWA school housing 4,000 displaced people was bombed yesterday, killing at least 6 people and wounding dozens. He added that “horrific images” are still coming from Al-Maamdani Hospital in Gaza.

He pointed out that thousands of civilians were killed during the past 12 days. Including women and children.

Last night, an Israeli bombing on Al-Maamdani Hospital in Gaza, which was crowded with wounded and displaced people, caused the death of hundreds of Palestinians.

Palestinian television said that 500 people were killed in the Israeli bombing that targeted the hospital, which is one of the oldest hospitals in the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Information Center said that another 600 people were injured in the bombing.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that more than 3,200 people had been killed and 11,000 injured. Most of them are children and women, since the start of the war on the Gaza Strip.

Confrontations broke out between citizens and Israeli occupation forces on Wednesday evening in Nablus and Jerusalem.

In Nablus, the occupation forces fired live bullets, rubber-coated metal bullets, and poison gas bombs at citizens in the village of Osrin, south of Nablus, and on the outskirts of the village of Deir Sharaf to the west.

In northwest Jerusalem, clashes broke out between young men and the occupation forces in the town of Beit Daqu, north of Beit Daqu, and no injuries or arrests were reported.

Two Palestinian teens were killed by live bullets today, Wednesday, after the Israeli occupation forces targeted them at the entrance to the village of Shuqba, west of Ramallah.

According to local sources, the occupation soldiers targeted the two teenagers, Qais Taim Shalash (17 years old) and Khalil Muhammad Khalil (15 years old) at the entrance to the village with live bullets, resulting in their death.

Today, Wednesday, Israeli settlers and occupation forces attacked Palestinian citizens while they were picking olives in the West Bank.

In Nablus, a group of settlers opened fire on a group of citizens while they were picking olives in the village of Burqa, northwest of the city.

Settlers also bulldozed areas of land in the village of Tal, west of Nablus, and uprooted its olive trees.

Meanwhile, a group of settlers attacked Palestinian vehicles on the Tal-Madama road, west of Nablus.

In Salfit, the Israeli occupation forces stormed the “Umm Hanoun” area in the town of Kafr al-Dik, west of the city, and forced the residents to leave their lands and prevented them from picking olives.

The media advisor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, Adnan Abu Hasna, said that the agency’s food supplies are only enough for half a day, and that what Gaza is currently being exposed to has never been exposed to in all previous wars with the Israeli occupation.

Abu Hasna added: In previous wars, Israel was coordinating with UNRWA, reopening the crossings to bring in relief aid, and opening humanitarian corridors, but this complete closure has not happened since 1967.

The UNRWA media advisor confirmed that fuel in Gaza is about to run out, the health sector is collapsing, and all of Gaza is now drinking polluted water. The population in the Gaza Strip drinks directly from wells, its salinity level is 9 times the global average, and all desalination plants are stopped, in addition to the fact that sewage flows directly into the Gaza underground reservoir and its services are stopped, and after all of that, there has been a siege on the Gaza Strip for 16 years.

In an attempt to alleviate the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip, Adnan said that the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, made contacts with regional countries, the US administration, and the European Union, and the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, visited Cairo and met with Egyptian officials in order to coordinate the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza. . But in practice and on the ground, the crossings are still closed.

The occupation forces committed a horrific massacre, the largest in decades in the history of the Palestinian conflict, when they bombed those fleeing from death in the courtyard of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which led to the death of 500 Palestinians, the majority of whom were children, and the injury of hundreds of others.

The Arab National Hospital (Baptist) is a local institution that provides health care to residents of different areas of the Gaza Strip. It belongs to the Anglican Episcopal Church in Jerusalem, and is considered one of the oldest hospitals in Gaza.

“Al-Mamadani” is located in one of the residential squares in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in the Gaza Strip, surrounded by the Church of St. Porphyrius, the Al-Shamaa Mosque, and the cemetery of Sheikh Shaaban, according to a report on “Al-Jazeera Net.”

“Al-Baptist” is one of the oldest hospitals in Gaza City. It was founded at the end of the 19th century AD by the missionary mission of England. It was managed by Reverend “Elliot” and was succeeded by Dr. Bailey, then Dr. Stirling. It was the only hospital in the region between Jaffa and Port Said, and provides its services to approximately 200 people. A thousand people.

In World War I, “Al-Maamdani” was destroyed, stolen, and looted. Then it was rebuilt and called “Arab National Hospital” in 1919. It remained under the management of Dr. Stirling until 1928, then its management was transferred to Dr. Alfred until 1948.

At that time, the Evangelical missionary mission affiliated with England decided to close the hospital with the end of the British mandate over Palestine, but the Baptist mission took care of the hospital, so they took it and transferred its management to it, and Gaza at that time belonged to Egypt.

A dispute occurred over the ownership of this hospital in the 1940s and 1950s, following the Egyptian administration’s abolition of the Civil Endowment Law in Gaza, which exposed the hospital’s property and lands to an ownership dispute.

It continued to provide its services despite the Israeli occupation of the area, and its officials also continued to develop it, building a second floor, which included an office for two doctors, a laboratory, and three rooms allocated for various therapeutic purposes. The laboratory also included services for training local students and accrediting them as laboratory technicians. The hospital established the first physical therapy unit in the sector.

In 1976, UNRWA cut off aid to Al-Maamdani and stopped its support for the hospital’s nursing school, so its work declined and the number of its employees was reduced. At the beginning of 1977, the hospital had only 3 doctors and 28 nurses, and the number of patients it received began to decrease. By the end of the seventies, its ownership returned to the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem.

At that time, the name of the “Ahli Arab Hospital” was changed and it was funded by the United Palestinian Society of America, and it continued to provide its services and receive patients and injuries during the various wars, starting with the first Palestinian Intifada (December 1987) and ending with the “Al-Aqsa Flood” war in October. 2023.

The hospital has developed significantly and its departments have multiplied, becoming an integrated health institution containing different departments, namely:

– Emergency Department, which operates around the clock.

- Department of Surgery.

– Department of Orthopedic Surgery.

– Operations Department.

- maternity section.

– Pharmacy Department.

- Department of Physical Therapy.

– Burns Department.

- Laboratory Department.

– Department of Radiology and Mammography.

– The outpatient department provides its services seven days a week except Sunday.

The Anglican Church condemns the massacre

The Anglican Episcopal Church in occupied Jerusalem condemned the massacre carried out by occupation aircraft at the Baptist Hospital in Gaza.

The church said in a statement issued by it that, coinciding with the day of fasting and prayer for peace, which was declared by the patriarchs and heads of churches in Jerusalem, the Arab National Hospital in Gaza, which is affiliated with the Anglican Episcopal Church, was brutally attacked, according to the Palestinian News Agency (Wafa).

She added, “Hospitals are considered safe havens, according to the principles of international humanitarian law, but this attack exceeded those sacred boundaries.”

He continued: “We responded to the call of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who called for the protection of medical facilities and the cancellation of evacuation orders. “It is unfortunate that Gaza is still deprived of safe havens.”

The Anglican Episcopal Church said, “The destruction we witnessed, along with the desecrated targeting of the church, strikes at the core of human morality,” stressing that the Israeli attack “deserves international condemnation and punishment.”

The Church issued an urgent appeal to the international community “to fulfill its obligations to protect civilians and ensure that such horrific, inhumane acts are not repeated.”

The Church expressed its grief over the loss of countless lives who lived in its facilities, declaring a day of mourning in all its churches and institutions, and appealed to “friends, partners and individuals of good will to stand in solidarity, denouncing the heinous attack on our dedicated staff and vulnerable patients.”

Since the attack launched by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on October 7, the world's attention has been entirely focused on the escalating attack launched by the Israeli army on the Gaza Strip, without anyone paying attention to the growing political persecution inside Israel against the Palestinians and some Jews who oppose the destruction of Gaza. And its siege.

With this introduction, the Israeli magazine "972" began - a joint investigation between Ghosn Bsharat, Oren Ziv, and Baker Zoabi - in which they shed light on what is happening inside Israel, amid the world's preoccupation with the events in Gaza, including suspension of studies, expulsion from jobs, and nightly arrests, due to posts on social media.

The magazine reviewed - as an example of the growing climate of repression in Israel since the start of the war - a letter addressed to an Israeli Jewish faculty member at Central Israel College reprimanding him for changing his profile picture on Facebook with the comment that “the Gaza ghetto will be liberated,” concluding that “in view of the danger Your posts have resulted in you being suspended pending a disciplinary investigation that will be conducted with you in the coming days.”

Increasing climate of repression

The magazine pointed out that the day before Monday, the Attorney General’s Office asked the heads of higher education institutions - who contacted it following cases of students who published words praising terrorism - to send the details to the Israeli police so that their case could be investigated at the criminal level outside the disciplinary level with which the educational institution deals. .

But the increasing persecution in recent days has not been limited to academic institutions, as the Civil Society Coalition for Emergencies in the Arab Community reported that at least 30 Palestinian citizens of Israel have been fired from their jobs, due to social media posts seen as supporting an attack. Hamas, and the Israeli police revealed that about 170 Palestinians had been arrested or submitted for interrogation, at a time when the Attorney General’s Office said that it had “zero tolerance” for those who express “support for the enemy,” and for those who wish to harm Israeli soldiers “as they fight the deadly enemy.” .

Director of the Justice Center, Hassan Jabareen, said that his center “has received reports of illegal arrests carried out often brutally and late at night without justification, all based on posts on social media,” which reflects “a worrying trend of deliberate persecution and banning of expression.” Project,” and indeed the center has received reports of people being summoned for police investigation or interrogated simply for “liking” posts on social media.

Help the enemy

In another strange case seen last week, Amer Al-Huzayel, the candidate for the position of mayor of the Bedouin city of Rahat, was arrested on suspicion of “aiding the enemy during wartime” on the basis of a brief political analysis he wrote and shared on Facebook, in which he presented his interpretation of the possibilities of Israel reoccupying the Gaza Strip. Police representative Muhammad Mohamed said. Ibrahim Al-Huzail “published several posts, including one that we believe helps the enemy.”

In the same context, the famous Palestinian singer Dalal Abu Amna - who has more than a million followers - was arrested because of a post in which she wrote, “There is no victor but God,” when she was filing a complaint at the Nazareth Police Station against right-wing activists who sent her several threatening messages, so he called her. One of her children told her that there were police officers knocking on the door and asking to see her. After the call, the officers returned to the police station and arrested her.

This campaign against freedom of expression extends beyond the level of the state and academic institutions to the broader society, as the magazine says, as Israel Frey, the left-wing Jewish journalist and outspoken critic of Israeli policy, was subjected to a campaign of intimidation in his home carried out by the extreme right, and demonstrators fired flares at his apartment and chased him as he fled, and he stated that The police officers who took him for interrogation spat on him, physically assaulted him, and accused him of “supporting Hamas,” which the police denied.

Today, Wednesday, thousands of citizens participated in vigils, demonstrations and marches denouncing the crimes of the Israeli occupation and its continuing aggression against the Gaza Strip, in the West Bank and the camps in Lebanon.

In Bethlehem, a large crowd of citizens and health personnel in the city participated in a protest denouncing the crimes of the Israeli occupation and its continued aggression against the Gaza Strip since the seventh of this month.

The participants gathered, in response to the invitation of the Factional Coordination Committee, federations, unions, institutions, events and churches in the Bethlehem Governorate, on the court of the Church of the Nativity, raising Palestinian flags and banners on which expressions were written condemning the crimes being committed, the most recent of which was the Baptist Hospital massacre.

Father Mitri Al-Raheb said in a speech he delivered on behalf of the churches of Bethlehem: We stand today in front of the Church of the Nativity united and denouncing a crime that shames humanity if there is some humanity left in the world that does not do anything in the face of the crimes being committed in the Gaza Strip, the latest of which is the Baptist Hospital massacre.

He added that the pain of the crime hurt us all as one indivisible people. Gaza is Bethlehem and Bethlehem is Gaza. We are one people, and our message to the occupier is that we will remain steadfast on this land and the occupation war machine will not be able to uproot us from a land that witnessed the birth of Jesus Christ.

The monk called on the world and the international community to intervene to stop the crimes in Gaza, and to open safe humanitarian corridors to supply our brothers with medicine, food, and water, stressing that our people want freedom, independence, justice, and human dignity, sending a message to the world to hear Christ’s message, which is, “I have come so that you may have a better life.”

For his part, the coordinator of the factional coordination committee in Bethlehem Governorate, Muhammad al-Jaafari, said, “We came today and in front of the Church of the Nativity to deliver a message to the world that the attacks and crimes against the Baptist Church and the hospital are a bloody massacre committed in front of the world, which did not move. Where are your consciences?”

Al-Jaafari warned against the fifth column, which is exploiting the situation to stir up chaos and strife, which would harm the social fabric to achieve agendas outside the national ranks. Therefore, we absolutely reject harming the security establishment, and the compass must remain directed to the struggle towards the brutal occupier.

The Mayor of Bethlehem, Hanna Hanania, stressed that what is happening in Gaza is an attempt at human genocide, and the world must stand up to its responsibilities to do justice to our people by achieving independence and establishing their Palestinian state with Holy Jerusalem as its capital.

In Ramallah, thousands of citizens demonstrated in the city, denouncing the massacres committed by the Israeli occupation army, for the twelfth day in a row, against our people in the Gaza Strip.

In response to factional and popular calls, thousands took part in the demonstration that took place in the streets of Ramallah, where the Palestinian flag was raised, banners denouncing the crimes of the occupation and demanding their immediate cessation, chanted slogans denouncing the occupation’s plan to displace the people of the Gaza Strip, and affirming our right to freedom, independence and national unity.

In Tulkarm, crowds took part in an angry march denouncing the Israeli occupation massacre, at Al-Baptist Hospital.

The participants raised Palestinian flags, chanted national takbirs and chants of anger at the crimes of the occupation in the Gaza Strip, and demanded urgent action from all countries of the world to support our people and end their suffering.

The march was preceded by a massive stand in the middle of Gamal Abdel Nasser Square, at the invitation of the National Action factions, during which speeches were given that emphasized the necessity of supporting our people in the steadfast Gaza Strip, and condemned the occupation’s massacres against our people, especially children, women and the sick.

It stressed that national unity to confront the occupation and strengthen the steadfastness of our people on their land is the only guarantee for achieving victory and freedom.

Last night one of my closest Palestinian friends who live in Sheikh Jarah in East Jerusalem called me crying “did you see what they did, they bombed a hospital in Gaza – so many dead children”. It was already late evening, I was zapping between the talking heads on Israel’s three main channels – and nada, no report, no pictures, no denial yet of any wrong doing.  Then there were news flashes and some windows of pictures from foreign news services.  Then the spinners got spinning and the Israeli channels produced all of the denials – no, it can’t be Israel. Then they started screening videos of rockets being fired from Gaza with one appearing to fall on the hospital – according to their claim. The experts sat around the studio and came to the conclusion that it wasn’t Israel, it was Islamic Jihad. Many rockets from Gaza fall in Gaza. I got sick and tired of these television stations jumping to baseless conclusions and joking about Jihad and Hamas killing their own people while a genuine human tragedy was taking place just over the border.

I opened up some Palestinian and Arab news channels and saw the pictures from the other side. Heart wrenching scenes of carnage – there is no other way to describe it. Then came the scenes of the massive demonstrations of anger and pain from Ramallah, Amman, Istanbul and throughout the Arab and Islamic world. There will for sure be massive demonstrations all around Europe today and in Asia against Israel. There is no way that any human being can be neutral in viewing the human tragedy in Gaza. Just as I expected no human being to be neutral to the horrific terror attack on Israel on October 7, we cannot be obtuse to the catastrophe unfolding in Gaza. 

Before going to bed last night, I posted on my social media: The hit on the hospital in Gaza is a criminal act of war. Whoever did it, Israel as claimed by Palestinians, or Jihad as claimed by Israel, should admit their guilt. If it was intentional it is even more horrific.

This is a turning point in the war. The narrative has been set and no evidence brought by Israel will convince the Palestinian people, the Arab world, and much of the West that Israel did not do it. I have no way of knowing who did it. I have not seen Hamas or Jihad rockets with the fire power of the size of the explosion at the hospital that we saw on our TV screens. All of the talking heads on Israeli television refused to admit that Israeli precise bombings, the last world in the technology of death, can at times miss their target. What they did not say, is that sometimes they do, sometimes pilots make errors, sometimes the technology does not work and sometimes they are even given wrong targets to hit. 

What was totally absent in the reporting in Israel was compassion. We demanded compassion from Palestinian citizens of Israel when Israel was brutally attacked and more than 1300 innocent victims were killed. We wanted to hear the compassion of the world. I know that Israel is traumatized by what happened on October 7, but have we lost our humanity as a result? The Palestinian people are our neighbors and will always be our neighbors.

My heart bleeds for all of the innocent victims of this conflict and this war. While I cannot see a scenario of this war ending with Hamas still in control of Gaza and posing an ongoing threat to Israel, I cannot tolerate the thought of how many more innocent victims will be in the path of removing Hamas. War is ugly, they say. War is much more than ugly. This must be the last war that we fight over this land. It is time that we begin to sanctify the people who live here and not the stones and symbols of our separate identities. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that the occupation forces' targeting of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza is a tragedy and a humanitarian catastrophe, as it led to the martyrdom of more than 500 Palestinians, noting that the occupation provided more than one account of the Baptist massacre.

Putin stressed his country's permanent support for the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Putin believes that the main players do not want the conflict to deepen.

27 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip, on Wednesday afternoon, in an occupation bombing that targeted a house in the town of Jabalia, north of the Strip.

The occupation aircraft launches violent and intense raids on various areas of the Gaza Strip, while the Palestinian resistance responds with missile barrages at a number of targets.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced in its latest statistics that the number of martyrs in the Gaza Strip had risen to more than 3,300,000 martyrs during the occupation’s aggression, while the number of martyrs in the West Bank had reached 61 martyrs and more than 1,250 wounded since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa flood.

The mask that has long obscured the true nature and purpose of “international law”, the supposed foundation of the current global order, is finally off. As Palestinian cries for help from Gaza remain unanswered, the sinister truth is now undeniably out in the open: international justice, more often than not, is used as a tool to advance imperial interests, and not justice.

This was, of course, long known by anyone who has ever examined, even superficially, the history of imperialism, from the European scramble for Africa to more recent United States interventions in Latin America, and traced how that dark past has helped shape the way the world functions at present.

Sure, at first glance, international law appears to be a noble concept, promoting peace, universal application of human rights, cooperation and justice among nations. However, scratch beneath the surface, and a different narrative emerges, shaped by the ghosts of imperialism past.

Just look at how international law was eagerly used, and is still being used, to defend, heal and deliver justice to the Ukrainian people in the face of Russian aggression. Now compare that with how the same laws, norms and principles were reduced to mere footnotes and suggestions in the West’s response to the ongoing Israeli assault on the Palestinians. The West, led by the United States, clearly only champions adherence to international law and the rules-based global order when it suits its agenda.

So how did we get here?

For centuries, colonial expansion and exploitation, driven by a thirst for resources and geopolitical dominance, defined Western history. A handful of European states carved the world up between themselves, conquering lands, stealing resources, and brutally subjugating and enslaving peoples. Throughout this period of colonial dominance, Western states acted as if sovereignty and self-determination were their natural right and privilege and no one else’s.

The two world wars, which devastated European powers and sped up the deterioration of their control over most of their colonial territories, disturbed this unjust and untenable status quo.

In the late 1940s, with European states struggling to rebuild and national independence movements in Africa and beyond gaining pace, a new rules-based international order began to take shape and concepts like human rights and right to self-determination of nations started to be codified in law. With the formation of the United Nations, and establishment of bodies like the International Court of Justice and the UN Security Council, an illusion was created that these new set of rules applied to everyone – both the powerful Western states and their (former) colonies – equally and permanently.

While promoting the idea of national sovereignty and human rights on the surface, however, Western powers continued their habit of controlling, stealing from and exploiting other nations. They started to use this newly crafted “rules-based” order to covertly further their colonial policies and hinder similar efforts by their rivals. An initial test of international law and the institutions established to preserve it, came in the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company case before the International Court of Justice in early 1950s.  When the results did not serve imperial interests, the US and UK initiated Operation Ajax.

The US also wreaked havoc in Latin America throughout the latter half of the 20th century, toppling democratically elected governments, arming murderous militias and propping up dictators favorable to its agenda. Not only did it never face any sanction for these actions that blatantly broke international law, ridiculed the concept of national sovereignty and violated the basic human rights of millions, as embodied in Operation Condor.

The ongoing siege of Gaza under the umbrella of Operation Iron Swords, and the Western world’s support for it, is the latest – and perhaps the most obvious – example of the hypocrisy at the core of international law.

Israel, which has been illegally occupying Palestinian land and subjecting Palestinians to apartheid for decades, is now keeping over two million Palestinians, half of them children, under total blockade in Gaza, and indiscriminately bombing them.

In the face of such blatant violations of international law, and the declared intent to commit many more, how did the Western leaders of the international community, the self-assigned defenders of human rights across the world, respond?

They announced their unwavering support for Israel.

Why is this?

The strategic location of the region, rich in oil and gas reserves, has always served as a magnet, attracting the attention of those who seek to secure their energy interests, and historically influenced Western policies in the region. Prior to 1948, it was oil interests in the Iraq-Petroleum Company spanning from Kirkuk, Iraq to Haifa, Palestine. Today it is the developing Mediterranean natural gas interests of Chevron and British Petroleum. These may not be the sole reasons, but important variables for consideration in making sense of current geopolitical positions. The parallels between historical events and contemporary actions are striking. The Palestinian Question has long served as a wrench in these imperial ambitions and now they see an opportunity to dictate their own final solution.

So, now, the mask is off.

The Western powers can no longer claim that “international law” is supreme, and applies equally to everyone. As they shamelessly greenlight an unlawful and inhumane assault on Gaza, they cannot stop the conscientious citizens of the globe from questioning the integrity of the international legal system and challenging the notion that it is an impartial arbiter of justice. They can no longer hide the fact that international law is a tool created to serve imperial interests – a tool that allows them to act with impunity.

The Palestinian struggle is not just a struggle against occupation, apartheid and colonialism; it is a struggle against imperialism.

We need and deserve a new, just and equitable international order –  one that truly upholds the principles of fairness, equality and respect for the rights of all nations, regardless of their size or geopolitical significance.

Only by acknowledging the true nature of international law, and its utter uselessness in delivering any sort of justice to people trying to resist imperial dominance, can we hope to dismantle the current global order and start building a world where justice prevails over power, and humanity triumphs over politics. It is a daunting task, but one that is essential if we are to create a future where the rights and dignity of every individual, regardless of their nationality, are respected and protected – a future where international law applies to everyone and is not weaponized by powerful states against their rivals.

By Wesam Ahmad

Palestinian human rights advocate at Al-Haq NGO in Ramallah, Palestine.

Source: Al Jazeera

by Yousef Al-Helou

From the moment Israel woke up in shock at the unprecedented Hamas operation on 7 October, its propaganda machine has pushed fake news to justify its all-out war of vengeance against the Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip. From allegations such as Hamas beheaded babies to rape, burning bodies and even killing dogs, the resistance movement was demonized, and thus dehumanized. All of the claims were accompanied by tears and emotional speeches by Israelis and pro-Israel allies and supporters.

Despite the lack of evidence, world leaders including US President Joe Biden repeated them and stressed Israel’s “right” to self-defense. The White House retracted Biden’s statements, but the UK’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman have not apologized for pushing this propaganda.

A few international journalists also circulated the lies, naming an Israeli soldier who spread them in the first place. Their professional ethics require journalists to check the veracity of the “facts” that they use in any suspect story. This has not been done. Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared a photo of what he claimed was the charred body of an Israeli baby killed by Hamas. However, the original image has since been claimed to have been that of a dog which was photoshopped.

Social media companies have been censoring and removing pro-Palestinian content

With claims and counterclaims filling social media, some apologies have been received from international figures, but not from Israelis. What’s more, the social media companies have been censoring and removing pro-Palestinian content. Many accounts belonging to Palestinians have been restricted, while others have been taken down altogether. No such censorship by the companies has been heard of about Israeli propaganda and hate-filled messages in Hebrew directed at the Palestinians.

Citizen journalists are enthusiastic and plentiful across occupied Palestine, especially in Gaza. The internet has allowed them to raise awareness of their plight around the world in an instant. The Zionist massacres and colonization didn’t start in 2008 with Operation Cast Lead, or even in 1967 with the Naksa. They began in the 1940s in the run up to the creation of the colonial state of Israel and the ethnic cleansing of Palestine. The Nakba (Catastrophe) is ongoing.

While Israeli propaganda seeks to make out that the issue at stake here is the Hamas attack last weekend, Palestinians and their supporters point out that the cause of the issue Israel’s occupation of Palestine. As the Palestinian Permanent Representative to the UN, Riyad Mansour, said last week, “Regrettably, history for some media and politicians only starts when Israelis are killed. We will never accept a rhetoric that denigrates our humanity and reneges our rights, a rhetoric that ignores the occupation of our land and oppression of our people.”

It seems that many people agree. Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in major cities across the world to demonstrate their opposition to Israel’s bombing of Gaza. Their demand is to end Israel’s apartheid and military occupation of Palestine.

Israel’s propagandists at home and abroad have been working hard to try to counter this. They are desperate to divert attention away from the occupation state’s war crimes and crimes against humanity. The so-called Israel “Defense” Forces have played their part by bombing the Gaza Strip’s main telecommunications company, leading to the disruption of landlines and internet services. International pressure meant that the collective punishment of cutting internet services to Gaza was not implemented.

During the devastating Israeli military offensives against Gaza in 2008/9, 2012, 2014, 2021 and 2022, Palestinian journalists and social media activists won the online battle in countering the pro-Israel mainstream media and political narrative. In doing so, they opened up events in Gaza to vast numbers of people around the world. Today they are doing the same again, even as Israel commits genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Source: MEMO

Arab and international condemnations continued for the Israeli army’s bombing of the Baptist Hospital in the Gaza Strip, leaving more than a thousand martyrs among the displaced civilians who took refuge in the hospital run by the Anglican Episcopal Church in Jerusalem after their homes were destroyed as a result of the Israeli occupation’s attacks.

President Mahmoud Abbas declared three days of mourning, stressing that the occupation’s bombing of the Baptist Hospital was a crime of genocide and a humanitarian catastrophe.

The Arab Republic of Egypt condemned in the strongest terms, in a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Israeli bombing of Al-Ahly Baptist Hospital in the Gaza Strip, which resulted in hundreds of innocent victims, wounded and injured Palestinian citizens in Gaza.

Egypt considered this deliberate bombing of civilian facilities and targets a serious violation of the provisions of international and humanitarian law, and of the most basic values of humanity, calling on Israel to immediately stop its policies of collective punishment against the people of the Gaza Strip.

Egypt called on all countries of the world, especially major and influential countries, to intervene to stop these violations and condemn them unequivocally, and to demand that Israel stop targeting the vicinity of the Rafah crossing to enable Egypt and any other countries and international and relief organizations it wishes to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip as quickly as possible.

The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned in the strongest terms the heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupation forces by bombing the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which led to the death of hundreds of civilians, including children and the wounded.

The UAE also strongly condemned the Israeli attack on the hospital in Gaza.

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said, “Hundreds of martyrs fell in the Baptist Hospital in Gaza as a result of Israeli criminality and the global conscience that is silent about injustice and truth, so for how long?”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman considered Israel’s targeting of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza a “crime of war and genocide.”

The Mauritanian government expressed its "condemnation and denunciation of the heinous crime and horrific massacre committed by the Israeli war machine," and declared "national mourning for the souls of the martyrs of this painful massacre and the flags to be flown at half-mast for a period of 3 days."

It also called on the international community to "assume its legal and humanitarian responsibilities and impose an immediate halt to the genocide against the Palestinian people, and provide them with urgent protection."

The Algerian presidency strongly condemned Israel's "deliberate attack" on a hospital in the Gaza Strip.

The Jordanian Foreign Ministry held Israel responsible for this dangerous development and condemned in the strongest terms the attack on the Baptist Hospital.

Iraq also declared a state of official mourning for 3 days across the country "in honor of the innocent lives that fell victim to international silence before falling victim to the fire of barbaric aggression."

Basem Al-Awadi, the official spokesman for the Iraqi government, said in a press statement, “We declare general mourning throughout the Republic of Iraq for a period of 3 days, out of loyalty and honor to the innocent souls who fell victim to international silence before they fell victim to the fire of barbaric aggression.”

The Iraqi spokesman called on the Arab countries, friendly countries, and the free world to adopt a unified position by issuing an urgent and immediate resolution from the UN Security Council to “stop this ugly, blatant aggression.”

The head of the Libyan National Unity Government, Abdul Hamid Al-Dabaiba, confirmed that targeting Al-Baptisti Hospital is a brutal crime that exceeded all limits.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Libyan unity government stated that "the Israeli occupation's deliberate bombing of Al-Ahly Baptist Hospital is a war crime in accordance with international and humanitarian law, and its perpetrators must be punished."

The League's Secretary-General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said, "What kind of hell is the mind that bombs a hospital with its defenseless inmates? The West must stop this tragedy immediately."

Morocco strongly denounced the bombing by Israeli forces of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which left hundreds dead and wounded.

In a statement to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Kingdom renewed its "demand that civilians be protected by all parties and not be targeted."

In the statement, she emphasized "the urgent need for concerted efforts by the international community to stop hostilities as soon as possible, respect international humanitarian law, and work to avoid the region sliding towards further escalation and tension."

The Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the Israeli bombing of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, describing it as “brutal.”

On Wednesday, the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, accused Israel of committing a “war crime.”

Faki said in a post on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that “there are no words that adequately express our condemnation of the Israeli bombing of a hospital in Gaza today, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people.”

The President of the African Commission called on the international community to take action, stressing that "targeting a hospital considered a safe haven under international humanitarian law is a war crime."

The United Nations Secretariat strongly condemned the attack on the Baptist Hospital and called for an end to attacks on civilians and health facilities.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations said that he was shocked by the killing of hundreds of Palestinian civilians in a strike on a hospital in Gaza, which I strongly condemn and condemn, and my heart goes out to the families of the victims in Gaza.

The World Health Organization strongly condemned the attack on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which claimed hundreds of lives, saying it was “unprecedented in its scope,” and condemned the attack.

Richard Peppercorn, the World Health Organization's representative in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, said, "This attack is unprecedented in scope. We are witnessing continuing attacks on health care in the occupied Palestinian territories."

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) strongly condemned the attack on the Baptist Hospital in Gaza, and called for an immediate ceasefire.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, condemned the “completely unacceptable” bombing that targeted a hospital in Gaza on Tuesday evening.

Turk said in a statement, "Words are inexpressible. Tonight, hundreds of people were killed in a horrific way in the attack on the National Arab Hospital, including patients, health care providers, and families who took refuge in the hospital and its surroundings. Once again, the most vulnerable people are being injured. This is completely unacceptable." .

US President Joe Biden expressed his "anger and deep sadness over the explosion in the Al-Ahli Hospital" in Gaza.

The US President offered his "deepest condolences for the innocent lives lost in the explosion in a hospital in Gaza," wishing "a speedy recovery for the wounded," according to what the White House announced Tuesday.

The US Department of Defense said that it provides Israel with security systems to eliminate Hamas, but this does not mean killing innocent civilians.

Dmitry Polyansky, Russia's deputy delegate to the United Nations, said that Russia and the UAE requested a UN Security Council meeting to be held tomorrow, Wednesday, after the Israeli air strike on a hospital in Gaza.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that the news received about Israel's bombing of the Baptist Hospital was disastrous, and said that it was "a terrible and unacceptable matter."

European Council President Charles Michel said that Israel's bombing of a hospital in Gaza and the "comprehensive siege" of the Palestinian Strip "are not in line with international law."

Meanwhile, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, wrote on his account on the “X” platform that the attack on the Gaza Hospital is “a tragedy unfolding before our eyes.”

"Once again, innocent civilians are paying the heavy price," Borrell added.

The European official stressed that "responsibility for this crime must be clearly determined and its perpetrators held accountable."

The British Foreign Office said that it was monitoring reports of a “visibly visible raid” that targeted a hospital in Gaza.

French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on Wednesday on the X social media platform that France condemns the attack on the National Arab Hospital in Gaza.

He wrote, "France condemns the attack on the National Arab Hospital in Gaza, which claimed many Palestinian victims. Our hearts are with them. The circumstances must be revealed."

He continued, "Humanitarian aid must be re-entered the Gaza Strip without delay."

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly urged on Wednesday to wait for the facts regarding an explosion in a hospital in the Gaza Strip that occurred on Tuesday, and said that many had already jumped to conclusions.

He continued, saying: “Understanding this incorrectly will put more lives at risk.” Wait for the facts and convey them clearly and accurately. "Calm minds must triumph."

The bombing of the National Arab Baptist Hospital in the Gaza Strip yesterday, Tuesday, caused a huge number of deaths and injuries and cast a shadow over the visit of US President Joe Biden to Israel.

Palestinian officials said that an Israeli air strike was the cause of the explosion, while Israel says that the cause was a missile fired by the Islamic Jihad movement that did not reach its target, which the movement denied.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi warned on Wednesday of the continuation of military operations in the Gaza Strip, and that they will have security and military repercussions that could get out of control. Al-Sisi said, in a press conference, while receiving German Chancellor Olaf Schulz, that displacing the Palestinians to Sinai means transferring the fighting there and it will be a base for attacking Israel, adding that the siege of the Gaza Strip ultimately aims to transfer the Palestinians to Egypt, according to what Egyptian television reported in a live broadcast.

Al-Sisi added: “If I ask the Egyptians to come out and reject the idea of displacing Palestinians to Sinai, and support the position of the Egyptian state, the world will see millions in the streets of Egypt.” He continued: “Egypt is sincerely keen on peace, and we need not to squander that with an idea that is not implementable.”

The Egyptian President explained that the matter would not be limited to the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, but would also extend to their displacement from the West Bank to Jordan. He pointed out that it is possible to transfer the Palestinians to the Negev Desert until Israel ends its operation in Gaza.

The Egyptian President said that he discussed with the German Chancellor Egypt's efforts to calm the situation in Gaza, and added that "Egypt has not closed the Rafah crossing since the beginning of the crisis," calling for allowing humanitarian aid to enter the Gaza Strip.

For his part, the German Chancellor said that Egypt and Germany agree not to expand the conflict in Palestine.

Source: Middle East