Jewish immigration from the past to the present continues under the name of ‘settlers’ in the Palestinian territories that belong to the Palestinian state according to the 1947 borders drawn by the UN, which Israel recognises today. Within the official Palestinian territories (according to the 1947 borders), the state of Israel forcibly removes the Arabs from their lands and builds new settlements to settle its own people. The Zionist Israeli government’s forceful seizure of Arab lands in Palestine and settlement of Israeli citizens are not salient issues in domestic Israeli politics. However, the lack of opposition noise on these issues does not indicate that domestic politics is presently tranquil. The Netanyahu government is often subject to mass protests due to its repressive and despotic practices at home. The civilian attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, resulting in the capture of hundreds of Israelis, has sparked renewed criticisms of Netanyahu. Opposition parties and the broader public protested against the Netanyahu government, calling for a ceasefire agreement, the release of hostages, and early elections. Opponents of the Netanyahu government once again took to the streets of Tel Aviv on 1 September when the Israeli army struck civilian settlements on the Gaza borderline, killing 6 Israeli citizens held captive there. Netanyahu is accused of not making a captive exchange agreement with Hamas for his political future.
Netanyahu's survival in government depends on the continuation of military operations, for he needs to satisfy his extreme right-wing coalition partners. In clinging on by appeasing said extremists, Netanyahu has only fuelled hatred of him. The Netanyahu government is accused of being oppressive, especially during the judicial protests of 2023. In addition, Netanyahu's extremist right-wing partners' efforts to turn the military operations in Gaza and the evacuation of Gaza into a story of return create social unrest in Israel. This is because Israel evacuated the Jewish settlements in Gaza in 2005 in order to prevent an escalation of conflicts while continuing to increase settlement activities in the West Bank. Turning the 2005 withdrawal from Gaza into a dramatic story, extremists started to make plans to settle in Gaza again after 7 October.
The role of the media, which is an effective force in shaping public opinion, has always been particularly instrumental in shaping the Israeli - Palestinian conflict. Using the power of the media, Israel bases its military operations in Gaza and its evacuation of Gaza on the premise that ‘security must be ensured in order to live safely.’ The following slogan has been widely used by far-right parties to advertise for their ‘return’ campaign and encourage settlers: “Settlement brings security.” This discourse carries an important message about the perceptions of Israelis. Israel sends the message to the Jewish people that they have to settle there to be safe. However, despite Israel's intensive media manipulation, it is not difficult to understand how the conflict has developed in the digital age. The whole world is painfully aware of how the Zionist administration in Israel has bombed Gaza, schools and hospitals and all, under the pretext of its own security. The globalised media clearly shows the public that the conflicts are not to ensure Israel's security but that Israel is carrying out a planned genocide under the name of fighting against Hamas and killing tens of thousands of civilians, including women, the elderly, and children.
While heavy sanctions are imposed on states that do not implement UN General Assembly resolutions, heavy sanctions have never been imposed on the state of Israel, which has violated UN resolutions many times. The UN did not even send a peacekeeping force to a region where tens of thousands of civilians were killed and hospitals and schools were bombed to stop the persecution and ensure security. On the contrary, many states, especially the powerful Western states have supported Israel or remained silent. In the international sphere, many different states, most prominently the Muslim states, openly criticised Israel and recalled their ambassadors to Israel. In particular, South Africa was not content with recalling its ambassadors and filed a lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague on the grounds of ‘committing genocide’.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues to be a human tragedy that undermines human dignity the world over. Israel's unlawful, murderous military operations will continue - until a major global war breaks out. The situation illustrates that the Western world will never put a stop to Israel and impose military and/or economic sanctions. Israel's murderous military operations will continue until the Muslim states send a military peacekeeping force to the region or declare war on Israel. In such a case, the war will inevitably spread beyond the region.
Image: Wikimedia Commons/Tasnim News Agency
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