The ongoing Gaza Massacre
A little history
Since the onslaught on the Gaza strip began on Saturday the death toll has now reached 400, with nearly 2000 injured. So again, we see yet another repeat of the countless attacks that have taken place in these lands since the creation of the Zionist state, Israel. The state which only came into existence in 1948, illegally. Going back to the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which began with the Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour writing a letter to Walter Rothschild (I’m sure some have heard of the Investment bank, Rothschild), gaining the attention of the powerful Zionists in Britain. A Jewish state was promised in exchange for financial support to aid Britain in the war against the Ottoman Caliphate and the Germans. With the continual fragmentation of the Caliphate and the European colonial powers dividing up the pie, so to speak, part of the end result around 31 years later was the creation of an illegitimate state. In 1947 the U.N passed the ‘Partition Plan for Palestine’, as a solution to the Arab-Jewish conflict that had come to exist, along with just a “little” force, Israel orchestrated a campaign of fear and terror, forcing out Palestinians who were not only the majority, but were residents, expelling them from their own homes.
The story of Israel is simple and when studied, full of flagrant oppression and ultimately theft, yet so many are ignorant of what took place in the last 100 years. As opposed to looking at the origins, the root, the initial cause of the violence that we see today on our TV screens, comments like “Hamas are firing rockets into Israel, this is the problem” are made. Now I am against violence and firing at civilian populations, but lets use our minds, we need to go back to where all this started, let’s say for arguments sake it can be verified that Hamas wrongfully fired rockets, and heck lets also pretend Israel was not blocking aid which the people of Gaza desperately need, along with generally making their lives hell with all their check points. Even after this, we can say Hamas shouldn’t have fired, but the original cause of this conflict still needs to be addressed. It’s like questioning a person about taking back his property from a man who stole it, the man who stole should be the one being admonished first, not the one reclaiming what was his. [N.B I am not justifying the killing of civilians, rather making a point of how focus needs to be shifted back to the underlying cause]
In a problematic situation the detective goes to the scene of the crime, so surely journalists and news channels such as CNN, Sky News etc, should also look to the start of the conflict, where people(Zionists) came and wrongfully took land from the rightful owners. But part of the truth is that nobody cares, unless there’s something in it for them.
“In the UN General Assembly, there have been an estimated 450 resolutions calling, in one form or another, for justice for the Palestinians. This is a world record. No country has incurred the opprobrium of the world community as often as Israel and no country has been excused its “rogue” behaviour so consistently, thanks to its backer, America.
When Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, it was ordered to withdraw by the UN Security Council. When the Iraqis failed to comply, they were attacked with such force that tens of thousands were slaughtered. When Israel seized the West Bank of the Jordan and Gaza, it was ordered to withdraw by the same UN Security Council. That was 35 years ago, and the occupation goes on. “[John Pilger]
Israel seems to support that rockets from Hamas warrant the disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force against an entire people, leading to the murder of civilians. All this goes on with no intervention, that’s the world we live in.
The Muslim worlds Reaction
The worst thing about all this is that something can be done, something should be done, but nothing is ever actually done. In all societies those that have the most power are the leaders, thus bringing us to one of the most discussed and frustrating areas of ‘Islamic world politics’, none other than the notorious Muslim Leaders. In a time where blood is being split, not of soldiers, but of innocent children and women, the leaders have nothing except words of condemnation, materializing as closed borders between Egypt and Gaza while people continue to die and medical supplies run low. Further examples of the lack of concern can be seen when the Arab League organizes an emergency meeting for Sunday and members of the GCC [Saudi Arabia, Kuwait etc] postpone to Wednesday, due to “other meetings”. These are the “leaders” who apparently care and look out for the affairs of the Nations, the ones who are supposed to uphold the banner of Justice.
While driving in Riyadh last year I saw a poster saying “Saudi Arabia: Kingdom of Humanity” with a trademark picture of King Abdullah and the gang, unfortunately as much as they try to convince people, the actions[which are none] only show hypocrisy. Gone are the days when if a Muslim woman was as much as wrongfully touched the caliph would take action. Today people are slaughtered, yet other ‘meetings’ take precedence, despite it being well known that a single drop of blood is more important to Allah than the Ka’ba and all that surrounds it.
So what does one do when leaders don’t care, it’s clear that oppression is taking place and the world seems to be spiraling downwards to the point of mass violence and a complete sense of inhumanity? Sometimes the feeling of helplessness takes over along with the sorrow that eats at your heart when you see the butchering of your brothers and sisters, which can lead to feelings of immense frustration. Through all this it’s apparent that although easily done, it’s vital that we don’t fall into the trap of venting emotions in the wrong way, while at the same time being careful we aren’t passive and do nothing at all. A balance must be found where we collectively do what we can to practically help – as opposed to just watching and discussing.
Our reaction as individuals; what we can DO! The key word being DO.
♦1) Make Du’a. This is probably the most underrated action. Du’a is the strongest weapon of a believer. Keep the Muslims in gaza, and those suffering elsewhere in your du’a, along with all those being oppressed, Muslim or Non-Muslim.
♦2) While we sit at home, sheltered, warm with plenty of food, the people of Gaza don’t have these luxuries. Medical supplies, food and all the basic necessities are needed more than ever. Remember, the problems haven’t just started with this attack, Israel has been subjecting the area to sanctions and so they have been living under inhumane conditions long before Saturday. Sending aid through one of the charities is essential.
Along with doing it yourself, collecting donations from others is also beneficial, as many people don’t think to donate or get lazy. If they can hand it to you directly and you organize it, this will be a source of reward for them, you and aid to the people. Charities:
Islamic Relief : Donating to Palestine
Interpal Palestine
♦3) Create awareness and join the demonstrations that are being organized against the atrocities being committed. On the the topic of demonstrations: I’d like to say, as Muslims, demonstrations should never involve violence, they must be peaceful. Unfortunately some let emotions overtake them and they end up doing and saying things contrary to the mannerisms of a Muslim. While attending demonstrations it is also vital that we educate ourselves on the history and oppression that has taken place for so many decades in this region, so that we can effectively pass this on to others, be it family, friends, work colleagues or acquaintances.
If you live in the UK or US, the following are websites on which information is given on demonstrations that might be held near you.
United States: Demonstrations against the Gaza attacks
United Kingdom: Demonstrations against the Gaza attacks
Finally, hopefully we all make some sort of an effort to aid our fellow Muslims and atleast, atleast keep them in our du’as constantly.
May Allah(SWT) bring an end to this violence and bring peace to the people of this region. May Allah(SWT) ease their suffering and give them patience in this testing time. Ameen thumma ameen.
