-Analysis-
The Israeli military’s killing last week in Gaza of seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen NGO has pushed Israel into a new corner, deeper into the category of pariah state that its own allies are forced to disavow. The killings of the workers while they were delivering aid to Palestinian people have also increased the domestic pressure on Israel’s far-right government.
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Israel’s close allies have threatened to stop supplying Tel Aviv with weapons and ammunition, amid growing pressure from their people.
And yet, Arab countries, meanwhile, are still taking the position of “concerned observer” of Israel’s killing of more than 33,000 Palestinians, two-thirds women and children. How has this apparent paradox arisen?
Western revolt
The United States has found itself in a dilemma amid mounting international condemnations and demands for an independent international investigation into the killings.
President Joe Biden expressed an evolving position when he said in a phone call with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. support to Israel will be linked to steps and measures to protect aid workers and civilians.
In Britain, Israel’s second top partner in its aggression against the people of Gaza, the government of Rishi Sunak denounced the attacks. The British government, whose three citizens were killed in the Israeli attack, is facing increasing political pressure to stop weapon exports to Israel.
The Israeli war machine assassinated “white” citizens this time.
Amid the mounting Western pressure, Israel apologized and launched an investigation — even though it was not a thorough and fair probe — just to absorb pressure.
It concluded that serious mistakes and violations of procedures had been committed, and ended with the dismissal of two officers and the reprimanding of senior leaders.
Discriminatory justice
The wheel of condemnations calling for an end to the war has not stopped. From the U.S. and Britain to Belgium, Spain, Poland, Canada, Australia, the European Union and the United Nations Human Rights Council. All joined forces to condemn the killing of seven aid workers — including six foreigners.
For this time, the Israeli war machine assassinated “white” citizens. The dead have many who care about them: lawmakers, organizations, rights groups and peoples who will hold their governments accountable for complicity, failure, or silence on killing their citizens.
Be clear, this recent Western uproar against Israel comes from a discriminatory and racist standpoint. The issue is not simply related to relief workers, since Israel’s army has killed 196 relief workers since Oct. 7, including 175 from UNRWA.
The difference is that UNRWA workers were Palestinians and the hypocritical Western governments don’t care about them, proof of their double standards on the value of human life.
Where are the Arabs?
No less noteworthy is the reaction of Arab regimes. While the West is revolting against the criminal occupation army’s assassination of its white citizens, the Arab countries are still taking the position of “concerned observer” about the killing in Gaza.
Israel’s leaders feel for the first time in a long time that their country faces a storm.
They only express their denunciation and condemnation of the killing of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza over the past six months when Palestinians denounce them with shouts of: “Where are you, Arabs? Where are you, Arabs?”
This may be the most appropriate moment for the Arab regimes to escalate the pressure on the Zionist enemy to stop its aggression on Gaza.
Israel’s political leaders feel, for the first time in a long time, that their country is facing a geopolitical storm that threatens its existence. This threat could force Israelis to remove Netanyahu’s extreme right-wing government.
The Arab regime must exploit this situation and impose a blockade on Israel. Arab countries that have relations with the Zionist entity must cut diplomatic ties and cease all economic and trade agreements with Israel.
Arab countries also should impose an air and maritime blockade on Israel to force it to reconsider its aggressive practices against the Palestinians. Facing such a reality, the West will put decisive pressure on Israel, not for the Palestinians to gain their rights, but to save Israel from itself.
