War on Gaza and Pedagogy of the Oppressed
IN FOCUS, 4 Dec 2023
Mahboob A. Khawaja, Ph.D. – TRANSCEND Media Service
Rational Questions Need Rational Answers
29 Nov 2023 – How do you dismantle temptation and compulsion of evil from an egoistic sadistic mind? How do you prevent tyranny of evil causing moral, intellectual and political deprivation leading to bombed and flattened humanity across Gaza? The UN Security Council reflects a dead-ended culture of thinking and action to “save the humanity from the scourge of war” and manifests incompetence to its obligations under the Charter. The Five so-called superpowers symbolically discuss the crisis which warrants urgent remedial action for peace and preservation of human lives but are engaged in fanaticism of debates against the wishes of the global community urging for a permanent ceasefire, return to normalcy and protection of the vulnerable civilian population. According to the UN some 1.8 millions people forcibly displaced by Israeli bombing and military actions across Gaza.
The US and some of the West European leaders giggled and watched the genocidal events happening during the insane bombing of Gaza. Effective leaders know their moral and intellectual strength and weaknesses and never use military options as the sole strategy of political hegemony. Contrary to the lesson of history, USA and Israel view war as a favored strategy to conclude a finished answer on Palestine. If USA and West European wanted, the war on Gaza could have been averted into a peace dialogue. While an unbridgeable disconnect is noticeable, Western leaders rely on making fake statements about the Two States solution. Most often impressionistic predicaments are not grounded on solid evidence supporting people’s lifelines in Gaza and occupied West Bank in Palestine. The indiscriminate bombing of Gaza destroyed all the basic norms of human civility, decency and survival of the civilian masses. North American and West European leaders claimed Israel’s “right to defend itself” but defy the logic of honesty to assert the same right for the people of Palestine. Their irrational doctrine affirms the presumption for Israel to continue the war against an oppressed people for over 16 years in Gaza. Tyranny is always powerless and transitory as Israelis and Palestinians live in fear of mutual annihilation. This could only be transformed into benevolence and justice through a peaceful dialogue and not to tyranny of continued occupation.
War against Besieged Masses and Urgency to Restore Normalcy
“It’s Not The ‘Israel-Hamas War’, It’s The Israel-Gaza Massacre” (Information Clearing House: 10/15/23), Caitlin Johnstone clarifies the catastrophic events: Stop calling it the “Israel-Hamas war”. It’s the Israel-Gaza massacre. Calling it the Israel-Hamas war creates the false impression that this is a war that is directed exclusively at Hamas when it’s really an ethnic purge that’s directed at all Palestinians in Gaza. https://informationclearinghouse.blog/2023/10/15/its-not-the-israel-hamas-war- its-the-israel-gaza-massacre/
The WHO- Geneva warns of the ‘tsunami of diseases’ in the making if immediate preventive measures are not taken to remove the rubble, dead bodies and restore functional hospitals and increased supplies of fuel, clean water, foods and wellbeing of the displaced people. While the US and West European leaders offer lip service, canons of fairness demand equal treatment of both parties to the conflict.
Palestinians are worthy of human dignity and rights as are the Israelis”, and “Two States – Israel and Palestine.” “Gaza: War on We, the People and Arab-Muslim’s Shame”
https://www.uncommonthought.com/mtblog/archives/2023/11/22/gaza-war-on-we-the-people-and- arab-muslims-shame.php
To unlock the claimed impunity, the UNO or the ICC should call for an investigation to the violations of the Geneva Conventions of Humanitarian International Law and crimes against humanity. The UN- Security Council failed to stop the madness of war against highly vulnerable civilian population in Gaza. As of now according to the UN reports, some 15,000 civilians killed , some 30,000 or more injured and some 6,500 or more children and women killed during the month long Israeli bombing campaign. It is reported that 1,147 Israeli were killed on October 7, when Hamas attacked the Southern region of Israel and approximately 1,000 Israeli soldiers wounded according to the Haraatez newspaper. One wonders how do you justify war on the civilians, hospitals, schools and places of worship across Gaza? Please see more by this author: https://www.uncommonthought.com/mtblog/archives/2023/10/31/the-war-on-gaza-humanity-is-being-destroyed-by-the- madness-of-war-and-inept-leadership.php
The Spacious Earth Is a Trust Not to Be Bombed and Destroyed
We live on Earth that sustains all forms of living things, yet human ignorance, arrogance and insanity are at work to destroy the essential foundation of our own lives. Weapons of wars are the weapons of mass destruction being used without any sense of accountability. We, the people are rational beings with a choice of righteousness and wickedness to act in human affairs. Do we the mankind have any collective sense of responsibility and accountability to protect the Earth and its imperatives in life?
“God is nearer to you than your jugular vein”, and “Fear God” and ‘do not violate the covenants of peace and trust on earth’, the Divine reminders (Quran) echoes the messages conveyed by Prophets Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammad. Human glory lives in the conception of good and righteousness, not in wickedness and genocidal plans. The Earth is a living entity and is meant for us – the human beings, not for bombardment and destruction. The Divine warning (Chapter 7: 56: The Quran), is self-explanatory: Do no mischief on the Earth after it hath been set in order, but call on God with fear and longing in hearts ; For the Mercy of God is always near to those who do good.
More specifically, the Quran (2: 83-84) and Torah remind the generations of Israelite:
And remember, We took a Covenant from the Children of Israel (progeny of Jacob), Worship none but God; ….shed no blood amongst you, Nor displace people from your homes: and Ye solemnly ratified, And to this ye can bear witness.
If the Israelite believe in God and Torah, human blood should not be shed on a precarious scheme to expel Palestinians from their ancestral homes. Arguably the War on Gaza substantiates the wide range of evidence to forcibly displace the civilians from North to South, genocidal acts of bombing and “crimes against humanity” impacting the unprotected population, bombardment of hospitals, stopping of foods, fuel, medicine, water and attacks on places of worship. While a ceasefire pause in place, Israeli forces continue to raid the West Bank, Janine and kill targeted civilians and children in the occupied region. This dreadful culture of thinking and action will diminish all peaceful prospects for reconciliation and the Two States solution.
What is the end game after the planned destruction of Gaza? USA and Israel just want to see the hostages freed and continued occupation of Gaza for some time. Logic and Reason is tainted by Israeli extremist political ideology to maintain war and violence by all means. Paranoid and vengeful egoistic Israeli PM Netanyahu would opt for more conflicts to ensure his political survival and extremist’s agenda to drive Palestinians out of Gaza into the unknown. Most Arab leaders are the puppets of Western imperialism. Do the Arab-Muslim leaders have a vision and plan to restore normalcy to Gazans and to pursue a Two State Solution? We, the Conscientious People of the world call for an immediate formulation of an International Peace Team comprising of the US, EU, Russia, China, Israel and Palestine to stop the war and organize a dialogue for a permanent ceasefire and peacemaking.
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Dr. Mahboob A. Khawaja specializes in international relations-global security, peace and conflict resolution with keen interests in Islamic-Western comparative cultures and civilizations, and author of several publications including the latest book: Global Peace, Security and Conflict Resolution: Approaches to Understand the Current Issues and Future-Making, Lambert Academic Publications, Germany, 2017.
Tags: Education, Gaza, Genocide, Israel, Massacre, Palestine, Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 4 Dec 2023.
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