Israel Reigning by Terror in the name of Self-Defence. Part 1

The concept and term of terror within international debates has been highlighted for its ambiguity and scope for use in different ways. But this instant creates a definitive moment where Terror reign supreme among Palestinians as Israel tries different methods of war and criminal acts on the Palestinian population.

An infant bid farewell to this violent world that tortured her with sounds too loud for her heart to endure. She died in her frightened mother’s arms in a matter of seconds, after Israeli bombardment resounded in their place of stay.

The devastated mother says “If my daughter had some health issues her passing away would not have devastated me this much. There would have been time to come to terms with her death. But my daughter died from fear, in seconds. She died in my arms in a minute, then they took her away. It all happened in may be 15 minutes”.

“From sound of bombardment she got scared. I am her mother, at times, I feel my heart is going to stop”.

“With every strike I would worry for my daughter. At the end, her heart couldn’t take it”.

There is no ambiguity, we, the human race, let Israel terrorise the little one, even when cradled in her mother’s arms, to leave this world forever.

Israel exists within a divided reality, where fear is nurtured with great care, the fear of being the victims of acts of anti-humanity is held on to as a fuel to ensure the dream of greater Israel. It is this fear that ensures Israeli perception their lives are worthy and others are irrelevant reality. There is no other explanation for the total disregard and not a second thought about 40,000 plus Palestinians massacred by Israel in the name of self defence. It is not just the Israeli government but majority of Israeli society is complicit to the war crimes and genocide carried out in Gaza. What is shocking is the fact that it does not even register in Israeli mind, may be Palestinians have a right to exist or it is inhuman what Israeli forces are doing in Gaza. This fact should throw light as to why one-state solution is inhuman beyond imagination.

This attitude and resultant distorted perception exist among members in the administration of President Joe Biden and his predecessor then President Donald Trump and the same reflected among German leaders and some other in European Union. It is this that offers diplomatic cover and control over narrative by media to ensure Israel’s right to self defence is highlighted and deaths of Palestinian even direct attack of children by sniper shots (a stark difference in response would have ensued if the children would have been of European descent) is sidelined and everything blamed on Hamas.

Not understanding they are trapped in the fallacy of their own logic, if Hamas members are present in every nook and corner that has been bombed then this onslaught (not war) cannot be won unless the entire Palestinian population is wiped and thereby US, Germany and parts of Europe are upholding Israel’s right to commit genocide as part of its self-defence strategy. Second, if an occupying force is threatened in its occupied territory, there is only one solution, stop the illegal occupation, there is no other solution. Third United States, Germany and some members of European Union, are not understanding through their assertion of Israel’s right to self-defence, they also assert and support its right to use “terror” as a strategy on Palestinians.

The Israelis have no philosophical questions of humanitarian ones regarding their governments action in Gaza, and as United States and Germany are willing to provide diplomatic cover as they provide military aid and upholds Israel’s right to self-defence. Through this convenient biased interpretation what is glossed over is the inhuman reign of terror unleashed by Israel on Palestinians as a whole, a form of collective punishment.

International law and domestic laws do acknowledge act of terrorising to be a criminal one, but each may vary in interpretation of terror. The United Nations Security Council in its resolution 1566 of October 2004, elaborates on terrorist acts “... criminal acts, including against civilians, committed with the intent of causing death or serious bodily injury or taking of hostages, with purpose to provoke a State of Terror in the greater public or in a group of persons of particular persons, intimidate a population or an international organisation to do or to abstain from doing an act” [1]. The UN General Assembly reaffirmed this definition in January 2006 (Resolution 60/43) [ibid].

International Humanitarian Law prohibits method of warfare or threats with primary purpose of spreading terror among civilian population. Acts that are carried out to create or provoke terror include “...indiscriminate bombardment, attacks against the civilian population, acts of violence designed to spread terror among the population, acts of terrorism, pillage, rapes, arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial execution, hostage taking and enforced disappearance and ethnic cleansing that forcibly displace civilian population.

Humanitarian Law in addition to prohibition of terror, it specifies weakening the morale of the population is not a legitimate military goal. It indicated terror is used as a method of warfare, where military objective is to crush the enemy and prevent resistance from the population. And in case of foreign military occupation, even when active hostilities have ended, terror may be used to weaken the morale of the opposing party’s population. The use of terror as a means of warfare constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity.

As per the definition of “terror” and criminal acts carried out to provoke terror, Israel is carrying out acts designed to create a sense of complete terror among Palestinian in Gaza Strip and the same is being repeated in West Bank. Israel is carrying out indiscriminate bombardment, attacks against civilian population, acts of violence designed to spread terror among Palestinians, pillage, rapes, arbitrary arrests, extra judicial execution, hostage taking by State of Israel, enforced disappearances, and aims to ethnically cleanse the area by frequent forced displacement and direct shots being fired at displaced population in order to terrorise them to leave Palestine.

Israeli government is gloating about its total impunity ensured by the veto power of its supporters in Security Council. This sense of invincibility ensure Israel not only creates terror in Gaza and West Bank, it even directly and indirectly terrorise staff within United Nations Organs and does so with total knowledge that its tech skills can make direct evidence is difficult to come by. But its attitude is made loud and clear when Israel government calls for sanctions against ICC staff, or dismissal of UN staff or their defamation. This seems to be a privilege only Israel enjoys and it can continue with business as usual.

It is time to think beyond western democracies and their understanding of democracies for each day they are redefining democracy, self defence through their action and words, thereby ensuring Israel’s right to terrorise.

The death of the infant terrorised by Israel to breath her last is a call on anyone and everyone with an iota of humanity to hold Israel accountable, to SANCTION it.

For further information:

1. The practical guide to Humanitarian Law.

https://guide-humanitarian-law.org/content/article/3/terrorism