‘If I must die, let it bring hope, let it be a tale‘ – Refaat Alareer, Palestinian poet murdered by Israel.
I do not think Israelis are civilians, at least not in the usual sense. Many Israelis are settlers from the US and Europe, most are armed and, as many point out, are required to serve in the military from 17-39 years of age, male and female. Also many Israelis are citizens of other countries and may come and go as they please. Israelis have rights that civilians of other countries do not possess, for example they can murder a Palestinian without any expectation of legal redress.
I think readers will be surprised at the number of Palestinian political prisoners. It is far higher than the numbers quoted in most reports. From my experience a significant proportion of those political prisoners are in administrative detention. Like Australian Aborigines a very significant proportion of the Palestinian male population has, at one time or another, been placed in jail. I found this on Wikipedia which provides some historical context:
According to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, from the Six-Day War (1967) to the First Intifada (1988), over 600,000 Palestinians were held in Israeli jails for a week or more.[28]
I am not entirely convinced by the use of the word ‘prisoner of war‘ (be it applied to Israelis or Palestinians. Nor am I convinced of the use of the word ‘civilians’ in the context of the ICJ ruling against genocide.
I do not think there is a war going on between the armed forces of Israel backed by the US superpower and the Palestinian resistance’s armed groups. I think what is happening is a genocide not war. At best it is a civil war resulting in genocide.
Ethnic cleansing is part of the genocide. That has been going on for over 100 years. First by the Ottomans, then by the British, and then by the Israelis with its partner the United States.
Another reason why I think that there is not a war going on is Palestinians do not have any government. The claim of legitimacy in international circles by the Palestinian Authority is false. The PA does not represent Palestinians in international fora like the ICJ, ICC, UN UNWRA or the Arab league. The PA’s authority is at best a hollow claim.
The PA is currently executing members of the resistance in a town called Jenin.
For as long as I can remember, the people of Jenin have refused to accept the occupation. They live in refugee camps which have been bombed by Israel, which have been raided by the IDF, and now are being killed by Palestinian Authority armed forces ,supported by Israel.
There is a civil war going on in Palestine and in that conflict there are many groups but the Palestinian people are as one in their resistance.
October the 7th was part of that civil war. The week of 7 Oct was an insurrection against illegal occupation. That force is backed by sections of the Palestinian Authority that has kept the population of the West Bank under wraps through the genocide in Gaza. The PA receives a lot of funding from the United Nations, virtually all their wages are paid by UNWRA which is the western way of washing their hands just as King Herod is supposed to have done (in the fictional account given in the bible).
Ian Curr
4 Jan 2025