By John Pinel
SEVENTY-NINE years after our liberation from Nazi occupation, Jersey recently celebrated its freedom and independence. Many fine words were spoken about peace, freedom, forgiveness and tolerance, the acceptance of differing religious beliefs and the fact that we are all humans together on one planet.
Such a shame, then, that such fine words are not translated into actions.
Every war is a catastrophe. Some, such as the Second World War, may have been unavoidable, most aren’t; but it can be extremely difficult for the international community, not involved in the fighting, to intervene beyond sending “peace keeping” forces into a country.
The terrible human suffering in Sudan is a case in point. It is, as usual, the poverty-stricken civilians who bear the brunt of the suffering, as political and religious factions fight over control of the country’s resources.
The UN has reported that there are 6.7 million internally displaced people and 1.8 million have escaped the country. These refugees all suffer unimaginable hardships, with 24.8 million people reported to be in need of assistance.
Sadly for Ukraine the West see the Russian invasion as a great opportunity to erode Russia’s economic, military and social strengths, and rather than seek a peace settlement, seem intent on prolonging the war at the expense of Ukraine’s military and civilian personnel. There is no doubt that the international community, if it so wished, could work harder to seek a peace agreement between these two countries.
The numerous wars currently being fought in Central Africa cause untold human suffering to some of the poorest people in the world. The Democratic Republic of Congo has 6.9 million internally displaced people, with an estimated six million dead since 1996. These wars are largely fought for control of the countries’ natural resources, which we all want to buy at knock-down prices. Corporate lobbying and the wealth, power and influence of these corporations convince governments the world over that sacrificing civilians to ruthless conflicts are good for our own economies.
Yemen is still suffering onslaughts from Saudi Arabia, supported by the West. In Yemen, 21.6 million people are in need of aid (including 11 million children), with more than 4.5 million people homeless.
However, the terrible atrocities occurring in Gaza at the moment seem to be a different type of conflict. This is a situation that could be stopped tomorrow if the very few countries which support Israel enacted the values they say they stand for.
The recent UN vote calling for an immediate ceasefire was passed by 153 countries, with only ten voting against, demonstrating the international feeling about Israel’s invasion of Gaza, and its horrific retribution against Hamas and the civilian population. Even Britain and Germany could no longer support the atrocities and abstained.
There are very few countries worldwide which condone this suffering and fewer still who are actively supporting and arming Israel’s fascist government.
The list of atrocities committed by Israel would take far longer to write than the word count I have for this article. More journalists have been killed in six months than in any other conflict, ever. The assassination of World Central Kitchen staff in one car after another has highlighted the fact that more aid workers were murdered in the first three months of fighting than in any year preceding the genocide. More United Nations staff have been killed in Gaza than in any other conflict since the UN was created. Executions, evidence of torture and mass graves keep being discovered. Doctors and nurses murdered. Homes, schools, universities and hospitals targeted and destroyed.
More than enough for me is the shocking statistic that 14,500 children have been slaughtered. That is three children, every hour, for the past six months, murdered by the Israeli terror campaign.
At least three more are horrifically maimed hourly by the bombs, shells, rockets, bullets and missiles rained down on those defenceless people as they shelter in tents or scavenge for crumbs of food. Yet more children and babies are needlessly dying from lack of food and health care.
Six months ago, Rafah was a small border town, home to around 280,000 people. Since then, the population has swelled to over 1.5 million. Water, food and medical supplies are scarce and getting scarcer. People are living in tents in the streets, with no privacy, sanitation, few cooking facilities, no running water and little food. They are hungry, homeless and desperate.
These refugees have left their ruined homes and are forced to flee at gunpoint to this so-called “safe area”, which is then continuously bombed, with Israel announcing its intention to carry out a “ground offensive” in the city, a euphemism for intensifying the ongoing slaughter. It took the deaths of nearly one million Tutsi’s before the international community woke up to the genocide in Rwanda. We cannot wait until thousands more are murdered in Gaza before we recognise this atrocity as a genocide.
Jersey has placed economic sanctions on numerous countries around the world, including Russia and Yemen, due to the behaviour of their regimes. It is high time that we imposed sanctions on Israel and stopped all business with that shockingly cruel, despotic government.
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John Pinel is a freelance ecologist. In the past, he has travelled widely, covering thousands of miles by bicycle but also building his own carbon footprint with international travel. He has had many jobs, from finance to pizza chef, including over 20 years in various environmental roles, the last ten as Principal Ecologist for the Department of the Environment. He is now active in a number of local and international non-governmental organisations and campaigns for social and environmental justice. All opinions expressed are his own and do not reflect the view of any organisation. Twitter: @johnepinel
