[🇧🇩] Israel and Hamas war in Gaza-----Can Bangladesh be a peace broker?

[Saif]

Gaza shame of humanity, calls for permanent ceasefire: Erdogan

Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan renewed his attacks on Israel as he arrived in Tirana Thursday, the first stop of a Balkans tour that will also take him to Serbia.

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Gaza shame of humanity, calls for permanent ceasefire: Erdogan
Agence France-Presse . Tirana, Albania 11 October, 2024, 22:02

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan renewed his attacks on Israel as he arrived in Tirana Thursday, the first stop of a Balkans tour that will also take him to Serbia.

Repeating his claim that Israel’s actions in Gaza constituted ‘genocide’, he branded it the ‘shame of humanity’, at a joint press conference with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama.

‘The international community, we must do our best to urgently guarantee a permanent ceasefire and exert the necessary pressure on Israel,’ he added.

‘The genocide that has been going on in Gaza for the past year is the common shame of all humanity,’ he added.

The Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

According to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, 42,065 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, mostly civilians. The UN has said the figures are reliable.

Erdogan has branded Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu the ‘butcher of Gaza’ and compared him to Nazi Germany’s Adolf Hitler.

‘The aggression led by the Netanyahu government now threatens the world order beyond the region,’ Erdogan said.

Later Thursday Erdogan, accompanied by Prime Minister Edi Rama, inaugurated the Great Mosque of Tirana.

The largest Muslim place of worship in the Balkans, it has a capacity of up to 10,000 people. The project, funded by Turkey, cost 30 million euros.

Turkey is also a major employer in Albania. As Erdogan said in February, over 600 Turkish companies operate in the country, providing jobs to more than 15,000 workers.

It is also one of the five biggest foreign investors in Albania, he said, with $3.5 billion (3.2 billion euros) committed.

The two NATO member countries also have close military ties, with Turkey supplying Tirana with its Bayraktar TB2 drones.

For the second stage of his tour Erdogan travelled from Albania to Serbia, where he was greeted at Belgrade airport by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

Turkey made a diplomatic comeback here in 2017 when Erdogan made a landmark visit to Belgrade.

The five century Ottoman presence in Serbia has traditionally weighed heavily on Belgrade-Ankara relations.

Another source of tension has been Turkey’s historic ties with Serbia’s former breakaway province of Kosovo. Kosovo declared independence in 2008, a move Belgrade still refuses to recognise.

Erdogan’s 2017 visit repaired the relationship with Serbia, Belgrade analyst Vuk Vuksanovic said.

But Belgrade was furious last year when Turkey sold drones to Kosovo, something Serbia said was ‘unacceptable’.

The row could however still be patched up, Vuksanovic insisted.

‘I would not be surprised if we see a military deal at the end of this visit,’ he said.

He expected talks in Belgrade on Friday to focus on ‘military cooperation, the position of Turkish companies — and attempts by Belgrade to persuade Ankara to tone down support for Kosovo’.

While the rapprochement is relatively new, economic ties between the two countries are already significant.

Turkish investment in Serbia has rocketed from $1 million to $400 million over the past decade, the Turkey-Serbia business council told Turkey’s Anadolu news agency.

Turkish exports to Serbia hit $2.13 billion in 2022, up from $1.14 billion in 2020, according to official Serbian figures.

Turkish tourists are also important for Serbia, second only to visitor numbers from Bosnia.​

 

[Saif]

Israeli strikes on Jabalia refugee camps kill 19

Israeli military strikes on Gaza overnight killed at least 19 Palestinians, medics said yesterday, while forces continued to push deeper into the Jabalia area, where international relief agencies say thousands of people are trapped.

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Israeli strikes on Jabalia refugee camps kill 19
Say medics as tanks push deeper into the north; Palestinian health officials report around 150 killed in Jabalia over past week officials report around 150 killed in Jabalia over past week.

Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in the northern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli evacuation order in Gaza City yesterday. Photo: REUTERS

Israeli military strikes on Gaza overnight killed at least 19 Palestinians, medics said yesterday, while forces continued to push deeper into the Jabalia area, where international relief agencies say thousands of people are trapped.

Residents said Israeli forces continued to pound Jabalia, which is in the north of the enclave and is the largest of the enclave's historic refugee camps, from the air and ground.

The Israeli military published new evacuation orders yesterday to two neighbourhoods on the northern edge of Gaza City, which also lies in the north of the enclave, saying the area was a "dangerous combat zone".

In a statement, Gaza's Hamas-run interior ministry urged residents not to relocate within northern areas of the enclave and also to avoid heading south "where the occupation is conducting continued bombing and killing every day in the areas it claims to be safe".

There has been no fresh Israeli comment on deaths but the military said in past days that forces operating in Jabalia and nearby areas killed dozens of militants, located weapons and dismantled military infrastructure.

The operation in this area began a week ago and the military said then it aimed to fight against militants waging attacks and to prevent Hamas from regrouping.

Palestinian health officials put the number of people killed in Jabalia over the past week at around 150.

On Friday, Israeli strikes hit four houses in Jabalia, killing around 20 people and wounding dozens, medics said. The Israeli military has sent troops into the nearby towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya as well as Jabalia and ordered residents to evacuate their homes and head to safe areas south of the enclave.

Palestinian and United Nations officials say there are no safe areas in Gaza. They have also voiced concerns over severe shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies in northern Gaza, and said there is a risk of famine there.

Israeli offensive in Gaza, aimed at eliminating Hamas fighters, has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians since it began a year ago, according to Gaza's health ministry, and has laid waste to the enclave.

The war began after a Hamas-led assault on Oct 7, 2023, on southern Israeli communities in which 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

In a statement yesterday, Hamas said Israel's "massacre against the civilians" aimed to punish the residents of Jabalia for refusing to leave their homes. It also said it was a sign of Israel's military failure to defeat the group.

Israel has denied it targets civilians.

The armed wings of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and smaller other factions said their fighters attacked Israeli forces in Jabalia and nearby areas with anti-tank rockets, and mortar fire.

POLIO VACCINATIONS

United Nations officials said on Friday an Israeli offensive and evacuation orders in northern Gaza might affect the second phase of its polio vaccination campaign set to start next week.

The territory's health ministry announced yesterday that the campaign would begin on Monday in central Gaza Strip areas and would last three days before moving to other territories.

Aid groups carried out an initial round of vaccinations last month after a baby was partially paralysed by the type 2 poliovirus in August, the first such case in the territory in 25 years.

As in the first phase, humanitarian pauses in the fighting in Gaza are planned, in order to reach hundreds of thousands of children.​

 

[Saif]

Turkey urges ‘sanctions’ against Israel over Gaza conflict

Turkey’s foreign minister on Tuesday called for sanctions against Israel, urging the international community to cut support over the conflict in the Middle East.

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Turkey urges ‘sanctions’ against Israel over Gaza conflict
Agence France-Presse . Ankara 15 October, 2024, 22:02

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkey’s foreign minister on Tuesday called for sanctions against Israel, urging the international community to cut support over the conflict in the Middle East.

‘We have reached the limit of words, diplomacy and international politics. We must start with sanctions,’ foreign minister Hakan Fidan told ruling party delegates at a meeting about the future of Palestine.

Turkey has long been a fierce critic of Israel’s now year-long military campaign in Gaza and its recent deadly push into Lebanon, accusing the United Nations of failing to sanction Israel over the conflicts.

Fidan said Israel had not so far responded to calls to halt the Gaza war, meaning ‘the international community must now resort to legal action. Israel needs to be boycotted,’ he said.

Israel was ‘not paying any price economically, politically, or militarily’ for its actions in Gaza, and the only way that would change was if the world ‘cut off support’.

‘If we cannot, Israel will continue the genocide and massacre in Gaza,’ he said.

Last week, president Recep Tayyip Erdogan again described the Gaza bloodshed as ‘genocide’, saying that the 12 months of conflict was ‘the common shame of all humanity’.

The Gaza war began with Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 that resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

According to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, more than 42,300 people have been killed in Gaza since then, mostly civilians. The UN has said the figures are reliable.

Erdogan has branded Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the ‘butcher of Gaza’ and compared him to Nazi Germany’s Adolf Hitler.​

 

[Saif]

‘One state solution is the only long-term solution’

What we're witnessing now in the Middle East is a zero-sum game.

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‘One state solution is the only long-term solution’

People inspect the site of an Israeli air strike, amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Beirut, Lebanon on October 11, 2024. PHOTO: REUTERS

As Israel's expansion of the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon creates havoc in the Middle East, Dr Bashir Saade, Lecturer of Politics and Religion at University of Stirling and author of ''Hizbullah and the Politics of Remembrance,' speaks to Ramisa Rob of The Daily Star in an exclusive interview about what lies ahead and the solution to the geopolitical wildfire in the region.

How would you analyse the escalation of the conflict so far?

This war between Israel and Hezbollah so to speak is largely an information war, similar to 2006 but what has changed now is that Israel has really upped its game in that regard. However, since the 1990s Israel has not been "militarily" able to grab any territories. The last time this happened was in 1982 in Lebanon, and before that, 1967, in Palestine, all of which led to the creation of this axis of resistance such as Hezbollah and Hamas. The killing of Hezbollah General Secretary Hassan Nasrallah was of course related to the pager attacks earlier which created a shock in the system of the organisation. It's definitely all connected and it's definitely a big escalation, but not in the sense of an all-out war yet. Rather, it's the surprise events that have occurred as we were not expecting that Israelis would go that far to kill Nasrallah because that decision to kill such a leader is a large political decision where there must be a greenlight from the powers that be, and a concerted effort to kill such a leader. The political implications of Israel's actions by killing the head of the organisations they're in combat with is essentially shooting down the possibilities of negotiation talks and ceasefires. So Israel has declared their aim to eliminate Hezbollah, the way they did to eliminate Hamas but they largely destroyed infrastructure and killed civilians. What emboldened Israel is the information edge it has and the possibility of killing leaders and getting to Hezbollah through the pager attacks. This emboldened stance had led Israel to move forward with ground invasion. But this is difficult to achieve so that's why Israel tries to win by spreading terror, destroying infrastructure—not just ones where weapons are located—and killing civilians so as to provoke a change in confidence in Lebanon towards Hezbollah and pressure the group to surrender.

I also think Israel is doing what they're doing because Hezbollah and Iran act in a measured and restrained manner and escalate gradually, and in a way they deem appropriate by calculating their military objectives. There's something quite dark about this though: Israel can go to lengths disregarding international law and killing civilians and be immune from accountability in the international stage whereas the resistance has to go to many lengths to ensure they don't kill civilians—not that they want to—or commit any massacres similar to Israel. I didn't think Israel would be so audacious in doing what they did, and in the pace that they've set off, but that being said, I still think on the military ground level not much has changed. Hezbollah is shooting way more targeted rockets, and Israelis are not being able to do much about securing the northern front. The point I am trying to make is that despite what Israel has done much of how Hezbollah is functioning at the military ground level has not drastically changed. Israel is losing soldiers so they're trying to pressurise in different ways like striking civilian areas to force Hezbollah to budge and give up.

Can you unpack the strategies and the games underlying the tit-for-tat exchanges between Iran, its proxies and Israel and the US?

So for Iran, I do think the strikes have been effective as they have been able to show they can destroy important military structures in Israel and their main goal to the opponent, especially the US, is to send a message: Israel should not make it bigger than it is. In terms of their own strategy, since the current regime is fortified by the US from all directions, they do everything to not be attacked. On the other hand, the sole goal of Hezbollah, a guerilla organisation—which is obviously a lot weaker than Israel—is to disrupt Israel's security and make Israel accept a ceasefire in Gaza. Israel is playing a completely different game though. They killed Haniyeh, who was the negotiator for Hamas, and Nasrallah, a moderate and pragmatic person for the resistance, which means Israel is aiming to eliminate the resistance completely because they're not willing to negotiate at all. The Palestinian cause and sovereignty of Lebanon for example does not exist to Israel. If there is a Palestinian cause, Israel wants to decide how it's going to be. The sovereignty of Lebanon, for Israel, is something they can decide the terms of. So for example if Israel takes down Hezbollah—which they can't but let's just hypothetically say they do—then they will take over the south of Lebanon to just colonise the place and that way, they don't lose this opportunity. But if Hezbollah stays, then Israel has to recognise that Lebanon has a national interest, the people have rights and Israel would have to compromise. We are very far from that scenario now because Israel's strategy is to completely eliminate the opponent and force Iran to stop funding the resistance to Israel. But the Iranian strategy on the other hand is to continue funding the axis of resistance, because it's Iran's only way of having power in the region and fending off threats to its national security from a political pragmatic point of view. After the US invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, and Arab states' normalising with Israel, the only option that Iran really has is to keep pursuing these bridges and make allies in order to survive. But Iran's position in the region is defensive to protect its position.

Israel's strategy at the moment is really not sustainable and there's also the internal politics of Netanyahu dragging this on to continue being the Prime Minister and not go to prison. The US, on the other hand, has quietly profited off of this situation because they've always locked heads with Iran. In many ways, it's not in the US interest to directly confront Iran but if a major retaliatory strike happens from the US and Israel, it would be because the US has weighed that a confrontation will not be as damaging but rather draw a theatrical strike from Iran to save face. In other words, this is a zero-sum game. In the long term Israel's elimination strategy will not work because resistance will happen again—someone else will come and they may well be a lot angrier. What Israel and the US have to accept at some point is that in the long term this Zionist project, and apartheid regime cannot continue—which is really what the conflict is all about.

What do you think is the solution to this ongoing conflict in the long term but also, what is the short term solution to achieve that long term solution?

In the long term, I think the only solution is the one state solution—one state that is pluralistic where Muslims, Jews, Christians and just people from all religions live together and there's no stolen land or settlements and where everyone can strive for equality. In the short term, we are obviously very far from this because Israel has the whole world behind them, supporting them, and powerful countries like the US unilaterally funding them to do the opposite. They have the full power and license to defend itself as a Jewish state so as long as that's the rationale, this conflict will continue. The resistance, a force that comes from within to challenge the colonial power to stop it from killing and killing thinking that they can just eliminate the opponent, will continue to just get bigger and bigger. This is exactly what happened in South Africa and Vietnam. You can kill people, but there will always be another generation that's what they will have to get. So say Israel destroys Hamas—which they can't—but there will always be another Hamas or Islamic Jihad and so on. Let's not forget, first it was the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and now it's Hamas, so the cycle has continued and it will continue as long as this structural problem continues. Zionism is the satellite of imperialism, the last experiment of modern day colonialism—first it was by the British and then now it's in the hands of the US—and there will be a time that it will just have to end.​

 

[Saif]

The perfect victim

A FEW weeks ago, I had a meeting with a group of scholars and activists, among whom a few were Palestinians. In the middle of our conversation, someone pointed out that the Palestinians within...

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The perfect victim
by Raudah Yunus 17 October, 2024, 00:00

An aerial photo show heavily damaged buildings after Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City in October 2023. | Agence France-Presse/Belal al Sabbagh

A FEW weeks ago, I had a meeting with a group of scholars and activists, among whom a few were Palestinians. In the middle of our conversation, someone pointed out that the Palestinians within the circle had caused great discomfort among some people. They were perceived as too loud and combative, and that their aggressive approach would damage the relationships within the institution instead of bridging them.

One Palestinian activist quickly seized the opportunity and bravely announced:

‘I am tired of having to be polite when speaking about the pain and suffering of my people. I am tired of being told not to be rude, or speak too loudly, when making demands that are completely reasonable for my people. We Palestinians are always expected to behave in a certain way that is deemed appropriate; I have decided that it’s okay NOT to be the perfect victim.’

In another encounter, a pro-Palestinian activist friend had his language corrected because the word he used to describe the Zionist movement was regarded as too harsh. Interestingly, the discussion then quickly shifted to linguistic issues and what certain words could mean — and how and why they should or should not be used — when talking about the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

I could certainly say it was a waste of time and opportunity, and perhaps a deliberate attempt to distract the public attention from the real issue of Israeli occupation and genocide in Palestine to petty issues of language and terminology.

To put it differently, we the victims need to be extremely careful when describing the aggressor; our language must be one that appeases them, is soothing to their ear, and does not cause them discomfort. After all, the big bully has a sensitive heart! Alas, the same rule does not apply to the victim!

The term ‘perfect victim’ refers to an idealised portrayal of a victim who embodies traits that elicit maximum sympathy from others, often characterised by innocence, passivity, and a lack of flaws or aggressive responses. In this framework, victims are expected to respond to their suffering with the utmost restraint, dignity, and forgiveness. Only then can their pain and cause gain legitimacy. A perfect (Palestinian) victim is one that is always patient, smiling, polite, grateful, and optimistic of a better future. They don’t scream, swear, or yell in anger. Nor do they demand retribution or rally on the street.

When they (Palestinians) speak — if they are ever allowed to — they must first start with ‘condemning Hamas’. Ah, the magic words! Only by condemning Hamas can their plight and grievances be validated. This norm places an unfair burden on Palestinians because their legitimacy as victims hinges on their disavowal of any resistance. Such a demand simplifies the complex political landscape and reduces their narratives to mere compliance with external expectations.

The ‘perfect victim’ oddity reinforces the idea that the Palestinian suffering is only valid if they conform to specific viewpoints that align with dominant narratives, effectively silencing their calls for justice and self-determination. This pressure to condemn Hamas diverts public attention from the systemic issues they face, making it difficult for them to advocate for their rights without being judged or dismissed based on their relationship to other political entities.

Other than that, the expectation for Palestinians to embody the ‘perfect victim’ creates a simplistic and one-dimensional narrative. This archetype demands that they respond to violence and oppression with composure, dignity, and calmness, thereby erasing the complexity of their emotions and distorting the reality of their experiences. It simplifies their struggles, framing them in a way that fits into a predetermined narrative of victimhood to be easily and comfortably consumed by outside audiences. This not only invalidates their diverse perspectives but also undermines the urgency of their calls for justice and self-determination. The pressure to conform to this standard suppresses genuine expressions of anger and resistance, which are essential components of their fight for freedom.

The ‘perfect victim’ phenomenon is a form of bias that is often not imposed on other groups facing similar circumstances. For instance, in conflicts around the world, marginalised populations are frequently recognised for their resilience and right to voice dissent, while their struggles are framed within a broader context of justice and self-determination. In contrast, Palestinians are held to a standard that demands unrealistic composure and silence in the face of violence and oppression.

This double standard not only perpetuates harmful stereotypes but also delegitimises their experiences, suggesting that their grievances are less valid or less worthy of empathy. In addition, it reinforces a narrative that undermines their humanity, while other groups are afforded the complexity and nuance of their struggles.

For instance, many indigenous groups around the world, such as Native Americans in the United States or First Nations in Canada, have historically faced violence, displacement, and cultural erasure. Their movements for land rights, sovereignty, and cultural preservation are often supported, and their anger and resistance are celebrated and recognised as a sign of pain and trauma inflicted upon them.

Similarly, in our contemporary time, pro-Ukraine activists are encouraged to voice their grievances passionately, demand the cessation of war, and speak out against the Russian invasion. There is no need for sugarcoating, nor are they required to condemn any party among themselves first and foremost. Their expressions of anger are often seen as justified responses to oppression that deserve instant solidarity and support.

This stands in stark contrast to the way Palestinian expressions of dissent are received; Palestinian advocates are often times labelled as hostile or confrontational at best and extremist at worst. They are frequently viewed only through the lens of victimhood.

Harkening back to the two anecdotes I shared earlier, it is our duty to dismantle the ‘perfect victim’ mentality wherever it manifests. When someone tells you or a pro-Palestinian friend to tone down, behave better, or adopt greater diplomacy, know that it is mostly likely just another ploy to silence legitimate voices by patronising the nature of response ‘allowed’ for the victim. What it does is shift the focus to the victim’s demeanour instead of centring the conversation on the actual issue.

Likewise, the next time someone tells you or a pro-Palestinian friend to use more polite expressions — or start criticising your choice of words — know that this is another lame tactic of distraction. Fearing to address the elephant in the room, they want to drag you into arguments on language use and terminologies that will eventually drain your energy and time.

If someone asks you to ‘condemn Hamas’ before anything else, know that this is a form of bullying and intimidation. The aim is to discredit you and ‘change the agenda’ by imposing the unacceptability of any forms of resistance before the victim is considered worth listening to.

It is completely okay not to be the perfect victim. In fact, there is no such thing.

Raudah M Yunus is a writer, researcher and social activist. She is pursuing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Medical College of Wisconsin, USA.​