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Palestinians evacuate the area following an Israeli airstrike on the Sousi mosque in Gaza City on October 9, 2023.
(Photo by Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images)
Why Israel's Year of Genocidal Attacks May Be Its Undoing
On the altar of Israeli impunity, the world has been transformed into a much more dangerous place.
Oct 05, 2024
On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched an offensive into southern Israel to irrevocably shatter an unsustainable status quo. While the crisis that has now persisted for an entire year did indeed erupt on that day, it had been decades in the making.
Israel's initial response was to unleash a genocidal campaign against the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip. Motivated by revenge and bloodlust, it was designed to not only kill and destroy on a massive scale but to make the Gaza Strip unfit for human habitation.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and, in so doing, to re-establish its shattered power of deterrence.
Insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
To ensure Israel could rampage through the Gaza Strip with impunity and escape any accountability for its actions, Israel's western sponsors and allies, led by the United States, willingly shredded the rulebook of international law and the norms and values that underpin it.
Each successive Israeli obliteration of yet another red line - the bombing and destruction of hospitals, schools, and refugee centres, the indiscriminate transformation of communications devices into hand grenades, and the killing and wounding of hundreds to rescue four captives - was justified as a legitimate act of self-defence.
In the process, the world has been transformed into a much more dangerous place for us all on the altar of Israeli impunity.
Failed strategy
For much of the past year, Israel has failed not only to achieve anything of military significance in the Gaza Strip, but it has also failed to enunciate a strategy. Slogans like "total victory" and a Churchill complex are no substitute for political vision.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and re-establish its shattered power of deterrence
This now appears to be changing. Israel's assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, and with him virtually the entirety of the movement's military command, has given it the confidence that it can dismantle the coalition known as the Axis of Resistance.
Its key initiative in this respect is the invasion of Lebanon currently underway, and in which all the red lines violated in Gaza are being crossed again, once more with nary a peep from capitals that habitually preach to rivals, adversaries, and other lesser beings about the sanctity of the rule of law, human rights, and similar principles.
Follow Middle East Eye's live coverage of the Israel-Palestine war
As has been clear from the outset, Israel's ultimate aim is regime change in Iran, on the mistaken assumption that an Iranian government disengaged from the conflict with Israel will transform the Palestinians, and Arabs more generally, into powerless sheep.
Israel appears to be convinced that the road to Tehran runs through the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed as much on 30 September when he vowed that Iranians would soon achieve "freedom" from their leaders.
Israel's agenda requires it to engineer a direct military confrontation between Washington and Tehran, and in US President Joe Biden, it may well have found the candidate that has thus far eluded it.
Yet Lebanon has repeatedly proved to be the graveyard of Israel and American hubris.
Whether in 1982, when Ariel Sharon's Operation Big Pines laid the basis for Hezbollah's emergence, or in 2006, when Condoleezza Rice's "birth pangs of a new Middle East" turned out to be a miscarriage.
The coming weeks will determine whether Israel can once again resume unilaterally resolving the Palestine question on its own terms, and with it to seal the fate of the Palestinian people, or whether 7 October will go down in history as the moment the Zionist project in Palestine began to unravel.
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
© 2023 Middle East Eye
Mouin Rabbani
Mouin Rabbani is a researcher, analyst, and commentator specializing in Palestinian affairs, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the contemporary Middle East.
On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched an offensive into southern Israel to irrevocably shatter an unsustainable status quo. While the crisis that has now persisted for an entire year did indeed erupt on that day, it had been decades in the making.
Israel's initial response was to unleash a genocidal campaign against the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip. Motivated by revenge and bloodlust, it was designed to not only kill and destroy on a massive scale but to make the Gaza Strip unfit for human habitation.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and, in so doing, to re-establish its shattered power of deterrence.
Insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
To ensure Israel could rampage through the Gaza Strip with impunity and escape any accountability for its actions, Israel's western sponsors and allies, led by the United States, willingly shredded the rulebook of international law and the norms and values that underpin it.
Each successive Israeli obliteration of yet another red line - the bombing and destruction of hospitals, schools, and refugee centres, the indiscriminate transformation of communications devices into hand grenades, and the killing and wounding of hundreds to rescue four captives - was justified as a legitimate act of self-defence.
In the process, the world has been transformed into a much more dangerous place for us all on the altar of Israeli impunity.
Failed strategy
For much of the past year, Israel has failed not only to achieve anything of military significance in the Gaza Strip, but it has also failed to enunciate a strategy. Slogans like "total victory" and a Churchill complex are no substitute for political vision.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and re-establish its shattered power of deterrence
This now appears to be changing. Israel's assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, and with him virtually the entirety of the movement's military command, has given it the confidence that it can dismantle the coalition known as the Axis of Resistance.
Its key initiative in this respect is the invasion of Lebanon currently underway, and in which all the red lines violated in Gaza are being crossed again, once more with nary a peep from capitals that habitually preach to rivals, adversaries, and other lesser beings about the sanctity of the rule of law, human rights, and similar principles.
Follow Middle East Eye's live coverage of the Israel-Palestine war
As has been clear from the outset, Israel's ultimate aim is regime change in Iran, on the mistaken assumption that an Iranian government disengaged from the conflict with Israel will transform the Palestinians, and Arabs more generally, into powerless sheep.
Israel appears to be convinced that the road to Tehran runs through the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed as much on 30 September when he vowed that Iranians would soon achieve "freedom" from their leaders.
Israel's agenda requires it to engineer a direct military confrontation between Washington and Tehran, and in US President Joe Biden, it may well have found the candidate that has thus far eluded it.
Yet Lebanon has repeatedly proved to be the graveyard of Israel and American hubris.
Whether in 1982, when Ariel Sharon's Operation Big Pines laid the basis for Hezbollah's emergence, or in 2006, when Condoleezza Rice's "birth pangs of a new Middle East" turned out to be a miscarriage.
The coming weeks will determine whether Israel can once again resume unilaterally resolving the Palestine question on its own terms, and with it to seal the fate of the Palestinian people, or whether 7 October will go down in history as the moment the Zionist project in Palestine began to unravel.
Mouin Rabbani
Mouin Rabbani is a researcher, analyst, and commentator specializing in Palestinian affairs, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the contemporary Middle East.
On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched an offensive into southern Israel to irrevocably shatter an unsustainable status quo. While the crisis that has now persisted for an entire year did indeed erupt on that day, it had been decades in the making.
Israel's initial response was to unleash a genocidal campaign against the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip. Motivated by revenge and bloodlust, it was designed to not only kill and destroy on a massive scale but to make the Gaza Strip unfit for human habitation.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and, in so doing, to re-establish its shattered power of deterrence.
Insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
To ensure Israel could rampage through the Gaza Strip with impunity and escape any accountability for its actions, Israel's western sponsors and allies, led by the United States, willingly shredded the rulebook of international law and the norms and values that underpin it.
Each successive Israeli obliteration of yet another red line - the bombing and destruction of hospitals, schools, and refugee centres, the indiscriminate transformation of communications devices into hand grenades, and the killing and wounding of hundreds to rescue four captives - was justified as a legitimate act of self-defence.
In the process, the world has been transformed into a much more dangerous place for us all on the altar of Israeli impunity.
Failed strategy
For much of the past year, Israel has failed not only to achieve anything of military significance in the Gaza Strip, but it has also failed to enunciate a strategy. Slogans like "total victory" and a Churchill complex are no substitute for political vision.
Genocide was the price Israel's western sponsors were prepared to pay for Israel to make an example of the Gaza Strip and re-establish its shattered power of deterrence
This now appears to be changing. Israel's assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, and with him virtually the entirety of the movement's military command, has given it the confidence that it can dismantle the coalition known as the Axis of Resistance.
Its key initiative in this respect is the invasion of Lebanon currently underway, and in which all the red lines violated in Gaza are being crossed again, once more with nary a peep from capitals that habitually preach to rivals, adversaries, and other lesser beings about the sanctity of the rule of law, human rights, and similar principles.
Follow Middle East Eye's live coverage of the Israel-Palestine war
As has been clear from the outset, Israel's ultimate aim is regime change in Iran, on the mistaken assumption that an Iranian government disengaged from the conflict with Israel will transform the Palestinians, and Arabs more generally, into powerless sheep.
Israel appears to be convinced that the road to Tehran runs through the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed as much on 30 September when he vowed that Iranians would soon achieve "freedom" from their leaders.
Israel's agenda requires it to engineer a direct military confrontation between Washington and Tehran, and in US President Joe Biden, it may well have found the candidate that has thus far eluded it.
Yet Lebanon has repeatedly proved to be the graveyard of Israel and American hubris.
Whether in 1982, when Ariel Sharon's Operation Big Pines laid the basis for Hezbollah's emergence, or in 2006, when Condoleezza Rice's "birth pangs of a new Middle East" turned out to be a miscarriage.
The coming weeks will determine whether Israel can once again resume unilaterally resolving the Palestine question on its own terms, and with it to seal the fate of the Palestinian people, or whether 7 October will go down in history as the moment the Zionist project in Palestine began to unravel.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
LATEST NEWS
In Pictures: Anti-Trump 'Hands Off' Demonstrations Nationwide
"Thank you to the hundreds of thousands of Americans across the country who are standing up and speaking out for our voting rights, fundamental freedoms, and essential services like Social Security and Medicare."
Apr 05, 2025
In communities large and small across the United States on Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people collectively took to the streets to make their opposition to President Donald Trump heard.
The people who took part in the organized protests ranged from very young children to the elderly and their message was scrawled on signs of all sizes and colors—many of them angry, some of them funny, but all in line with the "Hands Off" message that brought them together.
"Thank you to the hundreds of thousands of Americans across the country who are standing up and speaking out for our voting rights, fundamental freedoms, and essential services like Social Security and Medicare," said the group Stand Up America as word of the turnout poured in from across the country.
A relatively small, but representative sample of photographs from various demonstrations that took place follows.
A Day in Pictures... 'Hands Off!' Rallies Nationwide
Demonstrators gather on Boston Common, cheering and chanting slogans, during the nationwide "Hands Off!" protest against US President Donald Trump and his advisor, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, in Boston, Massachusetts on April 5, 2025. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP)
'They Must Be Prosecuted': Video Found on Phone of Murdered Gaza Medic Refutes IDF Claims
"Everyone involved in this crime against humanity, and everyone who covered it up, would face prosecution in a world that had any shred of dignity left."
Apr 05, 2025
A video presented to officials at the United Nations on Friday and first made public Saturday by the New York Times provides more evidence that the recent massacre of Palestinian medics in Gaza did not happen the way Israeli government claimed—the latest in a long line of deception when it comes to violence against civilians that have led to repeated accusations of war crimes.
The video, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), was found on the phone of a paramedic found in a mass grave with a bullet in his head after being killed, along with seven other medics, by Israeli forces on March 23. The eight medics, buried in the shallow grave with the bodies riddled with bullets, were: Mustafa Khafaja, Ezz El-Din Shaat, Saleh Muammar, Refaat Radwan, Muhammad Bahloul, Ashraf Abu Libda, Muhammad Al-Hila, and Raed Al-Sharif. The video reportedly belonged to Radwan. A ninth medic, identified as Asaad Al-Nasasra, who was at the scene of the massacre, which took place near the southern city of Rafah, is still missing.
The PRCS said it presented the video—which refutes the explanation of the killings offered by Israeli officials—to members of the UN Security Council on Friday.
"They were killed in their uniforms. Driving their clearly marked vehicles. Wearing their gloves. On their way to save lives," Jonathan Whittall, head of the UN's humanitarian affairs office in Palestine, said last week after the bodies were discovered. Some of the victims, according to Gaza officials, were found with handcuffs still on them and appeared to have been shot in the head, execution-style.
The Israeli military initially said its soldiers "did not randomly attack" any ambulances, but rather claimed they fired on "terrorists" who approached them in "suspicious vehicles." Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an IDF spokesperson, said the vehicles that the soldiers opened fire on were driving with their lights off and did not have clearance to be in the area. The video evidence directly contradicts the IDF's version of events.
As the Times reports:
The Times obtained the video from a senior diplomat at the United Nations who asked not to be identified to be able to share sensitive information.
The Times verified the location and timing of the video, which was taken in the southern city of Rafah early on March 23. Filmed from what appears to be the front interior of a moving vehicle, it shows a convoy of ambulances and a fire truck, clearly marked, with headlights and flashing lights turned on, driving south on a road to the north of Rafah in the early morning. The first rays of sun can be seen, and birds are chirping.
In an interview with Drop Site News published Friday, the only known paramedic to survive the attack, Munther Abed, explained that he and his colleagues "were directly and deliberately shot at" by the IDF. "The car is clearly marked with 'Palestinian Red Crescent Society 101.' The car's number was clear and the crews' uniform was clear, so why were we directly shot at? That is the question."
The video's release sparked fresh outrage and demands for accountability on Saturday.
"The IDF denied access to the site for days; they sent in diggers to cover up the massacre and intentionally lied about it," said podcast producer Hamza M. Syed in reaction to the new revelations. "The entire leadership of the Israeli army is implicated in this unconscionable war crime. And they must be prosecuted."
"Everyone involved in this crime against humanity, and everyone who covered it up, would face prosecution in a world that had any shred of dignity left," said journalist Ryan Grim of DropSite News.
Hundreds of Thousands Pour Into Streets for Global 'Hands Off' Protests Against Trump-Musk
"They're dismantling our country. They're looting our government. And they think we'll just watch."
Apr 05, 2025
In communities across the United States and also overseas, coordinated "Hands Off" protests are taking place far and wide Saturday in the largest public rebuke yet to President Donald Trump and top henchman Elon Musk's assault on the workings of the federal government and their program of economic sabotage that is sacrificing the needs of working families to authoritarianism and the greed of right-wing oligarchs.
According to the organizers' call to action:
They're dismantling our country. They’re looting our government. And they think we'll just watch.
On Saturday, April 5th, we rise up with one demand: Hands Off!
This is a nationwide mobilization to stop the most brazen power grab in modern history. Trump, Musk, and their billionaire cronies are orchestrating an all-out assault on our government, our economy, and our basic rights—enabled by Congress every step of the way. They want to strip America for parts—shuttering Social Security offices, firing essential workers, eliminating consumer protections, and gutting Medicaid—all to bankroll their billionaire tax scam.
They're handing over our tax dollars, our public services, and our democracy to the ultra-rich. If we don't fight now, there won’t be anything left to save.
More than 1,000 "Hands Off!" demonstrations—organized by a large coalition of unions, progressive advocacy groups, and pro-democracy watchdogs—first kicked off Saturday in European, followed by East Coast communities in the U.S., and were set to continue throughout the day at various times, depending on location. See here for a list of scheduled "Hands Off" events—or schedule one in your community.
"The United States has a president, not a king," said the progressive advocacy group People's Action, one of the group's involved in the actions, in an email to supporters on Saturday just as protest events kicked off in hundreds of cities and communities. "Donald Trump has, by every measure, been working to make himself a king. He has become unanswerable to the courts, Congress, and the American people."
Citing the Republican president's thirst for "power and greed," the group explained why organized pressure must be built and sustained against the administration, especially at the conclusion of a week in which the global economy was spun into disarray by Trump's tariff announcement, his attack on the rule of law continued, and the twice-elected president admitted he was "not joking" about the possibility of seeking a third term, which is barred by the constitution.
"He is destroying the economy with tariffs in order to pay for the tax cuts he wants to push through to enrich himself and his billionaire buddies," warned People's Action. "He has ordered the government to round up innocent people off of the streets and put them in detention centers without due process because they dared to speak out using their First Amendment rights. And he is not close to being done—by his own admission, he is planning to run for a third term, which the Constitution does not allow."
Live stream of Hands Off rally in Washington, D.C.:
Below are photo or video dispatches from demonstrations around the world on Saturday. Check back for updates...
United Kingdom
France
Germany
Belgium:
Massachusetts:
Maine:
Washington, D.C.:
New York:
Minnesota:
Michigan:
Ohio:
Colorado:
Pennsylvania:
North Carolina:
The protest organizers warn that what Trump and Musk are up to "is not just corruption" and "not just mismanagement," but something far more sinister.
"This is a hostile takeover," they said, but vowed to fight back. "This is the moment where we say NO. No more looting, no more stealing, no more billionaires raiding our government while working people struggle to survive."
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