On January 19th, the long-awaited ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel was finally reached. Unfortunately, with the Palestinian death count exceeding 50,000 people, many of those in the war-ravaged region were unable to experience any semblance of this peace deal. With buildings reduced to rubble and an entire people almost reduced to a memory, the effort for Palestine to recover from Israeli misdeeds has commenced. However, this effort is actively being poisoned by both revisionism and opportunism.
For the past two years, as many Palestinians sought refuge from constant US-sponsored bombardment, the rest of the Middle East turned a blind eye. The Arab world’s shocking betrayal of their neighbors was manifested in a myriad of ways throughout the conflict. The border to Egypt was closed off to Palestinian refugees, preventing safe passage for the innocent while also complicating the flow of humanitarian aid at the same time. The United Arab Emirates continued its efforts to normalize relations with the apartheid state, essentially prioritizing strategic alliances over basic humanity. Worst of all, Saudi Arabia - the self-branded home of the Islamic world - failed to protect their fellow Muslims in Palestine. Too focused on its lover's quarrel with Iran, Saudi Arabia, along with the Arab world as a whole, was silent. At the same time, a genocide was being waged, and history knows that silence is complicity.
After two years of rocking back and forth while sucking on his thumb and cowering in his palace, King Abdullah II of Jordan has recently entered the moral battlefield after successfully growing a few vertebrae and developing a prototype for a spine. Understanding the negative impressions that his actions, or lack thereof, may have on his legacy, he has engaged in an all-too-late outspoken advocacy campaign against Israel’s reconstruction plans following the implementation of this ceasefire deal. Though the Jordanian hoped to save face, his bold stance was noticeably absent during the conflict. Common amongst many Middle Eastern leaders hoping to alter the perception of their complicity in Israeli war crimes, righteous indignation is suddenly rearing its head, yet it has no spine to support it.
This righteous, yet empty indignation is bizarrely juxtaposed by the arrogance and disgraceful rhetoric of President Donald Trump, who is probably maniacally rubbing his hands together and salivating at the business prospects opened up by his enduring support for Israel.
The two sides of Donald Trump - the cunning businessman and the genocide collaborationist - have peculiarly combined with his newest scheme: becoming Bibi’s ‘baby girl’ by displacing the long-oppressed Palestinian people from their homeland. Solidifying himself as Netanyahu’s most valuable acolyte, his plan essentially amounts to large-scale gentrification masquerading as a reconstruction plan.
His morally detestable final solution to the Israel-Palestine Conflict involves forcing Gazans out of Gaza and relocating them to other Middle Eastern nations. Then, under US supervision, Gaza can essentially be integrated into Trump’s real estate portfolio- a part of ventures that Trump has historically failed at. Though this opportunism may merely be wishful thinking from the US president, it is indicative of the overall apathy to the plight of Palestine and the conniving nature of those who contributed to Gaza’s pain.
As Gaza necessitates support for its path to recovery, it has only been met with empty condolences and shallow claims of “if I could, I would.” A word of wisdom: international relations is not to be approached like some situationship - if he really wanted to, he would. With universities, hospitals, and entire neighborhoods buried under the rubble, future generations of Palestinians will continue to yearn for the return of their homeland. With corporate capitalization on this reconstructing climate, the ideas of Hamas will not only persist but will be emboldened.
Bibi may never face true retribution for all his crimes against humanity, but the least we can do is commit ourselves to the rebuilding of a people he so desperately seeks to destroy. Despite the genocidal efforts of Israel, despicable silence of the Arab world, and reprehensible policies of the United States, Palestine has survived. Though living a troubled existence, revolutionary ideas in Palestine will continue to flourish until they are finally rid of their oppressors.
Photo Credit:
[Cover Photo]: Created on Canva with images from:
Trump- CHRIS CILLIZZA
King Abdullah II- Aletihad
Netanyahu- Ronen Zvulun/REUTERS
[Insert 1]: Tass via Getty Images
[Insert 2]: Kobi Gideon / GPO via Getty Images file
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