Since Operation Protective Edge the chant ‘Free Free Palestine’ can be
heard all over Europe. Street protests have taken place in Germany, Belgium,
France and the United Kingdom. Of course this chanting existed beforehand but
not with so much vigor and violence.
Unwarranted, the protests have been directed
at two groups. The first of whom, are the Jewish people. Pro-Palestinian groups
have targeted Synagogues, physically and verbally abused Jewish people, banned
Jews from entering their restaurants, and refused to serve them in shops.
Although the State of Israel is Jewish by nature, it does not mean that
individual Jews are synonymous with the State of Israel and especially not its
government. Nor are individual Israeli citizens synonymous with the Israeli
government. By targeting the Jewish people pro-Palestine and anti-Israel
rhetoric quickly turns into anti-Semitism.
The second group in which protests are
directed at is Israel.
There are two sides to every story and two sides (or more)
in every war. One makes the assumption however that if you are pro-Palestinian,
you must be anti-Israel and vice versa. This however is not true.
It is easy to blame Israel for the loss of
innocent life because if one simply looks at numbers, the Israeli casualty
count is much lower than the Palestinian figures.
But, if one looks past the numbers, Israel
as the aggressor becomes uncertain. The reason for the casualty count being
significantly lower on the Israeli side is due to the protective measures
Israel deploys to protect its citizens. Israel’s Iron Dome system intercepts
rockets aimed at their population for over £55,000 a rocket. Israel also has
invested in a warning system plus public bomb shelters for people to escape.
Israeli law requires each house to be fitted with a bomb shelter.
These protective measures do not exist in
Gaza. Rather than protecting its civilians, Hamas use their tunnels to hide
weaponry and shield themselves. They launch missiles from population centers
and force civilians to stay in areas that are prone to attack. Israel contacts
civilians to tell them to evacuate, but Hamas won’t allow it.
‘Free Free Palestine,’ yes, but not from
the unspoken consensus ‘Israel.’ Rather
‘Free Free Palestine from Hamas!’
Hamas do not care for their civilians. They
endanger them and do not provide economic prosperity. The truckloads of goods
filled with concrete and metal go towards building tunnels to infiltrate Israel
and building weaponry to attack Israel.
Hamas is fuelled so much by hatred towards
Israel that they do not give their own citizens what they deserve, a right to a
good life.
You can be pro-Israel and pro-Palestine.
You don’t need to pick a side. If you do want to pick a side then pick life and hashtag or chant out loud ‘Free Free Palestine from Hamas.’ #FreeGazaFromHamas
