Category: Israel Palestine

Just so we’re all clear, it is a fully established fact that the IDF is directly, deliberately killing civilians in Gaza. There was a time in the early days of the genocide when this could be disputed, but that is no longer true. The facts are in and the case is closed. It’s happening. (more…)

As Israeli forces stand accused of war crimes during attacks on multiple Gaza hospitals in recent days, Francesca Albanese — the United Nations special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories — on Monday implored the global medical community to respond by cutting ties with Israel. (more…)

Imagine… the state court has handed down an injunction to arrest certain individuals in your community for alleged crimes. Until now, the police have unfailingly done their duty and arrested individuals when instructed to do so by the court. But this time, they refuse to make these arrests. They disagree, they say, with the court’s decision, so they refuse to uphold the law on this occasion. (more…)

The BBC is facing an internal revolt over its reporting on Israel’s war on Gaza. Their primary battlefield has become the online news operation. Drop Site News spoke to 13 current and former staffers who mapped out the extensive bias in the BBC’s coverage and how their demands for change have been largely met with silence from management. At times, these journalists point out, the coverage has been more credulous about Israeli claims than the UK’s own Conservative leaders and the Israeli media, while devaluing Palestinian life, ignoring atrocities, and creating a false equivalence in an entirely unbalanced conflict. (more…)

Benjamin Netanyahu will not travel to Poland next month for the main ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp, over concern that he could be arrested on the basis of the warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. (more…)

The linked article “How we got to Gaza 2024”, is a compendium put together by retired Adelaide historian CL Parkes. The source material is the work of such writers as Ilan Pappe., Robert Fisk, John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt, Shlomo Sand and Edward Said. Of course, there are others, and behind them all is the Holy Bible. (more…)

In defending Israel’s actions in Gaza, a common refrain from supporters and right- wing politicians is that Israel is the only democratic country in the Middle East. The notion a democratic country can be above criticism despite charges of war crimes and genocide, suggests this exclusive club of democratic states can never be subject to international law or global opprobrium. So, a rule for us and a different rule for others. (more…)

I just attended a wonderful Christmas concert at St Mary of the Angels in Wellington – the Bach Choir, the Chiesa Ensemble and excellent soloists sent a thrill through my body. The final piece, Gloria by Antonio Vivaldi, triggered these thoughts. (more…)

After having spent the last five weeks listening to Muslim representatives from across Australia, Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, exclusively and frankly shares his initial reflections. (more…)

December 5, 2024. On the eve of Christmas as thousands of Americans file towards the White House to watch the Christmas tree lights turned on, Christians come together to witness for Peace against the horror currently taking place in Gaza and the West Bank. Palestine. A captive nation which has lived under Israeli occupation for 75 years. (more…)

Observe the formula carefully. On the public broadcaster SBS, Jillian Segal, still fresh in her role as antisemitism envoy, made a suggestion in the wake of the December 6 attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne. Australian “cities should not be utilised” for protests held in solidarity with Palestinians affected by the ongoing Hamas-Israel War. As with all contemptuous of any right to protest, Segal proposed that those wishing to gather for such a purpose be parcelled and segregated, preferably away from city environs. “There should be places designated away from where the Jewish community might venture, where people can demonstrate.” (more…)

Witness an interview from 54 years ago regarding Israel and Palestine that are still relevant today, and an interview with our Treasurer that’s less so. Margaret Satterthwaite speaks at the UN about threats to the ICC, while Israel has decimated North Gaza, barely a building standing. (more…)

An independent expert talks about witnessing the extreme violence against Palestinians, a Texan congressman calls out Blinken for US complicity while Israel continues to bomb Syria. Greg Barns calls out Dutton as a danger to Australia. (more…)

Few events have caused such deep fractures in our community as the Hamas attacks on October 7, and Israel’s subsequent war in Gaza. Moral philosopher and writer Raimond Gaita wrestles with the moral and ethical dimensions of this conflict to try to make sense of the incomprehensible. (more…)