A tale of two occupiers

Palestine and Kashmir both have been victims of occupation, global politics, humanitarian crises and ignorant behaviour by champions of human rights. There is no debate on the miseries of Palestinians and Kashmiris but there is a debate on the ostrich policy of the world; which has been turning a blind eye to these atrocities for decades.

The heart-wrenching visuals of dead and injured innocent Palestinian and Kashmiri children can shatter any human but the dire helplessness of the world also leads to anger.

For the past few days, Israel's apartheid against Palestine has been clear for all to see; there is a blockade of water, food, medicine, fuel, electricity and shelter supply for approximately two million Palestinians who are held hostage in the Gaza Strip by Israel. Almost half of Gaza’s population are children who are in urgent need of water, milk, food, medicine supply and above all peace of mind. The children are taking shelter in schools nearby which are also not very safe as Israel is conducting unannounced bombardment after their prime minister announced to besiege the already besieged Gaza.

The limited hospitals that are functioning in Gaza are also exhausted with nonstop inflow of thousands of injured, and limited medical supplies. The entire mechanism of Gaza has collapsed and since it's a congested strip the chances of casualties increase.

Meanwhile, the Western media is habitually painting the victim as the militant. In order to analyze the action of Hamas, one must revisit the history of Israel's 56 years of occupation of Palestinian territory and the Western complicity in apartheid Israel’s constant barbarism against those who offered them refuge.

The resistance by Palestinians cannot be compared with the brutality imposed on them by the occupant Israel. For the past 70 decades, there has been a bloodbath in Palestine. Generations have paid a hefty price for giving refuge to Israelis; in return, they are being forcefully pushed away from their homeland. This is nothing but strategic ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and if they fight back for their land they’re labeled as militants, and that’s the dilemma for the Western media.

So far, the UN, OIC and those countries that claimed to support the cause of Palestine have remained either silent or played diplomatically. No country has yet moved forward for out-and-out support for the Palestinians.

As per the Western media, in the Russia vs Ukraine conflict, the former was the occupant and the latter the hostage and the winds of 'Western' sympathy blew towards Ukraine. But in the case of Israel vs Palestine, the rules of the game changed conveniently, unmasking the evident hypocrisy of the West.

But we can’t just blame the West for everything. It is also time for some introspection – where do we stand? What have we done for our Palestinian brothers and sisters? Will we always act diplomatically? Or will we ever sync in with the voice of the public and stand with Palestine; not just morally but practically? They are expecting real support, not hollow statements from us. These are some basic questions that history will ask if we don’t stand on the right side of this.

Today, after watching the genocide of Palestinians our Kashmiri brothers and sisters must be feeling the same pain of helplessness and misery remembering how India has unleashed its aggression and hostility on Kashmir. If the world keeps on behaving like an ostrich in such atrocities and leaving victims on their own, then this world will soon just be a stage of cruelty.

Modi and Netanyahu have quite a similar approach. They have both monstrously spewed hate and oppression that is aimed at the ethnic cleansing of Muslims, targeted the youth, changed the demography of the places they are occupying, gained support from the Western bloc and used the victim card in elections. Both have abused international laws, ignored UN resolutions and hushed human rights voices.

The UN secretary general is literally seeking permission from these giant powers to send humanitarian aid to Gaza but there is no practical help or support sent yet. This is a sad state of affairs, and the same was seen in Occupied Kashmir. At least the children stranded in the Gaza Strip should be provided with basic needs. Their blood is as red as of any other race; the discrimination should end.

There is an urgent need for a ceasefire and dialogue or else this will lead to a horrific genocide. The mass murderer that is Israeli PM Netanyahu has announced a war against two million hostages who have nothing to defend themselves with; this is a coward who is unleashing brute force on weak civilians. This is not even a war; this is a brutal genocide where a bloodthirsty occupant is hunting a vulnerable captive – and the world is an audience.

The writer is a columnist and social activist. He tweets/posts @MustafaBaloch_