When ‘never again’ becomes a war cry
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- Written by Natasha Roth-Rowland Natasha Roth-Rowland
- Published: 30 October 2023 30 October 2023
When ‘never again’ becomes a war cry
In an Israeli war that has been retrofitted onto a Holocaust template, it is obscene that a plea to stop further killing is now read as moral failure.
A convoy of Israeli tanks at sunset near the southern Israeli border with Gaza, October 12, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
This article was produced in partnership with Diaspora Alliance.
In a 60 Minutes interview less than a week after Hamas’ attack on southern Israel, which killed over 1,400 Israelis and saw over 200 more abducted to the Gaza Strip, U.S. President Joe Biden said that the Palestinian Islamist movement had “engaged in barbarism that is as consequential as the Holocaust.” The assessment joined a catalog of statements by Israeli, American, and other politicians and commentators who have explicitly linked the Oct. 7 massacres to the Nazi genocide, whether by citing the attacks as the biggest loss of Jewish life since World War II, or by portraying Hamas as Nazi-like or Nazi successors.
Biden’s antisemitism envoy, Deborah Lipstadt, for example, tweeted the day after the attack that it was “the most lethal assault against Jews since the Holocaust”; not long after, the U.S. Holocaust Museum put out a similar tweet. Israeli politicians have also helped drive this discourse. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz last week that “Hamas are the new Nazis … And just as the world united to defeat the Nazis … the world has to stand united behind Israel to defeat Hamas.” Netanyahu expressed similar sentiments to French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday.
The rhetorical value of casting your enemies as Nazis — which the Israeli right and its supporters frequently do when discussing Palestinians writ large — is the way it suggests, implicitly or explicitly, that there is only one logical, even moral, course of action: the complete elimination of the Nazi-designates and anyone deemed to be affiliated with them.
Thus is the current discourse awash with unabashed calls for genocide and ethnic cleansing, issued from a distressingly broad array of sources, and egged on by the idea that, in the words of a columnist in Israel’s most widely-read newspaper, “Hamas and the Gazans are one and the same.”
Indeed, the constant invocation of the Holocaust seems to have done little to sensitize those calling for Gaza’s destruction to its lessons. In addition to the demands for vengeful mass killings and the abundant references to Palestinians as “animals,” Nazi-like imagery has also been making the rounds among hasbarists on social media; in one drawing that could have come straight out of Der Stürmer, an IDF boot is pictured about to step on a cockroach with the head of a Hamas fighter.
Gaza: Ceasefire Now!
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- Written by Gilbert Schramm Gilbert Schramm
- Published: 29 October 2023 29 October 2023
A few days ago, an Israeli army spokesman uttered one of those absurdly ironic statements that are typical in the current conflict. He argued that Israel ‘had to attack Hamas’ because they were ‘living on Israel’s doorstep.’ When you steal someone’s house and evict them with brutal violence, it is not surprising to find them on your doorstep. Does that justify exterminating them or justify driving them into a different neighborhood? Most civilized people would say not.
Egypt is getting roundly criticized for not opening their Rafah border crossing. Their reasons are quite clear. First, they don’t want 2 million Palestinian refugees living on their border with Israel and they don’t want to have continued Palestinian resistance staged from within their borders. That would inevitably lead to another Israeli/Egyptian war. Their second reason is perhaps more principled—they refuse to collaborate in the further ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. This is why Hamas itself is urging residents of Gaza to remain. It is largely why they do remain.
Gaza: Irony, Violence, Fear, and Insecurity…
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- Written by Gilbert Schramm Gilbert Schramm
- Published: 25 October 2023 25 October 2023
In the wake of the current violence in Gaza, a huge number of ironic comments abound. Many of them are unintentional: they are the product of people who really haven’t thought the facts through. One comment of this kind which really took me aback recently was made by a proponent of Israel. He said that the recent Hamas attack had created a very dangerous situation. He argued that Israelis now felt threatened, insecure, and helpless. This, he continued, created a volatile situation where they might lash out… Well, what a surprise for the Israelis! Almost every Palestinian in the region lives in a state of helplessness and insecurity every day of their lives.
The fact is, the Israelis are so focused on having complete security for themselves, that they have completely ignored the fact that Palestinians also crave security. Palestinians recognize that they are unlikely to get it by remaining captives to Israeli policy. It is vital to remember in all this chaos that Palestinians on the West Bank, who are not ruled by Hamas, haven’t fired rockets, and have generally demonstrated in non-violent ways, still face treatment from Israel similar to the people of Gaza. Their land is still stolen, their homes invaded, and violence from Israeli settlers goes largely unpunished. Meanwhile, any misbehavior by Palestinians is dealt with harshly. This is clear evidence of the kind of apartheid state Israel has become.
Violence Is Never the Answer
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- Written by Friends of Sabeel - North America (FOSNA) Friends of Sabeel - North America (FOSNA)
- Published: 25 October 2023 25 October 2023
A Statement by the Board of Trustees of Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) |
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As Palestinians and Israelis mourn the tragic deaths of their loved ones, worry for those missing or taken captive, and attempt to treat the wounded, even as violence and bloodshed continue to rage, we believe that it is necessary to assert a basic tenet of Palestinian Liberation Theology; namely, violence is never the answer. While insisting on the essential need for justice, Palestinian Christians from all denominations have asserted the fundamental truth that war and violence are never options for the followers of Jesus Christ. He is, after all, the Prince of Peace who in the Beatitudes proclaims, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” Jesus also introduces us to the radical idea that those who would follow him are called upon to love their enemies, not to hate them. Throughout history, Christians (often on both sides of any conflict) have developed a variety of theories to justify war and the killing of others. Three prominent justifications for the use of violence include:
The vast majority of Palestinian Christians, by contrast, have followed the example of Jesus and the early church, rejecting violence totally. Such a radical stance is sorely needed as it concerns the present crisis. This is not just a theological and spiritual orientation. It is a realistic assessment that, for Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs, violence will never be able to provide each community with what they ultimately need. Exertions of military power to force (or “deter”) the other side into submission have proven futile. Given the asymmetry of power in the region, it has always been clear that violence and paramilitary force will never achieve the liberation that Palestinians seek, a reality and a truth we see confirmed in recent events. Similarly, events on October 7 have also made clear that even the most sophisticated security technology, maintained by one of the world’s most powerful militaries, with the backing of a global superpower, cannot insulate a colonialist regime or subdue a determined people desperate for freedom, a people who are willing to tolerate extraordinary suffering at the hands of vastly superior forces, rather than accept defeat and submission. The world may not always agree with or understand the path or logic of nonviolence. The natural, even biological, response in situations of conflict is to “fight or flight,” to double down on violence, seeking retribution and revenge. There exists, therefore, a great need for us to model an alternative response to situations of conflict and injustice. In doing so, we declare that it is indeed possible to achieve our goals and fulfill our desires through mutual agreement and understanding. Following the example of Jesus Christ, such empathy and understanding may in fact transform enemies into friends. As the Apostle Paul declares:
As the Board of Trustees at Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), we reiterate our commitment to this truth and say with conviction that there is no military solution to this problem. Both Palestinians and Israelis are children of God worthy of freedom, dignity, and security. We must pursue these aims, but we cannot use violence as a tool to pursue them. Whatever fresh horrors our opponents are committing, our response should not be violence. We must reject the tired refrain that “our enemies only understand the language of force.” Only in this way can we proclaim good news in this broken world. |
Gaza: Reflections on Brutality, Retribution, and Redemption
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- Written by Gilbert Schramm Gilbert Schramm
- Published: 23 October 2023 23 October 2023
In Palestine today, brutality seems to be the main theme. It will be my main theme as well, but in in somewhat different way.
The Hamas attacks in southern Israel were certainly brutal, abhorrent, and atrocious. The media has covered that aspect in excruciating, graphic, and almost non-stop detail. I see no point in elaborating on the physical violence. Instead, I want to state some brutal truths about the current state of affairs. Many people decry the form that Palestinian resistance (at least the now prominent Hamas version) has taken. They often plead that it should be non-violent. In this regard, it is highly relevant to refer to an expert on non-violence—Mahama Gandhi.
Gandhi rarely spoke about Ahimsa (non-violence) without mentioning his concept of Satyagraha (truth telling). To paraphrase one writer’s* take on this: ‘Truth is the most fundamental aspect in Gandhi's Philosophy of nonviolence. Ahimsa is the basis of the search for truth. Satyagraha literally means devotion to truth, remaining firm on the truth and resisting untruth actively but nonviolently.’
While he promoted non-violence, Gandhi had little tolerance for mere cowardice. He felt that a failure to fight back could do more harm than physical violence. He also made a clear distinction between passive and physical violence. He argued that passive violence is a daily affair, consciously and unconsciously. It is the fuel for physical violence. I think this notion of “passive violence” would include ignoring the truth, deception, self-deception, remaining willfully ignorant, or repeating the oft discredited so-called “common wisdom” (mostly often repeated lies) about the struggle in Palestine.
The lie that does the greatest brutality to the truth is the claim that the recent Hamas attack was “unprovoked.” That is absurd. The provocation began with Zionist settlement in 1895 and continues today.
Read more: Gaza: Reflections on Brutality, Retribution, and Redemption