Ramzy Baroud
A new kind of
unity around Palestine is finally finding its way to the Palestine solidarity
movement worldwide.
The reason
behind this unity is obvious: Gaza.
The world’s
first live-streamed genocide in the Gaza Strip, and the growing spontaneous
compassion, thus solidarity, with the Palestinian victims, helped recenter
priorities from the typical political and ideological conflicts back to where
they should have always remained: the plight of the Palestinian people.
In other words,
it is the sheer criminality of Israel, the steadfastness, resilience and
dignity of the Palestinians, and the genuine love for Palestine by ordinary
people that have imposed themselves on the rest of the world.
While many
solidarity groups, despite their differences, have always found margins for
unity around Palestine, many did not.
Instead of
rallying in support of a Palestinian justice-based discourse, mainly focused on
ending the Israeli occupation, dismantling apartheid, and obtaining full
Palestinian rights, many groups have rallied around their own ideological,
political, and often personal priorities.
This led to deep
divisions and, ultimately, the unfortunate splintering of what was meant to be
a single global movement.
Though many
rightly claim that the movement has suffered the dire consequences of the
Syrian war and other conflicts linked to the so-called Arab Spring, in truth,
the movement has historically been prone to divisions, long before the recent
Middle East upheavals.
The collapse of
the Soviet Union, starting in 1990, has left permanent scars on all progressive
movements across the world, where, in the words of Domenico Losurdo, ‘western
Marxists’ retreated to their academic hubs, and ‘eastern Marxists’ were left
alone fighting the scourges of the US-led ‘new world order’.
The
balkanization of the socialist movement globally, but mainly in western
countries, can still be seen in the view of many socialist groups regarding the
events underway in Palestine, and of their proscribed ‘solutions’ to the
Israeli occupation.
Whether these
‘solutions’ are pertinent or not, it is of very little value to the struggle of
the Palestinians on the ground; after all, these magic formulas are often
developed in western academic laboratories, with little or no connection,
whatsoever, to the events underway in Jenin, Khan Yunis or Jabaliya.
Additionally,
there is the problem of transnational solidarity. This type of solidarity is
simply conditioned on the expected return of an equal amount of solidarity in
the form of political reciprocity.
This notion is a
misinformed application of the concept of intersectionality, as in various
disaffected groups offering mutual solidarity to amplify their collective voice
and advance their interests.
While
intersectionality at a global level is hardly functional, let alone tested –
interstate relations are usually governed by political strategy, national
interests, and geopolitical formations – intersectionality within a national
and local framework is very much possible.
For the latter
to carry meaning, however, it requires an organic understanding of the
struggles of each group, a degree of social immersion, and genuine love and
compassion for one another.
In the case of
Palestine, however, this noble idea is often conflated with negotiable and
transactional solidarity, which might work at the political stage, especially
during times of elections, but rarely helps cement long-term bonds between
oppressed communities over time.
The ongoing
Israeli genocide in Gaza has certainly helped many groups expand the margins of
unity so that they may work together to bring the extermination of Gaza to an
end, and to hold Israeli war criminals accountable in any way possible.
This positive
sentiment, however, must continue long after the end of the genocide, until the
Palestinian people are finally free from the yoke of Israeli settler
colonialism.
The point here
is that we already have numerous reasons to find and maintain unity around
Palestine, without laboring to find ideological, political, or any other kind
of common ground.
The
settler-colonial Israeli project is but a manifestation of western colonialism
and imperialism in their classical definitions. The genocide in Gaza is no
different than the genocide of the Herero and Nama people of Namibia at the
turn of the 20th century, and US-western interventionism in Palestine is no
different than the destructive role played by Western countries in Vietnam and
numerous other contested spaces all over the world.
Placing the
Israeli occupation of Palestine in a colonial framework has helped many
liberate themselves from confused notions about Israel’s ‘inherent’ rights over
the Palestinians.
Indeed, there
can be no justification for the existence of Israel as an exclusively ‘Jewish
State’ in a land that belonged to the native Palestinian people.
By the same
token, the much-touted Israeli ‘right to self-defense’, a notion that some
‘progressives’ continue to parrot, does not apply to military occupiers in an
active state of aggression or those carrying out genocide.
Keeping the
focus on Palestinian priorities also has other benefits, including that of
moral clarity. Those who do not find the rights of the Palestinian people
compelling enough to develop a united front were never intended to be part of
the movement in the first place, thus their ‘solidarity’ is superficial, if at
all genuine.
The road for
Palestine liberation can only go through Palestine itself and, more
specifically, the clarity of purpose of the Palestinian people who, more than
any other nation in modern times, have paid and continue to pay the highest
price for their freedom.
There
is an “unprecedented readiness” to complete an exchange deal in Gaza, both on
the part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Palestinian
resistance factions, as well as US President-elect Donald Trump, Al-Akhbar
reported on 16 December.
According
to Egyptian officials who spoke to the Lebanese paper, recent negotiations have
centered around increasing the number of prisoners and the duration of the
truce period during the exchange.
The
sources believe that the Israeli army has been escalating its bombing of Gaza
to pressure the Palestinian resistance into making concessions during the
negotiations.
One
major demand is that the Israeli army maintain “freedom of movement” in the
strip during the truce period.
On
Sunday, Israeli forces stormed a school housing displaced Palestinians in
northern Gaza, opening fire and killing at least 40 civilians while forcing
dozens to flee.
The
attack was the latest in a string of recent massacres committed by Israeli
forces in the strip. Israeli troops “committed five massacres against families”
in Gaza over the past 24 hours, killing at least 46, WAFA reported on Sunday.
Israeli
Defense Minister Israel Katz has also reportedly stated that a deal to exchange
captives and reach a temporary truce is close.
“Israel
is closer than ever to another hostage deal,” Katz is quoted as saying to the
Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Katz
insisted that any deal to exchange captives would not mean an end to the war
that has destroyed much of Gaza and killed over 45,000 Palestinians – the
majority women and children.
Before
the start of the war on 7 October last year, Israel was holding thousands of
Palestinians in its prisons. Israeli forces have detained thousands more since
that time, including many who have been tortured and raped in its concentration
camps.
On
7 October 2023, Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, in which it attacked
Israeli settlements and military bases, taking some 250 soldiers and civilians
captive in Gaza. Roughly 100 captives are believed to still be alive after over
a year of Israeli bombing.
No comments:
Post a Comment