Sunday World (South Africa)

Palestinia­ns given food, then bombed at night

US playing active role in the genocide

- Mosibudi Mangena • Mangena is former president of Azapo and an ex-cabinet minister

The United States gives the Israelis tons of weapons, billions of dollars in aid and block every attempt at the UN Security Council to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza and then turn around to tell the world that they are going to build a temporary pier in the Mediterran­ean Sea to deliver aid to the Palestinia­ns trapped in Gaza.

It is a cynical publicity stunt to hoodwink the world that simply makes the tummy churn in disgust.

Scoffing at this absurd idea Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, of the Gift of the Givers Foundation, said it was tantamount to the US saying to the Palestinia­ns: “We will give you a little food in the morning and bomb you at night.”

Indeed, Israel is continuing with the indiscrimi­nate carpet bombing of Gaza, killing mostly children, women and the elderly.

As of March 12, they had killed more than 31000 Palestinia­ns, of whom more than 13 000 were children. Thousands more were injured.

Footages of the dead and injured being pulled out of rubble are simply harrowing but Western media, such as the BBC and CNN, which are embedded with the Israelis and do their bidding, will not show the world such images.

The same goes for images of hungry children holding out bowls and pots, begging for food.

The children are starved and bombed by the Israelis with the unstinting support of the US and their European allies.

Engaging in their own sick publicity gimmick, the EU proposes to deliver a little food to Gaza by boat from Cyprus, while there are hundreds of trucks laden with tons of supplies at the Egyptian border that can simply be driven into Gaza to deliver food and other essentials.

But the Israelis are blocking them while, with the support of the Americans, also continuing the relentless bombing of Gaza.

It is a display of raw racism at work. It is unimaginab­le that you could have Caucasian women and children cornered in an open-air prison such as the Gaza Strip, starved, bombed, denied medicine, food and water for months. This is done to Palestinia­ns because they are not Caucasian.

We should remember that it was the Caucasians who took Africans into slavery, colonised other races around the globe, exploited their resources and bodies to build their empires and economies.

They consider themselves the only real humans deserving of dignity, humanity and rights. That’s why they are not horrified by the atrocities perpetrate­d before our eyes by the American bombs tossed through the hands of the Israelis into Gaza.

There is credible talk that the Americans and Israelis are testing the efficacy of new weapons technologi­es in Gaza and that the awe and destructio­n are meant to advertise them to the world.

It is said that after the Gaza war, countries around the world, including the Arab world, will be queueing to buy the weapons.

This might explain in part why the Arab countries’ protests against the one-sided war in Gaza are so shamelessl­y muted and they have not terminated diplomatic relations with Israel. It has been left to ordinary people in those countries to take to the streets in protest at the genocide taking place in Gaza.

The Palestinia­ns in Gaza are observing the holy month of Ramadan under heavy daily bombardmen­t. They cannot engage in the activities and rituals associated with their faith in peace. We have seen images of them praying in the vicinity of destroyed mosques.

It remains for most of us to maintain our solidarity with and support for these colonised, oppressed and occupied people.

 ?? /Getty Images ?? An explosion at a residentia­l tower caused by Israeli bombing raids in the north of Gaza Strip.
/Getty Images An explosion at a residentia­l tower caused by Israeli bombing raids in the north of Gaza Strip.

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