Soldiers in Gaza declare support for Hebron killer Baruch Goldstein
Donya Ahmad Abu Sitta, Electronic Intifada, Jun 27 2024
A scene of mass destruction awaited us when we returned to Khan Younis in southern Gaza after being displaced for months. Among the things that caught our attention were how Israeli soldiers had written Hebrew-language messages on the walls in areas they had attacked. One of these messages read:
We are all Baruch Goldstein.
Baruch Goldstein was the settler from New York who massacred 29 men and boys as they prayed at Hebron’s Ibrahimi mosque in the occupied West Bank during Feb 1994. The message written in Gaza appears to endorse the indiscriminate killing of Palestinians. It indicates, too, that some of the troops perpetrating the current genocide hold far-right views. Although the Hebron massacre was condemned internationally, Goldstein’s admirers are now represented in Israel’s ruling coalition. Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister and one of the politicians demanding that the war in Gaza continues unabated, has named Goldstein as his hero. On the same wall, soldiers appeared to make fun of how they are laying waste to Gaza. Another message reads:
Buildings for clearing out and rebuilding in Gaza. (signed) your real estate agent.
Yet another message on the wall says:
We are heading for Jerusalem.
Elsewhere, soldiers have expressed a desire to “erase Gaza.” Bizarrely, soldiers also seem to have used walls to try and impress Israeli women or at least to make romantic declarations. A soldier wrote on what remains of one building:
Noa, now all of Khan Younis knows that you are the love of my life.
A large heap of rubble can be found beneath those words. I was astonished to learn that soldiers were using the ruins of civilian infrastructure for such purposes. Being displaced is a deeply traumatic experience for Palestinians. Returning to their homes and seeing that Israeli soldiers have left messages on their walls makes matters worse.
In Gaza, where children talk of firebelts
Israa Elholy, Electronic Intifada, Jun 28 2024
I was shocked when I heard Yazid, 11, talking about a firebelt. In most parts of the world, children are unfamiliar with that term. Here in Gaza, so many children have experienced a firebelt, a period of relentless bombardment. Yazid learned the word “firebelt” when he overheard a conversation between his father and other adults around him. Yazid said:
A firebelt is very loud. And you feel it.
Yazid spoke of how everything is destroyed in a firebelt and many people can be killed. He said:
I am afraid that one day I will be one of the victims.
His sister Sumaya, 13, burst into tears as she recalled how her family had to flee their home amid an Israeli bombardment. She said:
I forgot my toy bag. My drawing books were in it.
Coloring is therapeutic for Sumaya. Before her displacement, she colored things to try and take her mind off Israel’s violence. She was upset that she had left behind the material she needed for coloring. Amir, 14, lived in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza. He and his family had to flee their home and take shelter in schools run by UNRWA. He said:
Our whole house is gone. Our whole neighborhood is gone.
One of Amir’s school friends has been killed during the war. Amir saw what remained of his friend’s body. He said:
May God have mercy on him.
Suad, 13, was one of the girls I spoke to in a school where displaced people have taken shelter. She told me about how her only brother Samir had been killed. She said:
We were talking and laughing and Samir was playing football in the courtyard of our house. Suddenly, I felt the ground shaking.
Suad lost consciousness. She learned that her brother had been killed when she woke up in hospital. She said:
I couldn’t understand what had happened. I asked my father, my mother, everyone I saw in front of me. After I insisted, they told me that we had been bombed. My brother ended up with all the rubble on top of him.
When will Israel stop waging war against Gaza’s children?
Israa Elholy is a writer from Gaza.
Math proves that Israel’s stated goals are an epic lie
susan abulhawa, Electronic Intifada, Jun 27 2024
When you’re in Gaza and see the destruction firsthand, the clearest conclusion is that Israel’s stated goals are an epic lie, on a par with “a people without a land for a land without a people,” packaged and sold to the world. The Israelis are not targeting Hamas, nor are they interested in returning their captives, who pose tremendous liability upon their release, as they often have good things to say about their captors. Math is useful to prove what I’m saying. So here are some numbers to start.
Destroyed buildings
• As of Apr 2024, approximately 360k buildings have been destroyed, of which are 405 schools and universities, 700 hospitals and health facilities, 290 mosques and three churches. Given the estimation by the UN OCHA that 12 buildings are destroyed every hour in Gaza, the adjusted number to account for May and June is 377,280 buildings.
Death and injuries from direct fire
• The reported number of martyrs on Wednesday this week was 37,718. It’s important to note that this number only includes martyrs who have been identified by name and civil ID number through the beleaguered health ministry in Gaza. Given the breakdown of reporting systems due to heavy destruction of infrastructure and personnel, this number, even with its limited parameters, is a gross underestimation. Based on more accurate figures of approximately 370 people killed daily, multiplied by 264 days of genocide, the actual number is closer to 97,680 martyred. (Per OCHA estimate of 15 martyrs per hour: Over the course of 264 days, which amounts to 6,336 hours, this number would roughly be 95,040).
• The adjusted estimate of martyrs is 260% more than the stagnant reported number. It is reasonable to adjust the number of injured (currently 86,377) by the same percentage, bringing that value to 224,580. (Per OCHA estimate of 35 injured per hour, this number comes to 221,760).
Death from lack of medications and chronic conditions
• Importantly, the number above does not include the thousands of unidentified martyrs, some of whom were uncovered from mass graves; those who arrived headless or in impossible pieces; those who were buried by their loved ones without going through the hospital system; those who have died of starvation; those who have died from lack of access to critical medications; those who have died from infections or communicable diseases.
• Taking into account 1,100 dialysis patients, 2k cancer patients and 341k individuals who depend on medication to manage chronic illnesses (45k cardiovascular disease, 71k diabetes, 225k hypertension), the extreme shortage of life-saving medication has and will continue to lead to deaths from Israel’s withholding of supplies. If a very conservative estimate of 5% of these patients die as a result (if they have not already), that’s an additional 17k people.
• However, a more accurate all-cause mortality rate for unmanaged diabetes is 13.6% (putting mortality at 9,869 people); 37% for uncontrolled hypertension (translating to 83,250 people); untreated dialysis and cancer patients will have a high mortality rate. A conservative estimate for this group is 30% or 930 patients.
• Taken together, this is 94,049 people (I didn’t consider cardiovascular disease alone, since patients tend to have co-morbidities and there would be natural overlap in these numbers).
Dead or dying from starvation
• According to a recent UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, approximately 495k Palestinians in Gaza are facing “catastrophic” hunger, which means they suffer extreme lack of food leading to acute malnutrition in young children, imminent risk of starvation and death. If we make a conservative 5% estimate of death from starvation among this population, that’s 24,750 people dead or dying from starvation.
• Data-driven mortality for acute malnutrition is approximately 20%. However, the current classification has not yet reached full-blown famine levels, making the current estimate reasonable.
• Approximately 21k children are missing and unaccounted for. Some are trapped under the rubble, some have been kidnapped by Israeli soldiers, while others are simply lost in the chaos. Given the relative equal ratio of adults to children in Gaza, it is safe to assume the same number of adults are likewise unaccounted for, doubling this number to 42k people missing overall.
• Due to the destruction of water and sanitation infrastructure, coupled with restrictions on aid entering Gaza, Israel’s assault has led to the spread of communicable and water-borne diseases such as acute jaundice (due mostly to hepatitis A), acute diarrhea (with bloody stool), scabies and lice, skin rashes, smallpox and acute respiratory infections, which totaled 1,440,805 cases as of Jun 10. If only 1% of these patients succumb to these serious conditions, that’s 14,408 people likewise killed indirectly by Israel’s bombing and siege of Gaza.
• Mortality for acute jaundice or hepatitis A is low (2.5% in adults and less than 1% in children; thus a 1% mortality estimate is appropriate for this category, or 817 people); mortality for diarrhoea ranges from 4.27% to 12% (20,722-58,238 people); smallpox mortality is 1% to 30%, depending on strain (854-2,561 people) (sic – RB); mortality rates for acute respiratory disease range from 27% to 45% depending on severity (or 233,592-389,320 people). Taken together, adjusted for scientific data, the range for this category of martyrs is 255,985-450,936 people. Based on these estimates, both conservative and data-driven, respectively, the actual figures are likely as follows:
• 377,280 buildings destroyed completely or partially
• 95,040-97,680 martyred
• 221,760 injured
• 24,750 dead or dying from starvation
• 42k missing (presumed dead, kidnapped by Israel’s occupying forces or possibly trafficked).
The following ranges represent conservative estimate or lower range of data-driven population estimates:
• 17,050-94,049 with chronic illnesses dead from lack of medication
• 14,408-255,985 dead from epidemics resulting from Israel’s assault
This means the actual number of dead is closer to 194,768-511,824 people, with 221,760 injured. And counting. This does not include the thousands who have been kidnapped and are being tortured in Israel’s gulags, at least three dozen of whom have been tortured to death or died from harsh conditions. The estimates here are reasonable, but on-the-ground studies must be conducted immediately. International institutions must urgently assess the actual all-cause mortality resulting directly and indirectly from Israel’s assault on Gaza. Thus far, of the 240 Israeli captives in Gaza, Israel has allegedly killed 50 of their own, both directly (shooting them) and indirectly (bombing the buildings they are in) and secured the release of 112 captives, 105 through negotiated agreements with Hamas, and seven via “rescue” missions. The most recent direct “rescue” mission resulted in the release of four captives in Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza. A total of 274 Palestinians and several Israeli captives were killed in the same operation. At least one US lawmaker believes sacrificing hundreds of Palestinians for four Israelis is worth it, because, it seems, only some lives matter. I’ll leave it to readers to do the math to see the level of death and destruction inflicted on Gaza per captive or per Hamas fighter. There can be only one of two conclusions. Either the Israeli military is the most incompetent force to ever walk this planet, and has no reliable intelligence-gathering capability, or Israel is a sadistic nation intent on genocide of the indigenous population, much as all settler colonial projects have been throughout history.
susan abulhawa is a writer and activist. Her most recent novel is Against the Loveless World.
Gaza has moved hearts everywhere
Mahmoud Nasser, Electronic Intifada, Jun 28 2024
As the annihilation of life in Gaza continues, hope has become a precious commodity. The bloodshed and suffering of the people of Gaza is becoming normalized. Mass murder is being normalized. Mass destruction is being normalized. But not to all. Students in universities all over the world still hear the cries of the grieving mother, the orphaned child, the destitute father in Gaza. The students of the University of Toronto heard those cries. On May 2, a group of 100-200 students took it upon themselves to answer the voice of the people of Gaza. Inspired by the international university campus protests, Toronto students mobilized for Gaza. The encampment is still going strong nearly two months later.
There, Ameer Khoury, a key member and organizer of the Palestine Youth Movement in Toronto, told me that what he and his group does, what students at the campus are doing, is a responsibility. Inspired by the late, great Ghassan Khanafani, Ameer recited his favorite quotation:
Imperialism has laid its body over the world, the head in Eastern Asia, the heart in the Middle East, the arteries reaching Africa and Latin America. Wherever you strike it, you damage it, and you serve the world revolution.
The Toronto protest, along with all the campus encampments that have sprung up around the world, are as much directed against the “imperialist powers of the world” as they are in solidarity with the suffering people of Gaza, Ameer said. Originally Palestinian, he also said he saw it as his responsibility to fight for his own people.
Students have always been at the forefront of protests across history, against injustice of all kinds. See Vietnam, South Africa, see Cuba. Now it’s Palestine. This is our responsibility. This is our time.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza is history being written before our very eyes. And these students are determined to not just bear witness but to protest the silence and amplify the cries of the people of Gaza. Still, for me, entering the protest encampment for the very first time, brought unwelcome feelings flooding back. The Toronto encampment reminded me of the camp to which I found myself displaced in Gaza in the first month of the genocide. Some tents bore the names of towns across Palestine but one caught my eye. Seeing the name of the Shujaiya neighborhood in Gaza City came with a fleeting moment of pride, which went away in a flash as pain and sadness settled once again.
The University of Toronto encampment has so far avoided the heavy-handed tactics deployed elsewhere. Students at York University, for instance, also in Toronto, were met with Canadian police brutality. On Jun 26, it was reported that the University of Waterloo, not far from Toronto, has filed a lawsuit against its own students over their Gaza encampment. And on Jun 17, Meric S Gertler, the University of Toronto president, wrote in an open letter that the administration was pursuing a two-pronged strategy to “resolve the encampment,” including legal action. Sara Rasikh, a graduate student at the university and one of the many students that have made their way to King’s College Circle, where the encampment is located, criticized Gertler’s approach. She said:
The university from day one has been more concerned about ending the encampment than ending a genocide. President Gertler must stop deceiving us with carefully crafted policies that silence student voices, while his administration claims to act in good faith.
The university needed to take the students’ demands for full disclosure of university investments and for the administration to agree to divest from companies complicit with Israel’s genocide in Gaza, she added. And both she and Ameer said they would not be dissuaded, despite the smear campaigns, the threats of arrest and expulsion. Let history record that Gaza has moved the hearts of people.
Mahmoud Nasser is a Gaza-born photographer and writer, currently based in Toronto, Canada.
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