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Palestinian platforms: Settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of the occupation police
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Clear Palestinian eliminationism after one year of 'Israel’s' genocide in Gaza

  • Hamzah Rifaat Hamzah Rifaat
  • Source: Al Mayadeen English
  • 27 Oct 2024 23:38
5 Min Read

The talk and rhetoric on "Israel’s" "right to self-defense" or Arabs in "Israel" having more freedom and the need for Palestinians to integrate into a civilized society is simply cosmetic.

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  • Clear Palestinian eliminationism after one year of 'Israel’s' genocide in Gaza
    "Israel’s" quest to eliminate Palestinian identity (Illustrated by Mahdi Rtail; Al Mayadeen English)

One year has passed since "Israel’s" illegal, senseless, and barbaric genocide in Gaza. In 2023, the Netanyahu regime’s justification to invade Gaza was based on a flimsy, controversial, and hollow argument that "Israel" is conducting ‘counter-terror operations’ to eliminate Hamas. In 2024 however, it became evident that "Israel" was seeking Palestinian elimination. Over 41,000 deaths, millions of injuries, forced displacements, and the evident weaponization of starvation against Gaza and the West Bank constitute a decades-long quest by "Israel" to commit ethnic cleansing.

This is not evident in the Jewish-dominated Western media, which would make you believe otherwise. For Netanyahu and "Israel", Hamas' operation on October 7 became an ideal opportunity to promote fallacies and disinformation across the world. Through a concerted public relations campaign and victimization narrative, the regime reached out to sympathizers and allies by claiming that "Israel" has a "legitimate right" to attack Hamas, despite the occupation force’s disproportionate response against civilians. Mild to little condemnation from important capitals such as Washington D.C. also allowed "Israel" to demonize Palestinians with fake news of Israeli babies being mutilated and women being sexually assaulted proliferating across the print and social media. This then became the catalyst for "Israel’s" Palestinian eliminationism with its 2023-2024 genocide violating all principles of proportionality in international law. 

So, after one year, what does "Israel’s" response indicate? It certainly does not reflect legitimate responses given that the genocide now transcends Gaza and has reached Lebanon and Syria. The truth is that the grand design of a ‘Greater Israel’ is being implemented by Netanyahu and his Zionist cohorts with full force and zeal. Such designs have a long history of Palestinian and Arab eliminationism, which dates back to 1948 when 750,000 Palestinians were expelled during the Nakba and thousands more were subsequently subjected to discrimination and racial stereotyping. This demonstrates that for decades, "Israel" never recognized Palestinians or Arabs as a distinct population, nation, or ethnic group which have the right to exist or co-exist alongside Zionist zealots. In fact, they had to be wiped off through massacres such as in Sabra and Shatila in 1982 in Lebanon in order for "Israel" to survive. 

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So a year later, this talk and rhetoric on "Israel’s" "right to self-defense" or Arabs in "Israel" having more freedom and the need for Palestinians to integrate into a civilized society is simply cosmetic. Such narratives provide a convenient cloak for Netanyahu and his predecessors to push ahead with the actual Israeli agenda of destroying Palestine. This explains the prolonged occupation of Palestinian Arabs and the proliferation of the settlement enterprise in the West Bank. The genocide is taking place because bigoted mindsets and views of destroying Palestine as a moral necessity have been allowed to fester in the absence of international condemnation. 

History is replete with examples of bigoted mindsets at the political level aimed at Palestinian eliminationism. Take former Israeli Prime Minister, Golda Meir who was lionized by large sections of the international community as an ‘Iron Lady’ of Israeli politics. Despite accorded recognition as an effective leader of the Labor movement in "Israel", her mindset reeked of anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian sentiments. On the one hand, she spearheaded "Israel’s" relationship with regions such as Africa, while on the other, she openly stated that ‘there was no such thing as Palestinians.' Such brazen denial constitutes one of the more famous examples of "Israel’s" quest to eliminate Palestinian identity. Meir’s comments deny the victimization that Palestinians suffered for years under Zionism and mirror Zionist apologists today. Her views are also being implemented through kinetic measures under the Netanyahu regime. 

The list of Israeli politicians denying the existence of Palestine is not limited to Meir. Ariel Sharon, the notorious war criminal who was the architect of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre in Lebanon, also denied the right of Palestinians to exist in an independent state. His rationale for massacring Palestinians in 1982 was a hyped-up ‘imminent threat’, warranting a response from "Israel' as a so-called "civilized country' under threat. Examined closely, Sharon’s terming of Palestinians as barbarians mirrors Netanyahu’s 2023-2024 ‘Amalek’ reference. As the biblical enemy of the ancient Israelites, the term is being weaponized by Netanyahu to justify the destruction of the Palestinian people. Also, his equating of Hamas with Amalek was based on a need to convince the international community that "Israel" is tackling a terrorist threat instead of the Palestinian people. Also, by evoking a religious angle and placating sympathizers of the Zionist cause, Netanyahu could then justify death and destruction. Essentially, Netanyahu and Sharon are two sides of the same coin. 

The same logic applies to 2023-2024 with the genocide now being extended to Lebanon. It is clear that this official drive is about eliminating Arab identities, pursuing the "Greater Israel" agenda and terrorizing Palestinians. 

With one year of the genocide having passed, "Israel’s" motives have become clearer.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect Al Mayadeen’s editorial stance.
  • Gaza Strip
  • Occupied Palestine
  • Golda Meir
  • Palestine
  • Israel
  • Gaza genocide
  • Benjamin Netanyahu
  • Israeli occupation
  • Lebanon
  • Nakba
  • Gaza
  • Ariel Sharon
Hamzah Rifaat

Hamzah Rifaat

A host/anchor, analyst, and visiting fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington D.C.,2016.

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