Hamzah Rifaat, Orinico Tribune, October 1, 2024 —
Had such air raids taken place against “Israel”, the response would have been extremely different, where calls to sanction, diplomatically isolate and prosecute those responsible would be the standard modus operandi of Western governments.
“Israel’s” quest to expand its theatre of genocide and destabilize the Middle East became evident with its relentless bombing campaign of Lebanon. Attacks across the country, including the capital Beirut, have resulted in hundreds of deaths, including women and children, and is a classic example of aggression against another sovereign UN member state.
This savagery from the Netanyahu regime has exposed the myth of “Israel” being a “civilized country” which adheres to democratic norms, and which has a so-called right to ‘defend itself against Lebanese aggression’. In fact, it demonstrates how “Israel” is a paranoid, aggressive and rogue state which conveniently flouts international law by attacking another sovereign state.
While “Israel’s” aggression on the Lebanese people was widely condemned at the 2024 UNGA session, the criminal indifference and deafening silence of Western governments on “Israel’s” violation of Lebanese sovereignty and killing of Lebanese people is telling.
Attacks on Lebanon Constitute Terrorism- Where is the Condemnation?
So far, the narrative in the West is on the urgency to implement a ceasefire, which is undoubtedly important. However, Israel’s air strikes and pager attacks meant that Netanyahu has waged war against another sovereign country, massacred its people, and is subjugating its population. The ceasefire push also becomes redundant as Netanyahu has sidelined it and is more interested in destroying and displacing the population of Lebanon.
Clearly, “Israel’s” actions constitute terrorism, as its attacks on Lebanon violate several international treaties and protocols that the Zionist regime is a signatory to.
Yet beyond calls for a ceasefire, there is no outcry or call to hold the terrorist regime accountable.
US Support Remains intact
Examined closely, several of “Israel’s” actions are illegal under international humanitarian law. Take Article 7 (2) of the Amended Protocol II of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons which prohibits the usage of booby traps which attract civilians or deployment of bombs with exact locations unknown. The pager attacks on Lebanon which resulted in hundreds of deaths and thousands of casualties constitute a violation of the Amended Protocol.
Yet there are no calls for “Israel” to be held accountable, despite the United Nations denouncing the device blasts as a violation of international humanitarian law. Such terrorism only prompted “Israel’s” main benefactor and supporter in its crimes against humanity, the United States, to confirm its ironclad commitment to “Israel’s” genocide. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for example, stated that the United States will continue to provide military aid to the Netanyahu regime, despite being questioned at a press conference on what constitutes American ‘redlines’ on aid to “Israel”. Austin remained adamant that despite developments in Lebanon, the United States will not stop funding “Israel”. This comes as “Israel” secured $ 8.7 billion in an aid package further funding its attacks on the Lebanese people.
The truth is that attacks against Hezbollah or the Lebanese people have not resulted in a diplomatic response that censures “Israel” and calls for sanctions against the Netanyahu regime, which in the case of the United States could not be expected. Also, no American official announced plans to visit the Middle East to deescalate tensions, despite the fact that the latest strikes on Lebanon resulted in almost half the casualties witnessed during the 33-day 2006 war. Much of this is due to the Biden administration’s obsession with providing “Israel” with diplomatic, economic, and military cover in the lead-up to the US elections as the Democratic Party seeks another term amid rising domestic discontent in the United States.
Double Standards
American allies such as Germany, Italy, and Australia are also no different. The response to the pager and air attacks by “Israel” on the Lebanese has been a push for a 21-day ceasefire which has been categorically rejected by the Netanyahu regime. The problem is that such pushes are hypocritical, as none of these states have called for an end to “Israel’s” occupation of Gaza, or adopted measures to prevent the Israeli settlement enterprise from thriving. “Israel” continues to generate revenue to fund its attacks against innocent Lebanese and Palestinian civilians with companies such as German media giant Axel Springer, which is still engaged in business transactions with settlements months after the genocide started.
There are clear double standards as far as diplomatic responses to the aggression on Lebanon are concerned. This can be contrasted with the Western reaction to Russia’s operation in Ukraine for example, with the United States and its allies consistently calling for sanctions on the Putin regime and seeking to diplomatically isolate Moscow. However, when “Israel” attacks Lebanon (a sovereign UN member state) and massacres innocent citizens, the same United States, along with its allies, remains largely indifferent to the plight of Lebanese citizens. Had such air raids taken place against “Israel”, the response would have been extremely different, where calls to sanction, diplomatically isolate and prosecute those responsible would be the standard modus operandi of Western governments. There would have been a pronounced Western outcry and complete boycott of Lebanon, which is already reeling from multiple security and economic quagmires.
However, when it comes to “Israel” attacking the Lebanese people, there is criminal and deafening silence from the United States and its allies.
This is simply reprehensible.