Our Wednesday News Analysis | On ‘Moral Panic’ and the Courage to Speak: The West’s Silence on Gaza

Ilan Pappé on the West's silence on Gaza. (Design: Palestine Chronicle)

But there is another side to it.

Thankfully, there is a much larger group of people who are not afraid
of taking the risks involved in clearly stating their support for the Palestinians,
and who show this solidarity while knowing it may lead
to suspension, deportation, or even jail time.

They are not easily found among the mainstream academia, media, or politics, but they are the authentic voice of their societies in many parts of the Western world.

The responses in the Western world to the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank raise a troubling question: why is the official West, and official Western Europe in particular, so indifferent to the suffering of the Palestinians?

Why is the Democratic Party in the US complicit, directly and indirectly, in sustaining the daily inhumanity in Palestine—a complicity so visible that it probably was one of the reasons they lost the election, as the Arab American and progressive vote in key states could, and justifiably so, not forgive the Biden administration for its part in the genocide in the Gaza Strip?

This is a pertinent question, given that we are dealing with a televised genocide that has now been renewed on the ground. It is different from previous periods in which Western indifference and complicity were displayed, either during the Nakba or the long years of occupation since 1967.

During the Nakba and up to 1967, it was not easy to get hold of information, and the oppression after 1967 was mostly incremental and, as such, was ignored by the Western media and politics, which refused to acknowledge its cumulative effect on the Palestinians.

But these last eighteen months are very different. Ignoring the genocide in the Gaza Strip and the ethnic cleansing in the West Bank can only be described as intentional and not out of ignorance. Both the Israelis’ actions and the discourse that accompanies them are too visible to be ignored, unless politicians, academics, and journalists choose to do so...

Read more: On ‘Moral Panic’ and the Courage to Speak: The West’s Silence on Gaza

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WHAT CRACKDOWN ON PRO-PALESTINE VOICES MEANS FOR US RIGHTS

Source: Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2597877

By Dr Ranzy Baroud
Published April 21, 2025

The US government is replicating some of the draconian measures imposed on the Palestinians by Israel (File/AFP)

According to a Pew Research Center survey from April 2024,
Americans are already grappling with their perception
of the country’s democratic institutions.

A disturbingly high 72 percent believe that U.S. democracy
is no longer a good example for other countries to follow.

Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student detained by America’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement, last week eloquently wrote from his cell that “rights are granted to those who align with power.” This poignant statement came soon after a judge ruled that the government had met the legal threshold to deport the young activist on the nebulous ground of being a threat to “foreign policy.”

“For the poor, for people of color, for those who resist injustice, rights are but words written on water,” Khalil further lamented. The plight of this young man, whose sole transgression appears to be his participation in the nationwide mobilization to halt the Israeli genocide in Gaza, should terrify all Americans. This concern should extend even to those who are not inclined to join any political movement and who possess no particular sympathy for — or detailed knowledge of — the extent of Israel’s atrocities in Gaza or the US’ role in bankrolling this devastating conflict.

The perplexing nature of the case against Khalil, like those against other student activists such as Turkish visa holder Rumeysa Ozturk, starkly indicates that the issue is purely political. Its singular aim appears to be to silence dissenting political voices.

Judge Jamee Comans this month confirmed the legality of the Trump administration’s decision to deport Khalil with an uncritical acceptance of the language employed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rubio had previously written to the court, citing “potentially serious foreign policy consequences” stemming from Khalil’s actions, which he characterized as participation in “disruptive protests” and “antisemitic conduct.”

The latter accusation is the reflexive rejoinder to any form of criticism leveled against Israel, a tactic that was prevalent long before the current catastrophic genocide in Gaza...

Read more: What crackdown on pro-Palestine voices means for US rights
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THE GAZA PLAYBOOK: ISRAEL’S FIVE-STEP ETHNIC CLEANSING STRATEGY

Source: Jews for Justice for Palestinians
https://jfjfp.com/the-gaza-playbook-israels-five-step-ethnic-cleansing-strategy/

Mohamad Elmasry writes in Middle East Eye on 16 April 2025

Israel is executing a longstanding Zionist plan to expel Palestinians and realise 'Greater Israel': silence the press, kill, starve, destroy, seek diplomatic cover

Palestinians transport their belongings as they flee Gaza City's eastern neighbourhood of Shujaiya following an evacuation order issued by the Israeli military on 3 April 2025 (Omar al-Qattaa/AFP)

… the so-called "Trump proposal" did not originate with Trump. It began in Israel as part of its broader "Greater Israel" vision and longstanding ethnic cleansing strategy.

Beyond branding, Israel has set up an agency to facilitate Gaza's depopulation, announced the seizure of territory within the strip, and lobbied third countries - including Somalia and South Sudan - to accept Palestinians.
Whether Israel will succeed remains unclear.

A complete ethnic cleansing seems unlikely for now.

Many Palestinians have rejected the plan, and the Arab League has proposed its own five-year reconstruction initiative.

Still, the short-term outlook is uncertain - to say nothing of the long-term.

What happens when there is nothing left to destroy, no nation offers refuge and Palestinians refuse to leave?

The notion of “Greater Israel” represents a foundational goal of Zionism and the Israeli political elite. For decades, Israel has worked to carry out the mass transfer of Arab populations from historic Palestine.

For Israel’s current leadership, as well as large swathes of Israeli society, the war on Gaza has presented what they see as a pivotal opportunity: the chance to remove Palestinians from Gaza once and for all.

Since the beginning of the war in October 2023, Israel has signalled its desire to rid Gaza of its Palestinian population. For most of the war, however, Israeli leaders have been hesitant to state the plan – which amounts to ethnic cleansing – explicitly.

As Israel moves closer to implementing its overarching goal, it is important to examine its path towards ethnic cleansing, which follows a comprehensive five-step programme...

Read more: The Gaza playbook: Israel’s five-step ethnic cleansing strategy