Robinson, Pelosi and the sham of Western progressive politics
Politicians love to talk. It’s a big part of the job. You talk in legislatures. You talk at committees. You talk to voters. You talk to reporters. If you’re lucky, you’re asked to talk on TV, the radio, or other popular platforms. Politicians crave the attention. It’s validating. It means that you’re important. You’re a somebody with important things to say. You’re noticed. People listen. Politicians know that the bigger their job, the more careful they have to be when they’re talking to an audience – however small or large. That’s especially true if you’re a cabinet minister or a “leader”. Too much unscripted talking can be dangerous. So, more often than not, what politicians say while they’re talking is forgettable or worse, meaningless. They have to stick to their talking points. They adore cliché. Still, there are moments when politicians get too comfortable. They get complacent. They slip up and say something candid and revealing about who they are and what they actually think and believe. Fortunately, two politicians opted for refreshing bursts of honesty over the standard rhetorical gruel this past week. One is Canadian. The other is American. You probably don’t know the first politician. The second is quite well-known. Both were talking, in a roundabout way, about what is happening in Gaza. The first politician’s name is Selina Robinson. She is, as of this writing, the minister of post-secondary education in the “socialist” provincial government of British Columbia, Canada. On January 30, Robinson was talking on Zoom as part of a panel of Jewish politicians organised by a pro-Israeli advocacy group. She was among “friends”, talking to and with “friends”. In one remarkable swoop, Robinson not only rewrote history, but trafficked in a familiar racist trope. Before the engineered birth of Israel, she said, Palestine was “a crappy piece of land with nothing on it”. “There were several hundred thousand people but other than that, it didn’t produce an economy … it couldn’t grow things. It didn’t have anything on it, and that it was the folks who were displaced that came and the people who had been living there for generations and together they worked hard,” the minister said. Translation: 700,000 idle Muslim and Christian Palestinians had, for generations, squandered the chance to make the desert bloom. Happily, it flowered after the arrival of “displaced”, hard-working Israelis who “were offered” the “crappy piece of land”. Since she said what she said, Robinson has stopped talking – in public, at least. Instead, the minister has had to watch and listen to a lot of other people talking about how and why she must resign. Even the pro-Israeli outfit that invited Robinson to talk has more or less abandoned her, reportedly telling a CBC reporter that: “The comments made by Minister Robinson … do not reflect the opinion of our organization.” You know you have talked too much when your once-close “friends” cut you adrift. So, Robinson did what politicians have to do when they give fulsome voice to what they think and believe: she made a grovelling apology on X. Robinson wrote that her “flippant” and “disrespectful” comments had “caused pain”. “I regret what I said and I apologize without reservation.” Few are convinced by Robinson’s belated, performative act of contrition, including two of her “socialist” colleagues in Ottawa. One member of parliament (MP) is demanding a “reassessment” of her place in cabinet. Another MP pilloried Robinson for “an appalling disregard for the horrific violence being inflicted on Palestinians”. Robinson’s boss, the premier of British Columbia, is also talking. He said that the minister’s remarks were “wrong”. Rather than fire her, the premier is giving Robinson a good talking to. He told her, in effect, to keep talking. “She’s got some work to do to go out to the community to address the harm that her comments have caused,” he said. In other curious words, the premier wants Robinson to talk her and the government’s way out of a prickly jam. Right. That should do it. The second chatty politician is the former speaker of the US House of Representatives and the grande dame of Congressional Democrats, Nancy Pelosi. She did her troublesome talking in the ever-agreeable studios of CNN’s Washington bureau on January 29. The influential “Speaker Emerita” was asked to comment on those pesky, mostly young demonstrators who have been interrupting President Joe Biden with chants of “Genocide Joe” at campaign stops and address whether she was “concerned that they might just stay home” in the fast approaching presidential election. A condescending Pelosi promptly played the victim card, saying: “I have been the recipient of, shall we say, their exuberance in this regard … they’re in front of my house all the time.” Poor, pampered Pelosi. The “Speaker Emerita” compounded her, shall we say, disdain with a lecture, claiming that unlike the “exuberant” rabble, she and other serious types on Capitol Hill were required to “think” about “how to try to stop the suffering in Gaza”. Poor, misunderstood Pelosi. Apparently, she “thinks” that a “ceasefire” would not “stop the suffering in Gaza” since that’s what Russian President Vladimir Putin “would like to see”. Pelosi’s McCarthyite-smear-laden logic is loathsome and bizarre. What, apart from a ceasefire, is going to “stop the suffering in Gaza” – with or without Putin’s blessing? Silly, exuberant me, but I can’t “think” of anything other than a “ceasefire” that will “stop the suffering in Gaza”. Pelosi ought to have stopped talking. Thankfully, she didn’t. She then proved that behind every America-flag-pin-wearing speaker emerita, there lies an Alex Jones-like conspiracy theorist who is convinced that the homeland is awash with fifth columnists disguised as citizens exercising their constitutional rights to challenge a sitting president. “I think some of these protestors are spontaneous and organic and sincere,” Pelosi said. “Some, I think, are connected to Russia.” Again, Pelosi ought to have stopped talking. Thankfully, she didn’t. Not done tarring millions of her fellow, albeit “exuberant”, Americans of Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian
Hungary’s ruling party boycotts parliament session on Sweden’s NATO bid
Hungary is the only NATO member yet to approve Sweden’s accession to the military alliance. Lawmakers from Hungary’s ruling party have boycotted an emergency parliament session in which a vote on Sweden’s bid to join NATO was on the agenda. At Monday’s session, which was supported by six opposition parties, Fidesz lawmakers didn’t attend, scuttling the attempt to place a vote on the National Assembly’s schedule. Turkey’s parliament voted to approve Sweden’s accession in January, making Hungary the last of the world’s largest military alliance’s 31 members not to do so. Sweden had pursued a policy of military non-alignment since the Cold War. However, Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbour Ukraine in 2022 caused upheaval in geopolitical calculations, and Stockholm applied to become a NATO member that same year. Hungary has maintained close ties with Russia since its invasion of Ukraine, and while it has said it supports the Swedish bid in principle, Budapest has been dragging its feet for months. Prime Minister Viktor Orban told NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg last month that he would urge his Fidesz party to ratify the bid “at the first possible opportunity”. On Friday, the United States embassy reminded Orban in a statement that he promised to act “at the first opportunity” and “Monday’s session provides him with one”. Several ambassadors from NATO member countries attended Monday’s proceedings, including US Ambassador David Pressman. In brief comments to the media after the session, Pressman said the US looks forward to “watching this closely and to Hungary acting expeditiously”. “Sweden’s NATO accession is an issue that directly affects the United States’s national security and affects the security of our alliance as a whole,” he said, reminding Orban of his pledge. Orban is delaying the vote due to his “personal vanity”, Agnes Vadai from the biggest opposition party told the Agence France-Presse news agency. She accused the prime minister of seeking to “make headlines in the international press while making a gesture to Russian President Vladimir Putin by undermining the unity of NATO and the EU”. In a separate statement, US senator Ben Cardin, a Maryland Democrat and chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, raised the prospect of imposing sanctions on Hungary for its conduct and called Orban “the least reliable member of NATO”. Hungarian officials have indicated that Fidesz lawmakers won’t support holding a vote on Sweden’s NATO bid until Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson accepts an invitation by Orban to visit Budapest to negotiate the matter. Kristersson said he will make the trip but only after Hungary approves his country’s NATO membership. Fidesz said in a statement on Monday that ratification of Sweden’s NATO accession can take place during a regular session of parliament, “but we are expecting the Swedish prime minister to visit Hungary first.” “If this is an important issue for the Swedes, the Swedish prime minister will obviously come to Budapest,” the party said. Hungary’s National Assembly is scheduled to reconvene on February 26, and ratification could take place quickly once it has received Orban’s approval. [embedded content] Adblock test (Why?)
Red Bull investigate allegations against F1 team boss Christian Horner
The Formula One team is investigating a complaint of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ against its team principal. Red Bull are investigating a complaint of alleged “inappropriate behaviour” against their Formula One team boss, Christian Horner, the Austrian energy drink company says in a statement without giving any details about the allegations. The Briton presided over the most dominant season in Formula One history last year with Max Verstappen taking his third title in a row and the team winning 21 of 22 races. “After being made aware of certain recent allegations, the company launched an independent investigation,” Red Bull said on Monday. “This process, which is already under way, is being carried out by an external specialist barrister. The company takes these matters extremely seriously and the investigation will be completed as soon as practically possible. “It would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.” The Times newspaper reported Horner, 50, had been accused of inappropriate behaviour by a female colleague, who complained to the team’s parent company. There was no comment from the team, but Horner, who is married to former Spice Girls singer Geri Halliwell, told the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf that he denies the allegations. Horner has overseen seven drivers world championships and six constructors titles. Red Bull are due to launch their latest car on February 15 ahead of the new season, which starts in Bahrain on March 2. Christian Horner with his wife, former Spice Girls singer Geri Halliwell, at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas [File: Brian Snyder/Reuters] Adblock test (Why?)
Tour of Gaza hospital reveals destruction left by Israeli forces
NewsFeed Rubble and sarcastic graffiti are what Israeli forces have left behind at Gaza’s destroyed Sheikh Hamad Hospital. Published On 5 Feb 20245 Feb 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Arrests and tear gas at protests against Senegal election delay
NewsFeed Police have cracked down on hundreds of demonstrators in Senegal who came out to protest President Macky Sall’s decision to indefinitely postpone elections. At least two opposition politicians have been arrested. Published On 5 Feb 20245 Feb 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Israel’s ‘chilling disregard’ for life in occupied West Bank: Amnesty
Israel has unleashed unlawful lethal force against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, carrying out unlawful killings and displaying “a chilling disregard for Palestinian lives”, Amnesty International says. The human rights organisation said in a report released on Monday that Israel’s actions in the territory have intensified during its war on Gaza and its military and other bodies are committing numerous illegal acts of violence that amount to clear violations of international law. The world’s eyes are mostly on the Gaza Strip, where the Israeli military has killed more than 27,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, since the start of the war on October 7. But Israeli forces are also carrying out unlawful killings in occupied Palestinian territories, Amnesty said in the report. The document was compiled with remote interviews with witnesses, first responders and local residents as well as verified videos and photos. “Under the cover of the relentless bombardment and atrocity crimes in Gaza, Israeli forces have unleashed unlawful lethal force against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, carrying out unlawful killings and displaying a chilling disregard for Palestinian lives,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s director of global research, advocacy and policy. “These unlawful killings are in blatant violation of international human rights law and are committed with impunity in the context of maintaining Israel’s institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and domination over Palestinians.” Palestinians in the West Bank were already experiencing deadly Israeli raids on a regular basis even before the war, but there has been an explosive increase in the number of Israeli attacks since October. According to figures by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Israel killed at least 507 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank in 2023, including at least 81 children, making it the deadliest year since the organisation started recording casualties in 2005. UN numbers also show that 299 Palestinians were killed from the start of the war until the end of 2023, a 50 percent increase compared with the first nine months of the year. At least 61 more Palestinians, including 13 children, were killed by Israeli forces in January, the UN said. ‘Wilful killing’ Amnesty International’s analysis of a 30-hour-long Israeli raid on the Nour Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem that took place on October 19 demonstrates the tactics employed by the Israeli military. In that raid, Israeli soldiers used a large number of military vehicles and soldiers to storm more than 40 homes. They destroyed personal belongings, drilled holes in walls for sniper outposts, cut off water and electricity to the refugee camp, and used bulldozers to destroy public roads, electricity networks and water infrastructure. By the end of the raid, they had killed 13 Palestinians, including six children, four of them under the age of 16, and had arrested 15 Palestinians. One Israeli border police officer was killed after an improvised explosive device was used against a military convoy. Among those killed during the raid was an unarmed 15-year-old named Taha Mahamid, whom Israeli forces shot dead in front of his house as he came out to check whether Israeli forces had left the area, Amnesty said. “They did not give him a chance,” said Fatima, Taha’s sister. “In an instant, my brother was eliminated. Three bullets were fired without any mercy. The first bullet hit him in the leg. The second in his stomach. Third in his eye. There were no confrontations. … There was no conflict.” Taha’s father, Ibrahim, tried to carry his son to safety while unarmed but was shot and suffered serious internal injuries. “This unnecessary use of lethal force should be investigated as possible war crimes of wilful killing and wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health,” Amnesty said. But that was not the end of the Israeli operation for the family. About 12 hours after Taha’s killing, the Israeli military stormed his family’s home and locked his family members, including three children, in a room under the supervision of a soldier for about 10 hours. They also drilled holes in the walls of two rooms to position snipers overlooking the neighbourhood. One witness said the soldiers searched the house, beating a member of the family, and one was seen urinating on the doorstep. The extensive damage done by Israeli bulldozers to the narrow streets of the refugee camp meant that ambulances could not get through, hampering medical evacuation of the injured. Targeting ambulances, killing protesters Amnesty also documented instances in which Israeli forces directly opened fire on ambulances and medical staff. The obstruction of medical assistance to Palestinians by Israeli forces is now “routine practice”, the human rights organisation said. It documented one instance in which Israeli soldiers prevented ambulances from reaching victims who ended up bleeding to death. “The victims were later collected by an Israeli military ambulance, and their bodies have yet to be returned to their families,” Amnesty said. The organisation also documented how the Israeli military cracks down on peaceful Palestinian protests held in solidarity with the people of Gaza, firing live bullets and tear gas canisters into crowds. Adblock test (Why?)
US Senate border security bill: What you need to know
Democratic leaders in the US Senate have unveiled a $118bn bill that would boost border security and provide wartime aid for Israel and Ukraine. But the fate of the new proposal, backed by some Republican senators, looks uncertain after House Speaker Mike Johnson denounced it, saying it’s not tough enough on migrants. Here is more to know: What is the border security bill? After months of negotiations, United States senators have finally produced a 370-page bill, which would give the government emergency powers to refuse entry to migrants crossing the border or to quickly expel those who had already entered the US. Those powers would not restrict the entry of US citizens or others with a legal basis to come to the country. The new bill has introduced the concept of a trigger, which will be tripped when the number of migrants encountering border officials crosses an average of 5,000 over the course of a week. The bill also gives the president the power to shut the southern border with Mexico if more than 4,000 migrants attempt to cross the border in a week. The bill would require the government to process at least 1,400 migrants per day at border crossings, and would maintain some protections for people who fear torture or persecution after being deported. And it caps the number of days the emergency powers can be used each year. Some provisions of the proposed bill aim “to make border security tighter, to make immigration checks much stricter,” reported Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher, from Washington DC. What do we know about the aid proposal in the Senate bill? The bill would direct about $20bn to additional enforcement on the US border with Mexico and to combat drug trafficking. About $60bn in additional aid has been earmarked for Ukraine. A large part of this would come in the form of weapons and military equipment. Around $20bn of this is to replenish US stockpiles of equipment transferred to Ukraine and another $13.8bn is to allow Kyiv to buy more munitions from US suppliers. The Senate plan directs $14.1bn to Israel. Around $5.2bn of this funding is allocated to missile defence systems. It also strips US funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) after Israel accused 12 of its Palestinian employees of being involved in Hamas’s October 7 attack. The UNRWA chief has told the Financial Times newspaper that Israel has yet to present evidence in support of its accusations. The bill allocates $2.4bn for operations around the Red Sea, where US forces have sought to combat attacks on shipping by Houthi rebels in Yemen. The bill would spend almost $2.6bn on efforts to deter China. Most of the money, about $1.9bn, would be to replace US munitions provided to Taiwan. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, from the Democratic Party, has said an initial vote on the bill would take place no later than Wednesday, but faces opposition from both Republicans and Democrats. What do Democrats want out of the bill? Prior to the introduction of this bill, Democrats were pushing for a White House funding request that pairs tens of billions of dollars for Ukraine and Israel. They have also proposed to allocate nearly $14bn for US border security. That money would pay for 1,300 additional US Border Patrol agents, 1,600 new asylum officers and 375 new judge teams. US President Joe Biden is pushing for the bill to be voted on, saying this makes the border more secure than it has been in decades. “Now we’ve reached an agreement on a bipartisan national security deal that includes the toughest and fairest set of border reforms in decades. I strongly support it,” Biden said in a statement. Fisher said Biden is essentially saying “It’s time for Republicans to stop playing politics with the border and get this to him so he can sign the bill as quickly as possible.” However, this is not easy for Biden to achieve. Republican Steve Scalise – the majority leader of the House of Representatives, who decides essentially when the House votes – has already said that he is not going to bring this to the floor of the House. Additionally, House Speaker Johnson has said that if the bill ever did make it to the floor of the House, it would be dead on arrival. I’ve seen enough. This bill is even worse than we expected, and won’t come close to ending the border catastrophe the President has created. As the lead Democrat negotiator proclaimed: Under this legislation, “the border never closes.” If this bill reaches the House, it will be… — Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) February 5, 2024 “Joe Biden says there’s still a lot of work to be done to get this over the line. This bill is struggling just hours after its birth,” said Al Jazeera’s Fisher. What do Republicans want out of the bill? Mitch McConnell, the top Senate Republican, has been supportive of the negotiations over the bill. But his colleagues in the Senate have said that they’re against the bill before even seeing the details, Al Jazeera’s Fisher said. Republicans say Biden has encouraged migrants by loosening restrictions that date from the era of former President Donald Trump and that require migrants and asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their claims are processed. They also oppose new Biden “parole” policies that allow certain migrants to enter legally for humanitarian reasons, saying they circumvent standard immigration channels. Immigration is a top concern for conservative voters ahead of the 2024 presidential elections that will decide control of the White House and Congress. Biden, a Democrat, is seeking a second term, and Trump is the clear frontrunner for the Republican nomination. Al Jazeera’s Fisher said that some Republicans opposing the bill said they were not going to vote for it because it could give Biden a bipartisan victory in an election. House Speaker Johnson has called on the Democratic-led Senate to approve a bill
A child dies every two hours in Sudan camp for displaced people: MSF
Medical group warns of catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Zamzam camp in Sudan’s North Darfur state. At least one child dies every two hours in a camp for displaced people in Sudan’s North Darfur state during a nine-month war that has caused the collapse of humanitarian services, a medical charity says. Before the war began in mid-April, the health system in North Darfur was supported by UN agencies. “This aid has now come to an abrupt halt,” read a report published on Monday by Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF). “What we are seeing in Zamzam camp is an absolutely catastrophic situation,” said Claire Nicolet, head of MSF’s emergency response in Sudan. The charity estimated about 13 children die each day. “Those with severe malnutrition who have not yet died are at high risk of dying within three to six weeks if they do not get treatment. Their condition is treatable if they can get to a health facility. But many cannot,” Nicolet added. MSF is the only operational health provider in Zamzam camp, one of the largest and oldest camps for displaced people in the country. “Staff no longer receive salaries, equipment and medicines are in short supply, as are fuel for generators, water and other supplies that are needed to keep health facilities running,” the report said. “Malnutrition programmes that were once present in El Fasher – the state capital – are non-existent,” it added. Last year, a simmering rivalry between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese army erupted into all-out war. The fighting has caused about 10.7 million people to flee their homes while 17.7 million are now facing acute hunger, United Nations agencies said. January is usually a month when malnutrition is at its lowest because stocks of food are filled up after December’s harvest, but because of the war, people have been unable to tend to their crops, MSF said. On top of the war, rainfall has been lower than usual, exacerbating the already dire humanitarian crisis in the region. Adblock test (Why?)
Forest fires rage on in central Chile
Firefighters have been wrestling with massive forest fires in central Chile. Officials on Sunday extended curfews in the cities heavily affected by the blazes. They reported that at least 112 people have been killed since the fires began raging two days earlier. The flames are burning with the highest intensity around the city of Vina del Mar, where a famous botanical garden founded in 1931 was destroyed by the flames. At least 1,600 people were left homeless. Several neighbourhoods on the eastern edge of Vina del Mar were devoured by flames and smoke, trapping people in their houses. Officials said 200 people were reported missing in the city and surrounding area. A popular beach resort, the city of 300,000 hosts a well-known music festival during the summer. On Sunday morning, Chilean President Gabriel Boric visited the town of Quilpe, which was also heavily affected by the fires. At that point, he reported that 64 people had been killed, and declared two days of national mourning. Late on Sunday, Chile’s Forensic Medicine Service updated the confirmed death toll to 112. Boric warned that the number of casualties could rise as rescue workers search through collapsed homes. Some of those arriving at hospitals were in critical condition. Rodrigo Mundaca, the governor of the Valparaiso region, said he believed some of the fires could have been intentionally caused, echoing a theory that the president has also mentioned. The fires began in hard-to-reach mountainous and forested areas but moved into densely populated neighbourhoods despite the efforts of authorities to slow down the flames. Officials asked people in areas affected by the fires to evacuate. Those farther from the fires were told to stay at home to facilitate the transit of fire engines and ambulances. Curfews were declared in Vina del Mar, Quilpe and also the city of Villa Alemana, as part of an effort to prevent looting. The fires broke out during a week of record-high temperatures in central Chile. Over the past two months, the El Nino weather pattern has caused droughts and high temperatures in Western South America. Adblock test (Why?)
‘We’re being starved’: Dispatch from Gaza City as Israeli assault continues
For us in Gaza City, enduring the daily struggles like staying safe, fighting hunger and protecting ourselves against the biting cold is a war in and of itself as Israel’s assault on Gaza grinds on past 120 days. Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their homes at a time when that was all they had. Then after that came the loss of a simple place to shelter as Israel bombed them all: hospitals, schools, clinics, and any open space where civilians gathered. The entire population of Gaza has been displaced. The entire population. What does ‘home’ mean? After our house was bombed, I was no longer just a witness to the thousands of people fleeing their homes to find safety wherever they could. We went to the United Nations shelter in the north of Gaza, my family and I gathering whatever would help us survive and becoming displaced like our countrypeople. There are about 600,000 people in north Gaza grappling with loss amid deprivation, starvation and disease because they do not want to leave their land. It breaks my heart, but I have to admit we’ve lost the sense of what “home” means. Just finding the bare minimum space and shelter from the elements we need to rest has become a journey of heartache and pain, our miserable daily routine of looking around to see where we can possibly sleep. [embedded content] My family – father, mother, sister, wife, and two-year-old son – and I are seeking relative refuge in the parking garage of a destroyed apartment building. We dread looking at the weather in these winter conditions. All day, we’re trying to find the forecast, breathless, worried that rain would be expected that night. On rainy nights, I take off my coat and wrap it around my baby, making it both a blanket and protection for him against the cold, with hope and prayer that it will be enough for his small body. Survival rations Beyond shelter is the struggle for food. I cannot recall the last proper meal my son had. Wheat is nowhere to be found so we have been using animal feed-grade barley and corn to grind into flour for bread. Even these alternatives are scarce, but they are our only means to get through the day. It’s not like there is the space and security to grow your own food either, with the bombs and intentional choking off of supplies, even water. The aid entering this besieged enclave is very limited and cannot cover our basic daily needs. So we have had to try to survive for these past four months, with no incomes or livelihoods as the prices of essentials skyrocket, if you can find them at all. Palestinians receive food rations at a donation point at a camp for displaced people in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 2, 2024. The situation in the north is far more dire [Said Khatib/AFP] As a result, starvation is beyond widespread in the north of Gaza. Babies, children, adults and the elderly all are suffering from the lack of food. An ounce of coffee used to be 10 shekels (about $2.75) and now it costs 120 shekels ($33); a litre of drinking water that cost a shekel (less than $0.30) is now 15 shekels ($4). If you secure food, you still have to cook it and, with no cooking gas, people are combing the ruins to find anything they can burn for a cooking fire, exposing themselves to bombing at any time. And so, when every hour of the day is spent either looking for food or a means to make it, we cannot always worry about staying safe. Unrecorded deaths Medical services in north Gaza have been nearly inoperable since the beginning of the ground invasion, and now there is little more than first aid services for the injured or those in need of intensive medical care. Israel has arrested and killed hundreds of medical personnel, bombed hundreds of medical facilities of various sizes out of service or depleted their capacity with cuts of fuel and water. For the little that remains functional, how would the wounded get there when at least 122 ambulances have been targeted and bombed? Then comes the danger of the streets: air strikes, soldiers kidnapping Palestinians or shooting them dead, and the mountains of rubble across Gaza. [embedded content] Even basic medications like antibiotics and painkillers have been scarce for the thousands suffering injuries from Israeli attacks, and so they get infections and respiratory diseases. People need to understand that the number of Palestinians killed in this aggression is much higher than what is being reported. Palestinians dying from kidney failure, from cancer, from disease, from a lack of prenatal care – all of these are not being recorded. People could have been helped had there been enough equipment and medicine. People can be saved, but there seems to be little intent to save them. I report through my phone when I manage battery and access to the internet or phone service – an endeavour more difficult than ever in north Gaza. Banks, post offices, transportation and telecommunications all do not work. The list is endless. How can I capture or explain to the world, the ones that even read our words, that what is being endured is not only painful but avoidable? Our calls for support are not for abstract words of diplomatic solidarity, but for urgent action that helps us feel human in the eyes of the world. With every passing hour, fewer and fewer Palestinians in Gaza can appeal to the world. Every day brings more death, and the rest of us remain, trying to fight off death. ‘Even basic medications like antibiotics and painkillers have been scarce for the thousands suffering injuries from Israeli attacks,’ Mohammed Mhawish writes [File: Mohammed Dahman/AP Photo] In closing I do not write of the struggle we are living to engender sorrow. Had sorrow moved people, we wouldn’t