Palestine: The Humanitarian Crisis LIVE {EGY-TRI-TABOO }
A Holy Land for All
Here is a fact the majority could agree on: Palestine, Al-Quds (Jerusalem), is a holy land for the three major organized religions of the world—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The conflict over land is one of the most heated and prolonged conflicts in modern history.
However, this article will not take a political approach to analyze the conflict, even though politics inevitably play a role. Instead, it will tackle the humanitarian crisis that Palestinians have lived, are still living, and, tragically, may continue to live—for nothing more than their right to exist.
The Right to Life in Times of War
The right to life, during times of conflict and war, becomes a luxury not everyone can afford. Suffering and struggle define daily existence. Accusations are constant, with both sides laying claims of righteousness, ownership, and entitlement to the land.
This article does not intend to delve into historical or political predicaments but rather to highlight the current humanitarian crisis. However, the topic is considered to be a taboo in some circles in Egypt. If this war teaches us anything, it is that the world is run by power and the powerful—even if that means breaking international conventions, creating new means of destruction, or justifying genocide and ethnic cleansing—while the global community responds with empty denunciations and tied hands.
A History of Humanitarian Violations
Is this the first time the world has witnessed such violations? The answer is no. History is filled with massacres where perpetrators even boasted about the number of casualties as though it were an achievement rather than a tragedy. Below are just a few well-known examples.
Women, Children, and the Elderly as Targets
The ongoing conflict in Palestine has a systematic strategy of targeting the most vulnerable—the unarmed, the weak, especially children. Attacks on children are often justified as a way to eliminate “future fighters.”
International conventions meant to protect civilians in war zones remain utopian ideals in Palestine, ignored or selectively applied. What might provoke global intervention elsewhere is tolerated here with silence.
Dehumanization Through Starvation and Blockade
Famine, starvation, and the weaponization of supplies are some of the techniques being witnessed today. Food aid often arrives expired, and civilians die even while trying to collect it. Water shortages, electricity cuts, chemical warfare, and other forms of collective punishment target civilians rather than armed groups.
These are not accidental consequences but part of a broader dehumanization strategy.
Documented Massacres
Deir Yassin Massacre (April 9, 1948): Took place during the 1947–1949 Palestine war, shortly before the establishment of the State of Israel.
Bahr el-Baqar School Massacre (April 8, 1970): During the War of Attrition, the Israeli Air Force bombed the Bahr el-Baqar Primary School in Sharqia, Egypt, killing dozens of children.
Sabra and Shatila (September 16–18, 1982): Massacre carried out by the Lebanese Phalangist militia inside Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut. Israeli forces controlled the area and enabled entry.
First Qana Massacre (April 18, 1996): During Operation Grapes of Wrath, Israeli artillery shelled a UN compound in Qana, southern Lebanon, killing 106 civilians.
Second Qana Massacre (July 30, 2006): During the Lebanon War, an Israeli airstrike destroyed a residential building in Qana, killing dozens of civilians.
Muhammad al-Durra (September 30, 2000): A 12-year-old Palestinian boy shot and killed during the Second Intifada while sheltering with his father. His death, caught on film, became a global symbol of the human cost of the conflict.
The Darker Side of War
All these events reveal the darkest side of war, where civilians—especially children—pay the ultimate price. The damage extends beyond human lives lost; it exposes the distorted humanitarian perspective of a world that values some lives more than others.
These are not only historical facts but living realities etched in collective memory. For some, they are denied; for others, they are lived daily.
A Call for Humanity
No one chooses to live in war or conflict. If asked, people everywhere would give a unanimous voice against war and destruction. We may not be able to choose the circumstances we are born into, but we can choose to affirm life—to strive not only to live or survive but to be alive.
Comments
Post a Comment