Criticism of Israel’s attack in Gaza has increased since U.S vetoed a Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.
More than 100 Australian historians have signed an open letter decrying Israel’s attacks on Gaza.
The attacks, they said, aim “to destroy Palestinian lives and render it impossible for Palestinians to live in Gaza.”
Citing Israel’s destruction of universities, schools, cultural institutions, libraries, archives, mosques and churches, the historians said, “we know this as an attack on a people’s past, present and future.”
Gaza’s Ministry of Culture last week reported that 28 cultural workers have been killed in the enclave since the war began, including musicians, publishers and folk dancers.
According to the letter, three churches and ninety-one mosques have been damaged. Government buildings and press offices have been severely damaged, and 124 health facilities, including hospitals, clinics and ambulances, have been targeted.
Also, the historians noted that the scale of violence continues to increase across Palestine, adding that over 242 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, including 50 children, in the last two months.
They added that as Palestinians have been released from Israeli prisons as part of the hostage-swap agreement, more and more Palestinians are being kidnapped.
“It is clear that by using all of these techniques, Israel is trying to force Palestinians to leave Palestine, for generations to come. This is another Nakba, another phase in an ongoing Nakba,” the letter read.
The historians stated the violence did not begin on October 7th.
“The story does not begin on October 7th, and longer histories – involving European colonisation of Palestine, the mandate system and British rule, the 75 years since the establishment of the State of Israel, the 56 year occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, and the 16 year blockade on Gaza – must be held at the forefront of our minds.
“We must have clarity of knowledge and morality, and we must condemn these current attacks, as well as the settler-colonialism which produced them. We must meet this moment in the spirit of solidarity, not of pity.”
historians in Australia
Additionally, they demanded an immediate, full and lasting ceasefire. They called on the Australian Government to call for an end to all attacks on Palestinians.
They emphasised, “The Government should also call for the unimpeded delivery of full humanitarian aid and medical support, keeping people within Palestine when assisting them; the release of all hostages and political prisoners; an arms embargo; and a full inquiry into and prosecution of all who have committed war crimes.”
U.S Senator Decries Administration’s Decision To Approve Ammunition Sales To Israel
In other development, Elizabeth Warren criticised the Biden administration’s decision to bypass Congress to approve tank ammunition sales to Israel “amid unacceptable civilian harm.”
In a post on X, she added that US military aid to Israel “should be contingent on upholding our values and international law.”
The White House announced on Saturday that it had used emergency authority to approve the sale of nearly 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition to Israel, worth more than $106m.
Speaking during a Hanukkah ceremony at the White House, the US president said his “commitment” to Israel’s “right to exist as an independent Jewish state is unshakeable”.
Biden acknowledged that he has had disagreements with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the years but stressed that his administration continues “to provide military assistance [to Israel] until they get rid of Hamas.”
“But, but – we have to be careful, they have to be careful: the whole world’s public opinion can shift overnight, we can’t let that happen,” he said.
Biden has faced widespread criticism for failing to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
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