Regarding M McCormack’s letter quoting the Global Imams Council (GIC). While the deaths of hostages is to be condemned by all humanitarian standards, we must agree that all lives matter and none are more precious than others.
It is absurd to claim that Hamas is responsible for every life lost when Israel is absolutely responsible for the genocide in Gaza. Denying such agency is absurd. Though notably absent the wording of the council’s statement equally applies to Israel’s barbaric onslaught in Gaza resulting in the slaughter of tens of thousands of civilians: ‘The targeting and brutalisation of civilians, especially those who are defenceless and held against their will, are acts of unmitigated evil. These actions represent a gross violation of the sacred laws of conflict as ordained by all major faith traditions, including Islam, which categorically prohibits the harming of innocents. Furthermore, these atrocities contravene international humanitarian laws, including the Geneva Conventions, which are designed to protect civilians during times of war.’
Operation Al Aqsa Flood was precisely oriented toward undermining ‘normalisation’ of relations between Arab nations and Israel because such normalisation sidelines the right to Palestinian self-determination and independence upheld by the international community. On September 18 the special session of the UN General Assembly passed resolution A/ES-10/L.30/REV.1 that reaffirms previous resolutions and states: ‘reaffirming the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine, the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force and stress the need for the withdrawal of Israel from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, the realisation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, primarily the right to self-determination, including the right to their independent State, and the complete cessation of all Israeli settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.’ The struggle for freedom in Palestine did not begin on October 7, the Nakba is ongoing.
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