In November 1947, the United Nations (UN) partitioned Palestine - a decision taken with no support from either the people of Palestine or the Arab countries in what it today commonly referred to as the Middle East.
A day prior to its independence Israeli armed militant groups rampaged through Palestinian villages killing hundreds of Palestinian civilians, burning looting and pillage. Among the victims were women and children who were put to the sword. Not unexpectedly thousands of Palestinians fled their homes and villages in terror.
Thousands fleed to neighbouring countries and the Palestinian refugee problem was born. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in 2019 said the number of Palestinian refugees registered with them stood at 5.6 million (1.4 million in Gaza, 858,000 in the West Bank, 2.2 million in Jordan, 476.000 in Lebanon, and 562,000 in Syria).
Even today, Israel not only occupies approximately two-thirds of the Palestinian territory, the state of Israel keeps evicting Palestinians from their homes and builds settlements for Israeli settlers.
On October 20, 2022 the UN-appointed Commission of Inquiry condemned Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory referring to it as unlawful under international law due to its permanence and the Israeli government’s de facto annexation policies.
The UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) documents reveal Israel continues controlling the amount of water to Palestinians. The points of access to water consumption by Palestinians in the Israeli-Occupied Palestinian Territories is below the internationally recommended level of 100 litres per person and Israel controls 85% of Palestinian water sources.
WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) adds access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation facilities is a basic human right, but just one in ten people have direct access to safe water in the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip. Around 1.8 million people require some form of humanitarian water assistance. Of this number, children comprise nearly 52%, while the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) points out in its 2021 report that two million Palestinians are considered food insecure.
Included in this number are 0.6 million persons in the West Bank and 1.4 million in Gaza. Over the past five decades according to the Palestinian ministry of foreign affairs, Israeli-occupying forces have detained 800,000 Palestinians. Currently it holds 4,800 Palestinians including 29 females and 129 children as prisoners.
Despite the shocking policies of successive Israeli governments, over the past five decades, the United States has vetoed at least 53 UN Security Council Resolutions critical of Israel.
The BBC on April 7, 2021 reported that US President Joe Biden’s administration planned to provide US$235 million (£171 million) in aid to Palestinians. What is shocking however, is that in 2020, the US gave US$3.8 billion (£2.7 billion) in aid to Israel - part of a long-term, yearly commitment.
Almost all of this aid the BBC reported was in the form of military assistance! Even more curiously, the US and its Western allies have designated Palestinian armed militant groups as terrorists for their refusal to lay down arms and enter negotiations. Meanwhile more recently, on February 24, 2022, Russia invaded and occupied parts of Ukraine.
Since the Russian invasion, the US administration has directed more than US$75 billion in assistance to Ukraine, most of which is in the form of military assistance. The assistance is also shared with paramilitaries fighting the Russian occupiers. While applauding the US for its opposition to invasion of sovereign states, the difference in treatment of victim states is unacceptable.
In Ukraine, the US has called on Russia to withdraw from all occupied territory and is supplying Ukraine with billions of dollars of sophisticated armaments to fight the occupier. The US has also imposed a raft of sanctions on Russia and its rulers.
Meanwhile, in Palestine, the US is arming Israel - the occupying power - and demanding Palestinians lay down arms and commence negotiations. In addition, it also vetoes any criticism of Israel at the UN.
It’s time the US puts an end to these double standards. It (the US) needs to demand that Israel should withdraw to its original boundaries drawn up by the UN. It needs to stop arming the aggressor and identify the State of Israel for what it is - a purveyor of terrorism.
The US needs demand Israel withdraws to its original borders and bring to an end the war with justice to Palestine and its people.
