In her article Gülseren Onanç, the founding chair of SES Equality and Solidarity Association, argues that it is our responsibility to demand an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and start talking about the possibilities of peace.
The conflict, which began on October 7 with an attack by the radical Islamist group Hamas resulting in the death of 2600 Israelis, and subsequently involved Israeli airstrikes on Gaza led by the right-wing conservative government, who declared their intention to “finish Hamas,” continues to be a devastating human tragedy.
Gaza, one of the world’s most densely populated areas, is home to 2 million people. Shockingly, half of the population is children and under the age of 15. As the conflict unfolded, Israel imposed restrictions on the flow of water, fuel, and food. On the night of October 17, a missile hit an hospital in Gaza, resulting in the loss of hundreds of civilian lives, including many children. The overall death toll in Gaza now exceeds 7000, with thousands more injured.
Western values are going bankrupt
One of Turkey’s prominent authors, Oya Baydar, summarized the situation we are facing with these words;
“In the 19th century, dreams of humanity progressing toward peace, justice, development in harmony with nature, and the strengthening of human rights were envisioned, with hopes of overcoming regional inequalities and resolving ethnic and religious conflicts through dialogue. However, today, the world is mired in one of the bloodiest and most brutal periods in recent history. Western values, human rights, and international law, once dependable pillars, are now facing bankruptcy as conflict spreads across regions. Ethnic and religious tensions have given rise to genocide, necessitating the killing of innocent individuals of all ages. While technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence, were anticipated to accelerate human freedom, happiness, and democracy, they have, instead, transformed into oppressive forces, enslaving people and subjecting them to global masters. The law of the strong prevails, resembling a jungle.”
Is it so difficult to condemn violence unconditionally?
This conflict process has distanced us even from those with whom we share common values on many issues. We are experiencing divisions within our groups. We need to be careful about the language we use.
In her article on the possibility of evaluating the spiral of violence between Israel and Palestine in a critical and informed way, feminist thinker Judith Butler said: “People want to know which side you are on. Frankly, the only reaction that can be given to such massacres is condemnation without any buts.”
“There are those who use the violence that Israel has inflicted in the region to date to justify Hamas, but they use a corrupt moral logic to achieve this goal.”
Rejecting the ceasefire call
On the other hand, in Europe, pro-Palestinian protests are banned as terrorist propaganda and deemed illegal. Germany, Austria and France are among the countries that ban protests in support of Palestine. US President Biden stated that they support Israel and declared globally that the US will now become a reliable mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The UN Security Council rejected Russia’s call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Is an objective media possible?
We need access to independent media which should present an objective attitude towards the conflict unfolding in Israel and Palestine. However, unfortunately, mainstream media and social media is making the situation even more complicated. According to Kyle Chayka, writing in the New Yorker, social media platforms distort the facts rather than clarify them.
Social media remains a battlefield
“While social media is no longer widely used as a source of verified real-time information, it remains a battleground for swaying public opinion.
Already on October 10, a terrifying rumor began to circulate on X that Hamas was decapitating Israeli babies. When President Biden made statements about the war, he implied that he had seen such atrocities with his own eyes. But the Administration later walked back from Biden’s comments and the rumor was reportedly debunked: The babies had been killed by Hamas, but there was no evidence of beheadings.
On Thursday, the X account called @Israel, which is described as the “official Twitter account of the State of Israel” and supports the rumor, posted supporting images.
This post was presented as an advertisement to some X users, and it was claimed that the account had paid to promote the message.
It is sad and absurd that users are forced to decide “what is right” on their own, without guidance from the platforms. “If there truly is an algorithm-fueled fog of war, technology companies seem to be avoiding any responsibility for clearing it,” says Kyle Chayka.
Double standards of the West’s mainstream media
Journalist Işın Eliçin, who took a critical look at the double standards of the Western mainstream media in the process of covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict process, said:
“The origin of this double standard approach is a false equivalence that hides the great power imbalance between the state of Israel and the Palestinian people. This lies in the logic of “staying at equal distance towards them”. However, these two sides are not equal. Western media seem almost obsessed with blaming the victim, the side that is occupied, exploited and besieged. “While Palestinians are asked to condemn other Palestinians who allegedly committed the alleged crimes, they are not asked to condemn crimes committed by Israel’s government.”
At a time when violence begets more violence at the current point of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which has been going on for 75 years, there are still organizations that can raise the voice of peace. United Nations Secretary General Guterres says that a sustainable political solution is needed for a lasting peace, and for this, a ceasefire must first be achieved.
Today, as a requirement of being human, it is our responsibility to demand an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and to start talking about the possibilities of peace.
Women calling for peace
Since the escalation of the conflict we have been hearing women raising the voice of peace. The mother of Laor Abramov, a 20-year-old young man killed in the attack by Hamas stated:
“I beg the world, stop all wars, stop killing people, stop killing babies. War is not the solution. War is not the way to fix things. “I also want to say that I do not want revenge on my own behalf.”
Similarly, the feminist peace coalition, representing Israel-based Women Wage Peace and Palestine-based Women of the Sun, called on political leaders to negotiate to stop the bloodshed and resolve the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
They called for maintaining and strengthening solidarity between the Jewish and Arab peoples of Israel stations that they will “continue to act against racism and hatred.”