Sameera Casmod | sameerac@radioislam.co.za
17 December 2024 | 16:10 CAT
4-minute read

Israel’s genocidal onslaught on Gaza continues unabated

On day 437 of Israel’s most recent onslaught on Gaza, the death toll has exceeded 45 000, with an additional 11 000 Palestinians still unaccounted for, presumably buried underneath the rubble.

And still, Israel’s merciless attacks continue. Within the past 24 hours, the Israeli occupation has carried out seven massacres targeting families in the enclave, which have resulted in over 100 deaths and 200 injuries.

The most recent attack on a UN-run school in Khan Younis brings into stark relief the anguish of Gaza’s internally displaced refugees and the extreme toll that the war is taking on its most vulnerable population.

During this week’s Palestine Report, Moulana Ebrahim Moosa outlined the most recent havoc that Israeli occupation forces have wreaked. “We’ve got the press attacked, civil defence emergency personnel attacked, municipal crews, humanitarian aid personnel. Over 110 martyrs within just the past day.”

Israel’s perpetual, deliberate attacks on the press in Palestine have increased the deaths of journalists in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023 to at least 200. Four journalists—Ahmad al Louh, Mohammed Jabr al Qrinawi, Mohamed Baaloucha and Imam al Shati—were martyred within the last 48 hours while reporting from the frontlines in the enclave.

In the Al-Daraj neighbourhood in Gaza City, Israel carried out an attack on the Al-Tabatibi family in the central Al-Daraj neighbourhood. Eight Palestinian civilians, including two women and three children, were killed in the attack. Additionally, 10 bodies, the majority of whom were children, were taken to a hospital following an Israeli airstrike on a residential home in central Gaza City.

In another attack that rocked the world, five Palestinians were martyred in the Nuseirat refugee camp, including Khaled “Abu Diaa” Nabhan, known for his heartbreaking farewell to his slain granddaughter last year, whom he called “soul of my soul”.

In an attack that killed four civil defence ministers on Sunday, Israel targeted an emergency rescue service office that has been operating from makeshift headquarters after Israeli attacks wrecked ESU infrastructure across the strip. The total number of civil defence workers that have been killed has reached 94.

“And then, Israel on Saturday bombed the Deir al-Balah municipality, which was housing many displaced people. This was a building where many people would come to register their new babies or martyrs who had passed away. This led to a number of martyrs, including the mayor of Deir al-Balah, Dr Diab al-Jaru,” Moulana Moosa said. Four mayors have been killed in Gaza since October last year.

The Government Media Office in Gaza has said the attack is reflective of Israel’s plan to create an administrative, governmental, and municipal vacuum and has called on the international community to act swiftly to help Palestine, which has reached a critical stage on the humanitarian level and is at the risk of a “historical catastrophe that is the most brutal in modern times”.

West Bank: Palestinian Authority intensifies crackdown on Palestinian resistance groups

“Anything that has the name ‘Palestinian’ slapped on it sounds like a positive entity, but the Palestinian Authority headed by Mahmoud Abbas has been playing a most toxic role operating in areas of the West Bank,” Moulana Moosa explained.

While the Palestinian Authority (PA) is often presented as a legitimate governing body serving the interests of Palestinian citizens, analysts suggest it operates under significant Israeli influence. Critics argue that Israel’s control over critical aspects of the West Bank, including security coordination, resource allocation, and economic policies, undermines the PA’s autonomy. This dynamic has led to perceptions that the PA serves more as an administrative extension of Israeli policies than an independent representative of Palestinian aspirations.

“The only powers they have are the powers that are afforded to them by the Israeli occupation. They have weaponry at their disposal, but they can only use this weaponry in the direction that the Israelis permit them to, which is against fellow Palestinians, and they dare not; they will never use these weapons to defend Palestinians against Israeli settlers or the Israeli army,” Moulana Moosa explained.

The PA has launched operations targeting resistance groups in Jenin, including ‘Operation Protect the Homeland’, which aims to regain control of the camp.

Over the weekend, PA forces assassinated a member of a Palestinian resistance group in Jenin, in a move widely criticised as aligning with Israeli interests. Hospitals in the area were declared military zones; journalists were forcibly removed, and the PA’s actions appeared to mirror Israeli tactics.

Observers believe the PA’s operations have received tacit approval from Israeli and American authorities, raising questions about its role in any post-genocide governance structure in Gaza. “There should be absolutely no trust in this process when one of these parties is fully compromised and fully works in tandem with the Israeli occupation,” Moulana Moosa said.

This reminds us of the persistent dissolution of clear boundaries between good entities and bad. It raises questions about the credibility of organisations, individuals and information. In a world gone absolutely, stark-raving crazy, I wish there were clear lines. I wish I knew what I could believe. And who is the ‘good guy’. I wish I knew what the real story is. What actually happened. And why. It would provide some hope. The only thing that does provide relief is the knowledge that Allah ٱلْعَزِيزُ the Almighty is ٱلْبَصِيرُ the all-seeing, ٱلْسَّمِيعُ the all-hearing and ٱلْعَلِيمُ the all-knowing. We must find comfort in the Qur’aan. Increase our ibaadah: du’a, thikr, qur’aan tilaawat and salaah with conviction. We must avoid bad deeds, increase good actions and encourage others to do the same. May Allah Azza wa Jall guide the entire Ummah of Nabi Muhammad (SAW).

Israeli incursions into Syria

Bashar Al-Assad’s exit from Syria has signalled increasing Israeli attacks on and incursions into the country. Reports indicate that occupation forces have seized hold of a large portion of the UN-operated buffer zone in the Golan Heights.

While some analysts argue that Israel funded the recent revolution in Syria to further its objectives in the country, others say that Israel saw the regime change as a strategic opportunity and capitalised on it.

Moulana Moosa said that Israel’s attacks on Syria have significantly reduced its military capacity, pointing to Israel’s fear that the new regime will do what Assad did not: help the Palestinian cause against Israeli occupation. This debunks claims that Israel is clandestinely supporting Syrian resistance forces, which in turn proves that “their [Syrian resistance forces’] ideological underpinnings are pro-Palestine or an Islamic outlook”.

“We shouldn’t underplay what the Israelis have done in Syria within the past two weeks. They’ve struck Syria more than 500 times, and they’ve destroyed over 80% of what was Syria’s weaponry, ships, missiles, aircraft and other military supplies.”

Israel is not only picking a fight with resistance forces in Syria but also distracting it from focusing on establishing a governing structure in the war-torn country.

It is hoped that resistance forces will decisively act against Israel’s incursions into its newly liberated territory.

Listen to the Palestine Report on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Habib Bobat.