WORLD WAR ROUND-UP VOL. 5 - THE CRISIS CONTINUES

Humanitarian crisis is underway, Islamophobia on the rise as Muslim Palestinian-American boy is killed, Israel drops more bombs & toxic rain, and more

Oct 17, 2023

“People will start dying without water” - A humanitarian crisis is underway in Gaza

As the death toll rises in Gaza, multiple reports confirm that Gazans are quickly running out of food, water, cooking gas, and other critical supplies since Israel cut off their water, power, and fuel supplies. Schools, hospitals, and other essential facilities have been destroyed by Israeli bombing, and medical supplies are running low. According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), hospital generators have only a few hours of power left. Once depleted, thousands of patients, including newborns in incubators, are at risk of dying.

Al Jazeera producer Safwat Kahout said, “People spend their days looking for water and some basic foodstuffs, mostly bread and rice.”

UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said, “Concerns over dehydration and waterborne diseases are high given the collapse of water and sanitation services . . . People will start dying without water.”

Some 2,900 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, about half are women and children. Approximately 11,000 are believed to be injured since the start of Israel’s bombardments. This is more than double the Israeli death toll. Another 2,000 Palestinians are believed to be missing, and are suspected to be under the rubble. About a million Gazans have been displaced. The UN warns Israel may be in breach of international law due to Israel demanding that Palestinians move from northern Gaza to the south.

Al Jazeera reports: The government media office in Gaza says the loss of life in “the current Israeli aggression exceed all the wars that Gaza has been exposed to in recent years.”

NGOs allege Israel is using white phosphorus

Multiple NGOs, including Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International allege that Israel is using white phosphorus munitions in Lebanon and Gaza. Both organizations said they verified Israel’s use of white phosphorus through multiple interviews and videos.

The Israeli military denies this claim.

The last time Israel used white phosphorus was in Gaza, from 2008-2009, which the Israeli military also denied, until further evidence was revealed.

White phosphorus is a chemical substance that is very harmful to humans and toxic to the environment. It can burn skin down to the bone, cause organ and metabolic dysfunction, respiratory damage, and can be lethal if inhaled. Its fumes can severely irritate the eyes and make them sensitive to light.

I recommend reading the Human Rights Watch report titled “They Burn Through Everything” (2020) on the devastating damage caused by incendiary weapons which disproportionately impacts civilians in wartime.

Here’s one story in the report highlighting the sheer human suffering caused by white phosphorus:

Afghanistan 2009: Razia
“Shortly after Razia’s family finished breakfast on March 14, 2009, two white phosphorus shells crashed into their mud-brick home. Fire and smoke consumed the house, immediately killing two of Razia’s sisters as they slept side by side. The attack wounded Razia’s father, Aziz, her mother, and a few of Razia’s other siblings.
Aziz reported, “The sound of the blast was very strong, and I was almost unconscious. I couldn’t think. My children were shouting at me: ‘Wake up! You’re burning!’” Wrapped in flames, 8-year-old Razia ran to Aziz. He held Razia close to him, and when he lifted his hand, the top of his daughter’s scalp and part of her face peeled off like a mask. A US military spokeswoman said that in this case it was unclear whether NATO troops or the Taliban had fired the shell, acknowledging that “[e]ither scenario is possible, and equally regrettable.”

This Lancet case report on white phosphorus burns highlights the case of an 18-year-old young man who was hit with an incendiary shell. Fortunately he was able to get immediate treatment for his burns, but many are not as lucky.

Many lesions, with severe underlying destruction and necrosis in the right shoulder (A) and left leg (B). After 16 months of follow-up (C, D).

Rising Islamophobia in the West as 6-year-old Muslim boy is killed

6-year-old Palestinian-American boy was stabbed 26 times for being Muslim, authorities say.

The boy, Wadea al-Fayoume, was stabbed by his family’s landlord, 71-year-old Joseph M. Czuba. His mother was also stabbed, but she survived and is still recovering in the hospital.

After October 11, Czuba told his wife he wanted Wadea and his mother to move out of the home. His wife also said Czuba “believed that they were in danger and that Shahin (Wadea’s mother) was going to call over her Palestinian friends or family to harm them.”

The attack is being investigated as a hate crime.

Shahin allegedly told Czuba “Let’s pray for peace” before he attacked her.

Prior to this, the family had no issues with their landlord.

While President Biden may have condemned the attack, I personally find him and the entire ruling establishment partly complicit for allowing Islamophobia to fester in the West.

This stabbing comes on the heels of the ‘Global Day of Jihad’ in which Westerners completely misinterpreted the words of former Hamas chief who called for protests across the Muslim world and for Palestinians to join the fight against Israeli forces. He did not call for a ‘Global Day of Jihad’ to take place on Friday, October 13.

Some schools even cancelled classes because they feared an attack.

Many Very Online Twitter users also claimed to have ‘inside information’ that global attacks were underway.

The irresponsible media and politicians also stoked fears, spreading word over the ‘Global Day of Jihad.’

We are witnessing the sad repercussions of this deliberate misinterpretation of events and continued conflict.

Canadian laughing stock PM Trudeau asks ‘Hamas to free all the hostages immediately’

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Hamas to immediately free all hostages. He spoke in Parliament saying,

“Canada asks Hamas to free all the hostages immediately. . . Terrorism is always indefensible and nothing can justify Hamas’s acts of terror and the killing, maiming and abduction of civilians.”

Trudeau added:

“Canada fully supports Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law and in Gaza, as elsewhere. International law, including humanitarian law, must be upheld by all . . . Even wars have rules.”

Unsurprisingly, Trudeau used all of the pro-Israel talking points claiming that Israel is acting out of self-defense, and evidently he is completely unbothered that yet another war is unfolding before our eyes.

Trudeau also didn’t mention anything about a ceasefire, nor did he call for Israel to end its bombing campaign.

Way to go, Trudeau.

The Onion once again proves the lines are blurred between satire and reality

Yesterday The Onion posted a Q&A article titled “What To Know About What’s Happening In Israel And Gaza” that blurs the line between satire and reality.

Here are some highlights (the last one listed is my personal favourite):

Q: Where is the Gaza Strip?
A: Don’t worry about it. It won’t exist by the end of the week.
Q: How has the media approached the conflict?
A: Swiftly and irresponsibly.
Q: How many people have died?
A: That depends on whether you count Palestinian deaths as well.
Q: Am I allowed to be sad for all of the victims?
A: Absolutely not. You have to pick a side.
Q: What’s been the international response?
A: People across the world have contributed an outpouring of infographics.
Q: How has the United States responded?
A: U.S. leaders reminded Americans that their nation has a responsibility to be a frothing worshipper at the altar of death.

US President Biden scheduled to visit Israel Wednesday

US secretary of state Antony Blinken announced that Biden is set to travel to Israel on Wednesday to discuss Israel’s war aims and strategy. This comes on the heels of an agreement between the US and Netanyahu’s government to provide urgently needed humanitarian relief to people in Gaza. There is no indication that I’ve seen that Biden will push for a ceasefire.

Biden will also be going to Amman to have talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah, Egyptian president Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas.

I’m not holding my breath Biden will make any significant impact considering the US will find any excuse to go to war, and given US Secretary Treasury Janet Yellen’s recent remarks, see below.

US Secretary Treasury Janet Yellen says ‘We can certainly afford two wars’

To no one’s surprise, US Secretary Treasury Janet Yellen says the United States can “certainly” afford to continue arming Israel and bombing innocent civilians.

In an exclusive interview with Sky News she said,

“America can certainly afford to stand with Israel and to support Israel’s military needs, and we also can and must support Ukraine in its struggle against Russia.”

She also seeks to appoint a new House of Representatives speaker to provide even more financial support to Israel and Ukraine.

Yellen, who is 77-years-old, has a net worth of $20 million. Prior to being secretary of the treasury, Yellen served as the chair of the Federal Reserve

Meanwhile, the US national debt continues to rise (it will total $33 trillion this year). Wage growth has been stagnant for decades. Americans are being forgotten, with many struggling to barely survive themselves.

But this is of no concern to politicians. The war machine continues to churn much to Yellen’s satisfaction. So it goes.

Steve Bell, 40-year cartoonist at The Guardian, fired for latest cartoon

The Guardian announced it would not renew cartoonist Steve Bell’s contract after he submitted a cartoon depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu preparing to operate on his own stomach using boxing gloves with an outline of Gaza.

Bell posted to X, formerly Twitter, that after he submitted the cartoon, he received a mysterious message during a call with Guardian staff in which a “pound of flesh” was referenced. Bell responded by saying he “did not understand.” The caller replied, “Jewish bloke; pound of flesh; antisemitic trope. . . Clearly it was self-evident, anybody could see it. . .”

The “pound of flesh” trope is a reference to the character Shylock in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice who demands a ‘pound of flesh’ from an antisemitic merchant. The idea is that repayment of a debt must be made no matter how much suffering it will cost to the debtor.

Bell said the cartoon was actually inspired by an old cartoon of U.S. President Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War.

It should be noted that Steve Bell has a no holds barred approach to criticizing the powerful. He does not discriminate in who he chooses to scrutinize in his comics.

Mehdi Hasan and two other anchors allegedly suspended from MSNBC

MSNBC quietly removed Mehdi Hasan, Ayman Mohyeldin, and Ali Velshi from their anchor positions since Hamas’s attacks.

MSNBC parent company NBC Universal claims it was merely a coincidence that the anchors were removed around the same time. It said that the decision to remove the anchors is because of a steep decline in views.

All three anchors have been consistently criticized for their coverage on the conflict because they expressed pro-Palestinian sentiment according to critics.

Anything you think should be mentioned in these regular updates? Let us know.