The United States and Israel were joined in opposing the resolution by eight countries – Austria, Czechia, Guatemala, Liberia, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, and Paraguay. One hundred and fifty-three countries, including Canada, voted in favour of the resolution, and 23 abstained. This is a higher vote in favour than for the October 27 resolution that called for a "humanitarian truce" (120-14 with 45 abstentions). Following the overwhelming support for the resolution demanding a cease fire, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric pointed out that despite being non-binding, the resolution nonetheless reflects world public opinion and is very important.

The United States once again sought to divert attention from the urgent need for consensus for a ceasefire by once again proposing to add a paragraph stating that the assembly "unequivocally rejects and condemns the heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas." Austria also proposed an amendment that would have added that the captives "held by Hamas and other groups" should be released "immediately." Both proposed amendments were voted down.

The emergency session followed a formal request by Egypt and Mauritania invoking the UN's Resolution 377, known as "Uniting for Peace." They did so after the U.S. vetoed a Security Council resolution on December 8 calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza. Resolution 377 empowers the General Assembly to act in any cases where the Security Council, because of a lack of unanimity among its five permanent members, fails to uphold its responsibility to maintain international security and peace.

Once again, action by the countries of the world is hampered by the fact that General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding. Many countries are nonetheless striving to hold Israel and the United States accountable for the crimes against the Palestinians. The General Assembly vote definitely reflects the growing isolation of the United States which is responsible for the crimes Israel is committing in Gaza and all of occupied Palestine.

Canada Explains Its Support for Resolution Calling for a Ceasefire

Canadians are thankful that Canada changed its position at the United Nations and voted in favour of the resolution adopted by a large majority of countries on December 12 in favour of a ceasefire in Gaza. The majority are nonetheless aware of Canada's duplicity and that its position in support of Israel includes the discrimination, violence and acts of genocide of the apartheid state against the Palestinians and this has not changed. Canada preserves its position in support of Israel and its aim to wipe out Hamas which it portrays as as a terrorist organization, but cites humanitarian concerns as the reason for changing its stand. This is what should have done from day one, rather than continuing to repeat that Israel has the right to defend itself but should exercise restraint to protect civilians. Canada continues to remain silent about Israel's aim to wipe out the Palestinians and create a Greater Israel without Palestine. It feebly repeats that Israel can dictate who will rule Gaza and the like, which nobody believes is in the least democratic.

"From the very beginning we have said that Israel has the right to defend itself," Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told reporters before the General Assembly vote. "How Israel defends itself matters," she said. "What is unfolding before our eyes will only enhance the cycle of violence. This will not lead to the durable defeat of Hamas," Joly said, adding that a ceasefire cannot be "one-sided." Hamas must lay down its arms and release the remaining hostages it captured on October 7, she said.

Canada's Ambassador to the UN Bob Rae told CBC News Network's Power & Politics that Canada backed the resolution due to the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

"The status quo in the fighting is unsustainable from a humanitarian perspective. From the point of view of what is happening to people, it is simply unsustainable," Rae said.

For the full joint statement by the Prime Ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand issued on December 12 to "explain" their vote calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, click here.

UN Secretary-General Directs Security Council to Act on Immediate Ceasefire

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has expressed repeated concern over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and the imminent danger of total collapse of public order as a result of the Israeli bombardments and siege of Gaza. On December 6, he sent a letter to the UN Security Council in which he invoked Article 99, contained in Chapter XV of the UN Charter.

Article 99 empowers the Secretary-General to "bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security." A spokesperson for the Secretary General's office called it a "dramatic constitutional move" that Guterres hoped would put more pressure on the Council — and the international community at large — to demand a ceasefire. "I think it's arguably the most important invocation... [I]t is, in my opinion, the most powerful tool that he [the Secretary-General] has," the spokesperson told reporters at UN Headquarters.

Guterres' letter provided a brief overview of the dire situation facing the civilian population of Gaza. There is "a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system," he said.

"Civilians throughout Gaza face grave danger," said the UN Secretary-General. He pointed out that since the start of Israel's aggression on the Gaza Strip "more than 15,000 people have reportedly been killed, over 40 per cent of whom were children. Thousands of others have been injured. More than half of all homes have been destroyed. Some 80 per cent of the population of 2.2 million has been forcibly displaced, into increasingly smaller areas. [As of December 8, the number of people killed by Israeli occupation forces in Gaza had risen to 17,177, including 7,112 children, and 46,000 wounded.]

"More than 1.1 million people have sought refuge in UNRWA [UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East] facilities across Gaza, creating overcrowded, undignified, and unhygienic conditions. Others have nowhere to shelter and find themselves on the street. Explosive remnants of war are rendering areas uninhabitable. There is no effective protection of civilians."

Guterres also warned in the letter that the health care system in Gaza is collapsing.

"Hospitals have turned into battlegrounds. Only 14 hospitals out of 36 facilities are even partially functional. The two major hospitals in south Gaza are operating at three times their bed capacity and are running out of basic supplies and fuel. They are also sheltering thousands of displaced persons. Under these circumstances, more people will die untreated in the coming days and weeks."

"Nowhere is safe in Gaza," he stressed.

Guterres said he expects public order to completely break down soon due to the desperate conditions amid constant bombardment by the Israeli occupation forces, and without shelter or the essentials to survive, rendering even limited humanitarian assistance impossible.

"An even worse situation could unfold, including epidemic diseases and increased pressure for mass displacement into neighbouring countries," he wrote.

"In Resolution 2712 (2023), the Security Council 'calls for the scaling up of the provision of such supplies to meet the humanitarian needs of the civilian population, especially children,'" said the UN chief. News reports from Doctors Without Borders and other sources say severe diarrhea and respiratory infections amongst children are already rampant.

Guterres stressed that the current conditions are making it impossible for meaningful humanitarian operations to be conducted.

"We are, nevertheless, preparing options for monitoring the implementation of the resolution, even if we recognize that in the present circumstances, that is untenable."

While delivery of supplies through the Rafah crossing continues, quantities are insufficient and have dropped since the pause came to an end, Guterres said.

"We are simply unable to reach those in need inside Gaza. The capacity of the United Nations and its humanitarian partners has been decimated by supply shortages, lack of fuel, interrupted communications, and growing insecurity."

He said that the humanitarian personnel have joined the vast majority of Gazan civilians in evacuating to south Gaza ahead of advancing Israeli military attacks.

Guterres also underscored the irreversible nature of the catastrophe.

"At least 130 UNRWA colleagues have been killed, many with their families," Guterres said.

"We are facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system. The situation is fast deteriorating into a catastrophe with potentially irreversible implications for Palestinians as a whole and for peace and security in the region. Such an outcome must be avoided at all costs," the letter added.

"The international community has a responsibility to use all its influence to prevent further escalation and end this crisis.

"I urge the members of the Security Council to press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe.

"I reiterate my appeal for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared."

"This is urgent. The civilian population must be spared from greater harm. With a humanitarian ceasefire, the means of survival can be restored, and humanitarian assistance can be delivered in a safe and timely manner across the Gaza Strip," the letter concluded.

U.S. Vetoes Another UN Security Council Resolution Demanding Ceasefire

UN Security Council meets on Gaza ceasefire, December 8, 2023.

On December 8, the U.S. vetoed another UN Security Council resolution demanding a Ceasefire in Gaza. The draft resolution -- presented by the United Arab Emirates -- demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all captives, as well as ensuring humanitarian access. It reiterated the demand that all parties comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, notably regarding the protection of civilians and requested the Secretary-General to report to the Council on an urgent and continuing basis on the state of implementation of the resolution.

Thirteen Council members, including three permanent members, China, France and the Russian Federation, voted in support. The U.S. vetoed while Britain, another permanent member of the Security Council, abstained.

The author of the draft resolution, Mohamed Issa Abushahab of the United Arab Emirates said it drew co-sponsorship from at least 97 Member States of the General Assembly within 24 hours. The text is "brief, simple and crucial," he said. "The imperative right now must supersede every other consideration," he added, calling for an immediate end to bombing on Gaza.

The U.S. representative, Robert A. Wood, explained the U.S. veto on the following grounds:

1) the draft's authors declined to include language condemning Hamas' terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October.

2) the authors declined to add language reaffirming that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) must be permitted to access and provide medical treatment to the hostages still held by Hamas terrorists.

3) the text failed to acknowledge Israel's right to self-defence, and

4) that the resolution "is not only unrealistic but dangerous; it will simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat what it did on 7 October." "As long as Hamas clings to its ideology of destruction, any ceasefire is at best temporary," he declared.

The Executive Director of Doctors Without Borders-USA, Avril Benoît, issued a statement condemning the U.S. veto saying that by "vetoing this resolution, the U.S. stands alone in casting its vote against humanity." "The U.S. veto makes it complicit in the carnage in Gaza." "By continuing to provide diplomatic cover for the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, the U.S. is signalling that international humanitarian law can be applied selectively -- and that the lives of some people matter less than the lives of others. Israel has continued to indiscriminately attack civilians and civilian structures, impose a siege that amounts to collective punishment for the entire population of Gaza, force mass displacement, and deny access to vital medical care and humanitarian assistance. The U.S. continues to provide political and financial support to Israel as it prosecutes its military operations regardless of the terrible toll on civilians. For humanitarians to be able to respond to the overwhelming needs, we need a ceasefire now," Benoît added.

Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said, "Our American colleagues have condemned thousands -- if not tens of thousands -- more civilians in Palestine and Israel, including women and children, to death, along with the UN workers who are trying to help them. History will assess what Washington has done." Polyansky added, "One can say many beautiful but empty words about democracy, human rights, peace, security, some rules and order, but today, we learned the true value of these words as two members of the UN Security Council preferred to remain complicit in Israel's brutal massacre."

China's Xinhua news agency posted an editorial which said:

"Amid a global outcry for peace, the United States has once again pitted itself against the international community by vetoing a draft resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The current situation has obliged UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to invoke Article 99 of the UN Charter to urge the Security Council to call for a ceasefire. This is the first time in more than 50 years that the article, which says the secretary-general may inform the council of matters he believes threatening international peace and security, has been invoked. As a global superpower, the United States should take its due responsibility and join other Security Council members in pooling all efforts toward the common goal of quelling the conflict in Gaza to provide the Palestinian people with hope to survive and the Middle East hope for peace."

Reports of Successes Achieved by Palestinian Resistance in Gaza

The Palestinian Resistance claims that Israel has so far lost 400 to 500 Israeli military vehicles, most of which are Merkava tanks. Its claims are backed by video evidence and the Arlington, Virginia-based news outlet Axios considers the claim of the resistance to be legitimate. Axios says it crunched the numbers in terms of Israeli military capabilities. Citing Israeli defence information, Axios said that Israel has nearly 2,200 tanks. Other sources say that 1,750 of these tanks are combat-ready, distributed equally between north, south, centre, and the eastern borders of the country, namely the Jordan Valley region.

Axios points out that it is important to keep in mind that many of these tanks are positioned on the porous Israel-Sinai border, and that also many have not entered the war on Gaza to secure the so-called Gaza Envelope (the areas surrounding the Gaza Strip). It concludes that a simple mathematical equation demonstrates that Israel simply does not have the military capability of sustaining its hardware losses in the battlefield for months to come, let alone years.

The report provided by the Al-Qassam Brigades prior to the December 9-10 weekend said that "in the last 72 hours, Al-Qassam fighters completely or partially destroyed 135 military vehicles in all fighting axes in the Gaza Strip."

Significant Numbers of Israeli Soldiers Killed, Wounded and Declared Disabled

Israeli media sources report that more than 5,000 Israeli soldiers have been wounded in fighting in Gaza since October 7, while Israeli officials are warning of a looming mental health crisis, an Israeli newspaper reported on December 9. Specialists from Israel's Ministry of Defence said its rehabilitation department had received 60 wounded soldiers every day since the start of the war in Gaza.

At least 420 Israeli soldiers have been killed since October 7 Limor Luria, deputy director general and head of the Defense Ministry's Rehabilitation Department, told Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper and at least 2,000 Israeli soldiers have been declared disabled, with health officials "in a hurry to release the wounded so it can admit new patients," the newspaper reported. "We have never faced something like this," Luria said when confirming that 5,000 soldiers had been wounded since the start of the fighting. Sixty per cent of the wounded have suffered from severe wounds to their hands and feet, including those who have required amputations the reports inform. Around 12 per cent of injuries consist of damage to the spleen, kidneys, and rupture of internal organs, the official said.

Israel Assassinates Distinguished Palestinian Scholar

Palestinians worldwide are mourning the loss of Refaat Alareer, a distinguished academic, translator, poet and activist who was targeted, hunted down and assassinated in an Israeli air strike on his sister's home in Gaza City on December 7. He was 44 years old. The world's people stand with them; they mourn with them; like them, they fight to win.

Refaat Alareer was a respected scholar of English literature at the Islamic University of Gaza. He was highly revered as a tribune of the people, a mentor to a generation of Palestinian youth and a voice of the resistance to Israeli occupation and aggression. One academic colleague said, "It is no exaggeration to say that Refaat used almost every lecture to encourage his students to write about the occupation and our struggle as Palestinians in Gaza." Another wrote: "Israel killed Refaat, but people like him are very hard to die. Not only did he leave his words, poems, interviews, books, posts, and stories, but he also left behind him a generation of writers and activists who will carry on the powerful work he started and never be silenced. Refaat's voice will never die as Gaza will always write back."

The European colonialists knew that in order to wipe out a people, their culture must be extinguished. That is why after initial attempts to wipe out the Indigenous Peoples of the United States and Canada failed, the residential school system was established to commit cultural genocide against them, deprive them of their language, thought material, spirituality and value systems.

The Nazis mercilessly slaughtered the Polish intelligentsia when they invaded Poland on September 1, 1939 for the same reason. The despicable former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in his endeavour to wipe out the Greek Resistance also declared that unless Greek culture were decimated, the Greeks would remain united.

The U.S. imperialists in launching their vicious failed "shock and awe" campaign against Iraq, wiped out the treasures of antiquity of that cradle of civilization, and mocked and distorted the meanings communicated through their language and thought material. So too, their disinformation campaigns are all based on denigrating a people's culture, the glue which holds together the relations between humans and humans and humans and nature, cemented over the years of their existence as a people.

The deliberate attacks of the Israeli Zionists of Palestinians' distinguished intellectuals is to smash their unity, coherence, and lofty aims to which these intellectuals give expression. Never will they succeed. Palestine's older generations have set the younger generations a course which upholds their dignity and right to be. They fight to win. The Zionists will be defeated.

On November 1, in the heat of Refaat's and his people's courageous resistance to the current Zionist assault on Gaza, he tweeted a now-famous poem, which he pinned at the top of his page, sharing how he wished to be remembered, if he must die. It reads:

If I must die,
you must live
to tell my story
to sell my things
to buy a piece of cloth
and some strings,
(make it white with a long tail)
so that a child, somewhere in Gaza
while looking heaven in the eye
awaiting his dad who left in a blaze --
and bid no one farewell
not even to his flesh
not even to himself --
sees the kite, my kite you made, flying up above
and thinks for a moment an angel is there
bringing back love
If I must die
let it bring hope
let it be a tale.

It will be done, over and over again, until victory.

Biden Administration Bypasses Congress and Senate to Ship Weapons to Israel

Staff of the Biden administration call on U.S. President to implement an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, December 13, 2023.

U.S. President Joe Biden, often now referred to as Genocide Joe for supporting and funding Israel's genocidal war against the people of Palestine, has been attempting for months to secure more than $100 billion in supplemental war funding for Israel and Ukraine. To pass, bills in both houses need to be reconciled, however, he has been unable to secure approval in either body. Thus, on December 8, the State Department transmitted an emergency declaration to lawmakers for the sale of thousands of tank munitions to Israel. This sale negated the standard 20-day period that congressional committees are typically given to review such a sale, news agencies inform.

CNN reported on December 13 that "The Biden administration currently has no plans to place conditions on the military aid it is providing to Israel," adding that the Biden administration is facing "growing calls by Democratic lawmakers and human rights organizations for the U.S. to stop providing weapons unless Israel does more to protect civilians in Gaza." This lack of conditions is said to be one of the blocks to support for the bill.

The Biden administration says that it "expects allies and partners to use U.S.-made equipment in accordance with international humanitarian law and pointed to Israel's practice of embedding military lawyers with Israel Defense Force units who determine beforehand whether a strike will be proportional and legal," CNN reports. CNN goes on to report that "The U.S. does not consider the death of civilians as the result of a military operation to be itself a violation of the law of armed conflict, one of the U.S. officials explained, because that is not the standard set by international humanitarian law – which says only that civilians must not be directly targeted in attacks. Rather, the U.S. is judging the legality of Israel's operations on whether its strikes are proportional and seeking a legitimate military target. But officials acknowledge they are not conducting real-time assessments of each Israeli strike, what weapon was used, and how many civilians were killed as a result." The U.S. is obligated under international law to not knowingly contribute to internationally wrongful acts by other states.

An attempt on December 6 to get Senate approval for the $111-billion war bill failed to pass, with factional fighting within the ruling circles reaching fever pitch. According to U.S. calculations, war and funding for it, serves to unite the military bureaucracy and factions contending for power but this is no longer happening. Whether labelled Republican or Democrat, the factions no longer operate as political parties with political aims, but rather as a cartel, with factions within factions all vying for more power, all with their own self-interests and all blatantly showing no concern for the peoples at home or abroad.

In this most recent Senate vote, the connection between war abroad and increased repression at home was evident. Those blocking the funding demanded more attacks on immigrants and refugees and more militarization of the southern border with Mexico. Some are also refusing funding for Ukraine. Despite a direct appeal by Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken being sent to testify about why Ukraine should be funded, the bill failed. In the House of Representatives, the larger war funding bill was not even considered and instead only $14 billion in funding for Israel was passed in Congress on November 2. This bill, brought forward by the Republicans, sought to divert funds from the Internal Revenue Service budget to send aid to Israel. It was ultimately voted down in the Senate on November 14, where the Democrats have a majority.

Congress will soon break for the winter recess at this point, without the Biden administration securing the bulk of the funding it seeks. Like Afghanistan, Ukraine and Israel represent yet more foreign policy failures by Biden, reflecting the refusal of the U.S. to take the peoples and their resistance into account.

U.S. Continues to Orchestrate Israel's Slaughter in Gaza and Occupied West Bank

Oakland dockworkers refuse to load ship bound for Israel, November 3, 2023.

The United States has supplied Israel with over 10,000 tons of military equipment since the beginning of the war on Gaza on October 7, Israel's Defense Ministry said in a statement on December 6. The 200th cargo plane carrying military equipment has arrived in Israel, the statement said.

Once again revealing its extreme arrogance and overconfidence, the U.S. government has drafted plans for a "multiphase postwar game plan" that would see a "revamped" Palestinian Authority (PA) installed as rulers of the Gaza Strip "once the war between Israel and Palestinian resistance factions winds down," according to State Department and White House officials who spoke with news outlet Politico. National Security Council official Brett McGurk is reportedly spearheading the plan to impose the PA as a de facto puppet authority in Gaza. They call it "the best of only bad options."

This is despite the published results of a public opinion poll conducted in the occupied Palestinian territories in July, which reported that 63 per cent of respondents agreed that the survival of the PA mainly benefits Israel, while 50 per cent said they support the organization's collapse or dissolution. When asked to choose between PA leader Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in hypothetical elections, support for Haniyeh among those who would participate stood at 56 per cent. In comparison, only 33 per cent said they would back Abbas. The Hamas flag is a permanent feature of demonstrations in the West Bank.

Protest blocks Boeing manufacturing facility, Missouri, November 6, 2023.

United Auto Workers' Union Joins Call for Permanent Ceasefire

Major U.S. unions rally at the White House to call for a ceasefire, December 1, 2023.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) in the U.S. has endorsed the call for an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza. With about 400,000 active members and more than 580,000 retired members, they are the largest U.S. union to date to do so. UAW members joined those from unions across the country who stood with a broad-based group of hunger strikers December 1, protesting for Palestine in front of the White House and demanding a ceasefire. At the press conference, speaker after speaker denounced President Joe Biden for backing and funding the Israeli bombardment and siege of Gaza. Participants included Palestinian and Jewish organizations, the Coalition of Labor Union Women and the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, anti-war and rights activists and more, all standing as one in support of Palestine.

The call by the UAW puts forward the need for "building a global community of solidarity." UAW officials declared unequivocally, "We opposed fascism in World War II, we opposed the Vietnam War, we opposed apartheid South Africa, and we mobilized union resources in that fight." Given that Biden joined the UAW picket lines to still be seen as a "union man," the resolution by the UAW directly demanding he push for a permanent ceasefire has even greater significance. Far from being known as a "union man," Biden is now aptly called Genocide Joe.

The UAW joins the other national unions which are demanding a ceasefire, including the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT). Teacher and health care unions, including National Nurses United, the Chicago, Boston and Portland Teachers Unions and others have also demanded an immediate ceasefire.

The organizing efforts among rank-and-file members across the country are such that a call is being made to the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) to endorse a call for a permanent ceasefire now. APWU President Mark Dimondstein who is an AFL-CIO vice president, is advocating for the AFL-CIO to take a stand against the war on Palestinians.

A call initiated by UE, UAW and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) has garnered support from more than 2,800 union locals and others, including those from Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Steelworkers (USW), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSME), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), and Unite Here.

Like other resolutions, in addition to a ceasefire, the call demands that water, fuel, food, and other humanitarian aid be allowed into Gaza. Reflecting the internationalist spirit evident in the many actions across the country where workers are mobilizing, it says, "We express our solidarity with all workers and our common desire for peace in Palestine and Israel, and we call on President Joe Biden and Congress to push for an immediate ceasefire and end to the siege of Gaza."

The persistent actions for Palestine show that workers are not only passing resolutions but also working together with the many organizations defending the rights of Palestinians. In the past workers and their unions have taken stands to refuse to load war material, for instance bound for Iraq, and to refuse to unload goods such as from South Africa. The demand is to take similar actions now.

More U.S. Cities Call for Ceasefire in Gaza

In addition to contention in Congress, Biden's unconditional support for Israel – even now as the genocide and war crimes increase – has more U.S. cities passing resolutions demanding a ceasefire and an end to the siege of Gaza. Among the larger cities to pass resolutions are Akron, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia; Detroit, Michigan; Oakland and Richmond, California; Providence, Rhode Island; Seattle, Washington; and Wilmington, Delaware.

The passing of the resolutions always includes broad mobilization of the public to speak, often for hours, at the city council meetings demanding support for Palestine. The public outrage is such that most resolutions are also demanding more humanitarian aid for Gaza, including fuel, food and medical supplies. The resolutions of some, such as Richmond's and Ypsilanti, Michigan, also call for ending U.S. aid to Israel, with people denouncing the fact that the many bombers, tons of bombs, tanks, firepower of all kinds and more continue to be supplied by the U.S.

Various organizations are mobilizing to get more resolutions passed and encouraging cities to take further actions, like boycotts and divestment.

For Your Information

Activating Convention on Genocide Against Israel and Complicit States

Professor Francis Boyle, a U.S. human rights lawyer and professor of international law at the University of Illinois College of Law, is arguing that by invoking the Genocide Convention, attempts to take Israel before the International Court of Justice can be made successful. This is outlined by Professor Boyle, noted by UN whistleblower Craig Mokhiber, backed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Mairead Maguire, and written about by Jordanian-Palestinian political writer and activist Sam Husseini.

In a report published by Pressenza on December 5, Husseini argues for a combination of mass protest actions and diplomatic moves. The International Criminal Court has been asked by several countries including South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros, Djibouti, Colombia, Algeria and Türkiye to prosecute Israeli officials, but has not taken action. He says "The International Court of Justice, also called the World Court, in contrast has ruled against Israel. But so far these rulings have been advisory opinions. It ruled against Israel in a case regarding its wall in 2004. In another case before it, it is expected to rule against Israel's long term policies."

Husseini cites Professor Boyle's argument as follows:

"We need to keep pressing directly against the U.S. and Israeli governments, but their hearts are like stone. If we reach other states to invoke the Genocide Convention, it may be a key stop in curtailing the slaughter.

"Moreover, it could be a turning point in global relations. Should a positive emergency ruling by the International Court of Justice be forthcoming, it would dramatically isolate the U.S. and Israel at the UN. The U.S. would of course try to block anything at the UN Security Council. But with a World Court ruling, Boyle argues, the stage would be set for the General Assembly to assert itself using the Uniting for Peace procedure. Combined with sustained protests, like [against] the WTO and other critical confrontations, the costs of continuing the slaughter could become unsustainable. Moreover, a World Court ruling could facilitate other legal efforts, like universal jurisdiction.

"For all that to happen, a country needs to step forward and invoke the Genocide Convention.

"Make no mistake; any nation that does this may well be targeted in insidious ways by the U.S. and by Israel. Any such nation should be afforded every bit of support people of goodwill can muster."

Craig Murray, the former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan from August 2002 to October 2004, outlines in a November 13 article what it is that state parties can do under the convention, that each has the right to call out the genocide in progress in Gaza and report it to the United Nations. He says:

"In the event that another state party disputes the claim of genocide – and Israel, the United States and the United Kingdom are all state parties – then the International Court of Justice is required to adjudicate on 'the responsibility of a State for genocide.'

Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crime of Genocide

The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was presented to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in December 1948. This followed the 1946 resolution of UNGA that recognized genocide as an international crime and called for the creation of a binding treaty to prevent and punish its perpetration. The Convention came into force on January 12, 1951. Today, there are 152 state parties that have signed and ratified or acceded to the convention.

Murray writes: "The relevant articles of the genocide convention are as follows:

Article VIII

Any Contracting Party may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III.

Article IX

Disputes between the Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation, application or fulfilment of the present Convention, including those relating to the responsibility of a State for genocide or for any of the other acts enumerated in article III, shall be submitted to the International Court of Justice at the request of any of the parties to the dispute.

"Note that here 'parties to the dispute' means the states disputing the facts of genocide, not the parties to the genocide/conflict. Any single state party is able to invoke the convention.

"There is no doubt that Israel's actions amount to genocide. Numerous international law experts have said so and genocidal intent has been directly expressed by numerous Israeli ministers, generals and public officials."

Definition of Genocide

The definition of genocide in international law, from the Genocide Convention, follows:

Article II

In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

(a) Killing members of the group;

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

"I can see no room to doubt whatsoever that Israel's current campaign of bombing of civilians and of the deprivation of food, water and other necessities of life to Palestinians amounts to genocide under articles II a), b) and c).

"It is also worth considering Articles III and IV:

Article III

The following acts shall be punishable:

(a) Genocide;

(b) Conspiracy to commit genocide;

(c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide;

(d) Attempt to commit genocide;

(e) Complicity in genocide.

Article IV

Persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III shall be punished, whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals.

"There is, at the very least, a strong prima facie case that the actions of the United States and United Kingdom and others, in openly providing direct military support to be used in genocide, are complicit in genocide. The point of Article IV is that individuals are responsible, not just states. So Israel's Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak bear individual responsibility. So, indeed, do all those who have been calling for the destruction of the Palestinians.

"It is very definitely worth activating the Genocide Convention. A judgement of the International Court of Justice that Israel is guilty of genocide would have an extraordinary diplomatic effect and would cause domestic difficulties in the U.K. and even in the U.S. in continuing to subsidize and arm Israel."

The International Court of Justice is an organ of the United Nations. Murray says that "while the United States has repudiated its compulsory jurisdiction, the United Kingdom has not and the EU positively accepts it." He adds:

"If the International Court of Justice [ICJ] makes a determination of genocide, then the International Criminal Court does not have to determine that genocide has happened. This is important because unlike the august and independent ICJ, the ICC [International Criminal Court] is very much a western government puppet institution which will wiggle out of action if it can. But a determination of the ICJ of genocide and of complicity in genocide would reduce the ICC's task to determining which individuals bear the responsibility. That is a prospect which can indeed alter the calculations of politicians.

"It is also the fact that a reference for genocide would force the Western media to address the issue and use the term, rather than just pump out propaganda about Hamas having fighting bases in hospitals. Furthermore a judgement from the ICJ would automatically trigger a reference to the United Nations General Assembly -- crucially not to the Western-vetoed Security Council."

The Watermelon: Symbol of Palestinian Resistance

Hamilton, November 5, 2023

More and more, watermelons are appearing on placards at demonstrations in support of Palestine. The fruit, symbol of Palestinian resistance and to protest the war in Gaza, has the same colours as the Palestinian flag and that of the Great Arab Revolt of the early 20th century: red, black, green and white. Similarly, social media users are displaying watermelon emojis instead of Palestinian flags to avoid having their accounts or videos deleted.

The watermelon has been considered a political symbol for decades in the Palestinian territories, notably during the first and second Intifadas, December 8, 1987 to September 13, 1993 and September 28, 2000 to February 8, 2005, respectively.

In 1967, in the wake of the Six-Day War between Israel and Egypt, Jordan and Syria, in which the State of Israel tripled its annexed territory, Israeli forces prohibited the Palestinian people from waving their flag in the occupied territories. The simple display, side by side, of the colours red, black, green and white was also banned. To circumvent the ban, Palestinian people began holding up watermelons, cutting them to expose their white rind, red flesh and black seeds on green skin.

A ban on the display of the Palestinian flag during the first Intifada ended in 1993 with the signing of the Oslo Accords. Following that signing, in 1993 the red, black, white and green flag was recognized as the flag of the Palestinian Authority, which was created to administer Gaza and parts of the occupied West Bank.

The watermelon as a symbol is also linked to food sovereignty in the occupied territories. During the first Intifada, the Israeli government prohibited Palestinian farmers from planting several types of seeds, including watermelon. Farmers instead planted hybrid varieties from Israeli seed companies. This, along with other conditions of the occupation, led to the near extinction of a local watermelon variety, Jadu'i, known for its disease resistance and adaptation to the microclimate.

The watermelon as a symbol saw a resurgence earlier this year. In January, Israel's new Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, ordered police to remove Palestinian flags from public spaces, saying their display constituted "support for terrorism." Images of watermelons appeared during the marches. At a demonstration organized in Jerusalem in July, Israeli demonstrators carried signs with the colours of the Palestinian flag, a watermelon or the word "freedom." In August, a group of demonstrators wore t-shirts bearing watermelon illustrations during a rally in Tel Aviv to protest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plans for judicial reform.

In the artistic world, the watermelon has also found its place. Here is an extract from "Ode to the Watermelon," by Aracelis Girmay, a U.S. poet:

& in Palestine,
Where it is a crime to wave
The flag of Palestine in Palestine,
Watermelon halves are raised
Against Israeli troops
For the red, black, white, green
Of Palestine.
Forever, I love you your color hemmed
By rind.

Left: Khaled Hourani's work, The Colors of the Palestinian Flag, on display at Glasgow Contemporary Arts Centre in 2014. Right: artwork by Sarah Hatayet.

(24 heures, agencemediapalestine.fr, konbini.com, Le Monde, AP, AFP, Noovo, vice.com. Photos: Agence Media Palestine, Palstine Poster Project, G.R. Charania)

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