[Marxism] Death in Gaza: Silence is complicity

[Eli Stephens <elishastephens@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Original: http://lefti.blogspot.com/2008_12_01_archive.html#6983779613420913774

As I write this, the latest figures say 195 Palestinians lie dead in Gaza, 
victims of an Israeli terrorist attack. The Western press is quick to note
that the majority of the dead were "Hamas", and that just "some"
civilians were among the dead; indeed, one of the main attacks was a
police graduation ceremony. But not, mind you, people who were in the
process of, had in the past, or were even suspected of involvement in the 
rocket attacks which Israel claims as the reason for the attacks. "Hamas" 
policemen are civilians, just as much as the "real" civilians who Israel has 
also callously murdered.
It
goes without saying that Israel had at least implicit, and almost
certainly explicit, approval from the United States to proceed with
this attack. But really, the complicity extends far beyond whatever has
passed between the U.S. government and Israel in recent days and weeks.
Because Israel has been starving the people of Gaza, and launching
attacks on them and killing them, for months. And the world, including
Western governments and the corporate media, has been as silent about
this silent (and not-so-silent) terrorism as it can possibly be. Just
as an example, I've been watching CNN for a half-hour now. The Israeli
attack on Gaza which has killed 195 people (proportionately, more than
on 9/11)? When I turned on the TV (having seen the news on my
computer), I was expected wall-to-wall coverage. Instead, what have I
seen? The largest single-day Palestinian death toll since 1967 has
received exactly one sentence of coverage, less than 30 seconds [Note: hours 
later, the coverage has expanded, but still isn't remotely commensurate with 
the significance of the event]. Not one of the corporate media reports (AP, New 
York Times)
even includes a pro-forma "call for restraint" from the U.S. government
[Note: much later, it comes], nor even bothers to note that the U.S.
government (nor the U.N. Secretary-General, etc.) has not issued any
statement on the matter. Which is a continuation of the situation that
has persisted for months. Israeli terrorism, world silence.
It
is those months (years, really) of silence (or relative silence) from
the entire world which precipitated this attack, every bit as much as
any implicit or explicit approval of the actual attack by the U.S.
government.


Eli Stephens
 Left I on the News
 http://lefti.blogspot.com


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