Note from the editors: WSPN prides itself on being an unbiased, open forum for students to express themselves and their opinions. While WSPN aims to represent all voices, the student opinion articles expressed on WSPN do not represent the views of the publication as a whole. WSPN condemns violence and hatred, and hopes to provide a platform for conversation about important issues in our local community. WSPN will be publishing more coverage on this topic soon, including additional opinion articles, to ensure that multiple perspectives are represented. Please refer to our longer editor’s note here. 

We stand with all Palestinians, because the war crimes committed by Israel for decades are blatant acts of terrorism that know no religion. At least 17,700 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed as of Dec. 9. This bombardment and oppression started many decades ago, yet has been ignored as the Palestinian people have been constantly dehumanized.

The definition of a terrorist is “a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.” Under this definition, we believe the Israeli government should be labeled as that. They have never been held accountable for breaking multiple UN resolutions and international laws. We also recognize that the atrocities committed by Israel do not reflect on Judaism. This is about land and human rights, not religion. Context is needed to form an unbiased opinion on the situation.

Do you know that over 63% of Gaza’s population rely on international aid? Do you know that over 80% of Gaza’s population live in poverty? Do you know that 500-700 Palestinian children are imprisoned by Israel every year? Do you know that over 60% of Gaza’s population is facing food insecurity? Do you know that 90% of the water in Gaza is undrinkable? However, these horrifying conditions didn’t begin on Oct. 7, when a group of Gazans breached the wall that Israel built to trap them in the Gaza Strip.

Although the Balfour declaration states that “nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-jewish communities in Palestine,” the essence of Zionism directly correlates to the expulsion of Palestinians. During the Nakba in 1948, 750,000 Palestinians were brutally expelled from their homes in a series of massacres with no rights of return. The Nakba was one of the first atrocities committed by Israel that’s continuing even today, as Palestinians are still denied rights to return. One zionist militant during the Nakba confessed, “there were soldiers [who] took flamethrowers and ran after the villagers and burned them.” This same pattern of brutality and expulsion continues as Palestinians are repeatedly expelled from their homes, fearing for their lives.

We would also like to acknowledge that in the Torah, the first Jew present in the Holy Land was Abraham. The origins of all three monotheistic religions can be traced back to Abraham, which is why it is very harmful when a religious group claims that they’re indigenous to a land. The Torah also states that when it was time to establish a state of Israel, that no matter what, humanity should always come first, and if any of the laws of the Torah must be broken in order to make a home in the Holy Land, then it wasn’t time yet (Jeremiah 27:22 and Ketubot 111a). This reiterates that Zionism and Judaism are not intertwined.

The Gaza Strip and the West Bank are the current Palestinian territories. Gaza and the West Bank are separated, with Israeli land cutting in between them. Due to their separation, Hamas is based in Gaza, and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) is based in the West Bank. The idea that Gaza has a “government” is quickly disproven by the fact that Gazans do not have control over their water sources, electricity, food supply, imports and exports or sea and air space.

Hamas is a “political group” and, in our opinion, essentially “Israel’s creation” made to oppose the PLO in 1987. But, would Hamas even exist if it weren’t for the cruelty of the Israeli government? The individuals in Hamas were radicalized by the anger and grief fueled by the constant attacks on their lives. Palestinians in Gaza have also exhausted every other attempt to reach peace in non-violent ways. For example, when Palestinian Gazans peacefully protested at the borders, they were shot by snipers in response. In the West Bank, 239 Palestinian civilians have been killed since Oct. 7, despite having no connections to Hamas. In 2022, 170 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, and in 2021, 319 were killed. See the pattern? The injustice should be evident to anyone who’s been paying attention to the truth.

However, it is important to note that misinformation and bias are everywhere. In news reports, why is it that Israelis are killed, while Palestinians are dead? We believe that the value of Palestinian lives are continuously minimized. When talking about the deal between Hamas and Israel to release 150 Palestinians for 50 Israelis, some have referred to the Israelis being held by Hamas as “hostages,” while referring to the Palestinian being held by Israel as “prisoners.” Yet, two thirds of the Palestinians exchanged were not convicted of any crimes, most were arrested as children and 118 of 150 released are currently children. This year, prior to Oct. 7, over 1,200 Palestinians were held by Israel in administrative detention with no charges. Where was the international community’s outrage for these Palestinian hostages? Where was it in 2022, 2021, 2020 and so on? The lack of attention on and knowledge of Palestinian struggles is nothing new, but a horrifying reality that Palestinians have been forced to live through for decades.

The language and actions of Israeli politicians further dehumanizes Palestinians. Israeli politicians continue to refer to Palestinians as “children of darkness” and “human animals.” On Oct. 9, Defense Minister of Israel Yoav Gallant said, “there will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed. We are fighting animal people, and we will act accordingly.” Even Israeli Army Spokesman R Adm Daniel Hagari claimed on Oct. 10, “We are dropping hundreds of tons of bombs on Gaza. The focus is on destruction, not accuracy.”

But let’s take Israel’s argument into consideration: that the attacks on Gaza are justified because they’re only fighting Hamas. Using that logic, if a school shooter was hiding out in a classroom, would it be morally acceptable to bomb the entire school? If you answered no, then there should be no justification for the absolute bombing of Gaza and its civilians.

As we watch these devastating attacks transpire from afar, it’s more important than ever that we stand up and fight for a productive solution. We want change, and we want it now.

The phrase “Free Palestine” is similar to the phrase “Black Lives Matter,” in that it doesn’t take away from the freedom of any other group, but rather advocates for the needs of an oppressed one. You may have heard Palestinian supporters say, “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” Some people interpret this as an antisemitic phrase, but we believe that the true purpose of this phrase is to call for the freedom of all Palestinians living under Israel’s apartheid system from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean Sea. It’s a call for the indigenous people to be granted the right to govern over their land, and it is in no way calling for the expulsion or murder of Jews. Palestinians should have the same right to live in freedom and safety as Israelis. No life is more valuable than another. That being said, we also feel that Palestinians have a right to resist their occupiers – a right granted to them by international law.

The path to peace lies on everyone being held equally accountable to international law. A ceasefire would only be a temporary solution, because as long as the occupation exists, violence and resistance will also exist. Even today, many Israeli citizens recognize that this occupation contributes to the cycle of violence, resulting in the loss of trust in their own government. On Dec. 3, Israelis in Tel Aviv protested their government’s actions, calling for their prime minister to step down. This is just one of countless protests and strikes within Israel. In addition, Holocaust survivor and trauma expert Gabor Mate spoke on the importance of historical context to the events currently unfolding. Click here to see the short clip and click here for the full interview.

As a society, it is our responsibility to be aware of what is happening around the world. We ask you to continue reading, continue asking questions and continue seeking knowledge, because that is how we can reach a state of peace and safety for everyone. As Nelson Mandela, the face of the South African anti-apartheid movement and an outspoken supporter of Palestinian rights declared in 1997, “we know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.”