Useful readings on the conflict in the Middle East | 1 | 27.10.23

It's time for another round up of useful readings on the ever deepening and ever widening conflict playing out in the Middle East, the latest phase of which was triggered by the Hamas incursion from occupied Gaza into Israel on October 7^th. An incursion and a subsequent response from Israel that has sparked off what can best be described as an unthinking tribalism as people fall into the trap of 'taking sides' without applying any critical filters regarding the 'side' they're taking. An unthinking tribalism that has pretty much finished off what some thought was an emerging 'freedom' movement which I wrote about in this piece: It was never going to last so, we need to move on... 16.10.23.

Given the horror of what Hamas perpetrated in their October 7^th incursion and the massive retaliation by Israel on the territory of Gaza which is indiscriminately slaughtering civilians in their thousands, it's probably asking too much to expect anything remotely resembling a rational discussion about this unfolding shitshow. However, with the geo-political issues at stake that could well see this conflict widen into a regional war and possibly worse, taking a few steps back and trying to view the situation with some degree of cool detachment is a necessity if the juggernaut towards all out war is to be stopped. Instead of this, we're getting a culture war on steroids, as Kathleen Stock discusses in this piece:

How the Israel-Hamas culture war shames us - Kathleen Stock | Unherd | 27.10.23

Alongside the terrible war that started on 7 October, a virulent war of words is now erupting across the globe. And it seems that in both cases, many participants are not observing ethical rules of engagement. This week, for instance, Israeli officials demanded the resignation of UN Secretary-General António Guterres after he said in a speech that the 7 October attack “did not happen in a vacuum”. The Israel ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, has responded by accusing Guterres of expressing “understanding for terrorism and murder” and “compassion for the most terrible atrocities committed against the citizens of Israel”. He has also described the Secretary-General as “blaming the victim” in a way that amounts to a “blood libel”.

Kathleen Stock is a philosopher so the piece linked to above may come over as being somewhat academic. In these weird and troubled times, a piece that carefully builds an argument for stepping back from yet another toxic culture war has some value in my opinion. However, I appreciate that Stocks way of wording an argument may not be to everyone's taste. So, in the spirit of offering a range of takes, there's this piece from CJ Hopkins cautioning against being bludgeoned by barrages of propaganda from the protagonists in this conflict into adopting an unthinking tribal position:

Israel's 9/11 - CJ Hopkins | 15.10.23

Both of these parties are fucking with your head, as are their assorted propaganda-spewing mouthpieces. They are trying to force you into a position where your only choice is to support mass murder.

You do not have to support mass murder.

I know it’s difficult at times like this, but please try not to let people fuck with your head. Try not to let them punch your buttons. Try not to let them make you react to emotional stimuli like Pavlov’s dog. Take a break from the mass hysteria. Try to see things clearly. Try to understand the goals and tactics of both sides of this conflict, regardless of which side you think you’re on. If you do not know the history of this conflict — the conflict I described above in a nutshell — please take a few minutes and educate yourself. It’s actually not that complicated.

There have been pronouncements of pretty much unconditional support for Hamas and Hezbollah from some people I hoped would have known better. It's a case of my 'enemy's enemy is my friend' taken to a ridiculous degree. One that should be indefensible but, some people have a knack of twisting words and rhetoric to justify their allegiances. For those 'backing' Hamas, this piece from 2021 may hopefully give some pause for thought:

Hamas leaders seen as living in luxury while Gazans suffer - The Arab Weekly | 3.2.21

Hamas leaders who ascended the ranks when it was an underground militant group have traded their street clothes and motorbikes for business suits and shiny SUVs. Some, like Haniyeh, have decamped to luxury hotels in Turkey and Qatar, leaving lower-ranking officials and ordinary Palestinians to deal with the consequences of their policies.

“Every year, the situation is getting from bad to worse,” said Youssef Ahmed, who works in a food stall in an east Gaza City market. “People don’t have money to buy the basic things.”

Still, while Gazans grumble privately, they rarely speak out against Hamas, which has a history of locking up critics.

Ahmed said he blames “everyone” — Hamas, Israel and Abbas’s Palestinian Authority. But he said, as the ruling power, Hamas has a special responsibility.

Haniyeh, who became Palestinian prime minister after the 2006 election and is now the overall leader of Hamas, left Gaza in 2019 for what Hamas said was a temporary foreign tour. He has yet to return.

Moving to look at a different facet of the situation, during the fight against the Covid restrictions in 2020/2021, one of the things we experienced were numerous attempts at censorship and the suppression of free speech for anyone who dared to question the narrative we were being fed. The machinery of censorship has been moved seamlessly to undertake the task of clamping down on anyone daring the question the motives of Israel and the tactics they're deploying in their onslaught on Gaza. There are many other ways the ongoing conflict is being leveraged to push the Great Reset which are discussed in this piece here:

The Israel-Hamas War is ALREADY Pushing the Great Reset Agenda - Kit Knightly | OffGuardian | 20.10.23

Normalising the suppression of dissent and creating a culture of fear around free expression are a major part of the Great Reset, after all the other steps are so much easier if you outlaw inconvenient protests.

And, naturally, calls for the suppression of freedom of expression have sprouted up everywhere since the war started. We covered this in our article “Israel-Hamas “war” – another excuse to shut down free speech”

Since that article was published this campaign has gained momentum.

European Union Commissioner Thierry Breton sent warning letters out to every major social media platform, claiming they needed to “combat disinformation” regarding Israel and threatening them with fines.

Lastly, I don't normally re-post links that I've used in previous posts. However, in the interests of developing something that can be described as a principled position and giving people some indication of where I currently stand, I have no hesitation in reposting this:

Neither Israel nor Hamas! - Anarchist Communist Group | 11.10.23

Hamas was originally supported by the Israeli State to undermine the more secular Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). It has its origins in Mujama al-Islamiya which was founded by the Palestinian cleric Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, seen as an organisation involved in charity and welfare work for the Palestinian community of Gaza. The Israeli state regarded it as preferable to the PLO, as was its successor Hamas. Hamas was always right wing, Islamist and nationalist, with hostile attitudes towards women and LGBQT people and to the Palestinian working class.

As ever, these compilations of readings and my brief thoughts on the issues they discuss are just snapshots in time as the situation evolves. My thoughts are not definitive statements to be set in stone. As events unfold and new, reliable information emerges, my thinking about the conflict and its implications will inevitably change. Having said that, in the fog of war, what constitutes reliable information is a somewhat moot point!

As mentioned earlier, there are geo-political implications to this conflict which seems destined to widen. Implications that I'm starting to get my head around. At some point in the near future, I intend to produce a compilation of readings looking at these and more importantly, how they fit into the shift in the power balance that's taking place between a tired US and it's allies on the one hand, and on the other, the rising nations in the BRICs. What I'll also do is find some readings explaining how the money that has been backing the US and it's allies is shifting towards backing the nations that make up the BRICs.