KUALA LUMPUR(Palestine Foundation Information Center)Parti Pejuang Tanah Air president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir has called for military intervention to save Gaza in a lengthy statement on the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip that has been ongoing for 22 days killing around 8,000 people and injuring around 20,000 others.
Here follows the statement that was made on Friday, “So many innocent lives have perished in the bombings of Gaza by Zionist Israel. The world watched in shock and sadness as children, women, and the elderly, all non-combatants, being murdered or harmed. The question remains: how can the Palestinian people protect themselves from Israeli bombs raining down on them from the skies?
It is clear that Israel’s defiance of international law and global public sentiment is, in no small way, a result of the strong backing it gets from the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and various other allies. This support goes far beyond symbolism. It includes the supply of weapons, financial aid, and the amplification of Israel’s narrative through the global media.
Western media outlets have transformed into conduits for Israel’s agenda, contributing to the violence, and the resulting death and suffering.
As we witness the deliberate slaughter of Gaza’s inhabitants and the destruction of their homes, hospitals, places of worship, and infrastructure, the world now realizes that Israel is committing ethnic cleansing, genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. These heinous acts are executed with the purpose of seizing Gaza as another piece of territory, where new settlements are to be erected, erasing the history of the proud Palestinian people, leaving only remnants of their former homes.
Day by day, the rising number of casualties in Gaza demands urgent action from the international community to prevent the genocide.
Are we to wait until Gaza is reduced to ruins and its entire population decimated before acknowledging the tragic catastrophe that has hit them? It is crucial that immediate and concerted efforts are made to intervene, protect innocent lives, and stop the horrors happening in Gaza.
Numerous diplomatic efforts aimed at resolving this crisis, to compel Israel to adhere to international laws, withdraw from Palestine, and stop its genocidal actions and building of settlements have yielded no results.
Diplomacy has failed the Palestinian people. Israel’s blatant disregard for international laws has not been met with sufficient condemnation from the global powers. No sanctions, no trade embargoes, no political isolation measures were imposed against Israel. This is perplexing. It only emboldens this rogue nation. Instead, Western support for Israel continues, all at the deathly expense of Palestine and its innocent population.
Even if international pressure were exerted on Israel, the impact may not be seen for months or even years. Meanwhile, the death toll in Gaza continues to rise.
Malaysians, like people everywhere, hate war and the devastation it brings. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that the outcome of Israel’s bombings in Gaza would be tragic if Palestine is left to defend itself without the crucial assistance it desperately needs.
Let’s not forget what happened in Bosnia. Without the means to protect themselves against Serb attacks, a fundamental right upheld by the Geneva Convention, the entire Bosnian population would have been annihilated.
Is this to be the tragic fate for Gaza? Must we passively witness, through the lens of social media, the slaughter of Palestinians?
As an act of self-defense, there may be no viable alternative left other than a military response to Israel’s imminent invasion. Nations in the region and others who share our disgust for Israel’s crimes against humanity should unite, and target Israeli military installations and neutralize their capacity to inflict further harm on Gaza.
It is important to precisely target deadly military equipment like missile launch pads, tanks, drone command centers and fighter jets while minimizing casualties – even among military personnel. It should be absolutely crucial to avoid civilian casualties.
The UN Charter and Geneva Convention provide for the use of force as acts of self-defense to halt an imminent armed attack on the brink of launch.
Israel’s intention to launch ground attacks to “cleanse” Gaza of all its inhabitants was made obvious in pronouncements by President Herzog, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Gallant, among others. It isn’t necessary for Palestine to provide proof of such murderous intentions as it is plain for all to see.
Now don’t get me wrong – if there’s a political solution that guarantees a stop to the killings, we should gladly support it.
But in the absence of a diplomatic solution that stops the bombings now, only a joint military action in the defense of the people of Gaza can they be saved. Military action is the only language Israel, and their allies understand.
It is unfortunate that an armed response must be deployed to stop the genocide. But the rationale behind it is to defend and protect humanity. After all, where would our collective humanity be if we allow these crimes against humanity to continue unchallenged? What choice do we have?”
