Are You Just Another “False Friend” of the Palestinians?

Nine months ago, Palestinians were feeling rather neglected, hard done by and unloved.  No one seemed to care anymore. Palestinians were yesterday’s news. Their friends in the Arab world were either considering, or actually normalising relations with the “Little Satan”, apparently fed up with their beleaguered Palestinian brethren. As if Egypt and Jordan’s peace treaties with Israel weren’t bad enough, the Abraham accords were a kick in the teeth. There were even rumours that the “guardians of Islam”, the home of the “Hajj”, Saudi Arabia were considering normalisation. Oof, with friends like that…

Who could possibly have predicted the worm would turn so emphatically, or so quickly. All it took was a genocidal mass slaughter of medieval barbarity, which when considering the ratio of killed and wounded to the overall population, emerges as the largest and most brutal terror attack in history. With this horror of horrors, Palestinians regained the world’s attention, its sympathy, and dominated the world headlines once more? 

It’s only natural that the world’s sympathy would lie with the victims of such savage and evil slaughter. But, just in case you have been living in a cave for the past nine months, on October 7th, the Palestinians were not the victims. The Palestinians were the perpetrators. The Hamas terrorists, yes terrorists, not freedom fighters, not resistance fighters, not combatants.

These sub-human criminals filmed themselves, sharing their macabre and murderous exploits on social media. They were determined to make sure we were all aware of exactly what they were up to. No “trigger warning” though, for unsuspecting viewers.

So, the victims were Israelis, mostly Jews, but also Muslims, Christians, Druze, foreign workers and tourists. Yet somehow, pretty much from the outset, social media was awash with sympathy and support for the Palestinians.

There were “friends” who celebrated the massacre as an “act of resistance”. For many, the medieval nature of the massacre, including, rape, mutilation, sexual violence, torture of children in front of their parents and parents in front of their children, burning alive, wholesale slaughter and kidnap, well, that all falls into the category of “by any means necessary”.

The Palestinians were back, and back “with a bang”, you might say.  

They had the world’s attention. They had the world’s sympathy, and more. Who needs disloyal Arab brothers when you have your stalwart “friends” in the West, ready to support you, “by any means necessary”? 

Within hours of the massacre, a well-funded, well organised and superbly executed campaign was unleashed to demonize and delegitimise the Jewish State, along with Jews generally. It’s almost as if they knew it was coming, as if they had some kind of prior knowledge. Surely not… However, the very next day, their  “friends” in the West were out in the streets calling for an end to occupation, condemning Israel and its apartheid regime, its “war crimes”, the “genocide and ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians, pretty much, a “full set”, when it comes to a pariah state.

Over the past nine months these “friends” have been relentless. The campaign has been so successful that Israel is now in the dock at both international courts, the ICJ and the ICC, facing charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and more. UN reports, and resolutions condemning  Israel are flying thick and fast. Countries are lining up to recognise a Palestinian State.

Why waste time with negotiations, or compromise? Why take responsibility for your situation, or your actions? With “friends” like these, there’s no need. Terror works! And as for the war in Gaza, Israel’s attempt to neutralise the Hamas threat once and for all, and return its hostages, well that is clearly nothing more than a genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people!

Palestinians have finally been returned to their rightful place among the family of nations. 

Palestinians are once again, “Victim number 1”. With  Israel now cast as “public enemy” number 1, surely, life doesn’t get any better than this.  

The lap top warriors, social media influencers and activists, not to mention none too few celebrities (God bless ‘em), have been busy.  Social media is awash with posts, attacking Israel, accusing it of the worst ills and horrors of mankind. Some “friends” now question or even deny that the massacre of October 7thever happened. Others claim it was a false flag, where Israel slaughtered its own to create an excuse to go into Gaza and commit genocide. Others simply rationalise or justify the slaughter as “legitimate resistance” against an occupying power (even though Israel left Gaza in 2005).  

Universities across the USA, indeed the Western world, are a hive of pro-Palestinian activity. “Peace Camps” have spontaneously appeared on campuses far and wide. It’s incredible, almost spiritual. With no planning, no coordination, no knowledge of each other, all these encampments came into being simultaneously, as if by magic. They even have matching tents.

Hard-core “friends” though, weren’t going to settle for simply camping out and chanting, no, no. They wanted to take their “friendship” to the next level. They set out on daring acts of physical resistance, occupying buildings, disrupting and destroying, the way that only true “friends” do. Then of course, there was the crucial, and wholly legitimate task of blocking Jewish and Zionist students from entering campus, crowding and physically intimidating them, and for the ultimate act of “friendship”, physically attacking Jews on, and off campus.

My personal favourite is those brave and dedicated  “friends”, who took it upon themselves to walk around town, tearing down posters of kidnapped hostages, especially those of the children and babies. There is nothing that says “resistance”, quite like a kidnapped baby. Although perhaps an unborn child being ripped from its mother’s stomach, just before both are brutally murdered. Too much, you think. Yeh, I know… Hey, it is what it is, and what it is, is “resistance”. 

But seriously, we don’t need people being distracted by images of innocent people who have been kidnapped, raped abused and tortured; out on our streets for all to see. It just clouds the issue. So down they must come, of course, only as an act of “resistance!” Because that’s what “friends” do.

Then there are the marches. City streets across the western world are crammed with thousands, no, hundreds of thousands of “friends” who stepped out spontaneously. Again, no organisation, no coordination. They just felt an overwhelming urge to get out there and protest, chanting “all kinds of wonderful”: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. When asked, there seemed to be some debate as to which river and which sea were involved.

There was also some incredulity at the notion that this chant might actually be a call for the eradication of a country and the genocide of a people. But no matter, it sounds good… coz it rhymes. “We don’t want no two states, we want it all”, is popular, although the irony is seemingly lost on those marching for peace. “We say justice, you ask how? Burn Tel Aviv to the ground”.

Powerful indeed, but I’m not sure how that works exactly, for two states living side by side. This one’s catchy.  “Hamas, we love you, and we love your rockets too”. If love conquers all, surely, a genocidal death cult is just as deserving. Lastly, “Globalise the Intifada”. No doubt, it’s just what the world needs, “Intifada everywhere"... I’m just not sure they want buses, trains, pubs, clubs and restaurants blowing up, random shootings, or people being knifed, on their own doorstep. As the saying goes, “be careful what you wish for”. Although I expect those running the show will be only too happy to oblige.

And then a slight departure, but still a winner, “Jews, Jews, go back to Poland”. And trust the Aussie “friends” to go retro, as they did in Sydney with that old favourite, “Gas the Jews”.  Just think, put these two together and you have a truly compelling proposition. The comforting thing though, about all this “pro-Palestinian” and “peace” activism, online, on campus, on our streets is, they’re not anti-Semitic! It’s such a relief, I can tell you.

In the meantime, Hamas and its sponsors, Iran and Qatar, are delighted. Hezbollah, the Houthis, and other terrorist groups are inspired. The Israel haters in the West are having a blast. Bored progressives and activist wannabees finally have something fun to do of a weekend. The October 7th massacre and the consequent war in Gaza have been a true “Godsend” or should that be an “Allahsend”. Everyone is happy. Everyone is having a great time. It’s great to have “friends”.

But what about ordinary Gazans?

What are the people of Gaza getting out of all this grand activity in their name? Sitting there in their bombed-out ruins, or their refugee tents, pondering the past nine months. One can imagine Gazan fans of Monty Python (there must be some) asking themselves that age old question. If the Romans managed to provide aqueducts, sanitation, roads, irrigation, freshwater systems, medicine, public health, education, wine, public baths and public order for the Judeans (Jews), “What have our “friends” in the West ever done for us?”

What tangible benefits have ordinary Gazans derived from all this international activism and friends’ “support”? Their homes are gone, their livelihood has gone, their infrastructure has all but disappeared. There is a shortage of food, of medicine of fresh water. Far too many have died. The war still rages. Hamas refuses point blank to return the hostages and lay down its arms, which is by far the quickest and easiest way to end the war.

Hamas is still in control of what remains, continuing to oppress, exploit and sacrifice ordinary Gazans. The leader of Hamas in Gaza, and architect of the October 7th massacre, Yahya Sinwar, recently stated regarding Palestinian civilian deaths, that “these are necessary sacrifices”. He also  told Hamas officials, at least those that are still alive, “We have Israel right where we want them”.

It’s difficult to fathom the logic. But do their “friends” in the West agree that the sacrifice of ordinary Gazans is “necessary”? Is this what they mean by, “by any means necessary”?

Perhaps it is time for these, “friends”  to take a long hard look in the mirror.

I am pretty sure that ordinary Gazans may beg to differ. They may feel that being sacrificed is far from “necessary”. They probably feel pretty hard done by, even angry and disappointed with their “friends” in the West. The tragedy of it all is that this well-funded, well organised, and well executed, so called “pro-Palestinian” effort has done absolutely nothing for ordinary Gazans. It has had zero impact on their reality on the ground. The people of Gaza have seen no benefit none whatsoever.

On the other hand, it has been of tremendous help to Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and their sponsors. It has been a boon to the antisemites, radical Islamists, and supporters of terror, and let’s not forget the haters.  So well done everybody!

The fact of the matter is that these “friends” have been conned and exploited. They willingly indulge in antisemitism, where they would never dream of practicing in any other form of racism. They happily call for the eradication of Israel and the genocide of Jews. But they condemn genocide. Interestingly, they maintain that Jews don’t have a monopoly on defining what is or isn’t anti-Semitic. They can decide for themselves, and for the Jews, what constitutes racism against Jews. They are progressives, they care about the world, they are fighting for justice. They cannot be racists. Can they?

Perhaps they are simply grateful to be part of something bigger than themselves, to finally have a sense of purpose in their otherwise empty lives. Their desperate need for meaning has driven them right into the arms of the devil, a pied piper, in the form of a bizarre alliance between the progressive left and radical Islam, leading them, and western society, into the abyss.

Two parties diametrically opposed in ideology, but aligned in their hatred of the Jewish State, and yes, of Jews in general. The Hamas charter clearly states the need to kill all Jews everywhere. Look it up. Marxists were never fond of the Jews, as they were the “capitalists”. It seems like progressives now carry that mantle, where Jews are now the “Zionists”.  But as long as the label ends in “i,s,t”, it can be used to blame the Jews.

They feed off each other. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend”. Their Jew hatred is enough to come together to serve both of their warped agendas, exploiting the best of intentions of the ignorant, the naïve, and the downright stupid, the sanctimonious, virtue signallers, who are in essence, no more than useful idiots, who provide critical mass and a cover of respectability.

The “haters gonna hate” regardless and will happily volunteer. As for the idiots, like sheep they follow the herd and do what they are told. Ignorance is no excuse, yet critical, or independent thought is an anathema, especially, and somewhat ironically, on campus.

If the aim is to help the people of Gaza, these “friends” are failing miserably. Indeed, they are achieving the exact opposite.

Their marches, encampments, laptop protestations, and Jew hatred, only helps Hamas and their allies, while ultimately harming ordinary Gazans. Those running the show couldn’t give a damn about the plight of ordinary Palestinians. They are much more concerned with demonizing, delegitimising and eventually eradicating Israel and the Jews.

No, you say…

Well, if you see yourself as one of these “friends”, maybe it’s time you engaged in some critical thinking of your own. Do your homework and stop drinking the cool aid. Ask yourself the tough questions. Are you really helping , or are you just in it for the “crack”? If you want to make a genuine impact, what will truly help ordinary Gazans on the ground? How can you help improve their situation? What tangible steps need to be taken to alleviate their suffering?

The answer is simple. The war must end. The quickest way to achieve that is to demand that Hamas release all the hostages and bodies they hold, then lay down their arms. The war will stop immediately. No more people will have to die. No more sacrifice will be “necessary”. Why has this not been a key element in these protests? Why have you not been chanting, “Bring them home!” Why have you not been chanting “Rape is not resistance!”

How has trashing Israel and giving Hamas a free pass helped the people of Gaza? It hasn’t! Why are you not demanding that your governments and the UN stop pandering to a genocidal death cult that happily sacrifices ordinary Gazans because it’s “necessary”?  Why are you not insisting that Qatar, Iran and others stop supporting Hamas? Why are you not calling for all Hamas leaders be arrested and held to account. Why are you no calling for an end to the brutal terrorist regime in Gaza?

That is how you help ordinary Gazans. That is how you free them from the oppression, exploitation and perverted ideology of Hamas. That is how you end the war. That is how you give hope to the people of Gaza. Understand that over the past nine months all you have achieved, is to help Hamas, perpetuate the war in Gaza, and promote Jew hatred while ensuring the suffering of ordinary Gazans continues. That doesn’t make you “friends”. That makes you “false friends”, dangerous and highly damaging to the interests of the very people you claim to want to help.

Now, what are you going to do about it?