Analysis and Report by Syed Atiq ul Hassan, Sydney Australia
Today, Israel’s barbarism is on the rise again. Al-Aqsa Mosque is under attack by Israeli forces. The world is watching on international media broadcasts of the Israeli soldiers terrorizing Palestinians who are trapped in the Gaza Strip. Today, the people of the world are watching this spectacle of oppression and barbarism of Israel but feel helpless. The reason is simply that the great powers of the West and the US are all with Israel and want to turn entire Palestine into Israel by occupying one territory after the other. Muslim states were silent even when Adolf Hitler wiped out millions of Jews during World War II, and then the Western powers and the United States created Israel for Jews on the centuries-old land of Palestine in 1948. Since then, the people of Palestine have been systematically stranded within the strip of Gaza, breaching UN resolution by Israel and all promises by the Western powers and the US. Today, millions of people in the Muslim World and Western countries are protesting the barbaric act of killing, torture victimization of the helpless citizens of Palestine. Shamefully most of the Western powers and the US support the Israeli aggression against the people of Palestine. The world has been watching this spectacle for the last seventy years, but there is no one to bring justice to the Palestinians. The heads of government of Muslim countries have made it their duty to speak out in favour of the Palestinians, and in practice, no one is ready to take the field to declare war on Israel. The fact is that only those who have power rule the world. There are Arab Muslim countries around Israel, but they have neither the courage nor the capability to deal with Israel and protect the people and land of Palestine. All these rulers are slaves in the hands of the Western powers.
If only Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey dare to stand up against Israeli aggression, they can make Israel bow down. Pakistan is a nuclear state; Turkey is a strong power in the region. The Iranians have faith, but the governments of these countries are afraid of not taking the risk of sacrificing their interests to the people of Palestine. In these circumstances, the Muslims of the Islamic world must wake up the rulers of their states, stand openly against Israel and declare war against them for the rights of the Palestinians.
Australians is a fair nation. Australians respect human rights and always condemn victimization whenever unjust actions happen in any part of the world. Therefore, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison is urged to stand by with the most annihilated people of Palestine. The Prime Minister must force Israel to stop attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and Palestinians in Gaza without delay.
The leaders of the Islamic countries and human rights leaders and activities must stand with the victims of Palestine and condemn the acts of brutality and killings of the people of Palestine by Israeli forces.
Thousands of Australian Muslims gathered in the heart of Sydney (Town Hall) on Saturday 15 May 2021 and demonstrated their condemnation against Israeli aggression, attacks, torture, and killing of Palestinians in Gaza Strip. Since the ongoing forceful removal of Palestinians from their homes by Israeli forces and attack on worshippers at Al-Aqsa mosque during the final few days of the holy month of Ramadan, at least 137 Palestinians, including 36 children, have been killed and 920 have been wounded.
The rally against Israeli attacks of Palestinians demonstration was organized by many Arab Australians, Australian-based Palestinian organisations, and human rights activists in Sydney. The speakers loudly condemned Israel for continuously attacking the innocent civilians especially children in Gaza Strip. The Israeli forces are brutally attacking Palestinians residential areas killing children, women, young and senior citizens. They condemned the world powers who are silently watching the brutality and human rights crimes of Israel. Ms Tamika, an indigenous Australian woman with Palestinian heritage in her speech said ‘we call on the Australian government to not remain silent’ Mr Fawad, a survivor of Nakba, forced to flee at the age of 9 recalled the painful memories in his speech, ‘Israeli camps came to invade my village, with a gun in one hand while my father had a shovel, my father had no option but flee, my father was not a terrorist, he was farmer, a father, a Palestinian’. Thousands of protesters chanting in the crowd ‘free, free Palestine’, ‘Gaza Gaza don’t you cry, Palestine will never die!’. Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed, Grand Mufti of Australia, and representing Australian Fatwa Council, in his speech supported the protest, thanked the free and honourable people of Australia and the world for remembering the oppressed, who think about humanity and the people, and the people of Palestine even though the governments and media had forgotten. Dr Ibrahim condemned the attacks of Israel ‘It’s a shame that the 21st century world stands by, watches unjust aggression and witnesses the violence against innocent people’. A young female Palestinian activist, read out her poem, with lines…’the world remembers September 11 but how about the Palestinian people for them its 24/7 (24 hrs and 7 days a week), and mentioned in her verses that they fear children throwing rocks while they stand behind their artillery, armoury, weapons and tanks. Another young female young activist at the rally emotionally read in her speech’ Rahaf, a young girl went to buy her Eid clothes and she returned with a dead body and white shroud, and for Rahaf we will not surrender, free, free Palestine’ The first Muslim MP in parliament Greens Senator Mrs Mehreen Farooqui, said that ‘instead of political parties in Australia sending Eid Mubarak messages and letters they should be advocating the issue of the people of Palestine and killing of innocent Palestinians’. Sarah Salaf, an Australian human rights activist said ‘you could be anywhere today, and you chose to come here, thanking the crowd, she said in her speech ‘amidst the dying, and the dying, dying and amidst the destruction, the devastation of our homeland, between the fear and frustration and trauma, that we are feeling, let me reassure you of a few things, let me assure the Palestinian spirit is unbreakable’. The speakers urged the Australian government to treat the Israel-Palestine conflict fairly and condemn the Israeli attacks on civilians breaching international human safety laws. (The writer is a Sydney-based journalist, his email address is shassan@tribune-intl.com )
