Ceasefire in Gaza is imperative

By Rev. Jesse Jackson
TriceEdneyWire.com Columnist

The horror in the Middle East is growing. Hamas, the Sunni Islamist movement that governs the Gaza Strip and violently opposes Israel, triggered the current catastrophe when its surprise attack in Israel killed 1,400 Israelis, including many children. In rage and retaliation, Israel has responded by assaulting Gaza, launching mass bombing raids, cutting off access to water, food, electricity and fuel, warning over 1 million Gazans to evacuate to the south, and beginning a ground operation in the north. As this is written, an estimated 8,005 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 3,000 children, and UN agencies warn the humanitarian crisis has reached an “unprecedented point.”

Across the world and across this country, citizens have marched to decry the Hamas terrorist attacks, to protest the Israeli assault on Gaza, to demand a ceasefire, emergency humanitarian assistance, and negotiations to end the violence. Antisemitism and anti-Arab passions are rising here and elsewhere.

We should not forget. It is possible to be pro-Palestinian without being pro-Hamas. Indeed, most Palestinians do not support Hamas. It is possible to oppose Israel’s policies without being antisemitic. Indeed, most Israelis oppose the current government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Israeli rage, fear and desire to strike back after the terrorist attacks is understandable. That does not justify mass retaliation against civilians living in Gaza. The anger and desperation of those living in Gaza – termed an “open air prison” even before the current crisis – is understandable. That does not justify terrorist attacks on civilians, and children in Israel.

President Biden has supported Israel in this crisis, while calling on the Netanyahu government to adhere to the laws of war and mobilizing efforts to get humanitarian aid into Gaza. The U.S. has moved warships into the Eastern Mediterranean, and reinforced its troops in the region, warning Iran and outside forces not to expand the conflict. The Biden administration’s call for billions in aid – largely armaments – to Israel has bipartisan support in the Congress.

While the BIden administration reportedly advised against the ground invasion that now seems to be underway. It has refused to call for a ceasefire and vetoed UN Security Council resolutions calling for one.

In this, the U.S. is increasingly isolated. A Jordanian resolution calling for a “sustained” humanitarian truce was passed in the UN General Assembly 120 to 14 (with 45 abstentions) over U.S. opposition. More American allies abstained or supported the resolution than opposed it.

The reason is clear. Israel’s mass retaliation against the residents of Gaza is indefensible. In this age of terrorism, the laws of war are too often ignored. Modernized in treaties and statutes after World War II, they represent the collective effort to put humane restrictions on the use of military force, to protect civilians from being targeted and slaughtered, to outlaw violence intended to eradicate national, ethnic, racial or religious groups in whole or in part.

Francis Boyle, international law professor at the University of Illinois College of Law, charges Israel with violating the laws of war. He cites the Nuremberg Charter, enacted in response to the Nazi horrors inflicted on Jews and others in World War II, which outlaws, in Article VIB, “the wanton destruction of cities, towns or villages or devastation not justified by military necessity,” and Article VIC “inhumane acts committed against any civilian population before or during war.” A central purpose of the laws of war is to limit mass retaliation against civilian populations. Israel’s bombing campaign, the cut off of basic necessities and its demand for mass evacuation are causing massive civilian casualties.

A ceasefire is imperative, so that food, water, fuel and medical supplies can be rushed into Gaza to avoid an unimaginable humanitarian catastrophe. The hostages held by Hamas should be released. Rather than adding to the violence and destruction, regional powers should join with the U.S. and Israel to restart negotiations on the conditions of a durable peace. Israel’s security would be better served by isolating and targeting those who commit terror rather than treating all Palestinians as terrorists, isolating itself, and involving more and more of its neighbors in the violence. The U.S. can’t make decisions for the Israeli government – but it can and should make its position clear. A ceasefire is a moral imperative and strategic necessity.

This article originally published in the November 6, 2023 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.