september 4, 2025 · 7:05 pm

The Crusades had NOTHING to do with the true values of Christianity!/One of many Examples:/The massacre at Ayyadieh

King Richard I
RICHARD COEUR DE LION, SECOND PLANTAGENET KING]
[OTHER NAME] RICHARD THE LION HEART
KING OF ENGLAND AND GREAT GREAT GRANDSON OF
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR [RICHARD’S PATERNAL
GRANDMOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD, WAS THE PATERNAL GRANDDAUGHTER OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR
SEE
RICHARD’S FATHER, KING HENRY II
KING HENRY II’S MOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD [MATHILDA], THE
LAWFUL SUCCESSOR OF HER FATHER, KING HENRY I,
ALTHOUGH HER THRONE HAD BEEN USURPED BY HER
FIRST COUSIN, STEPHEN OF BLOIS, WHICH LED TO A BITTER
CIVIL WAR
KING HENRY I, FATHER OF EMPRESS MAUD AND YOUNGEST SON
OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR’
HENRY I LET THE BARONS SWEAR AN OATH OF LOYALTY TO
HIS DAUGHTER AND SUCCESSOR, EMPRESS MAUD
HOWEVER MANY BARONS BROKE THAT OATH AND HENRY I’S
NEPHEW [SON OF HIS SISTER ADELA OF NORMANDY] USURPED
THE THRONE
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR, FATHER OF KING HENRY I
AS THE DUKE OF NORMANDY, DUKE WILLIAM CONQUERED ENGLAND IN
1066, DEFEATING THE LAST ANGLO SAXON KING, KING HARALD [OR KING HAROLD II, HAROLD GODWINSON],
AT THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR WAS THE GREAT GREAT GRANDFATHER OF
RICHARD COEUR THE LION [RICHARD LIONHEART], WHO WENT
ON CRUSADE AND IS THE SUBJECT OF THIS ARTICLE
KING HARALD [OR HAROLD II], THE LAST ANGLO SAXON
KING OF ENGLAND, DEFEATED BY WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR IN THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS IN 1066
THE CRUSADES HAD NOTHING TO
DO WITH THE VALUES OF CHRISTIANITY!/AN EXAMPLE:
MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH
40i And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
NEW TESTIMONYMATTHEW 25: 40
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/25
READERS!
In contrary with commonly accepted views in the Western world
[although there IS a change of opinion nowadays], the Crusades in
the Middle Ages were not some heroic and noble religious cause
[although many participants probably really though they were],
but bloody warsof conquest  for land, greed and wealth.
I hope in the future to write more about this!
But for now Readers, my Facebook comment on the page of
”Real Crusaders History”, because I strongly object the euphemistic
way they described the massacre of Ayyadieh on the orders of
the Norman English King [”Norman”, because he was the
great great grandson of William the Conqueror and as the second Plantagenet
king, he was still strongly ”French Norman” oriented] [1]
By blaming Richard’s adversary Sultan Saladin [who in reality defended the Holy Land, Palestine, against the Crusader invaders!] [2] for the Ayyadieh Massacre
”Real Crusaders History” is ”blaming the victim” here.
The organizer and commander king Richard is off the hook, and Sultan
Saladin, whose men were victims of the slaughter, gets the blame.
That is a travesty of the real history, so I commented that on their page:
And in my comment you canb see a glimpse of the way I see the Crusades:
Perhaps I write more about it.
But for now:
READ AND ENJOY
First [A], you readabout the slaughter of ASyyadieh
Then [B] you read  the comment of Real Crusades History
And last, but not least [C] Astrid Essed’s Comment on
Real Crusades History
ENJOY!
ASTRID ESSED
NOTE 1
WIKIPEDIA
ANGEVIN KINGS OF ENGLAND
NOTE 2
WIKIPEDIA
SALADIN
A
WIKIPEDIA
MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH
B
”REAL CRUSADES HISTORY” ON FACEBOOK
THEIR COMMENT ON THE ROLE OF KING RICHARD
COEUR DE LION [RICHARD I, BETTER KNOWN AS
RICHARD LIONHEART] IN THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH [PAY ATTENTION:
RICHARD LIONHEART HIMSELF ORDERED THAT MASSACRE!]
REAL CRUSADES HISTORY ON FACEBOOK
COMMENT


Bericht van Real Crusades History

Why did Richard the Lionheart execute the Saracen garrison of Acre?
After the fall of Acre to the Christians, Richard the Lionheart dispatched envoys to Saladin, asking that the surrender terms of Acre be fulfilled. Saladin asked that he be allowed to deliver the payments and prisoners in installments. Richard agreed to this at once. Both sides agreed to a schedule of payments in which Saladin would deliver the ransom gradually, while both sides would exchange their prisoners. However, as each deadline came and went, a pattern began to emerge – Saladin refused to keep his end of the bargain. At each assigned date, Saladin offered excuses as to why he couldn’t deliver a payment, or release prisoners. Richard agreed to extend the deadlines, but it became clear that the Sultan was toying with the crusader king, and trying to undermine his authority. Above all, Saladin wanted to keep Richard bogged down in Acre, endlessly negotiating over these prisoners, while the Christian army disintegrated. Even Saladin’s own chroniclers admit this. Whereas Richard, famously, was obsessed with the well being of his own men, on this occasion, Saladin was perfectly content to gamble with the lives of his most valiant soldiers – the men who’d defended Acre. These men provided the Sultan with a means of stalling his enemy, and that mattered more to Saladin than obtaining their freedom.
Richard quickly recognized Saladin’s game. He knew that the Sultan was toying with him, and trying to both break the momentum of the crusade as well as make Richard appear ineffective. After one more broken deadline and litany of excuses from the Sultan’s envoys, Richard marched his prisoners out before Saladin’s encampment and executed them in full view of the Muslim army. In effect, Richard had called Saladin’s bluff, and the results would prove disastrous for the Sultan. Many emirs and leading men in the Muslim forces were enraged that Saladin had failed to ransom the brave defenders of Acre, and this would create loyalty problems for the Sultan that would persist throughout the crusade. In addition, Saladin would from then on find it very difficult to convince his men to garrison castles and cities, since they all now feared the fate of Acre’s garrison.
Ultimately, Richard had given Saladin ample opportunity to secure the lives of his men. This was far more than could be said of Saladin, who had ruthlessly executed Templars and Hospitallers taken prisoner after the battle of Hattin. By repeatedly reneging on the terms of the agreement, Saladin intentionally placed Richard in a very difficult situation. Richard had no ability to permanently house these prisoners, nor could he allow the Sultan’s flagrant violations of the terms to go unanswered. It was a hard, bloody decision made in the midst of a hard and bloody war, and ultimately, Saladin himself should be criticized for abandoning the courageous Acre garrison to such a cruel fate. Compared to Richard, who often risked his own life leading rescue missions when his own men were captured, we can only wonder at Saladin’s calloused and ungrateful attitude toward his bravest soldiers. Saladin tried to use the massacre as a propaganda win, executing many Christian prisoners of his own in dramatic public spectacles, but ultimately considerable numbers of his own followers continued to blame him for the needless deaths of their comrades. Saladin would never overcome this bitterness that now infected his ranks.
END
C
ASTRID ESSED’S COMMENT ON THE REACTION OF ”REAL CRUSADES
HISTORY”

Astrid Essed

NO EXCUSE FOR THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH BY RICHARD COEUR DE LION NOT SALADIN IS TO BE BLAMED HERE, BUT THE ONE, WHO EXECUTED THE PRISONERS, RICHARD THE LION HEART THE CRUSADERS WERE INVADERS AND OCCUPIERS
What ”Real Crusaders History says, is unacceptable, since he excuses Richard the Lionheart for this barbaric deed and lays the blame on Saladin, who did not commit this! Admitting, that Medieval Warfare was a sordid affair, not only during the Crusades, but also in Europe [in a war between Lords or Kings, pillaging of villages and raping and killing innocent civilian villagers was standard], that is no excuse whatsoever for any crime of war, whether done by the Lords [or Kings] in Europe, in the Holy Land by the Crusaders or the Saracens. WRONG IS WRONG This to begin with: Then: It’s true that Saladin was responsible for the delay in the agreement between him and Richard about the exchange of the prisoners. It even may be said [there ”Real Crusaders History” ‘has a point] that Saladin brought thus the lives of the priosners in danger. BUT IT WAS RICHARD’S CHOICE TO MASSACRE THEM OR NOT AND THE BLAME FOR THIS IS SOLELY TO BE LAID IN RICHARD! And it was irresponsible too: Because as a retaliation [which I also condemn] Saladin killed the ”Christian” prisoners, which Richard could have expected. SALADIN’S BEHAVIOUR CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1099 CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1187 Of course Real Crusaders History is right, that Saladin could be cruel too. By executing the Christian prisoners after Richards’s massacre. By executing the Knights Templar after the Battle of Hattin. But let’s not forget the big difference at the conquest [reconquest] of Jerusalem When the”Christian” leaders [” because it is the opposite of real christian behaviour] conquered Jerusalem in 1099, the killed NEARLY ALL PEOPLE, MUSLIM, CHRISTIAN AND JEWS. When Saladin reconquered Jerusalem, he spared the whole population! WHO IS CIVILIZED HERE AND WHO THE BARBARIAN? THE CRUSADES WERE NOT A JUST FIGHT, BUT WARS OF CONQUEST AND CRUSADERS WERE INTRUDERS, AGGRESSORS AND OCCUPIERS! And let’s say this plain: The Crusaders had nothing to seek in the Holy Land, but for pilgrimage. Were they the inhabitants there? NO They came from England, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Italy, etc Far from the Holy Land. To say you have a mission to recover Jerusalem in the hands of Christianity is just nonsense, since not only they forgot, that Christendom originated in Palestine and was later spread to Europe, but also the fact, that Palestine belonged to the inhabitants, who lived THERE, Greek christians, Jews, who had remained there after the diaspora, Arabs, Turks, etc. The Holy Land was NOT the land of European knights, nobles and kings. They could come on a pilgrimage, but not established as rulers! True, the Muslims conquered the Holy Land at the cost of the Byzantine Empire and the only one, who had a certain claim, politically, was the Byzantine Emperor, who appealed to Europe [Pope Urbanus II] to help recover his lands [especially Anatolia] conquered by the Seljuq Turks. So helping him was legitimate, but although the Crusaders [First Crusade 1095-1099] promiised the Byzantine Emperor to recover his lands for him, BROKE THEIR PROMISE, HOLDING THE CONQUERED LANDS FOR THEMSELVES AND ESTABLISHED CRUSADER STATES! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HProiNnmGwI And this very behaviour towards the Byzantine Emeror revealed their true intentions: The conquest of land, riches and….women, HAHAHA When Richard fought in the Holy Land, once Saladin proposed that the christians could come to Jerusalem as pilgrims, but that was not enough for Richard. He wanted to CONQUER Jerusalem. And so he revealed his true intentions. Glory in warfare and lust for riches and power. And of course he had some religious motives, but that was also a pretext for going on warfare! So the battle AGAINST the Crusaders was righteous, sending them where the belonged: To England, France, the Holy Roman Empire and whatsoever JERUSALEM Besides that, Jerusalem is not only Holy for Christians, but also for Jews AND for Muslims, since they believe, that the Prophet Muhammed had made a nocturnal journey to Heaven, descending from Jerusalem
Astrid Essed
The Netherlands
SEE ALSO FROM ASTRID ESSED
AND
END

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september 3, 2025 · 4:19 pm

Nieuws van de Vijand/PVV Verkiezingsprogramma 2025-2029/”Dit is uw land!/Over Asiel

NIEUWS VAN DE VIJAND!/PVV VERKIEZINGSPROGRAMMA 2025-2029
”DIT IS UW LAND!”

DIT IS UW LAND!

PVV VERKIEZINGSPRPGRAMMA  2025 – 2029
BLADZIJDE 6

TOTALE ASIELSTOP

1  Totale asielstop Nederland is Nederland niet meer. We hebben te veel vreemdelingen, te veel asielzoekers, te veel islam en veel te veel azc’s. Het opengrenzenbeleid maakt ons land helemaal kapot. De PVV is er klaar mee. Het roer moet drastisch om. Nederland is één van de dichtstbevolkte landen van Europa. De afgelopen decennia zijn er meer dan een miljoen niet-westerse immigranten ons land binnengekomen; onze bevolking groeit alleen nog door immigratie.
 In grote steden als Amsterdam, Den Haag en Rotterdam is de allochtone bevolking al in de meerderheid. Sinds 2010 zijn er bijna 500.000 asielzoekers naar Nederland gekomen. De asielinstroom – inclusief de opvang van Oekraïners – kost alleen al dit jaar meer dan € 9 miljard!
Ondertussen is het in Ter Apel, Budel en andere plekken met een azc voor veel Nederlanders onleefbaar geworden: overlast en criminaliteit nemen toe – vaak door de komst van alleenstaande jonge mannen.
Er zijn vrijwel wekelijks steekpartijen, bedreigingen en vernielingen door asielzoekers. Winkels worden leeggeroofd, meisjes worden lastiggevallen en aangerand, en ga zo maar door.
Vorig jaar waren er ruim 16.000 gevallen van agressie en geweld in azc’s! Ondertussen bezwijkt onze verzorgingsstaat onder niet-westerse allochtonen die profiteren van onze uitkeringen en woningen. Een derde van de statushouders zit na negen jaar nog steeds in de bijstand; meer dan de helft van de bijstandsontvangers in ons land zijn niet-westerse allochtonen.
  Als we hiermee doorgaan, raken we ons land definitief kwijt. Dan is het niet meer Rotterdam, maar Mekka aan de Maas.
De PVV is de enige partij die de instroom van (niet-westerse) vreemdelingen wil stoppen – en dat kan.
 Andere landen doen het ook: Duitsland stuurt asielzoekers aan de grens terug, Oostenrijk heeft de gezinshereniging stopgezet, België vangt geen alleenstaande mannelijke asielzoekers meer op, Polen en Griekenland hebben een asielstop ingevoerd.
Wat zij kunnen, kunnen wij ook. Nederland gaat op slot voor asielzoekers – om te beginnen voor de komende vier jaar.
De PVV heeft een tienpuntenplan gepresenteerd om de asielinstroom te stoppen. Niemand van de coalitie wilde de directe uitvoering van ons plan steunen, terwijl dat wel kan en mag: wij beroepen ons op artikel 72 VWEU en gaan, net als Duitsland, met onmiddellijke ingang asielzoekers aan onze grenzen weigeren.
We zetten het leger in voor grensbewaking met gebruik van camera’s en drones. Meer dan 96% van de asielzoekers komt over land, via België of Duitsland. Onze buurlanden zijn veilige landen. Het gaat dus niet om oorlogsvluchtelingen, maar om economische migranten die doelbewust misbruik willen maken van ons asielrecht. Ze komen ons land niet meer in. Vorig jaar kwamen via gezinshereniging nog eens bijna 12.000 extra asielzoekers naar Nederland. Daarom gaan we op grond van artikel 72 VWEU, net als Oostenrijk, ook gezinshereniging stoppen.
BLADZIJDE 7
  Tegelijkertijd komen we met een noodwet.
Daarin regelen we een asielbehandelstop. Ook leggen we vast dat asielzoekers niet meer tegen een afgewezen asielaanvraag kunnen procederen.
Want Nederland moet ophouden om telkens het braafste jongetje van de EU-klas te zijn. Buurland België negeert rechterlijke uitspraken in asielzaken. België is al meer dan 10.000 keer veroordeeld voor het niet-opvangen van alleenstaande mannelijke asielzoekers, maar wordt beloond: de Nederlandse Raad van State verbiedt Nederland alleenstaande mannelijke asielzoekers naar België terug te sturen.
Terwijl Nederland de regels wél braaf volgt, worden wij gestraft met méér asielzoekers.
Dit is de omgekeerde wereld!
In Brussel zullen we door het inzetten van veto’s of het weigeren van de te hoge Nederlandse bijdrage aan de EU-begroting een opt-out op asiel en immigratie afdwingen. Ook gaan we alle verdragen die ons dwarsbomen – zoals het VN-Vluchtelingenverdrag, het Europees Verdrag voor de Rechten van de Mens en het Europees Verdrag inzake Nationaliteit – opzeggen.
  Nederland wordt volgepropt met azc’s. Er zijn meer dan 300 COA-opvanglocaties; iedere elf dagen komt er een azc bij. Veel Nederlanders zitten hier helemaal niet op te wachten. Op verschillende plekken in Nederland zijn er sinds de inwerkingtreding van de Spreidingswet protesten geweest, maar tóch worden azc’s vaak doorgedrukt door het lokale bestuur.
Met de PVV komt er geen enkel azc meer bij! De Spreidingswet wordt meteen ingetrokken. Azc’s die sinds de inwerkingtreding van de Spreidingswet zijn geopend, worden gesloten. Alle gemeentelijke besluiten – ook tot verlenging of uitbreiding van bestaande azc’s – worden per wet teruggedraaid. Onze dorpen en steden zijn geen opvangkampen. Op de grond die door het sluiten van azc’s vrijkomt, worden woningen voor Nederlanders gebouwd.
  Naast het stopzetten van de asielinstroom moet de uitstroom van (niet-westerse) vreemdelingen worden vergroot.
Wie zich misdraagt, moet ons land uit volgens het principe one strike you’re out:
 Asielzoekers die overlast veroorzaken of crimineel zijn, worden direct uit de asielprocedure gezet en gaan het land uit.
Als het een minderjarige asielzoeker betreft, gaan ook de ouders en andere minderjarige gezinsleden eruit.
Vreemdelingen (waaronder statushouders) worden na veroordeling voor één misdrijf – na het uitzitten van de straf en intrekking van de verblijfsstatus – direct uitgezet.
Mensen met een dubbele nationaliteit die zijn veroordeeld voor één ernstig misdrijf, worden na het uitzitten van de straf gedenaturaliseerd en moeten Nederland verlaten.
De tijdelijke verblijfsvergunningen van de 70.000 Syriërs in Nederland worden ingetrokken. Delen van Syrië zijn weer veilig; handelssancties zijn opgeheven. Syriërs moeten terug om hun eigen land weer op te bouwen. Indien dit onverhoopt niet lukt sturen we ze terug naar andere Arabische landen, waarmee we afspraken maken.
We beginnen met het uitzetten van criminele Syriërs.
BLADZIJDE 8
  Oekraïne heeft zijn eigen mannen hard nodig. Daarom gaan we een uitzondering maken op de Richtlijn tijdelijke bescherming van de EU, waardoor we volwassen mannelijke Oekraïense ontheemden kunnen terugsturen.
 Zij kunnen dan hun eigen land helpen, zoals door de Oekraïense regering gevraagd.
Ons PVV-voorstel om illegaal verblijf én de hulp aan illegalen strafbaar te stellen, is aangenomen in de Tweede Kamer.
Nederland is geen vrijplaats voor wie de regels overtreedt, en ook niet voor wie dat mogelijk maakt.
We gaan de Vreemdelingenpolitie uitbreiden met 500 agenten. Alle illegalen eruit
  Wij zijn tegen dubbele loyaliteiten en dus tegen dubbele nationaliteiten. Daarom schrappen we alle mogelijke uitzonderingsgronden voor het behouden van een dubbele nationaliteit.
De PVV stelt een vrijwillige remigratieregeling in. Wie dit land wil verlaten, krijgt die kans. Geen vertrekpremie, geen beloning, geen douceurtje – maar een vliegticket (enkele reis), bagagehulp en snelle administratieve afhandeling. Voorwaarde is dat men afstand doet van het Nederlanderschap, voorgoed vertrekt en niet meer terugkomt.
De PVV doet wat jarenlang is nagelaten. Wij sluiten de grenzen. Wij sluiten azc’s. Wij voeren een totale asielstop in. We gaan immigratie uit islamitische landen stoppen. Wij gaan ons land en onze wijken en straten terugwinnen, onze vrijheid herpakken en onze toekomst veiligstellen – voor onze kinderen, voor onze samenleving, voor alles wat ons dierbaar is. Onder de PVV wordt Nederland géén groot azc, maar wordt ons land weer van ons. Nederlanders weer op 1!
Daarom wil de PVV:
Totale asielstop:
alle asielzoekers worden aan de grens geweigerd (artikel 72 VWEU)
Geen immigratie uit islamitische landen
Tussen de grensovergangen patrouilleert het leger met gebruikmaking van camera’s en drones

Stop op gezinshereniging (artikel 72 VWEU)

Noodwet: behandelstop op asielaanvragen en geen procedures meer tegen afwijzen
Opt-out op asiel en immigratie bij de EU afdwingen met inzet vetorecht

Opzeggen VN-Vluchtelingenverdrag, Europees Verdrag voor de Rechten van de Mens, Europees Verdrag inzake Nationaliteit en andere verdragen die ons dwarsbomen

Alle Syriërs terug naar Syrië of andere Arabische landen.
Volwassen mannelijke Oekraïense ontheemden terug naar Oekraïne
  Onmiddellijke intrekking Spreidingswet
Geen enkel azc er mee bij.
We gaan azc’s sluiten: alle gemeentelijke besluiten tot de opening, verlenging of uitbreiding van azc’s sinds de inwerkingtreding van de Spreidingswet worden per wet teruggedraaid

One strike you’re out: o Asielzoekers die overlast veroorzaken of crimineel zijn, worden direct uit de asielprocedure gezet en gaan het land uit; als het een minderjarige asielzoeker betreft, gaan ook de ouders en andere minderjarige gezinsleden eruit

BLADZIJDE 9
o Vreemdelingen (waaronder statushouders) worden na veroordeling voor één misdrijf – na het uitzitten van de straf en intrekking van de verblijfsstatus – direct uitgezet
o Mensen met een dubbele nationaliteit die zijn veroordeeld voor één ernstig misdrijf, worden na het uitzitten van de straf gedenaturaliseerd en moeten Nederland verlaten
  Nooit meer voorrang op sociale huurwoningen voor statushouders – ook niet met urgentie
Statushouders die frauderen (zoals illegale onderverhuur), op vakantie gaan naar het land van herkomst of werk of een woning weigeren, raken direct hun verblijfsvergunning kwijt
  Illegaliteit en hulp aan illegalen strafbaar conform aangenomen PVV-amendement
verbod op bed-bad-broodregelingen voor illegalen
 500 extra agenten voor de Vreemdelingenpolitie, alle illegalen eruit
  Verbod dubbele nationaliteit: schrappen uitzonderingsgronden
Naturalisatie pas na 15 jaar legaal verblijf
  Geen bijstand voor wie geen Nederlands spreekt
Bevorderen remigratie
  Subsidies voor Vluchtelingenwerk en andere ngo’s in de asielindustrie worden stopgezet
EINDE

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· 2:12 pm

The Massacre at Ayyadieh/Astrid Essed versus Real Crusades History

King Richard I
RICHARD COEUR DE LION, SECOND PLANTAGENET KING]
[OTHER NAME] RICHARD THE LION HEART
KING OF ENGLAND AND GREAT GREAT GRANDSON OF
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR [RICHARD’S PATERNAL
GRANDMOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD, WAS THE PATERNAL GRANDDAUGHTER OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR
SEE
RICHARD’S FATHER, KING HENRY II
KING HENRY II’S MOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD [MATHILDA], THE
LAWFUL SUCCESSOR OF HER FATHER, KING HENRY I,
ALTHOUGH HER THRONE HAD BEEN USURPED BY HER
FIRST COUSIN, STEPHEN OF BLOIS, WHICH LED TO A BITTER
CIVIL WAR
KING HENRY I, FATHER OF EMPRESS MAUD AND YOUNGEST SON
OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR’
HENRY I LET THE BARONS SWEAR AN OATH OF LOYALTY TO
HIS DAUGHTER AND SUCCESSOR, EMPRESS MAUD
HOWEVER MANY BARONS BROKE THAT OATH AND HENRY I’S
NEPHEW [SON OF HIS SISTER ADELA OF NORMANDY] USURPED
THE THRONE
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR, FATHER OF KING HENRY I
AS THE DUKE OF NORMANDY, DUKE WILLIAM CONQUERED ENGLAND IN
1066, DEFEATING THE LAST ANGLO SAXON KING, KING HARALD [OR KING HAROLD II, HAROLD GODWINSON],
AT THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR WAS THE GREAT GREAT GRANDFATHER OF
RICHARD COEUR THE LION [RICHARD LIONHEART], WHO WENT
ON CRUSADE AND IS THE SUBJECT OF THIS ARTICLE
KING HARALD [OR HAROLD II], THE LAST ANGLO SAXON
KING OF ENGLAND, DEFEATED BY WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR IN THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS IN 1066
ASTRID ESSED’S VIEW ON THE CRUSADES/ASTRID ESSED VERSUS
”REAL CRUSADES HISTORY”/NO EXCUSE FOR RICHARD COEUR DE
LION’S MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH”
In contrary with commonly accepted views in the Western world
[although there IS a change of opinion nowadays], the Crusades in
the Middle Ages were not some heroic and noble religious cause
[although many participants probably really though they were],
but bloody warsof conquest  for land, greed and wealth.
I hope in the future to write more about this!
But for now Readers, my Facebook comment on the page of
”Real Crusaders History”, because I strongly object the euphemistic
way they described the massacre of Ayyadieh on the orders of
the Norman English King [”Norman”, because he was the
great great grandson of William the Conqueror and as the second Plantagenet
king, he was still strongly ”French Norman” oriented] [1]
By blaming Richard’s adversary Sultan Saladin [who in reality defended the Holy Land, Palestine, against the Crusader invaders!] [2] for the Ayyadieh Massacre
”Real Crusaders History” is ”blaming the victim” here.
The organizer and commander king Richard is off the hook, and Sultan
Saladin, whose men were victims of the slaughter, gets the blame.
That is a travesty of the real history, so I commented that on their page:
And in my comment you canb see a glimpse of the way I see the Crusades:
Perhaps I write more about it.
But for now:
READ AND ENJOY
First [A], you readabout the slaughter of ASyyadieh
Then [B] you read  the comment of Real Crusades History
And last, but not least [C] Astrid Essed’s Comment on
Real Crusades History
ENJOY!
ASTRID ESSED
NOTE 1
WIKIPEDIA
ANGEVIN KINGS OF ENGLAND
NOTE 2
WIKIPEDIA
SALADIN
A
WIKIPEDIA
MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH
B
”REAL CRUSADES HISTORY” ON FACEBOOK
THEIR COMMENT ON THE ROLE OF KING RICHARD
COEUR DE LION [RICHARD I, BETTER KNOWN AS
RICHARD LIONHEART] IN THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH [PAY ATTENTION:
RICHARD LIONHEART HIMSELF ORDERED THAT MASSACRE!]
REAL CRUSADES HISTORY ON FACEBOOK
COMMENT


Bericht van Real Crusades History

Why did Richard the Lionheart execute the Saracen garrison of Acre?
After the fall of Acre to the Christians, Richard the Lionheart dispatched envoys to Saladin, asking that the surrender terms of Acre be fulfilled. Saladin asked that he be allowed to deliver the payments and prisoners in installments. Richard agreed to this at once. Both sides agreed to a schedule of payments in which Saladin would deliver the ransom gradually, while both sides would exchange their prisoners. However, as each deadline came and went, a pattern began to emerge – Saladin refused to keep his end of the bargain. At each assigned date, Saladin offered excuses as to why he couldn’t deliver a payment, or release prisoners. Richard agreed to extend the deadlines, but it became clear that the Sultan was toying with the crusader king, and trying to undermine his authority. Above all, Saladin wanted to keep Richard bogged down in Acre, endlessly negotiating over these prisoners, while the Christian army disintegrated. Even Saladin’s own chroniclers admit this. Whereas Richard, famously, was obsessed with the well being of his own men, on this occasion, Saladin was perfectly content to gamble with the lives of his most valiant soldiers – the men who’d defended Acre. These men provided the Sultan with a means of stalling his enemy, and that mattered more to Saladin than obtaining their freedom.
Richard quickly recognized Saladin’s game. He knew that the Sultan was toying with him, and trying to both break the momentum of the crusade as well as make Richard appear ineffective. After one more broken deadline and litany of excuses from the Sultan’s envoys, Richard marched his prisoners out before Saladin’s encampment and executed them in full view of the Muslim army. In effect, Richard had called Saladin’s bluff, and the results would prove disastrous for the Sultan. Many emirs and leading men in the Muslim forces were enraged that Saladin had failed to ransom the brave defenders of Acre, and this would create loyalty problems for the Sultan that would persist throughout the crusade. In addition, Saladin would from then on find it very difficult to convince his men to garrison castles and cities, since they all now feared the fate of Acre’s garrison.
Ultimately, Richard had given Saladin ample opportunity to secure the lives of his men. This was far more than could be said of Saladin, who had ruthlessly executed Templars and Hospitallers taken prisoner after the battle of Hattin. By repeatedly reneging on the terms of the agreement, Saladin intentionally placed Richard in a very difficult situation. Richard had no ability to permanently house these prisoners, nor could he allow the Sultan’s flagrant violations of the terms to go unanswered. It was a hard, bloody decision made in the midst of a hard and bloody war, and ultimately, Saladin himself should be criticized for abandoning the courageous Acre garrison to such a cruel fate. Compared to Richard, who often risked his own life leading rescue missions when his own men were captured, we can only wonder at Saladin’s calloused and ungrateful attitude toward his bravest soldiers. Saladin tried to use the massacre as a propaganda win, executing many Christian prisoners of his own in dramatic public spectacles, but ultimately considerable numbers of his own followers continued to blame him for the needless deaths of their comrades. Saladin would never overcome this bitterness that now infected his ranks.
END
C
ASTRID ESSED’S COMMENT ON THE REACTION OF ”REAL CRUSADES
HISTORY”

Astrid Essed

NO EXCUSE FOR THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH BY RICHARD COEUR DE LION NOT SALADIN IS TO BE BLAMED HERE, BUT THE ONE, WHO EXECUTED THE PRISONERS, RICHARD THE LION HEART THE CRUSADERS WERE INVADERS AND OCCUPIERS
What ”Real Crusaders History says, is unacceptable, since he excuses Richard the Lionheart for this barbaric deed and lays the blame on Saladin, who did not commit this! Admitting, that Medieval Warfare was a sordid affair, not only during the Crusades, but also in Europe [in a war between Lords or Kings, pillaging of villages and raping and killing innocent civilian villagers was standard], that is no excuse whatsoever for any crime of war, whether done by the Lords [or Kings] in Europe, in the Holy Land by the Crusaders or the Saracens. WRONG IS WRONG This to begin with: Then: It’s true that Saladin was responsible for the delay in the agreement between him and Richard about the exchange of the prisoners. It even may be said [there ”Real Crusaders History” ‘has a point] that Saladin brought thus the lives of the priosners in danger. BUT IT WAS RICHARD’S CHOICE TO MASSACRE THEM OR NOT AND THE BLAME FOR THIS IS SOLELY TO BE LAID IN RICHARD! And it was irresponsible too: Because as a retaliation [which I also condemn] Saladin killed the ”Christian” prisoners, which Richard could have expected. SALADIN’S BEHAVIOUR CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1099 CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1187 Of course Real Crusaders History is right, that Saladin could be cruel too. By executing the Christian prisoners after Richards’s massacre. By executing the Knights Templar after the Battle of Hattin. But let’s not forget the big difference at the conquest [reconquest] of Jerusalem When the”Christian” leaders [” because it is the opposite of real christian behaviour] conquered Jerusalem in 1099, the killed NEARLY ALL PEOPLE, MUSLIM, CHRISTIAN AND JEWS. When Saladin reconquered Jerusalem, he spared the whole population! WHO IS CIVILIZED HERE AND WHO THE BARBARIAN? THE CRUSADES WERE NOT A JUST FIGHT, BUT WARS OF CONQUEST AND CRUSADERS WERE INTRUDERS, AGGRESSORS AND OCCUPIERS! And let’s say this plain: The Crusaders had nothing to seek in the Holy Land, but for pilgrimage. Were they the inhabitants there? NO They came from England, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Italy, etc Far from the Holy Land. To say you have a mission to recover Jerusalem in the hands of Christianity is just nonsense, since not only they forgot, that Christendom originated in Palestine and was later spread to Europe, but also the fact, that Palestine belonged to the inhabitants, who lived THERE, Greek christians, Jews, who had remained there after the diaspora, Arabs, Turks, etc. The Holy Land was NOT the land of European knights, nobles and kings. They could come on a pilgrimage, but not established as rulers! True, the Muslims conquered the Holy Land at the cost of the Byzantine Empire and the only one, who had a certain claim, politically, was the Byzantine Emperor, who appealed to Europe [Pope Urbanus II] to help recover his lands [especially Anatolia] conquered by the Seljuq Turks. So helping him was legitimate, but although the Crusaders [First Crusade 1095-1099] promiised the Byzantine Emperor to recover his lands for him, BROKE THEIR PROMISE, HOLDING THE CONQUERED LANDS FOR THEMSELVES AND ESTABLISHED CRUSADER STATES! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HProiNnmGwI And this very behaviour towards the Byzantine Emeror revealed their true intentions: The conquest of land, riches and….women, HAHAHA When Richard fought in the Holy Land, once Saladin proposed that the christians could come to Jerusalem as pilgrims, but that was not enough for Richard. He wanted to CONQUER Jerusalem. And so he revealed his true intentions. Glory in warfare and lust for riches and power. And of course he had some religious motives, but that was also a pretext for going on warfare! So the battle AGAINST the Crusaders was righteous, sending them where the belonged: To England, France, the Holy Roman Empire and whatsoever JERUSALEM Besides that, Jerusalem is not only Holy for Christians, but also for Jews AND for Muslims, since they believe, that the Prophet Muhammed had made a nocturnal journey to Heaven, descending from Jerusalem
Astrid Essed
The Netherlands
SEE ALSO FROM ASTRID ESSED
AND
END

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september 2, 2025 · 7:46 pm

Astrid Essed’s Views on the Crusades/I/”No excuse for Richard Coeur de Lion’s massacre at Ayyadieh” [Facebook comment]

King Richard I
RICHARD COEUR DE LION, SECOND PLANTAGENET KING]
[OTHER NAME] RICHARD THE LION HEART
KING OF ENGLAND AND GREAT GREAT GRANDSON OF
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR [RICHARD’S PATERNAL
GRANDMOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD, WAS THE PATERNAL GRANDDAUGHTER OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR
SEE
RICHARD’S FATHER, KING HENRY II
KING HENRY II’S MOTHER, EMPRESS MAUD [MATHILDA], THE
LAWFUL SUCCESSOR OF HER FATHER, KING HENRY I,
ALTHOUGH HER THRONE HAD BEEN USURPED BY HER
FIRST COUSIN, STEPHEN OF BLOIS, WHICH LED TO A BITTER
CIVIL WAR
KING HENRY I, FATHER OF EMPRESS MAUD AND YOUNGEST SON
OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR’
HENRY I LET THE BARONS SWEAR AN OATH OF LOYALTY TO
HIS DAUGHTER AND SUCCESSOR, EMPRESS MAUD
HOWEVER MANY BARONS BROKE THAT OATH AND HENRY I’S
NEPHEW [SON OF HIS SISTER ADELA OF NORMANDY] USURPED
THE THRONE
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR, FATHER OF KING HENRY I
AS THE DUKE OF NORMANDY, DUKE WILLIAM CONQUERED ENGLAND IN
1066, DEFEATING THE LAST ANGLO SAXON KING, KING HARALD [OR KING HAROLD II, HAROLD GODWINSON],
AT THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR WAS THE GREAT GREAT GRANDFATHER OF
RICHARD COEUR THE LION [RICHARD LIONHEART], WHO WENT
ON CRUSADE AND IS THE SUBJECT OF THIS ARTICLE
KING HARALD [OR HAROLD II], THE LAST ANGLO SAXON
KING OF ENGLAND, DEFEATED BY WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR IN THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS IN 1066
ASTRID ESSED’S VIEW ON THE CRUSADES/ASTRID ESSED VERSUS
”REAL CRUSADES HISTORY”/NO EXCUSE FOR RICHARD COEUR DE
LION’S MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH”
In contrary with commonly accepted views in the Western world
[although there IS a change of opinion nowadays], the Crusades in
the Middle Ages were not some heroic and noble religious cause
[although many participants probably really though they were],
but bloody warsof conquest  for land, greed and wealth.
I hope in the future to write more about this!
But for now Readers, my Facebook comment on the page of
”Real Crusaders History”, because I strongly object the euphemistic
way they described the massacre of Ayyadieh on the orders of
the Norman English King [”Norman”, because he was the
great great grandson of William the Conqueror and as the second Plantagenet
king, he was still strongly ”French Norman” oriented] [1]
By blaming Richard’s adversary Sultan Saladin [who in reality defended the Holy Land, Palestine, against the Crusader invaders!] [2] for the Ayyadieh Massacre
”Real Crusaders History” is ”blaming the victim” here.
The organizer and commander king Richard is off the hook, and Sultan
Saladin, whose men were victims of the slaughter, gets the blame.
That is a travesty of the real history, so I commented that on their page:
And in my comment you can see a glimpse of the way I see the Crusades:
Perhaps I write more about it.
But for now:
READ AND ENJOY
First [A], you readabout the slaughter of ASyyadieh
Then [B] you read  the comment of Real Crusades History
And last, but not least [C] Astrid Essed’s Comment on
Real Crusades History
ENJOY!
ASTRID ESSED
NOTE 1
WIKIPEDIA
ANGEVIN KINGS OF ENGLAND
NOTE 2
WIKIPEDIA
SALADIN
A
WIKIPEDIA
MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH
B
”REAL CRUSADES HISTORY” ON FACEBOOK
THEIR COMMENT ON THE ROLE OF KING RICHARD
COEUR DE LION [RICHARD I, BETTER KNOWN AS
RICHARD LIONHEART] IN THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH [PAY ATTENTION:
RICHARD LIONHEART HIMSELF ORDERED THAT MASSACRE!]
REAL CRUSADES HISTORY ON FACEBOOK
COMMENT


Bericht van Real Crusades History

Why did Richard the Lionheart execute the Saracen garrison of Acre?
After the fall of Acre to the Christians, Richard the Lionheart dispatched envoys to Saladin, asking that the surrender terms of Acre be fulfilled. Saladin asked that he be allowed to deliver the payments and prisoners in installments. Richard agreed to this at once. Both sides agreed to a schedule of payments in which Saladin would deliver the ransom gradually, while both sides would exchange their prisoners. However, as each deadline came and went, a pattern began to emerge – Saladin refused to keep his end of the bargain. At each assigned date, Saladin offered excuses as to why he couldn’t deliver a payment, or release prisoners. Richard agreed to extend the deadlines, but it became clear that the Sultan was toying with the crusader king, and trying to undermine his authority. Above all, Saladin wanted to keep Richard bogged down in Acre, endlessly negotiating over these prisoners, while the Christian army disintegrated. Even Saladin’s own chroniclers admit this. Whereas Richard, famously, was obsessed with the well being of his own men, on this occasion, Saladin was perfectly content to gamble with the lives of his most valiant soldiers – the men who’d defended Acre. These men provided the Sultan with a means of stalling his enemy, and that mattered more to Saladin than obtaining their freedom.
Richard quickly recognized Saladin’s game. He knew that the Sultan was toying with him, and trying to both break the momentum of the crusade as well as make Richard appear ineffective. After one more broken deadline and litany of excuses from the Sultan’s envoys, Richard marched his prisoners out before Saladin’s encampment and executed them in full view of the Muslim army. In effect, Richard had called Saladin’s bluff, and the results would prove disastrous for the Sultan. Many emirs and leading men in the Muslim forces were enraged that Saladin had failed to ransom the brave defenders of Acre, and this would create loyalty problems for the Sultan that would persist throughout the crusade. In addition, Saladin would from then on find it very difficult to convince his men to garrison castles and cities, since they all now feared the fate of Acre’s garrison.
Ultimately, Richard had given Saladin ample opportunity to secure the lives of his men. This was far more than could be said of Saladin, who had ruthlessly executed Templars and Hospitallers taken prisoner after the battle of Hattin. By repeatedly reneging on the terms of the agreement, Saladin intentionally placed Richard in a very difficult situation. Richard had no ability to permanently house these prisoners, nor could he allow the Sultan’s flagrant violations of the terms to go unanswered. It was a hard, bloody decision made in the midst of a hard and bloody war, and ultimately, Saladin himself should be criticized for abandoning the courageous Acre garrison to such a cruel fate. Compared to Richard, who often risked his own life leading rescue missions when his own men were captured, we can only wonder at Saladin’s calloused and ungrateful attitude toward his bravest soldiers. Saladin tried to use the massacre as a propaganda win, executing many Christian prisoners of his own in dramatic public spectacles, but ultimately considerable numbers of his own followers continued to blame him for the needless deaths of their comrades. Saladin would never overcome this bitterness that now infected his ranks.
END
C
ASTRID ESSED’S COMMENT ON THE REACTION OF ”REAL CRUSADES
HISTORY”

Astrid Essed

NO EXCUSE FOR THE MASSACRE AT AYYADIEH BY RICHARD COEUR DE LION NOT SALADIN IS TO BE BLAMED HERE, BUT THE ONE, WHO EXECUTED THE PRISONERS, RICHARD THE LION HEART THE CRUSADERS WERE INVADERS AND OCCUPIERS
What ”Real Crusaders History says, is unacceptable, since he excuses Richard the Lionheart for this barbaric deed and lays the blame on Saladin, who did not commit this! Admitting, that Medieval Warfare was a sordid affair, not only during the Crusades, but also in Europe [in a war between Lords or Kings, pillaging of villages and raping and killing innocent civilian villagers was standard], that is no excuse whatsoever for any crime of war, whether done by the Lords [or Kings] in Europe, in the Holy Land by the Crusaders or the Saracens. WRONG IS WRONG This to begin with: Then: It’s true that Saladin was responsible for the delay in the agreement between him and Richard about the exchange of the prisoners. It even may be said [there ”Real Crusaders History” ‘has a point] that Saladin brought thus the lives of the priosners in danger. BUT IT WAS RICHARD’S CHOICE TO MASSACRE THEM OR NOT AND THE BLAME FOR THIS IS SOLELY TO BE LAID IN RICHARD! And it was irresponsible too: Because as a retaliation [which I also condemn] Saladin killed the ”Christian” prisoners, which Richard could have expected. SALADIN’S BEHAVIOUR CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1099 CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM, 1187 Of course Real Crusaders History is right, that Saladin could be cruel too. By executing the Christian prisoners after Richards’s massacre. By executing the Knights Templar after the Battle of Hattin. But let’s not forget the big difference at the conquest [reconquest] of Jerusalem When the”Christian” leaders [” because it is the opposite of real christian behaviour] conquered Jerusalem in 1099, the killed NEARLY ALL PEOPLE, MUSLIM, CHRISTIAN AND JEWS. When Saladin reconquered Jerusalem, he spared the whole population! WHO IS CIVILIZED HERE AND WHO THE BARBARIAN? THE CRUSADES WERE NOT A JUST FIGHT, BUT WARS OF CONQUEST AND CRUSADERS WERE INTRUDERS, AGGRESSORS AND OCCUPIERS! And let’s say this plain: The Crusaders had nothing to seek in the Holy Land, but for pilgrimage. Were they the inhabitants there? NO They came from England, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Italy, etc Far from the Holy Land. To say you have a mission to recover Jerusalem in the hands of Christianity is just nonsense, since not only they forgot, that Christendom originated in Palestine and was later spread to Europe, but also the fact, that Palestine belonged to the inhabitants, who lived THERE, Greek christians, Jews, who had remained there after the diaspora, Arabs, Turks, etc. The Holy Land was NOT the land of European knights, nobles and kings. They could come on a pilgrimage, but not established as rulers! True, the Muslims conquered the Holy Land at the cost of the Byzantine Empire and the only one, who had a certain claim, politically, was the Byzantine Emperor, who appealed to Europe [Pope Urbanus II] to help recover his lands [especially Anatolia] conquered by the Seljuq Turks. So helping him was legitimate, but although the Crusaders [First Crusade 1095-1099] promiised the Byzantine Emperor to recover his lands for him, BROKE THEIR PROMISE, HOLDING THE CONQUERED LANDS FOR THEMSELVES AND ESTABLISHED CRUSADER STATES! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HProiNnmGwI And this very behaviour towards the Byzantine Emeror revealed their true intentions: The conquest of land, riches and….women, HAHAHA When Richard fought in the Holy Land, once Saladin proposed that the christians could come to Jerusalem as pilgrims, but that was not enough for Richard. He wanted to CONQUER Jerusalem. And so he revealed his true intentions. Glory in warfare and lust for riches and power. And of course he had some religious motives, but that was also a pretext for going on warfare! So the battle AGAINST the Crusaders was righteous, sending them where the belonged: To England, France, the Holy Roman Empire and whatsoever JERUSALEM Besides that, Jerusalem is not only Holy for Christians, but also for Jews AND for Muslims, since they believe, that the Prophet Muhammed had made a nocturnal journey to Heaven, descending from Jerusalem
Astrid Essed
The Netherlands
SEE ALSO FROM ASTRID ESSED
AND
END

Reacties uitgeschakeld voor Astrid Essed’s Views on the Crusades/I/”No excuse for Richard Coeur de Lion’s massacre at Ayyadieh” [Facebook comment]

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augustus 24, 2025 · 4:29 pm

Hamas is the legitimate Palestinian Resistance Movement against the Israeli Occupation Terror!

Vlag van Palestina
HAMAS IS THE LEGITIMATE PALESTINIAN RESISTANCE MOVEMENT AGAINST
THE ISRAELI OCCUPATION TERROR!
READERS!
Hamas is a legitimate Palestinian resistance movement and since 2006 the
legally elected government after confirmed fair elections [1]
I NOT always agree with the way Hamas fights their battles and is doing politics[2], but that doesn’t matter here.
As Hamas, the Dutch Resistance against German Nazi occupation
was often controversial [3], but notwithstanding:
It was LEGITIMATE RESISTANCE
against the German occupation! [4]
And so is Hamas! [5]
To say more, the Hamas social engagement is beyond discussion.
Powerful and strong! [6]
INTERNATIONAL LAW AND THE RIGHT TO BE FREE!!
According to International Law and the Universal Right to be Free
the Palestinians have the Right on Armed Resistance against
the Zionist Israeli Terror Occupier!! [7]
So according to International Law all Palestinian resistance movements
and organisations are legitimate,
What is NOT legitimate is the Israeli Occupier, that uses the most monstruous
means to oppress the Palestinians, even with Famine and Genocide! [8]
DOWN WITH THE ISRAELI OCCUPATION!
DOWN WITH THE ZIONIST STATE ISRAEL!
LONG LIVE THE ARMED PALESTINIAN RESISTANCE FIGHT!
ASTRID ESSED
NOTES
NOTE 1
NOTE 2
NOTE 3
NOTE 4
NOTE 5
NOTE 6
NOTE 7
NOTE 8

Reacties uitgeschakeld voor Hamas is the legitimate Palestinian Resistance Movement against the Israeli Occupation Terror!

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· 4:18 pm

NOTE 8/RESISTANCE!

[8]
”More than half a million people in Gaza are trapped in famine, marked by widespread starvation, destitution and preventable deaths, according to a new UN-backed food security report released on Friday.”
UN NEWS
FAMINE IN GAZA ”A FAILURE OF HUMANITY ITSELF” SAYS UN CHIEF
22 AUGUST 2025

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said the results of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis were no mystery: “It is a man-made disaster, a moral indictment – and a failure of humanity itself.

“Famine is not about food; it is the deliberate collapse of the systems needed for human survival.”

Famine conditions are projected to spread from Gaza Governorate to Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis Governorates in the coming weeks, the IPC estimates.

UN agencies have collectively and consistently highlighted the extreme urgency of delivering immediate and full-scale humanitarian aid given the escalating hunger-related deaths, rapidly worsening levels of acute malnutrition and plummeting levels of food consumption in Gaza – with hundreds of thousands going days without anything to eat.

Israel’s obligations

“As the occupying power, Israel has unequivocal obligations under international law – including the duty of ensuring food and medical supplies of the population,” said the UN chief, reacting to the famine declaration from the IPC, which is endorsed by dozens of governments, UN agencies and NGOs as the key evidence-based measure of food insecurity and malnutrition.

See our UN News explainer here.

Mr. Guterres said Israel’s denial of its duties could not be allowed to continue: “No more excuses. The time for action is not tomorrow – it is now.”

Silence the guns, release the hostages

UN agencies operating in Gaza joined the UN chief in calling for an immediate ceasefire to finally allow unimpeded, large-scale humanitarian response and the immediate release of all hostages taken by Hamas and other militants during the 7 October 2023 terror attacks.

Agencies also expressed grave concern over the threat of the intensified military offensive on Gaza City and any further escalation in the conflict, as it would have further devastating consequences for civilians where famine conditions already exist.

“Many people – especially sick and malnourished children, older people and people with disabilities – may be unable to evacuate,” they said in a joint statement

By the end of September, more than 640,000 people will face ‘catastrophic’ levels of food insecurity – classified as IPC Phase 5 – across the Gaza Strip.

An additional 1.14 million people in the enclave will be in phase 4 with a further 396,000 people facing phase 3 ‘crisis’ conditions.

Conditions in North Gaza are estimated to be as severe – or worse – than in Gaza City. However, limited data prevented an IPC classification, highlighting the urgent need for access.

Classifying famine means that the most extreme category is triggered when three critical thresholds – extreme food deprivation, acute malnutrition and starvation-related deaths – have been breached. The latest analysis now affirms on the basis of reasonable evidence that these criteria have been met, UN agencies said.

Briefing journalists on Friday at UN headquarters in Geneva, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said it was a famine that could have been prevented “if we had been allowed.”

Famine in a fertile land

“Yet food stacks up at borders because of systematic obstruction by Israel. It is a famine within a few hundred metres of food, in a fertile land.

It is a famine that we repeatedly warned of – but that the international media has not been allowed in to cover, to bear witness,” he added.

“It is a famine in 2025. A 21st century famine watched over by drones and the most advanced military technology in history. It is a famine openly promoted by some Israeli leaders as a weapon of war.”

On a wider scale, Mr. Fletcher said it was “the world’s famine. It is a famine that asks ‘but what did you do?’ A famine that will and must haunt us all.”

Malnutrition among children in Gaza is accelerating “at a catastrophic pace”, said UN agencies, who note that in July alone, more than 12,000 children were identified as acutely malnourished – the highest monthly figure ever recorded and a six-fold increase since the start of the year.

Possible war crime

UN human rights chief Volker Türk said the famine was the “direct result” of Israeli Government policies.

“It is a war crime to use starvation as a method of warfare, and the resulting deaths may also amount to the war crime of willful killing,” he said.

“Israeli authorities must take immediate steps to end the famine in the Gaza Governorate and prevent further loss of life across the Gaza strip. They must ensure immediate entry of humanitarian assistance in sufficient amounts, and full access to UN and other humanitarian organizations.”

First Middle East famine

Since the last IPC Analysis in May, the number of children expected to be at severe risk of death from malnutrition by the end of June 2026 has tripled from 14,100 to 43,400.

The new assessment reports the most severe deterioration since the IPC began analysing acute food insecurity and acute malnutrition in Gaza Strip, and it marks the first time a famine has been officially confirmed in the Middle East region.

Since July, food and aid supplies entering Gaza increased slightly but remained vastly insufficient, inconsistent and inaccessible compared to the need.

Meanwhile, approximately 98 percent of cropland in the territory is damaged or inaccessible – decimating the agriculture sector and local food production – and nine of ten people have been serially displaced from homes.

END

WFP.ORG

FAMINE CONFIRMED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN GAZA

22 AUGUST 2025

https://www.wfp.org/news/famine-confirmed-first-time-gaza

FAO, UNICEF, WFP and WHO reiterate call for immediate ceasefire and unhindered humanitarian access to curb deaths from hunger and malnutrition

Joint FAO/UNICEF/WHO/WFP News Release

ROME/GENEVA/NEW YORK – More than half a million people in Gaza are trapped in famine, marked by widespread starvation, destitution and preventable deaths, according to a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis released today. Famine conditions are projected to spread from Gaza Governorate to Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis Governorates in the coming weeks.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), UNICEF, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have collectively and consistently highlighted the extreme urgency for an immediate and full-scale humanitarian response given the escalating hunger-related deaths, rapidly worsening levels of acute malnutrition and plummeting levels of food consumption, with hundreds of thousands of people going days without anything to eat.

The agencies reinforced that famine must be stopped at all costs. An immediate ceasefire and end to the conflict is critical to allow unimpeded, large-scale humanitarian response that can save lives. The agencies are also gravely concerned about the threat of an intensified military offensive in Gaza City and any escalation in the conflict, as it would have further devastating consequences for civilians where famine conditions already exist. Many people – especially sick and malnourished children, older people and people with disabilities – may be unable to evacuate.

By the end of September, more than 640,000 people will face Catastrophic levels of food insecurity – classified as IPC Phase 5 – across the Gaza Strip. An additional 1.14 million people in the territory will be in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and a further 396,000 people in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) conditions. Conditions in North Gaza are estimated to be as severe – or worse – than in Gaza City. However, limited data prevented an IPC classification, highlighting the urgent need for access to assess and assist. Rafah was not analyzed given indications that it is largely depopulated.

Classifying famine means that the most extreme category is triggered when three critical thresholds – extreme food deprivation, acute malnutrition and starvation-related deaths – have been breached. The latest analysis now affirms on the basis of reasonable evidence that these criteria have been met.

Almost two years of conflict, repeated displacement, and severe restrictions on humanitarian access, compounded by repeated interruptions and impediments to access to food, water, medical aid, support to agriculture, livestock and fisheries and the collapse of health, sanitation, and market systems, have pushed people into starvation.

Access to food in Gaza remains severely constrained. In July, the number of households reporting very severe hunger doubled across the territory compared to May and more than tripled in Gaza City. More than one in three people (39 percent) indicated they were going days at a time without eating, and adults regularly skip meals to feed their children.

Malnutrition among children in Gaza is accelerating at a catastrophic pace. In July alone, more than 12,000 children were identified as acutely malnourished – the highest monthly figure ever recorded and a six-fold increase since the start of the year. Nearly one in four of these children were suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), the deadliest form with both short and long-term impacts.

Since the last IPC Analysis in May, the number of children expected to be at severe risk of death from malnutrition by the end of June 2026 has tripled from 14,100 to 43,400. Similarly, for pregnant and breastfeeding women, the number of estimated cases has tripled from 17,000 in May to 55,000 women expected to be suffering from perilous levels of malnutrition by mid-2026. The impact is visible: one in five babies are born prematurely or underweight.

The new assessment reports the most severe deterioration since the IPC began analyzing acute food insecurity and acute malnutrition in the Gaza Strip, and it marks the first time a famine has been officially confirmed in the Middle East region.

Since July, food and aid supplies entering Gaza increased slightly but remained vastly insufficient, inconsistent and inaccessible compared to the need.

Meanwhile, approximately 98 percent of cropland in the territory is damaged or inaccessible – decimating the agriculture sector and local food production – and nine of ten people have been serially displaced from homes. Cash is critically scarce, aid operations remain severely disrupted, with most UN trucks looted amid growing desperation. Food prices are extremely high and there is not enough fuel and water to cook and medicines and medical supplies.

Gaza’s health system has severely deteriorated, access to safe drinking water and sanitation services has been drastically reduced, while multi-drug resistant infections are surging and levels of morbidity – including diarrhea, fever, acute respiratory and skin infections – are alarmingly high among children.

To enable lifesaving humanitarian operations, the U.N. agencies emphasized the importance of an immediate and sustained ceasefire to stop the killing, allow for the safe release of hostages and permit unimpeded access for a mass influx of assistance to reach people across Gaza. They stressed the urgent need for greater amounts of food aid, along with dramatically improved delivery, distribution and accessibility, as well as shelter, fuel, cooking gas and food production inputs. They emphasized that it is critical to support the rehabilitation of the health system, maintain and revive essential health services, including primary health care, and ensure sustained delivery of health supplies into and across Gaza. The restoration of commercial flows at scale, market systems, essential services, and local food production is also vital if the worst outcomes of the famine are to be avoided.

“People in Gaza have exhausted every possible means of survival. Hunger and malnutrition are claiming lives every day, and the destruction of cropland, livestock, greenhouses, fishery and food production systems has made the situation even more dire,” said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu. “Our priority must now be safe and sustained access for large-scale food assistance. Access to food is not a privilege – it is a basic human right.”

“Famine warnings have been clear for months,” said Cindy McCain, WFP Executive Director. “What’s urgently needed now is a surge of aid, safer conditions, and proven distribution systems to reach those most in need – wherever they are. Full humanitarian access and a ceasefire now are critical to save lives.”

“Famine is now a grim reality for children in Gaza Governorate, and a looming threat in Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “As we have repeatedly warned, the signs were unmistakable: children with wasted bodies, too weak to cry or eat; babies dying from hunger and preventable disease; parents arriving at clinics with nothing left to feed their children. There is no time to lose. Without an immediate ceasefire and full humanitarian access, famine will spread, and more children will die. Children on the brink of starvation need the special therapeutic feeding that UNICEF provides.” 

“A ceasefire is an absolute and moral imperative now,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “The world has waited too long, watching tragic and unnecessary deaths mount from this man-made famine. Widespread malnutrition means that even common and usually mild diseases like diarrhea are becoming fatal, especially for children. The health system, run by hungry and exhausted health workers, cannot cope. Gaza must be urgently supplied with food and medicines to save lives and begin the process of reversing malnutrition. Hospitals must be protected so that they can continue treating patients. Aid blockages must end, and peace must be restored, so that healing can begin.”

#####

Notes for editors:

Access the IPC alert here.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is an innovative 21-partner initiative – made up of UN agencies and international NGOs – for improving food security and nutrition analysis and decision-making. By using the IPC classification and analytical approach, Governments, UN Agencies, NGOs, civil society and other relevant actors, work together to determine the severity and magnitude of acute and chronic food insecurity, and acute malnutrition situations in a country, according to internationally-recognized scientific standards. Find out more here.

Related links

Package of high-resolution photos is available here.

Broadcast quality footage is available here.

Palestine emergency page here.

END

GENOCIDE

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION CONCLUDES ISRAEL

IS COMMITTING GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

5 DECEMBER 2024

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/12/amnesty-international-concludes-israel-is-committing-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza/

Amnesty International’s research has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip, the organization said in a landmark new report published today.

The report, ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, documents how, during its military offensive launched in the wake of the deadly Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on 7 October 2023, Israel has unleashed hell and destruction on Palestinians in Gaza brazenly, continuously and with total impunity.

“Amnesty International’s report demonstrates that Israel has carried out acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention, with the specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza. These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction. Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

“Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now.

“States that continue to transfer arms to Israel at this time must know they are violating their obligation to prevent genocide and are at risk of becoming complicit in genocide. All states with influence over Israel, particularly key arms suppliers like the USA and Germany, but also other EU member states, the UK and others, must act now to bring Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza to an immediate end.”

Over the past two months the crisis has grown particularly acute in the North Gaza governorate, where a besieged population is facing starvation, displacement and annihilation amid relentless bombardment and suffocating restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid.

“Our research reveals that, for months, Israel has persisted in committing genocidal acts, fully aware of the irreparable harm it was inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza. It continued to do so in defiance of countless warnings about the catastrophic humanitarian situation and of legally binding decisions from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordering Israel to take immediate measures to enable the provision of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Israel has repeatedly argued that its actions in Gaza are lawful and can be justified by its military goal to eradicate Hamas. But genocidal intent can co-exist alongside military goals and does not need to be Israel’s sole intent.”

Amnesty International examined Israel’s acts in Gaza closely and in their totality, taking into account their recurrence and simultaneous occurrence, and both their immediate impact and their cumulative and mutually reinforcing consequences. The organization considered the scale and severity of the casualties and destruction over time. It also analysed public statements by officials, finding that prohibited acts were often announced or called for in the first place by high-level officials in charge of the war efforts.

“Taking into account the pre-existing context of dispossession, apartheid and unlawful military occupation in which these acts have been committed, we could find only one reasonable conclusion: Israel’s intent is the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza, whether in parallel with, or as a means to achieve, its military goal of destroying Hamas,” said Agnès Callamard.

“The atrocity crimes committed on 7 October 2023 by Hamas and other armed groups against Israelis and victims of other nationalities, including deliberate mass killings and hostage-taking, can never justify Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.”

International jurisprudence recognizes that the perpetrator does not need to succeed in their attempts to destroy the protected group, either in whole or in part, for genocide to have been committed. The commission of prohibited acts with the intent to destroy the group, as such, is sufficient.

Amnesty International’s report examines in detail Israel’s violations in Gaza over nine months between 7 October 2023 and early July 2024. The organization interviewed 212 people, including Palestinian victims and witnesses, local authorities in Gaza, healthcare workers, conducted fieldwork and analysed an extensive range of visual and digital evidence, including satellite imagery. It also analysed statements by senior Israeli government and military officials, and official Israeli bodies. On multiple occasions, the organization shared its findings with the Israeli authorities but had received no substantive response at the time of publication.

Unprecedented scale and magnitude

Israel’s actions following Hamas’s deadly attacks on 7 October 2023 have brought Gaza’s population to the brink of collapse. Its brutal military offensive had killed more than 42,000 Palestinians, including over 13,300 children, and injured over 97,000 more, by 7 October 2024, many of them in direct or deliberately indiscriminate attacks, often wiping out entire multigenerational families. It has caused unprecedented destruction, which experts say occurred at a level and speed not seen in any other conflict in the 21st century, levelling entire cities and destroying critical infrastructure, agricultural land and cultural and religious sites. It thereby rendered large swathes of Gaza uninhabitable.

Mohammed, who fled with his family from Gaza City to Rafah in March 2024 and was displaced again in May 2024, described their struggle to survive in horrifying conditions:

“Here in Deir al-Balah, it’s like an apocalypse… You have to protect your children from insects, from the heat, and there is no clean water, no toilets, all while the bombing never stops. You feel like you are subhuman here.”

Israel imposed conditions of life in Gaza that created a deadly mixture of malnutrition, hunger and diseases, and exposed Palestinians to a slow, calculated death. Israel also subjected hundreds of Palestinians from Gaza to incommunicado detention, torture and other ill-treatment.

Viewed in isolation, some of the acts investigated by Amnesty International constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law or international human rights law. But in looking at the broader picture of Israel’s military campaign and the cumulative impact of its policies and acts, genocidal intent is the only reasonable conclusion.

Intent to destroy

To establish Israel’s specific intent to physically destroy Palestinians in Gaza, as such, Amnesty International analysed the overall pattern of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, reviewed dehumanizing and genocidal statements by Israeli government and military officials, particularly those at the highest levels, and considered the context of Israel’s system of apartheid, its inhumane blockade of Gaza and the unlawful 57-year-old military occupation of the Palestinian territory.

Before reaching its conclusion, Amnesty International examined Israel’s claims that its military lawfully targeted Hamas and other armed groups throughout Gaza, and that the resulting unprecedented destruction and denial of aid were the outcome of unlawful conduct by Hamas and other armed groups, such as locating fighters among the civilian population or the diversion of aid. The organization concluded these claims are not credible. The presence of Hamas fighters near or within a densely populated area does not absolve Israel from its obligations to take all feasible precautions to spare civilians and avoid indiscriminate or disproportionate attacks. Its research found Israel repeatedly failed to do so, committing multiple crimes under international law for which there can be no justification based on Hamas’s actions. Amnesty International also found no evidence that the diversion of aid could explain Israel’s extreme and deliberate restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid.

In its analysis, the organization also considered alternative arguments such as ones that Israel was acting recklessly or that it simply wanted to destroy Hamas and did not care if it needed to destroy Palestinians in the process, demonstrating a callous disregard for their lives rather than genocidal intent.

However, regardless of whether Israel sees the destruction of Palestinians as instrumental to destroying Hamas or as an acceptable by-product of this goal, this view of Palestinians as disposable and not worthy of consideration is in itself evidence of genocidal intent.

Many of the unlawful acts documented by Amnesty International were preceded by officials urging their implementation. The organization reviewed 102 statements that were issued by Israeli government and military officials and others between 7 October 2023 and 30 June 2024 and dehumanized Palestinians, called for or justified genocidal acts or other crimes against them.

Of these, Amnesty International identified 22 statements made by senior officials in charge of managing the offensive that appeared to call for, or justify, genocidal acts, providing direct evidence of genocidal intent. This language was frequently replicated, including by Israeli soldiers on the ground, as evidenced by audiovisual content verified by Amnesty International showing soldiers making calls to “erase” Gaza or to make it uninhabitable, and celebrating the destruction of Palestinian homes, mosques, schools and universities.

Killing and causing serious bodily or mental harm

Amnesty International documented the genocidal acts of killing and causing serious mental and bodily harm to Palestinians in Gaza by reviewing the results of investigations it conducted into 15 air strikes between 7 October 2023 and 20 April 2024 that killed at least 334 civilians, including 141 children, and wounded hundreds of others. Amnesty International found no evidence that any of these strikes were directed at a military objective.

In one illustrative case, on 20 April 2024, an Israeli air strike destroyed the Abdelal family house in the Al-Jneinah neighbourhood in eastern Rafah, killing three generations of Palestinians, including 16 children, while they were sleeping.

While these represent just a fraction of Israel’s aerial attacks, they are indicative of a broader pattern of repeated direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects or deliberately indiscriminate attacks. The attacks were also conducted in ways designed to cause a very high number of fatalities and injuries among the civilian population.

Inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about physical destruction

The report documents how Israel deliberately inflicted conditions of life on Palestinians in Gaza intended to lead, over time, to their destruction. These conditions were imposed through three simultaneous patterns that repeatedly compounded the effect of each other’s devastating impacts: damage to and destruction of life-sustaining infrastructure and other objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population; the repeated use of sweeping, arbitrary and confusing mass “evacuation” orders to forcibly displace almost all of Gaza’s population; and the denial and obstruction of the delivery of essential services, humanitarian assistance and other life-saving supplies into and within Gaza.

After 7 October 2023, Israel imposed a total siege on Gaza cutting off electricity, water and fuel. In the nine months reviewed for this report, Israel maintained a suffocating, unlawful blockade, tightly controlled access to energy sources, failed to facilitate meaningful humanitarian access within Gaza,  and obstructed the import and delivery of life-saving goods and humanitarian aid, particularly to areas north of Wadi Gaza. They thereby exacerbated an already existing humanitarian crisis. This, combined with the extensive damage to Gaza’s homes, hospitals, water and sanitation facilities and agricultural land, and mass forced displacement, caused catastrophic levels of hunger and led to the spread of diseases at alarming rates. The impact was especially harsh on young children and pregnant or breastfeeding women, with anticipated long-term consequences for their health.

Time and again, Israel had the chance to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, yet for over a year it has repeatedly refused to take steps blatantly within its power to do so, such as opening sufficient access points to Gaza or lifting tight restrictions on what could enter the Strip  or their obstruction of aid deliveries within Gaza while the situation has grown progressively worse.

Through its repeated “evacuation” orders Israel displaced nearly 1.9 million Palestinians – 90% of Gaza’s population – into ever-shrinking, unsafe pockets of land under inhumane conditions, some of them up to 10 times. These multiple waves of forced displacement left many jobless and deeply traumatized, especially since some 70% of Gaza’s residents are refugees or descendants of refugees whose towns and villages were ethnically cleansed by Israel during the 1948 Nakba.

Despite conditions quickly becoming unfit for human life, Israeli authorities refused to consider measures that would have protected displaced civilians and ensured their basic needs were met, showing that their actions were deliberate.

They refused to allow those displaced to return to their homes in northern Gaza or relocate temporarily to other parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory or Israel, continuing to deny many Palestinians their right to return under international law to areas they were displaced from in 1948. They did so knowing that there was nowhere safe for Palestinians in Gaza to flee to.

Accountability for genocide

“The international community’s seismic, shameful failure for over a year to press Israel to end its atrocities in Gaza, by first delaying calls for a ceasefire and then continuing arms transfers, is and will remain a stain on our collective conscience,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Governments must stop pretending they are powerless to end this genocide, which was enabled by decades of impunity for Israel’s violations of international law. States need to move beyond mere expressions of regret or dismay and take strong and sustained international action, however uncomfortable a finding of genocide may be for some of Israel’s allies.

“The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity issued last month offer real hope of long-overdue justice for victims. States must demonstrate their respect for the court’s decision and for universal international law principles by arresting and handing over those wanted by the ICC.

“We are calling on the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to urgently consider adding genocide to the list of crimes it is investigating and for all states to use every legal avenue to bring perpetrators to justice. No one should be allowed to commit genocide and remain unpunished.”

Amnesty International is also calling for all civilian hostages to be released unconditionally and for Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups responsible for the crimes committed on 7 October to be held to account.

The organization is also calling for the UN Security Council to impose targeted sanctions against Israeli and Hamas officials most implicated in crimes under international law.

Background

On 7 October 2023 Hamas and other armed groups indiscriminately fired rockets into southern Israel and carried out deliberate mass killings and hostage-taking there, killing 1,200 people, including over 800 civilians, and abducted 223 civilians and captured 27 soldiers. The crimes perpetrated by Hamas and other armed groups during this attack will be the focus of a forthcoming Amnesty International report.

Since October 2023, Amnesty International has conducted in-depth investigations into the multiple violations and crimes under international law committed by Israeli forces, including direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and deliberately indiscriminate attacks killing hundreds of civilians, as well as other unlawful attacks on and collective punishment of the civilian population. The organization has called on the Office of the ICC Prosecutor to expedite its investigation into the situation in the State of Palestine and is campaigning for an immediate ceasefire.

END

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

ISRAEL/OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY:

”YOU FEEL YOU ARE SUBHUMAN”:

ISRAEL’S GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

5 DECEMBER 2024

https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/8668/2024/en/

This report documents Israel’s actions during its offensive on the occupied Gaza Strip from 7 October 2023. It examines the killing of civilians, damage to and destruction of civilian infrastructure, forcible displacement, the obstruction or denial of life-saving goods and humanitarian aid, and the restriction of power supplies. It analyses Israel’s intent through this pattern of conduct and statements by Israeli decision-makers. It concludes that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
A stand-alone executive summary is available in English and other languages: ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza: Executive Summary (Index: MDE 15/8744/2024).

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT

YOU FEEL YOU ARE SUBHUMAN

ISRAEL’S GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

DECEMBER 2024

file:///C:/Users/Astrid/Downloads/MDE1586682024ENGLISH%20(2).pdf

SEE ALSO

https://www.astridessed.nl/amnesty-international-investigation-concludes-israel-is-committing-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza/

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· 4:17 pm

NOTE 7/RESISTANCE!

[7]
””1. Affirms the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples under colonial and alien domination recognized as being entitled to the right of self-determination to restore to themselves that right by any means at their disposal;”
UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION 2649

2649 (XXV).

 

 The importance of the universal realization of the right of peoples 

to self-determination and of the speedy granting of independence

to colonial countries and peoples for the effective guarantee and

observance of human rights

      

 

The General Assembly,

 

Emphasizing the importance of the universal realization of the right of peoples to self-determination and of the speedy granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples for the effective guarantee and observance of human rights,

 

Concerned that many peoples are still denied the right to self-determination and are still subject to colonial and alien domination,

 

Regretting that the obligations undertaken by States under the Charter of the United Nations and the decisions adopted by United Nations bodies have not proved sufficient to attain respect for the right of peoples to self-determination in all cases,

 

Recalling its resolution 2588 B (XXIV) of 15 December 1969 and resolution VIII adopted by the International Conference on Human Rights held at Teheran in 1968, 1/

 

Considering that it is necessary to continue the study of ways and means of ensuring international respect for the right of peoples to self-determination,

 

Noting the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, 2/ which elaborated the principle of self-determination of peoples,

 

Recalling its resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960 containing the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,

 

Recalling its resolution 2621 (XXV) of 12 October 1970 on the programme of action for the full implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,

 

1. Affirms the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples under colonial and alien domination recognized as being entitled to the right of self-determination to restore to themselves that right by any means at their disposal;

 

2. Recognizes the right of peoples under colonial and alien domination in the legitimate exercise of their right to self-determination to seek and receive all kinds of moral and material assistance, in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations and the spirit of the Charter of the United Nations;

 

3. Calls upon all Governments that deny the right to self-determination of peoples under colonial and alien domination to recognize and observe that right in accordance with the relevant international instruments and the principles and spirit of the Charter;

 

4. Considers that the acquisition and retention of territory in contravention of the right of the people of that territory to self-determination is inadmissible and a gross violation of the Charter;

 

5. Condemns those Governments that deny the right to self-determination of peoples recognized as being entitled to it, especially of the peoples of southern Africa and Palestine;

 

6. Requests the Commission on Human Rights to study, at its twenty-seventh session, the implementation of the United Nations resolutions relating to the right of peoples under colonial and alien domination to self-determination, and to submit its conclusions and recommendations to the General Assembly, through the Economic and Social Council, as soon as possible.

 

1915th plenary meeting

30 November 1970.

_________________

 

1/   Final Act, (E.68.XIV.2), p.9.

 

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NOTE 6/RESISTANCE!

[6]
”Albanese pointed out that many individuals repeat mainstream narratives about Hamas without a true understanding of its role. She highlighted that the movement has established schools, public institutions, and hospitals, positioning itself as the de facto authority in Gaza.”
MIDDLE EAST MONITOR
UN RAPPORTEUR: HAMAS IS AN ELECTED POLITICAL FORCE,
NOT A BAND OF MURDERERS
18 AUGUST 2025

On Sunday, Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, emphasised that Hamas should be recognised as a legitimate political movement rather than a group of murderers. She noted that Hamas plays a significant administrative and service role in the Gaza Strip, asserting that the organisation came to power after winning what she described as the most democratic elections in the region, not only in Palestine.

Albanese pointed out that many individuals repeat mainstream narratives about Hamas without a true understanding of its role. She highlighted that the movement has established schools, public institutions, and hospitals, positioning itself as the de facto authority in Gaza.

Rejecting the portrayal of Hamas as solely a militant group, Albanese stated, “Hamas is not a band of murderers or heavily armed fighters, as it is often depicted in various narratives.”

The UN rapporteur has also previously accused over 60 international corporations, including prominent arms and technology firms, of facilitating Israeli military operations in Gaza and supporting settlements in the West Bank.

Albanese characterised the ongoing situation in Gaza as a “campaign of genocide,” driven primarily by profit motives. She urged companies to cease their business dealings with Israel and called for accountability for their CEOs under international humanitarian law.

“At a time when lives are being lost in Gaza and the West Bank is facing escalating violence, this report highlights a crucial reason why Israel’s genocide continues: it is profitable for many involved,” she stated.

END
”It also offered social welfare programmes to Palestinian victims of the Israeli occupation.”
ALJAZEERA
WHAT IS HAMAS? A SIMPLE GUIDE TO THE ARMED PALESTINIAN GROUP
8 OCTOBER 2023
The group’s audacious Saturday attack on Israel has triggered a bloody bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip.
 

The Palestinian armed group Hamas on October 7 launched a surprise attack into Israel in one of the most serious escalations in the Israel-Palestinian conflict in years.

Hamas fighters entered Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, killing more than 1,400 people and sending shockwaves across Israel.

The latest conflict has thrown a spotlight on Israel’s 16-year blockade of the Gaza Strip and its policy of settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has launched a brutal military offensive in Gaza, killing more than 4,600 people as he promised to finish Hamas.

So what is Hamas, the group at the centre of it all? Here is what to know:

What is the group Hamas?

Hamas stands for the Islamic Resistance Movement and in Arabic means “zeal”.

The group politically controls the Gaza Strip, a territory of about 365sq km (141sq miles) that is home to more than two million people but is blockaded by Israel.

Hamas has been in power in the Gaza Strip since 2007 after a brief war against Fatah forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

When was Hamas formed and what is its aim?

The Hamas movement was founded in Gaza in 1987 by an imam, Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, and his aide Abdul Aziz al-Rantissi shortly after the start of the first Intifada, an uprising against Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories.

The movement started as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and created a military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, to pursue an armed struggle against Israel with the aim of liberating historic Palestine.

It also offered social welfare programmes to Palestinian victims of the Israeli occupation.

What are the Palestinian group’s principles?

Unlike the PLO, Hamas does not recognise Israel’s statehood but accepts a Palestinian state on 1967 borders.

“We shall not waive an inch of the Palestinian home soil no matter what the recent pressures are and no matter how long the occupation,” Khaled Meshaal, the leader-in-exile of the Palestinian group said in 2017.

Hamas violently opposes the Oslo peace accords negotiated by Israel and the PLO in the mid-1990s.

It is formally committed to establishing a Palestinian state within its own borders. It has pursued this aim through attacks on Israeli soldiers, settlers and civilians both in the occupied Palestinian territories and in Israel.

The group as whole or in some instances its military wing is designated as a “terrorist” organisation by Israel, the United States, European Union, Canada, Egypt and Japan.

Who are its allies and supporters?

Hamas is part of a regional alliance that also includes Iran, Syria and the group Hezbollah in Lebanon, which opposes US policies towards the Middle East and Israel.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the second-largest armed group in the region, are often united against Israel and are the most important members of the joint operations room that coordinates military activity among the various armed groups in Gaza.

The relationship between the two groups has been tense when Hamas has exerted pressure on Islamic Jihad to stop attacks against Israel.

What prompted Saturday’s attack on Israel?

Hamas spokesperson Khaled Qadomi told Al Jazeera that the group carried out its military operation in response to atrocities that Palestinians have faced over decades.

“We want the international community to stop atrocities in Gaza against Palestinian people, our holy sites like Al-Aqsa [Mosque]. All these things are the reason behind starting this battle,” he said.

Hamas also called on other groups to join the fight, saying Saturday’s attacks were just the beginning.

Is Hamas targeting civilians?

Osama Hamdan, senior spokesperson for Hamas, told Al Jazeera that the group was not attacking civilians even though the group’s own videos have shown its fighters taking elderly Israelis hostage during the fighting on Saturday.

Rights groups such as Amnesty International have also pointed out that Israeli civilians had been killed by Hamas.

But Hamdan insisted that the group was attacking only settlers living in illegal settlements, whom he described as legitimate targets.

“You have to differentiate between settlers and civilians. Settlers attacked Palestinians,” Hamdan said.

Asked whether civilians in southern Israel were also considered settlers, Hamdan said: “Everyone knows there are settlements there.”

“We are not targeting civilians on purpose. We have declared settlers are part of the occupation and part of the armed Israeli force. They are not civilians,” he added.

How was the group able to carry out the attack?

Hamas said its fighters took several Israelis captive in the enclave, releasing videos of fighters dragging bloodied soldiers. It said senior Israeli military officers were among the captives.

The videos could not immediately be verified but matched geographic features of the area. Fears that Israelis have been kidnapped evoked memories of the 2006 capture of soldier Gilad Shalit, whom Hamas-linked fighters seised in a cross-border raid. Hamas held Shalit for five years until he was exchanged for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Hamas also sent paragliders flying into Israel, the Israeli military said. The attack recalled a famous assault in the late 1980s when Palestinian fighters crossed from Lebanon into northern Israel on hang-gliders and killed six Israeli soldiers.

END

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NOTE 5/RESISTANCE!

[5]

IMEMC NEWS
HAMAS, FROM ISLAMIC REVIVAL-MOVEMENT TO
PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT
ASTRID ESSED
2006
‘

Contary to the leading opinions of the American-European politicians and media, the main aim of Hamas in calling for the “destruction” of the State of Israel, is not to kill or expel the Israeli-Jewish population, but to dismantle the zionistic State Model and to make an end to the 39-year Israeli occupation and settlement policy.

In the Palestinian elections January 25, 2006, Hamas obtained a startling victory.  Of the 132 seats of parliament, the Hamas party, which for the first time was participating in the parliamentary elections, obtained 74 seats, in contrast with the then-reigning Fatah Party, which obtained a mere 43 seats.  The remaining 13 seats were obtained by different smaller political parties, as well as independent candidates.

This great victory for Hamas was no surprise, considering the ongoing corruption of the Fatah-government versus the fundamental political and military resistance by Hamas against the Israeli occupation, as well as the Hamas social activities on behalf of the impoverished population of Palestine, especially Gaza.

In spite of this, leading American-European politicians, as well as the newsmedia, not only showed great astonishment at Hamas’ victory, they also demanded that Hamas renounce the violence against Israel and also acknowledge the State of Israel – and made this demand the condition of continued financial support to the Palestinian Authority.

When the newly-formed Hamas government refused to agree with those American-European demands, the American and Canadian governments, as well the European Union, decided to freeze the financial support to the Palestinian Authority, a measure which mainly affected the already seriously impoverished Palestinian civilian population, since at least 45% of the population [some reports put the number as high as 70 %] are living below the poverty-rate and 15% are living in extreme poverty.

Nutrition, education and medicine have been the areas most affected by the financial and economic boycott of Palestine.  Moreover, 250,000 Palestinians depend on Palestinian Authority salaries, and these government employees support nearly one million people, or 20% of the total Palestinian population.  However, due to the American-European boycott, salaries haven’t been paid since January, and the families of the government employees have had to bear the consequences.

Not only are the boycott measures morally reprehensible in regard with the humanitarian consequences for the Palestinian civilian-population, they have also led to mounting tensions within the Palestinian society.

Many international non-governmental organizations, as well as a number of United Nations agencies, have harshly criticized the economic boycott and blockade of Palestine.

Another consequence of the boycott is that, as a result of the freezing of European Union (EU) financial support, Hamas shall receive increased financial aid from the governments of the Arab and other Islamic countries.  This will lead to the lessening of EU political influence regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the strengthening of the influence of regimes adhering to more radical political Islamic ideologies, such as Iran.  Recently a number of Arab governments, and Iran, have either given or promised financial aid to the Hamas government.

No doubt aware of the above-mentioned political consequences of the diminishing EU influence regarding the Middle-East, the EU, represented by EU Commissioner Louis Michel (former Belgian minister of foreign affairs), has set aside a sum of 34 million euros for emergency aid to the Palestinian territories.  This aid is to be delivered outside of the Palestinian government, mainly through non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Also the World Bank, which has predicted an increasing humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territories, is exploring, in direct cooperation with the ‘Quartet for Mideast Peace made up of the EU, USA, the Russian Federation and the UN, to resume financial aid to the Palestinian population, by going outside of Hamas channels, bypassing the Hamas-led Palestinian government by providing the aid by way of NGOs which are active in the area.

Double standards:

The basis of the American-European boycott of the financial aid to the Palestinian Authority lies in the refusal of Hamas to renounce violence against Israel and to acknowlegde the State of Israel.
A further argument given in support of the boycott is the fact, that Hamas has played a major role in the incitement to suicide attacks against Israeli civilians and is still continuing this strategy.

It is self-evident that suicide-attacks as military attacks on civilians are not only inhuman, but also illegal according to International Law.  But what is seldom mentioned by the EU and the American-European governments are that these attacks are a matter of cause and effects, since they have been the result of the now 39 years of Israeli occupation of Palestinian land — an occupation which is in violation of the unanimously-accepted UN-Security Resolution 242 of 1967, in which Israel was required to withdraw its troops from the territories conquered during the June 1967 war, including the Palestinian territories.

Also, the boycotting countries are ignoring the fact that the attacks by Hamas do not consist solely of suicide-attacks, but also of the internationally-recognized legitimate acts of defense by an occupied population against the occupying military force — in this case, the Israeli army.

Repeatedly, the Hamas leadership has declared, both pre- and post- the January elections, the group’s willingness to renounce violence against Israel, as soon as Israel is prepared to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories [ie. its international obligation under UN Security Council Resolution 242], to dismantle its settlements in the Palestinian territories, which are illegal according International Law [see also UN-Security Council Resolution 1979], to dismantle the Wall, which is being built across occupied Palestinian territories [see verdict of the International Court of Justice dated 9-7-2004], and its acknowledgement of the internationally-recognized right of return for Palestinian refugees, a right which is confirmed by General Assembly Resolution 194.

All of the Hamas movement’s demands are based on International Law, confirmed by the above-named United Nations resolutions, and are therefore absolutely legitimate demands that should be recognized as such by the international community.

What is striking in this particular case, however, is that the American-European boycotting goverments are demanding that Hamas completely disarm on the one hand, while on the other hand, making no clear demands on Israel regarding the implementation of the above mentioned UN resolutions, which were voted for by many of these same American-European States.

Also this double standard is being applied in regard to Israeli and Palestinian violence.

Although the condemnation of suicide-attacks against Israeli civilians is correct and justified, there is however a strong undervaluation of the serious character of the Israeli human rights violatons and war-crimes which have been committed by the Israeli army since the beginning of the occupation in 1967 (and before).

It is also significant to mention that from EU-side there is no real political pressure on Israel to end the occupation and withdraw from the Palestinian territories.  Seen from that perspective, the American-European criticism against Hamas lacks moral credibility, as the boycotting nations are choosing to call for the enforcement of international law on a very selective basis.  Why should international human rights standards only apply to Hamas?  Why should they not apply to Israel as well?

The false international perception of Hamas ideology

It is a common standard in nearly all American-European newsmedia, as well in statements of politicians, to mention repeatedly that the Hamas ideology is associated with the “destruction” of the State of Israel.

In the context in which this statement is made, it is almost always implied that by calling for Israel’s “destruction”, Hamas intends to expel the Jewish-Israeli inhabitants out of the present Israel or even to kill them.

Before trying to unmask this stubborn American-European assumption I want to throw some light on the political history of the Hamas

Hamas [abbreviation of Harakat al-muqâwama al-islâmiyya, which means islamic resistanc emovement] was founded in 1987 as a religious-nationalistic resistance-organisation with Sheikh Ahmed Yassin as the spiritual leader.  He was killed in an Israeli airstrike in March 2004, which, being an extra-judicial execution, not only killed him but also killed 7 other innocent bystanders.

However, since the beginning of the eighties, there was a predecessor of Hamas, also under the leadership of Sheikh Yassin, which was mainly an islamic revival movement, mostly directed toward social and charitable goals.

Although that movement of course opposed the Israeli occupation, it did not promote violent resistance, since the group considered the Israeli occupation as a punishment of God because of the lack of religious devotion in Palestine.

In other words, this revival-movement was meant to make the Palestinian population return to the basics of Islam, as explained by the movement, in their daily life.

This revivalist-ideological movement was supported financially by Israel, supposedly as a ‘counterbalance’ to the Palestine Liberation Organization, led by Yasser Arafat, which was, in combination with the al-Fatah organization, the most powerful resistance movement against the Israeli occupation at that time.

Even when the official Hamas organization was founded in 1987, initially there was no real resistance against the occupation, despite the anti-zionistic Charterof the group, written in 1988.

Only in the post-Oslo era (1993 on) did the Hamas organization became part of the resistance, resulting in military attacks against the Israeli occupation army, and, beginning in 1994, in suicide-attacks against Israeli civilians.  The immediate cause of the first suicide-attack was the 1994 massacre by the Jewish-Israeli extreme-rightwing terrorist, Dr. Baruch Goldstein, on 29 Palestinians who were praying Palestinians in the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.

The Hamas Charter

An analysis of the Hamas Charter, that consists of 36 articles, reveals that the purpose of the group is to form a religious resistance against the Israeli occupation, as well as advocating for the dismantlement of the zionistic State of Israel, to be replaced by an Islamic Palestinian State with equal rights for all the inhabitants and religious freedom regarding Jews and Christians.

Seen from this perspective, the Charter has an anti-colonialistic character, because of its fundamental criticism of the colonial character of the foundation of the State of Israel in historical Palestine, first as a colony of the Turkish-Ottoman Empire, and after World War I, a British Mandate-area.

Following the plans of the European zionist movement, the foundation of a “Jewish” State in historical Palestine took place in 1948, based on UN General Assembly Resolution 181, passed in 1947, which supported the division of Palestine into a Jewish and an Arab part.  The Resolution was made without any consultation of the indigenous Palestinian population, despite the fact that the Palestinians, along with the surrounding Arab states, had proposed at that time an alternative plan that would allow for Jewish immigration into Palestine without the separation of the state into “Jewish” and “Arab” areas, but that alternative was rejected by the United Nations, under pressure from the European Zionist movement.

It is of importance to mention here, that the objections of the Palestinians to Resolution 181 were not against the settlement of Jewish people in Palestine, but against the division of their country in two different States.

Apart from that, the Hamas movement is within its rights under international law to challenge the existence of the Zionist State of Israel in its current form, as the State of Israel in its current form is, at its basis, discriminatory against non-Jews.

One of the most striking examples of the discriminatory basis of the State of Israel is the fact that any Jewish man, woman or child in the world has the right to settle in Israel, while the internationally-recognized right of return of the Palestinian descendants of the 750,000 Palestinians expelled by Zionist militias in 1948, a right confirmed in General Assembly Resolution 194, passed in 1948, is not acknowledged by Israel.

The statements often made by the American-European politicians and newsmedia that Hamas wants to expel or even kill the Israeli-Jewish inhabitants of Israel is made based on a false reading of the Hamas Charter.

Although in the Charter, reference is made to “the Jews”, a thorough reading makes clear that this is a reference to the Israeli zionist system and the Israeli occupation, and not to the Jews as an ethnic-religious group.  In Hamas bulletins, the group never refers to “the Jews” as such, but rather to the “zionist enemy” or the “zionist entity” – a reference to the political basis of the state of Israel, _not_ to Jewish people as an ethnic or religious group.

Suicide-attacks

In any mention of Hamas in the American-European press, emphasis is always made on the suicide-attacks against Israeli civilians for which Hamas bears responsibility.  It is evident that suicide-attacks are not only inhuman, they are also serious violations of International Humanitarian Law, which states that in any military conflict a clear distinction must be made between combatants [soldiers or fighters] and non-combatants [civilians].

From that point of view it is completely right that those attacks are being severely condemned by the International Community.

But it is important to realize that the cause of those suicide-attacks are rooted in the Israeli occupation of all Palestinian land since 1967.  The attacks began in 1994 after nearly thirty years of continuous oppression, humiliation and unpunished war crimes by Israeli forces in Palestine with no international enforcement of United Nations Resolutions that both recognized and condemned the Israeli actions and war crimes.

Still, this is no justification whatsoever for any resistance group to also commit war crimes.  According to International Law it is illegal to respond to a violation of one’s human rights by committing a reciprocal violation, even in regard to an occupation.

On the other hand, any military action against an occupation army is considered legitimate resistance by an occupied population against the occupying power.  However, there is little international attention to the fact that an important part of Hamas’ strategy is also the use of this legitimate resistance method.

It is worth noting that Israel, as well as the USA, qualify those military attacks against the occupation army as ‘terrorist acts’, ignoring the internationally-recognized legitimacy of such acts.

Recently, Mr. Solana, Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union, has confirmed the right of resistance against a foreign occupation.

The Israeli extrajudicial assassination policy

One policy of Israel that is both morally reprehensible and a violation of international law is the policy of extrajudicial assassinations of the leaders and activists of the Palestinian resistance movements like Hamas.

These assassinations began in the beginning of the 1970s and have continued until the present day.  Each successive Israeli government that has been elected has continued the policy unquestioningly.

Israeli assassinations of suspected Palestinian resistance fighters and leaders have taken a number of forms: the frontal shootings of cars, the exploding of mobile telephones and the current method: ‘assassination-by-missile’ – airstrikes by Israeli warplanes onto suspected cars or homes, regardless of whether the target is in a crowded refugee-camp, in a flat full of civilian apartments, or in a marketplace.  All of these have been the sites of missile strikes by Israeli forces in attempted extrajudicial assassinations.

These attacks are severe violations of International Law, which states that every human being has a right on a fair and independent trial.

In the extrajudicial assassinations, which are still being carried out by Israeli forces on a nearly-daily basis, in many cases civilian bystanders are also killed.

In those cases, the extrajudicial assassinations become not just violations of international law, but war crimes.  The fact that civilians are nearly always present at the assassination sites [streets, market-places, cars, apartments and refugee-camps] leads to a high probability of civilians being killed – this is a direct violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention’s Principle of Proportionality, and thus is considered internationally to be a war crime.

However, despite the high humanitarian risk for the civilian population, the current Israeli Prime Minister Olmert has made clear that those airstrikes are to be continued, despite the continuous loss of Palestinian civilian lives.

It is a striking example of Western ‘selective indignation’ that this Israeli policy of extrajudicial assassinations, which nearly always leads to civilian casualties, is not criticized as harshly as Hamas’ incitement toward suicide-attacks.

No sanctions have been taken against Israel in regard with thosde extrajudicial executions, as well the indiscriminate military attacks on Gaza.  But all financial assistance has been cut to the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority.

Regarding this issue, Israel, being the occupying country, bears the lion’s share in the escalation of the present conflict.  The EU, which claims to consider Palestinian humanitarian concerns in its policies, must be held accountable for its hypocritical double standard in the enforcement of international law in this conflict.

Social-charitable Hamas-activities

One aspect of Hamas’ activities that has long been undervalued internationally is the fact that Hamas has been engaging in social and charitable activities on behalf of the most impoverished in the two Palestinian territories, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.  Ironically, by doing this, Hamas is fulfilling the international-judicial obligation of the Israeli occupying power to take care of the humanitarian needs of the occupied Palestinian population – an obligation that Israel has failed to fulfill.

According one of the most important articles of the 4th Geneva Convention, an occupying power is responsible for the safety, well-being and the welfare of the occupied population, a population which, while under occupation, become “protected persons” – a class of people that have special rights under international law.

The impoverished situation of the Palestinian population is being intensified each day by the Israeli military attacks in Gaza and the West-Bank, which have also resulted in serious human rights violations and war crimes.

When such Israeli measures were taken in the past, Hamas has increased its efforts to support the most impoverished part of the population.  Donors for the projects, which include schools, hospitals and daycare centers, have come from all over the world, but mainly from the Arab world.  Hamas gained a reputation as a focused and devoted group that did not steal money for themselves and their own enrichment (as was the reputation of the ruling Fateh party), but dedicated funding to numerous projects that benefited the least-well-off of the Palestinian society.

Of course, this led to a great popularity of Hamas and the striking outcome of the elections.

Ongoing Israeli violations

In both Gaza and the West Bank, massive home demolitions of Palestinian homes have been carried out by Israeli forces, which is forbidden according to article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Also, in Gaza especially, the border with Israel is often completely closed, causing tens of thousands of Palestinians who work in Israel to lose their jobs — their only means of livelihood.

In July and August 2006, Israeli forces have not only closed the border with Gaza, but also bombed parts of the infrastructure [bridges and main roads], which caused considerable damage and has cut off the water and electricity supply for the entire population.  This was done, according to Israel, as a retaliatory measure for the abduction and imprisonment of an Israeli soldier by Palestinian resistance fighters on June 25th.

Retaliatory measures such as these, as collective punishment of an entire population, are serious breaches of International Law.  In particular, article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention forbids any collective punishment.

Epilogue:

In this article I’ve tried to make clear, that not only is the American-European freezing of the financial help to the Palestinian Authority is immoral, because it is at the cost of the impoverished Palestinian population, it is also a double standard to condemn the violence of Hamas, while not condemning the ongoing violence of the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

No resistance organisation in the world can be expected to lay down their arms while the occupation and oppression they are resisting is allowed to continue in the most extreme way.

However, it must also be noted that a resistance movement must also adhere to its obligations according to International Law.

The international community, particularly the European-American nations that have chosen to boycott the Hamas-led Palestinian government, must respect the stand taken by Hamas against the Israeli occupation and settlement expansion policy, as well as Hamas’ fundamental resistance against the zionistic State-model of Israel.  This must not be done by closing our eyes to the serious human rights violations of the group by the part it has played in suicide-attacks against Israeli civilians, but neither can we close our eyes to the ongoing human rights violations by Israel.

I sincerely hope that Hamas will not yield to the growing American-European political pressure to make the Israeli occupation and settlements policy points of negotiation.

But if Hamas really wants to be respected internationally, the group must refrain from attacks on Israeli civilians.

Every human being, whether Palestinian or Israeli, has the right on the same humane treatment and in my opinion, even living under an occupation as severe as the Israeli occupation of Palestine does not give a person or group the right to violate the rights of their occupiers.

Astrid Essed
Amsterdam
The Netherlands

“Power in defense of freedom is greater than power on behalf of tyranny and oppression.”
-Malcolm X

Sources:

Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
http://www.unhchr.ch/udhr/lang/eng.htm

The 3th Geneva Convention, relative to the treatment of prisoners of war:
http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/7c4d08d9b287a42141256739003e636b/6fef854a3517b75ac125641e004a9e68

The 4th Geneva Convention, relative to the protections of civilian persons in time of war:
http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/7c4d08d9b287a42141256739003e636b/6756482d86146898c125641e004aa3c5

http://www.palestinecenter.org/cpap/documents/charter.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamas

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article4837.shtml

http://www.reliefweb.int/library/documents/2006/ocha-opt-11apr.pdf

Israeli human rights violations:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/06/29/isrlpa13662.htm

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/06/20/israb13595.htm

http://hrw.org/reports/2005/iopt0605/

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/22/isrlpa12345.htm

Hamas human rights violations:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/06/09/isrlpa11106.htm

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/01/30/isrlpa12549.htm

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/01/29/isrlpa12543.htm

Israeli discriminatory measures against Palestinian-Arab children in the Israeli education-system:

http://hrw.org/reports/2001/israel2/JILPfinal.pdf

Israeli discriminatory laws:

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/05/23/isrlpa11000.htm

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/05/23/isrlpa11003.htm

SEE ALSO

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NOTE 4/RESISTANCE!

[4]
SEE NOTE 3

Reacties uitgeschakeld voor NOTE 4/RESISTANCE!

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