LETTERS: Today, May 15, 2020 marks the 72nd anniversary of the Nakba, the grave catastrophe of 1948 in which Zionist militant forces invaded and destroyed more than 500 Palestinian villages through massacre and intimidation, causing not less than 700,000 Palestinians to become refugees. It is an account of human tragedy unmatched in recent times, namely the destruction of families, a civilization, culture and identity.
The Palestinian people, who do not only consist of Muslims but members of all of the three great Abrahamic religions namely Judaism, Christianity and Islam were internally displaced as a result of barbaric and deadly attacks by terrorist groups such as Irgun and Haganah, committed on behalf of the belligerent Zionist regime and had been forced to flee their lands upon the illegal formation of Israel and the absorption of these terror groups into the Israeli army with tacit support from Western powers at the time.
This has resulted in the near complete annihilation of what had once been a thriving multi-religious and in some sense multi-racial population living in peace and harmony. The suffering of the Palestinians until today is indeed a problem impacting all of humanity, from Jewish to Christian and from Hindu to Buddhist.
On this day, our hearts go out to all the Palestinians and we stand in solidarity with them in mourning the Nakba of 1948 and we support their resistance of the Israeli occupation of historic Palestine. We strongly condemn the 1967 territorial expansion of the illegal Zionist entity incorporating East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip which continues to facilitate the expansion of the Zionist colonial agenda.
We note that more recent events give us reason to be all the more alarmed as this agenda has been renewed with vigorous support from the likes of US President Donald Trump who has, with input and assistance from his son-in-law and unabashed Zionist ideologue Jared Kushner, formulated one of the most ludicrous and logic defying proposals for peace between Palestine and the Zionists ever to be presented before the world in the history of the Middle East conflict, that of the so-called "Deal of the Century" which all but legalises the Zionist expansion project leaving nothing worthwhile for Palestinians in terms of land or livelihood.
This latest travesty comes on the heels of the Trump administration's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel as well as move the American embassy there as well as plans to recognise the Golan Heights as part of the illegally created Zionist state. Such initiatives have been all but condemned by the vast majority of world leaders, including those of other great powers, and the international community acting via the United Nations has rightly condemned these recent developments and rejected them in their entirety.
It is also noteworthy that an Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) study by Israeli scholars Itai Brun and Amos Yadlin both of the Tel Aviv University have concluded that unilateral annexation of Palestinian land that is being supported by the current Trump administration risks further alienation of Israel in the eyes of the international community and would prevent future negotiations.
We are extremely appalled to learn that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has chosen to greenlight the proposed annexation nonetheless and wholly condemn the distortions and lies that the pro-Israel lobby has disseminated through global media as a result of Palestinian resolve resisting these acts, as well as their past resistance of other evils stemming from the illegal occupation of their land by the Zionists.
This has led to widespread stereotyping of Muslims, Islamophobia and ignorance in the world community concerning the truth of the conflict. Such a distortion of their true aims in the eyes of the world community must not be permitted to continue, and truth seekers and upholders of universal human rights and justice from all walks of life must band together to tell the world what is truly happening in the holy land and how it impacts them from the many to the few, and regardless whether Christian, Muslim or Jew.
It is almost impossible to speak about the Nakba without speaking about taking responsibility and repairing the historical injustice that was committed against the Palestinian people. Such repair must emphasise first and foremost the recognition of the rights of Palestinians to return. We stand in solidarity with all Palestinians in their struggle for freedom and self-determination.
We call upon the Zionist regime to cease their relentless persecution of Palestinians that is now in its seventh decade and recognise and acknowledge their right to life, liberty and property by restoring their right to return and settle in historic Palestine, as well as allow the functioning of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the wishes of the international community reflected in countless United Nations General Assembly and Security Council resolutions.
We also call upon the Trump administration to rescind their unjustifiable and unsustainable support for the brutal and genocidal policies of the Israeli regime, and demand Israel account for its actions before the global community of nations.
ROMIL SHAMSUDIN
DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY
CENTRE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY (CENTHRA)
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times