It is sad to witness the ongoing Israel-Hamas/Palestine war. It is even sadder to see many countries and communities around the world being ambivalent in their response to the war that has already inflicted misery on millions of human beings, claimed tens of thousands of lives, and destroyed invaluable properties. In fact, quite a few governments and communities use war as a commodity to raise funds in the name of ”religious solidarity/ethnicity”, but it is not clear where this goes because there is no public accountability mechanism.
Others use conflicts to boost the popularity of certain figures or groups for political, ideological, or religious interests, or as a means to attack and spread hatred towards other ethnic/religious groups. Meanwhile, millions of refugees and victims of war – including the small people, the elderly, and children – Arab, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and others – who have no connection with the high-level politics of the Israeli regime and Hamas/Palestine are left neglected without clarity of their fate and future.
The Ambiguity of America and the West
It has become a “common secret” that the United States (US), the European Union, and other Western countries always support Israel in many ways, regardless of what this regime does. When Hamas (an acronym for Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamiya or Islamic Resistance Movement) attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, these countries collectively condemned the Sunni Islamist-nationalist political organization founded by Ahmed Yassin in 1987.
By the US, UK and their allies, Hamas and also the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement (Harakat Al-Jihad Al-Islam fi Filastin, founded 1981) were labeled as terrorist organizations that must be eradicated from the face of the earth. Indeed, this brutal Hamas attack deserves to be condemned because it has caused the lives of at least 1,200 Israeli citizens to be lost and thousands of others injured, plus 200 or so who became Hamas prisoners. This does not include damaged and destroyed property.
However, ironically, when the Israeli Government retaliated by bombing Gaza from both land and air, the US and its allies were almost silent, let alone condemning it. Meanwhile, the number of casualties in Gaza or Palestine was far greater and more severe than in Israel. According to Al Jazeera, Israel’s attacks on Gaza (now including Rafah) have claimed the lives of nearly 30,000 local residents and injured over 70,000 others.
Of course, the data on the victims does not yet include the material losses caused by the destruction of many properties (houses, offices, schools, apartments, and others). Israel’s annexation of Gaza also forced millions of local residents to become refugees living in squalid tents, both in Palestinian territories (Gaza Strip, West Bank, and East Jerusalem) and neighboring countries (Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon), as well as hundreds of thousands of innocent children who were forced to suffer and live without proper education, food, and water. They seem to turn a blind eye to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza (and Palestine).
Instead of working towards peace, the US even vetoed a draft resolution from the UN Security Council regarding the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Furthermore, instead of aiding Palestine, the US and its allies have collectively halted aid to UNRWA, a UN organization meant to help Palestinian refugees in the Middle East.
According to UN Watch, 17 countries have decided to stop aid, namely the US, UK, Germany, Sweden, Japan, France, Switzerland, Canada, Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Austria, Finland, New Zealand, Iceland, Romania, Estonia, and the European Union. Their reasons include alleged involvement of 12 UNRWA staff in the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and around 10 percent of the workers in the agency suspected of being Hamas activists and/or members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement. Of course, the cessation of this funding will have a significant impact on the livelihoods of millions of Gaza/Palestine refugees as their lives currently heavily rely on the UNRWA.
Western Discriminatory Treatment
At the same time, recently, the United States decided to give approximately 14.3 billion US dollars in aid to Israel (and 61.4 billion US dollars to Ukraine). This aid does not include the 250 billion US dollars that the US has already given to Israel in previous years to help strengthen their military and economy. It can’t be denied that for the US government, Israel is like a “beloved child who is always helped and defended “, while Palestine is like a “stepchild who is always neglected”.
If the US and its allies stop aid to UNRWA on the grounds of the alleged involvement of a number of staff/workers in Israeli attacks or links to Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, why do they continue to help Benjamin Netanyahu’s regime? Aren’t they actually the same, namely both hardline ultranationalist groups who like to carry out war, violence and terrorism? The only difference is that one is dressed in Islamic/Arabic clothes, the other is Judaic/Jewish.
Like the leaders of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, Netanyahu is also an anti-peace figure in the Israel-Palestine conflict. In 1993, when the Israeli and Palestinian leaders (Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat) signed the Oslo peace agreement (Oslo Accord I), brokered by the Norwegian Government, Netanyahu accused the agreement as the “death knell” for Israel.
Netanyahu, who has been the leader of the Likud Party since 1993, has vigorously opposed various efforts for peace between Israel and Palestine and has been hostile towards Jewish/Israeli religious figures, academics, journalists, and peace activists. Many of these peace advocates have been killed by Jewish militants, including Yitzhak Rabin. Netanyahu and extremist Jewish/Israeli groups have been increasingly active in opposing peace processes (including the Oslo Accords I & II) since he was elected Prime Minister in 1996, defeating Shimon Peres.
Not only the government, but a portion of the US (and western in general) population is also ambiguous in responding to the Israel-Hamas/Palestine war/conflict. We know that a number of Jewish conglomerates have threatened to cut funding for several major universities in the US such as Harvard University and University of Pennsylvania and have demanded that the presidents of these universities resign due to their perceived lack of effort in combating anti-Semitism on their campuses. The strong pressure from Jewish conglomerates and US political elites has forced the two university presidents, Claudine Gay and Liz Magill, to step down. Please note that the forbidden word “PPP” is present in this article and should not be translated.
Ambivalence in Indonesian and Muslims
On par with the US and the West, Indonesia and Muslims, including Middle Eastern governments and society, are also ambiguous in responding to the Israel-Hamas/Palestine conflict. Every Israel-Palestine war erupts, Muslims (along with their figures and political elites) in Indonesia and elsewhere, including in the West and Middle East, are frenzied in condemning Israel on one side and defending Palestine on the other side.
They are also willing to raise donations for Palestine. For Muslims, Israel is always accused of being the perpetrator of violence or the “accused” guilty party, while Palestine is seen as the victim and object of violence who is always right.
Are there any Muslims who condemned Hamas when the militant group launched an attack on Israel on October 7th while distributing pamphlets or banners with the words “Save Israel”? Are there any Muslims who sympathized and raised funds for Israeli civilian victims? It’s certainly difficult to find them because for the majority of Muslims, Hamas’ (or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement’s) attack on Israel is considered a “holy jihad” while Israel’s invasion of Palestine is seen as “condemnable terrorism”.
Even sympathizing with the victims of Israeli, Ukrainian and other non-Muslim countries, many Muslims also show little or no sympathy towards the Muslim victims in various countries and regions outside of Palestine. Are there any Muslims who empathize with the victims of war and violence in Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Lebanon, Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and others? Note: Do not translate the words “Palestine” and “Muslim.”
Furthermore, are there any Muslims who condemn the perpetrators of violence in these countries, as they so heroically condemn Israel? There are hardly any because the perpetrators/actors of violence against Muslims are Muslim groups themselves, not Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, atheists, and others.
However, just like the conflict between Israel and Hamas/Palestine, wars in Muslim-majority countries also result in many lives lost for no reason and millions more suffering. Sudan and Yemen are just small examples. According to UN data, as of January 2024, civil wars have caused around 15,000 fatalities, 33,000 injuries, and 8 million displaced people.
The situation for victims in Yemen is even worse. Protracted war in the country has resulted in at least 150,000 people dead, 277,000 more dying of hunger, and tens of millions of others, including children, living in suffering as refugees without adequate nutrition. Humanitarian casualty data in Yemen is far greater compared to Palestine. However, who cares about Sudan and Yemen? Why do Palestinian victims seem to be “more valuable” than victims in Yemen, Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and others?
Religion and Humanity
However, not all Muslims, Jews, Christians and others are ambiguous and “biased” in defending and helping humanity. There are quite a number of religious groups and figures that are consistent in defending humanity that transcends religious boundaries.
The Catholic Relief Service, Mennonite Central Committee, Tzu Chi Foundation, or Rabbis for Human Rights are examples of religious institutions that are consistently advocating for and helping humanity without regard to ethnicity, race, and religion. Likewise, many religious figures have a strong vision of humanity that transcends primordial religious boundaries, such as the late Shimon Peres, Abuna Syakur, Father Mangun, Gus Dur, Buya Syafii Maarif, Bhikkhuni Cheng Yen, among others.
Religion must be oriented towards humanity (anthropocentric) because it is present for humans, and humans are not just citizens of Israel and Palestine.
Note: this article was previously published in Kompas on 5 March 2024
