Partying As the Bullets Fly: The Absurdity Behind the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

While the United States celebrates the relocation of the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the Israeli army shot and murdered 58 Palestinians. Yesterday Israel celebrated its 70th anniversary while Palestinians commemorated the great tragedy of the Nakba, their violent displacement that to this day has not ended and has resulted in refugee camps outside Israeli territory and two separated enclaves where Palestinians struggle for survival under economic hardship.

Celebration

After 2000 years of persecution of Jews by European Christian nations any criticism of the state of Israel can easily seem out of place if not utterly hypocritical. Even when Israel employs tactics against Palestinians that are reminiscent of the very atrocities that Europeans committed against the Jewish diaspora in Europe, the specter of antisemitism always looms enough to ensure that any criticism against the state of Israel is guarded and couched in careful language. Of course, stronger than any remorse over past sins is the motivation to protect current investments and interests. No wonder, then, that Israel has had no better ally than the USA with its wealthy Jewish lobby.

Western nations have generally been in agreement that Israel has a tendency to strike too hard…