A free Palestine is the moral cause of the 21st century.
Four-year-old Samih Ijneid is the first victim of Israel after a ceasefire agreement with Hamas; an Israeli tank shell destroyed the house where he lived in the Gaza Strip; young people around the world declare their love for Gaza; victims of bombings and a situation comparable to South African apartheid, Palestinians gain global solidarity and support from countries like Brazil; in the PLO's letter of thanks, it was highlighted that the country "sent a message to many members of the international community that the responsibility to protect an occupied people goes beyond mere declarations"; the right side of history.
247 - The death of a 4-year-old Palestinian boy, struck by an Israeli tank shell, is the first recorded since the start of the humanitarian truce granted by Israel over the weekend in the Gaza Strip, following pressure from around the world. Little Samih Ijneid died along with three other people, likely from his family, when the house where he lived in Jabaliya was destroyed by the mortar.
With 1.054 Palestinian deaths up to the ceasefire in effect, and 46 Israeli army casualties, the massacre in the Gaza Strip has globally isolated the Zionist government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Shown in all its details through images and texts that shocked the world in real time, the disproportionate attack that indiscriminately targeted children and the civilian population elicited all the known diplomatic reactions – including a phone call from US President Barack Obama to Netanyahu, requesting a halt to the killing, which was unsustainable from a humanitarian, moral, and ethical standpoint.
Previously, Brazil had strongly condemned the motives and means used by Israel to respond to coexistence problems in the pressured Gaza Strip and its borders, which, moreover, were advanced through the use of force. Following the Brazilian statement and the intensification of Israeli attacks, the UN Security Council, which had been examining the matter, approved a request for a "lasting" truce in Gaza, based on an initiative from Egypt, according to which the end of hostilities opens the way for negotiations on the future of Gaza, including the opening of the territory's borders. The request also asks that the pause in fighting occur in light of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which is expected to begin in the coming days, and extend beyond that.
But more than diplomats can do, amidst American ambiguity after the declaration and the immediate solidarity offered by Brazil, it is among the population of different countries that the cause of the State of Palestine is gaining expression. The Palestinian flag is already being seen in the hands, on the clothes, and on the painted faces of citizens of different nationalities. In Paris, over the weekend, amidst violent demonstrations, such as acts of vandalism marked by the burning of Israeli flags, there was also room for peaceful protest.
Many young people painted their faces the red, white, black, and green colors that unite the Palestinian people under their flag. The discussion about the Palestinians' right to have their own state – wherever it may be – has once again spilled out of the halls of the UN – whose Security Council condemned Israel – to take to the streets and hearts of the world's major cities. This war, the madman Netanyahu will never win.