Bloodshed is still permeating Gaza, the occupied West Bank, and east Jerusalem as Palestinians continue suffering at the hands of Israeli actions.
Israel continues shelling Lebanon, Syria, and in Yemen, Israel, and the United States are trading fire with the Ansar-Allah (Houthi) resistance group. The Houthis are in the conflict in solidarity with Palestinians who are suffering a genocidal war by Israel, backed by America.
In addition, tensions and conflict in the Middle East continue to flare up as the U.S. changes leadership. The outgoing administration of President Joe Biden has been entrenched in the 15-month genocidal campaign, supplying Israel with funds and war ware.
In its final two weeks in power, the Biden administration signed off on an $8 billion weapons sale to Israel, that includes various munitions and air defense capabilities. Critics argue the package adds insult to injury toward the tens of thousands of Palestinians slaughtered in the war.
“Biden wants to cement his legacy as a supporter of genocide in the final days,” said Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CodePink, an anti-war group.
“His Secretary of State,(Antony) Blinken denies that there’s even a genocide going on, while they call what’s happening in Sudan a genocide,” she remarked.
Ms. Medea Benjamin was referring to a U.S. designation accusing the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), fighting a civil war since April 2023, of committing genocide.
A State Department statement on Jan. 7 said the groups:
- Systematically murdered men and boys—even infants—on an ethnic basis.
- Deliberately targeted women and girls from certain ethnic groups for rape and other forms of sexual violence.
- Targeted fleeing civilians and murdering innocent people escaping conflict.
- Prevented civilians from accessing lifesaving supplies.
“Based on this information, I have now concluded that members of the RSF and allied militias have committed genocide in Sudan,” said Mr. Blinken in a statement.
Conversely, the designation of Sudan was issued while the Biden administration continued to defend Israel and its leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, against similar accusations. Throughout the war, Mr. Blinken toted the administration’s line that Gaza is not experiencing genocide.
Ms. Medea Benjamin said it is “hypocritical,” and “duplicitous,” indicating a disregard for the lives of Palestinians.
In a Jan. 8 press briefing, National Security Spokesman John Kirby was asked about the contradiction by reporters but refused to concede that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people.
The U.S. rejected the accusations against Israel, notwithstanding international organizations and experts, including UN rapporteurs and the UN Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices, stating otherwise. Human rights organizations like Amnesty International and others have also issued reports about the Israeli atrocities against Palestinians.
Aid agencies argue that Israel has obstructed humanitarian aid from reaching people and accused Israel of collective punishment of the Palestinian population, causing death, serious injury and using starvation as a method of war.
Critics point out that Washington’s “all in” policy toward Israel reinforces its pattern of impunity and disregard for accountability that is costing lives.
Providing more weapons is counterproductive to Palestinians suffering in the face of a dire humanitarian crisis, Ms. Benjamin told The Final Call.
And now winter weather is exacerbating the situation. The head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) urged for immediate humanitarian access to Gaza as hypothermia-related deaths of newborns and infants began to be reported.
“Recent UN reports of babies dying from hypothermia in Gaza underscore the critical severity of the humanitarian crisis there,” Jagan Chapagain said. He serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Secretary General of the IFRC.
“I urgently reiterate my call to grant safe and unhindered access to humanitarians to let them provide life-saving assistance,” he said Jan. 2 on X. “Without safe access—children will freeze to death. Without safe access—families will starve. Without safe access—humanitarian workers can’t save lives,” Mr. Chapagain posted. He called on all parties to put an end to this human suffering now.
How could Mr. Biden, with so many people—mostly women and children—dead, starving, not having access to medicines, commit to more instruments of destruction, Ms. Medea Benjamin questioned.
“How could he think that he wants to send more weapons, more 500-pound bombs into that Israeli military, that has shown itself in these last 15 months to be absolutely brutal?” she said.
Within days of the announced arms sale, Palestinian casualties tipped 46,000 and counting. In Mr. Biden’s waning days in power, calls persist for Washington to reverse its policy of support for Israel, which has facilitated carnage, rights abuses and violations of international law.
Meanwhile as calls for accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide continue, U.S. lawmakers doubled down to protect Israeli leaders against arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Jan. 9 titled the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act (HR 23), to sanction the ICC in response to warrants on Mr. Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes. The bipartisan vote passed with 45 Democrats joining Republicans, though it faced criticism for potentially undermining international legal norms.
Ms. Medea Benjamin also said she is not hopeful about the possible state of affairs in the Middle East or elsewhere with the incoming administration of Donald Trump.
Eyebrows were raised when Mr. Trump asserted an “or else” posture that Israelis and others taken captive during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led incursion into illegal Israeli settlements must be returned by his January 20 inauguration. At the time 250 people were reportedly taken, and there are believed to be 100 still held in Gaza.
Mr. Trump made the comments on Jan. 7 responding to optimism expressed by Steve Witkoff, his special envoy to the Middle East, who said a hostage return and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas may happen by the timetable.
“I don’t want to hurt your negotiation,” said Mr. Trump, about the talks that also included mediators from Egypt and Qatar. “But if they’re not back by the time I get into office, all hell will break out in the Middle East, and it will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good, frankly, for anyone,” he insisted.
“On one hand, you can say that all hell has been breaking loose for the last 15 months, and Gaza is what hell looks like,” said Ms. Benjamin.
She said Gaza looks like an “apocalyptic situation” that could get worse. Things could worsen “if Trump thinks that he wants to help Israel bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities” or “give Israel the green light for taking over the West Bank,” she said.
Ms. Medea Benjamin emphasized that regardless of political affiliations, Americans are weary of continued wars and want resources redirected to domestic issues.
“Republican people, just like Democrats and independents … don’t want to keep these wars going,” reasoned Ms. Medea Benjamin. “They see the wildfires in California and say, why aren’t we spending more money on firefighters, [but] spending millions of dollars to fuel wars?” she said.