OPINION | An Introduction to Palestine
Photo Credit: Mussa Qawasma/Reuters via Al Jazeera
Palestine has been occupied by the Israeli government for decades. Innocent civilians have been the victims of ethnic cleansing, bombings, and incarceration. For 75 years, this is the injustice Palestine has been facing, and yet, western media still calls the horrors Palestinians face on a day to day basis a conflict between Palestine and Israel. Those who speak out against Israel are called antisemitic and are silenced. So what’s really happening in Palestine?
Palestine has been occupied since 1948, when the Nakba happened, a horrible event of ethnic cleansing that almost completely destroyed Palestine in the creation of the State of Israel. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians were forced out of their homeland, and between 1947 and 1949, Al Jazeera reports that 15 thousand Palestinian men, women, and children were killed. The Nakba is commemorated every year on May 15 as a way to protest Israeli oppression.
The Nakba was not the end of the injustice and oppression faced by Palestinians, it was only the beginning. In March and April of 2023, Israeli forces invaded and brutally attacked Muslims practicing in Al-Aqsa in the holy month of Ramadan on the Islamic calendar. The OHCHR reports that Israeli forces injured 31 Palestinians on Apr. 5 when Israeli forces attacked the mosque with stun grenades, tear gas and shot rounds of sponge-tipped bullets while other soldiers beat worshippers. Similar invasions, though less violent, continued throughout the rest of Ramadan, making Palestinian Muslims feel uneasy in the sacred mosque. In addition, these events are not individual occurrences, with similar raids happening in 2022, 2021 and almost every year prior up to 1948.
In 2023 alone, the death toll of Palestinians this year has risen to over 155 people dead, including 36 children, with many more injured. This is due to the raids of Masjid Al-Aqsa, the occupation and ethnic cleansing in Palestine, spontaneous killings, and airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. The airstrikes on May 2 were targeted at the Islamic Jihad group and killed three of Jihad’s leaders and 10 civilians, including children, states The New York Times.
The crimes committed by the Israeli government in recent years have only added to the flame of Palestinians alike protesting and rebelling against Israeli forces. In 2018, 17-year-old Ahed Tamimi was freed after spending eight months in an Israeli prison for slapping two Israeli soldiers. She became an icon in the Palestinian resistance movement and has inspired young people everywhere to stand up against oppression. Tamimi stated, “The resistance continues until the occupation ends.” And so it has.
Today, many Palestinians share their experiences and speak out against Israel through social media. Influencers like Subhi (@sbeih.jpg) and Noura Erakat (@nouraerakat) use their Instagram platforms to educate others and share their personal experiences while also creating fun content for anyone to enjoy. These accounts are great for anyone hoping to learn more and get involved in the pro-Palestine movement, and showcase Palestinian perspectives and Palestinian excellence. Western media often portrays Palestinians as an equal villain to Israel, or show them as weak and helpless, when that is simply not the case.
Although Palestinian creators are finally getting the recognition they deserve, and the UN has officially commemorated the Nakba for the first time, there is still plenty of work to do to further the cause of the Palestine movement. Western media needs to make a huge shift from the current violent narrative of Palestine and reset how they portray Palestine and Israel’s conflicts, which are more than just conflicts.
Palestinians are not to blame for the oppression and violence that they have faced for decades, and that needs to be shown by the media we see in North America. Perhaps this is even the first time you’re hearing about anything that’s happened in Palestine in the past 75 years, and that’s alright, but it should not be acceptable any longer. To this day, Palestinians are being forcibly removed from their homes, shoved into refugee camps, and killed or incarcerated. Middle East Eye states that on June 1 a three-year-old boy was shot and killed in the West Bank. The injustice has not stopped, but Palestine hasn’t either.