Israel and its far-right racist government continue their systematic slaughter of Palestinians daily, for over 500 days now, without any meaningful international intervention. The world remains largely indifferent, issuing nothing but timid statements that do nothing to protect Palestinians or stop the ongoing massacre. As the bloodshed escalates in the West Bank—following the mass killing and destruction in Gaza—the question remains: why is there no serious action to halt this atrocity?
As Palestinians, we see this silence as nothing but global hypocrisy, a repetition of history, a modern-day Nakba. When Zionist militias—many of which evolved into today’s Israeli leadership—massacred and expelled Palestinians in 1948, the world claimed ignorance. Today, however, Israel’s crimes unfold before the entire world, broadcast live through media outlets. Yet, international inaction persists. Why this silence? Why this paralysis from the international community? Why grant the perpetrators more time to complete their crime? Does this not make the world complicit in the massacre?
For the first time, I write not just as a journalist, but as a Palestinian father who lives in constant fear of the unknown. Every night, I sleep and wake up with a terrifying question haunting every Palestinian parent: what will happen to our innocent children? Will they be killed like the children of Gaza? Will they be slaughtered by settler militias? Will they be hunted down and forced into exile in distant deserts, just as their ancestors were expelled during the Nakba of 1948 by the same extremist groups that carried out massacres like Deir Yassin? These groups are now preparing for new atrocities, aiming to commit what could be the largest mass killings of the modern era.
How can the world remain silent while children are being killed, while thousands of innocent people perish, while homes are demolished, and while entire neighborhoods are reduced to rubble?
Why does the world tolerate Israel’s deliberate starvation, relentless persecution, systematic killings, mass displacement, the fragmentation of Palestinian cities, border closures, military raids, and the daily humiliation of Palestinians?
Where is the so-called civilized Western world? Where is Europe—the very continent that endured wars, experienced the horrors of human rights violations, and witnessed mass displacement? How can Europe stand by in silence while genocide unfolds in Palestine? Has it become so subservient to U.S. policies that it can no longer speak out for justice?
Where are China and Russia, nations that claim to champion the right of people to self-determination? Does the Palestinian people’s suffering not matter because they possess no oil or resources of economic value to these global powers? Have they abandoned Palestine to face the American Israeli war machine alone?
Finally, I won’t even ask about the Arab world, because the answer is already known. Some have chosen normalization, others are racing toward it, while the Arab people themselves remain powerless in the face of this betrayal.
The biggest and final question is for world leaders: is your silence driven by fear of America and its president, a man whose reckless policies have stripped the U.S. of any credibility on human rights, freedom, and democracy? Or is this silence an act of complicity in the slaughter of Palestinians? Does the world truly lack the courage to stand for justice, dignity, and basic human rights?
This is a question directed at the leaders of France, China, Russia, and the nations of Latin America. Why are you silent? Stop the massacre. Stop the killing and forced displacement of the Palestinian people.
